JANUARY 14 • 2021 | 33

W

hen Ruby Schwartz
was beginning
her senior year at
Groves High School, she began
thinking about becoming a col-
lege freshman in 2020. Besides
looking ahead to chemistry and
marketing classes, Schwartz
wanted to participate in extra-
curricular activities, particularly
theater productions.
Schwartz had expressed
theater interests for two years
as part of the stage crew of the
Groves performing arts pro-
gram and was inducted into the
International Thespian Society.
After the pandemic hit,
Schwartz, 18, adjusted to the

ever-present digital world while
based at her family home in
Birmingham. She has been able
to take remote classes at DePaul
University in Chicago, and she
also has found a way to connect
with theater.
Schwartz has accepted part-
time assignments in marketing
Disenchanted!, the next pro-
duction of the professional,
nonprofit, locally-based Nicely
Theatre Group. She is doing
TikTok postings to call atten-
tion to the musical revue that
portrays fairy tale heroines
reimagined with human flaws
emphasized.
“This is my first market-

ing job, and it’s expanded my
knowledge,
” said Schwartz,
who is featuring snippets of
cast members promoting the
production running Jan. 15-29.
“They’re hoping I can help
attract younger audiences to
their performances.
“This production has not
been made in Zoom style
with people in different loca-

tions. Instead, it was filmed at
the Berman [Center for the
Performing Arts at the Jewish
Community Center]. Social
distancing protocols were
observed for both cast and
crew.
”
The snippets can be viewed
on the TikTok app with the the-
ater company name as the user-
name. The musical falls in line
with what was first presented as
an off-Broadway show written
by Dennis Giacino.

NICELY’S ROOTS
Nicely was started last sum-
mer by David Carroll, of West
Bloomfield, as he entered
retirement after a career in the
financial services industry. A
longtime theater fan, he got
the idea for a new company
after winning a role in a pro-
duction of Guys and Dolls, his
favorite show, for the Village
Players of Birmingham.
Nicely-Nicely Johnson was his
favorite character.
“Maybe I’ll be like director
Alfred Hitchcock, making brief
appearances in productions,
”
joked Carroll, who personally
financed the company’s first
project, a selection of short
plays
Among the portrayed charac-
ters now introduced with star-

tling outlooks are Cinderella,
Snow White, Sleeping Beauty,
Belle, the Little Mermaid,
Mulan, Pocahontas and the
Princess Who Kissed the Frog.
Actors have been directed by
Mitch Master, whose stage
experience has included work
as director of performing and
visual arts at Frankel Jewish
Academy and co-director of

Roeper Summer Stock Theatre.
He has performed in 50 pro-
ductions.
Eric W
. Maher, Nicely tech-
nical director, worked on the
TikTok presentations.
“Working on the Nicely
marketing has made isolation
better,
” said Schwartz, who has
been active with Aish HaTorah.
“
Adjusting was so difficult at
first. I had been going to live
shows, and I miss that. Working
with Nicely helps make up for
those experiences.
”
Planning and participating
in another digital platform also
has helped Schwartz connect
through this time of confine-
ment. She and friend Ari Tiles
created the podcast “yes. it’s us
again.
”
“We explore what can be
going on in teenagers’ minds,
”
Schwartz explained. “We want
it to be very real and authentic.
We’ve talked about bullying and
mental health.
”
Keeping true to her market-
ing orientation, Schwartz alerts
prospective viewers that tickets
for Disenchanted! ($15) are avail-
able at nicelytheatre.org. The
family-friendly production runs
65 minutes. Ticket holders can
watch the presentation as many
times as they wish during the
two-week run.

Recent high school grad helps
market Disenchanted!, the Nicely
Theatre Group’s next production.

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Enchanted
by Theater

ARTS&LIFE
THEATER

NICELY

“THEY’RE HOPING I CAN HELP

ATTRACT YOUNGER AUDIENCES.”

— RUBY SCHWARTZ

Ruby Schwartz