Meredith Wilson wrote about what he knew. He grew up in Iowa and eventually became a member of John Philip Sousa's band. This show is a love letter to his own youth, a sort of living postcard to us from the past.
It's a show that doesn't have a mean bone in its body. Even the comic characters are meant to be affectionately portrayed, not ugly cartoons. It's a show about how music can energize a community and bring it to life. It's about a guy who finds what he didn't even realize he was looking for. But I love that the show isn't just fluffy mush-- it's also a battle of wits between some pretty sharp folks.
It's also a show that is well-suited to our neck of the woods. Franklin and Oil City were much like River City at that time, and so the show sort of echoes our own history.
This is one of my bucket list shows to direct, and I am excited that the FCOA board is giving me a shot at it. I expect this to be an awful lot of fun, and I hope that one way or another you'll jin us for this adventure.
Monday, July 1, 2019
Special Opportunity For Civic Veterans
Because this is the Applefest show for the sixtieth anniversary FCOA season, I would like to try something a bit different.
This is a show about community, and what better way to celebrate community than by including a reminder of the theater community that has given Franklin 60 years of great community theater. I'm inviting everyone who has ever been a part of an FCOA show to make a cameo appearance as a resident of River City. You don't need to commit to every single performance, and you will need to make only a rehearsal or two, but in the end you will be able to say that you were there--a part of the FCOA 60th anniversary applefest show.
Details will be forthcoming, but for right now, if you're a regular civic player who was thinking, "Oh, I'd like to be part of this production, but I really don't have the time..." well, yes, you do.
This is a show about community, and what better way to celebrate community than by including a reminder of the theater community that has given Franklin 60 years of great community theater. I'm inviting everyone who has ever been a part of an FCOA show to make a cameo appearance as a resident of River City. You don't need to commit to every single performance, and you will need to make only a rehearsal or two, but in the end you will be able to say that you were there--a part of the FCOA 60th anniversary applefest show.
Details will be forthcoming, but for right now, if you're a regular civic player who was thinking, "Oh, I'd like to be part of this production, but I really don't have the time..." well, yes, you do.
Casting: Chorus and Etc.
If you've ever done a show with me before, you know how important I believe the chorus is. It's the background players that give a show a rich reality. It's the chorus that's really responsible for letting the audience know ho to feel about what they just saw or heard.
This show requires a small town. We need families, generations, whole social groups. Outside of River City we have the traveling salesmen of the very first scene, but within River City, we have families and friends. The Pickalittle ladies who pal around with Mayor Shinn's wife. The teens and children who have their own social groups. And of course the teens and children who will become the members of the band. There are many townsfols who are given names (how can you not love Ethel Toffelmeier) but each one is a distinct and colorful character.
We can use singers, dancers, and people to delver a line or two. We can use young and old, men and women, to make this town seem full and real. All ages are welcome for this show.
The men of the chorus have the opening number, which requires rhythm but not so much singing. The women of the chorus have the "pick-a-little talk-a-little" number. There are two big dance numbers-- one for mostly the younger crowd and another for any and all who are game. And there are ample opportunities for those who just want to stand and hoot and holler.
This show requires a small town. We need families, generations, whole social groups. Outside of River City we have the traveling salesmen of the very first scene, but within River City, we have families and friends. The Pickalittle ladies who pal around with Mayor Shinn's wife. The teens and children who have their own social groups. And of course the teens and children who will become the members of the band. There are many townsfols who are given names (how can you not love Ethel Toffelmeier) but each one is a distinct and colorful character.
We can use singers, dancers, and people to delver a line or two. We can use young and old, men and women, to make this town seem full and real. All ages are welcome for this show.
The men of the chorus have the opening number, which requires rhythm but not so much singing. The women of the chorus have the "pick-a-little talk-a-little" number. There are two big dance numbers-- one for mostly the younger crowd and another for any and all who are game. And there are ample opportunities for those who just want to stand and hoot and holler.
Sunday, June 16, 2019
Casting: Major Roles
This is a show with parts for actors of all ages, as well as actors who would rather not sing and dance (or who would rather just singe and dance). A wide range of opportunities here. All of the comedic characters are meant to be real, and not broad mocking cartoons.
HAROLD HILL: The consummate con artist, who picks River City on a whim because he loves a challenge. His three big numbers (Trouble, Marian the Librarian, Seventy-Six Trombones) are as much about patter as they are about singing; he needs some dancing skills, too. Like all good con artists, he sells himself as much as everyone else. Perhaps the most revealing moment for his character is late in the show. To make nice with Marian's little brother, he says he thought being in the band would do the kid good. When the boy points out there wasn't a band, Hill replies, "I always think there's a band, kid."
MARIAN PAROO: The librarian and piano teacher. An acting challenge because we don't get a lot on the page to help build the character. Vocally, she tops out at a good solid F.
