A show you should see

Tonight begins the final weekend for Rover Dramawerks' production of Veronica's Room. If you can get up to Plano to see it, you really should. The members of the small cast (Terrie Justus, Taylor Granlund, Joe Porter, and Abel Flores) all turn in excellent performances

The show carries a warning for language and adult themes. Please take that warning seriously.

Curtain is at 8:00 p.m. tonight, Friday, & Saturday.

Avenue Q

I trekked over to Bass Hall in Fort Worth with my good friend, Lonny, to see Avenue Q last night. We sat in the Upper Gallery Center section, and although I did have to hold onto the railing to prevent a mild case of vertigo, I must say that those "nosebleed" seats are far superior to the third balcony at the Music Hall in Dallas.

There were a few sound problems in the first few minutes (either the mics weren't set at the right level, or the actors weren't loud enough), but other than that, the acoustics were great. I know the cast recording frontward and back, so I couldn't judge based on the songs alone, but I was able to understand all of the dialog. I would have liked to have been closer to see some of the actors' facial expressions, but overall, the seats were fine.

We got a couple of the understudies (Kate Monster, Christmas Eve, & Gary Coleman), but other than one obvious flubbed line, that didn't seem to be an issue. The cast worked very well together. Being so familiar with the original cast recording, I found Nicky's voice to be a little off, but that's not to say the actor did a poor job. He just didn't sound that much like the original character. The Bad Idea Bears were also a little tough to understand at times, but that may just be the nature of the high, squeaking voice that is used. The guy who did both Nicky and Trekkie started to lose his voice late in the show. I can imagine that Trekkie Monster's voice takes it toll over time.

Two songs had been shortened, "Schadenfreude" and "The Money Song," but unless one is familiar with the cast recording, there's nothing about the changes that would stand out.

The "George Bush" line (those who know the music or have seen the show know what I'm talking about) got much bigger applause and laughs from the $24 seats around me than it did from the more expensive seats on the floor.

I wondered how the material would play around here, but there was no noticeable exodus at intermission, so people must not have been too offended. The light applause at the end of "My Girlfriend Who Lives in Canada" was the biggest indication of any audience discomfort.

My friend, Lonny, did not know anything about the show going into it. He told me at intermission that when I mentioned that the show included puppets as we walked into the building, he thought "Oh crap!" But, he ended up thoroughly enjoying the show as well.

Now that I've seen the show, it is much more understandable how it beat out Wicked for the Tony. Wicked is probably the better show, but Avenue Q is hilariously entertaining.

Running and Upcoming Shows

There are several shows currently running or coming soon that I really want to catch. I probably won't be able to see them all because of time and money.

Have Seen:

Avenue Q (National Tour) at Bass Hall

Definitely Going:

A Year With Frog & Toad at Dallas Children's Theatre *Going July 11th

Will Rogers Follies at Garland Summer Musicals

Singin' in the Rain at Rockwall Community Playhouse

The Wish List:

The Oldest Living Graduate at Contemporary Theatre of Dallas

Facts of Life: The Lost Episode at Uptown Players

Zanna, Don't at Uptown Players

A Funny thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at WaterTower Theatre

Tommy at Dallas Theater Center

All My Sons at Mesquite Community Theatre

A couple of more Reviews

Elaine Liner gives a mixed review in The Dallas Observer. The only mention of my performance gets this line, "The men's voices blend nicely on the miles and miles and miles of 'Heart.'"

We also got reviewed in EDGE Dallas, a GLBT publication. It only talks about the performances of the leads, but it's an overall positive.

Damn Yankees Review

We got our first review of Damn Yankees over at pegasusnews.com. I don't get mentioned, but the review is positive overall.

