Thursday, December 3, 2015
In 2005, Troy High School alum Lauren Molina made her Broadway debut as Johanna in the revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, but she did not stop there. Molina has taught musical theatre classes and workshops for graduate students and gained fame as a vocalist with fellow Broadway actor Nick Cearley. The talented duo known as The Skivvies perform “stripped down arrangements” of eclectic music while clad in their undies. The Skivvies were nominated for “Show of The Year” for the 2015 MAC Award.* The Wall Street Journal calls them “smart, sophisticated . . . ingenious,” . . . and People Magazine named The Skivvies “The Most Playful Performers” in The Most Talked about Bodies of 2014, . . . New York Times calls them “a hot musical comedy duo specializing in unexpected arrangements, incongruous mashups, and of course, highly toned displays of skin.” 1
To discover how the Troy native has succeeded as a professional musician, actor, and teacher one need look no further than her achievements while a student at Troy High School. According to THS theatre director Rick Bodick, Molina was involved in numerous school activities. She participated in the Symphony Orchestra as a cellist and in school musicals. Her roles included Little Ti Moune in Once on this Island and Lady Larkin in Once Upon a Mattress.
Lauren’s entire family is artistic. Her father was an “assistant principal bassist and personnel manager of the Detroit Symphony” and her mother was a dance teacher. Additionally, her brother is a musician and her sister is a visual artist. To Bodick, the Troy- based environment – both school and family – helped Molina to become a very versatile artist. She has “proven time and time again that she will find a way in the arts!”
*Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs
Photo:
Lauren Molina
Lauren Molina with Troy High string musicians
Sources
1 https://www.theskivviesnyc.com/about.html
Bodick, Rick. 2014. Interviewed by Emily Blakowski, Grand Rapids, MI. September 15. Phone.
Image Source: Symphony Orchestra Cellos & Basses, 1997, Troy High School Yearbook Gladiator 1997: You Wanna Gotta Know 46.
Molina, Lauren. “Bio.” LaurenMolina.com. Accessed October 20, 2014. https://laurenmolina.com/bio/.
Molina, Lauren. 2010. Interviewed by Robert Siegel. December 24. All Things Considered, National Public Radio.
To commemorate the City of Troy’s 60th Anniversary in 2015, we will publish a different story each day that highlights a person, discovery, or event that occurred locally, regionally, nationally, or even globally between 1955 and 2015 and that helped shape our lives and our community. We will try to post stories on important anniversary dates, but we also realize that dates are less critical than content and context. We will include the facts related to controversial stories, allowing our readers to form their own opinions. We invite you to read and comment on the stories. Your suggestions for topics are also welcome and can be posted on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/TroyHistoricVillage. You can also email stories or ideas to the 365 Story Editor at ed@thvmail.org.
