“Legally Blonde” was released in 2001 starring Reese Witherspoon. It was received extremely well and became a musical in 2007.
In its latest production of the movie’s theatrical version, New Trier Choir Opera diversifies the show to make it more gender neutral and friendly to all audiences.
Performers say that this year’s show was more challenging. Usually the Cho-Op class picks a more traditional play with conventional roles for each gender, such as “Les Miserables,” “West Side Story” or “Beauty and the Beast.” This year, it’s different, with boys playing parts normally played by girls. “We have incorporated the male cast members into numbers that were originally dominated by females,” said Caywood.
“There’s quite a few more girl parts than guys which is unique to the show,’’ Landes said. “That’s another thing that’s hard about finding shows. There’s usually more guys parts than girls, but I think there were lots of opportunities in this one to feature a lot of our girls which has been nice.”
The class has about a 2:1 ratio of girls to boys. Josh Bretthauer, a junior in Cho-Op, said he doesn’t notice the difference that much in the play.
“Almost every major song features the guys,” Bretthauer said. “And even though the show itself is kind of girl-oriented, there are a lot of funny guy ensemble parts. It definitely won’t be as girl-centric as a lot of people are probably expecting it to be.”
Andrew Phillips, a junior in Cho-Op, said he thinks boys in the audience will enjoy the play as much as girls. “While I suppose girls will identify with the storyline more than guys, it is still incredibly fun and entertaining for people of all genders and ages,” Phillip said. “I wouldn’t say the show is too female dominated, it’s just that it’s based off of a chick-flick/rom-com.”
“Legally Blonde” is also slightly more risky than plays in the past. Ali Malehorn, a junior in Cho-Op said, “Certain lines of the show have been cut or altered to downplay the provocative language but there are still some hilarious, inappropriate aspects.”
Each year, teachers Nathan Landes, Nina Lynn and David Ladd pick a show for the Choir Opera, or commonly referred to as Cho-Op, class to perform in the spring.
“The decision is a collaborative effort with all the staff involved, we have all these considerations,” Nathan Landes, the music director, said.
“We have to figure out what’s good for the orchestra, what’s good for the vocals, and we have to find shows that give lots of students opportunities as opposed to shows where maybe there’s just a couple solos.”
The class works to put on professional former Broadway plays.
“We have practices after school normally lasting from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., as well as all-day practices on Saturdays and an additional 40 minutes of in-class time everyday spent on reviewing the music.”

Sarah Caywood, a junior in Cho-Op said. “It is very close to the type of time commitment expected from athletes.”
With the show’s opening night around the corner the pressure is on for the crew, musicians, teachers and the cast. Malehorn said, “When the show approaches, rehearsal becomes longer. It’s a mix of dance rehearsal, blocking scenes and singing.”
Overall Landes said the show has “been really fun for the students. I think they really have just had a blast putting it together because of the humor and there’s lots of cool dancing.”
“Legally Blonde” will be in the Gaffney Theatre on March 3-6. For more information and to buy tickets go to www.greateventseats.com/nths.