Youve heard of love triangles before.
Buoyed by the music of the Elvis Presley, Iola High Schools drama students somehow pull off whats best described as a love decagon.
The IHS spring musical, All Shook Up, follows the story of unrequited love as an ensemble cast brings the Kings signature pieces to life.
As an added bonus, All Shook Up also features live music performed by an equally talented bevy of high school musicians.
All Shook Up runs at 7 oclock tonight and Friday at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center.
THE MUSICAL comedy sports an entire discography of Presley from Jailhouse Rock to Heartbreak Hotel and everywhere in between, with a hint of Shakespeares Twelfth Night influencing the plot.
Indeed, there are plenty of story arcs to follow.
In this case, Chad a roustabout just out of jail is forced to stop at an anonymous midwestern town because of motorcycle troubles.
Chads search for a mechanic takes him to a local bar and grill, where he introduces himself to the staid, reserved community. The townsfolk are instantly charmed by the visitors swagger, none more so than Natalie, the teen-aged daughter of a local garage owner. Natalie, it turns out, is also the towns top mechanic.
Chads arrival sets in motion a series of lovelorn dominoes.
The boyish Natalie struggles to catch Chads eye, even neglecting the barely hidden overtures from young Dennis, who has harbored feelings of his own for Natalie. Natalie will do anything ANYTHING to find an in with Chad, including posing as a fellow biker dude to find out what makes the mysterious visitor tick.
Alas, Chad is infatuated with the beautiful young Sandra, caretaker for the local museum, even though Sandra is decidedly unimpressed. Chad even has some competition in wooing Sandra, albeit unknowingly, because she also has caught the eye of Jim, Natalies widowed father. Jim even seeks out Chads help in chasing Sandra, each oblivious theyre chasing the same woman (and Jim unaware that Sylvia, the bar and grill owner, harbors her own feelings.)
Topping it off, Sylvias daughter, Lorraine, has fallen hopelessly in love with Dean, fresh out of military school. And while Dean is equally enamored with Lorraine, their courtship runs afoul of Deans overbearing mother, the stern Mayor Matilda Hyde.
The mayor is less than thrilled a single visitor has turned her town topsy-turvy and will do whatever she must to see things put back to normal.
Can Natalie catch Chads eye? How far will Chad go to convince Sandra hes more than an empty vessel riding a motorcycle? Will Chad and Jim ever realize theyre chasing the same girl? Will Dennis escape the dreaded friend zone with Natalie? Will Dean avoid a return to military school and instead find true love with Lorraine?
Those questions and more will be answered tonight and Friday, starting at 7 oclock.
