It's Been A While

It's been a while since I've posted anything since I haven't had internet at the past few hotels. So here's a smattering of what's been going on:

New Mexico is beautiful. In Farmington there was this amazing string of parks that made up their 'River Walk'. I went jogging in it one morning and it stretched on for miles along the river. In Alto we played the smallest theatre this tour has ever played. The 500 seat theatre is state of the art and located literally in the middle of nowhere on a mountain top. It's one of those great stories about a woman who was tired of driving to the bigger cities to see shows so she just built her own theatre. In Albequerque my friend Annie and I walked 2 miles to the theatre last night after the show. Had a drink and walked 2 miles back. It was one of my favorite tour nights so far. We talked a lot about professional theatre, dancers, actors, grad school and our lives. Some of the neighborhood we walked through was a little sketchy but you're usually fine in a college town.

We're down to almost one week of shows left. It will so weird being done having worked on the show for a year and a half. I don't think it will really hit me until later in the summer.

Today's matinee performance marks the 666th performance of the touring company. I think I've been with the show for about 420 or so of those performances. The mark of the beast? We'll see about that.

I'm heading to NY for a week so sit in on 'The Producer's' tour auditions and musician auditions. I can't wait. It will be my first round of auditions on that side of the table. I'm hoping it will be give me a lot of insight into that end of things. I'm also really looking forward to working with the director. I've heard great things about him and it should be fun.

In my spare time on the road I'm workin on the Peter Pan score for this summer in CDA. The piano/conductor score is a disaster so I'm trying to rewrite it out with my new computer program. It's also a good way to learn how to use the program. I can't wait to get the Chorus Line score and start learning that too. It'll be a busy summer but fun hopefully. I'm excited to be back at CDA and enjoy the northwest a little.

Well I guess that's all that's really new. We only have for cities left on the tour and then that's all she wrote. Weird but I guess all things must come to an end. Including this blog entry. So bye.

NYC

Hey all! I'll be in NYC May 15th -20th for Producers call backs and musician auditions. Drop a line if you wanna hang out some night. It'd be great to see anyone who's in town.

Oklahoma hits Reno!

And what a pair they are. I wasn't sure how 'Oklahoma' would play in the city that never naps but it's been really fun. The audience is mostly locals so the attention span is longer than that of say the average Reno review crowd.

I was hoping the theatre would be equipped with slot machines in every seat and game table in the lobby but no such luck. The audiences here have been great.

In Fresno a few nights ago we had the craziest audiences this tour has ever had. They were either all drunk or REALLY into 'Oklahoma'. A woman in the front row sang along with the entire intro to 'Oklahoma'. I mean who really knows the lyrics "They couldn't pick a better time to start in life. It ain't too early and it ain't to late." ? And she wasn't just humming she was full on belting her guts out. It was awesome. I couldn't stop laughing until well after Jud was killed.

These are the audiences that revive you after 450 shows and make you realize again why you do this.

Monkey Business

On a day off in Palm Desert, California we were lucky enough to visit a few chimps that are managed, raised and cared for by a friend of Sarah Shahinian, our Ado Annie. It was amazing. These are fascinating animals that are at once so human and yet so animalistic as well.

The animal refuge also cares for some of Hollywood's most recognizable lions, panthers, foxes and alligators. You know the Lubriderm Aligator? He was there. I didn't get my picture taken with him because he was like hybrinating or something.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME

Everyone in theatre has the stage where they know they've achieved a goal. Not a stage in the abstract sense but a physical theatre that they've dreamed of playing. Mine is the Spokane Opera House. Since seeing Carol Channing in 'Hello Dolly' (I know, so me isn't it) I've dreamed of coming through Spokane with a show.

I remember the feeling I got watching the show for the first time in Ft. Lauderdale in October of '04. That feeling is back and I don't think you could wipe the smile off my face this entire weekend if you tried. Well I was a little tired and irritable yesterday but other that you can't wipe the smile off.

I'm so proud of this company. They've been plugging along through a string of one-nighters with admirable aplomb. Sunday night will mark 17 shows in a row without a day off. You're typical show week is 8 then a day off. I could not be more happy with these great actors, technicians and musicians.

Below is the review from the Spokesman Review:

So outstanding, it's reborn

"Oklahoma!"

Spokane Opera House, Thursday night

Jim Kershner
Staff writer
April 15, 2006

This national touring production of "Oklahoma!" is so
good that one cynic, who has endured this old warhorse
way too many times, said at the curtain: "And I never
even knew I liked 'Oklahoma!' "

I was that cynic. This production – based on the
Cameron Mackintosh-Trevor Nunn Royal National Theatre
revival – is superior in almost every way. The
costumes are dusty and realistic; the sets are
windblown and imaginative; the lighting evokes an
Oklahoma sunset; and the Susan Stroman choreography
has a Ray-Bolger-in-Oz comic exuberance.

