GRIGWARE INTERVIEWS

2013 Interview with Priscilla Queen of the Desert Star

2013-05-08T11:24:00.000-07:00

interview here May 31!

2013 Interview with 3D Theatricals' Parade Star Robert Yacko

2013-05-05T13:41:00.000-07:00

Opening this week in Fullerton at Plummer Auditorium is 3-D Theatricals' production of Jason Robert Brown's Tony winning musical Parade, a show that is rarely if ever revived due to its dark and controversial subject matter. Recently one of its stars, actor/singer Robert Yacko, who did the show at the Mark Taper Forum in 2009, contributed thoughts about the challenges he's facing in Parade.

You're not playing the same role this time around. Talk a little about the governor and how difficult a challenge it is to play him.

This in an interesting part of my journey with Parade, as the Governor is one of the few roles I did not cover or play in the Donmar version at the Taper. And exploring his point of view has brought me to another dimension of appreciation for the entire piece. I have grown to truly appreciate Governor Slaton as a man apart in politics at this time in history. Though full of southern gentleman charm and wit, he also had a strong conscience, and a certain fearlessness about him. In the end he was convinced of Frank's innocence, and he willingly put his political career and possibly his life on the line, to make a highly unpopular decision.
One of the technical challenges of playing Jack Slaton is his being the center of the Tea Dance sequence, dancing up a storm, while being the only one singing, and yet, playing scenes peppered throughout, most importantly, handling Lucille Frank at the end. That is, among other things, a test of stamina. Then, once that scene happens, he is on a relentless quest for the truth, until he makes that fateful announcement. He is a wonderful tapestry of charm and intelligence, who believes that, most often, it is best to catch flies with honey, but he is also a man who will not back down from a fight. Finding that balance in him, and bringing those colors into a cohesive whole is both a joy and a challenge.

Is your role a singing one or non-singing?

My role is definitely a singing one, primarily in the Tea Dance number. Otherwise, I sing in a bit of the group numbers.

How is Parade different from most musicals?

Parade is an extraordinary piece, in the subject matter alone. It is difficult and tragic, and yet, laced throughout is a love story that blossoms in spite of the surmounting challenges that Leo and Lucille face. It is one of only a few musicals that I can think of that tackles the ugliness of prejudice and fear-mongering, while shining a light on the power of love. And Jason Robert Brown's music and lyrics soar, in breathtaking and heart-wrenching songs, all true to the period, bringing the true flavor and rhythms of the era and place, enhancing these multi-layered characters' journeys. This is a beautiful and complex piece, and one that cannot help but touch hearts and shed light on some of the prejudices still lurking about today.

What do you feel is really special about it?

I think one of the special things about Parade is that love story between Leo and Lucille, a pair in the beginning of the story seemingly without love. But as adversity mounts, their truer natures rise and the walls crumble between them. They begin to see one another in clearer and truer fashion, and they do indeed fall in love, in the midst of the madness. That is the beauty in this story, sending the message that, even in the darkest times, there is hope. Roses do bloom and grow through cracks in the concrete. And Parade shows numerous other people changed by adversity as well, like the Governor finding his conscience, and daring to chuck his career, to be an honorable man, and to do the right thing. There is so much beautiful and raw emotion throughout this piece, that one cannot help but be deeply moved by it all.

3DT's Parade

Performances are May 10 - 26 @ Plummer Auditorium 201 East Chapman Ave in Fullerton /Tickets may be purchased by calling 714-589-2770 Ext 1 or visit:

www.3DTshows.com

2013 Interview with JoAnne Worley

2013-05-04T16:33:00.003-07:00

Will be at Welk Resorts in Escondido doing her one-woman show June 26-30.
Interview here - in June!

News: Val Kilmer

2013-04-19T12:25:00.002-07:00

Film and stage actor Val Kilmer is currently on tour portraying Mark Twain. Kilmer's engagement of his Mark Twain evening is set for a limited engagement at the Kirk Douglas Theatre this summer, beginning the end of June.

2013 Interview with Ramin Karimloo

2013-04-04T21:38:00.000-07:00

Olivier nominated for Love Never Dies, Canadian born actor/singer Ramin Karimloo will perform his cabaret act at Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal April 21-22. This will mark his cabaret debut in Los Angeles, and all three performances are already sold out. Renowned on the UK stage for every role in Les Mis including that of Jean Valjean and also for the Phantom in Phantom of the Opera and Love Never Dies, Karimloo performed on the Oscar telecast in February singing "One More Day" alongside Hugh Jackman, Ann Hathaway, Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Barks and others from the cast of the film Les Mis. In our chat, Karimloo talks about career past and present as well as his love of music that includes bluegrass as well as Broadway.

Tell me how your singing career began in Canada.

I didn't have the finances to train and the idea of going to debt court, with my background, kind of scared me, so I started working on cruise ships. These were British based companies. I remember when I first auditioned, I had never seen a musical in my life apart from Phantom and Les Mis. I didn't know any musical theatre songs. I didn't know how to dance. So, working on the cruise ships was my theatre school.

You never even sang as a kid?!

I had never had a singing lesson. I like country music and bluegrass and rock...on the cruise ships...I still hadn't seen films like The Wizard of Oz, The Sound of Music...but, I learned. We did like ten different revue shows, a music theatre show, country-western... I learned a lot. I was working with people who had done West End, so at this point I'm getting the bug for it and enjoying it. Then there was someone on the ships, I'll never forget the story... he gave me grief about my unorthodox background. When I was on deck during the days, I'd be reading Strasberg's teachings, Stanislavski's, Meisner's...because I want to be Daniel Day Lewis, he's my idol. I remember this guy's words, "You'll never make it to the West End, and you'll never get an agent like Michael Garrett if you continue the way you are." There are so many different roads. If I had the funds, I totally would have trained, the orthodox way. Because there's something to be said about a two-year course, what you learn, the references, the connections, the social aspect of it, it's a great thing to do. He had done West End, and I didn't rate him. I thought, "If he could do it, I could do it." So, I decided to move to England and give it a shot. Long story short, two years later, who's my agent? Michael Garrett. I remember, by chance I was in this vocal coach's house to learn some theatre songs. He liked the fact that I was untrained, I was raw. And he said, "Let me bring in my friend, who's an agent." And I'm thinking, "Here we go, another I'll make you a star, kid!" Anyone who says that, walk out the door! And in walked Michael Garrett. "Holy crap, this is the guy they said I'd never get!" He said, "I really like what you do. I can't promise you anything, but I'll try and get you auditions." I thought, "That's the most honest thing you could say. Let's do it!" We had a great seven-year relationship.

What was the first show you did?

The Pirates of Penzance.

That's good training!

Not only that, it was with the New Shakespeare Company at Regent's Park, open air, which is... I didn't realize at the time... just how prestigious that job was. I'd never stay in my dressing room, I'd be in the wings. I was understudying the Pirate King. I did not want to go on; I just wanted to watch and learn. This was rep season. The best training! For me knowledge is power. Knowledge inspires me. The more I learn, the more I'm prepared. Even from those you don't like, you can learn from watching them. But, what I lacked...I don't think instinct carries your career... you need technique.

Frankly when quite rapidly my career started doing good things, and I started making money, I put that toward tuition...it's funny, the moment I got nominated for an Olivier, instead of celebrating, I phoned an acting teacher and said, "I want to take some one to ones." I thought, "An Olivier nomination. A fraud!" So, I got a great acting coach. What you get, you can give back. I never want to rest on my laurels. I never want to meet expectations.

What came after Pirates of Penzance? Was it directly into Phantom?

Sunset Boulevard. I did it with Faith Brown as Norma Desmond. I was a last minute sub. They needed someone quick to play Artie Green. I had two rehearsals and I was on with Artie Green. After two days, they said "You go on as Joe Gillis in twelve days." I can't remember the words to "Sunset Boulevard", let alone the whole script. Twelve days! I was 22 years-old. I remember the line"Forty-two inch chest..." I have it now, but at the time I was a skinny little kid. My whole career I had been technically too young for things, taking on these different roles. They came to me; I didn't ask for Joe Gillis.

How did it work out?

I loved it! I'd love to have it now, when I'm more suitable for it. The scenes when he first meets Norma Desmond, it's a gift. "Salome!" I loved his interaction with the audience. Joe Gillis is there to serve Norma and tell that story. Let her be the star. You just carry the audience with you. Like Phantom, it's one of my favorite Andrew (Lloyd Webber) shows, because the book, the music, the lyrics... it takes you back to that era. They work so well together. I love being in LA now driving down Sunset Boulevard, I think of those lines, "You take away my car, you might as well cut off my legs!" I totally understand that now.

What came next?

Les Mis.

You've played every role in that, right?

It feels like it. On the Japanese release of my album, I did "I Dreamed a Dream", so there's my Fantine as well. (we laugh) I first went into Les Mis as an understudy. My agent didn't want me to take it, because it wasn't a lead, but I did. I wanted to learn. I wanted to be in the ensemble and learn what it's like to do eight shows a week. Understudying for that was the hardest job, but I'm so glad I did it. I understudied Hadley Fraser, and we've been friends ever since. We've become this theatre couple. We're in this bluegrass band together. In my most recent stint of Les Mis, he was Javert.

As The Phantom in Love Never Dies

Do you have a favorite role from Les Mis?

Jean Valjean is just...a role I was dead set against doing. I turned it down twice before Cameron Mackintosh himself said "I've come for my pound of flesh. I want you to play Jean Valjean." I thought "What am I going to do with it?" At this stage, I didn't even think I could sing it. Colm Wilkinson was just in the room singing it. He was preparing his audition for the film. I thought, "That's what Jean Valjean looks like!" Mackintosh had more faith in me than I had in myself. I said, "I'll make you a deal. After we finish this Phantom 25th Anniversary show, let me come sing it for you. If you still like it, I'll do it. If I suck, this doesn't ruin our business relationship. We were good up until now. This is your call, not mine. If I go for something and I blow it, fine, be mad at me, but let it be on your head!" As it turned out, I bought myself time, so I started reading the novel again. I thought, How can I live it? I don't want to just sing a part. I hate when actors do that. I want to make sure I'm not a caricature, trying to play old. Watch me do the exercise on how to become old! It's not about that. What I found was my heart connection with Valjean and his struggle with faith and his journey, layer upon layer...

Is Jean Valjean your favorite role so far, more so than the Phantom?

Karimloo will reprise Jean Valjean in Toronto in October

Over those two, I would take Valjean. There's more you can do with it, and the payoff is...even though you're not playing a caricature, but you do span 40 years with this guy's life. As an actor, it's a dream role. I used to think "What role do I need to take my career to the next step?" I don't think like that anymore. If I get an offer or I go for something, will I have fun doing that? Then that's my answer. If you're having fun, you're doing your best work. There's no point in going into a new show because it's new. And it can be up for awards, but I don't want to do it. There's no fun. I'd love to do Guido in Nine in a couple of years when I'm a bit older. Stanley in Streetcar, I'd love to do that, but my arm is full of tattoos, so I don't know if they'll let me do it.

Let's switch gears to your upcoming cabaret. How does the bluegrass play into all this musical theatre?

I've always loved country and bluegrass. What I like is the storytelling. And what's music theatre but storytelling!? When I do concerts, I don't want to do a music theatre concert. I don't find that as enjoyable. I want to save that for the part; I want to save it for when I'm actually doing the musical. When it comes to concerts, you've got to be yourself. There's no more character! So when I started recording and doing music in a night of concert, I thought how do I strip the character away and let it be Ramin singing it and enjoying the song? "Bring It Home" is so beautiful as a prayer. Les Mis is actually written for French folk singers. So, I started learning the banjo and started writing folk music. For fans that still want to hear what they've known me for, I thought, How can I present it so that I don't feel like I'm singing a song just because they want to hear it? I want them to get my heart. Broadway to Bluegrass. It all started with "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning"! I started to think why don't I do it like Mumford and Sons in 6, 8 rhythm. Real hoedown. How would it sound if the people of that time with those instruments... if it becomes authentic? So then we did that with all the music. "Music of the Night" just with fiddle and guitar. I sing it as it's written. I don't put a country twang on it. I sing it as authentically as possible. I toured America last year, and we played where Johnny Cash used to play, and Alison Krauss. I'm not great on the banjo, but I'm getting better. What I learned is that you don't have to be perfect to be authentic. It's your heart that's authentic up there.

Will there be a lot of your own material in the Federal show?

When we do the Federal, there'll be more theatre content because of the venue. I always think you have to be gig appropriate, and it's my first time here. I will do some songs I've written, but I'm going to do a lot more theatre than I did on the first tour. I've got this version of "Empty Chairs" where a banjo comes in. It starts with just guitar, then the banjo kicks in to give it...the texture of the banjo can be quite haunting. It sounds beautiful. "Bring Him Home" just with fiddle. It's intimate. I love that. I'll only have three musicians on stage with me. We're not going to pretend to be an orchestra. I'm not going to get a synthesizer. We're going to be authentic. What you see is what you hear, and what you hear, is what you see. Let's just be true to that!

That pretty much describes Ramin Karimloo. He is very sincere and passionate about what he does. What you see is what you get. I have listened to his CD Ramin, and it is simply gorgeous, so I can't wait for this concert.

Ramin’s Sunday, April 21 show at 5:30 – 6:00 pm dinner seating, 7:00 pm show is sold out. Three shows are scheduled with him including a matinee at 1:30 pm on Sunday, April 21 added as the third show, and Monday evening April 22 at 8pm, which at this point are also sold out. He holds the record for number of sales in all of almost 7 years at Sterling's. Also the quickest sell outs ever for each show.

http://www.raminkarimloo.com

2013 Interview with Andrew Rannells

2013-03-30T08:58:00.002-07:00

Actor/singer/dancer Andrew Rannells, Tony nominated Broadway star of The Book of Mormon, for which he won a Grammy Award, and new star of NBC TV's The New Normal as well as HBO's Girls, will make an onstage appearance for one night only singing in S.T.A.G.E.'s Broadway My Way on Saturday April 6 at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. In our chat he talks about success in Mormon, Jersey Boys, in his two current TV sitcoms, both of which focus on gay men, Broadway My Way...and more.

Tell me about Broadway My Way and what you're doing in it. I love David Galligan's sense of humor, so I'm sure it will be a great show.

Yeah, it's quite a group. I'm very excited about it. I'm thrilled to join them. I was asked what I might like to sing or what I've always wanted to sing, so I'm doing "What Kind of Fool Am I?" from Stop the World I Want to Get Off.

You have a great voice for that!

Oh, thank you very much! I'm really excited about it. I've never sung the song before and I've always wanted to.

Any comedy involved?

No, I'm not the comic relief this time. I'm leaving that to some other folks. I'm playing it straight, as it were.

Well, I'm sure it will be great. What's it like to have a Grammy and a Tony nomination?

(he laughs) Well, it's very nice. The Grammy thing...Josh Gad and I were so surprised by that. When it happened, we were still doing The Book of Mormon in New York, so neither one of us really got to participate in the activities. All the parties we were invited to were in Los Angeles, so the evening the awards happened, we were doing a show, and we got a text message saying that we had won. It was very exciting, but it felt a little funny not to be there.

You're from Omaha, Nebraska, a small town boy. Did that help you to develop the role of Elder Price in The Book of Mormon?

There was kind of a midwestern shorthand that came in handy. I'm from Nebraska, Elder Price from Colorado. It wasn't so much religion...I wasn't raised Mormon, I was raised Catholic. But there was just an understanding of the general tone of this guy and these kids who go out as missionaries. So being from the mid west was helpful, I will say that.

I saw Gavin Creel do the role here in LA. I understand you guys are pals.

He's one of my oldest and best friends. I was so excited that he's getting the opportunity to play this part.

Tell me about Jersey Boys and your involvement in that. You were with that quite some time, correct?

