"Legally Blonde" brings its music to the Schuster

"Legally Blonde" was a hit film in 2001 starring Reese Witherspoon as the perky Elle Woods. It garnered more than $120 million at the box office, a figure solid enough for the movie producers to make a sequel two years later.
It was so popular, especially with younger audiences, that is was just a matter of time before it made its way to Broadway.
Then, in 2007, the two-act stage production "Legally Blonde The Musical" made its Broadway debut and earned several Tony nominations. The ebullient show about a cute college girl who loves her pet Chihuahua and winds up at the Harvard Law School in order to win her ex-boyfriend back is described as "irresistible" by more than a few critics.
Moreover, the touring show won prizes for best new musical, best production design and best choreography.
The National Touring show, which began its one-year run in the fall of 2008, is booked for eight performances at the Schuster Center in downtown Dayton. Opening night is Tuesday, June 16, and closing night is Sunday, June 21.
Lauren Ashley Zakrin, 20, has been an understudy for the role of Elle Woods since the tour began. She has performed the role a few dozen times when Becky Gulsvig, the regular Elle Woods, broke her toe and needed some time off.
Zakrin, who was a freshman at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, won the coveted understudy spot after several auditions in Chicago in the spring of 2008. Gulsvig was tapped for the leading role, but Zakrin was off and running as a member of the national tour.
During the Dayton engagement at the Schuster, Zakrin -- who usually performs in the show's ensemble as a Delta Nu sorority member or as a college student in the halls of Harvard -- is playing the lead role of Elle Woods.
"The stage show has virtually every scene in the film," Zakrin said during a telephone interview from Washington, D. C., where "Legally Blonde The Musical" was being staged at the Kennedy Center.
Two of the most well-known scenes are the bend-and-snap routine at the beauty shop and Elle Woods getting her friend's dog back from the nasty ex-husband of the portly beauty shop operator.
"It's a lot of fun for one thing and Elle Woods learns a lot about growing up, from a teen to more of a women," Zakrin said.
Like she said, Elle Woods enrolls at Harvard to impress her old boyfriend enough to renew their romance. But she sees through him and his rich, cavalier ways, and moves on to better things, including romantically and professionally.
"Legally Blonde The Musical" will be presented by the Victoria Theatre Association's JP Morgan Chase Broadway Series on June 16-21 at the Schuster Center. Ticket prices range from $30 to $80 and may be purchased by calling (937) 228-3630. Discounts are available for senior citizens, students and groups.