“It’s just very special,” Haren said of the story and the show. She first saw the movie adaptation, starring Winona Rider as Jo, when she was in second grade. From there, Haren read the book and went to see the musical adaptation on Broadway when she was 17 — with her best friend, who was fighting a terminal illness. The comparison to Jo March’s sickly sister Beth was uncanny.
Haren’s roommate and best friend at school, Mazie Wilson, plays Marmee. Tony McConville, who plays Jo’s love interest, Professor Bhaer, has been one of her best friends since her freshman year.
“This is my last show at UCI,” Haren said; she graduates next month, and will spend the summer in San Diego working on a show before packing her bags and heading for the Great White Way to make a name for herself, just as Jo March did to become a published writer.
For her last production, Haren dove into researching Alcott and her time.
“She was an author that was so ahead of her time,” Director Myrona Delaney said of Alcott, describing her feminine and progressive qualities.
Delaney is associate professor of musical theater and head of UCI’s New York Satellite Program.
The Broadway musical by Allan Knee, with music by Jason Howland and lyrics by Mindi Dickstein, debuted in 2005 on Broadway.
The musical gives audiences glimpses into characters not included in the book — like Professor Bhaer’s thoughts upon being in New York after Jo leaves.
The show’s directors say their experiences with “Little Women” are numerous — a mother’s favorite book, it inspired a trip to Broadway with Delaney’s daughter.
