ELMIRA, N.Y. (WENY) -- Audiences can expect history to meet the present in a new way with "Six the Musical," where the Tudor queens take center stage as pop icons at Elmira's Clemens Center. For one performer, this show goes beyond the bright lights, it's a chance to return to a familiar stage with a show that means a lot.
"It's actually my dream show," says Gaby Albo, a Cast Member playing Anne Boleyn of SIX. "I'm really excited and it has a special place in my heart, because like two years ago, I went with "On Your Feet" and played Gloria Estefan. We teched there (Clemens Center) we opened here, so it's good to be back. It's like a full circle."
In "Six," the six wives of Henry VIII aren't just historical figures, they're voices from the past reimagined in the 21st century. With a creative mix of catchy beats, storytelling, and concert-like energy, "Six" retells their lives through a modern lens, revealing the women behind the history in a fresh, sometimes, funny, way.
"I think it's actually brilliant the way they put the show together because it talks about the six wives of Henry VIII but in a very modern way, like, for example, Anne Boleyn is like a historical character, but she's like singing and riffing and dancing with like modern steps. The costumes are modern, the lights are modern. It's very like contemporary concert-like kind of show, but we do talk about these women that lived years ago and that they did have these stories," explains Albo.
The show, which runs for about an hour and a half, features the voices of all six queens, but it isn't just a history lesson. While each queen tells her story in a bold, reimagined style, the performance speaks to more universal themes of identity and independence. The show's goal is to encourage the audience to think about whose stories get told and how.
"We want to give voices, to raise our voices. We're speaking on the shoes of these women, but we're actually also raising our voices as women, as people, as individuals. We don't exist because of somebody like. We exist because because of me," Alba tells WENY News.
With "Six the Musical," these six queens reclaim their voices and invite the audiences to look at history from a different angle.
The show will take the stage at the Clemens Center on November 8th and 9th. Tickets and information about this show and the rest of the 2024-2025 Broadway Series can be found here.
The Clemens Center is at 207 Clemens Center Pkwy, Elmira, NY 14901.