In a watershed year for equality, inclusion, and human rights, with #MeToo and TIME’S UP™ gaining momentum in industries from Hollywood to higher education, The Professional Conservatory of Musical Theatre at the New York Film Academy (PCMT @ NYFA) has struck the perfect chord with its new original music revue, Reclaiming Our Time: An Empowerment Revue.
Last August, Democratic California Congressional Representative Maxine Waters (“Auntie Maxine” to many of her millennial fans) went viral when, during a House Financial Services Committee meeting, she refused to let the man she was questioning derail her limited time. The moment became a viral video and a battle cry, inspiring a Women’s March theme and, now, PCMT’s original musical revue.
PCMT’s tribute to the power of women working together to make their voices heard celebrates women through a multitude of musical styles, following seven characters as they explore their connections with others, their frustrations with love and heartbreak, and the desire to destroy glass ceilings.
Co-conceived by Johanna Pinzler, who also serves as director, and Joshua Zecher-Ross, who is also music director, Reclaiming Our Time: An Empowerment Revue featured stellar performances from current PCMT students. The cast included Krystal Kane, Elena Lozonschi, Abby Luke, Madeline Mancebo, Catarina Marcato, Carly McClain, Damaris Olivo, and Sarah Venners.
In her director’s statement, Johanna Pinzler said:
“Working with Joshua Zecher-Ross and the 12 women involved with this project both on and offstage has been a real balm for my soul. Our rehearsal room was a safe space for discovery, big emotions, vulnerability, and ultimately, it became a breeding ground for awareness both political and biological. Through music and poetry, we worked together to bridge the history of my mother’s generation with mine and that of these current students.”
Playing to a sold-out weekend at The Theatre @ NYFA (17 Battery Place, 1st Floor, New York, NY 10004), Reclaiming Our Time: An Empowerment Revue delighted with tour de force performances of music, political chants, and poetry repurposed to tell a new story bridging generations of women, all raising their voices to lay claim to their space, their rights, and their time.
Even before the performers took the stage, the revue was reclaiming time for women by running audio recordings of chants from some of the recent Women’s March protests, as well as the Maxine Waters viral video that inspired the title.
Some of the iconic musical covers included Carol King’s Beautiful, I Enjoy Being a Girl (Flower Drum Song), I’m on My Way (Violet), Carli Simon’s Let the River Run (Working Girl), Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors, and The Bear, The Tiger, The Hamster and the Mole (Closer Than Ever). On-stage percussion instruments and live piano had both the cast and audience dancing.
Reclaiming Our Time: An Empowerment Revue is a part of the new works series at the Professional Conservatory of Musical Theatre. The school was launched at the New York Film Academy in 2009 with nine students. Nine years later, hundreds of students have studied musical theatre at NYFA, and the department now boasts a healthy faculty roster of over 75 working industry professionals. For more information about the Professional Conservatory of Musical Theatre @ NYFA, please visit: www.nyfa.edu/musical-theatre.