An Officer and a Gentleman Brings the 80s Back to Life
Zack Mayo has the raw talent and strength for the US Navy’s Officer Training School, but his arrogance is out of step. Adamant that graduating from the elite program will secure his career and future, Zack finds himself torn between the tyrant commands of Drill Sergeant Foley and the goals he’s set in place. Add a beautiful, strong-willed factory woman into the mix and you’ve got a deliciously romantic story that’s ready to unfold before your eyes.
While ticket holders can expect to be wrapped in the arms of self-discovery and romance, An Officer And A Gentleman promises to pull them from the comforts of their seats and into the 80s as hits like Pat Benatar’s “Love is a Battlefield” and Steve Winwood’s “Higher Love” belt across the stage.
Movie fans can expect to hear the original Grammy- and Oscar-winning #1 hit “Up Where We Belong,” by Joe Coker and Jennifer Warnes, but they can also expect to hear so much more. Drawing on high school dances in the gymnasium and cruising down Genessee Street, An Officer and a Gentleman will have the audience back in their tight pants and smelling of Aquanet as Debbie Gibson’s “Lost in Your Eyes,” Yes’ “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” and a few other popular songs from the era debut throughout the musical.
In an interview with Page Leggett, Dick Scanlan, co-author and director of the musical adaptation of the 1982 film, An Officer and a Gentleman stated, “We needed a reason to tell the same story again 39 years later while using existing songs from that era to make them sound like they were written just for this story.”
To generate an emotional connection and nostalgia within the audience, Scanlan brought on composer Dan Lipton to co-orchestrate iconic ‘80s songs throughout An Officer and a Gentleman.
“I had the distinct opportunity to choose songs that fit our characters and our dramatic situations based on the time An Officer and a Gentleman took place,” said Lipton. “When you put these songs in the right places it begins to change an entire meaning of a song. While there are songs in the show that are exactly as people remember there are others that are presented to better suit the show. Audience members can expect to suddenly hear a lyric in a different way. Something they’ve known all their life will somehow sound different and hold different meanings. It’s really exciting to have been able to take these songs that we loved and repurpose and rearrange them while adding an additional harmony or underscore. The music is definitely what makes this show unique.”
“It’s become cliché to say that a certain piece of art “has something for everybody. But An Officer and A Gentleman does appeal to hopeless (and hopeful) romantics, fans of 1980s nostalgia, and those who served in or admire the U.S. military,” Scanlan noted.
In a world where few hearts survive, An Officer and a Gentleman is ready to lift everyone up and remind them that while they don’t know what tomorrow brings, they can certainly lose themselves in the music of the moment –or an era.
An Officer and a Gentleman
February 21/22
7:30pm
Stanley Theatre
Tickets Click Here
315-624-9444
