As much as Owen O’Leary marveled at Northern Stage’s production of Into the Woods at the Briggs Opera House in 2014, “I didn’t think directly of being in it myself someday,” he recalled this week.
Four years later, the Hanover High graduate, now a Dartmouth College senior, is preparing to co-star as The Baker in the Dartmouth Theater Department’s production in the Hopkins Center’s Moore Theater.
And he’s hoping his powers of recall and projection hold up.
“This show has an awful lot more music than probably any other musical I’ve done at Dartmouth, NCCT (North Country Community Theatre) or Hanover High, and most of it is quite complicated melodically,” O’Leary said between rehearsals. “There is a lot of repetition of tunes with slight variations or entirely new lyrics, which can be difficult to memorize. The Baker has a lot of time on stage, so there is a certain amount of stamina needed to make it through all the scenes.”
To help them prepare, Dartmouth music professor Steven Swayne, author of an acclaimed book about Woods composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, gave the performers a behind-the-scenes peek at the scores of a number of the legendary playwright’s musicals over the past 60 years.
“Sondheim asks them to do things that aren’t immediately obvious from a recording,” Swayne said this week. “All of Sondheim’s oeuvre is hard, and actors can underestimate its difficulty to their detriment. From what I’ve seen so far, our students and professionals are not underestimating what stands in front of them.”
The Dartmouth Theater Department’s production of
Dartmouth College’s Soyeya dance troupe joins forces with the Burlington-based Jeh Kulu Dance & Drum Theater for a free performance at the Top of the Hop Thursday night at 9.
■The Rusty Berrings Brass Band plays New Orleans-style dance music on Saturday night at 7, during the pre-Mardi Gras party in the Fairlee Town Hall auditorium. The bash starts at 6 with a meal of chicken-and-sausage jambalaya, crawfish pasta and bread pudding with whiskey sauce. Admission to the concert and dance costs $10 per individual, $15 per couple and $20 per family. The meal is $9 for the main course and $5 for dessert. To reserve tickets and learn more, visit fairleearts.org.
■With education director Eric Love in the starring role, Northern Stage kicks off its production of the Jonathan Tolins comedy Buyer & Cellar next week, with previews on Wednesday and Thursday nights at the Barrette Center for the Arts in White River Junction. Admission $17.75 to $32.75 for the previews and $17.75 to $57.75 starting with opening night, March 2.
■The Hartford Community Coalition hosts a screening of the documentary Resilience: The Biology of Stress and the Science of Hope, next Thursday night at 6 in the auditorium at Hartford High School. After the movie, a panel of Upper Valley social-service professionals will talk about efforts to help children cope with stress. While admission is free, the coalition welcomes donations of non-perishables to LISTEN’s food pantry.
Dry Powder, dramedy by Sarah Burgess, through Sunday afternoon at Shaker Bridge Theatre. Tickets $16 to $35.
■Puppetry pageant, Fairlee-area kids present results of their labors in school-vacation workshop at Fairlee Town Hall auditorium, Friday night at 6. Admission free.
Ascutney-based singer-songwriter Davey Davis, Friday night at 7 at Sunapee Community CoffeeHouse. Admission by donation.
■Dartmouth College pianist-in-residence Sally Pinkas and Dartmouth Symphony Orchestra play works of Beethoven, Saturday night at 8 at Spaulding Auditorium in Hanover. Admission $10 to $25.
■Jazz trumpeter Tiger Okoshi, Sunday afternoon at 4 at Center at Eastman in Grantham. Tickets $18 to $20; visit josajazz.com.
■Weekly rehearsal of Freelance Family Singers for chorus’ spring concert, Tuesday night at 7 at First Congregational Church of Woodstock. Singers of all ages and abilities are welcome. Concerts scheduled for May 4 and 5 To learn more, call Ellen Sattererthwaite at 802-457-3980.
■Singer-songwriter Ari Heist, next Thursday night at 8, Flying Goose Brewpub & Grille in New London. Admission $20.
The Dinosaurs, roots-Americana duo, Thursday night at 6, Peyton Place restaurant in Orford.
■Gully Boys, rock, Thursday night at 7, and Carton, Windsor-based rock band, and Chodus, Claremont rock band, Friday night at 9:30.
■The Wheelers, rock, Friday night at 8 at Skunk Hollow Tavern.
■Joe Mitchell, rock, Friday night at 9; Two Random Guys, folk-Americana, Saturday night at 9, at Salt hill Pub in Hanover.
■John Lackard, blues, Friday night at 9; The Repeat Offenders, rock, Saturday night at 9, Salt hill Pub in Lebanon.
■ Never Too Late, folk, Friday night at 9; singer-songwriter Amanda McCarthy plays Happy Hour on Saturday afternoon at 4 at Salt hill Pub in West Lebanon.
■Jordan Tirrell-Wysocki, Irish duo, Friday night at 9 at Salt hill Pub in Newport.
■Singer-songwriter Alison “AliT” Turner at Trout River Brewing in Springfield, Vt., on Saturday afternoon, 4 to 6.
■Sensible Shoes, danceable rock and pop, Sunday afternoon from 1 to 3 at SILO Distillery in Windsor.
■Saxophonist Michael Parker and guitarist Norm Wolfe, jazz, The Quechee Inn at Marshland Farm, Wednesday night at 6.
■Jazz pianist Sonny Saul, Wednesday night at 6:30 at On the River Inn in Woodstock.
Fu’Chunk bandleader Jim Yeager hosts open mic at Skunk Hollow Tavern on Wednesday night at 8, and bi-monthly all-comers’ session next Thursday night at 7 at ArtisTree Community Arts Center in South Pomfret.
■Flew-Z frontman Alec Currier’s weekly open-mic at Salt hill Pub in Lebanon, Thursday at 8 p.m.
■Weekly acoustic jam session on Friday night at 6:30, at BALE Commons in South Royalton.
■Joe Stallsmith’s weekly hootenanny of Americana, folk and bluegrass, Monday night at 6 at Salt hill Pub in Hanover.
■Fiddler Jakob Breitbach’s weekly acoustic jam session of bluegrass, Americana and old-timey music, Tuesday night at 7 at Filling Station Bar and Grill in White River Junction.
■Tom Masterson’s weekly open mic, Tuesday night at 7 at Colatina Exit.
“Revival” concerts, Vermont Chamber Artists, March 2 at 5 p.m. at Seven Stars Arts Center in Sharon and March 9 at 2 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Lebanon. Works of Arvo Part, Gwyn Arch and team of James Horner, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. Admission by donation. Visit vermontchamberartists.weebly.com.
David Corriveau can be reached at dcorriveau@vnews.com and at 603-727-3304. Send entertainment news to highlights@vnews.com.