Theatre Geekery

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

5 Musicals That Take Place In or Near the Water

I needed to take a break from how-to articles. However, I still wanted to post a blog post.

Being that I've been concentrating on underwater set pieces, I figured I'd give a list of musicals that take place in or near the water.

An image of water

The Little Mermaid
You can order and listen to the Broadway cast recording: The Little Mermaid: Original Broadway Cast Recording
You can always watch the original movie: The Little Mermaid
The Pirates of Penzance
You can watch this on Amazon: The Pirates of Penzance
You can watch it on DVD: The Pirates of Penzance
You can listen to the soundtrack: Gilbert & Sullivan: The Pirates of Penzance
Spongebob Squarepants: The Musical
You can listen to the soundtrack: SpongeBob SquarePants, The New Musical (Original Cast Recording)
South Pacific
You can watch the movie: South Pacific
You can listen to the soundtrack: South Pacific (Original Soundtrack Recording)
Anything Goes
You can watch the movie on Amazon: Anything Goes
You can watch the movie on DVD: Anything Goes
You can listen to the soundtrack: Anything Goes (New Broadway Cast Recording)

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You can also give a one-time support by tipping at my my Ko-fi page. It is much appreciated and allows me to continue writing my blog instead of doing drudge work in order to make the little bit of money I can to afford to take time to write.

Disclaimer: I am an Amazon Associate and as an Amaazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I am also a Wal-Mart affiliate and in the rare case I cannot find the product on Amazon, I can earn from those links. Please consider purchasing from my links as they help me to live and help me be able to write more content for you here.

Sunday, December 15, 2019

How to Make Seaweed Out of Plastic Tablecloths - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

Maybe you are preparing sets in case you can get rights to Sea Ya Later: An Underwater Musical! by STAR Theatre. In that case, you might need huge set piece that is supposed to be seaweed. If this is what you need, you can make seaweed out of plastic table clothes. This is somewhat similar to making seaweed out of trash bags, but plastic table cloths do not stretch like trash bags do.

An underwater view of seaweed, especially on the right side of the picture.

In order to make these seaweed set pieces, you need the following items:

Scissors such as CCR 8-inch Scissors with Soft Comfort-Grip Handles
Plastic table cloths such as White 12 Pack Premium Disposable Plastic Tablecloth, though you may want to get colors such as brown or green.
Brown spray paint such as Krylon Leather Brown COLORmaxx Spray Paint
Green spray paint such as Krylon Hunter Green COLORmaxx Spray Paint
A way to hang your seaweed outside
A way to hang your seaweed as the set piece or pieces

In this tutorial, only one tablecloth will be used to make seaweed. If you need more than one table cloth for your set, repeat the process with more tablecloths.

In order to make the seaweed:

Unfold the tablecloth and make sure that the longest side is at the top while the shorter sides are at the sides as it is likely that this is the way you want it (though, if your measurements are different, then position the tablecloth for your measurements).
Cut vertical strips about two inches wide, starting from the bottom and leaving about two inches uncut at the top. None of this has to be completely perfect because if it is perfect, it is likely that it will not look like seaweed.
Once the strips are cut, the they can be twisted lightly by hand. Do not try to stretch the tablecloth.
Take the tablecloth outside and hang it up.
Spray paint the tablecloth with brown and green spray paint. You want to make sure that this covers all the seen parts well.
Let the paint dry. If this looks good, you can leave it.
You can twist the strips of the tablecloth more if you would like.
If the paint did not cover well, you can spray paint again.
Repeat the process of twisting and painting until you are happy with your results.
Once happy, the seaweed can be hung as a set piece.

Saturday, December 14, 2019

How to Make Seaweed Out of Trash Bags - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

You may be preparing props and set pieces for underwater musicals you are waiting for to have licensing options such as Spongebob: The Musical. If this is the case, you may need to make seaweed for your set. While it seems like seaweed would be a difficult set piece to make, it is actually very easy.

Seaweed

You will need the following items:

Small Trash Bags such as Hefty Small Trash Bags, 4 Gallon.
Scissors such as AmazonBasics Multipurpose Office Scissors
Green and brown spray paints such as Rust-Oleum 6 PK Specialty Camouflage Spray Pack
A flat surface such as scrap wood or old cardboard.
Pins or tape to hold the plastic trash bag material to your flat surface.

