tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27773774073898885212024-03-19T11:33:44.430-07:00Director's BlogJohn Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-48918174483846085522012-11-30T08:48:00.000-08:002008-06-06T21:41:17.173-07:00Best of Broadway, May, 2008 Part II’ve lost count, but I expect that we have done 35-40 Best of Broadway tours to New York in my nearly 26 years. At a theatre conference in St. Paul, in 1983, a community theatre colleague asked if anyone wanted to put together a tour. He had been working with Jim Albrecht, a tour specialist in the Minneapolis area, who packaged tours for small theatres. The deal was: if a minimum number of participants signed up, the theatre director got to go for free. I was all about free.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDx7K4SpSc-G6sssOaSNa7xslb5HnWrkhBNcwsOSPPYFmDaTu8FxqKIHFICpSejFN06zld7UIvm2UUH78YEmuCaBul6pmaBvAPwrLDKYp5N31IpAh1JUOVCxen5NI-C4pKgP7xm5uEu5Q/s1600-h/IMG_1902.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208798597308870498" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDx7K4SpSc-G6sssOaSNa7xslb5HnWrkhBNcwsOSPPYFmDaTu8FxqKIHFICpSejFN06zld7UIvm2UUH78YEmuCaBul6pmaBvAPwrLDKYp5N31IpAh1JUOVCxen5NI-C4pKgP7xm5uEu5Q/s400/IMG_1902.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><strong><em><span style="font-size:85%;">May, 2008 Best of Broadway</span><br /></em></strong><br />Five participants registered the first year - hardly enough to justify a free trip, but Jim was willing to take a risk that more would come on board the next time. Long before dawn on a Thursday morning in the spring of 1983, five tired but excited Playhouse supporters boarded a bus to Omaha, taking advantage of lower airfares. I wasn’t among them. My 3-year-old daughter, Kristina, was hospitalized with a serious, undiagnosed illness, and I wasn’t going anywhere. I’ve been on every trip since then.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaRgLe_N5eYlALrB1-ymt7Jmcmivut22-0__zqq0OK5-jZkxPTsCOCOrU_RaG0egNjeen33ISIL8Ha4Ukm-m3EFLWKLt6KIOoIToYFH4MjCOXIDEzBjPL4UcW2d3zN5-9edLK19YaXhPI/s1600-h/IMG_1924.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208800162365988850" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaRgLe_N5eYlALrB1-ymt7Jmcmivut22-0__zqq0OK5-jZkxPTsCOCOrU_RaG0egNjeen33ISIL8Ha4Ukm-m3EFLWKLt6KIOoIToYFH4MjCOXIDEzBjPL4UcW2d3zN5-9edLK19YaXhPI/s400/IMG_1924.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><em><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">Eat, eat, eat</span></strong><br /></em><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTzMKiMasu8LmVNSV9-nIRhG65O6LX6XZ1zyBlJ-x-L9vv6ChGJc-TlrdZoAHqmtZ45w99dK6v08T4zNccsTlffcGj6vSVsx1jf6g0kO8X_BFI_f3WggYYaq_HN4_TWOTgyegoAJky4w/s1600-h/IMG_1920.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208799513920895538" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjTzMKiMasu8LmVNSV9-nIRhG65O6LX6XZ1zyBlJ-x-L9vv6ChGJc-TlrdZoAHqmtZ45w99dK6v08T4zNccsTlffcGj6vSVsx1jf6g0kO8X_BFI_f3WggYYaq_HN4_TWOTgyegoAJky4w/s400/IMG_1920.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><strong><em>Nervous tour participants on subway platform</em></strong><br /></span><br />Several years ago, Jim Albrecht, who was an avid, albeit charmingly eccentric, theatre fan and participant fell off the stage while tap dancing in the “Senior Follies,” at the Bloomington, Minnesota, Civic Theatre, hit his head, and died. That’s right, died of a tap-dancing injury. His tour company had no interest in continuing a hard-to-manage long distance relationship with a community theatre in Des Moines, so we took it on ourselves. We often think fondly of Jim. The year he died, we did a special toast to Jim Albrecht in a suite at the Helmsley Windsor Hotel on our very next trip.<br /><br />In our best years (<em>The Lion King, The Producers</em>) we’ve sent out as many as 7 trips in one season. September 11, 2001, and rising prices on practically everything associated with the tour have caused some ups and downs in past seasons, but we just completed a successful, rewarding and exciting tour, which, in my estimation, may have been the best.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLysXWzswhJ0Brv78lpHvj8UbsrNQjEO2tRfMtUhaTV7DeUuXfJoDM3Sa94nsvJlCMszw6q87Eyvols251EnpO0paY_XR6Y7-gAoHDxOCH0ZeYc3G1AvqNgAVCxXzRG4zh0vX-MlGohSI/s1600-h/IMG_1917.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208803125479336402" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLysXWzswhJ0Brv78lpHvj8UbsrNQjEO2tRfMtUhaTV7DeUuXfJoDM3Sa94nsvJlCMszw6q87Eyvols251EnpO0paY_XR6Y7-gAoHDxOCH0ZeYc3G1AvqNgAVCxXzRG4zh0vX-MlGohSI/s400/IMG_1917.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div><strong><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Not on our tour, but really interesting<br /></span></em></strong><br />First up on the tour – <em>Young Frankenstein</em>. The entire group saw the show and I heard only good things about it in response. I recounted my experience with the show in an earlier blog – liked it a lot, with some reservations. Speculation is that it is not living up to expectations. Mel Brooks refuses to release the weekly receipts, and the show is frequently on the half-price ticket board, as well as offering discounts through Playbill.com and other venues. Everybody in the show is good, and the special effects are incredible, but it is not generating nearly as much heat and excitement as <em>The Producers.</em><br /><br />I made sure everyone got to the theatre, then made my way to see <em>In the Heights</em>, a prime contender for the Best Musical Tony award this year. The show leads the Tony pack with 13 nominations. Talk about generating heat… This celebration of Latino culture in Washington Heights on the upper west side of Manhattan is warm, engaging, colorful and sexy. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who, as a college sophomore, conceived a musical that would deal with the issues of the barrio – immigrant parents, clash of cultures, being the first generation to go to college, sense of community, etc., has seen his idea fully realized on the Broadway stage. I enjoyed every minute of it. Critics and/or advertising agencies are calling the show “Upper West Side Story.” That’s not exactly accurate. The main difference is that with <em>In the Heights</em>, there are no good vs evil struggles. Even though race is an obvious element of the show, it doesn’t divide – it actually brings them together. The central struggle of the story is how to define success. Usnavi, the owner of a bodega/deli, initially dreams of getting enough money to leave the neighborhood, but when success arrives unexpectedly, he realizes there are other options. I’m sure that I didn’t understand half the words spoken, many in Spanish, some in a version of Spanglish, but I knew exactly what was happening. The only disappointment in the show was Priscilla Lopez, as the mother of the female lead. Famous for being the original “Morales,” in <em>A Chorus Li</em>ne, who sings the song, “Nothing,” Lopez seems stiff and out of place, the only character who doesn’t have the beat of Latin music in her bones. A friend of mine made me laugh, commenting on Priscilla Lopez’s performance. She said, “Karp was right.” Let me know if you get the joke.<br /><br />I loved the show, and would see it again, in a heartbeat. Check out the TV commercial for <em>In the Heights.<br /></em><br />Cut and paste this <em>url </em>into your browser’s address box<br /><br />http://youtube.com/watch?v=VdVN1CPU-84&feature=related<br /><br />More on our recent trip coming soon. </div>John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-36405709631890917332012-11-23T07:16:00.000-08:002008-05-16T08:12:04.865-07:00Fall, 2001 Theatre TripsWe've been operating theatre tours to New York and London since 1983, and there are some great memories, as well as some not-so-great. We had two trips scheduled for fall, 2001. The first, and saddest, was set for September 13, 2001, with 73 participants-our largest trip to date. On Tuesday, Sept 11, it quickly became apparent that the trip was no longer viable. Amid the shock, horror and grief, we had to take the necessary steps to communicate with all participants regarding their cancelled travel plans. <br /><br />In addition to the business task at hand, I had my own personal tension. My two daughters, Kristina and Stephanie, had moved to New York less than a week earlier. Stephanie had transferred from the University of Minnesota to Marymount Manhattan College, on the upper east side, to become a theatre major. Kristina, a spring, 2001 graduate of Grinnell College, had moved in with friends in Chelsea, not far from the World Trade Center, ready to pursue her career as an actor. I'll expand on this more in a subsequent blog, and many people experienced much worse than my family on that day, but just thinking of it now, that harrowing phone call, getting Kristina out of bed, telling her to turn on the tv and trying to strategize her next moves with her, making sure her sister was ok, brings back the emotion. <br /><br />This particular blog is about the trips. My next step was that I needed to get to New York, make sure my kids were ok, and return $23,000 worth of theatre tickets. <br /><br />I made that solo trip two weeks later, with the fires still burning at ground zero, and the city still stunned. My kids were ok, still in shock, not yet having come to terms with the enormity of what had happened, but noticing, along with me, the particular brand of PTSD that New Yorkers adopted in the months following - a complete elimination of all gruffness, an open friendly and warm attitude that was the opposite of their previous reputation.<br /><br />Surprisingly, I had trouble getting refunds for the tickets. I had to go to each theatre and make the case that we were going to buy other tickets, because most of the people had re-scheduled for another trip, but that we needed our money back. Ultimately, the Theatre League, a non-profit organization of Broadway and touring theatre managers, made it clear that the best course of action was to refund or exchange those tickets. <br /><br />Many of the September participants were able to sign on for our November trip. The city and the country were still in shock. La Guardia airport was almost empty. Soldiers with automatic weapons patrolled the airport. <br /><br />The trip participants shared taxis on Saturday morning to Pier 78 on the Hudson River for our New York Waterways harbor cruise. One group of four asked their taxi driver what he did and how he reacted on September 11. Instead of delivering them directly to the pier, he drove them to ground zero, told them his story, his persepective, and wept with them. He dropped them at our tour departure site, late, but still in time for the tour, and refused to take a fare.