With a small cast of eight, Lend Me a Tenor will punch into the theatre with its grand comedic timing this January 31.

Despite the small cast, everyone who is a part of the production has been putting in countless hours of work and effort to make the show successful, according to Emma Belew, stage manager and senior. Belew says the production for Lend Me a Tenor has a lot of differences from the previous plays and musicals, that everyone is looking forward to.

“I am most excited for the comedy aspects and the overall timing of the show,” Belew said. “As a stage manager, part of my responsibilities are to keep up the pacing of the show through technical aspects by calling cues, so knowing I have a part in what the audience gets to experience is pretty special and something I’m excited to experience.”

To ensure the audience has a good laugh and enjoys the play, both the cast and crew had to work hard and change up what they were used to, according to Belew.

 “The rehearsal process was slightly different for this show. We actually blocked (spaced and positioned the actors) it in about a month which is pretty quick. We also introduced rehearsal furniture, props, and costumes, which was unique to this production because we had never really used them before,” Belew said. “This play being a farce and relying a lot on comedic timing and physical actions, it was more important to have placeholders and tangible objects for the actors to use before they moved to the main stage. The entirety of this production is fast-paced, so it’s taken a lot of energy and pre-planning but the end result will definitely be worth it.”

Like Belew, Brittany Rogus, one of the eight cast members and sophomore says Lend Me a Tenor is a new experience for everyone.

“I think I’m most looking forward to the audience enjoying all the sitcom-like, physical comedy aspects of the show because it really makes the show more unique and hilarious than past shows that I’ve been in and that Lake Zurich has done,” Rogus said.

But what is this “end result” that the viewers can expect? According to Belew, the audience will have a good laugh and leave feeling lighthearted, with the different type of play that people are usually used to.

“What makes Lend Me a Tenor funny is all of the uses of different types of comedy, it appeals to many different types of humor. There’s lots of messes that are made, doors slammed, characters confusing each other for someone else, and a lot of energy that shows do not normally have,” Belew said. “Specifically, audiences will like the hilarity of the characters and how invested they can become in 1930s Cleveland because of the talent on and offstage.”