The Real Workers in Life

EAST PEORIA — Do we sometimes take out jobs for granted no matter if they are big or small? That’s what the latest production at Illinois Central College is putting on.

 On Feb. 28 the ICC Arts and Communication Department Theatre Program presented ‘Working: A Musical’ at the Performing Arts Center theatre.  Based on the book by Studs Terkel, this production tells a story about the working men and women and the life that they take on and if they sometimes take it for granted.

In the first opening scene, we see one by one each character and do their sort of job. For example, we see from one traffic cop directing traffic to a janitor sweeping the floors to a one riding a bicycle. Each and every one of the characters was performing with sound before singing to the tune “All the Livelong Day.”

 During each scene we are introduce to each character and they tell us about the good, bad and the ugly of their jobs.

 But one scene had almost everyone laughing and a bit moving in their seats was in the forth scene. We meet Frank Decker an interstate trucker, played by Ethan Johnson. Decker talks about his life as a trucker driver and that sometimes he’s pretty much happy not coming home to his wife.

 But as soon as he was done talking, a bunch of guys come out in trucker outfits and Johnson performed “Brother Trucker.” There were some bad language used when performing but it made it funny and really catchy. With Johnson and the other cast in the scene it looked like a trucker’s version of

 The set design on stage was impressive. The set had three levels with the latters and stairs so the performers can move into their scene. Also in each scene when the performers were performing their musical numbers that the background would turn into a certain color like red, blue, green and orange showing a symbol of certain moods each scene was for the character.

 The show also showed its emotional side as well. In the 13th performance of the show, we see on one side of the stage a father and son throwing a football. The father, played by Tannen Skriver, performed the song ‘Father and Son’ about if he’s own father been proud of him, knowing that what he learned from him is being passed on to his own son.

 There were a few mistakes during the show, there were two actors that kind of stumbled over their lines, but quickly fixed the problem without losing their characters.

  “Working” is a musical about takes on the point of view of the workers of the day in and day out who make ends meet. It’s also gives us a reminder who the real workers in this world.