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-27520679567604907852012-11-16T06:40:00.000-08:002007-12-23T15:15:31.766-08:00The Music BoxDecember 20, 2007<br /><br />In 1983, we produced <em>Chicago.</em> Way ahead of its time. The original New York production(1975-1977) was a modest success, unlike the blockbuster production that opened in 1996, and has logged over 4,500 performances and almost a billion dollars in ticket sales. Our production was whimsical, fun and edgy, but not a huge hit. The cast was considerably talented. Jo Berry and Cece Gibb were Velma and Roxy, Dale Berry played Billy Flynn. It was a satisfying bookend to produce this show again in 2005 with Dale's son, Steve, playing the same role. More on Steve later.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGQ7SJpSZI4VP-l8p4ua1RSXJnfWwhJIh6-8JM3YdQUQK98NseXxTS1GB4Q_tFV4N_BYvxzS4SQK-52FSp21aOCfv4GEgalhf6tKFim6PY0XyWBOtoqJ1aUDov80ijs2eMYfjTd2yFZJ0/s1600-h/Billyattrial.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5146080094931812114" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGQ7SJpSZI4VP-l8p4ua1RSXJnfWwhJIh6-8JM3YdQUQK98NseXxTS1GB4Q_tFV4N_BYvxzS4SQK-52FSp21aOCfv4GEgalhf6tKFim6PY0XyWBOtoqJ1aUDov80ijs2eMYfjTd2yFZJ0/s400/Billyattrial.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Cece Gibb as Roxy, Dale Berry as Billy Flynn, Bob Fry as Fred Casely, <em>Chicago</em>, 1983</div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigvfzmF59JCTdIJHHgOTkHTY3i8vgwcuRfeqrHo486a0A0USOen0Di_UucHUx5y-mIotpidCkMusVVv49QU7T1W1FNjkvqUFyq_ZFR1B_14gWClngFYxiWteCGla7h6mPoYcUAFK3H328/s1600-h/VelmaandRoxie.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigvfzmF59JCTdIJHHgOTkHTY3i8vgwcuRfeqrHo486a0A0USOen0Di_UucHUx5y-mIotpidCkMusVVv49QU7T1W1FNjkvqUFyq_ZFR1B_14gWClngFYxiWteCGla7h6mPoYcUAFK3H328/s400/VelmaandRoxie.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5147310302414405442" /></a><br />Jo Berry as Velma, 1983<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5AEc14m50IH1bkOLqFtVvrSEfPNgkzJSKQJ3W5bZosU80748Cwv9G-8P4FLsT__rEkLkfToIV89MklYPO4JIiqk1WzOll8DUWyZSD6QBnKJx0ux90I7uxTC1yUwcNaszhfzLZsLnr-Ak/s1600-h/IMG_2065.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5146080386989588274" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5AEc14m50IH1bkOLqFtVvrSEfPNgkzJSKQJ3W5bZosU80748Cwv9G-8P4FLsT__rEkLkfToIV89MklYPO4JIiqk1WzOll8DUWyZSD6QBnKJx0ux90I7uxTC1yUwcNaszhfzLZsLnr-Ak/s400/IMG_2065.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Steve Berry as Billy Flynn, <em>Chicago</em>, 2005<br /><br />One of my strongest memories of the 1983 production involves the set and orchestra. Paul Dieke, music director for our shows at that time, was nothing, if not strong-willed. His solutions to orchestra placement in our less-than-ideal facility(no orchestra pit and no possibility of getting one) were creative, as well as challenging. <em>Chicago's</em> orchestra was to be suspended ten feet above the stage, with a cantilevered projection from the front of it for the conductor. Achieving this goal was daunting, to say the least, with lots of growling, structural engineers and disputes over loads. To top it off, Paul insisted upon a grand piano.<br /><br />The discussion on this issue was, no doubt, heated, but lost to eternity. I'm sure it ended with me, finally worn down, saying, "Ok,OK, I'll try," knowing that no piano store in its right mind would loan/rent us a grand piano to be suspended 10 feet in the air. Enter Critchett's, an arts-friendly music store, who, after much deliberation, said "Sure."<br /><br />I was rehearsing scenes in another part of the building, and only peripherally involved in the prep for lifting the piano, but scene designer Steve Brownless and a group of volunteers devised a "foolproof" method for getting the several - hundred - pound instrument up to its platform. I checked in to the auditorium early in the evening to see them putting finishing touches on a small platform that would be raised by a carefully orchestrated team operating two battens(pipes). The idea was that distributing the weight over two different counterweight systems would reduce the stress on the pipes and allow for more people to be involved in the actual lifting.<br /><br />Trying to add some levity, but probably sensing an inherent flaw in the plan, I offered a typical smart-ass comment, like, "Remember that Laurel and Hardy film (<em>The Music Box</em>), where they drop this piano down that big flight of stairs? Remember the sound it made? Like all the keys being hit at once? I wonder if that really happens."<br /></div><div></div><div>They didn't see the humor.<br /></div><div></div><div>I stayed to watch them carefully place the piano on the lift platform, talk the crews through how it would happen, and slowly raise the piano, with about 8 people operating two fly lines from offstage. </div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>The process was carefully coordinated so that the piano stayed level all the way up. When it reached the orchestra platform height, several people uttered a sigh of relief. A crew was on the orchestra platform to ease the piano off of its lift apparatus and on to the orchestra level. When they lifted the end of the piano, physics reared its ugly head. The two sets of ropes were counterweighted, so the removal of weight from one of them caused the lift platform to immediately lurch up at a steep angle and dump the elegant instrument ten feet to the stage floor. </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /><br />The piano only disappointed in one way. No discordant musical sound. Just a thud. A loud one. A scary one, but just a thud. There was some damage to the finish, and some scratches, but, miraculously, the internal workings were completely unscathed.<br /></div><div><br /><br />The two delivery guys, who had been skeptical but glad to have someone else try to lift the piano, now felt obligated to show us how professionals do it. They pushed everybody aside, took the legs off of the piano so they could lift it easier, and used their moving straps wrapped securely around the body of the instrument. Using only one batten and lots of strength, they slowly lifted the piano up to about eight feet, when one of the straps broke and dropped it again to the floor. </div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>This resulted in a conference between the delivery guys and the tech staff of the Playhouse. The playing field being leveled - neither side could effectively deride the other for being so stupid that they dropped a piano - a solution was reached. The delivery guys used the carry-off stairs on the back side of the ten foot platform and, through sheer force of muscle, with no mechanical advantage, carried the piano up to its destination.</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>The next day, when I talked to Dave Brown, at Critchett's, he was remarkably kind, although there was a lot of "tsk-tsking" audible on the phone. His only criticism was wondering why we didn't have the delivery guys carry the piano up the stairs in the first place. "It's what they do!"</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT23aE-sd_KxQpBlR9VqR9L1VO9FFsx63jmowrTTSvhfQXtAWEPP4JwevXbP9BNId1PapaI09Ez3yJD5LjzKUfdL-XWp1cRz_Q-m0Sig_jQH24BZrnHplU6XGR34o0w6-rKalpoOZEAoA/s1600-h/Chicago.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5146080245255667490" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT23aE-sd_KxQpBlR9VqR9L1VO9FFsx63jmowrTTSvhfQXtAWEPP4JwevXbP9BNId1PapaI09Ez3yJD5LjzKUfdL-XWp1cRz_Q-m0Sig_jQH24BZrnHplU6XGR34o0w6-rKalpoOZEAoA/s400/Chicago.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><em>Chicago</em>, 1983. The piano is at the left on the top level<br /><br /></div><div></div><div>The Critchett's technician came out and checked the piano, finding no mechanical or structural problems. Ok, it needed a good tuning, but that was it. </div><div><br />When the show ended, we paid for the cosmetic damage to the piano, and vowed to be smarter the next time.</div><div><br />Critchett's remains one of our best community-minded businesses, and just last week gave us a deal we couldn't refuse on a wonderful new Roland KF7 electronic piano, which, when played through a sound system, sounds as good as a concert grand, has the ability to transpose, and more gadgets than we will ever figure out how to use. The best thing about it is that I could carry it up the stairs to a 10 foot platform by myself. </div>John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-9630009247207920572012-11-15T06:26:00.000-08:002007-12-04T14:26:51.632-08:00Careers on the Playhouse Stage<em><span style="font-size:78%;"></span></em>November 22, 2007<br /><br />I arrived in Des Moines at the beginning of August, 1982. Twenty-five years is a long time in one job. Practically everyone I know has held two, three or four different positions, some in completely different careers, in the same period of time, but for a volunteer performer to continue a single avocational activity this long, it's either passion or obsession. I hope you have had a chance to see some of the shows performed by these three talented actors, whose tenure at The Playhouse matches mine.<br /><br /><strong>Linda Juckette</strong><br />Linda Juckette started performing at The Playhouse shortly before I arrived, but my introduction to her came with my first show, <em>Annie Get Your Gun.</em> She was Linda Garland then, working at Des Moines General Hospital and dating Tom Juckette. There was an inherent power in her voice that set her apart.