“Urinetown” the Musical and the fight for tomorrow – The Cauldron
Photo Credit: Steve Wagner
“Urinetown” is a contemporary musical written by Greg Kotis in the early 2000s, set in a dystopian world that has been suffering from a global drought for over 20 years.
The issues faced by the citizens of this world are plagued by many of the same issues society faces today. Issues such as resource scarcities, pollution, capitalistic corruption and much more.
The CSU Theater program, in collaboration with Playhouse Square, performed the satirical musical in a series of showings from Thursday, Oct. 31 through Sunday, Nov. 10 at the Allen Theater.
Despite the stereotypically deep and socially sensitive topics, “Urinetown” manages to approach them in a light-hearted and humorous way.
Lucy Geiser, a fourth year theater student, plays the role of Pennywise, a low class Amenity Number Nine overseer. In the world of “Urinetown,” citizens must pay to use the bathroom.
“This show is political in its undertones, in its overtones it is a spoof musical,” Geiser said. “We make fun of everything from [‘Threepenny Opera’] to [‘Les Misérables’].”
Geiser’s character, Pennywise, can be described as morally neutral, as she is seen throughout the musical being sympathetic to the members of the lower class while working closely with the antagonist, Cladwell Cladwell.
Audience members may see Geiser’s characters as evil. However, Pennywise is doing what everyone in this society is trying to do. Stay alive.
Many people in society can sympathize with this way of life, especially considering the cast is made up of 23 young adults and college students – a demographic that widely struggles to make ends meet.
“He [Cladwell] gave me [Pennywise] a job at amenity number nine, the poorest toilet in all of the city, so I have this very low level job but I am still part of his regime and part of his company,” Geiser said.
Cladwell Cladwell, played by fourth year Theater Student Tyler Milicic, is a thought-provoking role. At the beginning of the play, the audience is introduced to a psychotic, money hungry man who only cares about his own wealth.
Cladwell runs the company “Urine Good Hands” or “UGH” for short, the company that runs public amenities and restricts the use of water.
“I have played a villain two times before but this one is different because of the political landscape of today,” Milicic said. “It is scary how much [‘Urinetown’] reflects today. Cladwell is a powerful businessman who also controls the policies of the town.”
Milicic’s costume consisted of a suit with a bright yellow wig, while his bright orange makeup covered his face.
The creative decision to make Milicic look like Donald Trump was not accidental, and was a simple though unique way to force audiences to draw comparisons between the political climate of America and the world of Urinetown.
Milicic’s and Geiser’s characters have a romantic history and share a child, Hope Cladwell, played by second year theater student Jade Lopez.
Hope is the female lead who walks the line between her parents’ worlds. While her father acts as a tyrant and her mother a part of the working class, Hope is a starry-eyed young girl who sees the world through rose-colored glasses. Indeed, her name represents her parents’ hopes for the future, those hopes also being symbolic of the different sides of Hope.
Photo Credit: Steve Wagner
Cladwell hopes for a better tomorrow, ensuring his vision through an iron fist. Pennywise hopes that through her daughter a better future will be created today.
“I love playing Hope because there are so many sides to her,” Lopez said. “There is her curiosity, there is her strong independence towards the end and I love to see her grow. I hold this character so dear.”
At the end of Act 1, the low class citizens rebel against Pennywise and Cladwell, rioting and protesting. In the heat of the fighting, Hope is kidnapped by the lower class.
Act 2 opens in the rebels’ secret hideout in the heart of the city’s sewers. The rebels argue and bicker about what to do and due to a clear lack of leadership, Hope takes it upon herself to lead them into battle against Caldwell.
The ending of the show is a fast-paced fight scene where the rebels, lead by Hope, kill Caldwell and his associates, taking over “UGH.” However, this coup forces the audience to consider one of the show’s overarching themes: as a society, do we fight for the luxury of today or the stability of tomorrow?
Hope’s goal was to provide everyone, from the upper one percent to the poorest members of the lower class, with equal access to free water. However, due to the entire city having unlimited access to water, in the end, the world’s water is depleted, causing a mass extinction.
“Is having a bad day today better than having no tomorrow?, is really what my character asks,” Milicic says.
While Cladwell was framed as evil and self-centered, his harsh taxes and laws kept humanity alive.
Photo Credit: Steve Wagner
At the finale, as Hope begins to die, the narrator tells the audience that “Urinetown” was not a physical place on this earth, but the life after. The human need to pee was the downfall of society.
The musical was a mix of laugh-out-loud moments, but it also tied in global issues while integrating modern figures into the plot.
Urinetown leaves audiences’s feeling conflicted as well. After watching the entirety of the cast die due to their own actions, audiences may leave with a sour taste in their mouths.
However, the ultimate goal of the musical was not to despair the audience, rather, to give audiences the hope and desire to fight for change in their society.
Hope signifies this through her desire for global equality, while also reminding audiences that no matter how monumental their issues are, they should continue to live for the betterment of tomorrow.