Owen Olson, a Hudson High school graduate who will attend the Boston Conservatory of Music this fall, teaches music he wrote to students who are participating in the free musical “Lucette” set for August 3-5 at UW-River Falls. UWRF photo.

Musical at UW-River Falls strives to do more with less
 

Actors play multiple roles in production that offers new perspective on Paul Bunyan, environment
 

July 21, 2023 – Performers in the musical “Lucette” will have plenty of opportunities to stretch their acting and singing abilities when it is staged at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls August 3-5. 

The free production is an original work written by Hudson resident, author, and adjunct UWRF writing and literature instructor Marybeth Lorbiecki. It is written from the perspective of Lucette, the girlfriend of the mythical lumberjack Paul Bunyan and is based on Lorbiecki’s picture book “Bunyan’s Sweetheart.”

The musical is planned for 20 actors but is performed by about half that many plus Lorbiecki, meaning most performers play multiple characters. That shortfall isn’t a math error but is instead purposeful. 

“Everyone is doing double duty, including me,” Lorbiecki laughed, noting she plays three roles in the musical. “This is a play that is still being developed, and it is a learning experience for all of us.”

The musical is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 3, and Friday, Aug. 4. The Saturday, Aug. 5, showing is at 10:30 a.m. All performances are in the Blanche Davis Theatre in the Kleinpell Fine Arts building, 420 Cascade Ave., River Falls. The performances are free, but attendees are encouraged to make a goodwill offering to support the actors and musicians.

Besides Lorbiecki, the cast is composed of UW-River Falls first-year student Mary Rother, a UWRF stage and screen arts major from Hudson, and Hudson High School students Lauren Kromrey, AJ Lentz, Nicolas Soriano Murcia, Makayla Groer, Rylie Martineau, Chloie Schuh, Stella Burt and Sherman Holmstadt. UWRF students Sam Lewandowski, of Hudson, who graduated in May with a psychology degree; and Devon Sundt, a stage and screen arts major from Osceola who graduated in May, are stage managers and board operators. 

Those performing music for the production include Ben Weaver, Carter Close, Carissa Lewandowski, Jimmy Quiney, Shloke Jani, Cameron Waldal, Carl Vilwock and Laurel Bostrom. Owen Olson, a Hudson High school graduate who will attend the Boston Conservatory of Music this fall, wrote and is teaching the music for the production.

The production that attendees will see won’t be fully formed, Lorbiecki said, but is instead a stage testing workshop. Actors and actresses, including Lorbiecki, will wear little in terms of costumes, and stage props and setting will be less than normal. Those viewing the performance, however, will see the full story, she said. While the script is likely to be edited following the musical’s performance at UWRF, the plot is fully developed. 

The production offers opportunities for audience interaction, an aspect that lends not only heightened interest but also provides meaningful feedback that will help shape its final version, said Kathy Welch, lecturer in the UWRF Music, Stage and Screen Arts Department. 

“In this particular performance, the audience is our final collaborator,” Welch said.

Welch and Lorbiecki said it has been enjoyable to watch Olson work with students teaching them the original music he is conducting for the musical. They also have been impressed with cast members’ ability to adapt to performing multiple roles and learning on the fly. Lessons learned during the showing of the musical at UWRF will help shape future performances, including one in Edinburgh, Scotland, next year. 

Participating students said the musical provides them with opportunities to push themselves into new roles and learn to take risks. Along the way they are learning self-confidence, they said. 

Rother, the UWRF student actor, acknowledged she was “really freaked out” when she found out that she and others would learn multiple roles and new music on a tight timeline. But actors and musicians have come together well, she said. 

“We’ve had the opportunity to try out different roles and learn more about singing and acting,” Rother said. “To watch all of this come together feels really good.”

Lorbiecki and Welch agree. While teaching an evolving story and putting it to music in a compressed time frame can be a challenge, it also has been fun, they said. The production includes lessons to contemplate, they said. 

“We’re hoping that through this, people will think about why our environment matters, why trees matter, and why the way we treat each other is important,” Lorbiecki said. “Those are important issues for all of us.”