<br /><span style="font-size:78%;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"></span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4CqRlMyJ2-XiPTpJnr0WIhyphenhyphenpw7ZEFe-hd4Vnc0QjoMeYYKOXJu3_2elbnysBkHtpHWxo4LaxlCt4bR-OnBVKFsERiJ2xPWPFcMG3mSS38sya8BYyxzxEg1A1pN61KxvpFAEWuKrwPGWU/s1600-h/Annie+Get+Your+Gun+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136193400295155634" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4CqRlMyJ2-XiPTpJnr0WIhyphenhyphenpw7ZEFe-hd4Vnc0QjoMeYYKOXJu3_2elbnysBkHtpHWxo4LaxlCt4bR-OnBVKFsERiJ2xPWPFcMG3mSS38sya8BYyxzxEg1A1pN61KxvpFAEWuKrwPGWU/s400/Annie+Get+Your+Gun+2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>Linda Juckette with the late J.R. Walker in Annie Get Your Gun, 1982</strong></span><br /><br />Music Director, Paul Dieke, recognized her talent and worked with her to develop it. Over the years, Linda's singing has become richer, stronger and more mature. She has an uncanny ability to communicate such strength and passion, that she often leaves people emotionally spent. Her <em>Evita</em> was breathtaking. (more about that in an upcoming blog). When she performed the song, "You Can Never Go Back to Before," in <em>Ragtime, </em>a sizeable chunk of the audience took out their hankies.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWlIy7O4bQJdMtH4J5CEVtaDx8ZfJ0yVJftlwohWFujOffadB0A27VpOnEe6HkOOKLKi2ucuryNMw76IRTEkXJGwkY9WtDj2m30CcIuVcEI7r5CsSBjklsPh7XtpPUEeWztZzjusVCyeQ/s1600-h/Evita+5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5133951736604288690" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWlIy7O4bQJdMtH4J5CEVtaDx8ZfJ0yVJftlwohWFujOffadB0A27VpOnEe6HkOOKLKi2ucuryNMw76IRTEkXJGwkY9WtDj2m30CcIuVcEI7r5CsSBjklsPh7XtpPUEeWztZzjusVCyeQ/s400/Evita+5.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><strong><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;">Linda Juckette, as cool as ice, in <em>Evita</em>, 1986</span><br /></strong><br />Trying out for <em>Cats,</em> just a few months ago, she sang "Memory," as her audition piece. When she left the room, I turned to Alison Shafer, co-director and choreographer of the production, who had never met Linda, and asked, "What do you think?"<br /><br />"What do I think?" she said. "She just made me cry at an audition!"<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivzumCNPtsRRsZP401r-mWF5uTry3nZFY2k9X8dIQtb2rQS3RKd3tysskQeEEWK31pa8ublyD7YcXuowqPn-Hs9OvkaVM-y9LmdeejKPqLH9FVzOoHdf1cEFMxO15dKqcfxmZs6urNHNA/s1600-h/IMG_6333.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135357414975760098" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivzumCNPtsRRsZP401r-mWF5uTry3nZFY2k9X8dIQtb2rQS3RKd3tysskQeEEWK31pa8ublyD7YcXuowqPn-Hs9OvkaVM-y9LmdeejKPqLH9FVzOoHdf1cEFMxO15dKqcfxmZs6urNHNA/s400/IMG_6333.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><strong><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;">Linda as "Grizabella," in </span><em><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;">Cats, 2007</span> </em><br /></strong><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirpIkdm6iNxqazneLv0Q9WjReWrIurZjSvpLzueyzd-NYbAUmxkNnGSLR5N9EwpNeTvxo093-lSsliZojVvLY09BrjjBIq7C4oyVK7SC8M5yMuGB_-DuKXCvEU8wc1smjHQ_VrGOM6YrI/s1600-h/IMG_1550.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135337189974763202" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirpIkdm6iNxqazneLv0Q9WjReWrIurZjSvpLzueyzd-NYbAUmxkNnGSLR5N9EwpNeTvxo093-lSsliZojVvLY09BrjjBIq7C4oyVK7SC8M5yMuGB_-DuKXCvEU8wc1smjHQ_VrGOM6YrI/s400/IMG_1550.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:78%;"><strong>Linda singing at our "Hollywood Halloween" fundraiser, 2007</strong></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p><br /><strong>Gina Gedler</strong><br />Gina Gedler's first role at The Playhouse was in the chorus of <em>The Music Man</em>, in 1983. She was beautiful, young and incredibly talented. Gina was a passionate, charismatic singer with the ability to move like a professionally trained dancer.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKSgOCajcK43ifyX03fXkJanfhdlF1nIU2I8KnSipCqp6GJmA5YZ5wLyGduFMhcP9R9yPEihvTbiwmI8lJpkT6Xkbnz4Ajm0OABrWm-Lbc1xtcPlFW49vcVe5AMqvIMSONUWLAXPIc2w/s1600-h/West+Side+Story+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135831746868963138" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKSgOCajcK43ifyX03fXkJanfhdlF1nIU2I8KnSipCqp6GJmA5YZ5wLyGduFMhcP9R9yPEihvTbiwmI8lJpkT6Xkbnz4Ajm0OABrWm-Lbc1xtcPlFW49vcVe5AMqvIMSONUWLAXPIc2w/s400/West+Side+Story+2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>Gina Gedler as "Anita," in <em>West Side Story, 1986</em></strong></span><br /><br />As she performed in show after show at The Playhouse, these talents grew and matured, with milepost roles such as "Anita," in <em>West Side Story</em>, and "Mama Rose," In <em>Gypsy</em>. </p><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJWe0IWrBrkUyUG0yLVESWT7IGp-OMibfKATwqqonUDvDXqRg8eIkbqCZ1YHBU-bPxKeRdR_-9MpUYJYrs9s2fP1ySBBcdIHACw65K4fW1ING0WWw8k2DlNWBtPP4vzOfyF_wq8d8EhPM/s1600-h/Gypsy+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135832172070725458" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJWe0IWrBrkUyUG0yLVESWT7IGp-OMibfKATwqqonUDvDXqRg8eIkbqCZ1YHBU-bPxKeRdR_-9MpUYJYrs9s2fP1ySBBcdIHACw65K4fW1ING0WWw8k2DlNWBtPP4vzOfyF_wq8d8EhPM/s400/Gypsy+1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><strong><span style="font-size:78%;">Gina as "Mama Rose," in <em>Gypsy, 1991</em></span><br /></strong><span style="font-size:78%;"><em><br /></em></span>Twenty-five years after her Playhouse debut, she performs regularly in our "Entertainment to Go" program, doing Broadway reviews and the spoofy <em>The Joey Libido and Sugar Show (It's Vegas, Baby)</em>. She had the role of "Vicki" in last spring's <em>The Full Monty</em>, and, once again, shared her infectious talent with us at this year's Hollywood Halloween.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26WBRrGei5GNB3vVE7xsRAqB8mmPl1X2g9OZtjv8Em3X_iPlTobDYTeCvKw6GM6GHvlO7gI0bUMZoWOoCM-beTfEarfhLGZs85twPFuCGOaOntnoIFRaEFYMEhwcu99d4zLo2MOQIAfo/s1600-h/Gina+Gedler+Full+Monty.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135833705374050146" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26WBRrGei5GNB3vVE7xsRAqB8mmPl1X2g9OZtjv8Em3X_iPlTobDYTeCvKw6GM6GHvlO7gI0bUMZoWOoCM-beTfEarfhLGZs85twPFuCGOaOntnoIFRaEFYMEhwcu99d4zLo2MOQIAfo/s400/Gina+Gedler+Full+Monty.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>Gina performing at our Hollywood Halloween Fundraiser, 2007<br /></strong></span><br /><br /><strong>Lenny Houts</strong><br />Lenny Houts started at The Playhouse in <em>The Music Man</em>, September, 1983. He was 18 years old and one of the best male dancers any of us had seen.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCGFI45_HCUCnQkpHk-WvQuZexVnU9G_fGT8C3_wG3p2V0jRapYuBM87-4JesePmRJTz5m9P2fcOKRvxXifZiF4qx85hanMdzv-hkpl4QBUIY9SgK-Y6Z4eh4jQ_HZI8I4Cf-yJYJ_Gt4/s1600-h/Music+Man+83+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135783458551654162" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCGFI45_HCUCnQkpHk-WvQuZexVnU9G_fGT8C3_wG3p2V0jRapYuBM87-4JesePmRJTz5m9P2fcOKRvxXifZiF4qx85hanMdzv-hkpl4QBUIY9SgK-Y6Z4eh4jQ_HZI8I4Cf-yJYJ_Gt4/s400/Music+Man+83+1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>Lenny Houts in <em>The Music Man,</em> 1983. I'm sure he can still do this</strong></span><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvrifVKOsUHXNmcR3OAQjhDu1XWE_4-mPwIkHO7wwY8UgX372hqUM1_-vsgXnQm6zVVf18trXd4LVN6Abn8BlWvYwpwbqPsKb8Y2mxETmarOQqeujxTsaQ9U9pgFREQwQLfIx4178zt0/s1600-h/Music+Man+83+9.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135783703364790050" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmvrifVKOsUHXNmcR3OAQjhDu1XWE_4-mPwIkHO7wwY8UgX372hqUM1_-vsgXnQm6zVVf18trXd4LVN6Abn8BlWvYwpwbqPsKb8Y2mxETmarOQqeujxTsaQ9U9pgFREQwQLfIx4178zt0/s400/Music+Man+83+9.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>Todd Buchacker, Lenny Houts, Rosa Chagnon, and Warren Westlund at <em>Music Man</em> Fundraiser, 1983</strong></span><br /><br />He performed in <em>Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, </em>the next season, and followed with roles in <em>Evita, Gypsy</em> and <em>West Side Story</em>, getting better with each show. Lenny took a hiatus from The Playhouse for several years, returning for 2002's <em>Cabaret</em>. His "Master of Ceremonies" was stunning - Broadway quality or better.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr_4GLg3efK-muyix87CgLtL9Zg37Pbgyk3QTK2qK12KezeAM_BVnG4b42Szk36LjFr5dhSs6RYebctJSLYFMvKlwaIfFwu0veLfojqwWReE5NnqhKICO2wS592joKJmi4nWan21WjyDY/s1600-h/Lenny+Cabaret+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135783102069368578" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr_4GLg3efK-muyix87CgLtL9Zg37Pbgyk3QTK2qK12KezeAM_BVnG4b42Szk36LjFr5dhSs6RYebctJSLYFMvKlwaIfFwu0veLfojqwWReE5NnqhKICO2wS592joKJmi4nWan21WjyDY/s400/Lenny+Cabaret+1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><strong><span style="font-size:78%;">Lenny as the "Emcee" in <em>Cabaret</em>. 2002. What a performance!</span><br /></strong><br />Lenny has developed into an excellent actor/singer and his dance ability remains especially strong. He was a truly believable "Jerry," in last spring's <em>The Full Monty</em>, portraying a working class character torn between emotional immaturity and responsibility. At The Playhouse and other local theatres Lenny continues to grow and develop his considerable talent.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5KfCBWMnCE4vs6LyNWrfMFnq9gyYsNN8cDttb82zgnvgczxLZMdSqsFHO7jyiZ2-bIiUqIaU8Pyq7x2Lq0e3K4Xi7AQbkDUwErgLNqeYH3UYWsX-nmlBjrquefAROmAKRQb5ACIr_F7s/s1600-h/lenny+monty.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135828671672379186" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5KfCBWMnCE4vs6LyNWrfMFnq9gyYsNN8cDttb82zgnvgczxLZMdSqsFHO7jyiZ2-bIiUqIaU8Pyq7x2Lq0e3K4Xi7AQbkDUwErgLNqeYH3UYWsX-nmlBjrquefAROmAKRQb5ACIr_F7s/s400/lenny+monty.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>Lenny as "Jerry," in <em>The Full Monty</em>, 2007</strong><br /><br /><br /></span><span style="font-size:78%;"></span><span style="font-size:78%;"></span>John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-59999189994043425762012-11-10T07:28:00.000-08:002007-11-23T15:40:00.695-08:00The "F" WordNovember 17, 2007<br /><br />In the spring of 1992, we produced Wendy Wasserstein's wonderful play, <em>The Heidi Chronicles</em>. It dealt with so many themes of contemporary relevance, that we felt it would be a strong addition to our season. The only concern was that one scene, in particular, might be shocking to our audience. One of the characters was, essentially, defined by her use of the "f" word. We hadn't dealt with anything like that on our stage, and were concerned that the audience, specifically our season ticket holders might feel blindsided if we surprised them with this show.<br /><br />Our solution was to send a letter to all subscribers telling them that we were doing a show that contained language that some might find offensive, and if they wanted to skip this show, we would give them credit for another one.