I did it for about 2 years. I started in a company in San Francisco and then moved to a company that toured a little bit, and then we opened the Toronto company and then I finished my run with 6 months on Broadway. All in all it was about 2 years that I did Jersey Boys. I loved doing it...completely different from Book of Mormon. It was also such a great role, playing Bob Gaudio. The real Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli were very much involved in the production at the time. It was very cool to get to meet him and hang out with those guys. The show was such a hit every place we went. It was thrilling getting to open it in these new cities.

Jersey Boys

Tell me about Elijah in HBO's Girls and then your new role on NBC in The New Normal.

Two very different characters. Elijah on Girls is a little bit of a mess. He and Hannah in this last season just kind of tripped around New York and Elijah made a lot of bold and hilarious mistakes in his friendships with Hannah and Marnie. Bryan Collins in The New Normal is a very established, very successful television producer who is in a very committed relationship and ready to start a family. It was interesting. We shot Girls first and I finished in July. Right away I went to Los Angeles and started in early August with The New Normal. We start the third season of Girls in mid-April and it's yet to be decided exactly what my involvement will be, but I'm happy to be there.

the cast of The New Normal

Who are your idols? Do you have any?

Most recently, at the time I moved to New York, I think that Patrick Wilson was a really big influence.Watching him do The Full Monty, and the tour of Carousel, and then seeing his whole career sort of explode with the film of Angels in America...he was definitely inspirational for me. He's a great actor and such a nice guy. I've never gotten to work with him, but have had the chance to hang out with him a little. Dick Latessa has also been a big influence on me. I did Hairspray, but not with him, and then years later we did workshops on Little Miss Sunshine. I just completely fell in love with Dick. I think he's a great example of somebody who just consistently does really great work, and he's worked for decades in the theatre and on TV and film. I think that's what every actor aspires to, that kind of longevity and that body of work he's created. I greatly admire him. Role models are an ever changing thing for me. I work with people that maybe I didn't know before and...

Well, you're just beginning.

People ask me what the turn was. It feels like it was getting my first Broadway show. Being cast in Hairspray was a huge deal for me. Even though I was a replacement in the ensemble, it felt like the biggest thing that had ever happened. Hopefully you keep having these moments where you feel like you've reached a new level.

What role would you like to play?

The Book of Mormon taught me it's probably not been written yet. What I took away from that was the excitement of creating a show and creating a role. If you'd asked me 10 years ago, I would have had a long list of things that I would love to do...and maybe some of those things are still possible... but it's the shows that are yet to be discovered that mean the most to you. I would love to go back to New York and do another musical, certainly, but I haven't pondered what, because maybe it doesn't exist yet.

Do you have a favorite musical of all time?

I think that's a tie: West Side Story and Sweeney Todd. West Side Story was the first musical I was aware of as a kid. Sweeney Todd to me is a perfect show.

As an openly gay man, how do you feel about the way things are right now? Do you think we've made strides?

I think you have to look at where we were five years ago to where we are today. I think there are big strides. Historically speaking, we're moving much faster than a lot of civil rights. It sometimes feels like there's not a lot happening. Since Gavin (Creel) and Rory O'Malley started Broadway Impact in ... 2008, even in that brief amount of time, it's amazing to see how much work has been done and how much progress has been made. We're definitely on the right track, and it's definitely moving. I may not be satisfied but I'm encouraged by what's happened. There's very much a conversation that's happening that didn't really exist even a few years ago. Public opinion is changing, and I'm happy to be a part of a television show with The New Normal. Ryan Murphy and Ali Adler (executive producers/creators) really are conversation starters. I'm thrilled, being the other half of a gay relationship with Justin Bartha, to be a little part of a larger conversation that includes gay parents, gay marriage... so we're definitely on the right track.

Andrew Rannells is most assuredly on the right track to stardom, so catch him on April 6 at the Saban Theatre for S.T.A.G.E.'s annual fundraiser for APLA (Aids Project LOs Angeles), this year's show called Broadway My Way.

http://www.stagela.com/home.php

2013-03-21T12:06:00.000-07:00

ALEX NEWELL, one of the newest cast members of FOX's groundbreaking mega-hit series, "Glee," has been added to the cast of the 29th Annual Southland Theatre Artists Goodwill Event (S.T.A.G.E.) "Broadway, My Way," being held on Saturday, April 6th at the historic Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. David Galligan directs for the 29th time with John McDaniel returning as Musical Director.

In the last two years, ALEX NEWELL has gone from regular high school student to

appearing on one of the hottest series on television. Newell can currently be seen in the recurring role of “Wade ʻUniqueʼ Adams” on FOXʼs “Glee,” and has quickly become a fan favorite. Introduced at the end of season three last year, ʻUniqueʻ is back this season and better than ever. Newell shines as shy, timid, outcast Wade, and his alter-ego Unique, whose bold and daring personality and talent on stage demands attention in every scene she is in. The drastic change from each character has shown not only Newellʼs powerhouse vocals, but also his versatility as an actor.

Newell will be making his first S.T.A.G.E. appearance in this year's show. Wells Fargo is the Presenting Sponsor with Grand Sponsors HBO and Swerdlove & Aster.

Other Broadway stars scheduled to appear in the concert that raises critical funds for AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) include JIM BAILEY, PATRICK CASSIDY, MARY JO CATLETT, CAROLE COOK, KAREN CULLIVER, TYNE DALY, JOELY FISHER, DAVIS GAINES, KATHY GARRICK, MARSHA KRAMER, FLORENCE HENDERSON, SHIRLEY JONES, JANE LANIER, VICKI LEWIS, KIMBERLEY LOCKE, TOM LOWE, PAT MARSHALL, PATRICIA MORISON, The MuMos, JANIS PAIGE, MADISON CLAIRE PARKS, VALARIE PETTIFORD, ANDREW RANNELLS, ANDREW SAMONSKY, BRUCE VILANCH, LISA VROMAN, JOANNE WORLEY, and TERRI WHITE.

For tickets and detailed information, visit: www.stagela.com or www.apla.org/stage

2013 Interview with Les Wieder

2013-03-20T04:41:00.000-07:00

by Steve Peterson

How did you originally get involved in theatre?

In high school, a girl I was dating got the lead in the school musical. I didn’t want her to be rehearsing all night with other guys, so I tried out for the show. Much to my surprise, I was given one of the lead male roles. I’ve always suspected that it was because I could sing on key. Anyway, that was 1960, and that’s where my life in the theatre began.

When did you start writing plays?

In 1988, I wrote my first play, Zamo. It was a children’s show for adults. It ran at the Mayfair Theatre in Santa Monica for three months.

Where did the idea for VOICES come from?

One day in January 1991, I was driving in my car, listening to Public Radio, and they began playing excerpts from The Slave Narratives. Recorded in 1931, The Slave Narratives are recordings of African-American men and women, who at the time were in their 80’s and 90’s, speaking about their lives as slaves. As soon as I heard their voices, an idea for a play came to me.

Where was VOICES originally staged and performed?

VOICES was first performed in 1992 at Moorpark College where I was a professor of Theatre Arts. A year later, it was produced in Los Angeles.

Have racism and the conflicts involving racism changed in America, since the play’s first performance? And, if so, how?

Yes and no. In the late 1980s and 90s the idea of inter-racial romance was becoming more common, but old prejudices still existed. Today, inter-racial marriages and relationships are, for the most part, accepted by society, and much more public. I have been in an inter-racial marriage for over 30 years and I can tell you that times have changed, for the better. But, while society may be more accepting of the idea of inter-racial relationships, it can still be a difficult thing for many individual families.

How did the play become part of Griot Theatre’s inaugural season?

I met and cast Sabah el-Amin in my play, Sojourner, the Story of Sojourner Truth, in 2005. That play received 7 NAACP award nominations and won for Best Ensemble Production in Los Angeles, in 2006. So in 2010 when I was asked to direct Peppur Chambers’ House Rules I was happy to find that I was working again with Sabah, this time as a producer. My relationship with Sabah has been very successful. When she told me that she and her husband, Malik, were going to start Griot Theatre, I was immediately supportive of the idea, and as I had been speaking with Sabah about producing Voices sometime in the future, they asked if it could be included in their inaugural season.

What would you want the take away to be for an audience member?

I write and direct plays to move audiences to action. By that I mean, I want audiences to leave the theatre and talk about what they just saw. Good or bad, love it or hate it, I want them to be engaged. Voices is not just a history lesson. It’s a play about love and race, and for me, the most important issue in our country—r-a-c-e. Combine race and love, and everyone has an opinion.

What future projects are you currently working on?

