The comedy musical Legally Blonde is the next challenge for CAOS Musical Productions as they take to the stage from Wednesday to Saturday, November 1-4 at Westbourne House School, Coach Road, Chichester (tickets www.caosmusicalproductions.co.uk)
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00:00 Good afternoon, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor at Sussex Newspapers. Now, Chaos
00:06 are a fabulous, Chaos Musical Productions, fabulous Chichester-based company, do some
00:11 really great things. And the next challenge for you is the musical Legally Blonde. Now,
00:17 Emily Horner, you are the musical director, and Lauren Ford, you are stepping into the
00:22 Reese Witherspoon shoes, from the film at least, to be Elle. Now, Lauren, how's it going?
00:29 How's it shaping up? It's going really well, actually. Really, really enjoying the process.
00:34 We've got about a month to go, and we're now just getting to the point where we're able to start
00:39 kind of piecing together all of the work that we've done so far, and kind of see how the show
00:45 looks as a whole, and that's really exciting. And does it help you, the fact that Elle is such an
00:52 attractive character, isn't she? There's something really likeable about her, something really
00:57 appealing about her. Yeah, no, she's a really, really interesting character to play, and getting
01:03 to kind of take that inspiration from such a well-known portrayal from Reese Witherspoon,
01:10 and kind of take that and pick up pieces and make it my own has been a really,
01:16 really enjoyable experience. And there's the tiniest, tiniest of parallels, isn't there,
01:20 given that you are heading for a legal career? There is, yes.
01:24 Has it been a shift? Yes, I'm in law school, so it's quite fun
01:30 to kind of get to play that character and see it resemble my real life.
01:35 Is there anything that you can draw on, or are the two worlds so completely different?
01:40 I think the biggest takeaway I've had is I'm able to kind of approach the role with a real sense of
01:48 knowing how much work goes into it. It really can't be understated. And so I think that is
01:53 something I'm able to really, when there are points in the show where I think maybe Elle is at a point
01:59 where she is really seeing how much work she's put in, I'm able to draw on first-hand experience.
02:05 Emily, you've done a lot with the company over a relatively short space of time,
02:11 but you've usually been on stage. But now you're going to be hidden. Well, you'll be seen,
02:16 won't you? But not actually on stage. Tell me about the role of musical director for this.
02:22 What kind of music are we going to have in the show?
02:24 Just very fun music, very upbeat. You'll be leaving at the end of the night, kind of humming
02:32 the songs. They're very infectious. They're just really, really joyful. And it's a fantastic
02:39 scene for both our principals and ensemble. Challenging, but I think very worthwhile.
02:45 And I'm really excited for our audiences to see it.
02:49 And does it help you, Emily, the fact that, as you were saying, you have actually been in the
02:53 show in the past? Who did you play? I was an ensemble member. I played a student
03:00 in the last production that I was in, which was quite a few years ago now. So it's really
03:05 exciting to revisit the piece. It's such a fun show. Great film, great musical. So it's exciting
03:15 to be on the other side of things this time. Yes. And does that knowledge from the musical,
03:20 when you were in it, does that actually help you?
03:22 Yes, yeah, it does. It's bringing back a lot of memories. I scarily remember a lot of the music
03:29 much better than I thought I did, which has been quite helpful. It all comes flooding back.
03:35 But it's been really exciting to revisit. And again, a big challenge, you're saying
03:39 this is your first book musical, first full show, in effect, as musical director?
03:45 It is. It's quite daunting. It's quite a daunting task. You start to think to yourself,
03:49 "Oh, can I do it?" The responsibility of making sure that everybody knows what they're doing
03:55 musically and teaching all of the music. But it's been very rewarding. And I'm extremely
04:02 proud of all of the cast. They're doing well, aren't they?
04:06 They are. They are. And as Lauren said, we're at the point now where we're piecing all of the
04:12 bits that we've set together. And it's really shaping up to be a really exciting and joyous show.
04:19 It sounds brilliant. Now, Lauren, when you're taking your bows at the end of the run,
04:23 having had a fantastic time on stage in this lovely role, are you going to start thinking,
04:28 "This is what I want to do, not law." Are you absolutely set?
04:33 I think I'm quite a few years into my law degree now. So I think that's definitely the route I'm
04:39 heading. But I do really enjoy getting to take to the stage and have that as a hobby to supplement.
04:45 But what does it give you as a hobby?
04:48 Oh, it gives me the opportunity to spend time with a big group of other people working kind of
04:55 cohesively and collectively on a piece and seeing the journey of that from start to finish
05:00 is such a rewarding experience and something that I really love. And then, as you say,
05:05 like standing on stage at the end of a run and kind of getting to reflect back and having shared
05:10 that creation that you've made with an audience and seeing their reception is such a rewarding
05:16 experience. That sounds great. And finally, Emily,
05:18 it's a lovely choice for the company, isn't it, to do Legally Blonde?
05:23 Oh, it's absolutely fantastic. Chaos always put on a wonderfully exciting range of productions,
05:31 and I'm so glad that Legally Blonde is now one of those. It is just so fun. And it's a show that
05:40 all can get involved in, no matter if you're Elwood or you're in the ensemble. There's so
05:45 much to take away from it. So much singing, so much dancing. It's a real good time for hopefully
05:53 everyone on stage and off. Fantastic. Well, lovely to speak to you both.
05:58 Congratulations on the show. And yeah, have fun. Thank you.
06:02 Thank you.
06:03 Thank you.