Company Carolina's "Sweet Charity" updates show to match modern values

A story of womanhood, the struggles of finding love and the importance of a good dance number collide to create Company Carolina’s production of “Sweet Charity.” The show is running from Nov.1-3 at CURRENT ArtSpace in Chapel Hill. 

The 1966 musical was originally choreographed and directed by the Broadway legend Bob Fosse and starred his wife Gwen Verdon. The show combines Cy Coleman's music with Dorothy Fields' lyrics and Neil Simon's dialogue to create a comedic, yet challenging, story about a young taxi dance hall performer named Charity Hope Valentine.

Complex dance numbers and witty musical quips aside, the show is principally about a woman and her struggle to find fulfillment in her life, said junior Kayley Carpenter, co-director of the Company Carolina production.

“The very beginning of the show says that it’s the story of a girl who just wanted to be loved, and we took that with a modern understanding of the conventions of womanhood and all types of love,” Carpenter said. “We asked, 'How can we satiate audiences and leave them with a very poignant message right now about womanhood and female empowerment?’” 

The show’s title character is played by junior Elizabeth Durham, who said the story’s concentration on sex workers and the empowerment that these characters are able to find in their lives is important for audiences to see. 

“The story focuses around Charity trying to find love in every aspect, friendships and romantic love, but it’s not just entirely romantic love, which I think is important,” Durham said. “I hope people take something away from the challenges of women like Charity who have to live the realities of that particular lifestyle.” 

The show was exceptional for its time, but includes some themes that have become slightly outdated for a present-day audience, Carpenter said. 

“This show is in musical theater canon, it's iconic and everyone knows it, but it’s also from the 1960s and there are a lot of dated themes that are present in the piece,” Carpenter said. ”So although the show originally was kind of liberal for its time, because it put strippers, essentially, in the limelight and told their stories, it also has a lot of misogyny embedded within that.”

Carpenter said that the decision to alter the story for a modern audience made a lot of sense for her and co-director and choreographer Bradley Barefoot. She said the show’s themes of womanhood and female empowerment are relevant, especially for a demographic of college students. 

Carpenter said adapting decades-old shows to conform with contemporary values has become a common phenomenon in recent years, especially on college campuses. 

“We had to figure out how we can appreciate what we love so much about golden age theater and also recognize, with a modern understanding, these marginalized groups of people who are presented in the stories,” Carpenter said. 

Beyond connecting with the modern updates to the story, Carpenter said she believes college-aged people can relate with Charity’s story regardless of the time period. 

“She gives everything she has to the people around her, friends, boyfriends, etc.,” Carpenter said. “I think that college students can really resonate with this story of finding your way in the world and wanting to have a greater sense of purpose.” 

The story encourages the audience to consider how they treat others and inspires an appreciation for listening and mutual respect, said junior Nathan Pait, who plays Oscar Lindquist, the show’s male lead. 

“It’s creating this culture of thinking before you speak, about how you are making other people feel, and how, even if you say things with the best intentions, they can be received the wrong way,” Pait said. 

For junior Mark Davio, who plays Italian actor Vittorio Vidal, it’s Charity’s optimism and genuine spirit that drive the show just as much as the comedy and music. 

“I hope people laugh a lot, I hope they generally have a good time, but at the same time, the show does have a message,” Davio said. “I think hope is a big theme in the show, I mean, it's in Charity's name.” 

The production is a medley of all of these messages wrapped up in a glamorous Broadway package, and is a great way for audiences to enjoy classic show tunes while exploring some important issues just as pertinent today as they were in 1966, Carpenter said. 

“There is a lot of feeling involved in this show, and the music and the numbers and the dancing bring a lot more life to it as well,” Carpenter said. “It's a lot of fun to watch and it really takes you through a whole whirlwind of emotion. It's definitely worth the $8 student ticket.” 

@Elizabeth_sills

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