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| Sarah Lovy as Audrey is No Dumb Blonde |
Ken Ludwig’s play Leading Ladies is set in Pennsylvania Dutch
country in 1952. It was a more innocent
time and people were willing to believe the world as presented to them in the
movies, theater and TV. Of all the
characters, Audrey, a 20 year-old blonde bombshell, best represents that blend
of innocence and naïveté, but she turns out to be much more than the
stereotypical “dumb blonde.”
In the Farmington Players production, Sarah Lovy plays Audrey with wit,
charm and intelligence, bringing a depth and maturity to her character beyond
her years.
Sarah says, “I love playing
Audrey! She’s a little like me in the sense that she likes to try out new big
words and is always open for learning. What I love about Ken Ludwig characters
is that a lot of them don’t fit into a standard character archetype (ex; the
brains, the muscle, the beauty).
Sometimes the pretty one is the klutzy one, or the smart one does
something outlandishly stupid to achieve something. They’re human, and these
silly high stakes are real and important to them. With Ken Ludwig shows, you’re always in for fun farce!”
Audrey’s character has even
been the subject of a master’s thesis!
In Beyond Blonde: Creating a
Non-Stereotypical Audrey in Ken Ludwig’s Leading Ladies (2009), Christine
M. Young described Audrey as follows: “For Audrey in Leading
Ladies, understanding the dumb bombshell stereotype allowed for a mix of
two stereotypes: the bombshell and the girl-next-door, and the opportunity to develop
a nuanced performance. Mixing the two created an interpretation of Audrey that
refrained from overt sexuality, allowing Audrey and Jack to fall in love based
on story line and personal traits instead of proximity and superficiality. Her mistakes are made out of innocence
instead of unintelligence. This also made her jokes funnier; instead of
laughing at a stereotypical dumb blonde, the audience was engaged with an
innocent, slightly wacky character who made endearing mistakes.”
In the play, Audrey makes an
immediate connection with Jack when she collides with him on rollerskates. I asked Sarah if she had ever
experienced love at first sight like Audrey. Sarah answered, “Of course I’ve experienced love at first
sight, I’m 20! Every love is a big
deal to me right now. I think something foolish I do for love is try to make
myself into a totally different person so they will love me back, and I’m slowly
learning – very slowly – that me is enough. That’s kinda what I like about my
character. Herself is enough.”
Audiences are sure to find Sarah’s adorable portrayal of Audrey to be
way more than “enough.” She steals several scenes, including playing
Shakespeare with a Marlon Brando accent!
Sarah hails from West
Bloomfield, and moved to Berkley last year. She works for the Murder Mystery Company performing murder mystery
dinners. She’s also a part of the
digital series Wicked City Girls. By
day, she works at Panera Bread and “sings Paul Simon SUPER LOUD when I’m in the
back.” Sarah has really
enjoyed her first show at the Farmington Players, saying, “This cast and crew
and director is so much fun to be around and they could not have been more
welcoming! I come for the theater and stay for the people. They are what make
the process relaxing and fun!
The
Farmington Players' production of Leading
Ladies opens November 28 and runs through December 20. The show is proudly sponsored by
Cadillac Travel Group. Tickets can be purchased online at
www.farmingtonplayers.org or by calling the box office at 248-553-2955.
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