In order to make the seaweed:

Start by taking your trash bags and cutting 2" wide strips. Of course, the measurement doesn't have to be perfect, but this is about the size that you want.
Once the strips are cut, hook your index and middle finger underneath both sides of the shortest width at the top, holding them with your thumb.
Stretch the bag, but do not pull so much that the bag tears.
Repeat steps 2 and 3, moving down the long part of the strip until you reach the end.
Repeat steps 2 through 4 for each strip until you have enough pieces of seaweed for your set.
You are now going to need to put the strips onto your flat surface. Secure them at the top and bottom. They do not have to be held tightly.
Once your strips are secured to the flat surface, use your spray paints to paint the seaweed the colors that you would like them to be. You do not have to be careful about where the spray paint goes on the strips as seaweed comes in different colors and varieties to where the colors can be uneven.

If you enjoy my content, please consider becoming one of my patrons through Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/TheatreGeek where I will be sharing more in-depth content, answering your questions, sharing which types of software I use and how to find them, and more. By becoming my patron, you allow me to create more content about theatre and more theatrical content.

You can also give a one-time support by tipping at my my Ko-fi page. It is much appreciated and allows me to continue writing my blog instead of doing drudge work in order to make the little bit of money I can to afford to take time to write.

Disclaimer: I am an Amazon Associate and as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I am also a Wal-Mart affiliate and in the rare case I cannot find the product on Amazon, I can earn from those links. Please consider purchasing from my links as they help me to live and help me be able to write more content for you here.

Friday, December 13, 2019

How to Make a Crawfish Hole Out of Clay or Playdough - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

Sometimes you may be putting on a musical such as Oh, Jonah where you want parts of your set to look like they are in a wetland setting. Because of this, you may want to have some crawfish holes. It is easy to make crawfish holes with playdough or clay.

A crawfish hole

You will need the following items:

Playdough such as Play-Doh Modeling Compound 10-Pack or clay such as Natural Clay, 10 lb
Optional: Earth toned paints such as Jacquard Products Textile Color Paint Set, Earth Tones
Optional: Paintbrushes such as BOSOBO Paint Brushes Set, 2 Pack.

Crawfish live on every continent of the world, so there should be no worry about the location of your play. Fake crawfish holes are very easy to make.

If you are not going to paint your crawfish holes, choose the color of playdough that you are going to use. If you are using clay, it is probably already brown and it will stay that way unless you are going to have somebody fire it.
Once chooseing the playdough or clay that you are going to use, instead of making a mound, make small balls and ovals of different sizes.
Put these circles and balls in a circle with a diameter of 3"-5". Again, this does not have to be a perfect circle.
Stack the balls and ovals on top of each other, tapering them so that they get thinner towards the top.
Let the playdough or clay dry.
If the crawfish hole is the color that you want it to be, you are done.
If you used clay and are going to have somebody fire it, have somebody fire it once it is dry.
If the crawfish hole is not the color you would like it to be, paint it the color that you'd like.

Thursday, December 12, 2019

How to Make Black Coral Out of Expanding Spray Foam - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

There are some sets, such as the one for Rainbow Fish Musical that require coral as set pieces. There are many types of coral and various ways to to make the different types of coral. This blog post is about making black coral with expanding spray foam.

A drawing of black coral

First, despite the name black coral, this coral comes is various colors. These colors include red, green, yellow, white, and brown. Sometimes black coral is black, but that is actually rare.

