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"Blood Brothers" by Willy Russell

The Indiana University Department of Theatre and Drama opens their 2009-2010 season with Will Russell's award winning musical Blood Brothers.

IU Senior Mandy Striph plays the part of the woman who gives birth to the brothers. In this tragic tale set in Liverpool, one is raised in the poverty of a nine child, single parent household and the other in the lap of luxury as the single child of an upper class family. She talked about this role and her recent activities.

"Well, I've come off a very busy summer. I was in The All Night Strut and There Goes the Bride at the Brown County Playhouse. And then at the end of the summer, I was in IU's musical theatre development project production of The Rockae."

"It's fortunate that I like variety. The first show was a revue with music and dancing from the thirties and forties. The play was a sort of English farce and then The Rockae was a rock version of a Greek tragedy. And now, I'm a working class English woman"

"I'm very fortunate in both the director and the choreographer for Blood Brothers, especially my director Murray McGibbon. First off, he's told me to trust myself and that's a great gift to an actor. And then, he's helped me a great deal to understand the character in ways that my own life experience just doesn't allow. I'm a twenty something who's been in school most of her life and this woman goes from being a perky young woman in her twenties to a pretty worn out one in her forties. It's a great part and with their help, I'm so pleased to have it before I graduate.

Blood Brothers by Willy Russell

Indiana University Department of Theatre and Drama

Ruth N. Halls Theatre

Oct 9-10 and 13-17 at 7:30 with a 2 pm matinee on the 17th, 2009

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