High School embarks on ‘Theory of Relativity’ musical

by Catherine Coke, High School theater director

High School Theater performances of “The Theory of Relativity” performances are Wednesday, Nov. 8 through Sunday, Nov. 12 and appropriate for all ages.
 
 

This year’s fall musical is “The Theory of Relativity” with music and lyrics by Neil Bartram & book by Brian Hill. The musical is a contemporary tale of physics, the randomness of the universe, and how connections between human beings occur.

Beginning at Sheridan College in Toronto, Bartram and Hill were invited to develop a song cycle with musical theater students. While there they decided to write a show to which young performers could truly relate; they interviewed students and created “The Theory of Relativity” based on those conversations. The Canadian Music Theatre Project at Sheridan commissioned the work for production in 2012. In 2014, “The Theory of Relativity” was an entry in the Festival of New Musicals at Goodspeed Musicals in Connecticut and received its American premiere at Goodspeed in 2015. It premiered in London later in 2015 and was performed at Feinstein’s/54 Below in 2015 with cast members from the Goodspeed production.

Here are two critical reactions to the musical:

“Take a physics manual, blend it with the sound of ‘The Book of Mormon,’ the hilariously nerdy references of ‘The Big Bang Theory,’ a sprinkle of ‘Chicago,’ a few drops of ‘Glee,’ bake it in a Broadway bowl, use all the originality you can have... That’s the successful recipe for the spectacular ‘The Theory of Relativity,’” according to Live Like Tom.

“‘The Theory of Relativity’ is a joyous, youthful musical exploration of the surprising interconnectedness of our own personal orbits as we stand ‘motionless’ on this little rock hurtling through space,” wrote Broadway World.

High School Theater performances of “The Theory of Relativity” are at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8 and Thursday, Nov. 9; 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10 and Saturday, Nov. 11; and 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 12. Tickets are free for students, faculty, staff, and Tiger Arts Patrons members; they are $5 for the general public. Reservations are highly recommended as seating will be limited.
 
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