Two lonely hearts come together in North Central's 'She Loves Me'

Moviegoers will remember how the fine line between love and exasperation was comically examined in "You've Got Mail," the 1998 film with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

A couple's anonymous correspondence leads to online romance. Meanwhile, they meet in person as business rivals. And they don't recognize each other as the objects of their ongoing online flirtations.

A similar story line threads through a 1940 movie with Jimmy Stewart, "Shop Around the Corner."

"She Loves Me," a 1960s Broadway musical with a comparable theme, comes to Pfeiffer Hall this weekend and next with a production presented by North Central College students.

In it, Georg and Amalia, feuding co-workers at a Hungarian perfumery, unknowingly become secret pen pals. The action is set in the 1930s.

"It is a very, very romantic classic musical," said Will Allan, a senior performance theater major from Dayton, Ohio. "My character is Georg Novak. He starts corresponding with a woman from a lonely hearts club. They fall deeply in love with each other. As our director says, it is the longest buildup to the most beautiful, romantic ending in musical theater history."

The two-act show, written by playwright Joe Masteroff, features more than 20 musical numbers by Sheldon Harnick. The best-known among them, Allan said, are "She Loves Me" and "Vanilla Ice Cream."

"There's a dance number, but it's a very acting-heavy and song-heavy show," Allan said.

Due to graduate next June, Allan said this will be his last show at North Central. He's appeared in 10 main stage productions at the college, including "The Laramie Project," "Beauty and the Beast," "West Side Story" and "Jesus Christ Superstar."

Allan said he's gotten a pre-graduation jump on his professional career, appearing as Claudio last summer in the First Folio Shakespeare Company's production of "Much Ado About Nothing." And he's looking forward to his next show, a Chicago production set to open in April.

For the immediate future, he said he's relishing the chance to play leading man Georg in "She Love Me."

"It's the best setup to the most beautiful ending," he said.

Andrea Larson, a junior musical theater major who starred last year in North Central's production of "Thoroughly Modern Millie," said the show is a feel-good story with a happy ending for everyone.

"I'm Ilona Ritter. I'm one of the clerks that works in the store," Larson said. "She's in love with one of the guys that works in the shop, but he's just interested in a physical relationship. She's kind of a flaky girl who just doesn't get it."

But Ilona's luck turns, and she meets her dream man.

Larson said the show is appropriate for any age.

"There are a few lines that'll go over young children's heads," she said. "It's a good family show. It's a really sweet love story. Sometimes you need a really innocent show."

<p class="factboxheadblack">If you go</p> <p class="News"><b>What:</b> "She Loves Me," staged by North Central College students</p> <p class="News"><b>When:</b> 7:30 p.m. Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 7 and 8; 2 p.m. Nov. 2 </p> <p class="News"><b>Where: </b>North Central College's Pfeiffer Hall, 310 E. Benton Ave., Naperville</p> <p class="News"><b>Tickets:</b> $15 for adults, $10 for students and seniors</p> <p class="News"><b>Info:</b> (630) 637-7469 or <a href="http://www.northcentralcollege.edu" target="new">northcentralcollege.edu</a></p> <div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=246359">Director's cut <span class="date">[10/31/08]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>