This year’s Arts Undergraduate Theatre Society of McGill (AUTS) production of Legally Blonde came with a huge warning label. A week before opening night, the cast learned that asbestos had been found in Moyse Hall. The director, assistant director, and stage managers were left scrambling for a new location, and had to ditch the band, the set, and most of their prepared tech. They opted for a low-tech show held at Trafalgar School for Girls, which was intended to showcase the cast’s hard work despite the staging issue. I was prepared for the worst.
The show opens with the Delta Nu sorority singing the production’s famous “Omigod You Guys.” Perfectly cast, the sorority girls performed with incredible spirit, which they maintained throughout the show. Costuming reinforced their peppy stage presence, decked in glitter and bright colours. Of course, there were also stunning vocals throughout the challenging number by Serena (Ava Burgess, U1 Arts) and Margot (Miranda De Luca, U1 Education). The talented and energetic Mira Cohen, U2 Arts, plays the protagonist Elle, and her tirelessly earnest performance propels the show.
During “Serious,” we meet Warner, the Kennedy-esque motivator for the musical’s plot. The song features Sam Snyders’s, U2 Arts, incredible tenor and convincing frat boy acting—his Warner is just as clueless as Elle but with an added masculine sense of superiority. Their breakup sparks Elle’s journey to Harvard, where we meet her intense TA Emmet (Donovan Burt, U1 Engineering) and deeply pretentious new peers, including a financial software coder (Jessica O’Gorman, U3 Education), a European princess (Natasha Ellis, U1 Arts), and a peace corps lesbian (Kleo Hellman, U3 Education).
We then come across the famously intimidating Professor Callahan, played by Arthur Lyhne Gold (U2 Arts), whose rendition of “Blood in the Water” struck fear into the hearts of future law students in the crowd. When Elle decides to go full Jackie Kennedy and dye her hair brunette, she meets the show-stealing Paulette (Abbie O’Hara, U2 Arts) at the hair salon. Embracing Jennifer Coolidge’s iconic voice, O’Hara boasts a hilarious Boston (or New York?) accent and impressive vocal runs.
The second act begins with “Whipped Into Shape,” led by fitness queen Brooke Wyndham (Rachel Arnold, U0 Arts). Arnold nails Brooke’s manic exercise video energy, and belts throughout some very difficult jump rope choreography. Group numbers like this one showcased the cast’s strong voices from both on- and backstage.
Another iconic scene, the “Bend and Snap,” featured Paulette, cheered on by Elle and the Greek Chorus. Paulette was a force onstage throughout the show, upstaged only by Kyle the Package Guy (Joshua Karmiol, U0 Engineering), who made the audience shriek with his cheesy smile and goofy head-swivelling swagger. I hope whoever stuffed what looked like four socks into his tight shorts was adequately compensated.
My favourite number in the show was “There! Right There!” where the cast asks the eternal question: Is he gay or European? The cast’s frenzied investigation of the silk-shirted preening pool boy (Milan Miville-Dechene, U0 Arts) had the audience in stitches—the question is apparently quite relevant to a Montreal crowd.
Legally Blonde’s comedic production lent well to what could have been a tumultuous show week. While the new music and changes in staging must have been incredibly stressful, the cast weathered any issues with professionalism and good humour. Warner secretly fixed Elle’s mic during an affectionate touch on the head and the cast ad-libbed some great lines during difficult costume changes. The numbers are deeply entertaining, ranging from Irish dancing to a conga line, and the vocal performances are wonderful. I would highly recommend drinking two to three glasses of wine and bringing your friends for the most fun I’ve ever had in a high school gym.