In order to make black color for the stage set, you are going to need the following:

Flat surfaces like scraps of cardboard or cardboard boxes. If you don't have any scrap cardboard, you can buy Corrugated Cardboard Sheets.
Wax paper such as Reynolds Cut-Rite Wax Paper.
Craft wire such as BENECREAT Aluminum Wire
Expanding spray foam insulation such as Great Stuff Gap Filler
Spray paint such as Moneysworth & Best Brillo Leather/Vinyl/Plastic Color Spray Dye/Paint 12 oz, Black

In order to make the black coral:

Prepare as many sheets of cardboard that you want as many pieces of coral. If you do not have enough cardboard for all of the coral that you want to make, you may need to make the coral in batches.
Line your pieces of cardboard with wax paper. It is probably best if it is wrapped around the cardboard so it can be taped to the back, but do what you can.
Lay the cardboard flat.
Use the craft wire to make a general outline of the way you would like your coral to point. You can make various paths with the wire. Use pictures of black coral to lay out wire patterns generally copying those patters. Make sure to leave at least a little bit of a stem made from wire at the bottom.
Spray the foam onto the wire, making sure to follow the patterns of the wires and not spray it in other directions. Stop spraying when moving the foam from one piece of wire to another piece. Do NOT spray any foam onto the stem you made with the wire.
Let the foam dry on the flat surfaces. DO NOT MOVE THE SURFACES WITH THE FOAM ON THEM.
While the foam is drying, you can choose the different colors of spray paint that you would like to paint each piece of coral.
Once the foam is dry, remove them from the wax paper.
Take the pieces of coral outside or to a well ventilated area and spray the spray paint on them until well covered on one side, making sure to get into all of the little cracks and crevices.
Let the paint dry.
Once the paint is dry, turn the coral decorations over.
Spray paint the backs of the coral with your colors of choice, making sure to get into any little cracks and crevices.
Let this paint dry.
Once dry, you should have coral that has a stem that can easily be stuck into cardboard or Styrofoam on the stage in order to add to the scenery.

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

How to Make Blue Coral Out of a Pool Noodle - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

There are some sets, such as the one for The Little Mermaid that require you to have coral as set pieces. There are various ways of making coral. In this blog post, we are going to concentrate on making blue coral out of pool noodles.

Real blue coral.

This post focuses on making the blue coral out of pool noodles only. It does not focus on making the rest of the coral reef. You will need the following items.

Blue pool noodles such as Fix Find 5 Pack of Blue Flexible Foam Pool Noodles.
Heavy Duty Scissors such as Wiss Heavy Duty Scissors

Using one pool noodle, decide how many parts you want the top to split into (kind of like deciding how many petals you'd want on a flower).
Make one less vertical cut than the number desired all around from the top of the pool noodle down. You want to make sure that the pool noodle is never cut horizontally.
Once this is done, use your hand to press down and spread the cut part of the pool noodle so the pieces stick out and spread out wider than the rest of the pool noodle.
Now you can decide on the length that you want the rest of the coral to be and cut the pool noodle horizontally for where you would like so it is at the length you desire.

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

How to Create a Brick Wall Using Rectangular Sponges - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

There are times that a set may need a brick wall. There are various methods to make this, but one of the easiest ways is by using rectangle sponges and paint.

A brick wall behind Paulina handing Gus Perdita in Leo's office from Yet Another Shakespeare Rewrite or The Winter's Tale for a Modern Day Audience.

Make sure that your scenery is laying down flat. You want to lay your scenery on a flat surface so none of the paint drips downward.
Use some scrap or a paint tray to create a place where sponges are dipped into paint. You may want to use a paint tray like Wooster Brush 11" Deluxe Plastic Tray.
Decide on your paint colors and make a puddle of the colors together. Start with the color you want the most of and put that into a big puddle in the tray. Afterwards, drizzle amounts of the other colors that you want included in your bricks. If you want brick colored paints, you probably want to choose reds and browns and maybe some whites and grays. However, you may want some odd colored bricks.
Dip your rectangular sponge (or sponges of the same size) into the paint. If you don't have any rectangular sponges, you may want to buy some like Blue Panda Synthetic Craft Sponges.
Carefully apply the sponge or sponges to the scenery in a straight line with each sponge evenly spaced. If you don't want the wall to look perfect, you do not have to be extremely careful withthe placement of the bricks.
On the next line, repeat the same process, but with the sponges starting at about the middle of the bricks above them.
On the line after this, go back to the starting spot in distance from the edge of the scenery was from the first line and repeat the process on the third line.
Repeat the process with this on the second line.
Keep repeating the process for each line until the bottom of the scenery is reached.
Add the grout color if desired. If you want it to look like grout is between the bricks, paint lines with the color paint of your choice between the sponge markings.
Let the scenery dry.

