After weeks of anticipation and secrecy, the 19th annual Wharton Follies, entitled "Heaven Can Wait-List," hit the stage yesterday at Drexel University's Mandell Theater. Nearly 200 cast and crew members worked to prove that Wharton MBA students have a talent for something besides business. Each year, the MBA students use the Follies to poke fun at themselves and spoof their stressful lives, according to second-year MBA student Saleem Haque. Haque, co-publicity director for the show, explained that the show is completely student-run. Popular songs and Broadway tunes were rewritten to parody different aspects of the typical Wharton MBA student's experience, he added. The Follies is famous for its surprise guests, whose identities are not revealed to anyone until opening night, Haque said. He emphasized the importance of secrecy to the Follies and expressed his excitement about the show, praising Director James Sokol and the crew for their hard work. Sokol, also a second-year MBA student, not only directed the show but helped in writing, ticketing, fundraising and publicity. Haque said that being a part of the show entailed a lot of time and effort. The cast and crew returned a week early from their vacations to attend rehearsals-- which usually lasted until 4 a.m. The performance seemed to be a success with the audience, who gave the cast a standing ovation. "It was fantastic," second-year Wharton MBA student Mark Phillips said. "Very creative and well-written." The Follies is school-sponsored, but additional funding was generated through corporate sponsorship, ticket sales, t-shirts and even a video of the entire production. There will be four more shows -- today and tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. -- before the show travels to an off-Broadway theater in New York on February 24. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased at the door, although it is recommended that they be bought in advance.
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