Madison Meeks 

Editor-In-Chief

mvm7037@psu.edu

On Thursday, April 11, I had the opportunity to sit and watch Penn State Behrend’s spring musical production of “Legally Blonde.” The musical is based on the movie and novel of the same name. It is directed by Emily Cassano, choreographed by Em Wood and Jenna Baker, and the music was directed by Rhonda Berlin. The show is about Elle Woods, a sorority girl who wants to win back her ex-boyfriend Warner, so she enrolls at Harvard Law School. Throughout the show, she learns about how her knowledge of law can help those around her. She successfully defends the queen of exercise, Brooke Wyndham, who is on trial for murdering her husband. Very few characters believe in Elle at first, but she manages to surprise them when she stays true to herself and manages to win her cases. 

The show starts with one of the songs that had been stuck in my head the entire rest of the show, “Omigod You Guys,” which is led by Margot, Serena, Pilar, and the girls of Delta Nu Sorority. The song happens as the girls are celebrating the expected engagement of their president, Elle Woods. The casting of the Delta Nu sorority girls was perfect. They performed with excitable energy throughout the song and the show. I loved the energy that they put into their performance of “Omigod You Guys.” It was an outstanding number. 

I would like to take this moment to talk about the casting of Elle Woods. The most outstanding moment of the show was the focal point of Elle Woods, played by the amazingly talented Jenna Alberti. Her vocals in “Omigod You Guys,” along with all the other songs, were incredible. She had amazing volume and pitch in her singing. The acting of Elle was spot on as well. She had perfect emotion, especially in the scenes with Paulette, Emmett, and Warner, each played respectively by Hannah Roadway, Oliver Brooke, and Jordan Loy. Speaking of the acting, the scene when Elle shows up at the party, which she was tricked into thinking was a costume party, dressed up as a Playboy Bunny, was so very well done, and the humor in the scene was there. It was one of the funniest scenes in the entire show. Jenna was a perfect casting of Elle Woods. I could not imagine her playing any other part in the show other than Elle. So applause to Jenna for an outstanding performance. Also, applause to Oliver Brooke, who played Emmett. He was amazing in his role and was amazing during every scene he was in, especially the scene between Elle and Emmett on the bench and the song “Chip on My Shoulder.”

Another one of my favorite songs that took place in Act Two was “Gay or European.” The performance took place in the courtroom during the trial of Brooke Wyndham. It was the funniest song in the whole show because the cast played their roles with the most humor in this scene. While also trying to be slightly serious, which is what makes it funny. I also loved the song “Ireland” because Hannah Roadway, who played Paulette, was amazing in the song, not only with the vocals but also because the dancing was on point. It kind of felt like an Irish fever dream, but I am here for it. But the scene-stealer was Sam Ruot, who was cast as Kyle, the UPS Guy. He was one of the funniest characters, and every time he stepped on stage, he made the audience laugh. 

Overall, I loved the production! I think that if you have tickets to the show, as every show is already sold out, then you should go and enjoy the whole experience. This is by far one of the best productions Penn State Behrend Theatre has done. Standing ovation for the entire cast and crew of “Legally Blonde.” I give it 5 out of 5 stars. “Legally Blonde” is performing in the upstairs Fasenmeyer building on April 18, 19, and 20 at 7:30 p.m.