Ride the Cyclone Thesis

Abstract

My name is Ashley Veltman, and as a capstone to my Music Theater education at Carthage College, I will be playing the role of Constance Blackwood in the fall music theater workshop production of Ride the Cyclone, by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell, directed by Magdalene Spanuello. This musical is about a group of high school choir students who find themselves in a place of purgatory after dying in a roller coaster accident. One of them will be brought back to life, and they all have the opportunity to state their case to why they should be the one who receives a second chance. Throughout their journeys in this musical, they discover how their lives had meaning and how the memories they have made are better than no memories at all. Even if they did not accomplish what they meant to in life, they realize their lives still had meaning and purpose. This musical was meant to tell the story of mass tragedy in an approachable way that highlights the beautiful qualities of individuals lost instead of the horrific event.