‘The Wedding Singer’ sings center stage after years hiatus

By Mackenzie Shields

SUNY Oswego’s production of “The Wedding Singer” opened on April 21 and will run through April 24, with a preview available to students on April 20.

“The Wedding Singer” is directed by SUNY Oswego associate professor Jonel Langenfeld and music directed by assistant professor Alan Martin.

The show is based on the 1998 movie of the same title, and according to Martin, is full of music that has a “strong nostalgic feel for anyone who likes ‘80s music.”

Nicholas Sweet, a junior majoring in theater and cinema and screen studies with a minor in creative writing, plays Robbie Hart, the show’s titular wedding singer.

“Honestly, I’m just excited be back on stage,” Sweet said. “Because of COVID, in-person shows haven’t been something we could safely do until the past fall. With that, there is just a sort of energy going around, an excitement among the cast, that we finally get to perform in front of a live audience.”

The week of rehearsals leading up to the show is called tech week, which Martin said was “lovingly referred to as ‘hell week.’” Starting on April 18, tech week involves dress rehearsals Monday and Tuesday, a preview on Wednesday, and then the show’s opening on Thursday.

Martin said that rehearsals are long, and that he arrives around 6 p.m. and does not leave the theater until after 11 p.m. He said they keep students there “as long as we can without being cruel,” and emphasized that students are also managing classwork and other obligations. Sweet said that the rehearsal process is extremely important for people like him.

“A biology major has to go through multiple classes with long labs,” Sweet said. “This show is like a lab for theater students. We hone our skills and learn how the rehearsal process works in the real world.”

He also said that playing the lead of the production has required a lot of work. 

“This show has pushed me to practicing more than I ever have before with the material, working to make sure I could perform this show,” Sweet said. “Some songs require heavy dancing and singing, so it’s about finding a balance between the two.”

The show will be accompanied by a pit of 13 musicians, most of which are students, Martin said. He added that he spent time rearranging and redistributing books of music to make the musical feasible for the pit that they had. Martin also spent some time working on sound design for the show’s three keyboards, which helps to give the music its ‘80s feel. Recently, the cast performed the show with the full band for the first time.

“[The cast’s] excitement from hearing the sounds that they were hearing was palpable,” Martin said, and added that there was a loop of energy and excitement between the band and the performers.

Martin said that rehearsals for the band began around the end of January and that cast rehearsals began shortly afterwards.

“It’s a pretty short amount of time to put a show together of this scale,” Martin said, also making note that the time used has been comparable to that of a professional production rather than a college-level show.

Sydnei Williams, the show’s stage manager and a class of 2020 graduate, said that her favorite part of working on the show has been the tech process.

“It is very exciting [to] get to listen to the band and having all the scenic, light, and sound elements come together,” Williams said.

As stage manager, her job is to call the cues throughout the show so that everything can happen on time. She said that she always has to be ready to answer questions from anyone. 

“You end up being the point person for the cast, crew, designers, and direction team to all work together,” Williams said.

Several people involved with the production emphasized their excitement for the show to be performed in front of a live audience. Langenfeld said in an email that she hopes many people will come to see the production.

“The entire cast has been waiting for this day since we started rehearsals, and really want to show off all of the hard work we put into the show,” Sweet said.

According to SUNY Oswego’s box office website, the production will run for approximately two and a half hours and there will be one 15 minute intermission. It is suggested for ages 13 and up.

Tickets for “The Wedding Singer” are available at SUNY Oswego’s box office or online at oswego.universitytickets.com and are $15 for the general public or free for students. The show will run four performances from April 21-24 at 7:30 p.m. and an additional matinee on April 24 at 2:00 p.m.

Image from Mackenzie Shields