Footloose at Bellarine Theatre Company

Bellarine Theatre Company returns for it’s third season in Southern Ocean County with “Footloose”

Bellarine Theatre Company continues their tradition of bringing some of the area’s top young talent to the stage with Footloose, the onstage musical adaption of the hit 1984 movie. The film starred Kevin Bacon in a breakout performance as Ren McCormack and John Lithgow as Reverend Shaw Moore. It also featured Sarah Jessica Parker, Chris Penn, and Dianne Wiest. The film was a hit at the box office and resulted in a remake in 2011. The musical version of Footloose debuted on Broadway in 1998.

Footloose follows the story of Ren McCormack played by Robert Connelly, a big city teen who struggles to fit in when transplanted into a small town. Ren is smooth, cool, and sarcastic, attributes that did him well in Chicago but win him no favors in rural Bomont. He instantly butts heads with the adults in town who are set on their ways, including an ordinance that bans dancing. When four teens were killed several years before in a car crash connected to partying, the town council, led by Reverend Shaw Moore (John Condoleon), decide to ban dancing and other associated behavior as a way to protect the youth of the town and pay tribute to those that were lost in the accident.

While the youth of Bomont dutifully follow the rules and keep their heads low, the spirit of teen rebellion burns strong enough to allow Ren to convince his classmates to ask the town council to allow a dance. Along the way, Ren has to teach his new best friend Willard (Christian Difrancia) how to dance to impress his sweetheart Rusty (Erica Delbury) while trying to win over his own love interest, the Reverend’s daughter, Ariel (Ashley Quille). His relationship with Ariel further complicates his ability to convince the Reverend that a dance is a worthwhile event and brings on the wrath of Ariel’s ex-boyfriend and local bad boy Chuck Cranston (Chris Huch).

Footloose features many of the hit songs that made the film popular such as “I Need a Hero”, “Lets Hear It For The Boy”, and the title track “Footloose”. The up-tempo score and choreography were both nominated for Tony Awards and director Jessica Evans worked hard with her cast to capture the high energy necessary to make the show shine. Footloose will be performed at Pinelands Regional High School August 2,3,8,9,and 10th at 7PM. Tickets can be purchased ahead of time or at the box office. Please visit www.bellarinetheatre.com for more information.