I have a film script, “The Blacksmith’s Son”, a mystery set in contemporary Montana, in development. I also have three plays I am working on, The King of Hollywood; the Clark Gable Story, Waiting for Huey, a comedy about men growing old but never growing up, and Second Chance, a romantic comedy about second marriages.

~~~

Les Wieder, now retired, was Professor Theatre Arts, Moorpark College (28 years) Plays include: “Sojourner: The Story of Sojourner Truth” (Hudson Theatre); “Elijah”, the opera (Libretto) Civic Arts Plaza (Thousand Oaks); “Voices” (Hollywood), “Zamo”, Mayfair Theatre, “The Secrets of Harry Lay” (San Diego); DIRECTING: “Sojourner: The Story of Sojourner Truth” (Hudson Theatre); “Elijah”; “The Secrets of Harry Lay” (San Diego); “House Rules” (Hollywood); AWARDS: NAACP Drama Award for Best Ensemble Production, “Sojourner”; NAACP President’s Award

Griot Theatre of the West Valley presents Les Wieder’s Voices directed by Malik B. El-Amin, produced by Sabah El-Amin. Previews March 21-22. Runs March 23 – April 14. Dark April 5. Fri-Sat at 8pm; Sunday at 3pm. Open Captioning available March 30 & April 7. Theatre is equipped with a "Hearing Loop" for hard-of-hearing audience members who wear hearing aids with T-Coils & Cochlear Implants. Tickets: $25; Seniors/Students/Groups 10+: $15. Buy Tickets: www.brownpapertickets.com. On the campus at Bethel Encino. 17500 Burbank Blvd. Encino, 91316. www.GriotTheatre.org and www.Facebook.com/GriotTheatre

Guest Interviewer Mike Pingel Talks to Lynda Carter

2013-03-16T15:28:00.000-07:00

It's been a year and you're back! What was the most exciting thing that has happened during that time?

The most interesting was a trip to Singapore that my husband and I went on. It was like stepping back in time. People live in bamboo huts built on stilts and they fish. They have these farms that are on a lake and have been doing this for hundreds of years. It was really interesting to be in that part of the world. It was one of those really rich experiences.
My kids are doing really well and I'm happy. You just have to cross your fingers that your friends and your family stay safe.
Right now I'm in the process of putting together a new show. I always add new material, mostly for myself. I could get away with just adding a couple of songs and switching a few things around, but I really like the process of coming up with new ways to do things and new approaches to the music, which is what I'm doing and I'm really excited about.

Is the whole musical gang back with you again?

I do have an important addition; Luis Conte, who is probably one of the three top percussionists in the world. He is really a superstar. We were backstage at the James Taylor concert talking and Luis said, "Oh God, your band is great. I wish I could play with you guys." Lou Marini and I looked at each other and we said "Well would you like to do a couple of dates?" So, if you can believe it, we are going to squeeze one more person on the stage at Catalina! Luis will also play with us at the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center.

That's going to sound great.

Yeah, I've got all these super accomplished musicians again - they are all fantastic.

Your new tour is titled, From the Heart. How did that title come about?

From the Heart is really about singing songs I want to sing. I want to share those moments with the audience, which is really thrilling for me.

Can you give me a sneak peak on your new set list?

I was just working on a new set but some of these might not end up in there. The Black Pea's "Lonely Boy," Gotye "Somebody I Used to Know," a new Sam Cooke song, Bruce Springsteen "I'm on Fire", Christina Aguilera "Candyman," and a few other surprises.

Are you releasing a new CD?

I have not started on a new CD.
I have to decide why I want to do it and what I want to do. Creatively, I want to figure out where that belongs. Do I really want to do another album of covers? The first CD was romantic and the other one was a little more pop.

I noticed that you were listed under country for your last album.

The first time they put me in the jazz category and the second time they put me in the country category. Why? I don't know. I don't understand it. They probably don't listen to the music; they just look to see who the producer is.

What about a Lynda Carter "Holiday" or "Live" CD?
I could.

What CD is playing in your car?

I'm listening to & singing to the songs I'm working on. I'll have Kerry Marx, the guitarist, put down a track for me without any vocals so I can work on the songs and decide if I want to do that song. I go through approximately twenty songs and narrow them down to about six new songs.

You were at the Super Bowl this year!
I was! How did you know that?

Your Facebook page. What was the highlight and how about those lights going out?
It was wild. We were in the CBS box with a lot of close friends in our group and the lights went out. That was a huge problem and I don't know what caused it. Beyoncé was fantastic and the Ravens won. I love San Francisco but I was rooting for the team closer to the home town. It was really exciting. The Super Bowl was great for the economy in New Orleans and it's one of the greatest cities. All year round, New Orleans always has great food, music and lots of stuff to see and do.

You are big on Facebook and Twitter - do you love it or hate it?
I think it's really time-consuming. I post when I'm doing things. I don't do a lot of personal stuff and I ask permission if I put on any of my friends.

Many people have asked me if you have a portrait in the attic. What are you doing to keep so youthful and gorgeous?
Do I have that portrait of Dorian Gray that ages?

Yep!
(Laughs) I love that! Yes, I have that picture and it's getting really old! (Laughs) You know, my dad is 90 and my mother lived to 89. I think we inherited good pigments in our skin and it's all hereditary. I do try to stay out of the sun - that's all I do. I do the best I can, but the sun is the most damaging thing. My father is not very wrinkly and neither was my mother. I think it's the luck of the draw. I just take good care of myself. I've seen lots of changes in the last few years. I'm much more aware of the changes on my face and neck. But hey, I don't think I'm willing to do much about it. I don't want to do anything invasive.
I was on the internet and up popped something like celebrity facelift disasters. I don't know how I got on it but I looked kind of macabre. It shocked me how many people have ruined their looks and they don't even look like the same person anymore. I just don't know if I can do it. I think the person who looks the best is Jane Fonda. When you do something to alter your face, you can't go back. I have a friend from high school who is a prominent plastic surgeon who spends most of his time fixing other peoples' botched surgeries. There is a fear factor there and I'm not willing to go down that road.

There has been all this chatter about the new CW original show, Amazon. Do you think your version of Wonder Woman and the series set the bar so high they just can't do it?

You know, I don't think so. I think they miss the point in my humble opinion. There is something so simple about Wonder Woman. There is goodness in her; a certain sweetness and loyalty. There are really human things about her that don't necessary go with the other superheroes. There is viability, comradery with other women, goodness and sweetness. There is a genuine piece of her that they miss. In character development, it is most important that you see the human being.

Do you think it's the modernizing of Wonder Woman?

It's not so much that. I think they probably should stay with the original costume. You could change the hairstyle and that kind of thing, but you need a character with humanness. No one cares about someone knocking people out. They miss the boat with what she is all about.

Lynda Carter's "From the Heart" tour continues at the Catalina Club, 6725 W. Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, Calif. for two more nights, tonight, March 15 and the 16th, at 8:30 p.m. Cost: $45-55. Dinner or two-drink minimum required. Tickets are currently on sale at www.lyndacarter.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

Photo Credit: Mike Pingel

2013 Interview with Ben Rimalower

2013-03-16T12:46:00.000-07:00

Actor/director Ben Rimalower brings his critically acclaimed show Patti Issues (about his infatuation with Patti LuPone) to Casita del Campo for two performances only Friday March 29 and Saturday March 30. Gravelly, yet sexy-voiced Rimalower, reminding me somewhat of a young Harvey Fierstein, is outspoken, frank and funny about his association with LuPone which began long before this show was ever written.

I adore Patti LuPone. I truly believe that she's one of the best
performers on Broadway.

That's good. You can replace me when I'm done with the show. (we laugh)

She's always lovely to her fans at the stage door.

She knows which side her bread is buttered on.

How did Patti Issues get started?

I've been obsessed with Patti LuPone basically all my life in a very major way, that's been very central to how I live my life. My friends make fun of me. It's almost a religion. I've followed her like people follow the North Star. One of my first jobs out of college was assisting director Lonny Price on Sweeney Todd starring Patti LuPone with the New York Philharmonic. There was a PBS broadcast, a recording and all that. Then I got to work on several shows with Patti and Lonny and actually became good friends with Patti. Someone that's obsessed with Patti is her kind of guy. (laughs) Even though she's been somewhat in my life close by throughout the rest of the development of my career, I remained obsessed with her to the point where up until this project the greatest success I had had in my career as a director was a show I conceived Leslie Kritzer is Patti LuPone at Les Mouches ...where we recreated Patti's famed cabaret act, which had been done originally at the club Les Mouches during the run of Evita.

I know you're responsible for the album recorded at Les Mouches from those days in the late 70s.

There was no album at that time; (it came later). That (whole issue) wound up being a drama between me and Patti because she was very supportive of what I was doing with Leslie initially, and then she changed her mind. Our show was very successful, and she threatened to sue me if we didn't stop it. Ultimately, all was hunky dory between us. I edited her demo reel that goes out to Hollywood casting directors for film and television work, and she also hired me to do her personal video archive... of all her stuff. That's how I was first exposed to her original archival tapes of Les Mouches, and I ended up producing that album. But, it was a very transformative experience for me, because it made me realize that I was really limited in my career as a director, where I was at the mercy of the material I could get my hands on. And Les Mouches had been this anomaly in my career because without actually writing any words I was the author of that show. It was based on live recordings Patti had made. There was no writer in the room except me to put it together. It was something I was able to initiate myself and not be dependent upon other people to bring me material. I started to think, "What else can I write?" I had been blogging and something I felt passionate about to actually put a whole piece down would be to talk about my experience with Patti, that felt so central to my life. I hoped other people would relate to it because of their own obsessions with the stars that they loved, and I thought the story would be interesting and unique because of the actual specific relationship I had with Patti. And...we had had our own conflict, so there's theatre.

So all of the conflict is within the play?

Yes. But the problem I found as I started to write the show was that it was more about me than about Patti. And there was this experience I had had with my father who I don't have a relationship with. It's OK. But ironically after we hadn't seen each other in about 10 years - he was sitting directly behind me at Gypsy starring Patti LuPone on Broadway.

That's unbelievable!

That felt like such a coup de theatre that happened to me in real life. It felt like a very empowered moment in my life because after all these years of not seeing my father, and having these nightmares, fantasies and dreams, imagining what it would be like to see him, there he was. It felt very good. Everything that I had gone through with Patti LuPone, to come out on the other side of it and now be producing her album, it felt like a very adult full-circle moment for me. That had a lot to do with how I was able to face my father that night. Writing the show, I saw those 2 threads in my life as really intertwining. And that's how I wound up with this piece.

When did you open it in New York?

It opened at the Duplex in August.

And it's been extended constantly from what I've been reading, right?

It's the new Cats ... Pats. (I laugh)

Do you sing Patti's songs in the show?

Very little. There are incidental moments where I punctuate things with a line or two, but I really don't sing in it.

So you and Patti are good friends!

We've spent a lot of time together over the years. She's come to support my work, and I've certainly seen her in everything she's ever done. I've always gone back stage or gone out to dinner with her. It's funny that I've gotten to know her so well personally, and not lost any of the obsession that I've had.

Do you remember the first time you heard Patti sing when you were a kid?

Totally. I talk about it in the show. In New York, when I was little...we didn't move to LA until I was 5 years old, I used to go with my grandparents to see Broadway shows. I saw Annie, The Wiz, Peter Pan, West Side Story, but I was haunted by those Evita commercials...those incredible commercials with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin. I was obsessed with them, and I really wanted to see Evita, but everyone felt that it was too grown up, not appropriate for a 4 year-old. In LA, whenever Evita was on national tour and it would come to the Schubert or the Pantages or whatever, they would still play the Broadway commercial with Patti LuPone. That commercial was a fixture throughout my childhood, and of course as an adolescent, I got the album and proceeded to become a full-time stalker.

Switching gears a bit, how did you get the nickname the Midas of Cabaret?

I moved to New York in 1999 and was Lonny Price's assistant in 2000-2002, then I started directing on my own in 2003. I directed a couple of off-Broadway shows: Joy, The Joy of Gay Sex when it played in San Francisco, and The Fabulous Life of a Size Zero and a bunch of off-off-Broadway shows. The bulk of the work I've been able to get has been cabaret. That's actually fine with me. I think that cabaret... in this day and age of movies and television and the internet and all that, theatre has to find a new way to be relevant. Theatre that is effective and successful nowadays is theatre that offers the audience something they cannot get in TV and film or on the internet. And that's a live experience, engaging the audience directly, breaking the fourth wall. With cabaret or solo shows, with one performer onstage, the fourth wall is broken, and the audience automatically has to be cast as the second character. That's always been exciting to me because I can sit in a room and have someone tell me a story or sing me a song, and I feel immediately engaged. I do not feel immediately engaged by a lot of theatre that I see. I love cabaret and am happy to be associated with it.

To get Ben Rimalower's CA schedule which includes San Diego, San Francisco and Berkeley, as well as LA for two nites March 29 and 30 at Casita del Campo in Silverlake, visit this website:
www.PattiIssues.com

2013 Interview with David Galligan

2013-02-13T05:40:00.001-08:00

Consummate theatre director David Galligan will be directing Broadway, My Way for this year's S.T.A.G.E. event benefiting APLA (Aids Project Los Angeles) on Saturday April 6 at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. Galligan has given tirelessly to this project since it started back in 1984. Just about every composer has been honored with maybe the exception of Noel Coward and the last 3 years have been devoted to Original Casts of Broadway musicals. This year Broadway, My Way offers something different.

David, tell us about the show, explaining the title Broadway, My Way.

One of the exciting aspects of directing Broadway, My Way this year is providing the performers with opportunities to fulfill a performance dream they may have had forever. I'm not giving anything away, but there may be some stars who've always wanted to dance, but haven't been given the opportunity before. Or perhaps there's a wonderful Broadway song they've always wanted to perform, but it was originally written for a different gender. The possibilities are endless, as is the talent.

Anyone new joining you this year?

We're very excited to have Broadway stars Sutton Foster and Andrew Rannells join our cast for the first time this year. Broadway, My Way is open to such a wide and contemporary interpretation for our artists. It's going to be wonderful.

Tell me anything you can about the show's content, without giving too much away.

This is our 29th year presenting STAGE, and we have a very rich history. Part of this year's STAGE concert will be a Remembrance of People Passed. We will pay homage to the stage careers of
Ian Abercrombie,
Paul Ainsley and
Betty Garrett,
long-time friends of STAGE. In Betty's case, she was a co-chair of the event for decades as well as an annual performer. We'll feature a series of film clips of their performances accompanied by Karen Culliver, a long-running Christine in Phantom of the Opera, performing "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again," followed by 17 year-old Madison Claire Parks singing "Think of Me." Madison is the granddaughter of Betty Garrett, and the daughter of Karen Culliver and Betty's son Garrett Parks. Madison will be making her professional stage debut February 16 as Laurie in Musical Theatre West's production of Oklahoma being directed by Davis Gaines who, himself, logged more than 2,000 performances as the Phantom. He, too, will be performing in STAGE this year singing "Wunderbar" to 98 year-old Patricia Morison, the original Kate from Kiss Me Kate. So, we have the youngest and the most seasoned of STAGE performers featured in our production.

Thanks, David! Looking forward to April 6!

Just added are seasoned performers Joely Fisher, Marsha Kramer and Terri White.
Check out the website below for a complete list, which is updated regularly.

http://www.stagela.com/home.php

2013 Interview with Cathy Rigby

2013-01-04T12:42:00.000-08:00

Actress Cathy Rigby was the highest-scoring American gymnast at the 1968 Olympics and became a favorite with American television audiences. She was U.S. National Gymnastic Champion in 1970 and 1972. Her greatest accomplishment was to become the first American woman to win a silver medal for the balance beam at the 1970 World Championships. In 1974, retired from gymnastics, she was offered the role of Peter Pan, which she has gloriously played for over 40 years, including Broadway with a Tony Award nomination as Best Actress in a Musical in 1990. She is about to open Peter Pan once more at the Pantages on January 15, having done it here in 2004. In our chat she talks about how she keeps the role fresh and why it has remained a favorite all these years.Is this your 4th tour of Peter Pan?Yes. It's about the 4th...I don't remember. (she laughs)I saw you in June when you opened at your home theatre in La Mirada. You are so wonderful in the role. How do you keep it fresh?You know what I think happens, Don, is that, when you know a role so well... I think I've learned more this time about acting than ever before in that, you get so caught up in the academic side of acting sometimes in thinking about where's the climax, what's this, what's that and you start analyzing so much how to play it and what to do, and I think if I've learned anything over the years from kids and from doing the role is that once you've learned it, you need to let all of that go and allow the moments to happen. It's Acting 101, but it's something that's hard to let go of, especially if you're a perfectionist, if you're in competition, and all of that, it's hard to let go of allowing the moments to happen. But it is the greatest breakthrough and it allows you to have lots of joy and fun...
