Coming to the Whitman stage this November: fame, fortune and strippers.

“Gypsy,” the fall musical, chronicles burlesque dancer, Gypsy Rose Lee’s rise to fame. The show follows the relationship between a stage mother, Rose, played by senior Grace Laboy, and her two daughters Louise and June, played by senior Ani Carlson and freshman Erin Craig. The show runs from November 17 to 19.

Rose forces her daughters into the acting business at a very young age, and while June rises to fame, Louise is pushed to the side. The pressure becomes too much for June to bear and she elopes, leaving Louise to fill her place. After accidentally being booked at a burlesque show, Louise gains recognition as a burlesque dancer and eventually becomes known as Gypsy Rose Lee.

The musical debuted on Broadway in 1959, a time director Chris Gerken describes as the “golden age of theater.”

Compared to past years’ shows like “Side Show” and “Into the Woods,” “Gypsy” is much more traditional. The music is very Broadway with a jazzy edge, and the show is heavy on dancing routines and big group numbers, Laboy said.

“This show is more well-known, which is good to have every once in a while because people are more inclined to come see it,” she said. “There are also a lot of songs people will know.”

Gerken chose “Gypsy” because the show’s multiple female leads accommodate the large number of female students involved in the drama department. But his choice was greeted with some backlash from the community because of the burlesque backdrop of the show.

“What’s hard about ‘Gypsy’ is making it appropriate and appealing for a high school audience,” Carlson said.

Gerken wasn’t surprised that he received some complaints from parents.

“Every year, there’s some controversy about the show,” Gerken said. “It’s tricky to strike a balance between a sophisticated show and what’s appropriate. The plot is really about an overbearing mom, and I think every high school student should be able to relate to that.”

This year’s cast and crew is much larger than last year’s, with 122 students involved in cast, tech crew, staff and pit orchestra.

“In other years we’ve had casts closer to 30 students,” producer Daniel Levine said. “Even with this large cast, we still have double-casting and students playing two or three roles.”

However, the large cast maintains a strong group dynamic.

“The rehearsals are chaotic but they’re always productive,” said senior Solomon Parker, who plays Tulsa. “We’re all such good friends and we get along really well. It’s like a family.”