Thirty-nine cast members, six rehearsals a week, and a number of dance moves later, the cast of WTAMU’s Legally Blonde the Musical are ready for their debut performance on Thursday, April 18.

The cast had the opportunity to work with a guest music director from the Broadway National Tour of Legally Blonde and have been preparing for this performance since the end of January.

“This is the largest and most in depth show that we’ve done,” Stephen Crandall, Assistant Professor of Theatre and director of the show, said. “It’s a complex show, so we have had to spend a lot of time rehearsing.”

The musical is based on the 2001 movie starring Reese Witherspoon, who played Elle Woods, and Luke Wilson, who played the role of Emmett Richmond. The musical was only just released from Broadway in the early fall.

“I feel that the music allows you to connect to the audience more so than the movie,” Shandee Vaughan, senior Theatre major and stage manager of the show, said. “The dancing draws the audience in, and all of the songs are all so witty.”

This show is the biggest production that the Theatre Department has put on.

“It’s challenging, but it is so much fun. The dancing is difficult, and the music is complicated, but when it all comes down to it, the show is about having fun,” Julia Rucker, senior Theatre Education major said.

Rucker encourages the audience to come to the show with an open mind.

“It is important to have fun, and it’s okay to laugh,” Rucker said. “Don’t judge it before you see it.”

The show will only be on campus for nine performances and will be showing Thursday through Sunday. Sunday’s show will be a matinee starting at 2:30 p.m., while all other performances will be at 7:30 p.m. in the Branding Iron Theatre.

“It’s a blast but we will be ready to move on to the next show. That’s kind of what we do in theatre,” Crandall said. “We typically don’t perform a show more than once.”