Well, you do. When you first did it, that was 40 years ago. As you get older, how do you overcome the challenges of playing Peter ... who never grows old? You're in great physical shape, but it's got to hurt a little.

Actually, because I'm not trying so hard anymore... it's funny, it's a little easier now. The physical aspect for anybody...I don't care if you're 20 years old ... it's a very, very physical and tough role. You know, I'm probably more careful how I land. The only thing I've taken out is that I don't jump off the top of the doghouse onto the bed, because that was just silly. A silly thing to do to my knees! (we both laugh) And yes, my shoulders get sore and sometimes, my lower back, but it's nothing that sometimes a little Aleve can't help. I try to stretch and do as much core work in Pilates as I can. On the road, I'm not like a 20 year-old where I'm going to go out and party at night. Not with 8 shows a week. But I still have lots of fun. I think there's just a feeling of...you can take your moments in the show. You can take your time. Rushing or hyperventilating is not good for anybody. I'm not being very articulate about this, but it really, really has helped over the last 6 months.

Is this your favorite role?

It has become that because I know it so well and done it so often. There's a part of me that, like everybody, loves the joy of staying young. Peter lives moment to moment, and there's that bittersweet side that he can never change and have what the rest of us have. Yes, it's become my favorite and for many reasons. My children traveled with me when we first started. My husband (Tom McCoy) and I produced many of the tours.

Don't you have family members in the show right now?

Not right now. I did. I have one son who's in Germany with a company there. He's a dancer. Two of them work in the office in contracts and production. The only one on the road with me is my youngest daughter Katie McCoy, who is head of the wig department in the show, so I do get to travel with her.

If Peter is your favorite role, what is a close second?

Two of my favorites were the play Sylvia, because I'm such an animal lover, and Cat in the Hat in Seussical. That role taught me a lot about spontaneity as well...and ad-libbing. I think the one I enjoyed acting-wise was playing MaLynne in Steel Magnolias. I have so much respect for people who do drama 8 times a week. It took every available emotion that I had to maintain it. Those are shows that are hard to do.

What about Mammy Yokum in Reprise's L'il Abner? You were terrific in that role too.

That was great fun. It's a little odd to look at yourself in the mirror and play a really old, goofy-looking part but it was a blast. It was one of those roles where you get to be on and off stage and doesn't take that much effort but you just play funny.

A role I would love to do sometime is Madame Thenardier in Les Mis. I was thinking about that as I watched Les Mis at the movies the other day. I thought, "That would be a great role!" I thought in the movie the role was kind of brushed over with a lot of schtick but I love it. It would be kind of up my alley as a character, especially as I get older.

What other roles would you like to play?

Anything. I would love to do anything from movies to television...Dancing with the Stars too. (she laughs) Probably when I get off the road, I'll stay home for a little while and do more regional work.

Anything else that you'd like to mention?

We have a conservatory of the arts for children that is near and dear to our hearts in Yorba Linda. There are about 500 students. Some of these kids are the most amazing, up and coming singer/dancer/actors.I don't know if it's So You Think You Can Dance or American Idol that's inspired these kids, but I'm watching these young folk grow up and become...have you ever seen Theatre Under the Stars in Texas?

No, I've never been to Texas.

They have a program there for their kids that has been around for over 20 years. They send out into the theatre world these wonderful young actors. So we're doing that as well in Yorba Linda. I'm so proud of that.

Do you have any idols or mentors that have had stimulated your career over the years?

I admire and respect lots of people. Marty Wiviott has been one of those people who has believed in me... and Glenn Casale (director). They've been coaches to me. I must say too that when you have a great partner and husband for 31 years - Tom McCoy - he has been my biggest champion in helping me believe in myself.

I've seen all the Peter Pans except Maude Adams...Mary Martin, Sandy Duncan...they were all wonderful, but you are by far the best. I've seen you do the show twice already and look forward to seeing it again opening night, Tuesday the 15th.

Thank you, Don. See you Tuesday!... One of these days, you'll have to fly. (we laugh)

See the amazing Cathy Rigby as Peter Pan at the Pantages for two weeks only January 15 - 27!
http://www.broadwayla.org/index.asp

Cathy Rigby is the 2012 BWW Award winner as Best Actress in a Musical (Touring) for Peter Pan, as well as recipient of the Eddon Award for Best Lead Performance - Grigware Picks His Best of LA Theatre for 2012.

news - James Van Der Beek to Co-Star at Geffen

2013-01-04T12:41:00.001-08:00

James Van Der Beek and Kathy Baker co-star in The Gift at the Geffen opening February 7.

2012 Interview with Loretta Swit

2012-11-24T14:30:00.001-08:00

Actress/singer Loretta Swit hardly needs an introduction. Having played Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan for 11 years in TV's M.A.S.H. (1972-1983), with multiple award nominations and two Emmy wins, the lady has become a household name. Few realize however that she began her career on stage and that the theatre is her first love. Currently onstage at the NoHo Arts Center, Swit is essaying three roles in Joshua Ravetch's One November Yankee which will run through January 5, 2013. In our chat she talks about the play and other theatrical roles she has played.

How did you become involved in One November Yankee?

I did the original reading at the Pasadena Playhouse...a mutual friend of ours introduced Joshua Ravetch and me. She had been reading his plays and called me and said, "I swear, he doesn't know it, but he's writing for you. I hear your voice when I read the play, I hear you saying this dialogue." So she said, "Have a read!" He sent me the script, and I loved it. I loved the concept; I loved the fresh approach with a brother and sister relationship. I have a brother. It intrigued me; it satisfied me. "What a delicious concept!" I loved all three characters. Actually, I loved all six. I liked the brother's characters too. We did this reading three years ago very successfully. I never read a review like that in my life. I mean he just went on and on and accurately sort of described the play as "those Russian dolls that keep unfolding". I feel that about the play, so much keeps getting revealed. And I love the La Ronde, the echoing back whether it's Hirschfeld or Cartier or Cantano, which is Josh's invention, the lawyers, the Canadian city, the Canadian bar, the librarian shelving other people's accomplishments, the signature is amplifying accomplishments...all the play on words...I really loved it.

It's so intelligently written, you almost have to see it a second time. There's too much for one viewing.

I agree with that. I have told many of my friends to come back at a matinee, let's say and just see it again. I'm an art collector, have been for years, and I paint. Needless to say, the artwork in my houses, apartment is extensive. So many of my friends have said, "I've got to come back because there's so much to see." And I feel that way about this play. There's so much to get. And...we did two readings. I did it with Robert Forster. He has this booming film career, and I warned Josh at the time that he'd better have a short list. When I agreed to come and do it at NoHo Arts, we did a reading, again with Robert. But when the time came closer, he was in the middle of two films back to back. Josh said that Harry (Hamlin) had read the play, liked it and was interested. I said, "Well that would be fine for me! I'll be thrilled with that." He's just wonderful. I've not worked with him before but have known him socially for years. We have this chemistry that is amazing.

I love the humanity in the play and how well you both bring that out.

You got it all.

Is this the first play you've done in a while?

God no! No! This is being fitted into a tour of Eleanor, which is a one-woman play about Eleanor Roosevelt. I've done it twice and have bookings spattered throughout 2013. I have to stop in the middle of that and do Murder Among Friends. I have another play in Canada that I'm considering doing. I do theatre, that's where I'm from.

You'd be wonderful as Eleanor. I'd love to see that.

The clothing and the wig, everything...I'm very pleased. Rhoda Lerman wrote that...Eleanor Her Secret Journey.

You also have been doing Shirley Valentine for which you won a prestigious Sara Siddons Award.

I've been doing that since 1991. Not consecutively, but every once in a while some theatre where I've been or where I haven't been will call and say, "Can she do Shirley for us for a couple of months?" or whatever, and I do. I toured Canada, I toured the US. Shirley went as far as Guam. I learned so much from doing that.

Why do you think audiences love Shirley so much?

She is so human, so real. Her foibles and follies and aspirations, dreams and pain are so human. And the fact that she does break out of this mold. She's buried under labels. She's mommy, she's Mrs. Bradshaw, the next door neighbor; she's the lady who shops at the butcher shop ... you know what I mean, she's lost her identity so totally... and there's this beautiful speech about how she remembered the beginning with Joe, her husband. They painted each other. They were painting the kitchen and they decided to have a paint fight. And they both went into the bathtub together to wash off the paint. So she paints this romantic young picture, and she doesn't quite understand why it has to change. And she's right, it doesn't have to change. In Greece, she rediscovers herself through other eyes. These eyes have not put labels on her yet. She blossoms once again into the Shirley she is and gets it back. The end of the play is very hopeful. I'm convinced in my mind's eye, the sequel, Joe stays. They both grow. It's a play about growth and being open to change and growth and happiness.

Kind of like the message in One November Yankee!

Exactly...all of those characters are so human. The bickering is so human. The love, the bond, all of those things...so human and loving. I don't have a favorite character. I love them all so much.

You were in a landmark TV show M.A.S.H. Do you ever watch TV today? Are there any programs that come up to Larry Gelbart's achievement?

I'm a movie buff. My mom would take me to a double feature. We'd come out, go have Chinese food and then go back into another cinema and see another double feature. I feel I'm a child of the movies. The difference was...when I said I wanted to be an actor...usually children when they go to a movie, they're dazzled by the character. they're dazzled by Scarlett...I was dazzled by Vivien Leigh. I wanted to be the actor doing the work to get that character. That's when my mother knew I really wanted to be an actor. It wasn't the spangles and the gloss, the glitz and the bling, it was work and the creation, the creativity that went into it. That for me was the excitement. Anyway, television...now ...Gelbart is a tough act to follow. After M.A.S.H., I did one pilot that was so wonderful.

Was that Cagney and Lacey?

I did that, but that was still during M.A.S.H. What I'm referring to was after M.A.S.H., written by Allan Katz. If anyone could take up the mantle from Larry (Gelbart), it would be Allan Katz. He was one of our writers on M.A.S.H. I can't say enough about him: his wit, so glib, so quick like Larry. The show was called Sam. It was delicious. It was absolutely delightful. A New York Times critic gave it a half a page, saying "Why isn't this on television? It's wonderful." It was an ABC project; they didn't know what to do with it. It was a little sliver of sunshine that we were trying to get on the tube. Frankly, I have not read anything since that I would consider doing. Television is hard work. It's all hard work. Theatre is hard work. I tell you, I have bruises from changing backstage. Those quick changes are really difficult.

Do you have a favorite stage role?

They all stand out. I've played some great ladies. Mame. Agnes Gooch in Mame, when I started out in the 60s...it's a beautiful role. When I was offered Mame a few years ago, I said "No, no! It's Gooch...Gooch is the part in that show!" My agent said "Loretta, listen to me carefully darling, Mame is the lead, you're going to do Mame! Gooch is great when you do it, you are now going to do Mame!" (she laughs hard) Spoken like an agent...

as Gooch in Mame, 1968

It's clear: Loretta Swit can do it all; she can play any role in any medium. Let's not forget as well Swit's activism and charitable contributions chief among them her association with SDF, the Search Dog Foundation which takes rescue dogs and places them with firefighters to hunt down and rescue victims of tragic accidents. Swit is also an avid painter. Still a stunningly beautiful woman 30 years after M.A.S.H., Loretta Swit, thankfully for us, shows no signs of slowing down in any arena. Catch her in One November Yankee through January 5 at NoHo Arts Center!

Loretta Swit's painting King Charles

(stage photos and King Charles from Loretta Swit's private collection)
http://www.switheart.com/

review of One November Yankee:
http://grigware.blogspot.com/2012/11/review-one-november-yankee.html

Interview with Playwright Donald Margulies

2012-10-24T12:56:00.003-07:00

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Donald Margulies' Coney Island Christmas started previews at the Geffen November 20 with a scheduled opening set for November 28. This work, commissioned by the Geffen, will honor past artistic director Gilbert Cates, who passed away last year, and promises to be very special. Margulies, who is renowned for Dinner with Friends, Time Stands Still, Collected Stories, Sight Unseen and Brooklyn Boy among other plays, recently sat down to chat about the play, playwriting and the writers who have influenced his work. Margulies most definitely agrees that with the recent devastation to Coney Island by hurricane Sandy, audiences will look at his new play from a slightly different angle.

Tell me about Coney Island Christmas.

It's a huge cast, which is so delightful, ranging in age from 10 to 82. There's a great grandmother...well, you'll see it. The origin of this play began as a conversation I had with Gil Cates, my late friend...I guess it was about three years ago. He called me at home in Connecticut and said, "How'd you like to write us a Christmas show?" I was kind of bemused by such an offer. I thought I was a curious choice for such a thing. I think he did it because he knew I would not write your typical Christmas show, and that's what his intention was. He wanted something that would be more surprising, not at all along the canon of Christmas Carols and the like...which I took as a very interesting challenge. I said to Gil, "If I'm going to write you a Christmas play, you know it's going to be a Jewish Christmas play." And he said, "Great!" I had no idea what I was going to do along the lines of a Jewish Christmas play or even any Christmas play. Thankfully, I remembered a story by the great short story writer Grace Paley that I had read in high school 40 years ago called The Loudest Voice, which is about a Jewish girl named Shirley Abromowitz in Depression era Brooklyn. She's chosen by her teacher to be Jesus in the school play...this nice Jewish girl. It's really about that, that is the event of the play. Once I remembered that short story, I figured out how to do it onstage that seemed very right.

So you've changed the story a lot.

I've changed it considerably, because it's a very short story. It's about 8 pages long. And there's no real conflict in the story. It's a wonderful premise that I have taken from the story. I was inspired by Grace Paley and I've opened it up considerably.

Can you tell us a little of the conflict you've created? Give us a little preview.

I will tell you this, within the play there are two school pageants that are performed...that are major set pieces of the play, but I don't want to spoil it too much by revealing too much.

This idea came about as a result of a request. Where do most of the ideas come from for your plays?

You know, it's very mysterious. There's no one way that inspiration strikes me. My plays, my original plays, not plays that are even loosely based on something, tend to emanate from a very personal kind of visceral place, which is not to say that the others, the ones that are adaptations, don't become that. But that's not where they start out. So Dinner with Friends came out of the phenomenon of seeing so many friends' marriages break up. The Model Apartment came out of fascination with second generation Holocaust survivors. They come out of certain obsessions that won't go away, that can only find their way out through exploration in a play.

Do you use autobiographical elements?

Oh no. Increasingly less. As I get older, I have frankly less to draw from.

So the married couple that stayed together in Dinner with Friends was not you and your wife?

It reflected me and my wife and our position at that time, but the circumstances were different. The couple that breaks up is an amalgam of several friends who went through that. So, no, it's never as bold as that, putting myself onstage. I wouldn't do that. I don't recommend it. You always have to reinvent what you know, make it something else.

You had a flashback scene in Dinner with Friends. It went from present to past and then back to present again, interrupting the through line. Why did you employ that?

Sight Unseen plays around with time more than Dinner with Friends does. Dinner with Friends is pretty linear. When I finished the play, I realized the way that I had structured it hadn't permitted a scene in which all four characters appeared. And I felt that in order to really complete the story of these two couples, these friendships, I needed to create a scene in which the four of them were together. That became the first scene of the second act that begins twelve years earlier, when Gabe and Karen introduce Tom and Beth, which becomes obviously a fateful meeting.

Talk a little bit about conflict and emotional tension in a play, which you handle so well.

I've always been interested in behavior and in subtext, in things that are not said, that are expressed through behavior...and through language. In order for there to be drama, there's got to be conflict. And in order for there to be conflict, the stakes have got to be very high for the characters. Even if things are not exceedingly high in our eyes, we are seeing how important it is to those characters, and in seeing that, we identify. We can all replace equivalents for people's different experiences that we see onstage and plug in our own autobiography. So in order for there to be drama there's got to be conflict...and there was no conflict incidentally in Grace Paley's short story. It was all very benign. I created conflict.

You empathize with both sides of an issue. As in Collected Stories, neither woman is an angel. It is up to the audience to make up their own minds as to what is right. Is that correct?

That's true of everything I write. And this may be parenthetical, but I give an assignment in my playwriting class at Yale, after they read the play Aunt Dan and Lemon by Wallace Shawn, which has at its center a really shocking monologue essentially about fascism. I have my students write a monologue from the point of view of someone they find reprehensible. But they're charged with: Do not condescend to these people. Do not turn them into a joke. Really get inside the head of somebody who is not like you. Try to figure out why do they maintain that point of view? Do it with as much integrity and dignity for the character as possible. That is something I live by. In creating arguments onstage you really have to totally empathize with people who you may not agree with. As in Collected Stories, in a balanced argument in its presentation, the audience's sympathies will shift from moment to moment and from statement to statement. "She's right. Oh no, she's right". That's the way it should be. No one is a villain. There is no Eve Harrington in Collected Stories. That's a misrepresentation of the play. It's not that. It's really a love story about these platonic women. Platonic mother/daughter surrogates.

