Once upon a time a young woman named Annie returned to her native Russia. In a glamoruos Moscow she discovers an enchanted motherland teeming with evil stepmothers, wicked witches and ravenous bears. There, she must learn how to become the heroine of a story more mysterious and treacherous than any childhood fairytale: her own.
The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls is coming to the University of West Georgia Nov. 12-16. Directed by Theatre Professor, Amy Cuomo, this powerful production stars an all-female cast. It is a twisted and mature look on the fairytales we grew up with.
Director, Amy Cuomo, explains how she thinks the student body will receive the play.
“This has a lot of witches and bears and scary things,” said Cuomo. “I think it will resonate for our humanities students, but I also think those in other disciplines will find it really entertaining and maybe a little scary If I’m lucky.”
She goes on to tell what she hopes the audience will take away from the show.
“There’s some thinking to be done about fairytale solutions to problems,” Cuomo said. “We are always looking for a quick fix, and this show presents that.”
Because there is some Russian dialogue in the show, the cast will have an instructor come in for a few rehearsals to assist in perfecting the Russian pronunciation. The audience should not have an issue with the language because the script translates the terms for the audience. Another training session will consist of movement for the actors to depict the unrealistic aspect of the show.
Cast member, Sarah Reichenbach, told why she enjoyed Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls.
“My favorite part is when all the girls are together. It’s a really nice dynamic between all of them because we all represent a different fairytale,” Reichenbach said. “I think this show is really fitting for the University of West Georgia because The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls is a feminist piece, but it’s not a male bashing feminist piece.”
“It’s really empowering and it’s a great show about learning how to move beyond ideals you maybe had as a kid. I think Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls show that a happy ending doesn’t have to be one note, it can have several layers.”
The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls will be presented at the Black Box in the Townsend Center Nov. 12-15 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 15-16 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are free with your UWG ID, $10 for adults and $7 for seniors. Tickets may be purchased through the Townsend Center for Performing Arts.
