Rising star Sophie Pitman, 18, will be joining Saskatchewan Express from her home in Battleford for the presentation of Lights! Curtain! Broadway! in Regina in December.
She will be joining performers from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Beach, La Ronge and Regina.
Conceived, written and directed by Saskatchewan Express founder Carol Gay Bell, Lights! Curtain! Broadway! features show-stopping numbers from shows like Chicago, West Side Story, Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables. Also featured is music from the brand new Broadway hit After Midnight, the music of Duke Ellington along with excerpts from Wicked and other musical masterpieces.
Performing with Saskatchewan Express is another step in Pitman's artistic journey.
Saskatchewan Express says, "She graduated from high school this June and sent a resume in to us the second she saw the ad for Saskatchewan Express auditions. She believes that performing with Saskatchewan Express is her dream job."
Having moved from Swindon, England eight years ago with her family, Pitman has been involved in arts and music and, at the 2013 Battlefords Kiwanis Music Festival, she was one of 16 individuals and one choir recommended to move on to provincial competition. She was recommended for Senior Musical Theatre Ballad Female.
Through her school years, she was active in the art and music programs and took home an award for improv and was on the honour roll. She played the role of Madame de la Grande Bouche (the Wardrobe) in the John Paul II Collegiate production of Beauty and the Beast.
She didn't limit her participation in the arts only to school, she also performed with the well-known Battleford Community Players in their productions of Chamber Music and Cruel Tears, directed by Roy and Donna Challis.
She studied voice with mezzo soprano Lisa Hornung of North Battleford and has attended Hornung's Summer School For the Solo Voice and summer camp with Persephone Theatre.
Along with singing, Sophie also plays the clarinet.
Saskatchewan Express says, "One day Sophie would love to be a Broadway star, like her idol Kristin Chenoweth, but in the meantime, she is studying and exploring the arts as much as she can. We think she's a doll and truly enjoy working with such a positive and hardworking young talent!"
For more than 30 years, Saskatchewan Express has been training and promoting talented young people from across the province of Saskatchewan. Hundreds of gifted young performers go on to fame in the performing arts world.
Lights! Curtain! Broadway! plays in Regina Dec. 4 through 8 and 12 through 15 with evening performances at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m. Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and students and $10 for children 12 and under and are available from Bach and Beyond, Cobb Swanson Music, Dancers Den and Long and McQuade. Block bookings may call 306-522-3407 to arrange special prices.
