Comedic musical 'The Trail to Oregon!' closes season at Ohio State-Mansfield
The Ohio State University-Mansfield Theatre Department will close its season with the irreverent musical comedy "The Trail to Oregon!"
"Oregon" features music and lyrics by Jeff Blim based on the book by Blim, Matt Lang and Nick Lang. The musical parodies the 1990s videogame "The Oregon Trail."
The characters' names are picked from suggestions shouted from the audience, and at the end the audience chooses which character dies.
"If you have a song about dysentery, you know what kind of show it is," producer Joe Fahey said.
The play follows an all-American family as they travel from Missouri to Oregon in 1848. During the family's journey, they encounter the prospect of starvation, bandits, snake bites and dysentery.
"It's our first musical in several years," Fahey noted. "It's a great way to remember the 1990s videogame, but also to have a fun and silly evening of theater."
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Tony Baer is the director. He most recently directed "Clue" at the branch campus in 2022.
"I didn't own the (video)game, but I remember it being an option at elementary school," Baer said.
Some of the lead actors are Gavin Horn as the father, Isis Davis as the mother and Brett Lucas as the grandfather.
"He's assembled a really great cast," Fahey said of Baer. "They're high-energy."
Baer said the cast is ready for any decisions the audience might make in the interactive play.
"We've been rehearsing multiple deaths each night," he said.
"The Trail to Oregon!" will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Monday and at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. General admission tickets are $10. Seniors, staff, faculty and students pay $6.
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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Ohio State University-Mansfield presents 'Oregon Trail'-based musical
