Students redefine musical theater

Theater performance majors set out to re-invent musical theater in this year’s “Mix Tape 2.0,” allowing students to direct and act in brief scenes that coordinated with songs of all genres.

Now in its second year, “Mix Tape 2.0” ran this weekend at the Shafer Street Playhouse.

Live musical performances took place directly after the theatrical performances. The artists who performed included Hi I’m Bryce, Shuga Blam and David Watkins.

The concept of “Mix Tape 2.0” was brought to life by theater performance major Louisa Sargent. Sargent said it was her love of music that inspired her. She spoke to people within the theater community who shared the same musical passion and creativity and realized she had what she needed to organize and produce “Mix Tape 2.0.”

“It’s about the audience having just as much fun,” Sargent said. “With music, it doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from.”

The actors encouraged audience participation and even took the time for a dance break as they poured into the rows of seats and pulled people into the aisles.

“Mix Tape 2.0” opened with an electro-dance performance that combined the effects of a black light and glow sticks carried by actors as they moved to the beat of the song.

The musical theater then switched gears with an alternative rock performance that portrayed the song’s lyrics about heartbreak with a dramatic love scene.

There were several other performances that called for scenes wrought with drama and exaggerated emotions to portray the actors’ experiences or messages of the songs.

In one piece, actors displayed growth from childhood to adulthood using expressions that took the audience from innocent and blissful times to awkward teenage years and finally, full self-acceptance in adulthood.

“Mix Tape 2.0” included several performances that used dance to project a song’s message. In some instances, it was the sole element used to convey a broad range of topics including the lighter subjects of lust and love to the heavier subjects of suicide and emotional abuse.

The performances were all brief, and the show was only one hour and 15 minutes long, but the performers showcased common emotions and situations by using a variety of musical tastes and perspectives.

As an entirely student-run operation, “Mix Tape 2.0” provided actors the opportunity to direct and act, which brought a diverse range of songs, talents and artistic vision to the set. Carolyn Boucher, a theater performance major, attended to support friends who were performing, and recognized the importance of students getting the hands-on experience.

“It’s a great project because it gets different types of people together,” Boucher said. “It allows us to focus on creating works, which we should be using our talent for.”

“Mix Tape 2.0” became a forum for individual artistic expression for many of the actors involved.

Theater performance major Jordan Frink enjoyed seeing the show evolve.

“It’s really amazing to work with different talent and seeing everyone’s piece come together,” Frink said.

“Mix Tape 2.0” will continue to feature theater performance students next spring as the production moves to a new theater.