<br /><br />A relatively small number of season ticket holders opted out, but a larger number of non-season ticket holders, titillated by the news, which had leaked to the <em>Register</em>, bought tickets and made the show a success for us.<br /><br />I remember, clearly, the call I received from a long-time subscriber, an elderly woman.<br /><br />"Mr Viars, I read your letter, and I have a question. You say there is language that I might find offensive. What do they say?"<br /><br />"Well, um... they say the "f" word... a lot."<br /><br />"They don't do it, do they?"<br /><br />"NO! Absolutely not."<br /><br />"Well, as long as they don't do it, I guess I won't be offended."John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-48885927234849326672012-11-03T13:39:00.000-07:002007-11-23T16:09:26.194-08:00Old FriendsNovember 3, 2007<br /><br />Jack Mishler is a volunteer performer any community theater would be proud of. He first set foot on the stage of the Kendall Theatre (what we used to be called) in 1939 at the age of 16. He has performed, on and off, for most of the 68 intervening years. His singing is not operatic- it's the kind of singing that comes out of character and adds another level to the performance. His dancing is controlled, effortless, and sublime. His stage characterizations are so warm, so appealing, that people instantly love him. I've only seen him do recreations of it for auditions and special events, but the sizeable number of people who remember him singing "Once in Love with Amy," from <em>Where's Charley?</em> in 1963, say Jack's performance is head and shoulders above Ray Bolger's.<br /><br />It's natural and fitting that Jack is playing the role of Morrie in <em>Tuesdays With Morrie</em>. It's a hit for us and it's so satisfying to see the audiences enjoy Jack's performance and share the feeling that with this show, they are seeing a sort of bookend for a lifelong love affair with community theatre.<br /><br />It helps us tell the story of how The Playhouse changes lives.<br /><br />That point was brought home in a big way last night as two friends of Jack's from his early days at the Kendall Playhouse paid a surprise visit.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjK8KIU__wXain6acwvVX9KnC-sO84faPlX5oQ3TDsBKDEI_B7zYR_EeyhwYun6DMUNNNjIbWa2Iq1HXAbszL2E5mRXpOT1C1P7vun5X-UKF3caxMKrniit6iAb7yY6giEIctEI0h7adQ/s1600-h/Jack+Cloris+Eddie.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136190393818048386" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjK8KIU__wXain6acwvVX9KnC-sO84faPlX5oQ3TDsBKDEI_B7zYR_EeyhwYun6DMUNNNjIbWa2Iq1HXAbszL2E5mRXpOT1C1P7vun5X-UKF3caxMKrniit6iAb7yY6giEIctEI0h7adQ/s400/Jack+Cloris+Eddie.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;font-size:85%;"><strong>Cloris, Jack, and Eddie Rissien</strong></span><br /><br />Cloris Leachman and Eddie Rissien decided, at the last minute, that they just had to see Jack in this show, which he's been telling people will be his last (he's got more in him, trust me).<br /><br />Cloris got her first kiss from Jack in 1941 in the Kendall Playhouse production of <em>Ah, Wilderness.</em> She went on to become the prolific stage, screen and TV actress who has won an Academy Award, and more Emmy Awards than any other person.<br /><br />Eddie Rissien became a professional Broadway stage manager, then a successful producer of films and TV. He and Jack grew up in Des Moines, and have remained close for nearly 7 decades.<br /><br />Here's how it happened:<br /><br />Cloris calls at 2pm on Thursday; wants to know why people are at lunch at 10am. After much explaining Rod McCullough finally convinces her that it's two hours <em>later </em>here than in California, rather than the opposite. She then spends a lot of time trying to convince Rod that we <em>must</em> make a recording of the show. "There are people out here who can't make it to Des Moines who want to see the show. You have to do it. "<br /><br />After a long, and mostly vain attempt to convince Cloris that there are issues with copyright, and that although we would try to get permission, we weren't hopeful, she says, "You can do it. Bend some elbows." We're pretty sure that meant, "Twist some arms."<br /><br />Later in the evening, she calls the box office and orders two tickets for Friday's performance. All day Friday, we wait for word that she is, indeed, coming.<br /><br />At 7:45 pm, Cloris and Eddie arrive at the side entrance, having been delivered by Cloris' cousin, John Leachman. She appears in a long, beautiful evening gown, wearing one high-heel shoe and a bedroom slipper. Whenever anyone looks at her feet, she says, "I was sure that I packed two shoes!"<br /><br />I whisk them out of the lobby and to the green room, because I want to surprise the audience with their appearance. Jack has already gone upstairs to his offstage perch, where he quietly contemplates the upcoming performance. Susie Gulbranson, the stage manager retrieves him, and what ensues is a reunion so full of emotion that it is overwhelming to everyone, even a cynic like me.<br /><br />Cloris asks if anyone has lipstick or gloss. Props person Shelley Graber obliges with both.<br /><br />It's time to go upstairs, and separating everyone is not unlike Howard Morris clinging to Sid Caesar's leg in "Your Show of Shows."<br /><br />At curtain time, I tell the sold-out audience how great it is to have a legacy like ours and then surprise them by introducing Cloris and Eddie. They respond with a sustained standing ovation, fueled partly by awe with celebrity, but also because it is so touching that the two of them would fly out to see their old friend.<br /><br />Cloris wows them with a couple of stories, shows off her mis-matched feet, and then she and Eddie are helped to their seats. Knowing that she is being watched all the way, she "mistakenly" sits in the lap of Mark Pullen, which gets a huge laugh.<br /><br />The show is exceptional. Rhonda Lake's solid direction has given us a production we can be proud of. Jack is great - he's gotten better since opening night and the double whammy of emotion, surprisingly, seems to enhance his concentration. The other "whammy" is that his daughter, Sarah, her two daughters and husband have driven up from Austin, Texas just for Jack.<br /><br />By the way, newcomer Craig Peterson is also superb in the show. When he's been here 68 years, I promise I'll carry on about him, too.<br /><br />The show gets a standing ovation, as it does every night. Cloris signs autographs for a while and then proceeds, with Eddie and a retinue, to the green room. Lots of hugging, picture taking and well deserved platitudes follow, then Cloris abruptly sits down at our out-of-tune rehearsal piano and does an impromptu concert of Debussy's "Clair de Lune. "<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNr5nLpbcYoKMhdqyrsdQgGwSmYN5BjjZ83Vrs81lmYlGlWzCfSZLesBDBI2T36QEOpDVdl9eFceX0OhVbSy3YajIAksX2pfp10JS0QhWhH4PCeRfFDRO7yG8QorkjAon1eRl3K6AE-I/s1600-h/cloris+piano.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136191849811961762" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNr5nLpbcYoKMhdqyrsdQgGwSmYN5BjjZ83Vrs81lmYlGlWzCfSZLesBDBI2T36QEOpDVdl9eFceX0OhVbSy3YajIAksX2pfp10JS0QhWhH4PCeRfFDRO7yG8QorkjAon1eRl3K6AE-I/s400/cloris+piano.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;font-size:85%;"><strong>Cloris playing "Clair de Lune"</strong></span><br /><br />At Noah's, for after-theatre food, Cloris takes time to chat with students from Roosevelt High School, who are celebrating their sell-out success with <em>Les Miserables</em>. Cloris, Jack and Eddie are all proud graduates of Roosevelt -Cloris has been inducted to the Roosevelt Hall of Fame. At least some of the kids in the restaurant don't know who she is until we mention "Spanglish." Jack Mishler can't stop smiling.<br /><br />It was another great night at The Playhouse.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-46098677599398870772012-11-02T05:22:00.000-07:002007-11-13T07:09:54.342-08:00Cloris Leachman Visits The Playhouse November 2, 2007<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7jTEwBFJ5njVHikphrFWUe4VxX3cle0LGcon0Q-m5pr3h4rZuW4zfIuZaeQ4BKQvry11bU2FrSFxa0N1sdY8j87fcjm0J1eRaq6cqklFp1SlrZ-yqs6hhEaLCUj2S9vP_RTSfbYoUqZc/s1600-h/IMG_3625.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129354834147037442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7jTEwBFJ5njVHikphrFWUe4VxX3cle0LGcon0Q-m5pr3h4rZuW4zfIuZaeQ4BKQvry11bU2FrSFxa0N1sdY8j87fcjm0J1eRaq6cqklFp1SlrZ-yqs6hhEaLCUj2S9vP_RTSfbYoUqZc/s320/IMG_3625.jpg" border="0" /></a> Cloris entertains with impromptu concert in green room</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRGS1IJvAiC5Vqfcvhdpiuh-Mgbigd96lbZLdMDw3z83FtPm2KmTHYKw7GP6FQUkLW8ndAnoVaXrk_X4PlCfLVWpU2guSHEeZMNAL4gEqbGb6qEQqXgYcafvg41Zrwx7vBIq5cWgW0XE/s1600-h/IMG_3624.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129354675233247474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRGS1IJvAiC5Vqfcvhdpiuh-Mgbigd96lbZLdMDw3z83FtPm2KmTHYKw7GP6FQUkLW8ndAnoVaXrk_X4PlCfLVWpU2guSHEeZMNAL4gEqbGb6qEQqXgYcafvg41Zrwx7vBIq5cWgW0XE/s320/IMG_3624.JPG" border="0" /></a> Eddie Rissien and Jack's daughter, Sarah Houghton Mishler</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><br /></div><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv55kysdy2MDTLDjJy-VzFhyphenhyphen-X6h98Fb7Ub_YkygdWd6xM0s77vVFSst7I43Bqjjx-broHu97srLJkYoK8jABKWsyFHaH3GlCCarV0IKZyT5L67pmOmpnjUzbtNwsOUe-Zr-8jibcHT14/s1600-h/IMG_3623.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129354391765405922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv55kysdy2MDTLDjJy-VzFhyphenhyphen-X6h98Fb7Ub_YkygdWd6xM0s77vVFSst7I43Bqjjx-broHu97srLJkYoK8jABKWsyFHaH3GlCCarV0IKZyT5L67pmOmpnjUzbtNwsOUe-Zr-8jibcHT14/s320/IMG_3623.JPG" border="0" /></a>Jack Mishler and Eddie Rissien backstage before <em>Tuesdays With Morrie</em>.</p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdhJ6pzQugCutB8JoRkwJWelzr01JwoZqQgF8-gMr2kEgy2t7e9JnTu1S0NefY7pFYyZRHip86dftah1IuPxL8v6NprYO53m5ktXC6HQ2UOkS9tP2MvDJFoaznGUOjn-PgennaELDsGJc/s1600-h/IMG_3622.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129354052462989522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdhJ6pzQugCutB8JoRkwJWelzr01JwoZqQgF8-gMr2kEgy2t7e9JnTu1S0NefY7pFYyZRHip86dftah1IuPxL8v6NprYO53m5ktXC6HQ2UOkS9tP2MvDJFoaznGUOjn-PgennaELDsGJc/s320/IMG_3622.jpg" border="0" /></a>Jack and Eddie </p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHzjM0Sq0_1DJ4KNg8pVWaiKfSswK-uikCX-aViIFvPEMccuP99slO16_Qq36MXGoCmPkfPR454m6K5r-LBd7LzGfuLmk0aStOJudGm3dEe2JeTmH09ot2NRC8dmJI63u7wjbF69zSG8M/s1600-h/IMG_3621.