Opening Night for Damn Yankees

Tonight was our first performance of Damn Yankees at Garland Summer Musicals. It went well. Especially for being the first time we have run the show without stopping at least once. We had to re-position in one of the dance numbers at the final Dress Rehearsal, and we had a dancer pass out after a particularly strenuous dance (coupled with the fact that he hadn't eaten much if at all Thursday and he hasn't been getting enough sleep because of rehearsals and his job duties).

I had a couple of people with whom I performed the past two years at GSM tell that they never knew I had such a great voice. I guess in the ensemble, we all blended together.

After all the hard work, it does seem a shame only to do six performances, but that's all GSM ever does.

I hope to see you at the show.

Damn Yankees opens in a week

Garland Summer Musicals production of Damn Yankees opens Friday June 20th. I play the Catcher for the Washington Senators baseball team, Smokey. I am featured in two songs, "Heart" and "The Game," and I also dance in "Shoeless Joe" and "Two Lost Souls." Our wonderful cast includes Joshua Doss as Joe Hardy, Morgana Shaw as Lola, and John Garcia as Applegate. The rest of the cast is tremendous, too.

The show should be a blast, so please come check it out.

You can order tickets by calling the Box Office at 972-205-2790. If you use my name (Marty Scott) when ordering, you will receive a $6.00 savings off the regular price of $25.00, so you will pay the cast price of $19.00 plus a $1.00 service charge per ticket.

Performances are June 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, & 29. Fridays & Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm.

New Head Shot

I went this evening after work and got my first ever professional Head Shot done by Mark Oristano. I think he did an amazing job.

KCCT's 35th Anniversary Season Announced

Kaufman County Civic Theatre has selected the shows for its 35th annual season starting in September 2008. KCCT has been providing quality live theatre for Kaufman County since 1973. This year, KCCT has selected shows the entire family can enjoy. The season will open with the delightful story of a man and his best friend, an invisible 6' 3 1/2" rabbit named Harvey. Following that is the zany fun of Seussical: The Musical. Coming in the spring will be the family-friendly Cheaper by the Dozen (the original, not the dreadful remake with Steve Martin). Closing this historic season, KCCT will present the Neil Simon classic, Barefoot in the Park.

Up from the Chorus

The past two years, I have been part of the Singing Ensemble for Garland Summer Musicals. This morning, I returned a call to the Director, Buff Shurr. He offered (and I accepted) the role of Smokey in Damn Yankees. It feels good to move up into the realm of Featured Performers.

I am coming out of a long string of theatre work. Starting with last summer at Garland Summer Musicals, I've been involved pretty much non-stop and won't be getting a break until The Philadelphia Story closes April 19th. After GSM, I taught Children's Theatre camp at KCCT. Following that, I directed Brighton Beach Memoirs, directed and acted in The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, played Miles Gloriosus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and finally played the lead role of Mike Connor in The Philadelphia Story.

I am the most burned out on theatre that I have ever been. I have my audition for GSM tonight, but I am looking forward to the period from April 20 until rehearsals start for GSM. I should be looking at a little over a month's respite. That's assuming I even get cast for Damn Yankees.

After that, we're taking a family trip to Michigan in July. Then, I may do whatever musical KCCT is doing next season (it's still not decided but we are leaning toward The Music Man), but I'm not planning on directing anything or doing any other shows in the near future.

Of course, that doesn't mean I won't wind up involved in a show. Just that I'm not planning anything right now.

