Anna Uzele, center, in "Six." Photo by Liz Lauren.
Dressed in the homemade outfit of a Tudor queen, Alex Hood, 14, rode eight hours with her mother from St. Louis, Mo., to Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday to watch her biggest idols perform two songs at the Mall of America.
Hood was one of hundreds of young people screaming with joy as the stars of Broadway-bound "Six" performed and then signed autographs. The musical tells the stories of the six queens of maniacal English monarch Henry VIII, who famously divorced many and had other exes beheaded.
"It's fabulous," said Hood, a ninth grader. "I love the women empowerment thing. It's a way to show that women can be strong even if you lose your head."
Hood saw the show with the same cast when it played in Chicago. And she hopes to see it again at St. Paul's Ordway Center, where it has a pre-Broadway run Nov. 29-Dec. 22.
Bouncing jauntily through the door opened by "Hamilton," "Six" uses hip-hop, pop tunes and ballads to give very contemporary takes on the women, who are portrayed by actors of all races.
The stars of the show are Adrianna Hicks as Catherine of Aragon, Andrea Macasaet as Anne Boleyn, Abby Mueller as Jane Seymour, Brittney Mack as Anna of Cleves, Samantha Pauly as Katherine Howard, and Anna Uzele as Catherine Parr.
All the actors have Broadway credits or soon will. Mueller played the title character in "Beautiful: The Carole King Musical." Hicks performed in the Broadway productions of "The Color Purple" and "Aladdin." And Uzele was in the Broadway production of "Once on This Island."
Hood hopes to see "Six" in St. Paul. Her mother, Mariam Hood, was hoping to please her daughter but she said it depends on the weather.
"She's been in cosplay since she was little," Mariam Hood said. "But we'll see."
Tickets are on sale. 652-224-4222.