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129353884959264962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHzjM0Sq0_1DJ4KNg8pVWaiKfSswK-uikCX-aViIFvPEMccuP99slO16_Qq36MXGoCmPkfPR454m6K5r-LBd7LzGfuLmk0aStOJudGm3dEe2JeTmH09ot2NRC8dmJI63u7wjbF69zSG8M/s320/IMG_3621.jpg" border="0" /></a>Cloris, Phyllis Mumford and Jack Mishler </p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkus-ckklxyHH-38jmukmOmOdiGTXVKRAjrW-SOCJEueOei33Xe0H21N1eGoJU_2jhS9VfCfbbqJbo2E9CwXwW48T0_RIXab19HPxmMq4FDu0dMO4TpxtnhN0INqSi-8pZWVqrdKC06lM/s1600-h/IMG_3620.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129353597196456114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkus-ckklxyHH-38jmukmOmOdiGTXVKRAjrW-SOCJEueOei33Xe0H21N1eGoJU_2jhS9VfCfbbqJbo2E9CwXwW48T0_RIXab19HPxmMq4FDu0dMO4TpxtnhN0INqSi-8pZWVqrdKC06lM/s320/IMG_3620.jpg" border="0" /></a>Eddie Rissien </p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQZrz3xzIneRvycWmrlzRSTKlqUMOPOqjUi7QJDrfKCikXzWwg6xbSfGN83NYNOrYhJFMrBDfLaBEh8HWYws5VT0OkHEP7m_Pqi5e0MfJnyAzLbLBvu12ntyFVHsFclxDfTknYb8rGu9c/s1600-h/IMG_3618.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129353455462535330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQZrz3xzIneRvycWmrlzRSTKlqUMOPOqjUi7QJDrfKCikXzWwg6xbSfGN83NYNOrYhJFMrBDfLaBEh8HWYws5VT0OkHEP7m_Pqi5e0MfJnyAzLbLBvu12ntyFVHsFclxDfTknYb8rGu9c/s320/IMG_3618.JPG" border="0" /></a>Preshia Paulding and Cloris after the show </p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnWlaT87fudHjB4kR5rWqpD8GGr5N-JX67IyerHTjB5DhMLPRvyrBE8GBvfTQRtUi-EdLc75KmRufJVouCvEGg_yQLViH7bYztO_cQATbzECme0TvoGEeY46zoQwzPIlhRWNESERbmYk4/s1600-h/IMG_3617.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129353171994693778" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnWlaT87fudHjB4kR5rWqpD8GGr5N-JX67IyerHTjB5DhMLPRvyrBE8GBvfTQRtUi-EdLc75KmRufJVouCvEGg_yQLViH7bYztO_cQATbzECme0TvoGEeY46zoQwzPIlhRWNESERbmYk4/s320/IMG_3617.JPG" border="0" /></a>Greeting fans after the show </p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSPeog2r_sN6ogn7Nf-Mw4n_EkWZDvkVY2xtRMo6wkqOVPbr0GrldJT3kxwdAyYO8pvIo8u4ndphVT-zSNOfmE9R8h67v4zKNnmCN53WM8uStQgbNsmczFBOdgqAvjhyphenhypheneepruqNEyzcuo/s1600-h/IMG_3616.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129352755382866050" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSPeog2r_sN6ogn7Nf-Mw4n_EkWZDvkVY2xtRMo6wkqOVPbr0GrldJT3kxwdAyYO8pvIo8u4ndphVT-zSNOfmE9R8h67v4zKNnmCN53WM8uStQgbNsmczFBOdgqAvjhyphenhypheneepruqNEyzcuo/s320/IMG_3616.JPG" border="0" /></a>Preshia Paulding, Cloris, Jack, Eddie and Joanna Holt Mishler </p><p align="center"><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIwbNcZiPMQq8NpVnspWqhUJ5XnlolpyrbjgFGG9EQiaHurR4mGtum1k42YvS0TeNJeC0ALJCWXmKw5lyav6O5PYubrFUXLFKgo20_8-Q7-PTVwJCwpnr7FeqtIklob8cpAMgeHrawF-k/s1600-h/IMG_3615.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129352308706267250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIwbNcZiPMQq8NpVnspWqhUJ5XnlolpyrbjgFGG9EQiaHurR4mGtum1k42YvS0TeNJeC0ALJCWXmKw5lyav6O5PYubrFUXLFKgo20_8-Q7-PTVwJCwpnr7FeqtIklob8cpAMgeHrawF-k/s320/IMG_3615.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Cloris, Jack, Eddie, Joanna<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyLIUP35jZkLvmbNyNM8Gas_v2FWBhUnB-NV_ph3MGnSE7X8naRjgWOixcySVnstrgqW-WGmN-BpYwhDRgFYxdeapWqLgNJATNfRHqIkmxO0ogAQMPyZ6gbnrwRL-sFFhvFJHb8QzT3tI/s1600-h/IMG_3614.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129351965108883554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyLIUP35jZkLvmbNyNM8Gas_v2FWBhUnB-NV_ph3MGnSE7X8naRjgWOixcySVnstrgqW-WGmN-BpYwhDRgFYxdeapWqLgNJATNfRHqIkmxO0ogAQMPyZ6gbnrwRL-sFFhvFJHb8QzT3tI/s320/IMG_3614.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Cloris, Jack, Eddie<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5UDI6W3NmeDNnoR75_cJGYK6ZQueRhox3LsOw4lMk-CabBYlJJ8ccJ3O4MoPVOW-THSJI3frsRxCBq5nweZ69vvsBzLspAAC84Z5XSwNpJc4srTRaNyx5sxxIyMGjTQ2CIojMYXBtTZ0/s1600-h/IMG_3612.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129351368108429394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5UDI6W3NmeDNnoR75_cJGYK6ZQueRhox3LsOw4lMk-CabBYlJJ8ccJ3O4MoPVOW-THSJI3frsRxCBq5nweZ69vvsBzLspAAC84Z5XSwNpJc4srTRaNyx5sxxIyMGjTQ2CIojMYXBtTZ0/s320/IMG_3612.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Cloris, Jack, Eddie<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKCEdtTDnYhXr2mBE5H6nWSn-EZN-npQoajOQMSOhgvyYesD0PK-UcayEfodJYtgIM_UyhQV4B5hyphenhyphen9b53izu84FK8t4nsqN5lGDulwGkK09Sf-XgFECEUfgQse-TaTqvRiJ64eXaFcm9c/s1600-h/IMG_3611.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129350934316732482" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKCEdtTDnYhXr2mBE5H6nWSn-EZN-npQoajOQMSOhgvyYesD0PK-UcayEfodJYtgIM_UyhQV4B5hyphenhyphen9b53izu84FK8t4nsqN5lGDulwGkK09Sf-XgFECEUfgQse-TaTqvRiJ64eXaFcm9c/s320/IMG_3611.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Cloris and Eddie speak to the audience. Note her feet.<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT8hZdkddKEPeWVBhK3Ps2UrM0Smgz8L4kDXbyxDU2gDaUIMs-rgssixrLvxukFdxg9Q2HSxHE6Rbw6BSozRcvVQqeIcn1XV7PItqBmson2u_TxpZWr5xvIZv2K4lVmA_cXh4Z39ZRntA/s1600-h/IMG_3610.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129350616489152562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT8hZdkddKEPeWVBhK3Ps2UrM0Smgz8L4kDXbyxDU2gDaUIMs-rgssixrLvxukFdxg9Q2HSxHE6Rbw6BSozRcvVQqeIcn1XV7PItqBmson2u_TxpZWr5xvIZv2K4lVmA_cXh4Z39ZRntA/s320/IMG_3610.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Cloris and Eddie onstage<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRFfvHEGl_FRxNYwlXaXfca0AtORvldAT6cZJlaPo0BiVxcRKSm-meJAGxpELcCYfO03kZ8nEBHxKdK7hT2pRd94839EJcx2OJtJYClucAoq7L1WiuBJpWd668arcjkev1FTcrPyZXZgU/s1600-h/IMG_3607.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129349839100071970" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRFfvHEGl_FRxNYwlXaXfca0AtORvldAT6cZJlaPo0BiVxcRKSm-meJAGxpELcCYfO03kZ8nEBHxKdK7hT2pRd94839EJcx2OJtJYClucAoq7L1WiuBJpWd668arcjkev1FTcrPyZXZgU/s320/IMG_3607.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Jack and Cloris<br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBuCBIT2xvODmQk8-1tn4cA1aMtgCmx43bv_T6_61JU05fAwXpRkbjo_4UOueycnh_alUqS8vQQ0chRE471xKS5C4uKogseG3XL4dpuV4IyM_eljp2qbGtyQTnzOgkk5K8pJpmixm8Uc/s1600-h/IMG_3606.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129348086753415186" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBuCBIT2xvODmQk8-1tn4cA1aMtgCmx43bv_T6_61JU05fAwXpRkbjo_4UOueycnh_alUqS8vQQ0chRE471xKS5C4uKogseG3XL4dpuV4IyM_eljp2qbGtyQTnzOgkk5K8pJpmixm8Uc/s320/IMG_3606.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Jack and Cloris<br /><br /><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUa5SbaBrg9Lh2SDRYY9CjbZQZiwfeoBXyrO4VGhQk07CwgCMhZX2gUaYweCOad8c-HGjcrznmI87etiHeCCTCJnsDJOG-g4WLpJErSYW9GwjYY2_K33X4X9Ucx-g9AP4s6XaDXjb1RTQ/s1600-h/IMG_3605.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129347674436554754" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUa5SbaBrg9Lh2SDRYY9CjbZQZiwfeoBXyrO4VGhQk07CwgCMhZX2gUaYweCOad8c-HGjcrznmI87etiHeCCTCJnsDJOG-g4WLpJErSYW9GwjYY2_K33X4X9Ucx-g9AP4s6XaDXjb1RTQ/s320/IMG_3605.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Jack and Cloris</p>John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-85162841336958857892012-10-30T06:35:00.000-07:002007-12-24T05:27:38.066-08:00Peace ChildOctober 29, 2007<br /><br /><br />In 1987, Grace Walsh brought us a script that she had found through her work in the peace movement. It was a musical based on the concept that if young people were to address world leaders directly, they could cut through the politics of the cold war and stop the nuclear arms race. The fundamental argument was "I Want to Live," also the title of one of the major songs of the play. It wasn't a very good script, and the songs weren't much better, but, as is sometimes the case, especially with political theatre, the concept carried it.<br /><br />We applied for, and to our amazement, received a grant for $10,000 to produce this play. We had the idea that if we could bring together kids from many nations, even iron curtain countries, we could make a big splash with this production. Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Routman</span> was president of The Playhouse at the time, and pretty much refused to accept any limitations, so we forged ahead.<br /><br />The Soviet Union had not yet shown signs of collapsing, and getting kids from Soviet-bloc countries would be daunting, to say the least. I used my connections with the American Association of Community Theatre to work with the International Association of Amateur Theatre to seek participants. Finding people willing to come was not a problem. Getting them here was a different story. We worked with the U.S. State Department, and didn't know for certain we would have people until they arrived. We had to send travel money(cash) in some cases, by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">DHL</span> Worldwide Express, with the knowledge that there was only about a 20% chance that it would reach the intended recipients.<br /><br />The kids stayed with home hosts. They arrived two days before Thanksgiving, a holiday most had never heard of. We rehearsed for a couple of weeks with a local cast of about 110 kids and a few adults. Debbie <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Westphal</span> choreographed, Paul <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Dieke</span> did the music direction, and I directed. It was a madhouse. We crammed more people on the stage than ever before. Traffic patterns and visibility were our major concerns.<br /><br />Opening night was a huge event. In attendance were many local luminaries, as well as Father Robert <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Drinan</span>, peace activist and former U.S. congressman, and Lureen <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Gephardt</span>, mother of senator and perennial candidate, Dick <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Gephardt</span>. I lived only a few blocks from the Playhouse, and as I left my house to attend opening night, I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">noticed</span> powerful searchlights in the early evening sky, searchlights procured by board member Jon <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Batesole</span>. I knew we were doing something big. We never played to an empty seat, and due to Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Routman's</span> entrepreneurial drive, never an empty aisle.