MARCELLUS WASHBURN: The sidekick. Needs some dance skills and some singing. The most convenient character in the history of musical theater-- if he didn't just happen to be in town, the whole rest of the show wouldn't happen.
TOMMY DJILAS: Teenaged boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Has some dancing, no solo singing.
ZANEETA SHINN: The mayor's teenaged daughter. Some dancing, no solo singing.
MAYOR SHINN: Bombastic, self-important blowhard. A fun role for a comedic character actor, with no singing or dancing.
WINTHROP PAROO: Marian's much younger brother (Ron Howard was 8 years old when he played him in the film). Embarrassed by his speech impediment, but comes out of his shell. One solo song.
AMARYLLIS: A young girl who studies piano with Marian nd pines for Winthrop. One song.
EULALIE MCKECKNIE SHINN: The mayor's wife. Another comedic character. Some talk-singing.
MRS. PAROO: Marian's very Irish mother, though we don't necessarily need an accent as broad as the one in the film. Tiny bit of singing, little dancing, though she could also be part of townspeople ensemble.
THE SCHOOL BOARD: A barbershop quartet. They have four numbers, and they are challenging. The ideal here is always to cast a pre-existing quartet. Acting is minimal (they just have to be cranky with each other).
CHARLIE COWELL: The closest thing the show has to a villain. He's out to get Hill, and he's pretty cranky about it. No singing or dancing.
There are plenty of other roles available, and I'll put those up in a separate post.
HAROLD HILL: The consummate con artist, who picks River City on a whim because he loves a challenge. His three big numbers (Trouble, Marian the Librarian, Seventy-Six Trombones) are as much about patter as they are about singing; he needs some dancing skills, too. Like all good con artists, he sells himself as much as everyone else. Perhaps the most revealing moment for his character is late in the show. To make nice with Marian's little brother, he says he thought being in the band would do the kid good. When the boy points out there wasn't a band, Hill replies, "I always think there's a band, kid."
MARIAN PAROO: The librarian and piano teacher. An acting challenge because we don't get a lot on the page to help build the character. Vocally, she tops out at a good solid F.
MARCELLUS WASHBURN: The sidekick. Needs some dance skills and some singing. The most convenient character in the history of musical theater-- if he didn't just happen to be in town, the whole rest of the show wouldn't happen.
TOMMY DJILAS: Teenaged boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Has some dancing, no solo singing.
ZANEETA SHINN: The mayor's teenaged daughter. Some dancing, no solo singing.
MAYOR SHINN: Bombastic, self-important blowhard. A fun role for a comedic character actor, with no singing or dancing.
WINTHROP PAROO: Marian's much younger brother (Ron Howard was 8 years old when he played him in the film). Embarrassed by his speech impediment, but comes out of his shell. One solo song.
AMARYLLIS: A young girl who studies piano with Marian nd pines for Winthrop. One song.
EULALIE MCKECKNIE SHINN: The mayor's wife. Another comedic character. Some talk-singing.
MRS. PAROO: Marian's very Irish mother, though we don't necessarily need an accent as broad as the one in the film. Tiny bit of singing, little dancing, though she could also be part of townspeople ensemble.
THE SCHOOL BOARD: A barbershop quartet. They have four numbers, and they are challenging. The ideal here is always to cast a pre-existing quartet. Acting is minimal (they just have to be cranky with each other).
CHARLIE COWELL: The closest thing the show has to a villain. He's out to get Hill, and he's pretty cranky about it. No singing or dancing.
There are plenty of other roles available, and I'll put those up in a separate post.
It's Happening
The Applefest production for Civic's 60th anniversary season will be The Music Man, one of the classics of musical theater and a great fit for our theater. River City, Iowa, was not a place not very different from our own towns here in Venangoland; the show is like a beautiful postcard from our own past.
In the weeks ahead I'll be filling in information about casting, the production, and most importantly, at first, all the reasons that you should think about being in this production of this great show.
You can use the gadget over at the right to subscribe by email, which means (for those of you who are less tech savvy) you can sign up to have the blog send you an email every time a new post goes up. No need to check in every day.
In the meantime, you can refresh your memory of the show (or discover it for the first time) by watching the old Robert Preston-Shirley Jones film version. It's not exactly like the stage version, but it's pretty close.
In the weeks ahead I'll be filling in information about casting, the production, and most importantly, at first, all the reasons that you should think about being in this production of this great show.
You can use the gadget over at the right to subscribe by email, which means (for those of you who are less tech savvy) you can sign up to have the blog send you an email every time a new post goes up. No need to check in every day.
In the meantime, you can refresh your memory of the show (or discover it for the first time) by watching the old Robert Preston-Shirley Jones film version. It's not exactly like the stage version, but it's pretty close.
Saturday, March 30, 2019
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)