The Arkansas State Theater Department continued the 2025-2026 season taking the audience back to the late 1970s, telling the story of Violet, Doralee and Judy who come together to overthrow their sexist boss.

Consolidated Industries, 1979, Violet Newstead, played by Libby Wills, is a widowed, single mother and head of the secretary department who has worked at Consolidated for 15 years. Doralee Rhodes, played by Bee Golleher, is a married country girl through and through and Hart’s primary secretary. Judy Bernly, played by Alaina Hogan, is newly divorced and the newest hire at Consolidated. 

There are no administrative assistants, only secretaries and CEO of Consolidated, Franklin Hart Jr., played by Isaiah Wallis, takes advantage of both his position and the many secretaries at the office. Even going as far as telling everyone of his non-existent “affair” with Doralee, causing the whole office to hate the Backwoods Barbie.

The opening number, 9 to 5, established the hectic feel of getting ready and trying to make it to work on time. For the most part, it was a good scene, but there were some awkward staging choices we wondered were scripted or not, mainly characters running from one end of the stage to the other.

Throughout the next few scenes, the relationships between the main characters and even the ensemble are established well. The audience is able to see how when Hart isn’t around, everyone looks to Violet as the woman in charge.

Wallis, with the help of the costume department, embodied the sleaziness of Hart throughout his scenes perfectly. 

His song “Here for You” showed just how much of a lying, sexist, egotistical, hypocritical, bigot he is, singing about how much he wants Doralee, and her double Ds, when his wife cuts the song short. After his wife leaves, however, he immediately goes back to singing about his favorite secretary with the help from the boys club.

Roz Keith, played by Ray Pratt, who shares a one-sided infatuation with her boss, performed a similar and just as hilarious song, worshiping the ground Hart walks on. A very physical comedy laden choreography, Pratt delivered one of the funniest and most memorable scenes in the show, before being interrupted by Hart who forgot his coffee, much like his wife did in his song. 

After discovering Hart’s lie about having an affair with Doralee, the three protagonists, now friends, decide to let off some steam at Violet’s house, with the help of a little “Mary-juana.”

Each of the girls had their own weed induced hallucination, imagining a way they would want to kill Hart in real life. Judy with a gun, Doralee with a rope and Violet with a mug of poisoned coffee. 

The choreography and the blocking for those three scenes was the most entertaining in the show

The next day, while making Hart’s coffee, Violet accidently uses rat poison instead of Skinny ‘N’ Sweet. Hart only takes one sip, but decides to pretend he has died. 

The girls rush to the hospital where Violet has a crashout in front of a Candy Striper. Wills showed she truly has what it takes to play a character on the edge of a mental breakdown. After discovering the dead person is not Hart, they returned to the office to clean any evidence of the crime, only to find Hart safely in his office. Hart threatened to go to the police and the girls had no choice but to kidnap him and keep him tied up in his own house.

At the top of act two, Violet gets her own solo song and damn Wills can sing, even when being lifted and thrown about by the members of the boys club. “One of the Boys” was never a song that stuck out to me from the musical but now, that’s one of my top songs from it. 

Each of the three take turns tending to Hart and after almost a month of successfully keeping him hidden. But, everything is almost ruined when Judy’s ex-husband follows her to Hart’s house, to try and win her back. “Get Out and Stay Out” was the power performance when Judy finally understands her worth is found in not just being someone’s wife. Hogan did an incredible job and even gave me chills. 

Unfortunately, Hart broke free, found Doralee’s gun and returned with Judy to the office. Minutes after Hart made his return, chairman of the board Russell Tinsworthy arrived and promoted Hart to be in charge of operations in Bolivia, as Hart had taken all the credit for improvements made by Violet during his time away. 

From costumes, to set design, to lighting, “9 to 5” was definitely one of the most fun and funny productions A-State theatre has put out in a while

Categories: Arts & Entertainment