USI Theatre presents “Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris” April 11-22 at the Mallette Studio Theatre.
This musical revue features Brel’s own music with production concept, English lyrics, and additional material by Eric Blau and Mort Shuman.
Brel was born in Belgium in 1929 and lived in France until his death in 1978. According to Lenny Leibowitz, assistant professor of theatre at USI and the director of the production, “Jacques Brel was the quintessential Bohemian. Songwriter, poet, raconteur and malcontent, he was in many ways the French Bob Dylan.”
Leibowitz continued, “Thirty years after his death, Brel’s songs, at once topical and timeless, bristle with undiminished energy, pathos, and protest. The spirit of the sixties permeates Brel’s work, and in our tenuous times, Brel’s passion, honesty, and iconoclasm resonate with potency and urgency.”
“Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris” will be performed by USI students Kensington Blaylock, Brandon Eck, Jeannine Gamble, Jasmine Ruckriegel, and Rachel Schenk. USI adjunct faculty member Seth Davidson rounds out the cast. The design team for the show includes USI theatre students Megan Fallon as scenic designer and Ryan Nash as sound designer, and USI faculty members Shan Jensen as costume designer and Craig A. Young as lighting designer.
“Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris” runs April 11-15 and April 17-22 in the Mallette Studio Theatre on the lower level of the Liberal Arts Center at USI. Performance times are Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m., and Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 p.m.
There is one Tuesday performance at April 17 at 7 p.m. Ticket prices are $11 for adults, $9 for non-USI students and for seniors 60 and over, and $5 for USI students. Tickets may be purchased by calling the USI Theatre box office at 812/422-3970 or
online.
Tickets may also be purchased at the door; the box office will open one hour before each performance.