Monday, December 9, 2019

How to Figure Out How Many Stripes Are Needed on a Wall - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

There may be sets when you need a striped wall. Sometimes, the number of stripes doesn't matter and they are only supposed to be a certain width. At those times, it doesn't matter if you know how many stripes are on the wall. However, there are times that you need to figure out how wide stripes should be for a wall because there are a certain number of stripes. If you need to do this, here is how it is done.

A striped wall.

Of course, this trick only works if you want your stripes to be of equal width. If you want stripes of different widths, that will take some more calculating.

Let's say that a script says that there are a series of pink and purple stripes on a wall with there being 11 pink stripes and 12 purple stripes.

Find the total number of stripes. 12 pink stripes and 13 purple stripes give a total of 25 stripes.
Find the height of the wall Use a tape measure such as the Komelon SM5425 Speed Mark Gripper to measure your wall from top to bottom.
Divide the height of the wall by the number of stripes. If your wall happens to be 8' high, you then divide 8' by 25. This results in 0.32 feet. This value can be multiplied by 12 in order to get inches. That results in 3.84". You now know that each stripe will be 3.84".
Mark your stripes with a pencil before painting them. Measure 3.84" from the top of the wall and make a straight line with a pencil such as these AmazonBasics Pre-sharpened Wood Pencils.
Paint your stripes. Make sure that you paint the color of the odd numbered stripe at the very top of the wall. You can then skip the stripe afterward and continue the pattern. If you have more than one person painting, you can have that person start on painting the other color from the opposite side, making sure to start painting on the second stripe down.

Sunday, December 8, 2019

How to Create Patterns with String and Paint Rollers - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

Have you ever needed to paint a wall or a set piece with a pattern? You can always buy patterened paint rollers like this one: Garosa Texture Pattern Paint Roller Brush

However, if you have a paint roller and string, you can make your own patterned paint roller.

A textured wallpaper pattern

Start with your basic paint roller. One like this will do: KingOrigin premium 4 inch Paint Roller Kit
Next, wrap string or yarn around the paint roller in any pattern that you would like. You can make it evenly spaced or create odd patterns. You might want some yarn such as Lion Brand Tweed Yarn or string such as T.W Evans Cordage 12-250 Number-1 Braided Nylon Mason Line
Once the string is wrapped on ther paint roller, put paint on the surface. Don't force it into places, but do make sure that it covers the roller and the string enough that it will paint. You may want to use paint such as Mshzf DIY 5D Diamond Painting Kit.
You can put more than one color on the roller if you would like to have different colors. If not, stick with one color of paint.
Make sure that you test out the pattern on a scrap of scenery or paper to make sure it turns out how you would like it to look.
Now that you have made a patterned paint roller, you can paint walls or furniture with different patterns. You can always rearrange the yarn or string to make different patterns or create your own patterns with multiple paint rollers and not be limited to those that are on the market.

Saturday, December 7, 2019

Black Market Theatre Has Inchchieved Again

Hedwig and the Angry Inch is in Lake Charles for Two More Performances

A blonde woman stands on stage performing a concert. She gets angry at her backup singer and she spits in his face. This woman is named Hedwig and the backup singer is her husband, Yitzak.

This is not Hedwig, but it comes close to how she might look on some days.

However, not all is as it seems. At the beginning of the play, we learn that Hedwig wasn't originally a women. Hedwig was born a boy and named Hansel. Hansel only went through the sex change because at the time, when in love with an American soldier named Luther Robinson, but in communist East Germany, a full physical examination was needed for two people to get married. It was required that the couple was one male and one female. The doctor that performed the sex change operation botched it, so Hansel was now Hedwig, but everything was botched. On their first aniversary, Luther left Hedwig for a man who was still physically in tact.

As the audience, we are watching Hedwig tell her story in a concert on stage. She is following a rock star, Tommy Gnosis, who she helped with his career by writing good songs. He never gives her any credit at his concerts.

