BWW Interviews: Alison Ewing Promises Fun at FLASHDANCE - THE MUSICAL at the Wharton Center

Flashdance - the Musical is bringing the 1980s back to life at the Wharton Center. The stage adaptation of the hit film is full of the iconic music, dance, and costumes that made people fall in love with the original movie. "It has all the fun ways and styles that they used to have in the 80s," said Alison Ewing who plays Tess in the production. "It's a really great show."

"The production actually follows very, very closely to the movie," she said. "It is the story of Alex, a steel mill worker in a blue collar town of Pittsburgh, who works as a dance night with dreams of being a ballerina." Ewing emphasizes that flash dancers are not strippers, they are more classy dancers who create fashion styles with their movements and costumes. She plays Tess, one of Alex's girl friends who works at the dance club with her. "Tess is one of the oldest dancers in the club, but the most wise," said Ewing. "I'm kind of the broad of the whole place."

The show is filled with songs that the movie is known for such as "What A Feeling" and "Maniac." Ewing gets to sing the crowd favorite number of "I Love Rock and Roll" the famous Joan Jett song. "That song was not sung by anyone or used in the movie prominently, but in one of the scenes you can hear it playing in the background," she said. "It's interesting that we were able to actually pull that song and use it while singing and dancing at the same time." The show also has iconic moments from the film like the scene with Alex pulling the chain and dancing in the water.

Ewing is no stranger to life on the road. Before being cast in Flashdance, she spent two years on the road with Mama Mia. "I'm so glad to be back on the road again," she said. "I really enjoy it." She has been working actor for many years after going to school for musical theatre at Millikin University in Illinois. She earned her equity card after working for ten years in New York then she moved to California. "I currently live in the San Francisco Bay area and use that as my home base," she said.

She also loves being on the road with her cast members in Flashdance. "Not only are the people I am out with talented, they are an amazing bunch," she said. "They are great singers and great dancers." Ewing has a lot of fun being part of the production and feel that the audience will have just as much. "Whether or not you've seen the movie, you are going to enjoy it. The singing, dancing, and vocals in this show are so amazing. Plus the dancing is phenomenal with all the different styles such as classic ballet, modern, hip hop, and street dancing to name a few," said Ewing. "You will come, have a good time, and see a beautiful spectacle that is definitely worth seeing."

Flashdance - the Musical opens Tuesday, October 8th at the Wharton Center on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing. For more information on the show, visit www.flashdancethemusical.com. For tickets, visit www.whartoncenter.com or call 1.800.WHARTON.

To post a comment, you must register and login.