February 2008 Archives

On The Road Again…

Well, they got their act together and now they are taking it on the road! That's right, I saw the first public performance of Northwest Bookshelf 2 at Maple Elementary a couple of days ago. I think that the word "adventure" in the title "Adventure Musical Theatre" actually refers to the adventure that the actors are on! Every school is a different adventure. Sometimes they perform in a big gym, where there is lots of room, but the sound is really boomy. Sometimes they perform in a multipurpose room where the space is a lot smaller and there are stairs to contend with -- there goes the original blocking! Sometimes the musical director (Danny Sullivan) doesn't always have a clear view of the actors. I like to call it "guerrilla musical theatre". Either way, the actors, musical director and stage manager are up for it, and quickly adapt.

The performance at Maple Elementary was great. The whole student body (K-5) was there. It's fun to watch both the students' and the teachers' reactions to the shows. Kids especially love the visual gags, and outrageous costumes. The shows are written as real musicals with lots of word play, but are based on simple stories, so they appeal to both the teachers and the kids. The next performance I saw was at Sanislo Elementary. It was a much smaller school, in a smaller space, so it felt like a more intimate performance. These kids really liked it and like the Maple Elementary kids, asked lots of questions (there's always a question about costume changes!).

This is such an amazing program that the 5th Avenue runs. Watching the kids' reactions is so rewarding as a writer because you know you have made a positive difference in a child's day. And hats off to the troupe -- not only do they give 100% at each performance, they have to set up and break down the set themselves (with the help of Sara Barnes the stage manager) before and after every performance and load it back in to the van!

Opening night, it's opening night!

I was lucky enough to go to the opening night of MAME at the 5th Avenue Theatre on February 14. Pre-show Valentines Day/Opening Night dinner at the Fairmont Hotel was Dee-licious (get it? Dee Hoty is playing MAME??).

Then off to the theatre for a truly wonderful show. MAME is adapted from the book "Auntie Mame" by Patrick Dennis, with music and lyrics by Jerry Herman and book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee.

The story, adapted from the autobiographical novel Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis , follows the relationship between the orphaned Patrick Dennis (Nick Robinson) and his freewheeling socialite aunt Mame (Dee Hoty). The show is chock full of plot - not only do we see Mame and Patrick's wild and crazy antics when he is a boy, but in the second act Patrick grows up and becomes engaged to an insufferable Connecticut snob. Oh, and did I mention Mame gets married to a southerner (Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside played by the fabola Richard White) who falls off an Alp at the beginning of the second act. I love this show!

This fabulous, lavish production, playing until March 2 at the 5th Avenue theatre, has direction and musical staging by David Armstrong, choreography by Dannul Dailey and music direction by David Holcenberg.

What a cast! Dee Hoty is diva-licious as Mame, and the sets, costumes and voices in this production are to die for (hopefully, not by falling off an Alp…). It's so great when a large cast is full of actors who have real chops, and make every line count (Sean G. Griffin as Babcock, Taryn Darr as Gloria Upson, and Karen Skrinde as Sally Cato, just to name a few!)

My two favorite standouts were Kat Ramsburg as Agnes Hooch and Carol Swarbrick as Vera Charles. They are both hilarious scene stealers, and have amazing, engaging voices that fill the theatre.

I think I'll go have another mint julep and put up some Christmas lights!

Roy Scheider, who starred as Bob Fosse in one of my most favorite movies ever, All That Jazz, has died. I know he wasn't a musical theatre performer but he did such an amazing job in that film. Whenever I'm tired, I still look in the mirror and say "It's showtime!"

Roy Scheider, a character actor who in the 1970s found an unlikely career as a leading man, died on Sunday afternoon in Little Rock, AR, the New York Times reported. He was 75 and lived in Sag Harbor, N.Y.

Mr. Scheider, who was born in Orange, NJ, in 1932, was imbued with a naturalistic, rough-hewn intensity, and a lean, masculine face which suited the film industry of the 1970s, when experimental directors were searching for actors with greater street authenticity. His breakthrough came in 1971 when he played a pimp in "Klute," and, the same year, was Det. Buddy Russo, Gene Hackman's partner in the brutal police thriller "The French Connection." The latter part earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

He won international stardom as the police chief of a small harbor town trying to grapple with the arrival of a killer shark in the blockbuster "Jaws." Playing opposite Robert Shaw's deranged seaman and Richard Dreyfuss' excitable scientist, Mr. Scheider's realistic performance anchored the horror thriller in a humane reality. He also appeared in "Jaws II" three years later.