Screenplays that you have written, do you keep them pretty much the same as the plays?

I've written three adaptations of my plays, two of which have been made into movies. Dinner with Friends was made into an HBO movie and Collected Stories was made into a PBS movie. I also wrote Sight Unseen as a screenplay. That play was my breakthrough in 1991. I tend not to completely reconceive the plays...there are fewer lines of dialogue only because film, the camera doesn't tolerate language as much as you can use it onstage. Sight Unseen, because it has so many different time elements gave me the freedom to jump around a lot, which is something you can readily do on film. The structure of Sight Unseen is probably the most different from a play that I have adapted.

What else have you been working on besides Coney Island Christmas?

I always have several things going on at once in addition to teaching, which takes up a lot of time and energy. I do love it. I'm working on another new play called The Country House for the Manhattan Theatre Club, a commission also. I'm working on the book of a musical, which I'm not at liberty to discuss. I'm also working on a screenplay for an independent feature about the writer David Foster Wallace. That's pretty much what I have on my plate right now. There are also a couple of revivals that are being talked about. It's a very nice thing to live to see. Even though I'm still relatively young, I've been around a long time (he laughs) and it's very nice to see the work being rediscovered.

Do you have any mentors? What writers inspired you?

I would say Thornton Wilder, specifically Our Town and Chekhov inspired me. I've always admired his interest in psychology. His plays are kind of deceptive in that way, because it seems like there's not much that happens in them. But there are all these subterranean turmoils that are dealt with in Chekhov that I really identify with and draw inspiration from. My new play The Country House is a kind of homage to Chekhov.
I'm drawn to real identifiable behaviors...Pinter's Betrayal is a great play. What an example of economy in writing! It's exquisitely written.

Many would agree that Donald Margulies is an exquisite writer as well. See his Coney Island Christmas now previewing at the Geffen and opening on Wednesday November 28. It will play through December 30.
http://geffenplayhouse.com/

(photo credit: Don Grigware)

Interview with Actor Michael Weston

2012-10-24T12:52:00.001-07:00

Actor Michael Weston, known to TV audiences for his roles on House, Scrubs and an amazing guest star turn as "Jake" in Six Feet Under, co-stars with Robert Foxworth, Jeannie Berlin, JoBeth Williams and Robin Weigert in Jon Robin Baitz' Other Desert Cities now previewing and opening at the Mark Taper Forum December 9. Weston, who replaced initially cast Justin Long, recently took a break from rehearsals to sit down and talk about the play and his theatrical interests. Weston is the son of Tony winner John Rubinstein.

You live and grew up in New York, right?

I'm a little bit bi-coastal. We sort of followed my dad (John Rubinstein) around. I lived mostly in New York, but I was out here for early kindergarten and 7th grade. I went back and forth. But I definitely grew up in the wings of theatre most of my life. I remember when he was doing Children of a Lesser God, which came out here to the Taper... I loved it, it was magical to me.

Did you ever perform with him on stage?

No. To be honest, I was never really interested in theatre as a kid. I loved baseball, (he laughs) so I would play like in the Broadway Show League. I always loved all his pals in there, a bunch of guys and gals from Broadway shows, and they'd come and play softball in Central Park. My interest in theatre started in high school, mostly because my dean forced me to do it. I was creating trouble in the hallways, so he demanded that I do something with my spare time.

That accounts for you being cast in a lot of bad boy roles.

I play trouble makers. It's natural. (we laugh)

The first thing I saw you do was Six Feet Under, and you were such a little fiend, I hated you, but you nailed it so completely.

Oh, I was evil.

But I could tell underneath it all, that you have a tremendous sense of humor and were really enjoying what you were doing.

It was very dark, but I did really enjoy that. And it was such beautiful writing, as in this play. The way that they could churn that out as often as they did, it was an amazing show! That set the precedent. There was humor in it and there was the darkness of it and that allows you to play those kind of characters.

So, honestly, it wasn't that hard to play that drugged-out character?

No, it wasn't, and that may say terrible things, but the truth is, you're working with so many wonderful people...and, it's very dark material, but when you're actually shooting it, you don't think of it as that. When you play a character like that...I mean, he wasn't aware of the consequences of his actions as much, so, for me, I made a purposeful effort to really enjoy it. (he laughs)

The moment to moment - what is he going to do next? - element kept you on the edge of your seat. And you had a great rapport with Michael C. Hall!

He's such a lovely actor and a lovely man. We had a great time doing it.

I unfortunately did not see you in Scrubs or House, but I did catch a movie on late night cable called Wishcraft (2002). Talk about 360 degrees away from viciousness! You were this meek kid that I really felt sympathy for. And I studied many years ago with Austin Pendleton, who also had a role in that as a teacher.

Oh, I love Austin. We had fun doing that. He's one of those guys of the theatre that I've always admired. And yes, my character was a much sweeter, innocent dude. (he laughs)

It's just another side of you that you draw upon as an actor when you need it.

I guess so. I think in our core, we're all of that.

Let's get to Other Desert Cities. Tell us about the play and your character in it.

I'd heard of the play, and I've been a fan of Robbie Baitz forever. I remember, my dad was up at Vassar, and as a kid I watched him do Three Hotels. As I watched rehearsals, I fell in love with the writing. Not really understanding why, I just loved it. It set the world so amazingly. And then I was up at Williamstown (Massachusetts) and I saw another play of his with John Benjamin Hickey...I can't remember the name of it...it was so beautiful. I'm a huge fan of his. When this role came up, I just crossed my fingers, and there's nothing better than to be in a beautiful play. I love the depth of this play. I love family dramas that have a sense of humor and that are so alive, full of that amazing energy onstage.

What is your character like?

I play Trip Wyeth who's the youngest son.

Another troublemaker?

He's a mischievous guy, but he's got a big heart. He's the caretaker of the family even as the youngest son. I've sort of played that role in my own family a bit. So, it's a very deep and personal role to me. I understand him well.

You have several brothers and sisters in real life, correct?

I do. Families go through their ups and downs. In this play Trip is this loving soul who is trying to keep his family together, amidst their past, pain, ambitions. This play effortlessly makes each character the center of the action at different moments and seemingly altogether as a portrait. It's really a masterpiece of writing, so rich on a human level. It's so wonderful to step into these characters and live in that for a couple of hours. Especially living out here in Los Angeles, it's very rare when you get an opportunity to ride out a character for two hours straight. It's really a privilege. I can't wait to do it.

with hugh laurie in house

You are in a terrific cast! I haven't seen Jeannie Berlin in years!

I just saw her in Margaret, Kenny Lonergan's film. Jeannie is spectacular in it. JoBeth (Williams) and Robert Foxworth are just wonderful actors. It's so great to be a part of that. I didn't know Robin (Weigert) at all, before we got into this. She is a perfect motor for this play in her heart, and she's so smart and so fun. We gelled really quickly as a family. It's a real ensemble play. Everyone speaks and does a lot. I have a lot of moments on stage where I'm just listening, watching this drama unfold around me. I always feel a part of it, which is really a testament to the actors, and Robert Egan is just a wonderful director who I've always wanted to work with. I did Ojai Playwrights Festival with him years ago. We hit it off, and it's been really special to work with him. This family becomes very much alive onstage. Even when I'm not opening my mouth, I feel great.

Talk about "opening your mouth" and singing. You must have some musical talent with all those great genes.

I play piano. I've always sort of dabbled. My wife is this amazing musician. My dad is a great composer. My grandfather was a crazy pianist (renowned concert pianist Arthur Rubinstein). I never really wanted to get into any of it, because they were all too good. Just recently I did a little independent movie called Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best where I was forced to play in a band and sing. We went on the road. We did it all, and it was so much fun. We got a record deal with Warner Bros playing this really silly music. We have like an album out. So, I have a band, man. (he laughs)

So you are equipped to do a musical on stage!

If I was forced to, but I'd be terrified. I love all the old musicals. I grew up on them. But I find that there are people that are so adept...I just find it scary. If someone gave me a shot, though, I'd try it out. (laughs)

Who are your idols besides your dad?

I love Gene Hackman. I love Ryan Gosling...I watch his work and ...he's one of my peers...and I cannot get enough of Meryl Streep. She can do no wrong. There are so many. I just wrote a movie and I'm going to direct it in the spring. I love actors so much, what they come up with, just being able to be a part of it...I have so many idols, big and small. Many of them are my peers that I work with, who make these little movies and get them out there. It takes such passion and resilience, and I have a lot of respect for them.

If you had to sum up acting, what is the best thing about being an actor?

As an actor, you have a chance to communicate and make a connection about something very human, about life, about fears, about hopes and dreams. Being able to traffic in that, in those feelings and emotional quality, share that with people especially on stage where you have a direct throughline to the audience. I have a huge respect for that. It fuels me. I get a high off of it, as you walk offstage. And if I can get a laugh at the end of it...SOLD! (we laugh)

What an exciting and energized human being! See Michael Weston in Other Desert Cities at the Mark Taper Forum, now previewing and opening officially on December 9!

(photo credit: Don Grigware)
http://www.centertheatregroup.org/

Entrevista 2012 con Vikki Carr

2012-10-12T06:13:00.002-07:00

Cantante/actriz legendaria Vikki Carr, nacido Florencia Bisenta de Casillas Martínez Cardona en El Paso, Texas, se disparó al estrellato como cantante de pop estadounidense en 1962 con "El es un rebelde", seguido de "It Must Be Him" y "con Pen in Hand ". Años después en los 80 y 90 sus grabaciones españoles le trajeron tres premios Grammy y fue precedente para muchos otros cantantes que se cruzaron y se convirtieron en éxito, tanto en inglés y español. Ahora en el 2012 regresa a Discos Sony con un nuevo álbum Viva la Vida, publicado el 25 de septiembre. En nuestra charla habla sobre el álbum, las organizaciones benéficas que están cerca de su corazón y de cómo se siente ser mexicana-americana.

Felicitaciones por 50 años en el mundo del espectaculo!

-Gracias, ya es 53!

Me imagino que contaba a partir de 1962.

-Bueno, fui a la carretera en 1959.

Eso es un hito, Vikki. Congrats!

-Mil gracias.

Escuché las tres primeras canciones de Viva la Vida y su voz suena mejor que nunca!

-O Gracias, Don! Muchisimas gracias!

¿Te grabaste esto en los últimos meses?

-O no, ese álbum Viva la Vida iba a ser mi álbum de aniversario y un agradecimiento a todo México y toda América Latina por todo el éxito que me han dado en los últimos años ... para decirles que mientras Dios continúa bendecirme con mi voz que voy a estar ahí para ellos. Pero fue una de esas cosas que cuando no estás con una compañía de discos ... y mi marido dijo: "Hay que cantar. Estás cantando mejor". Así que invirtió en mí mismo, y qué mejor inversión puede tener? Yo trabajaba y trabajaba y le dije a mi director Carol Peters, "Estoy tratando de conseguir un sello discográfico." Todo se hizo ... la grabación ... Me co-produje junto a José Hernández. Yo supervisaba todo, el fotógrafo, todo el asunto. Fue tan frustrante, Don.

¿Cuánto tiempo hace de eso?

-Hace tres años. Y resulta que oyeron .... Sony. Carol se les presento, y estos jóvenes ... Yo los llamo joven en comparación con la vieja banda que se utilizo para ejecutar las empresas. Fueron criados con mi música, y cuando lo oyeron, dijeron: "Oh, queremos liberarla", yada yada ... y yo acabo de volver de hacer una gira promocional por todo increíble de Miami y Los Ángeles. Son sólo tan emocionadas. Desde su lanzamiento en septiembre, ha pasado de 49 en los charts latinos a 16. Es un best seller.

Fabuloso! Eso es genial!

-Ya sabes, esto puede abrir la puerta para que haga otras cosas. He estado haciendo conciertos. Lo que más me entero está tratando de presentar lo que soy, una mexicana-americana que tuvo éxito en inglés, y gracias a ese éxito, tuve la oportunidad de grabar el primer álbum todo en espanol. Resulta que cuando regresé de México ... todos ellos le preguntaron: "¿Va a hacer un show de español o su programa de inglés?" Ha sido una lucha. Quiero hacer la demostración de lo que soy. Soy capaz, gracias a Dios, atraeré a todos clases de gente a mis conciertos. ¡Es la cosa entera ¿Eres un artista? ¿Puedes contar historias? ¿Se puede hacer reír a la gente? ¿Lo sientes? ¿Lloran con usted? ( se ríe ) Ahora, en esta etapa de mi carrera , mi idea es que voy a ser quien soy y he sido siempre, no tener que pedir disculpas por ello.

Eres una gran cantante. Usted ha sido una de mis favoritos desde la secundaria. Cuando escucho a la hermosa música cantada por un cantante increíble, no me importa qué idioma está adentro. Es la música y quién la canta lo que cuentan.

-La música es el lenguaje universal. Descubrí que si yo estaba en un país donde no hablo la lengua, si pudiera hacer contacto visual con la gente, y conseguir una sonrisa o sonrisa en ellos, entonces sentí que había conectado. Cuando vas a ver ópera, no todo el mundo tiene las tablas como lo hacen en el Met que pueden decir que lo que está ocurriendo. Pero sí sé cuando está triste o gracioso, o es trágico ... que habla por sí mismo, y le toca a la persona que está realizando o cantar a afectar a la interpretación.

¿Es este el primer álbum que han producido?

-Produje otro ... ¿te acuerdas de Live at the Greek ?

¡Por supuesto!

-Bueno, esa fue mi producción. No era mi dinero, pero ... es tan divertido, porque lo que estoy queriendo es volver a la Griega y celebrar ... ¿cuántos años desde que hice esa primera y ahora ser capaz de incorporar todo lo que soy, con una big band. Mi sueño es hacer un homenaje a Sinatra, mi manera. No quiero decir eso para ser gracioso ni nada, pero cómo podría yo cantar. Esa era la música con que me alce. No me crié con el rock and roll, pero eran las grandes bandas y los sonidos españoles, la gran música de mi padre y de mi madre. Esa fue mi base musical entero.

Memorias, el homenaje que hicieron por PBS hace unos años con la música de los años 40 y 50 era una maravilla!

-O, gracias. Hace unos tres años, yo también hice Fiesta Mexicana. Fui a México y nos mostramos algunas de las ciudades más bellas y las danzas y la música. Era exquisito, visualmente tan bello, dirigido por Leo Eaton. ¿Has visto eso?

No, pero yo voy a buscarla. Volviendo a Viva la Vida, gracias por el segundo CD con muchos de sus éxitos de todos los tiempos españoles.

-Se presentó con una visión diferente esta vez, lo que mis sentimientos eran y por qué he elegido esas canciones. Les dije a la compañía discográfica lo mucho que aprecio todo reenvasado siguen haciendo, pero agregue: "¿No sería bueno tener algo de material nuevo? Voy a seleccionar las canciones y escribir por qué son tan especiales para mí." A ellos les gustaba la idea.

Háblame de las organizaciones benéficas más cercanas a su corazón.

-El que yo he sido tan identificado con mi fundación es beca que me comence en California en 1971 . He podido ayudar a más de 350 jóvenes mexicanos-americanos los estudiantes hispanos a continuar con su educación. Me cansé de toda la negatividad y yo tuvimos una maravillosa dama PR / gerente, quien se hartó de mi queja y me dijo: "Mira, si no te gusta, haz algo al respecto." Pensé qué diablos iba a hacer? Entonces, Dios me envió ese comercial de la Asociación Nacional de Productos Lácteos antes de que alguna vez fue el bigote blanco. Esto fue en el al oeste y al norte. Funcionó por dos años. El dinero que me gané fue a las becas. Decidí ayudar a un estudiante, y cuando me senté en la cama leyendo estas aplicaciones de las familias, algunas de ellas las familias migrantes que tenían tantos hijos sino que se encargó de que todos y cada uno de ellos tiene una educación. Uno de los chicos se graduó con un 4.0 y quería ser un criminólogo. Lloré y dije "tengo que continuar con esto." Desde 1971, he tenía un astronauta, el primer astronauta mexicano-americano José Hernández, un juez de la corte superior, los médicos que tienen consultorios, abogados, tengo personas que están de moda en Nueva York ... Nunca he tenido hijos biológicos, pero en un Así, estos han sido mis hijos. Nosotros no eramos ni son la base grande, pero nos preocupamos por los niños, ¿tienen la ropa que necesitan y lo que necesitan, además de eso? Ha sido mi bebé. (ella se ríe) Tengo que decirte esto. Este álbum ... Lo consideré como mi bebé y hemos estado diciendo a la gente: "Dios mío, tomó años para que este bebé salga, por amor de Dios" ... salió y dijo: "Hola, mamá. Hola, papá. "Y luego fue directamente a la escuela. Cuando usted realmente, realmente crees en algo, tienes que luchar por ello. Tuve que luchar por" It Must Be Him ", tuve que luchar por" con la pluma en la mano", "Luché por la primera álbum en español. Es un poco irónico que las cosas que he luchado por han sido unos de mis mayores éxitos. Está confirmado que en mí tienes que hacer lo que tú crees en tu corazón, lo que quieres hacer, porque nadie más puede sentirlo. Ellos no eres. Es mejor ir todos hacia fuera para él y decir: "Lo intenté, pero no fue así" en lugar de quejarse y decir: "Oh, Dios mío, no lo hice esto o eso. "Todos caemos en esa trampa.

¿Quiénes son tus cantantes favoritos de todos los tiempos? Sé que ya has mencionado Frank Sinatra.

-Uno de mis favoritos de todos los tiempos es Tony Bennett. Me sentí mal que nunca me pidieron que hiciera su Duets álbum. Otros son Judy Garland, Kay Starr, Teresa Brewer, me refiero a la música con que me crié.

Cualquier de la nueva cosecha que te gusta?

-Adele, ella tiene una gran voz.

Al igual que usted, yo prefiero escuchar sobre todo los oldies but goodies.

-Necesito escuchar una melodía,.. Quiero oír la voz. Me siento tan aburrido con algunas de las cosas que oímos. Tengo nietos y van a jugar este y decir: "Vamos, abuela. Puede ranura para esto. "Y yo les digo:" Yo no lo creo. "

Te vi en Follies hace unos 10 años. ¿Le gusta hacer comedias musicales?

-Me encanta hacer shows. De hecho, mi primera Fue Pacífico Sur . Era increíble, y también hice Insumergible Molly Brown El y yo estoy haciendo mi actuar juntos y Taking It On the Road . Me encanta que usted está contando una historia con su música. Eso es realmente lo que trato de hacer con toda mi música. Es increíble para mí que todas estas colecciones que están saliendo de Inglaterra, como EMI, tienen algunos de mis más grandes éxitos que eran muy grandes en Europa. ¿Quién sabía? Hijo de un arma ...

Usted tiene una pasión en su voz que no tiene la mayoría de los cantantes!

-Me alegro porque esa es una de las cosas que mi padre siempre decía:
"Lo que haces en tu vida, haz con todo su corazón! El día que usted no puede hacer eso, parar, porque el público lo sabrá. "Y lo harán. Cuando llegue esa reacción visceral, ya sabes.