It works as long as you remember that in theatre, you have to have a willing suspension of disbelief. In this case, you have to believe that you could hear a crowd all the way from the Isle of Capri casino in Westlake to downtown Lake Charles.

Joey Boyette plays Hedwig. He is amazing as a performer, always engaging with the audience. If nobody knew that it was Joey playing Hedwig, it would be extremely believable with the person being seen before hearing the story is actually a woman. There is a backup band and I am sorry that I do not have the names of the people in the band.

The venue of Crystal's Downtown works well for the play as it is perfect for a place where a little concert might take place on a little stage. The one problem, which tends to be a problem in all venues where theatre is held and there is not a proper place for a band such as an orchestra pit, is that the music from the band often overpowers the person or people who are speaking or singing.

However, with the basic knowledge of the play and watching Hedwig, it is fairly obvious what is happening the entire time. The play was directed to Jessa Theriot Lormand and it can be seen two more times in Lake Charles.

The play can be seen at Crystal's Downtown (720 Ryan St. Lake Charles, LA 70601). There is parking in the lot on Broad St. which will have a back entrance to Crystal's. This show is only for those who are 18 years of age and older. You can get tickets at Black Market Theatre's Yapsody Site. The two times that the play can be seen again are as follows:

Friday, December 13, 2019 at 7:30pm
Saturday, December 14, 2019 at 7:30pm

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Schlepitchka - Scenic Artists' Tips and Tricks

Have you ever needed to create a quick background for wallpaper or greenery? Has it been difficult to find the exact technique to accomplish this?

What you probably want is schlepitchka. This technique uses a feather duster to create the background for the wanted scenery. If you'd like to create your background fairly quickly, you are going to need the following things.

Now you can get started:

Pick your three base colors of paint. These will most likely be in the same color family, but that will be up to you and the design that you want.
Start by dipping your feather duster into the darkest color paint
Flog the duster on the scrap plywood two or three times to remove excess paint.
Apply the feather duster to the scenery by lightly dropping or dainbbing the feathers onto the background and turning the feather duster in your hand each time you drop it and each time you pick it up.
Make sure that you move the feather duster to a different spot each time.
Cover as much of the scenery as wanted and needed.
If you only have one feather duster, you may want to wash it.
When done with the darkest color, repeat steps 1-7, with the middle color.
When done with the middle color, repeat steps 1-7 with the lightest color.
Let your scenery dry.
Once dry, you should have scenery that has the start of your wallpaper or plant background.

You can see the technique in the following video.

Schlepitchka from Jeff McLaughlin on Vimeo.

You can read more about using the technique of schlepitchka at this article by Jamie Clausius at Rosco Spectrum.

Disclaimer: I am an Amazon Associate and as an Amaazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I am also a Wal-Mart affiliate and in the rare case I cannot find the product on Amazon, I can earn from those links. Please consider purchasing from my links as they help me to live and help me be able to write more content for you here.

If you enjoy my content, please consider becoming one of my patrons through Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/TheatreGeek where I will be sharing more in-depth content, answering your questions, sharing which types of software I use and how to find them, and more. By becoming my patron, you allow me to create more content about theatre and more theatrical content.

You can also give a one-time support by tipping at my my Ko-fi page. It is much appreciated and allows me to continue writing my blog instead of doing drudge work in order to make the little bit of money I can to afford to take time to write.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Goo-lobbying for Social Justice

The Color of Vengeance in Lake Charles for two more performances.

Two tourists wander looking for a rally featuring Gloria Steinem as a speaker. They believe that they are standing up for social justice and feminism. They hear o like drumbeats and head towards them. Soon, they will find that what they think is social justice may not be. This is all because of encountering members of India's Gulabi Gang. All of these can be seen in the current production of The Color of Vengeance by Lynn Marie Macy, currently playing at McNeese State University.

The Gulabi gang believes in vigilante justice, but that is because the government in India ignores women and their cases. The sicks the Gulabi gang carry are for self-defense.

The two women that are searching for the protest featuring Gloria Steinem are Dora and Greta. Dora is played by Jennifer Tolbert. Tolbert stands out with her emoting. She seems to be extremely in tune with what is happening in the play. Dora is played by Hunter Becton. Becton's acting is more subdued, but definitely believalbe for her character, who is covering up a secret that later comes out while talking to the Gulabi gang.