<br /><br />The local response was amazing. Peace activism is usually positioned left of center, but this show defied political boundaries. Everyone got it. Kids don't care if you are republican or democrat. Their needs are non-political.<br /><br />International cultural exchange creates incredibly tight bonds. The host families and guests became close almost instantly. On the day after closing, there was significant weeping and wailing at the airport, followed the next summer by many European trips, with host families visiting their guests. Some bonds remain particularly strong even now, 20 years later.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-46115724979484534072012-10-29T11:58:00.000-07:002007-11-17T07:26:27.927-08:00Peace Child, The SequelOctober 30, 2007<br /><br />So much happened between our first production of <em>Peace Child</em>, in November, 1987 and our decision to revive it in the summer of 1989. The Soviet Union was on the verge of collapse. By November, 1989, the Berlin Wall would be gone, and communist domination of Russia and its satellites would be on the way out. An economy destroyed by currency crises, reduced oil prices and the failed war in Afghanistan, coupled with the pressure applied by the Reagan administration to keep an arms race going, made it tough for Russia to continue to exist without undergoing massive change. Gorbachev, who came to power in 1985, started with <em>Perestroika</em>, moved through <em>Glasnost</em> all the way to a nearly open, capitalistic society.<br /><br />Even though travel restrictions were eased, and tensions seemed to be abating, the US and Soviet Union were still operating in the "Mutual Assured Destruction" mode, with nuclear weapons poised and ready to launch. This information, coupled with our unexpected success on the first <em>Peace Child</em>, motivated us to try it again.<br /><br />We brought 15 kids from Moscow, along with 4 adults. Unlike two years before, there were no travel problems, whatsoever.<br /><br />The group traveled with two adult leaders. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Arsen</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Melitonyan</span></span> was a young man in his 30's, a representative of <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Comsomol</span></span></em>, the Soviet communist youth league-obviously an organization on its way out, and the closest thing to KGB that was now traveling with groups on tour to the west. Julia <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Klimova</span></span> was his counterpart, a free-spirit, creative type who co-directed the production with me.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Arsen's</span></span> job appeared to be to oversee the group, make sure that there were no defectors and assure that mutual respect was maintained on both sides. Julia's job seemed to be to drive me crazy. To say that she was strong-willed would be an understatement. She wanted things her way and when I tried to reach a compromise, the language barrier became insurmountable. In the end, I believe we both made contributions to the production concept that enhanced its effect. Paul <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Dieke</span></span> masterfully provided the music direction and Debbie <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Westphal</span></span> did the choreography and traffic direction, a feat of incredible organization and creativity.<br /><br />We added value to the production in several ways. The rehearsals took place at Grand View College, and we opened up the student union/theatre building in the afternoons for what was called "International Peace Camp." Local young people worked side-by side with the kids from Russia on theatre classes, craft projects, and artwork centered on the theme of peace. Not content to perform only in Des <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Moines</span></span> , we toured the production to three other venues across the state: Cherokee, Washington and Clinton. In each of these communities, the core group of 30 performers was joined by a chorus of up to 100 local kids. Our project became known as <em>Peace Child: The Great Plains Tour</em>. In each community, the kids bonded with their American counterparts and developed relationships that lasted far beyond the brief time they spent together.<br /><br />As a grand finale, we performed the show to 1400 people at the Sylvan Theatre in Greenwood Park.<br /><br />The board, volunteers and performers involved in this project created something that made a difference in terms of cross-cultural understanding and created indelible memories in hundreds of minds. Everyone felt good about his or her contribution to the change that was taking place, and we joked, for several years, that on cast member, Eric Hastings' resume, under achievements, he listed, "Ended Cold War."<br /><br />My fond memories of the project include the Peace Kids singing our National Anthem, followed the Soviet National Anthem at an Iowa Cubs game. I was surprised and moved to see a stadium full of baseball fans, hats off and hands on hearts honoring the anthems of two nations, at least at this level, committed to ending their bitter and dangerous competition.<br /><br />My strongest memory of the summer, however, is an event that occurred during our visit to Clinton, Iowa, and will be the subject of my next post.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-6883670015062619292012-10-28T06:36:00.000-07:002007-12-24T05:32:37.672-08:00Peace Child IIIOctober 31, 2007<br /><br />The third stop on the <em>Peace Child: Great Plains Tour</em> was Clinton, Iowa. Al King and the local arrangements committee did a great job pulling together a cast of young people to perform at the local high school with our core group of around 30. Kathy Johnson, from the Playhouse staff, arranged <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">homestays</span>, pairing staff and cast with just the right families. I never understood why Kathy stayed in houses with private guest suites and decks with hot tubs overlooking rolling Iowa hills, while I stayed in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">someone's</span> basement, but I now, officially, let it go.<br /><br />Debbie <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Westphal</span>, who, as head of Betty Hill Dance Studio, has a wealth of experience making large groups of young people look good on stage, is an incredible detail person. Color-coded charts and lists rule her life, and make it possible for our hundred or so kids to look organized and present well.<br /><br />I'm standing in the back of the high school auditorium watching our production of Peace Child. Debbie is next to me, agitated and trying to convince me to change something that is not working out the way she wants. I am only half-listening, because something strange is happening onstage. We are at the point in the play where the girls are dancing a dream-like sequence that represents their fantasy about the horror of nuclear war. There are 8 Russian girls and 8 American girls dancing in a circle. There is a fog effect, but it doesn't look right. I tune Debbie out completely and try to decide what is going on. The floor in the circle seems white. The girls are missing beats and acting strange. It doesn't look like all 16 of them are onstage. I excuse myself from Debbie and go out into the hallway to make my way backstage. Al King, sweet guy, stops me and says, "Well, John, you should be really proud..."<br /><br />"Sorry, Al, can't talk."<br /><br />When I get backstage, I can see that there is a white powder <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">centerstage</span>. I ask what is going on, and someone says, "The fog machine wasn't working, so the tech director used a fire extinguisher." As I am trying to process this, another cast member peels out of the circle and comes offstage coughing and hacking. The tech director has used a <em>dry chemical </em>fire extinguisher!<br /><br />I follow the girl as she leaves the stage to an outside loading dock area where there are three other girls coughing uncontrollably and a saying alarming things like, " I can't breathe!"<br /><br />The dance number is over, and we are approaching the end of the show. I grab the stage manager and say, "Forget the show. Stay with these kids to make sure it <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">doesn't</span> get worse." I run back through the hallway, bumping into Al King again, who says, " John, I think we <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">should</span> do more of this..."<br /><br />"Shut up, Al, and call an ambulance!"<br /><br />"What's going on?"<br /><br />"There's a problem backstage. Girls are having trouble breathing. Call 911 and get some rescue people here."<br /><br />I reach Debbie <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Westphal</span>, who, by now, has figured something bad is happening. We quickly decide, that since there is only a short time left in the show, the chemical fog/powder has dissipated, and the remaining cast seems to be doing <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">OK</span>, that it would be more disruptive to stop the show than continue.<br /><br />I rush backstage again, passing the men's room, where the distraught technical director has locked himself in. People are on the verge of panic.<br /><br />The girls are still having breathing issues, and there are several people helping them, comforting them, giving them water.<br /><br />I rush back to the auditorium, passing the men's room, where there is now a priest, kneeling and talking to the technical director locked in the bathroom through the grate at the bottom of the door, like a confessional, urging him to come out.<br /><br />Al King is walking in circles.<br /><br />The show is ending. The audience is on its feet in a standing ovation. Their reaction is almost loud enough to cover the sirens of the arriving ambulances.<br /><br />On my way backstage again, I pass the men's room, where maintenance people are removing the hinges to get to the TD.<br /><br />The girls are being loaded into ambulances. The show has ended, and the audience filing out is seeing some strange and disturbing sights. I don't have time to explain.