¿Cómo te sientes acerca de pasos que los hispanos han hecho en el mundo del espectáculo?

-Me gustaría el latino de ser aceptado por ellos mismos como el talento y no tienen ese estigma de ser latino. Al igual que Ricardo Montalban jugando un japonés en la pelicula Sayonara , él es actor . He hecho algunas cosas en la televisión como en Baywatch, yo era una de esas chicas (se ríe), no, yo era la madre de un socorrista. He audición para los roles y siempre me ven ... no se ajustan a su caricatura de lo que ellos piensan que debo ser. No todos están de oliva de piel clara. Mi madre era muy, muy ligera. Traté de permanecer en el sol (se ríe) y todo lo que tengo cáncer de piel. Así que, obviamente, tengo que ser feliz con el color que tengo.

Bueno, usted es hermosa exactamente como eres, y te queremos!

-Muchas gracias, Don.

Vikki Carr es un ser humano cálido, atento estar con un gran sentido del humor que se traduce en todo lo que hace. Comprar Viva la Vida y vivir su pasión!

www.vikkicarr.net
Entrevista en ingles - abajo!
Interview in English - below!

PUBLICADO POR DON GRIGWARE EN 11:56 AM NO HAY COMENTARIOS:

PUBLICADO POR DON GRIGWARE EN 11:56

AM NO HAY COMENTARIOS:

2012 Interview with Vikki Carr

2012-10-11T11:56:00.002-07:00

Legendary singer/actress Vikki Carr, born Florencia Bisenta de Casillas Martinez Cardona in El Paso, Texas, skyrocketed to superstardom as an American pop singer in 1962 with "He's a Rebel" followed by "It Must Be Him" in 1967 and "With Pen in Hand" in 1969. In the 80s and 90s her Spanish recordings brought her three Grammy Awards, and she set the precedent for cross over artists becoming successful in both English and Spanish. Now in 2012 she returns to the Sony label with a new album Viva la Vida, released on September 25. In our chat she talks about the album, the charity that is closest to her heart and how she feels about being a Mexican-American in show business.

Congratulations on 50 years in the business!

-Thank you, it's already 53!

I guess I was counting from 1962.

-Well, I went on the road in 1959.

That's a milestone, Vikki. Congrats!

-Thanks so much.

I listened to the first three tracks of Viva la Vida and your voice sounds better than ever!

-Oh, thank you Don! Thank you so much!

Did you record this over the last several months?

-Oh no, that album Viva la Vida was going to be my anniversary album and a thank you to all of Mexico and to all of Latin America for all the success that they have given me over the years...to tell them that as long as God continues to bless me with my voice that I will be there for them. But it was one of those things that when you're not with a record company... and my husband said "You've got to sing. You're singing better." So I invested in myself, and what better investment can you have? I worked and worked and said to my manager Carol Peters, "I'm trying to get a record label." Everything was done...the recording...I co-produced it with Jose Hernandez. I oversaw everything, the photographer, the whole thing. It was just so frustrating, Don.

How long ago was this?

-Three years ago. And it turns out that they heard it....Sony. Carol presented it to them, and these young people...I call them young compared to the old gang that used to run the companies. They were raised with my music, and when they heard it they said, "Oh, we want to release it", yada yada... and I just got back from doing an incredible promotional tour throughout all of Miami and LA. They are just so excited. Since its release in September, it's gone from #49 on the Latin charts to #16. It's a best seller.

Fabulous! That's great!

-You know, this can open the door for me to do other things. I've been doing concerts. My whole thing is trying to present who I am, a Mexican American who had success in English, and thanks to that success, I was able to record the first all Spanish album. It turns out that when I came back from Mexico...they all asked, "Is she going to do a Spanish show or her English show?" It's been such a struggle. I want to do the show of who I am. I'm able to, thank God, draw all kinds of people to my concerts. It's the whole thing Are you an entertainer? Can you tell stories? Can you make people laugh? Do they feel it? Do they cry with you? (she chuckles) Now, at this stage of my career, my whole idea is I'm going to be who I am and have always been, not having to apologize for it.

You're a great singer. You've been a favorite of mine since high school. When I listen to beautiful music sung by a terrific singer, I don't care what language it's in. It's the music and who's singing it that count.

-The music is the universal language. I found out that when I was in a country where I didn't speak the language, if I could make eye contact with the people, and get a smile or smile at them, then I felt I had connected. When you go to see opera, not everybody has the boards like they do at the Met that can tell you what is transpiring. But you certainly do know when it's sad or it's funny, or it's tragic...it speaks for itself, and it's up to the person who is performing or singing to achieve the interpretation.

Is this the first album you have produced?

-I produced another one...do you remember Live at the Greek?

Of course!

-Well, that was my production. It was not my money, but...isn't that funny because what I'm wanting to do is to go back to the Greek and celebrate...how many years since I did that first one... and now be able to incorporate everything of what I am, with a big band. My dream is to do a tribute to Sinatra, my way. I don't mean that to be funny or anything, but how I would sing. That was the music I was raised with. I wasn't raised with rock and roll, it was big bands and the great Spanish sounds, the music of my father and my mother. That was my whole musical foundation.

Memorias, the tribute you did for PBS a few years ago with the music of the 40s and 50s was wonderful!

-Oh, thank you. About three years ago, I also did Fiesta Mexicana. I went to Mexico, and we showed some of the beautiful cities and the dances and the music. It was just exquisite, visually so beautiful, directed by Leo Eaton. Did you see that?

No, but I'll look for it on DVD. Getting back to Viva la Vida, thank you for the second CD with many of your all-time great Spanish hits.

-It was presented with different insight this time: what my feelings were and why I chose those songs. I told the record company how much I appreciate all the repackaging they keep doing, but I added, "Wouldn't it be nice to have some new material? I'll select the songs and write why they are so special to me." They liked the idea.

Tell me about the charities closest to your heart.

-The one I have been so identified with is my scholarship foundation that I started in California in 1971. I've been able to help over 350 young Mexican-American Hispanic students to continue with their education. I just got tired of all the negativity, and I had a wonderful PR lady/manager who got fed up with my complaining and said, "Look, if you don't like it, do something about it." I thought what the heck could I do? Then, God sent me that commercial for the National Dairy Association before there ever was the white moustache. This was in the west and north. They ran it for two years. The money that I earned went to the scholarships. I decided to help one student, and as I sat in bed reading these applications from families, some of them migrant families who had so many children but they saw to it that every single one of them got an education. One of the kids graduated with a 4.0 and wanted to be a criminologist. I cried and said "I've got to continue this." Since 1971, I've had an astronaut, the first Mexican-American astronaut Jose Hernandez, a superior court judge, doctors that have clinics, attorneys, I have people that are into fashion in New York...I've never had any biological children, but in a way, these have been my kids. We weren't and aren't the big foundation, but we care about the kids, do they have the clothes that they need and what they need besides that. That has been my baby. (she laughs) I have to tell you this. This album...I considered it like my baby and I've been telling people, "My God, it took years for this baby to come out, for heaven's sake"... It came out and said "Hi, mom. Hi, dad." and then went straight to school. When you really, really believe in something, you have to fight for it. I had to fight for "It Must Be Him", I had to fight for "With Pen in Hand", I fought for the first all Spanish album. It's kind of ironical that the things that I fought for have been some of my biggest successes. It's reconfirmed in me that you have to do what you believe in your heart, what you want to do, because nobody else can feel it. They are not you. It's better to go all out for it and say "I tried but it didn't happen" rather than complain and say, "Oh my gosh, I didn't to this and I didn't do that." We all fall into that trap.

Who are your favorite singers of all time? I know you've already mentioned Frank Sinatra.

-One of my all time favorites is Tony Bennett. I felt bad that I was never asked to do his Duets album. Others are Judy Garland, Kay Starr, Teresa Brewer, I mean this was the music that I was raised with.

Any from the new crop that you like?

-Adele, she has a great voice.

Like you, I prefer to listen mostly to the oldies but goodies.

-I need to hear a melody; I want to hear the voice. I get so bored with some of the stuff that we hear. I have grandchildren and they'll play this and say "C'mon, grandma. You can groove to this." And I'll say, "I don't think so."

I saw you in Follies about 10 years ago. Do you enjoy doing stage musicals?

-I love doing shows. In fact, my first one was South Pacific. It was incredible, and I also did The Unsinkable Molly Brown and I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking It On the Road. I loved that, because I think what you do as a performer is you become that character, you're telling a story with your music. That's really what I try to do with all my music. It's amazing to me that all of these collections that are coming out from England, like EMI, have some of my greatest hits that were very big in Europe. Who knew? Son of a gun...

You have more passion in your voice than most singers!

-I'm glad because that's one of the things that my father always said,
"What you do in your life, do it with all your heart! The day that you can't do that, stop, because your audience will know." And they will. When you get that gut reaction, you know.

How do you feel about strides that Hispanics have made in show business?

-I would like the Latino to be accepted for themselves as talent and not have that stigma of being Latino. Like Ricardo Montalban playing a Japanese in the film Sayonara, he's an actor. I've done some stuff on television like on Baywatch, I was one of those babes (she laughs); no, I was the mother of a lifeguard. I've auditioned for roles and they always see me...I don't fit their caricature of what they think I should look like. Not all of us are olive-skinned. My mother was very, very light. I tried to stay out in the sun (she laughs) and all I got was skin cancer. So obviously I have to be happy with the color that I am.

Well, you're beautiful just the way you are, and we love you!

-Thank you so much, Don.

Vikki Carr is a warm, caring human being with a delightful sense of humor that translates into everything she does. Buy Viva la Vida and live her passion!
www.vikkicarr.net

Interview with Group rep's Julia Silverman and Liza de Weerd

2012-10-11T11:32:00.002-07:00

Donald Margulies, winner of a Pulitzer for his Dinner With Friends, was also nominated for the same prestigious award for Collected Stories, a taut two-character drama about a complicated relationship between a renowned short story writer, Ruth Steiner, and Lisa Morrison, a talented graduate student she is mentoring. The relationship deepens beyond mentor/pupil to best friend and confidant. Several years pass and Lisa publishes her own work of fiction…or is it?

Sherry Netherland directs actors Liza de Weerd and Julia Silverman in Collected Stories, opening Friday, October 12^th at the Lonny Chapman Theatre in the NoHo Arts District. Silverman recently received critical praise for her role in Group rep's The Paris Letter and de Weerd for her role in Group rep's Wait Until Dark.

Both actresses, who are GRT veterans, recently sat down to discuss the play and its challenges.

julia silverman

liza de weerd

When did you first get involved with theater (acting)?

Julia: My parents and grandparents have always gone to the theatre. My grandparents would keep their playbills, and mark notes (Gertrude Lawrence - "wonderful as always"). I think it was in my early teens I started tip-toeing into the world of theatre. In high school, I was lucky to have had an amazing theatre teacher who set high artistic standards. I was hooked.

Liza: I'm one of those people who pretty much came out of the womb knowing what I wanted to do. I’ve been involved in performing as long as I can remember. I think I did my first play around age six.

How do you know each other?

Liza: We met two and a half years ago doing a play called A Shayna Maidel at ICT. Julia played my mother and Larry Eisenberg, one of GRT's co-artistic directors, played my father.

We all had a wonderful experience working together and were looking for something else to collaborate on.

What attracted you to this play; how did this project come about?

Julia: This play has two great roles for women, and it is pretty rare to have such a wonderful role to play as an actress "matures”; so that was very attractive. But also, the material is complex. It's not just about how relationships shift and change between teacher/student, mentor/artist over time - but it's about ideas of art and ownership, that is to say, are all stories ever told collected from all other stories ever told or do we own our own stories? I think it's exciting that the material is provocative.

Liza: As Julia said, I am always drawn to plays with complex, challenging roles for women and this is the epitome of that. It's just two characters, who each transform over a six-year period. Getting to play that many sides of a character in one play is really exciting. That aside, the questions it raises are all topics that I hope will be debated on our audience members' car rides home.

We did a staged reading last year for the company (the Group Repertory in NoHo). It was well received by them, so we were encouraged to move ahead with it as a full production.

What was the most challenging aspect of portraying your character?

Julia: One of the challenges inherent in doing a two-hander, a two person play, is that, well, there are only two of you. No pauses for rest or backstage blather or whatever, it's all on all the time. There is a good amount of physical endurance in acting that isn't normally thought about, and it shouldn't be from the audience’s point of view. But I'm reminded of a story Kevin Kline told of Meryl Streep while they were rehearsing Mother Courage in Central Park. He said he would exhaustedly hail a cab after rehearsal to head home 6 blocks away. She would hop on her bike to pedal home 6 miles south saying, "I have to build up my endurance!" That's a bit what it's like.

Liza: Actors get asked, “How do you memorize all those lines?” The question always makes me smile, because for an actor, although it is our first duty to honor the text and that certainly involves learning the lines verbatim, it has little to do with the actual character work that goes on when working on a play. In this case, however, I suddenly understand why people ask that question! The sheer volume of dialogue in this piece was daunting at first and definitely a challenge. Lines must be learned backwards and forwards so an actor has the freedom to play and explore without worrying what comes next. That process took longer this time than it normally does. That and tracking the transformation of a character over six years makes this play a wonderful challenge.

What surprised you about your character, the play, or something that personally had an effect

on you?

Liza: It is very even handed. What Donald Margulies has done so brilliantly is set up a conflict in which I truly believe both sides are justified and can be argued for. I don't feel the play is weighted to favor one character or the other and that is an incredible achievement.

Julia: I completely agree with what Liza said. I can only add, I'm sure I will continue to be surprised by my character as we move into our run of the play. This play delightfully lets you keep digging.

What's up next for you (career-wise)?

Julia: What actor is ever sure about the next project? Although I'll be on “Grey's Anatomy”

Oct. 18th. “General Hospital” the 15th or 16th of October. But I'm looking forward to seeing what new theatre projects may come up.

Liza: Like Julia said, what actor knows? I do have a few irons in the fire, so hopefully I'll have some exciting news soon!

-interviewed by guest interviewer Steve Peterson

The Group Rep’s production of Collected Stories runs October 12 - November 10. Friday and Saturday at 8pm. Sunday at 2pm. There will be Talk-back with the cast and director, Sunday, October 21 after the show. Admission: $22; Seniors/Students: $17; Groups 10+: $15. Ladies Night ½ Price Fridays. Buy tix: www.thegrouprep.com or (818) 763-5990.

Interview with Cortes Alexander

2012-09-13T15:07:00.018-07:00

I first encountered actor/singer Cortes Alexander when he performed his show Swell - also the title of his solo CD - at Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal in August. The man is a whirlwind of talent as a musician/singer. When I heard he was doing a play entitled Dangerous Corner at Crown City Theatre - opening September 27 - I immediately sought him out for an interview. In our chat he talks about the challenges of doing this play and his musical work, including how his group The Tonics skyrocketed to fame.

Tell me about Dangerous Corner.

Oh boy...well, it's a play that was written by J.B. Priestley in the early 30s in England. It's a murder mystery whodunit. Gary (Lamb, director) has updated it to the early 60s. The whole play revolves around my character, who, in the original production physically is never seen.

So you are written in.

He wrote me in. Now, I...I lurk. I'm the one that is the catalyst for all the action in the play. I can't give away anything else.

How are rehearsals going?

Well. Gary, I have to say, is really talented. He really does know what he's doing. I've worked with a lot of different kinds of directors and seen a lot of different styles, and every day, I see a different thing that he does that is really smart. What he's done with my character is, he's musicalized it. So it's really fun. There are little snippets of music in there, I don't want to say too much, but...

Do you get a chance to sing?

...Maybe. (we laugh) The cast is wonderful, so talented. Matt Williamson plays my brother; he's fantastic. They're all great; it's fun to see how everyone works. Gary gets what he needs out of different actors. It's a hard role for me, though, I have to say, because there's no dialogue, there's a lot of blocking and you really have to pay attention to who's saying what to whom throughout the whole piece. I'm onstage almost the entire time. I've never done anything like this before. It's a challenge for me.

What other roles have you played?

I did a play some years ago with Robert Reed and Florence Henderson. It was his last play. Alone Together at La Mirada that Glen Casale directed. I played their youngest son going off to college. We got extended and were supposed to move to the Westwood Playhouse, but unfortunately Robert got sick, and that was the end of that.

I love Florence.

She's amazing. Gorgeous and smart. Raunchy and fun, in the best possible way.

Any real dramatic plays?

As a kid I did Equus and... Amadeus and was able to play my own piano in that. Now later in life, the music thing is rearing its ugly head, so I've been getting full opportunities to do more music stuff.

Was it your dream to be a musical star?

