Sydney DiBiasi channels her inner Elle Woods in ‘Legally Blonde the Musical’
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Two summers ago, Sydney DiBiasi was on stage at Fort Myers Theatre as Val Clark in A Chorus Line. Since then, she’s been sequestered in Gainesville, pursuing a business degree at the University of Florida, which she plans to use to launch her very own line of high-end skin care products. When she heard that Fort Myers Theatre was producing Legally Blonde the Musical this summer, she knew she had to 
return to play the part of Elle Woods.
“I decided come here and come out of theater retirement just kind of for fun. I haven’t done a show since June of 2022…. I miss performing so much, and I miss these people so much.”
Adapted from the 2001 romantic comedy starring Reese Witherspoon, Legally Blonde tells the story of sorority queen Elle Woods, a vivacious “it girl” 
who is jilted following her graduation from UCLA by her boyfriend, Warner Huntington III.
“He breaks up with her to go to Harvard Law School, and Elle Woods is very persistent, and she’s not going to not get her way, so she comes up with the genius idea to follow him to Harvard Law School.”
Once there, Elle encounters a series of obstacles in the effort to win back her man. With the help of one of her instructor’s junior lawyers, 
Emmett Forrest, she develops a chip on her shoulder that enables her to overcome blond mystique stereotypes and Ivy League prejudices to triumph as a top-notch law student and promising attorney.
It’s impossible not to equate the character of Elle Woods with Reese Witherspoon, but DiBiasi makes the role her own. She’s the epitome of the driven SoCal 
Silicon Valley girl.
Aside from DiBiasi’s inspired portrayal, audiences revel in the storytelling set to dance and music by Director/Choreographer Robin Dawn Ryan’s supercharged youthful 31-member cast.
“This is a very ensemble-heavy show. There are a lot of big dance numbers, and if you know Robin Dawn, there is never a moment where we are not dancing. She works us so hard…. The dance numbers are so fun. They add so much more energy and 
they really get the audience moving and excited to find out what’s next.”
DiBiasi cites “Positive” as just one example of the show’s pop-driven Red Bull numbers.
DiBiasi and Lisa Clark’s “Bend and Snap” anthem is yet another high-octane highlight, with Donald Browney’s “package swagger” eliciting appreciative hoots and hollers from the ladies in the audience.
From DiBiasi’s perspective, though, her duet in the show’s title song with Colin Smith in the role of Emmett Forrest
is unquestionably the most poignant, if not prettiest, number in the show.
“I love performing that one because I feel like I get to showcase more my vulnerable side.”
While the music makes the story, in the end Legally Blond is an uplifting tale of self-realization and female empowerment that demonstrates that we’re all capable of great 
things provided we develop a big enough chip on our shoulder.
Remaining performances at Fort Myers Theatre are Friday at 7 and Saturday and Sunday at 1 and 6 p.m.
About the Author
Tom Hall is both an amateur artist and aspiring novelist who writes art quest thrillers. He is in the final stages of completing his debut novel titled "Art Detective," a story that fictionalizes the discovery of the fabled billion-dollar Impressionist collection of Parisian art dealer Josse Bernheim-Jeune, thought by many to have perished during World War II when the collection's hiding place, Castle de Rastignac in southern France, was destroyed by the Wehrmacht in reprisal for attacks made by members of the Resistance operating in the area. A former tax attorney, Tom holds a bachelor's degree as well as both a juris doctorate and masters of laws in taxation from the University of Florida. Tom lives in Estero, Florida with his fiancee, Connie, and their four cats.