<br /><br />At the hospital, a pulmonary specialist has been called in, and he is triaging the injured. Among all the disturbing things I hear that evening, his statement to me wins the prize.<br /><br />"At the MGM Grand fire in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Las</span> Vegas, they kept more people from dying by giving everyone who arrived at emergency a massive dose of steroids. That's my intention. Do you have a problem with that?"<br /><br />"Let me call their parents."<br /><br />"We don't have time. I'm going ahead."<br /><br />After an hour or so, it becomes clear that there is no imminent danger of this turning into a life-or-death crisis. One girl who has chronic asthma is not doing as well as the others, and is held overnight for observation.<br /><br />Speaking of observation, it occurs to us that there were 16 girls dancing in that group, 8 Russians and 8 Americans. All of the Americans are in distress and have to go to the hospital. None of the Russians have a problem.<br /><br />I call Burt <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Routman</span>, a physician and board member at The Playhouse. He talks to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">pulmonologist</span>. He and I split the list and call parents.<br /><br />"Hi, this is John <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Viars</span> from the Playhouse. First, your daughter is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">OK</span>. We had a problem with today's show. One of the local technicians mistakenly released a dry chemical fire extinguisher...she's at the hospital and has been given.." You know the rest.<br /><br />Tough call to make, but not as tough as it could have been.<br /><br />For this event, our measure of success is, "Nobody died, and we weren't sued."<br /><br />We certainly forgave the technical director for an honest mistake. He punished himself enough, and no one was actually injured.<br /><br />The people in Clinton were wonderful and we were happy to have the chance to share our show with them, and appreciated their helpfulness and concern when we had a problem.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-5302667828372156272012-10-27T13:39:00.000-07:002007-11-13T07:15:40.905-08:00Crazy Things People SayIn <em>Cat on a Hot Tin Roof</em>, Phyllis Mumford is playing the role of Mae, who along with her husband, Gooper, is distrustful of Maggie, the Cat. They think she is pretending to be pregnant so that Big Daddy will give his inheritance to Brick, her drunken husband.<br />With all the smarmy arrogance she can muster, Phyllis says, "Here's your goopcase, briefer."<br /><br />In <em>Rosa Parks</em>, Ruthanne Gaines acts as the character Rosa and a narrator, filling us in on the history of the civil rights movement.<br />In her most informative tone, Ruthanne says, "Throughout the movement, there were many unhung zeros."<br /><br />We're doing <em>Romeo and Juliet</em>. The rehearsals include lots of swordfighting, dancing and blocking. Midway through one of the more difficult rehearsals, one of the actors approaches me and asks, "If we're already dead, and we don't dance, may we leave?"<br />I want that to be a chapter title in my first book.<br /><br />In the same production, I am having trouble appreciating the chapeau that the costume designer has given to one of the actors, and let the designer know my concerns.<br />Her response: "If he had a character, the hat would work." Thats the title for chapter two.<br /><br />We're doing <em>Terra Nova</em>, a drama about the Scott expedition to the South Pole, where Commander Scott and his crew are the first to reach the Pole, but freeze to death on the return. The playwright has a flowery way of writing stage directions. At one point in the script he says a character "...thrashes about wildly, blood gushes from his mouth, and he dies." Greg Leavengood, playing the doomed character, has been convinced that one way of creating this effect is to put stage blood in a condom, tie it off into a little ball, and at the appropriate time bite down on it, and the blood, under pressure, should spurt appropriately. Jim Perkey, another of the doomed crew, is to hold onto Greg and try to restrain him. At the appropriate moment, Greg bites on the condom, it flies from his mouth and bounces on the stage. Jim looks at the bouncing ball, grabs Greg even tighter and says, "My God! A blood clot!"<br />Perhaps chapter three?John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-43143087827083582362012-10-18T08:20:00.000-07:002007-11-13T07:17:24.364-08:00Fall New York Theatre Tour IJust got back from our fall Best of Broadway Theatre trip, and there's a lot to talk about.<br /><br />The first play I saw was a Wednesday Evening performance of <em>Pygmalion,</em> starring Claire Danes, Jefferson Mays and Boyd Gaines. Jefferson Mays and Boyd Gaines performed just recently in <em>Journey's End</em>, the Tony-Award winning drama directed by David <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Grindley</span>, who also directed this show.<br /><br />This was a tight show, so the costumes, sets and lighting were all top-notch. The acting was wonderful, almost throughout. Jefferson Mays, whose tour-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">de</span>-force performance in the one man show, <em>I Am My Own Wife</em>, has created a Henry Higgins that is unique and so well rendered that we are tempted to forget Rex Harrison. This Higgins seems more vulnerable, more human and more susceptible to working himself into a tizzy. He is frustratingly real and accessible.<br /><br />Boyd Gaines, as his cohort, Pickering, was suitably British, if not a little too subtle. He is able to say so much with a proper smile or nod. His performance is highly sophisticated and sublime. Gaines, who was nominated for a 2007 Tony for his work in <em>Journey's E</em>nd, has certainly come a long way from 1982's teen sex flick, "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Porky's</span>."<br /><br />Claire Danes, as Eliza Doolittle, is lovely to look at and quite good, but her performance doesn't seem to come as easy as the others. She strains to make her crying believable, and could be a little bit more sympathetic, for my money.<br /><br />The long view of the show is that, at age 91(the show, not me), it's tough to sit through. Act II is very talky(it's Shaw), and the 1956 musical, <em>My Fair Lady</em>, made the singing seem so inevitable, that it is missed at several points through the evening. Bravo to Roundabout Theatre Company for doing revivals like this, I'm afraid that if the show sells it will be because it has a movie star in it, not because Broadway loves Shaw.<br /><br />More to follow. I saw six shows and had a completely different reaction to all of them.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-14874408837608520532012-10-17T08:36:00.000-07:002007-11-14T20:57:24.622-08:00Fall New York Theatre Tour IIWe were lucky enough to get tickets for the first New York performance of <em>Young Frankenstein - The Musical,</em> and we saw a terrific production.<br /><br />First, the tech was impeccable. There were tremendous amounts of fog, lightning, sparks and my favorite, a lighting effect that seemed to make the inside of the castle "tremble." To have technical production so tight at the first public performance is quite a feat.<br /><br />Roger Bart was hilarious as Frankenstein, and seemed more grounded than Nathan Lane was doing a similar role in "The Producers." He actually seemed aware that there was a play that needed to move forward.<br /><br />Megan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Mullally</span> as Elizabeth, Frankenstein's fiance, was so full of musical theatre excitement, that I felt cheated not seeing her onstage the whole time. She actually seemed under-used, appearing, essentially, at the beginning and end only.<br /><br />Sutton Foster was miscast, as far as I can tell. She has been a shining light in productions like <em>Thoroughly Modern <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Millie</span>, The Drowsy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Chaperone</span></em>, and <em>Little Women</em>, but in those plays her characters were cute, innocent, tomboy types. In <em>Young Frankenstein</em>, she's expected to be the sexpot seducer, initiating lots of double-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">entendre</span> jokes. Maybe people who haven't seen her in the other productions won't have the same reaction, because she is a wonderful actress and singer - that may be all that's needed.<br /><br />Christopher Fitzgerald as Igor, Andrea Martin as Frau Blucher, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Shuler</span> Hensley as the Monster are all perfection. The highlight of the evening is the extended version of "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Puttin</span>' on the Ritz." God, it's funny.<br /><br />I hope everyone gets a chance to see <em>Young Frankenstein</em>. We're trying to put our spring trip together for late April/early May, and tickets are almost impossible to get, even that far in advance.<br /><br />Next: Impressions of other Broadway shows, including <em>Spring Awakening</em>, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><em>Mauritius</em></span>, and <em>Xanadu</em>.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-14215059485708479222012-10-16T05:35:00.000-07:002007-11-14T20:58:26.795-08:00Fall New York Theatre Tour IIII went back to see <em>Spring Awakening</em>, the 2007 Tony Award winner for best musical, partly because we had an extra ticket, and partly to see if I still thought it was as exciting as the first time.<br /><br />Based on a controversial 19<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span>-Century German drama, it's a compelling show about lack of communication and understanding between adults and young people. It's full of the angst of sexual awakening and the consequence of repressive authority. For me, it is like "Rent," only with more legitimacy. The protagonists in <em>Rent</em> are Bohemian druggies in New York who don't have jobs and wonder, musically, "How are we going to pay the rent?" In <em>Spring Awakening</em>, the characters are young people dealing with changes in themselves that they don't understand, while being harassed by cruel authority figures who withhold information.