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Yet the sheer talent in the lead roles is what hooked
me from the first two numbers. Spencer Plachy is the
best Curly any director could ask for, with an open,
good-natured face, an aw-shucks demeanor and the kind
of singing voice that comes along rarely.

He has a powerful baritone, perfect pitch control and
impeccable diction. He made "Oh What a Beautiful
Mornin' " sound brand-spanking new, which is quite a
feat, considering the song is 63 years old.

Plachy and the two equally marvelous female leads –
Jessica Lavin, as the tomboyishly endearing Laurey,
and Pat Sibley, as the lovable-irascible Aunt Eller –
turn "The Surrey With a Fringe on Top" into a
comic-dramatic short story. Plachy's use of dynamics
is particularly effective; he can drop to a whisper
and still have us hanging on his words.

If Sibley looks familiar, it's because she was once a
Spokane actress – as Bella in the Spokane Civic
Theatre's 1996 "Lost in Yonkers," and Madame Arcati in
Interplayers' 1995 "Blithe Spirit." Even then, it was
obvious that she had national-class talent. It's hard
to imagine any actress, with the possible exception of
Patty Duke, creating a more strong-willed and
admirable Aunt Eller.

I mention Duke because she played Aunt Eller three
years ago in the Broadway production on which this
tour is based.

Andrew Lebon displays an eerily stunted and effective
speaking voice as the American theater's ultimate
creepy stalker, Jud Fry.

As for Lavin, she can not only sing and act, she has
serious ballet chops as well, as she proved in the
"Out of My Dreams" ballet sequence to close Act One.

That Stroman-choreographed ballet, by the way,
exemplifies the difference between this and most other
productions of "Oklahoma!" It is far more gritty,
hallucinatory and frightening than the original, with
disembodied hands beckoning Laurey into the cornfield.
At one point, it descends into Fosse-like decadence,
with scantily dressed dance-hall floozies representing
the dark side of life, in comparison with the open and
sunny American wholesomeness celebrated by "Oklahoma!"

Don't get me wrong – this is still the beloved and
cheerfully corny "Oklahoma!" with all of those tuneful
Rodgers and Hammerstein songs. The plot still revolves
around a box social. Yet this production manages to
make it compelling instead of silly.

One final note: Spokane's own Kasey RT Graham, the
tour's musical director, does a fine job of presiding
over the seven-piece pit orchestra. He received a warm
ovation from his hometown crowd.

That was followed by a standing ovation that erupted
on the final "Yeooww!" of the final curtain encore. No
doubt about it, people just love this show. Yeah, I
get it, finally.

A few random thoughts

Ok, so a lot has happened in the last few weeks that hasn't made it onto the blog because I have been been either tired or lacking sufficient internet access. So here goes:

In Colorado Springs we were amazed to find a pit the size of a foot ball field. We thought it looked a little strange and it did put me about 50 feet from the stage but the local crew assured us all was fine. About 3 minutes before they went to open the house the local presenter realized that they had left out four full rows of sold, season ticket holder seats. In a mad scramble we moved everything in the pit (ie drum kit, keyboards, stands, chairs, cables, instruments, amps, etc.) about 30 feet. It was a zoo! Kinda crazy and definitely memorable.

2 of our new cast members are in the show now. Anne Marie Waltz has taken over the role of Gracie Lou and is doing a great job. Devan Walker is now in the role of Becky and is a great addition as well. Melody and Barbick are extremely difficult to replace but these ladies are wonderful. And more than that they are both great personalities and energies to have around. Our 3rd new cast member arrives on Friday and will hopefully be in the show on Sunday. Then everything will be back to normal just in time for the tour to close:)

I'm almost through with Harry Potter and The Tri-Wizard Tournament (4).

At last night's show Ali Hakim didn't come onstage after 'Farmer Cowman'. The cast, in a brilliant move just decided to make the silent auction upstage slightly less silent. Awkward? yes. Uncomfortable? yes. Memorable? Of course.

And lastly here's a picture from our St. Patrick's day bash in Madison Wisconsin.

5 WEEKS TO GO. . .

Here we are nearing the end of tour. We lost three cast members last week and I'm not sure who's replacing them. J. Michael, our Will Parker tore his ACL in the show the other night. It was a very sad loss. We also lost our Gracie Lou, Jessica Barbick due to a knee injur. Another very sad loss. And our Becky Skidmore has been out for 8 weeks with her temporary replacement leaving this last week as well. It's been a crazy week in Oklahoma Territory.

I am still looking forward to playing Spokane though! It will be fun regardless of how stressful it will be to get there. It will be good to see friends and family and get a chance to play the Opera House. I just hope there is something recognizable of the show left:)

Here are a few pictures that my friend Jeff took for use in an article at home. Hopefully they'll work out.