His second and last Oscar nomination came for Bob Fosse's autobiographical movie musical "All That Jazz," in which Mr. Scheider, lean, bearded and clad in black, played an onscreen version of the self-destructive choreographer-director as he veered toward professional and personal disaster. The film called upon Mr. Scheider to sing and dance, as well as act; his success in acquitting himself in these fields surprised many critics.

Following youthful forays into the military and sports (his broken nose was the result of the New Jersey Diamond Gloves Competition), he moved to New York to try acting. His professional debut was at Joe Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival, playing Mercutio in a production of Romeo and Juliet. He won an Obie Award for his appearance in the play Stephen D in 1967, and made his Broadway debut in 1965 in a William Ball-directed production of Tartuffe at the ANTA Washington Square. Other theatre credits include The Alchemist and The Year Boston Won the Pennant.

Mr. Scheider returned to the theatre in 1980, appearing with Blythe Danner and Raul Julia in Harold Pinter's backwards-traveling play about infidelity, Betrayal. It was directed by Peter Hall and played 170 performances.

In 2003, he starred in the title role in Christopher Trumbo's work Trumbo at the Westside Theatre.

He continued to work in films into the 1980s and 1990s, but his opportunities were not as memorable as his landmark '70s movies. Among his credits of this time were "Blue Thunder," "2010," "52 Pick-Up," "The Fourth War" and "Romeo Is Bleeding."

I guess she likes rain!

Sutton Foster was most recently in the pre-Broadway Seattle tryout of YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN this past August. Well, it seems she likes the rain, or at least the coffee 'cuz she''ll be back for the pre-Broadway Seattle tryout of SHREK at the 5th Avenue Theatre. How exciting!

According to this article in Playbill:

Tony Award winner Sutton Foster will be part of the cast of Shrek The Musical, which is based on the William Steig book and the DreamWorks film and is scheduled to arrive on Broadway in November following an out-of-town tryout.

The New York Post reports that the current star of Young Frankenstein will play Fiona in the stage musical. Playbill.com previously reported that Christopher Sieber (Spamalot, The Triumph of Love) will also be part of the Shrek cast. No official casting has been announced.

Shrek, as previously announced, will make its world premiere at The 5th Avenue Theatre: The musical will play the Seattle venue August 14-Sept. 21. The production will then head to Broadway for a November debut at a theatre to be announced.

The musical features book and lyrics by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire and music by Jeanine Tesori. Avenue Q's Jason Moore will direct. The creative team will also include set and costume designer Tim Hatley, lighting designer Hugh Vanstone, choreographer Josh Prince and music director Tim Weil.

Shrek The Musical, DreamWorks Animation's first venture in legitimate theatre, is being produced by DreamWorks Theatricals (Bill Damaschke, president) and Neal Street Productions, Ltd. (principals Sam Mendes and Caro Newling).

The view is better from the edge.

Artattack is proud to make its Seattle debut with the Seattle premiere of Annie Weisman's hilarious satire, Be Aggressive, one of our favorite and most successful past productions. Read the 2003 review

Founded in 2001 in Ashland, Oregon, Artattack has produced over twenty-five plays including numerous world, west coast and American premieres.

In recognition of bold and innovative theater, Artattack has received many awards and grants including: The Lambda Award, Best of Ashland Awards, The Collins Foundation, The Meyer Memorial Trust, the Equity Foundation and others.

Artattack is happy to join the thriving Seattle theater scene, where we can continue our mission to produce brave productions that challenge ourselves and our audience.

Theater professionals interested in contributing their talent to the Seattle ensemble please email us.

Three performances of the epic musical Les Miserables will be presented in concert this summer at the Hollywood Bowl.

Les Misérables in Concert is scheduled to play the famed outdoor venue Aug. 8 and 9 at 8:30 PM and Aug. 10 at 7:30 PM, according to the Bowl's official website. Neither casting nor a creative team has been announced for the production, although the Bowl says, "An all-star cast and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra will bring you this sweeping story of love, passion and redemption.