Boas, Guns and Accents: SU Drama Performs Nine

This past week SU Drama students’ big show Nine ran, and it was fabulous. The singing was incredible, the costumes were kick-ass, and everyone watching was thoroughly entertained for two hours. Sometimes the Syracuse Drama shows make you laugh till you snort, sometimes they make you duck in your seat to hide the water in your eyes, and sometimes they teach you about life and the world around you. This show had all of these moments packed into an emotional few hours for everyone in the audience.

Either way viewers always leave a show feeling like they just left a high-class theater in New York City.

The SU drama department always ranks high on every ranking website there is and has an ever-growing list of famous alum. SU drama produces insanely talented young professionals, many of whom go on to major theater companies and begin successful careers. With majors in acting, musical theater, stage management, theater design and technology and theater management track, Syracuse creates well-rounded performances taking care of even the smallest details. Working with professional teachers and constantly getting real-world experience, the students of SU get every show perfect down to the playbill.

Nine highlighted all the best parts of SU Drama; there were 30-foot long boas, Italian accents, crazy projections, an entire pit orchestra, and several burlesque dance numbers. Nine tells a story of an Italian filmmaker, Guido Contini, who has already hit his peak and is now struggling to write a new script, while simultaneously trying to untangle the ever-growing complications in his love life with multiple women (he’s pretty much your typical frat bro with an added twist of hipsterness). It was hard to worry about Guido (the only male character of the show) as nearly 20 sexy women with spectacular voices, on-point dance moves, and eyes that look into your soul took the stage by storm. This show proved that SU Drama is a female-powerhouse. One of the most memorable scenes revolved around an outcast prostitute sharing the key to sex and love—“Be Italian”—to Guido, equipped with chairs, bright red lingerie, and tambourines—freaking tambourines. It was thrilling.

If you’re interested in pretending you’re watching a Broadway show for a night—which, let’s face it, is the classiest possible way to spend a night in Syracuse—the other SU drama productions running this school year are:

Laura and the Sea: November 4 – 13

Mary Poppins: November 26 – January 8

The King Stag: February 17 – 26

Major Barbara: March 31 – April 9

From Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill: A Musical Voyage: May 5 – 13