"Legally Blonde" Robert O. and Elizabeth M. Bentley Musical 2016 Directed by Rob Mish Choreography by Jenefer Davies

Thursday, March 10 - Monday, March 14, 2016 - 7:30 p.m. - Keller Theatre/Lenfest Center

Music and Lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin; Book by Heather Hach
Based on the novel by Amanda Brown and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture
Presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International

Washington and Lee’s Department of Theater, Dance and Film Studies and the Department of Music present the 2016 Robert O. and Elizabeth M. Bentley Musical Legally Blonde. Many are familiar with the story of Legally Blonde: a naïve blonde from Malibu—Elle Woods—decides to go to Harvard Law School to follow the love of her life, Warner Huntington III. Along the way, she discovers herself.

 Director and adjunct member of the Theater faculty at W&L Rob Mish said that he appreciates this musical because the music is challenging and the topics relate well to many of the W&L student body. “The music is easy to listen to and yet is exciting at the same time. There’s a huge energy with the way the show is put together,” Mish said. “There are also strong roles for women. It fits our community [as] it pokes fun at things that exist here.”

Another way this play will command excitement is by bringing in the renowned Broadway-trained dog, Chico, specifically to work with the actors for the Bentley Musical. Chico will play Bruiser, Elle’s Chihuahua.  He originated the role of Bruiser in the Broadway production of Legally Blonde.  Animal Director and Trainer Bill Berloni has received a Tony Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award for his work. He has trained animals for hundreds of Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters, regional theaters, tours, television shows and movies. Recently his dogs have included Sandy in the new movie of Annie starring Quvenzhané Wallis, Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz, Nana in Peter Pan Live and Toto in The Wiz Live, which both aired on NBC.

 Berloni only uses rescue dogs in his works. He came up with the idea when he was nineteen years old and began training dogs in the animal shelter. “I was so profoundly moved at the animals living in these horrible conditions,” Berloni said in a phone interview. “It became a teenage promise to only use rescue dogs. To be able to use them as advocates to show the world that rescue dogs are worthwhile is just an added bonus.”

 Chico is an eight-pound Chihuahua who was rescued by Berloni for the Broadway production of Legally Blonde and is on the original Poster Art for the Broadway Show. He is a vegetarian and gets very angry when he is confused with the “Taco Bell” dog. While Chico has had a lot of practice, the students have not.  “He knows the commands and we will teach the students that language,” Berloni said. “Basically, we’re teaching them how to speak dog.”

 Madeleine Sullivan, ’16, who is playing Elle Woods, is excited to bring all she can to the character Elle and to act with Chico. “I love dogs, so I can’t wait to work with him,” Sullivan said. “I was in Annie when I was seven, but I wasn’t Annie so I had very minimal interaction with Sandy.”

 Sullivan has been in several Bentley musicals at W&L. In addition, she and a group of student-actors from W&L and Southern Virginia University started a theater company-(540) Productions-and have done many musicals in the Rockbridge area, including Oklahoma and Charlie Brown. With all of this experience, Sullivan has learned much about dancing, singing and acting. “It’s been more the people than the roles that have taught me so much,” she said. “The people helping me act through the roles have been my biggest influences.”

One of the greatest challenges Sullivan has had in portraying Elle is that she is a larger-than-life character, something that Sullivan has to show with every line she says. “Elle is not stupid. She’s really naïve and she likes to celebrate, so she’s sometimes not the most responsible person,” Sullivan said. “But she’s smart and she ends up straightening out her priorities. She is supportive and she loves to celebrate her achievements and everyone else’s.”

Buy your tickets today. Don’t miss Legally Blonde and a chance to see the infamous Chico and cast perform on the Keller stage!

Tickets are required.
Adult $25, Senior $20
W&L Faculty & Staff $20
Active Military $10
W&L Student/Student $10