Essence Means plays the founder of the Gulabi gang, Sampat Pal. She teaches the other gang members how to use their sticks (lathis). Other members of the Gulabi gang in the play are Jankay Panday (Gauri Awasthi), Sheelu Nishad (Tiffany Granger), and Sayah Bana (Saurav Sharma).

This play is the senior capstone for McNeese student Himshree Nuepane. Himshree cast, directed, and choreographed every part of the play. She did a truly amazing job, especially with the choreography. Other crew includes Rhett Goodner as Stage Manager and Sound Board Operator, Michelle Brunson as Technical Director, Ezekiel Means as Light Board Operator, and Supratik Regmi in charge of posters and photos. Special thanks also go to Shreya Pyakurel, Mamata Dahal Ghimire, Nishika Pokharel, and Bishal KC.

This one-act play is in Lake Charles for two more performances. You can see the at the following times:

Monday, November 25, 2019 at 7pm
Tuesday, November 26, 2019 at 7pm

Tickets are $5 and are available in the lobby. The play is held in Ralph Squires Auditorium in the Shearman Fine Arts building on the McNeese State University Campus in Lake Charles, LA. The play includes some strong language and is not considered suitable for those under the age of 16.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

The Theatre Should Not Be Es-Shrewed.

The Taming of the Shrew in Lake Charles, LA for Seven More Performances

A man walks out with a lute clearly smashed on top of his head. This is Hortensio, disguised as Licio, the music tutor. He disguised himself because he wanted to be near Bianca. However, Bianca's older sister, Katherine, did this to him when he tried to teach her how to play the lute.

Later on, Petruchio's servant, Grumio, tells the tale and acts it out in a very physical and comedic manner what happened explaining while traveling with Petruchio and Katherine. She purposely falls on the ground, she pantomimes many problems that occurred, purposely trying to make people laugh.

Grumio is played by Kassie Coltrin and her performances stands out among the rest of the cast. Her character is meant to be a jester, but the amount of effort she goes through in order to give an amazing performance shines.

Petruchio is also always impressive whenever he is in a scene. He shows how puffed up he is, acting like he is wonderful when he is truly after Katherine's dowry and not there to look for . love. Petruchio is played by Louis Barrilleaux. He gives true dedication to the character. He gives a wonderful vocal and believing physical performance for the type of man Petruchio is supposed to be.

Of course, the play would be nothing without the rest of the cast and there wasn't anything that anybody said or did to make the play seem less than realistic. The only thing that happened a few times were some slips of the tongues with trying to remember lines or trying to say words. The slip ups did not make the play any worse as they were corrected immediately, so they easily could have been the characters slipping with their speech.

Others in the cast are Sean Hinchee (artist, haberdasher, servant), Ashley Vidrine (fruit vendor, Josephine), Antonio Dre (Lucentio), Rebecca Harris (Tranio), Taylor Novak-Tyler (Baptista), Andres Germosen (Gremio), Dylan Conley (Hortensio), Raye Floyd (Katherine), Anna Sternaman (Bianca), Rylee Hall (Biondello), Jeffrey Underwood (Curtis, Vicentio), Aimee Mayeux (tailor, widow), Alex Hebert (Philomene), Neveah Brown (Petrah), and Matt Dye (pedant).

The play was directed by Charles McNeely and co-directed by Dan Sadler. Sadler was also the set designer and decorator. He did an impressive job with the buildings, making it look like Italian arches. Some people may insist that they were missing a small big at the top, but there are places in Italy with arches that do not have those.

Other crew included James Johnson (set decorator), Heather Partin (costumes), Jonathon Richards (lighting designer), Robert Grider (lights and sound), Quaid Nichols (lights and sound), Justin Litpak (lights and sound), and Liz Trahan (program).

The play is in Lake Charles for seven more performances. They can be seen at the following dates and times.

