The Jones College School of Art, Music, and Performance presented Gypsy on April 10-12. Dean of the School of Art, Music and Performance, Bruce Smith, orchestrated a great character lineup and an exciting musical performance.
“It’s really great we got to choose a musical that benefits the students and what really makes their talents pop throughout their performance,” Smith said. “It’s based on a true story. We are portraying real people. The story is about a mother’s relationship with their children and how she treated her children as a commodity more than a child.”
Gypsy is based on the memoir of Gypsy Rose Lee, a burlesque dancer famous in the 1930s and ‘40s. The story is about two young sisters, June and Louise, who were pushed into vaudeville by their domineering mother, Rose.
Sydnee Tisdale, a third-year Jones student, had the lead role, playing Mama Rose, and Chloe White, a sophomore, had the lead role of Dainty June. Mama Rose refers to June as the “favorite” daughter.
“I play Mama Rose- she is the stage mom of June and Louise. I like this show because it has given me the opportunity to step into a lead role, and I get to perform with my friends,” Tisdale said.
White said that she is a fan of the musical because her character is “two dimensional. On the surface and when June is made to be on stage, she seems very upbeat and bubbly, but in reality, she is miserable because of her position in life. She dreams of more. My favorite part of the show is that she runs off once she is an adult to live the way that she wishes.”
To see the complete cast of Gypsy, visit this link from the Jones College website: https://www.jcjc.edu/jcnews/news/jones-colleges-theater-department-to-present-gypsy-april-10-12/
by Kaylea Rogers
Ella Jolly played the part of Louise, also known as Gypsy, in the musical. Photo by Savanna Edwards
