What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1477312
BECCA MARTIN-BROWN NWA Democrat-Gazette I t Came From Outer Space" — surprisingly now a musical but not surprisingly on the TheatreSquared stage — is described as "in the vein of 'Little Shop of Horrors'" and "both an homage and parody" of the 1953 Universal International movie of the same name. "You don't need much familiarity with Universal's first 3-D movie or its special effects to appreciate the 85-minute musical … from Joe Kinosian and Kellen Blair," writes Catey Sullivan in the Chicago Sun-Times. "Inspired by [the] cult classic film — which was based on a story by Ray Bradbury, who also wrote an early version of the screenplay — 'It Came From Outer Space' the musical is sheer silliness." Bringing it to life and to the T2 stage has been a journey between worlds. "ICFOS," as the actors and crew shorthand its title, was conceived because Kinosian and Blair met at the BMI Writers Workshop in New York City — "kind of like speed dating for musical theater writers," they say. "We saw the original 1953 film – complete with 3-D glasses! – at Film Forum, an old movie revival house in NYC," the pair say in an email. "This was in 2016, right at the peak of presidential election contentiousness. At the time, we were looking for a project that would allow us to exercise our interest in irreverent humor but also had a message about the need for kindness. The movie, with its silliness and thoughtfulness alike, instantly AUGUST 28-SEPTEMBER 3, 2022 WHAT'S UP! 3 FAQ 'It Came From Outer Space' WHEN — 7:30 p.m. Thurs- day-Saturday; 2 p.m. Satur- day & Sunday, through Sept. 18 WHERE — TheatreSquared in Fayetteville COST — $27 & up INFO — theatre2.org See T2 Page 4 COVER STORY When Worlds Collide Laugh-packed sci-fi musical arrives from 'Outer Space' Seeing their play come to life is "thrilling, every single time," agree "It Came From Outer Space" creators Joe Kinosian and Kellen Blair. "But it's also incredibly informative. The two of us can bounce jokes around all day long, but theater is inherently collaborative, and until we see all the elements come together, live on a stage, we can't do our jobs properly. Even between the production in Chicago and here in Arkansas we changed quite a few lines — stuff that we never would've thought of if the designers, actors, musicians (and countless others) hadn't come together to help us figure out what exactly this story was all about." (Courtesy Photo/T2)