Northwest School Of Arts Performs AIDA 3/20-3/22

By: Mar. 12, 2009
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Students from Northwest School of the Arts will perform Aida March 20-22 at the Booth Playhouse in the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center. There are shows scheduled nightly Friday and Saturday (March 20-21) at 7:30 p.m. and afternoon matinees on Saturday and Sunday (Mar. 21-22) at 2 p.m. Tickets for the NWSA production of Aida are $15 and can be purchased through the Center's box office by phone at 704.372.1000 or via the internet at www.BlumenthalCenter.org.

The Tony® Award-winning musical, Aida, is a timeless story of love and the duty with music by Elton John and lyrics written by Tim Rice. This is the same team that brought audiences the Tony® Award winning The Lion King.

Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida is a story of forbidden and unrequited love. Aida (a Nubian princess), Radames (the leader of the Egyptian army that captures Aida), and Princess Amneris (the daughter of the dying Pharaoh), create the love struck trio that carries that audience to the exciting climax of the show. Once Aida is presented to Amneris as a gift by Radames, Aida and the princess begin to become friends despite the rivalries between their countries and their families. Radames, although betrothed to the Amneris, falls in love with Aida. The musical chronicles the trials and tribulations of love, humanity, friendship, and loyalty through the pop/rock stylings of Elton John's music and Tim Rice's lyrics. Aida will appeal to dance enthusiasts and theatre lovers alike, as Eddie Mabry's original choreography fuses African, Jazz and Rock styles to transport the audience back to Egypt. The production is directed by NWSA theatre teacher Corey Mitchell and musical theatre teacher Matt Hinson, part the same team that helmed last year's sensation Pippin.

Northwest School of the Arts is Charlotte-Mecklenburg's only arts magnet secondary school, where students follow the same academic requirements as other schools, but each student also receives ongoing, in-depth instruction in visual arts, drama, musical theatre, choral and instrumental music, or dance. A number of NWSA graduates have gone on to professional careers in the arts, including roles in Broadway musicals.

For more than a decade, students, teachers and administrators from NWSA and personnel from the Center and its Education Institute have created a complete, high quality, musical theater production in the Center's Booth Playhouse each spring. From auditions to curtain call, the annual Theatre Arts Education Institute Partnership production is a full-fledged professional theater learning experience for public school students. In addition to the visible performing roles on stage, the students participate fully in every aspect of the production, from building sets to choreographing dances, developing publicity materials to designing light and sound plans, selling tickets, ushering patrons to their seats, and raising the curtain on opening night. Former cast members in Northwest's performances at the Booth Theatre have gone on to perform in a long list of musicals on Broadway, including Wicked, The Color Purple, Jersey Boys, La Cage aux Folles, Sweet Charity, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Music Man, Rent, The Producers, and even Disney's Aida .

This partnership has grown from an extracurricular experience for students to one now fully integrated into the curriculum, and it is the first such public school-professional theater collaboration in the nation.. The annual partnership also provides a unique opportunity for underserved and low-income students, who typically could not attend cultural arts programs, to experience a quality live theater production through the benefit of our special low ticket prices for students.

The North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center serves the Carolinas as a leading cultural, entertainment and education provider. For more information, call 704-372-1000 or visit BlumenthalCenter.org. The Center receives operating support from the Arts & Science Council and the North Carolina Arts Council. The Center is also supported through the generous aid of its sponsors, including Presbyterian Hospital, The Official Healthcare Provider and U.S. Airways, Official Airline of Blumenthal Performing Arts Center.

March 20-22
Booth Playhouse (130 N. Tryon Street, Charlotte)
COST: $15
TIX/MORE INFO: BlumenthalCenter.org; 704-372-1000 or at the performing arts center box office in the Belk Theater lobby

 

 

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