Those who come to the musical “We Will Rock You,” opening June 17 at the Bicentennial Park Theatre in Joliet, will hear lots of their favorite Queen songs, including, of course, “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
Showtimes are at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 pm. Sundays June 17-26.
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But the musical is not a biography of queen’s leader Freddie Mercury. “It’s not ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ at all,” said show director Lori Carmine, referring to the movie the traced Mercury’s life.
“‘We Will Rock you’ is a fictional story where the music of Queen is used to progress the plot,” Carmine said. “It takes place in 2330. The premise is that artificial intelligence has taken over the entire planet and music has to be processed through the computer. There’s no musical instruments left in the world.”
Carmine, who also serves as cultural affairs manager for the City of Joliet, said the musical is celebrating its 20th anniversary. “It was written in 2002 and started in London where they’re doing a revival this year,” she said.
While working as a stage hand at Rialto Theatre in Joliet a few years ago, she helped out with the “We Will Rock You” national tour. “Everybody loved this show,” Carmine said. “That’s why I decided to do it at Bicentennial Theatre.
“The musical has a story line with a story arc and a conclusion,” she said. “But there’s a lot of singing and dancing,” she said, adding the cast of more than 30 has plenty of opportunities to sing the rich harmonies for which Queen is known.
The musical, which will include a live pit orchestra, features an underground group called the Bohemians, who are looking for the person who will bring rock and roll music back to the planet. A high school boy named Galileo and a high school girl named Scaramouche show signs of rebelling against the way the planet is run.
The government, which resides in Ga Ga Land along with folks who have the same opinions and dress the same way, tries to brainwash the youngsters to get independent ideas out of their head. They run away and meet the Bohemians who are living at a hotel and are trying to create new music and build musical instruments.
The music of Queen is used to further the plot, for example, when Scaramouche and Galileo meet the Bohemians, they sing “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”
Mark Epling is doing vocal direction and leading the orchestra, while Lori Bowen is working with choreography.
Carmine’s daughter, Elana Carmine, who is studying costume designing in college, is working on the costumes for the production.
The conformists living in Ga Ga Land will have shiny clean matching outfits with hair that is precise and sculpted. The Bohemians are wearing whatever they find in the wild as they search for pieces of rock and roll history. They’ll be wearing bell bottoms or fishnet stockings or other clothes people wore during the rock and roll era of the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s.
The stage will have a ramp that breaks what directors call the fourth wall in the theater, which is where the audience sits. “We wanted to make it feel like a concert,” Carmine said. “The audience should feel very immersed in it. We will go into the audience and address the audience and sometimes interact with them.”
Carmine admitted directing a musical with a large cast is a lot of work. “But the payoff is going to be a lot of fun,” she said.
We are a community center and it’s for the community so everybody’s got a part to play. Some will be on stage for the first time. They can learn from people who have more experience, and get their feet wet. Maybe it’s a mental break or something fun or something they want to continue later.”
Carmine said the story lines does touch on the idea of having too much technology and not being your own person. “That’s one of the big lessons,” she said.
Carmine promises those who come “will definitely have a good time. It will put your mind away from all of the present-day situations. Plus it’s the music of Queen. I can’t imagine anybody who doesn’t like Queen.”
‘We Will Rock You’
When: June 17-26
Where: Billie Limacher Bicentennial Park Indoor Theatre, 201 W. Jefferson St., Joliet
Tickets: $10-$15
Information: 815-724-3761, Bicentennialpark.org
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Sheryl DeVore is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.