Not really. I saw myself as just a straight up actor, but I got into Juilliard when I was a kid. I took a left turn there...I was thirteen when I got in and I say it lasted about thirteen minutes because it was not the right place for me. I was born here in Los Angeles and my whole family moved to New York so that I could do this. It just wasn't the place for me at all; it took all the joy of music right out of me, but I went to a professional children's school. A lot of kids were in the arts: actors, athletes, kids that couldn't attend school on a regular basis, so academics were arranged around your touring or whatever you had going on. A lot of kids were auditioning for Broadway shows, and I found myself playing and arranging songs for their auditions.

You studied piano, correct?

Of course, but I'm not the greatest piano player in the world, by any means. I do well enough so that I can play the parts for my show, and to my Swell girls I'll say "OK, you sing E flat, you sing the G!"
I play well enough. In my little tiny scope of skill, I'm very accomplished.

I loved Swell and your two girl backup singers.

Thank you. We're doing another one at the Federal, a Christmas show on December 12.

With a lot of original Christmas material?

We're working on a couple right now, and Kay Thompson has her Christmas song...how can I not do that? She wrote "Holiday Season". It's a lot of work for one gig, but I love it and the girls are game,so...

Who are the girls again?

Melissa Bailey and Julie Garnier. Wait til you hear Julie; she wasn't in the last show. Melissa I met in my first Broadway show Marilyn: an American Fable. I was playing piano for someone else's audition, we were leaving the studio at Midstock, New York. Just as I was about to close the door behind me, behind the table they said, "Excuse me, do you sing?" I didn't really think of myself as a singer, but I sang to show other people what to do. I said "Yeah". I looked at this piece of music. It was the only time in my life where my Juilliard training helped me, because I was able to sight read the music. I said (he laughs) "Can you put it in A flat?" They transposed it for me right there on the spot, and I sang it. This was a Friday and on Monday morning they called and asked "Are you available to start rehearsals tomorrow?" Well, what do you know? How about that? That wasn't hard. Here's the thing that I just found out. Kenny Ortega's ( choreographer) assistant Greg Smith, who I hadn't seen since Fable, came to my show at the Federal in August and said to me, "You realize that we wrote that part for you", which I did not know. They said when they saw me, they wrote this role for me. What a nice thing to know!

Let's talk about how The Tonics got started.

What an incredible thing! I had a singing group in the early to mid-nineties called The Tonics. We started out here in LA at open mic every Tuesday night at the Rose Tattoo. I was just starting to sing on my own. It was very cliquish. There were the good people, the cool kids and then there were the novices. I definitely saw myself in that group. The cool group got to go up right away at open mic; the newbes had to wait until 11, 12 o'clock... when there are 2 or 3 people left in the audience. OK, I just wanted to see if I could get up and do it. I met Lindy Robbins, Gene Reed and Brian Lane Green. Gene had just come back from the road with Al Jarreau. Brian had just come back from New York after Starmites had closed. Lindy was sort of the resident diva of the place and asked me if I would sing backup for her. I did it; it was fun. When I saw what our blend (all four) was, I thought "Let me get my hands around this". Around the piano I said, "Hey guys, I have an idea of something that might be really cool". It was an arrangement of "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning" from Oklahoma with "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" from My Fair Lady. I blocked it out for all of us and we made a couple of little adjustments, and we sang it. It stopped the show. Every week we did another one and each week it was huge. After six weeks, Brian got a soap opera job in New York that was a great break for him, so we planned one last show for LA. We did all six numbers that we had learned and tagged four solos and got oohs! and ahs!

We decided to go to New York, so off we went. We sang at a little club called 88s, downtown West Village cabaret at the time. On a Friday, it was packed with people. I was at the piano, we were sharing mics... and it was difficult. On "Beautiful Morning" the place fell to a hush, and the owner of the club ended up giving us a gig at 12: 30 on a Monday night for four weeks. We took it because we wanted to be able to say we did it and get it out of the gate. We started singing in the street, passing out fliers and going to every open mic in town trying to get people to come. We met Jason Robert Brown, and he became our musical director. Amazing! He became such an integral part of our development. Anyway, we sold out the place and on the fourth week, the owner came to us and offered us Friday nights at 8 pm. The Times, the Post and Daily News came and gave us half a paragraph in each paper, saying we were the next Manhattan Transfer. From that point we never looked back. Daisy Prince, Hal's daughter came the first night and said "I'll introduce you to everyone you need to know!"

What luck! You were in!

Yes. Billy Stritch came, Liza (Minnelli) came and it completely steamrolled. We sang at the Prince's annual Christmas party and didn't know what to expect. We were so undisciplined. We would get into fights onstage. We would tell jokes, insult each other. We were four friends talking. I've watched tapes and now know what people were responding to. Somehow we would go from these fights into this incredibly disciplined, detailed harmony, that we were all fussy about. At the Christmas party, we walked into this great townhouse and there's Stephen Sondheim, there's Liza, there's Carol Burnett, Linda Lavin. All these incredible people! We did our thing, and Steve (Sondheim) came up to me afterwards and said, "Look, if they're doing another one of those God forsaken benefits honoring me - they make me so anxious and nervous - we're trying to get a group in there. Would you guys be interested and available?" Wow! When we got the list of songs, they were all ballads. This is how self-serving we were. We made them all up tempo. That was the idea for "Good Thing Going" and "Company", which we ended up doing at Carnegie Hall the following summer. I stayed with the group for 4-5 years, and we had a great deal of success.

I know you became great friends with Liza. How did this germinate?

She came to all of our shows; we would go to her shows. We sat in the front row at Carnegie Hall. She said she wanted to put together a new vocal trio and call it the Cortes Alexander Trio. She asked me to pick two guys and told me we'd go all around the world and do our thing. She didn't want the guys from The Tonics; she wanted it fresh, brand new. I auditioned and got Clarke Thorell and Jonathan Dokuchitz, who were just out of Tommy, and we did it. We went out on the road with her and went all over the world. The tour was crazy. We played the Kremlin in Moscow and then on to Michigan State University, to Bloomingdale's in San Francisco and then to Paris. An incredible, wild time! When the tour ended, I came out here to California, and Liza and I stayed in touch on the phone and at Christmas and New Year's. And when I'd go to New York, we'd have lunch. Then five years ago, I bumped into her on the way from the dentist, literally in the street, at the time I was starting my record Swell. She asked what I was doing, I told her about the CD, and she told me she wanted to do Kay Thompson's show in her show and asked me to be a part of it. I knew a lot of the material, but was starting to do my own thing, so I had to think about it. But I ended up saying yes, just like doing this play. I haven't done a play in a while and it's better to say yes to stuff and see what happens. It sure beats waiting around for the next thing. Jump in and see what happens! That's how I got Liza's show and that went on for 4 years. We played in Uruguay and Belgium, all over the place and ended up winning a Tony Award on Broadway: Liza at the Palace.

What do you think is Liza's greatest attribute?

Her loyalty and her sense of humor. Those are two things that few people get to see. She's had the same group of people around her for 20 years. I've known her 21 years, and it's the same core people. Even though I could go months and months without seeing her, when we get together, it's as if we had seen each other last week. In August I was back stage at the Hollywood Bowl trimming her bangs and she was supposed to come with Billy Stritch to see my show at the Federal, but unfortunately that was the week that Marvin Hamlisch passed. By the way, when I was 16, Marvin came to my high school and spoke. He came up to me after I performed and said "If there's one person that I can think of that's going to put me out of business, it's you. If you love this, stick to it, and I promise you good things will come!" He was a very sweet man.

As is Cortes Alexander! He's nonstop talkative, confident yet humble and oh so super talented. See him in his musical show Have a Swell Christmas on December 12 at Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal! And, with his mouth closed ...opening September 27 at Crown City Theatre in Dangerous Corner.

http://www.crowncitytheatre.com/

http://www.cortesalexander.com/

Interview with Steve Jarrard

2012-09-13T15:00:00.004-07:00

Steve Jarrard is the Managing Director of Collaborative Artists Ensemble. He has directed 7 of their 10 previous productions including Nicky Silver's The Food Chain, How I Learned to Drive, Eleemosynary, and Lucia Mad. Some of his other directing credits include Civilization, Doubting Thomason, and Noel Coward’s Present Laughter at the Edgemar Center for the Arts.
He is currently directing The Square Root of Wonderful, which is being revived from September 14-October 14 at the Raven Playhouse in NoHo.

How did you first get involved in theatre?

About a decade ago I was walking through the NOHO Arts Festival and, on a whim, signed up for an acting class. As luck would have it, the class was taught by Michael Holmes, who appeared in the original Broadway production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, who is an award-winning director, and who is a master acting coach. Turns out I could act a bit and was asked to join his company, The Action/Reaction Theatre Company. I fell in love with theatre then and have been involved in theatre ever since.

How did Collaborative Artists Ensemble come to be?

Meg Wallace has been making theatre all of her life and when she moved to Los Angeles, she wanted to keep making theatre. But she kept running into the lets-do-a-play-to-get-an-agent mentality. And she wanted to make theatre for theatre’s sake. So she and a few like-minded people started a company that would put on plays that are challenging to the actors and meaningful to an audience. A company where actors could be actors.

Member of the Wedding is the play that Carson McCullers is best known for. How did the rarely produced The Square Root of Wonderful come to your attention?

Meg is a big fan of Carson McCullers and was looking up Carson online when she came across the title. And the title, the beauty of it, grabbed her. She had to read anything titled The Square Root of Wonderful.

What drove you to choose this particular play for production?

When Meg and I read the play, we found it to be this beautiful mixture of funny and sad, of heartbreaking and heartwarming, of tragic and life affirming. We wanted to find out why this play that moved us so much was not well received in 1957. Digging into it, we felt that the mixing of tone along with the issues of suicide and spousal abuse, things that were not talked about in Eisenhower’s America, were the reasons. We also felt that those very things would resonate deeply with modern audiences. And the only way to find something out in the theatre is to do it. So we decided to give it a go.

You directed this play last spring and are now reviving it. What have you learned from having directed the play the first time around?

What I learned is that audiences today do respond to it; that they are moved by it. One person who saw it emailed us to say that she had to walk around NOHO for a half-hour before she could drive home. We also had High School students, who came as a class assignment, stay and talk to us after the show because they loved it so much.

What do you want your audiences to experience and come away with having seen the play?

We want them to experience the Joy and the Heartbreak that was Carson McCullers. We want them to come away wanting more of Carson McCullers, to discover, or rediscover her.

Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about The Square Root of Wonderful?

That this was her most personal work. Her life echoes loudly throughout this play. She wrote it in response to her husband’s suicide and her mother’s death. She poured her heart and soul, her life really, into this play. And when it didn’t do well on Broadway, it devastated her.

What is up next for Collaborative Artists Ensemble?

We have produced five plays a year for the past five years and next year we will do the same. We have several balls in the air at the moment and are trying to work out various things like rights, schedules, etc., for the spring and fall. One of the plays on our radar, that we’re very high on, is a musical version of They Shoot Horses Don’t They?

-guest interviewer Steve Peterson

2012 Interview with Maxwell Caulfield

2012-08-17T13:58:00.021-07:00

Actor/singer Maxwell Caulfield became an instant heartthrob in 1982 when Grease 2 hit the big screen. He also created a sensation in TV's Dynasty and The Colbys and has essayed countless MOWs on TV and stage plays internationally. Without question he has turned into a fine dramatic actor over the last 30 years. Originally from Great Britain, Caulfield has been married to actress Juliet Mills since 1980. He is currently rehearsing Euripides' Helen as King Menelaus at the Getty Villa in Malibu which opens September 6. In our chat he talks about Helen, some of his recent stage roles and those he would like to play.

Are you rehearsing this morning?

Actually we're teching so we start the day quite late so that we can take advantage of the twilight hours.

That's right. You're performing in the amphitheatre in Malibu.

Yeah...fantastic venue. It's really a privilege to be there, I can tell you.

I'm really looking forward to seeing Helen there. I've never been to the Getty Villa before.

Oh, haven't you? Well, the trick is to come early, 'cause from 6 o'clock on the Villa is available to the audience members - it's actually built into the price of the ticket - the galleries are open so you can steep yourself in that ancient culture, and then settle down and watch a high camp interpretation of Helen of Troy.

Talk about this adaptation. What has been changed in the adaptation?

Director Jon Lawrence Rivera has collaborated with playwright Nick Salamone to take Euripides's tale, which is not done very often...Trojan Women is done a lot, but Helen is not...even though we're talking about centuries, millenia of years that it could have been done...and so they unearthed this ancient story and have given it a degree of a Hollywood spin ...they haven't transplanted it to Hollywood but they have given it this shift where she is a major movie star who's gone into exile. It's very funny, but to try to explain it doesn't make sense, because it's still set in the ancient world. So you go, "How does that work? Celluloid didn't exist." But, for example, her Greek chorus is comprised of Marilyn Monroe's character Cherie from Bus Stop and Vivien Leigh's Blanche du Bois from Streetcar Named Desire and Elizabeth Taylor's Cleopatra. Historically, you go "Wait a minute, this is completely up the spout." It's very bold, certainly not like doing Shakespeare in modern dress. You could say that's convoluted as well. Somehow, they've pulled it off. We did a workshop of it about two months ago. The Getty goes in for a real development process. Jon Lawrence Rivera is a super guy and such fun to work for. He's a very generous director who's constantly amused by what we do. He's actually a very funny performer himself. To illustrate a point sometimes he will get up and show us what we're presently doing and what he'd rather we did do. He does it in such a charming way, you can't help but fall off your chair laughing. He's so spot on. And he's encouraged us to develop these characters from the beginning and to go with our gut instincts. He's let me basically barnstorm this role, and I'm having a field day with it. I don't want to give you too many preconceived notions but you have to fill that space, and it's a very big venue.

How have they changed Menelaos ( ancient Greek spelling or Menelaus)?

Not a lot. I'm not like some big shot studio chief or anything like that. It's not like you've gotta live with all this affectation as it were, it's not like that. I am still staggering back from 10 years of siege on the Trojan shore, 7 years lost in the Mediterranean. I'm trying to find Helen. It's hard to explain, but watching it, I think the audience will be amused. This pastiche, this veneer that's been added to it, somehow it does not only give it a more contemporaneous viewpoint but it also provides a lot of humor.

Are you doing it in original dress or are the costumes contemporary?

We haven't gotten into wardrobe yet, as limited as mine is. I spend half the show walking around with a sort of a shred of a flag from my armada wrapped around my waist and not much else. I've been shipwrecked.

It's just an excuse to get you shirtless onstage, that's all!

I know, but at the same time, it is written in the script. Frankly, I'm flattered that I'm still being asked to drop trou, as it were, or whatever the expression is.

You did Cactus Flower off-Broadway last year. How was that?

I really appreciate being a part of that cast and I also appreciate the ambition of the creative team. 2011 was a hot season in New York of really great innovative work, so the competition was great. We gave it a straight ahead production and it should have been stood on its head, reinvented. We played the Westside Theatre, which is really a premiere off-Broadway house, and we gave it the college try. Each time I go back to New York, I want to do something with a bit more of a bite to it. The role was a fun part for me on paper, and I should have made it work, and to an extent I did, but it's not top of my CD.

You also did Billy Flynn in Chicago on Broadway a while ago, correct? Did you have fun with that?

I had a ball. I also had had a glorious 8 week run in London prior to Broadway. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my career. My two leading ladies were absolutely sensational and I got to do West End Live, which is an annual summer promo they do in Lester Square on the West End. You play to the tourists, to the people and I got a chance to sing Billy's trademark tune, so I felt like a rock star.

in New York, in Tryst a couple of years ago

Is that the first musical you've done in a while?

Yeah. I've not done enough of it. You can work and scratch out a living in the theatre, but, if you want to make money, you've got to hit the road. You've got to play big houses of 2, 3 thousand seaters with your name above the bill, do popular fare and reach out to the audience such as it is.

Do you have a dream role that you want to play?

There are several. The first one that comes to mind, in the classical world, would be to play Coreolanus,
and in the musical theatre world, Henry Higgins (My Fair Lady)...and if any major regional theatre like the CTG downtown (Michael Ritchie) does Jerusalem, it's a fantastic part, you can really fill a proscenium arch, you can really go for it. That's my style; I'm no shrinking violet on the stage (we both laugh)...That's one of the reasons I don't work in front of the camera more, not that I give outsized performances - I like to think I can make that shift between the two media, but...

Hang in there! You and Juliet (Mills) are terrific actors!

Thank you. I had the extreme pleasure of working with Geraldine Page a few years back on a couple of occasions and she was talking about her relationship with Rip Torn, which was a complex one. "Rip just wanted to bring home the log". (laughs) I couldn't agree more, as I would like to bring home the bacon more. But I'll tell you, Don, it's bizarre, our profession is fraught with uncertainty, always has been, but now it's literally nationwide. There isn't a single business where anybody feels secure. Even the postal workers...let's hope we don't make any rash decisions this November...