Sunday, November 10, 2019 at 2pm
Friday, November 15, 2019 at 7pm
Saturday, November 16, 2019 at 7pm
Sunday, November 17, 2019 at 2pm
Friday, November 22, 2019 at 7pm
Saturday, November 23, 2019 at 7pm
Sunday, November 24, 2019 at 2pm

Tickets are $18 for adults, $12 for seniors (those 65 years and older), and $10 for students. Group tickets are also $10 per person as long as there are at least 10 people in the group. Tickets can be bought at The Lake Charles Little Theater The Taming of the Shrew Vendini site. Reservations can also be made by calling 337-433-7988. Tickets are also available at the box office on the evenings of performances. Lake Charles Little Theater is located at 813 Enterprise Blvd in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

The show is done in Shakespeare's language. If you feel like you would not understand the play, you can read the the side by side version of Shakespeare's text and the modern day English version from Sparknotes.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

There's No Place Like the Theatre

The Wizard of Oz in Lake Charles for One More Performance

A girl named Dorothy stands surrounded by a bunch of small people and she look astounded as she is handed a giant cloud-like lollipop. As this happens, all of the small people start singing. Later, Dorothy is hungry and tries to pick some apples from some trees. They get upset and a scarecrow who has joined her journey insults them so that they start throwing apples and Dorothy is able to eat them. Once a lion joines Dorothy on her journey, he later whines about how somebody pulled his tail only to realize that he is the one who pulled his tail.

The Scarecrow insults the apple trees

If you haven't already guessed, these are scenes from The Wizard of Oz which was recently produced by Christian Youth Theatre in Lake Charles. There is no doubt that any of the actors that played the main characters - Dorothy, The Scarecrow, The Tin Man, and The Cowardly Lion - could easily go on to become professional actors.

Even the ensemble was extremely impressive with complicated dance moves that no ordinary person from off the street could perform. The adults (and maybe children) who built the set, made the costumes, and designed the lighting did a very impessive job, too.

If one remembers, I saw the Broadway tour of Waitress and while it was impressive, The Wizard of Oz was more impressive. Even more fun is the fact that the audience gets to mingle with the actors and actresses after the perfomance. It is less impersonal than seeing a Broadway or touring Broadway performance. Audience members get to mingle with people that they know and they also get to meet new people.

The main characters are played by Leslie Isreal (Dorothy Gale), Clay Corley (Zeke/Cowardly Lion), Jaylin Williams (Hickory Tinman), and Abram Connor (Hunk/Scarecrow). Other lead characters were played by Brynn Mayo (Aunt Em/Glinda the Good Witch of the North), Cole Becton (Uncle Henry/Emerald City Guard), Hunter Bectom (Miss Almira Gulch/The Wicked Witch of the West), Quaid Nichols (Professor Chester Marvel/The Wizard of Oz), Mila Alacatara (Wicked Witch of the East [Legs]), Ian Reeves (Munchkin Mayor), Briley Bryan (Mucnhkin Coroner), Gianna Lewis (Munchkin Barrister), Zoe Thrasher (Munchkin Fiddler), Kathryne Berken (Munchkin Braggart), Gabriella Barrios (Munchkin School Teacher), Dylan Freeman (Munchkin City Father/Winkie General), Rylee Menard (Munchkin 1), Natalie Lambert (Munchkin 2), Fisher Cooley (Nikko the Monkey Commander), and Zachary Benoit (Jitterbug Lead Dancer).