<br /><br />This foundation, built upon by the decidedly <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">un</span>-Broadway-like music of Duncan Sheik, and the dynamic choreography of Bill T. Jones makes "Spring Awakening" one of the best shows you'll see in this season or any other.<br /><br />Don't expect to see it at The Playhouse. The language is pretty much an f-word festival, with a focus on simulated masturbation and a not quite so simulated sexual encounter.<br /><br />If you get a chance to see it in New York, on tour, or at one of the local alternative theatres, don't pass it up. For a preview, look on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">internet</span> for the clip of the song, "The Bitch of Living." <a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=7JCoA92y24A">http://youtube.com/watch?v=7JCoA92y24A</a><br /><br />Musical theatre has come a long way from "Shall We Dance."John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-20694791202632852892012-10-15T07:02:00.000-07:002007-11-14T20:59:07.442-08:00Fall New York Theatre Tour IVOff to a Saturday Matinee downtown at New York Theatre Workshop, where I saw Dutch <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">avant</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">garde</span> director <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Ivo</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">von</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Hove's</span> production of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Moliere's</span> <em>The Misanthrope</em>.<br /><br />To say it was unusual would be an understatement. The play takes place on a stark, monochrome set surrounded by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">plexiglass</span> walls, with a huge video screen in back. On the other side of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">plexi</span>, all around the perimeter, there are video cameras and operators. This allows the action to take place with no sense of the proscenium nature of the theatre. Characters can be facing upstage away from the audience during a scene, but the camera is able to give us a closeup of their faces. Everyone is dressed in modern black and white business-type clothing, and entrances and exits are made through a door that is flush and essentially concealed, or a garage door that is flung open from time to time for effect. The cameras follow characters offstage into dressing rooms, where they sit at makeup mirrors and continue the action of the play. There are times when there is no one on the stage as the video screen lets us into the world of offstage.<br /><br />Early in the play, several characters bring a picnic dinner, which they spread out over a stark gray table. As dinner progresses, the main character, the "misanthrope," in a rant about the need for truth, throws himself on the table and covers his body with the food. Chocolate sauce, ketchup, whipped cream, watermelon, jam - everything imaginable, covers him from head to toe.<br /><br />Later in the play, pursuing his love, a socialite who operates in a world where truth is not helpful, he chases her off the stage up the aisle, and out into the street, where she tries to hail a cab, and collapses into a near-fetal position as the misanthrope continues to rant. All of this is visible to us, because the video crew follows them outside, and the drama unfolds on the video screen. Passers-by stop and look incredulously at what is happening. One offers, "I won't let him hurt you." She makes her way back into the theatre, while the main character, still in a rage, picks up two large bags of trash from the sidewalk(obviously a plant), brings them back down the aisle to the stage, and dumps them all over the floor. He then dives into the garbage, rolls around in it and rubs it all over himself.<br /><br />By this point, I have totally forgotten Moliere.<br /><br />I enjoyed the afternoon, but felt more like I was back in the late '60's, when this type of deconstruction was fun.<br /><br />Throughout the play, I kept thinking of Laurence Olivier, who, while watching Dustin Hoffman go through all of the method acting preparation for his role in "Marathon Man," which included sleep deprivation, complex and annoying <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">warm ups</span>, asked, "Can't you just act?"John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-18329778260117851172012-10-14T19:50:00.000-07:002007-11-14T21:00:18.873-08:00Fall New York Theatre Tour V<em>Mauritius,</em> Theresa <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Rebeck's</span> fascinating mystery/drama that makes stamp collecting exciting, was one of my favorite shows this fall.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Rebeck</span>, who also wrote the 9/11 - as - apocalypse play, <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Omnium</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Gatherum</span></em>, - one I would love to do at The Playhouse, has crafted a compelling piece that is often hilarious, but always engaging and suspenseful.<br /><br />Two estranged sisters come together on the occasion of their mother's death, and discover rare(very rare) stamps in a family collection. Three stamp collectors want the stamps and the play centers on the struggle for <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">possession</span> of these stamps.<br /><br />The characters played by Bobby <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Cannavale</span>("Will and Grace," "Oz,"); Dylan Baker(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Spiderman</span>); F. Murray Abraham(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Salieri</span> in "Amadeus"); have an unnatural lust for these stamps, mostly criminally-based, and spend a great deal of the play on the edge of violence, while plotting various schemes to gain possession of them.<br /><br />The two sisters have some bad blood, and are struggling over who rightfully owns the stamps.<br />The character played by Alison Pill (<em>The Lieutenant of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Inishmore</span></em>) remained with her parents until their deaths, and endured some unspoken and protracted family terrors, while Kate <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Finneran's</span> character(the older sister) left town at the first opportunity and never looked back. Each feels the stamps belong to her. Alison Pill has the ability to show a dangerous build up of frustration and world-weariness that is compelling. Kate <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Finneran</span> manages to create the most unlikeable character I've seen on stage in a long time.<br /><br />Abraham and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Cannavale</span>, as an apparent mob boss and his assistant, get a little carried away with the fun of their gangster caricatures, but it is entertaining to watch. Dylan Baker, as the legitimate (we're led to believe) stamp dealer, creates a measured, right-on performance.<br /><br /><br />The writing is precise and masterful. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Rebek</span> never tells us how much the stamps are worth, or what terrible thing happened in the sisters' family - we don't need to know, and having that knowledge would be satisfying in the wrong way.<br /><br />Although the language is a little more than we are used to in Des <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Moines</span>, it's a wonderful play, and I hope that we can consider it for production in the next few years.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2777377407389888521.post-77053705840771391582012-10-12T05:22:00.000-07:002007-11-14T21:00:58.770-08:00Fall New York Theatre Tour VIThe last show I saw on our recent Best of Broadway tour was <em>Xanadu</em>. Against my better judgement, and listening to my daughter, who had seen the show and loved it, I decided to give it a try.<br /><br />I'm convinced that someday, when there is a post-mortem on Broadway, the cause of death will include an addiction to regurgitating bad movies into campy, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">spoofy</span> pastiche. This cynical, greedy, anti-creative practice will eventually lower the level of production until Broadway is suffocated by its own mediocrity.<br /><br />That is, unless the product is really good.<br /><br />Xanadu, based on a terrible 1980 Olivia Newton-John film, is great fun. It is blissfully aware of its own insipidness, embracing it and commenting on it in a clever, artful way.<br /><br />At the center of this unexpected success is the book writer, Douglas Carter <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Beane</span>, known for his screenplay for "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Newmar</span>," and the plays, "As Bees in Honey Drown," and "Little Dog Laughed." He gets it. He dumped the movie dialog and started over. The result is funny, clever, and just right in terms of commenting on itself.<br /><br />What's the plot? A surfer-dude sidewalk painter(Cheyenne Jackson) is visited by a Greek <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">demi</span>-god(Kerry Butler), who falls in love with him and they open a roller skating pavilion. Don't focus on the plot.<br /><br />Kerry Butler is just right in the role. She's an excellent singer, and is cute, droll and self-mocking. She spends a good deal of the show on skates, and never forgets the absurdity of it.<br /><br />It's obvious that a lot of the bits were established through improvisation, and Jackie Hoffman and Mary <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Testa</span>, as competitive <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">demi</span>-gods, are brilliant purveyors of this brand of comedy. Word is that they have a tendency to be so good that the director has limited them to one riff per night.<br /><br />The New York Times says that at least 3 male cast members have been sidelined due to roller skating injuries. Who knew that art could be so hazardous?<br /><br />I thoroughly enjoyed the production, and can't wait to do it at The Playhouse, if and when it becomes available.John Viarshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04455773830432436160noreply@blogger.com1