“ONCE”: Seniors Sam Gravitte and Maddie Meyers in rehearsal for the Lewis Center for the Arts’s production of the musical “Once.” The show runs November 11, 12, 17, 18, and 19 at 8 p.m. in the Berlind Theatre at McCarter Theatre Center. Tickets are available at (609) 258-2787 and online at arts.princeton.edu/once. (Photo Credit: Graham Phillips)
The Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University presents the Tony Award-winning musical Once, directed by senior Graham Phillips and featuring seniors Sam Gravitte and Maddie Meyers, on November 11, 12, 17, 18 and 19 at 8 p.m. in the Berlind Theatre at McCarter Theatre Center.
Once tells the gripping tale of a Dublin street musician who is on the verge of giving up on his dreams, when he unexpectedly meets a girl who is fascinated by his haunting love songs. Performed in the show’s characteristic actor-musicianship style — in which the characters play the accompanying instruments as the show’s band — Once is subtle and sincere in both its themes and aesthetic, breaking from the traditional Broadway boy-meets-girl romance, and is a testament to the power of music bringing people together.
The play is a musical stage adaptation of the 2007 film by John Carney, with the new book written by Irish playwright Enda Walsh. Music and lyrics are by the same team who wrote the film’s original music — Academy Award-winning duo Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová. Hansard and Irglová won the Oscar for the Best Original Song “Falling Slowly” written for the film. The musical premiered on Broadway in 2012, won eight Tony awards including Best Musical, Best Actor, and Best Book for Walsh and only recently closed in 2015. The show also toured nationally from 2013 through May of 2016.
Tickets for Once are $12 general admission and $11 for students and seniors when purchased in advance, and $17 general admission and $15 for students and seniors purchased the day of performances at the McCarter box office. Tickets are available through McCarter ticketing, which offers online ordering and print-at-home tickets. To purchase tickets over the phone, call (609) 258-ARTS (2787). To purchase tickets online visit: arts.princeton.edu/once.
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