01 Sep A performance that changed the world
“A Chorus Line” is getting a curtain call at Theatre Aspen Hurst Theatre.
From July 3 to July 26, Theatre Aspen staged the 1976 Broadway musical, which was the runaway hit of their three-show summer slate. Colorado Springs actress Ahren Victory shined as “Cassie,” the main character in what is, essentially, an ensemble piece.
On Wednesday at 7 p.m. and Thursday at 4 p.m. at the Hurst Theatre, New Yorker columnist and cultural critic Adam Gopnik will present “The Night A Chorus Line Opened on Broadway” as part of his ongoing series that’s part lecture, part performance: “A History of the World in 100 Performances.” He will be joined on stage by Donna McKechnie, a member of the Broadway Hall of Fame, who originated the role of Cassie on Broadway.
Gopnik will present a second show this week at the Hurst Theatre: “Ella Fitzgerald: The Night a Legend Found Her Voice.” It’s set for Wednesday at 4 p.m. and Thursday at 7 p.m.
“100 Performances” was originally launched in 2016 at Lincoln Center in New York. The series was developed by Theatre Aspen’s producing director Jed Bernstein and each show is performed by Gopnik as he examines a transformative performance that changed the culture in some way.
The series kicked off with a look at 25-year-old Leonard Bernstein’s 1943 conducting debut with the New York Philharmonic, featuring guests like Jake Gyllenhaal and Jamie Bernstein. Other installments, which are multimedia in nature, have explored landmark productions like the 1956 Broadway premiere of “My Fair Lady, ” the opening night of “Hamilton” in 2015 and Judy Garland’s 1961 Carnegie Hall performance.