Lyric Theatre – Houghton STAR

by Jiana Martin ('26)

Tonight at 7:30 p.m. the Lyric Theatre will perform “She Loves Me” (its second of four shows) in Houghton Academy’s Tysinger Auditorium.

“She Loves Me” is a warm and charming romantic comedy – music by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick and a book by Joe Masteroff – set in a 1930s European perfumery owned by Mr. Maraczek.

Professor Amanda Cox, Director of Houghton’s Lyric Theatre, explained, “It is actually based on the same Hungarian play (“Parfumerie” by Miklos Laszlo) that inspired three movies, including the beloved film “You’ve Got Mail” starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks.”

The story follows two shop clerks, Amalia Balash and Georg Nowack, who initially cannot stand each other. After responding to a “lonely heart’s advertisement” in the newspaper, they are delighted and look forward the love letters they exchange. However, they do not realize they are corresponding with each other.

“I have had the most wonderful time directing this musical,” Cox added, “many of the roles are double cast and it has been such a joy to see each actor bring their own personality and choices to the role.”

Cox chose this production because it is her favorite musical and she had been waiting for the right time to put it on. She has played the role of Amalia twice and finds it to be a beautiful experience directing it now.

Emily Quick ‘23 is one of the two actresses playing the smart, hardworking, funny, and sometimes unhinged Amalia.

“I see a lot of myself in Amalia, so it’s been so much fun getting to portray a character that’s already very similar to me,” Quick commented. “It’s been great getting to explore such a relatable character who feels such a wide range of complicated emotions.”

Despite the challenges, she has enjoyed working with a double cast because it is fun to see how the characters vary depending on who’s performing.

Professor Benjamin Lipscomb, one of the two actors who play Mr. Maraczek, expressed, “It’s been a delight to work with students I already knew (and some I didn’t) as a collaborator.”

As he prepares for the show, Lipscomb has reflected on his character’s paternal relationship with the men working under him. He considers it essential to establish the relationship early on; otherwise, Mr. Maracek could come across as a jerk when he is stressed and irritated.

Emily Hanes ‘26, who plays Miss Illona Ritter, has enjoyed the opportunities to share fun moments with the cast.

“Even though we’ve had a lot of late nights, it truly is a joy to be able to do this show with all of these wonderful people,” Hanes stated. “It’s been a big blessing!”

Her favorite part of bringing her character to life has been exploring Illona’s journey from doubt and insecurity to finding love and herself.

“She starts off unsure of herself, caught in shallow relationships, but by the end, she finds her own voice and realizes she deserves true happiness,” Hanes explained.

Audiences can count on an enjoyable evening of laughter and smiling tears.

“The story is so fun, the characters hilarious and engaging, and the music is wonderful and will stick in your hearts and minds for days!” concluded Cox.

“She Loves Me” will perform a 2 p.m. matinee tomorrow, with a final performance at 7:30 p.m. that same night. ★

By Abigail Bates ('26)

Houghton University’s Lyric Theatre will perform “An Evening of Opera and Shakespeare” in the CFA Recital Hall both this Friday and Saturday.

Beginning at 7:30 p.m., the show will include excerpts from plays, operas and even a few musicals. Emily Quick (‘25) explained that although Prof. Amanda Cox is Lyric Theatre’s director, several scenes have been led by guest directors. Quick has collaborated on scenes with Rachael McVeigh (Class of ‘23), and professors Dr. Kimberly Prins Moeller (Associate Professor of Voice) and Prof. Luke Odgen (Graduate Music Coordinator and Part-time Music Faculty).

Quick explained that while people tend to equate Shakespeare and opera to the words “boring” and “dull,” the directors and cast members have tried to make the performance fun for all audience members.

“In reimagining some of the iconic scenes in this show, we’ve incorporated our own twists; in addition to the expected drama,” she said, “we have fun science experiments, bubbles, and no shortage of comedic moments.”

Warren Torraca (‘26) explained that cast members have multiple roles. He will be playing scenes as Lysander from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, Beadle Bamford from “Sweeney Todd”, Benedict from “Much Ado About Nothing” and Malvolio from “Twelfth Night”. Despite how fast they had to prepare for a show in the first month of the semester, Torraca is excited to be able to act in a variety of different roles.

“Each scene,” he said, “is a new moment in a story; Professor Cox also allowed us to not be bound by the classical interpretation of each scene.”

Melanie Grace, a senior graduating in ‘27, said her favorite roles—out of many she’s performing—are Beatrice from “Much Ado About Nothing”, Hansel in “Hansel and Gretel”, the third witch in “Macbeth” and what she considers “the silliest role I’ve ever had the pleasure of doing”: the “little boy old man fairy spirit” from “The Magic Flute”.

“For me, fleshing out every character was probably the most difficult but always some of the most fun,” she said.

Grace has enjoyed acting alongside her fellow cast members in many long rehearsals, and watching how “everyone tries different things with their characters.” She disclosed that they have all been working hard to make their many characters seem like normal people that someone “might talk to today, [with] just a little bit of a different way of speaking.”

“Each character has such depth and motivation behind their actions that, in most cases, has been building over the course of the show.” Evelyn Simanowski (‘25) said that because they are only performing short scenes, “[their] job as performers has been to bring [out] as much of that developed character … Bringing the characters out of their original context and still making them real people with believable stories has been a challenge, but one that has only made me grow as an actress.”

Simanowski is performing Rosalinde from “Die Fledermaus”, Beatrice from “Much Ado About Nothing” and Sibella from “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder”. She is excited to share all the different scenes the cast has been preparing with their audiences.

“One of my favorite things about live theatre,” Simanowski said, “is that it’s a collaborative art form that requires the collaboration of the audience with the performers, not just between performers.”

Simanowski added that “the scenes that we’re presenting are so deeply human that they really bring the art down to earth and are relatable to everyone. They remind us what it’s like to laugh, and cry, and really just feel deeply.”

Tickets to the show are $5, and are available online at “Tickets: An Evening of Opera and Shakespeare” or at the door. An ASL interpretation will be available at the Friday performance. Contact Amanda Cox (amanda.cox@houghton.edu) with any questions. ★