Has anyone ever acted in/seen Thoroughly Modern Mille the Musical?

Question

I want to audition and I want a better understanding of the plays concept. Was it good? Will it be good with teens performing in it? Who is your favorite character? How does Millie act? Is there a lot of dance? Is it a tap musical?

Answer 1

I've seen the show numerous times, mostly high school productions. It's a fun show, with quite a bit of tap dancing. I have seen it done, however, with minimal dancing, and it still worked well, so it depends on how much dance your choreographer wants to put into the show.

Millie is a young woman who moves to New York City and tries to keep up with the modern times. She plans to marry her boss (once she finds a job), but falls in love with an average boy instead. At the same time, there's another plot that deals with the place where Millie lives. She moves into an apartment building run by Mrs. Meers, a crazy asian woman who is abducting young women to sell into white slavery. She's quite the character part, and mainly provides the comic relief. Then there's Millie's friend Dorothy, an upstanding young woman who falls in love with Millie's boss.

It's a perfect show for teenagers, and a lot of fun! If you look it up on google, you can find descriptions of each character, along with voice ranges and dance information. Have fun!

Answer 2

I've seen the movie.  It's interesting. It has Julie Andrews in it- rather an odd role for her  after playing a nun, really. Yes, there is a lot of dancing.  If I remember correctly, Millie was kind of- clueless might be a good word, or maybe innocent would be better. It's been a long time, but I do remember that it has a strong underlying theme of s*x- not such a great musical choice for teens, but to each their own, I guess.  

Answer 3

Ah I costumed that show for my high school. I lived and breathed it for three months.

It's a great show. LOTS of dancing and yes, everyone taps. One of the hardest things about that show is that everyone needs tap and character shoes to perform in.

Anyway, it's about a girl named Millie who moves to New York City from Kansas to pursue her dream to marry a rich man- by working for him as a typist. She discovers the world of a big city in the roaring 20s and meets a bunch of characters along the way. She becomes best friends with a rich lady from California- Miss Dorothy Brown, who wants to become an actress and live the poor bohemian life. She's also friends with the girls (all actresses) who stay at the Hotel Priscilla with her. The Hotel is run by Mrs. Meers, who is the villain in the show- she's running an illegal operation behind the backs of the girls along with her henchmen, Bun Foo and Ching Ho. Millie ends up getting a job as a stenographer at Sincere Trust Insurance Company, and proceeds to pursue her boss, Trevor Graydon, who of course has no interest in her. She also bumps into Jimmy Smith at the beginning of the show when she first arrives, and ends up enjoying spending time with him.

It will be great with teens performing in it, well.. our show was great. Millie is a headstrong but niave young woman determined to be a true "modern." Read about life for women in the 1920s. This play takes place in 1922.

If you want to see, here are pictures from the show we did:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=20...

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=20...

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=20...

Everyone is in High School and under 18.

If I ever get any of the videos up on YouTube I'll let you know and you can see them.

The music is typical broadway-musical music with a jazz feel, so I'd prepare an upbeat show tune and a nice tap routine.

Hope this helps!

Oh yeah, and it is NOTHING like the MOVIE. Do NOT watch it before you do this show!!!!!!!!