Musical Theatre Performance Class Presented Final for the Public
Posted on Friday, December 10, 2010
Westminster College students in the Musical Theatre Performance class taught by Lester Malizia presented their final exam as a musical showcase Tuesday, Dec. 14, at 7:30 p.m. in Beeghly Theater.
"Musical theatre is a distinctively American art form with all the jazz, vitality, and impudence that makes this country unique," Malizia said. "The study of musical theatre is the study of vast social and sociological trends that shaped our history. The performance of musical theatre requires special skills and the courage to go to extremes. That has been the work of this class and the foundation for this showcase."
Malizia, a guest artist at Westminster, directed Theatre Westminster's fall production of A Little Night Music. A Westminster alumnus, Malizia spent 20 years as artistic director of Seaside Music Theater, a leading professional theater in Daytona Beach, Fla. During his time at Seaside, Malizia directed over 85 productions and produced the first staged production of the Tony Award-winning musical Million Dollar Quartet, which moved on to Broadway after development at Seaside under Malizia's guidance. He was the founding director of the Rogue Theater in Orlando, Fla., where he directed the Florida premiere of Brad Frazier's Unidentified Human Remains and The True Nature of Love. Malizia was one of the architects of the MFA Musical Theater program at the University of Central Florida and taught and directed the MFA classes. He is a past chairman of the Professional Division of the Southeastern Theater Conference and served on the board of the National Alliance for Musical Theater for eight years. He has been awarded the Distinguished Career Award by the Florida Theater Conference, the Richard Fallon Award for Innovative Leadership in the Theater, and the Volusia Arts Council Award for Leadership in the Arts.
Contact Dr. Scott Mackenzie, Westminster associate professor of theatre, at (724) 946-6238 or e-mail mackensa@westminster.edu for more information.
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