Triangle Club to Unveil Annual Performance This Weekend

Over the course of its 120 years, the Princeton Triangle Club has seen such lofty luminaries as Jimmy Stewart, Jose Ferrer and F. Scott Fitzgerald help produce and perform its student shows.

It would stand to reason, then, that the club’s annual theatrical presentation at McCarter Theatre is a high-brow, serious piece of work, something fitting one of the most prestigious universities in the country.

Guess again.

Expect a light night of music and comedy when the club presents “Family Feudalism” at McCarter May 27 and 28. The revue will feature humorous sketches, songs and, most famously, an all-male kick line.

“This particular show is a musical revue, it’s a bunch of sketches and songs that all take place at or near a castle,” says director Glenn Pannell.

Those sketches include “Powder Face,” a Lady Gaga-inspired tribute to Elizabeth II, the disco number “Bring Back the Fever,” which mines laughs out of the Black Plague and a skit about Henry VIII’s best man and his toasting the king and his various brides at their weddings.

“It incorporates several different time periods and genres,” Pannell says. “There’s material from fairy tales, from history, from literature, from horror movies. If it happened in a castle, then it’s in the show.”

Hil Moss is a performer in the club and the current undergraduate president. Moss says the sketch format has given the club’s writers a freedom they didn’t have on previous shows that followed like 2009’s “Store Trek” (about a box store) and “Star Raven Mad,” which was about Edgar Allan Poe.

“It’s really kind of an opportunity for our writers to show what they can do, because they aren’t forced to adhere to any book or plot,” she says. Moss gets to sing the “Powder Face” number in the show.

Another difference this year, according to Pannell, is that the show is less Princeton-specific than previous Triangle Shows. “You don’t have to be a Princeton alum (or student) to enjoy it,” he says. “It is equal opportunity funny.”

Work on the show began in February of 2010 with 12 writers working together in a workshop. By summer, the first draft was finished, with rewrites and rehearsals beginning in September. After rehearsals in October, the show debuted in November at McCarter before going on a tour and returning to Princeton for the May performances.

“Family Feudalism” marks Pannell’s fourth turn as director of the Triangle Club Show. The director graduated Princeton in 1987 and was a member of the club as a student. He’s gone on to a career in theater and calls his experience in the club an amazing training ground.

“Being able to perform on one of the leading regional stages in the country is the best preparation you can have for a career in the theater,” he says. “That was an incredible opportunity, being part of Triangle and being able to perform at McCarter. It set me on my career path, it made me want to do theater for the rest of my life. It was an invaluable experience.” 

Students also work with professional choreographers and designers, but Pannell says few of the club’s members are seeking careers in the theater.

“Most of them are going to wind up in law school or med school or banking,” he says. “There are only a couple that end up trying to pursue a career in theater. Which is great because people are there because they love it, not because they want to pursue it professionally.”

Moss says she’s eyeing a career in the arts after graduating. “There’s no better way to learn than by participating in the Triangle Club,” she says. She joined in her freshman year because she wanted to continue performing.

“What sticks out about Triangle is not only the level of professionalism, but it’s also so funny,” she says. “And it’s wonderful to be a part of that. It’s wonderful to be a part of something that brings humor to a place that can be quite intense.”

Regardless of their post-Triangle club aspirations, Pannell says the students’ work is impressive.

“It sort of astounds me that they come up with a full-length musical every year that is entertaining and funny,” he says. “I see a lot of musical theater in New York, writing musical comedy is tough, look at ‘Spider-Man.’ But this show is entertaining from start to finish and I’m really proud of it. I can guarantee that it’s more fun than ‘Spider-Man’ and nobody will fall on top of you.”

The Princeton Triangle Club will present “Family Feudalism” at McCarter Theatre, 91 University Place, Princeton, May 27 at 8p.m. and May 28 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $22-$50; $10 students/children. For tickets and information, call 609-258-2787 or go to www.mcccarter.org.