CSArts-SGV Musical Theatre Students to Present THE THREEPENNY OPERA

California School of the Arts - San Gabriel Valley (CSArts-SGV) students in the Musical Theatre Conservatory will present their rendition of Bertolt Brecht's "The Threepenny Opera." The play provides a satirical critique of capitalism and bourgeois society as main character Macheath, leader of a criminal gang, prepares to marry Polly Peachum, daughter of the "king of beggars." In this nearly century-old musical, Macheath and Polly's plans for a life together are thwarted by Polly's father who fears the marriage will ruin his begging business and tries to have Macheath arrested. The show provides a biting commentary on corruption, greed, and the hypocrisy of the seemingly respectable world.

"The Threepenny Opera" will kick off the Musical Theatre Conservatory's performances for the fall semester and will feature a cast and crew of 21 total students.

Typical of nearly all CSArts-SGV student performances, students in the Production & Design Conservatory are handling staging and lighting from backstage and in the booth, in addition to providing design elements.

William Lagos, the play's director, said "The Threepenny Opera" challenges CSArts-SGV student performers in two key ways.

"Brecht's theatrical aesthetic is called Epic theatre, which presents characters as archetypes of greater ideas instead of humans with rich interior lives. This is the opposite of 'slice of life' theatre that modern audiences are used to seeing; the audience can never forget that they are watching a play, completely removed from the conventions of the theatre that create a sense of verisimilitude," said Lagos. "This approach is a challenge to our cast, who are trained very specifically in enriching their interior lives to lend realism to characters. This approach is, in fact, the opposite; highly physical, amoral, and challenging for the viewer."

An additional challenge to the student cast is dialect training. To prepare for an entire performance in East London accents, CSArts-SGV voice instructor Mrs. Samaniego offered a master class on approaching this accent and attended multiple rehearsals to check on the cast's progress.