Rutka (musical)

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Rutka
Rutka set 2024 Cincinnati.jpg
Cincinnati set in 2024
MusicJocelyn Mackenzie and Jeremy Lloyd Styles
LyricsJocelyn Mackenzie and Jeremy Lloyd Styles
Book Neena Beber
Setting1943 Poland
Premiere13 October 2024: Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park

Rutka is an indie rock musical with a book by Neena Beber and music and lyrics by Jocelyn Mackenzie and Jeremy Lloyd Styles. It is based on the diary of Rutka Laskier.

Contents

Premise

In 1943, 14-year-old Rutka Laskier, living in the Jewish ghetto in Nazi-occupied Będzin, Poland, writes in her diary about typical teenage concerns. [1] [2]

Development

This musical is based on Rutka’s Notebook: A Voice from the Holocaust, the diary by Laskier over the course of three months of 1943 while living in the Jewish ghetto in Będzin. [3] The diary remained hidden until 2006. [4]

The original book was by Sarah Gancher but later was credited to Neena Beber. [1] [5] Music and lyrics are by Jocelyn Mackenzie and Jeremy Lloyd Styles of Pearl and the Beard. The musical style is indie rock. [1]

Production

The musical had two workshops, including a concert performance in January 2023 at Lincoln Center's New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. [5] [3]

The musical had its world premiere in a pre-Broadway tryout 13 October 2024 at Cincinnati's Playhouse in the Park and opened 17 October, with a planned run through 10 November. [3] [6] [7] [8] It was directed by Wendy C. Goldberg with set design by Todd Rosenthal. [2] [9] [10]

Reception

Laura Collins-Hughes, writing in The New York Times in September 2024, listed it among "15 Shows to See on Stages Around the U.S. This Fall". [11] The Business Journal called it "emotional, bittersweet and intense". [7] City Beat called the score "energetic and uplifting". [6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gans, Andrew (4 September 2024). "See Who's Starring in World Premiere of Rutka Musical at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park". Playbill .
  2. 1 2 "Rutka in Cincinnati at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park 2024". Broadway World . Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 Lyman, David (9 October 2024). "This is why the new Playhouse was built. See 'Rutka' before it heads to Broadway". Cincinnati Enquirer . Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  4. ↑ Gradstein, Linda (5 July 2007). "New Diary Offers Glimpse of Life in Nazi Grip". NPR .
  5. 1 2 Hall, Margaret (9 January 2023). "Judy Kaye, Julie Benko, Andrew Barth Feldman, More to Star in Rutka Concert Staging". Playbill .
  6. 1 2 Pender, Rick (22 October 2024). "'Rutka' at the Playhouse: A Message of Hope from the Darkness of WWII". Cincinnati City Beat .
  7. 1 2 Gelfand, Janelle (20 October 2024). "REVIEW: 'Rutka' is emotional, intense in world premiere at Playhouse". bizjournals.com . Retrieved 23 October 2024.
  8. ↑ Pierce, Jerald Raymond (15 October 2024). "Remembrance and Resistance in 'Rutka'". American Theatre . Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  9. ↑ Gans, Andrew (4 March 2024). "Rutka Musical to Make World Premiere at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park". Playbill .
  10. ↑ Meckloskey, Alex (4 March 2024). "RUTKA, a world premiere indie-rock musical based on Rutka's Notebook will be presented in Fall 2024 at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park". Theatrely . Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  11. ↑ Collins-Hughes, Laura (6 September 2024). "15 Shows to See on Stages Around the U.S. This Fall". New York Times .
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