For the past several weeks, a group of LT thespians have been toiling away in the Reber Center in preparation for the debut of Legally Blonde, this year’s spring musical.

At the helm is LT Theater sponsor and director Eugene O’Reilly with 15 spring and 4 fall musicals under his belt, accompanied by assistant director Carlyn Kelly ’16 and stage manager Marissa Cappizano ’17. Together, the crew has taken the play from the script to the stage and beyond.

This musical is based off of the novel by Amanda Brown and the familiar film to many starring Reese Witherspoon.

“The movie is definitely lighthearted and funny, but the show takes everything to the extreme,” lead actress with the role of Elle Woods Jenny Deneen ’17 said. “I think that people will come in with expectations based on the film and be surprised by how much better it is.”

Despite a setback in preparations due to an increased amount of set with this play, the cast and crew have been making strides toward the opening night on Thursday, Feb 18.

“The cast itself and our performance is really solid and talented, but more technical things like our scene changes needed to be worked out,” Deneen said.

As the role of Elle necessitates, Deneen has dyed her hair blonde.

“When you audition, you have to say if you’re willing to [dye it],” Deneen said. “My freshman year I played a latina and thought that that would be the only time I dyed my hair for a show. But now that I’ve been blonde for a while, it’s not that big of a deal.”

Kevin Dillon ’17 is the other lead with the role of Emmett. The male and female leads both being played by non-seniors also gives this performance an interesting angle. Although this is not uncommon because the best people for the job are chosen regardless of grade level, it still makes for an interesting musical, O’Reilly said.

“The cast is pretty young, younger than it has been in the past,” Deneen said. “And that gives it a livelier feel which is fun.”

The show will also showcase two live animal actors. A chihuahua named Jaq owned by special education teacher Colleen Gibbons has been practicing with the cast for two weeks and will play the role of Bruiser. Jaq barks on command and will be a loveable and memorable member of the cast, O’Reilly said.

The show will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday Feb. 18 and Friday Feb. 19 and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Feb 21. There are no shows scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 20. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children, senior citizens and LT students with photo ID.

“Patrons can expect excitement and hilarity,” O’Reilly said.