UBC Musical Theatre Troupe's newest production will flash audiences back to the 1950s with Happy Days.
Happy Days was a television show that aired in the 1970s and was later adapted for Broadway in the 1990s. The play is centred around the character Fonzie, played by Max Buchner, the stereotypical 1950s biker. Together he and his friends have to figure out how to save their favourite hangout spot: Arnold’s Malt Shop.
Happy Days, according to Raven Nyman, co-vice president of UBC Musical Theatre Troupe, has “got those rock vibes, there are a lot of poodle skirts, a lot of silly kind of romantic stuff that goes on. Thrown in the mix are bursts of musical songs and various love triangles. Ultimately though, it's a coming of age story.”
Happy Days is not only a relatable tale of teenagers figuring out what it means to grow up, but it's a very versatile and dynamic musical with the variety of roles it provides.
“Happy Days is quite versatile with a lot of singing and a lot of songs that a lot of people can be involved in. There are female parts, male parts, dancing roles, smaller roles, big roles, speaking parts, dancing parts which made it just a good adaption for a just for fun university musical production,” said Nyman.
Even when presented with a musical that has a variety of roles, there are still challenges in taking an established musical and adapting it for a university production. One of the biggest problems that arose was the issue of casting.
“In a university setting it is hard to get a lot of boys who are interested in singing and dancing,” said Nyman. However, UBC Musical Theatre Troupe was up for the challenge, casting women in male roles.
“We have a lot of girls playing male roles. That was one of the adjustments we had to make, working with the girls and adjusting the roles for their voices and ranges. It is a lot of gender bending but that was also the fun of it,” said Nyman.
Gender bending aside, perhaps the biggest difference between the UBC Musical Theatre Troupe’s production and the original Happy Days musical is the diversity represented. The original TV show and Broadway production was a predominately white cast, sticking to a truer representation of a small town near Milwaukee, Wisconsin (where the show was original set). Being racially faithful to the play, however, was never a concern for the UBC Musical Theatre Troupe.
“For us [racial diversity] has never been a problem because no one in our club has to really worry about that. We don’t cast based on what’s been done,” said Nyman.
The dedication and passion of the UBC Musical Theatre Troupe is the beating heart of this musical production.
“Everyone’s really focused and has been putting in a lot of effort,” said Buchner. When asked about the best part of the production process Buchner replied: “Getting to spend so much time with such a dedicated and passion[ate] cast, crew and director.”
Happy Days will be showing March 26-28 in the SUB Ballroom.