“Curtain Up, Light the Lights!” Everything is indeed coming up roses as the Sterling Community Theatre Troupe prepares the musical Gypsy to be presented at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, July 5 and 6 and at 2 p.
m. on Sunday, July 7 which will close Sterling’s Old Fashioned Fourth of July celebration this year. Considered by many critics and artists to be the greatest of all Broadway musicals, Gypsy tells the true story of an ambitious showbiz mother known as Momma Rose, who treks across America with her daughters Baby June and Louise in search of success.
The show is set in the waning days of Vaudeville and the rise of Burlesque in the 1930’s. Gypsy features a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. It is suggested by the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee.
The show boasts a parade of iconic tunes that conjure the joys and heartaches of show business: “Everything’s Coming Up Roses,” “Let Me Entertain You,” “Together, Wherever We Go,” and more. The brassy masterpiece about vaudeville and burlesque promises to entertain audiences of all ages. The Sterling production of Gypsy will feature a cast of 25 and an orchestra of 12.
The Sterling cast is led by Betsy Dutton, retired long-time Sterling High School theatre director, as Rose. Playing her daughter Louise who goes from shy and quiet to becoming the famous Gypsy Rose Lee is 2023 Sterling High graduate Ella Wellman. Retired music director and long-time stage veteran Mark Clar.