Actors and Actress in the lead ensembles were Ashre Gabre, Benjamin Gabrey, and Fisher Cooley (the Lollipop Guild), Addyson Miller, Kamila Vigo, and McKenzie Menard (the Lullaby League), Alana Fornet, Mila Alacantara, and Randilyn LeJeune (Trees), Cooper Self, Stuart Riviere, and Zachary Benoit (Crows), and Briley Bryan, Cole Becton, and Tristan Wainwright (Winkie Guards). Other ensembes in the play included the Ozian Ensemble (played by Mila Alacantara, Cole Becton, Zachary Benoit, Emilia Bernard, Blaire Buller, Fisher Cooley, Olivia Delano, CeeCee Doucet, Natalie Franks, Dylan Freeman, Olivia Foreman, Alana Fournet, Kellsie Jones, Karis Kane, Randilyn Lejeune, Gianna Lewis, Emma Marler, Blaire McManus, Emma Menard, Hannah Miller, Harleigh Miller, Bliss Nichols, Abigail Petterfer, Elizabeth Petterfer, Rachel Requelmy, Katherine Rion, Juliet Riviere, Mattie Schafer, Sophia thibodeaux, Zoe Thrasher, Kamila Vigo, and Tristian Wainwright), Poppies Ensemble (played by Cecilia Barrios, Finlee Boyett, Tucker Dunnehoo, Elliot Fuselier, Emma Juhala, Ava Lankford, Jolie Leubner, Austyn Manuel, Addyson Miller, Duff Nichols, Katherine Rion, and Amanda Sanders), Winkies Ensemble (played by Emmilia Bernard, Blaire Buller, CeeCee Doucet, Karis Kane, Rylee Menard, Rachael Requelmy, Juliet Riviere, and Kamila Vigo), the Monkeys (played by Gabriella Barrios, Katherthe Jyne Berken, Asher Gabre, Benjamin Gabre, Natalie Lambert, McKenzie Menard, Ian Reeves, Stuart Riviere, and Cooper Self), and the Jitterbug Ensemble (played by Mila Alacantara, Olivia Delano, Olivia Foreman, Alana Fontenot, Natalie Franks, Randilyn Lejeune, Kellsie Jones, Emma Marler, Blaire McManus, Emma Menard, Hannah Miller, Herleigh Miller, Bliss Nichols, Abilgail Petterfer, Elisabeth Petterfer, Mattie Schafer, and Sophia Thibodeaux).

Other production staff included Monique Reason (Director), Kane Todd (Assistant Director), Bryce Louviere (Musical Director), Jessica Broussard (Choreographer), Ashley Dickerson (Assistant to the Choreographer), Bevyn Taylor (Stage Manager), Noelie Puckett (Costumer), Jill Engel (Make Up), Mark LeBeau (Set Manager), Chelle Martin (Set Designer), McNeese Theatre Department (Sound and Lighting), Rebecca Sanders (Props Manager), Deborah LeBeau (Publlicity), Jill Engel Photography (Photography), Natalie Sell (Interim Artistic Director), Cherie Benoit (Managing Director), Brittany Menard (Show Coordinator).

The show is in Lake Charles for one more performance. Tickets are $15 and can be bought at The Christian Youth Theater Lake Charles Wizard of Oz site. The show is at 3pm on Sunday, October 27, 2019 and takes place in the Tritico Theatre on the McNeese State Campus at 4205 Ryan St. in Lake Charles, but it is actually on the corner of Sale and Ryan when locating the theatre.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Hairspray Jr. Is Not Something to Be Mist

Play Takes Place Two More Times in Lake Charles

A bunch of students stand in a yard playing some sort of dodgeball game that has many balls and not just one. In the front for everybody to see, stand two girls. One is the popular and bossy girl, thin and seen as "perfect." The other is plump and the "perfect" girl does not like her, and especially hates when others like her. In the "perfect" girl's mind, nobody should like this girl. The "perfect" girl then hits the other girl in the face with a dodgeball, making her pass out and fall to the ground.

These two girls are Amber von Tussle and Tracy Turnblad, of Hairspray, Jr. Bayleigh Keating, who plays Amber von Tussle doesn''t miss a beat as the preppy, "perfect," brat that seems to think she deserves everything she wants. In each of her scenes, she commanded the stage. Her portrayal of Amber evoked the essence of Ashley Tisdale as Sharpay Evans in High School Musical.

Jared Bates also gave a stellar performance as Corny Collins. In this reviewers mind, he also would have made an excellent Link Larkin. While the other performers did great jobs, these two were the stand outs among a talented cast.

The rest of the cast included Laylah Bennett (Tracy Turnblad), Rhianna Hasenbein (Edna Turnblad), Katelyn Liz Bonette (Penny Pingleton), Whitney Chaumont (Velma von Tussle), Grayson Ashford (Link Larkin), Joshua Anderson (Seaweed J. Stubbs), Koyae Praylor (Little Inez Stubbs), Alonnie Celestine (Motormouth Maybelle), