Health & Fitness
Runaways to be performed at The Garage Theatre
Runaways to be performed at Garage Theatre
Rediscovering RUNAWAYS
The Garage Theatre Group is reviving Elizabeth Swados' 1978 Tony nominated RUNAWAYS. RUNAWAYS is a collage about the profound effects of our deteriorating families with a cast made up of 13 extremely multi talented kids from the Garage Theatre's Youth Conservaory.
"Runaways" opened at the Public in the spring of 1978 before transferring to Broadway in May; it closed on December 31. Swados wrote the score and book, directed and choreographed -- and scored Tony nominations for them all.
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Swados found her actors in various NY locations: playgrounds, high schools, community groups. Then they all collaborated on the book, with several company members getting songwriting credits. The play was made from scratch, out of the kids sitting around telling their personal stories".
What's striking is the way "Runaways" feels so much of its time and place: It could not have come out from anywhere else but 1970s New York City. There are specific references in the lyrics -- a "child prostitute" lives on Avenue C between 5th and 6th -- but it's the overall vibe that's time-stamped.
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Some of the music feels inspired by "Hair," especially in the way Swados features pop-style ensemble singing; ironically, a number is titled "Where Are Those People Who Did 'Hair'?" But she mainly drew from the various contemporary sounds of New York City, from Latin rhythms ("No Lullabies for Luis") to Laura Nyro-style, piano-driven vamps ("The Revenge Song"). Influenced by the still-young hip-hop, "Enterprise" may well have been the first rap number on Broadway. Elsewhere, "To the Dead of Family Wars" lands somewhere between the Last Poets, Gil Scott-Heron and the slam/spoken word trend of the '90s: It's impossible to hear this and not choke up.
RUNAWAYS is directed by Michael Bias, the Artistic Director of The Garage Theatre Group. Musical direction is by Gail Lou and choreography by Toni-Rene Johnson.
RUNAWAYS can be seen Thursday June 6 at 8:00pm Saturday June 8 at 8:00pm and Sunday June 9 at 3:00pm. For tickets call The Garage Theatre Group at 201-569-7710 or visit their website at www.GarageTheatre.org.
