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CCCC’s ‘Working, A Musical’ to open at Chatham Mills

03.31.2010 • Arts & Entertainment, Students/Graduates

PITTSBORO - Celebrate working people and what they do with Central Carolina Community College's spring play production, "Working, A Musical."

The show will be at Chatham Mills April 14 through 18.

Anyone who has ever held a job will identify with the stories and characters in this show. It is based on a book of interviews with workers by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Louis "Studs" Terkel. The author, who died in 2008, was acclaimed for his efforts to preserve American oral history.

His 1974 book, "Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do," is a compilation of stories about ordinary workers - how they feel about their jobs, their hopes and aspirations. The play brings their stories to life.

"This show is relevant today, given the current economy and our rapidly changing workplaces/perceptions of work," said play director Ellen Bland. "We hope the audiences will discover that for themselves."

The "Working" production company of more than 30 actors, artists and musicians is drawn from students in Bland's theater classes at Central Carolina Community College and community members with a love of - and talent for - theater. 

The college's theater program has built a solid reputation for quality productions over the years. The first show, "Millworker," was created by Bland and Drew Lasater, a former student, from a volume of Southern oral history stories. "Millworker" was acclaimed by The Raleigh News & Observer as one of the Triangle's top 10 shows of 2003. "Working" brings to the stage this same sense of authenticity that audiences connect with. 

"Working, A Musical" played on Broadway in 1978 and was telecast on PBS in 1982. Local audiences can enjoy it at Chatham Mills, 480 Hillsborough St., Pittsboro. Performances are 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, April 14-15; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 16-17; and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday, April 18. 

Tickets are available now at Central Carolina Community College's Chatham County Campus, Pittsboro, and at www.brownpapertickets.com. Tickets are $12 and seating is limited. The show is not for children under age 13.

"Working" was adapted for the stage by Stephen Schwartz and Nina Faso, with music by Craig Carneila, Micki Grant, James Taylor, Stephen Schwartz, Mary Rogers, and Susan Birkenhead.  It is produced by special arrangement with Music Theatre International, Inc.
CCCC’s ‘Working, A Musical’ to open at Chatham Mills

Central Carolina Community College theater students and community members, under the direction of Ellen Bland, present “Working, A Musical,” April 14-18 at Chatham Mills. The show is based on an oral history of American workers by author Louis “Studs” Terkel. Performances are 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, April 14-15; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 16-17; and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday, April 18. Chatham Mills is located at 480 Hillsborough St., Pittsboro. Tickets are $12 at the college’s Chatham County Campus, Pittsboro, and at www.brownpapertickets.com . Seating is limited. Please, no children under age 13. Cast members include students (front, from left) Eleasha Schmidt, of Pittsboro, and Carrie Norris, of Sanford; and (back, from left) Chris Yarborough, of Pittsboro; Layton Sheppard, of Sanford; Kayla Fletcher, of Sanford; Adam Stark, of Pittsboro; community artist Forrest Greenslade, of Pittsboro; and student Fonda McSwain, of Sanford.