Newest Full Resume

Sound of Music, Kurt, KCCT
A Christmas Carol, Collector, KCCT
Medea: A Noh Cycle Based on the Greek Myth, Chorus, THS
The Wizard of Oz Private/Ensemble, KCCT
Years Ago, Mr. Sparrow, THS
The Actor's Nightmare, Sir Henry Irving, THS
Under Jekyll's Hyde, Inspector Seek, KCCT
Macbeth, Macbeth, THS
Loving Molly, Pookie, UNC
My Fair Lady, Butler/Ensemble, KCCT
Twelve Angry Men, Juror #4, KCCT
You Can't Take it With You, Ed Carmichael, KCCT
It's a Wonderful Life, Sam Wainwright, KCCT
Crazy for You, Bobby Child, KCCT
The Odd Couple, Roy, KCCT
To Kill a Mockingbird, Mr. Gilmer, GCT
42nd Street, Bert Barry, KCCT
All My Sons, Chris Keller, KCCT
Anything Goes, Elisha Whitney, KCCT
Little Shop of Horrors, Voice of Audrey II, KCCT
Annie, Bundles/Fred/Servant/Harold Ickes, KCCT
Rumors, Ken Gorman, RCP
The Odd Couple, Oscar Madison, RCP
Kiss Me, Kate, Cab Driver/Priest/Ensemble, GSM
It's a Wonderful Life, Radio Show, William Keighley/Ernie Bishop, KCCT
Broadway Lights, A Stroll Through Life:A Revue, Ensemble, KCCT
Hello, Dolly!, Chef/Ensemble, GSM
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Bob Bradley, KCCT
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Miles Gloriosus, KCCT
The Philadelphia Story, Macauley "Mike" Connor, KCCT

KCCT=Kaufman County Civic Theatre (previously known as Kaufman County Community Theatre)
THS=Terrell High School
UNC=University of North Carolina
GCT=Garland Civic Theatre
RCP=Rockwall Community Playhouse
GSM=Garland Summer Musicals

Pics from Forum

Here are a few pictures from KCCT's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Pretty much from Act 2.

Click a picture to see it full-size.

A Glorious Windbag

The cast for KCCT's production of A Funny thing Happened on the Way to the Forum had a meeting last night to get scripts and discuss the schedule.  Rehearsals don't start until after the first of the year.

You should come check out the show, which opens February 15, 2008.  It should be a good show. 

Courtesans & Eunuchs

I was cast last night as Miles Gloriosus in KCCT's upcoming production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.  I would have loved to have had the opportunity to play Pseudolus, but I'm happy with the role.  It was my second choice.

The show opens February 15th.  Put it on your calendars now. 

The Joy of Directing

I am currently directing my 6th Production for KCCT. Prior efforts were All My Sons, The Foreigner, It's a Wonderful Life:Radio Show, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (for Children's Theatre), and Brighton Beach Memoirs. I think I'm a decent Director, but I have discovered that I don't really enjoy doing it. I am just not too much of a details oriented person. I'm good at seeing the "Big Picture" and having a vision for how I want a show to be, but I'm not great at the administrative stuff that goes hand-in-hand with Directing. Or at least with Directing at KCCT.

I have a little more help on the peripheral stuff for this show than I did for Brighton Beach Memoirs, but there's still to many minutiae for my tastes.

Brighton Beach Cast

And here's one of the cast after the final show.

Brighton Beach Set

Here are a couple of pictures of the set from Brighton Beach Memoirs, which closed today.


This is the living area with a view of the bedrooms on the second level.


This is a closer view of the bedrooms.

The Lights are Bright

I mentioned in the last post that I'm running the light board for KCCT's Brighton Beach Memoirs. I'm pretty proud of the lighting design, even if it is somewhat basic. I've never designed the lighting for a show before. I'm still very much a novice, but I think I did a decent job using the lights to help tell the story of the play.

Come to the Beach

I Directed Brighton Beach Memoirs for Kaufman County Civic Theatre. We opened Friday, have a matinee tomorrow at 2pm, and run for two more weekends. You can leave a comment here and let me know you're coming (I'm also running the light board—It is community theatre after all), or you can call the theatre at 972-563-8991 and leave a voicemail for reservations.

Tickets are $12 ($10 for Senior Citizens).

If you come, I'll go have a drink with you after the show. Terrell has a really great place to get a Margarita! If you're under 21, you can always come along and get a Dr Pepper. ;)

The show is rated PG-13 for language and some adult discussions.

Please come. I think you'll like it.