See Maxwell Caulfield in Helen! Performances of Euripides’ Helen will be held Thursday through Saturday, September 6 through 29, 2012 at 8:00 p.m., with previews from August 30 through September 1. Tickets are $42 ($38 for students and seniors, $25 for preview performances). Tickets and further information are available by calling (310) 440-7300 or online.

with Rachel Sorsa as Helen

2012 Interview with Helen Reddy

2012-08-02T08:47:00.019-07:00

Actress, singer, activist turned hypnotherapist Helen Reddy was named the Queen of 70s Pop. In 1973 she had three # One hit tunes, including of course "I Am Woman", which she co-wrote herself, not finding at that time a single song to record that satisfied her feminine wiles. Now living in Australia, Reddy seems relaxed, content, but still eager, like Norma Desmond, to 'return' to the biz , singing. In our chat she explains why, and talks candidly about the high ... and low points of her life.

What prompted the comeback now?

Well, I don't call it a comeback as much as a Renaissance. I retired ten years ago and went back to college and got a degree in clinical hypnotherapy at the age of 60. I went back to my native Australia and lived a very different life. Anyway, the genesis of going back to singing was my sister's 80th birthday in March. She asked if I would sing a duet with her, and I said OK...and it was so much fun, and it was so appreciated, and I thought, "I miss singing, I used to love doing this". So, that was kind of it. My sister's son, by the way, Tony Sheldon, who was in Priscilla Queen of the Desert in London and New York - we're very, very proud of him - he's just been back in Oz and visiting his mother and all his friends. He's back in New York now.

I hope he does the show when it comes here.

I don't think so. He did the show for five years and The Producers for two years before that...and he's had it with the high heels. He's beginning to appear in trousers. (we laugh)

Talk about the venues where you'll be appearing.

I'm at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano on Friday, August 10 and the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills on the following night. I had chosen three nights before that, a few weekends ago. The first was at Croce's in San Diego, and not having sung in 10 years, I wanted a small cozy kind of venue to break in. The first thing I said to the audience was, "I haven't done this in 10 years. If I make a mistake, cut me some slack." They were wonderful. The following two nights we were at St. Genevieve High School in Panorama City, and I booked those three nights from Australia. Dan Horn, who was the principal of the school, is a long time friend of mine, and that was another perfect spot to sort of 'get back on the horse'.

And how do you feel? Do you feel good again?

I do. I enjoy it, while I'm doing it. It's a long wait, though, in between (engagements)...

Will you give us a little preview of what you'll be singing?

Well, it won't be the greatest hits, although I will do some of them. I wanted to sing the songs I wanted to sing. I'm not a nostalgia act. However, there are a lot of album cuts (they didn't get any airplay, but fans will be familiar with them) that I still remember and love, so I'm doing a lot of those ballads. I'm doing "I Am Woman", but in a different way. I feel much more relaxed.

Who are your favorite singers? Did any one in particular inspire you?

There are so many wonderful, wonderful singers...when I was young, Peggy Lee was definitely a very big influence on me. And then I realized I was imitating her, and that wasn't a good thing, so I started listening to more male vocalists. This was in my teens, and I also listened a lot to big bands, because there was so much music in them. I didn't have to listen vocally; I could listen to the orchestra. I don't know if that makes sense.

Yes, because the whole thing works together. The musicianship is so important because it dictates what you're doing.

Exactly right.

You've done Broadway. Tell me about Shirley Valentine.

I didn't do that on Broadway. The only show I did on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre was Blood Brothers. I also did it on the West End of London and on tour in the UK. I've done four productions of Shirley Valentine, but regional.

How did you like doing those shows?

Totally. I mean Shirley Valentine, what a wonderful leading role! You play 14 characters just in Act I, Scene I. It is a true tour-de-force, and I loved every second of it. I'm a huge fan of Willy Russell. Blood Brothers is a different type of role from Shirley, but it's still done with a Liverpool accent, although Shirley's is a little more upmarket than Mrs. Johnson's.

Did you like performing in theatre more than on the concert stage?

It's apples and oranges. I enjoy both.

Do you keep up with musical trends and how things have changed?

Quite honestly, I've been out of the music business so long now, I really couldn't say. The only music I listen to is music that I've got, the CDs that I can play for myself. A lot of what's on the radio is unintelligible for me. But there are stations that play songs from certain eras...I'm OK with that. A lot of today's music is simply voice and drum. And the voice usually isn't singing, it's talking.

Is your favorite music from the 30s and 40s?

Well, for me, it's the 70s. But, there were some wonderful songs written in the 1930s. I'd say the 20s through the 50s, there was some wonderful music written.

When you made it in the early 70s was it overwhelming for you to accept the tremendous success?

In 1973 I had three Number One hits on the charts. I had my own TV show The Helen Reddy Show on NBC. There was a tremendous amount going on. It was also the same year my son was born, in December of 72, my mother died in July of 73, my father died in September of 73; then an aunt I was very close to, I was named for her, she virtually raised me - she died in January 74, so there was a lot of private grief going on at the same time as the success. Work is work, and I'm glad I had all the opportunities that I had, but I think living life to the full is the most important thing.

You're a hypnotherapist. What kind of work does that entail?

I practice clinical hypnotherapy in Australia, not on a regular basis, but it's something I enjoy very much. I particularly specialize in past life regressions and reuniting people with loved ones who have passed over. It's very rewarding.

You wrote a book in 2006, correct?

Yes, The Woman I Am. It's available on my website. It's a good read. I did it all myself.

Are you getting psyched about the two concerts next weekend?

Yes, I'm really looking forward to them. I'm also flying up to Oakland tomorrow (Saturday, August 4) for an AIDS benefit. I'll do "You and Me Against the World" and "I Am Woman".

What a down-to-earth woman! Helen Reddy remains a true champion and great human being! Catch her next week.

Visit her website for further info and tix:

circa 1971

www.helenreddy.com

http://www.songkick.com/artists/19982-helen-reddy

see my review of the evening at the Canyon Club:

http://grigware.blogspot.com/2012/08/review-helen-reddy-in-concert.html

composer alan o'day, helen reddy and son jordan sommers

2012 Interview with Gregg T. Daniel

2012-07-25T19:05:00.017-07:00

Gregg T. Daniel has a diversified and well-known career as stage director/actor and television/film actor. His stage direction includes 2009's critically-acclaimed production of Tom Stoppard's Heroes at the Group rep and Sybyl Walker's Beneath Rippling Waters presented by the Company of Angels @ the Fremont Center in Pasadena in 2006. More recently he helmed Group rep's critically acclaimed Cobb.
In this chat, conducted by guest interviewer Steve Peterson, Daniel discusses his latest directorial work Elmina's Kitchen for Lower Depth Theatre Ensemble (LDTE), opening August 11 at the Lost Studio on La Brea in Hollywood.

What have you been up to recently?

Most recently, I performed in a production of August Wilson’s Jitney at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa. The production transferred in its entirety to the Pasadena Playhouse for another month long run. Prior to that, I directed a critically acclaimed production of playwright Lee Blessing’s Cobb for the Group Repertory Theatre. I’ve also been a visiting Guest Director at USC’s School of Theatre. I’m returning to the school in early October to begin rehearsals with the undergraduate class on Flyin West by Pearl Cleage.

How did Elmina's Kitchen come to your attention?

Earlier this year, I was invited to take part in a presentation at USC titled “Voices from the Black Diaspora.” We presented selected staged scenes from three international playwrights. One of the plays was Elmina's Kitchen by British playwright, Kwame Kwei-Armah. I was exhilarated by the two scenes we read from his play. The next day, I ordered a copy of the play from Amazon. After reading it, I knew our company had found its next production.

LDTE's first production, Three Sisters After Chekov, was well received. You directed the play, and the other founding members were in the play. With Elmina's Kitchen you are directing, but the other company members are not in the production. How did that weigh in LDTE's decision to choose this play?

While I was convinced Elmina’s Kitchen was artistically right for our company, I recognized none of the six roles in the play suited the company’s founding members. This situation presented us with an interesting dilemma. Does LDTE only mount plays which has roles for its core members? It was a difficult choice to make but in the end, the decision was unanimous. Every one of our members felt we needed to mount this work. The compelling nature of the piece made it a story we wanted to tell.

What is the play about?

Elmina’s Kitchen deals with three generations of black men and their struggles to survive in a highly volatile area of London known as “murder mile.” I think the play is about choices. What conditions influence our choices and the ramifications of those choices. The decisions we make not only affect our immediate family, it affects our community as well as the society we live in.

What are the challenges in directing this play?

One big challenge in directing the play is to not make it feel foreign to our theatergoers even though the world it’s set in (inner city contemporary London) is culturally specific. There are amazing parrarels within the play to our own country’s troubles with gang violence, broken families and racism.

What is the take away - - what do you want the audience be thinking about or feeling after the play as they leave the theatre?

I welcome a situation where our audience feels a variety of things when leaving the theatre. I never want to dictate how the audience should feel since aspects of the story will affect each theatergoer in a different way. I only hope they find within the material some aspect of their humanity which would make the experience resonant for them.

The playwright currently resides and works the United States. Any chance he might be in attendance at any point?

Yes, our playwright, Kwame Kwei-Armah, has expressed an interest in attending the West Coast premiere of his work. Kwame is currently the Artistic Director of a major regional theatre, Centerstage in Baltimore, Md. We’re trying to work out the details that would allow him to visit.

For LDTE, is there something in the planning stages for your next production?

LDTE is interested in fulfilling our commitment to developing new works, which is part of our mission statement. To that end, we’re planning a workshop in January 2013 where we will work with a playwright (s) in the early stages of his (their) work.

What's up next for you?

Next up, I will be directing a staged reading of Alice Childress’s Wedding Band for the Antaeus Theatre Company’s annual Classicsfest. It’s a bittersweet story that examines the relationship between a white man and a black woman in 1914 when our country’s miscegenation laws were in effect.

(interview conducted by Steve Peterson)

For further info or tix, visit:
www.lowerdepththeatreensemble.org

2012 Interview with George Hamilton

2012-07-06T17:09:00.013-07:00

Legendary actor George Hamilton, a major film star since the late 50s, is currently treading the boards in the national tour of La Cage Aux Folles, opening July 11 at the Pantages Theatre. Known for such film hits as Love at First Bite, Zorro the Gay Blade, All the Fine Young Cannibals, Light in the Piazza, Where the Boys Are, Your Cheatin' Heart, and Crime and Punishment USA, Hamilton has been referred to as more "famous for his debonair style and his perfect and perpetual suntan". He admits to it himself and in our chat, with his self-deprecating sense of humor, jokes and tells very amusing anecdotes.

Good morning. How are you?

(talking from his car) It's amazing. I think I'm in Los Angeles. I'm right near my star on Hollywood Boulevard. I sit there sometimes and sell star maps to homes. You could make a good living just sitting there on that star. The people that move on don't know what they're missing. (he laughs)

Let's talk about La Cage Aux Folles. How long have you been on tour?

For nine months, I think. I've had stretch marks for nine months. Let me think about it. In October we started, and I started rehearsals in August.

Are you having a good time playing Georges?

I try to make it fun. Work is always work, but I've never worked with a group of people I like as much. The cast and chorus, the understudies knock me out, I mean their ability, the swings, to go on...it's just like me going to school is what it is. Every one of them has been incredibly nice to me. It's a really interesting adventure. I never thought about doing it, and then I did it, and it was so physically demanding, I pulled my achilles (tendon) the very first show...but...256 shows later... it's your attitude about a lot of the stuff. I like the challenge. Doing Dancing with the Stars, I had to have a knee replacement after that. This is just an achilles. I don't know what other organs I can give up. (laughs)

Are you enjoying working with Chris Sieber?

He's an incredible professional. I only have to look at Chris to say, "Well, you do the next line". He knows both parts and all the music; I some times feel like a ventriloquist.

You also did Chicago, right?

Yes. When I came into Chicago, I thought the trick was, it's nice to have a good director. I went to Walter Bobbie and asked him who the character (Billy Flynn) was. He said, "He just never bends over for anybody". That was all the direction I got from Walter. I went back and got the real word from my dresser. "You have to pop up over here. You have to pop up there. You have to say this line, and do it this way." I thought, this is perfect. The dresser knows more than anybody. I mean Bobbie's advice was as good as Jessica Lange's line here about Hollywood, "Take Fountain!" You know that's the street that very ingenue, every star gives to get to their apartment or so as not to miss their callback audition or whatever, "Take Fountain". (he laughs)

What other stage work have you done?

Chicago was my first Broadway show. I've done maybe 26 plays...dinner theatre and summer stock. I used to make people think I was in the south of France while I was actually trying to learn to act. I went on the road. I did Funny Girl with Barbara Cook. We had such a great time together. (he laughs) I'll never forget...we were in Westbury, theatre-in-the-round. (He sings) "I want to be seen, be seen with you, with you on my arm..." All of a sudden I remember seeing a vertically challenged fellow, nowadays, we'd say a dwarf or little person...he was walking across the stage as we were singing this. I realized he must have had to go to the bathroom on the other side of the stage. Barbara's in the middle of "People", and he's coming back across the stage. I went over to him and said, "Forgive me, but since you missed it, I want to do that number for you again." So I repeated "I want to be seen, be seen..." Fun! It was as much fun as what happened recently in Orlando during Cage when all the lights went out. The lights went out, the air conditioning went off , and out there was... me, singing a duet...I'm singing away and all of a sudden I realize it's completely pitch black, there's no sound, and all I hear is my voice. I turned around, and everybody had left the stage. I looked at the audience and said, "I always wanted to do a one-man show." It was the moment of my life. I never enjoyed anything as much. I had such fun and the audience saw that I had fun, and I got more applause for that than anything I had done. Finally, it came back to normal. It was about eight seconds, but in my mind it seemed like eight minutes. This is an experience of acting on the stage. But it's amazing, and the Cagelles (dancers) are spitfires, they're fun, and I really like them. I'm going to stick with it and see what happens. I have fun every time I do the show.

Your role is a difficult one. Your partner Albin (Chris Sieber) has all the comic stuff and you really have to react off him. You're a genuinely funny actor, so it has to be challenging for you to play straight. How do you make it interesting for yourself?

You put your finger on it. It's strange because you go in and you think you're doing a comedy. It's your job like a caddy to set up the ball so that they can hit it out of whatever. I looked at the lines written on the t-shirts and I thought mine should say, "It's hard to be the straight man". The line of direction for this one is "He's in control". For me initially this was a huge learning curve. I am the adhesive storyteller, listener, reactor, and my character is the bookend too. When fans come to see me, they expect me to be maybe what I was in Zorro the Gay Blade or Love at First Bite, but the trick in this is that Terry Johnson (director) really wanted it based on real emotions and not on camp lines. So what I had to do was connect. You have a moment of presentation, then you have a scene that's fairly fiery. Slowly you must realize that there is an organic relationship and there are moments that do not include the audience. And this show has so many footprints of the hands of others on it. You find an old Roman road that leads somewhere. At some point somebody turns out to the audience and reads the line to them. He makes a comment on it, breaking the fourth wall. An actor doesn't know whether he really wants to do it or not, because where does it go? It sort of disappears. Then at the beginning of the second act, the play turns slightly into a farce. There are organic moments and then it again becomes presentational in a cabaret. It's very deceptive and difficult.

Switching over to your movie career, what is your favorite film role to date?

There are five or six films that I produced that I like. People would never cast me in certain things; I'd have to produce it and do it myself, as I did in producing Love at First Bite and Zorro the Gay Blade. I'm a suit with perfect hair and a tan, and that's what I joke about. Sometimes they take my jokes seriously. Part of the problem for me as an actor is that I've always seen myself wanting to do the things Peter Sellars did. I had nothing in common with him, and that's why I wanted to do it. I've been somewhat of a mimic my whole life. I found a role that seemed just south of Cary Grant and I liked it. I held onto it for a while because I got good wardrobe and I'd get a good table (in a restaurant), so people thought that was me. You have to break that mold all the time. I liked that little movie that I made back in '63 about Hank Williams called Your Cheatin' Heart. I loved the film.

I thought I really hit it on the head. I was playing an alcoholic, a 29 year-old country singer, nothing to do with me, yet it had everything to do with me. Little did they know I grew up in a little town in Arkansas and went to military school in Mississippi. I knew all about country music but that was not my character. You get type cast, and I like being type cast. It's like walking into a poker game where they don't know how to play.

I know you are going to be great in the show. Look forward to seeing you on Wednesday night.

Well, maybe ... it depends on the energy. We'll see. (he laughs)

George Hamilton is such an amusing man, I'm curious to see how he makes straight man Georges his very "own special creation". I'm sure there are lots of surprises in store. La Cage Aux Folles previews on Tuesday July 10 and opens on the 11th at the Pantages and plays through July 22 only.

http://www.broadwayla.org/index.asp