By Kate Watson - The Weekly News
You'd think the last thing that Tina Gallant would want to do on her vacation is direct a musical. After all, she already spends most of her year teaching music at Cole Harbour High School. But musical theatre (and working with the talented young people involved in it) is a passion for Gallant. She can't imagine a better way to spend her summer holidays.
So, with production assistance from Dartmouth Players, Gallant and a young cast and crew decided to mount a production of tick, tick … BOOM!, the rock musical by Rent composer Jonathan Larson.
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IF YOU GO WHAT: Dartmouth Players' production of tick, tick ... BOOM! |
"One of my students suggested a few years ago that we should do this show as our school musical, but there's actually some language in it that might upset the 'potty mouth police,'" Gallant says. "But I fell in love with the script and thought that it would be the perfect show to do outside of school."
The student who brought tick, tick … BOOM! to Gallant's attention is Shane O'Regan. O'Regan, newly graduated and headed to Randolph Academy in Toronto to study theatre in the fall, stars in the play as Jonathan, a talented young composer struggling to make a living.
"We knew that there'd be an audience for this play because there are a lot of the same themes and concepts in it as in Rent. And I think pretty much everyone is going to be able relate to it to some extent, because it's about discovering who you are and what you want to do with your life," says the young actor.
k-watson@ns.sympatico.ca
