The Music Man Sweeps into Longwood

Posted on by Thor

On September second, I went to the tech rehearsal for Meredith Willson‘s “The Music Man” presented by Central Florida Community Arts. This was their 4th
annual Summer Broadway Season production. Performances were September 4, and 5, 2014. The production took place at
Northland, a 3,100-seat, state-of-the-art venue, located at
530 Dog Track Road, Longwood, FL, 32750.  Proceeds from this production benefit local youth arts programs and summer camps.

With book, music and lyrics by Meredith Willson, this concert-style
production of “The Music Man” is directed by Rob Lott, with musical
direction by Jacob Haines, assistant direction by Ashley Willsey,
choreography by Katherine Rivera, stage managed by Sean Middlebrook, and
is produced by Joshua Vickery. Michael Swickard had some large shoes to fill as Harold Hill and he excelled in his shifty eternal optimism. Kelley McGillicuddy starred as Marian the librarian and she had a playful coyness that suited the part. Since this was a tech rehearsal, there was plenty of stopping and starting as lights and sound cues were worked out. During one particularly long pause, Michael and Kelly played Patty Cake as they waited to restart their romantic scene. I like seeing these playful moments caught between the mad rush of the story.

Mic checks were the first order of business and each character recited a few lines to check their mics. The 100 voice choir was still seated in the auditorium seats.  The School Board/Barbershop Quartet consisted of John Barnick, Chris Burns, Kevin Souppa, and Sean Stork. They performed “Lida Rose” for their mic check and everyone applauded. With a full orchestra and the huge chorus, this should prove to be an amazing production. Although his motives might have been selfish to start, The Music Man is selling culture and Community pride. I think this is something we all long for.

Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson Hits the Orlando Fringe Hard

Posted on by Thor

By The Way Productions presented Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson at the Orlando Fringe Festival. Based on a book by Alex Timbers and with music and Lyrics by Michael Friedman the show was a pop rock musical that showed the bloody history often overlooked by whitewashed history book in high school. The show was produced by Ashley Willsey and directed by Adam Graham. I went to the show because I bumped into Christie Miga on the lawn of fabulousness and discovered that she created the large flag that hangs on the set. This show got an award for the most aggressive and visual marketing campaign which was designed by Ashley. Live music was provided by Hey Angeline.

This was a huge show staged in the tiny Rep black box theater. I sat in the front row and several times had to pull back my crossed legged drawing stance to keep from tripping dancers. This was an edgy high energy production that portrayed Jackson (Ross Neil) as a rock star hungry for the adoration of the American public. The female cast worshiped Jackson’s populism like crazed Beatles fans. In contrast, the narrator was a nerdy woman in a wheelchair (Anitra Pritchard) with cat eyed glasses and a stuffed pug in her lap. She reminded me of the Dr. Scott from Rocky Horror Picture Show.

While Jackson ordered the slaughter of the Indians, his popularity grew. It is possible that this Indian purge resulted in more deaths than the Nazi concentration camps. Jackson’s wife (Jacqueline Torgas) didn’t want him to go into politics and yet he couldn’t resist the adoration of the American public. The campaign ripped his wife’s reputation to shreds and she died of a heart attack before he took office. She was married to another man when she met Jackson and that fact was used by his opponents in the presidential campaign. Ambition left him loveless yet popular. Two thumbs up for such an ambitious Fringe production.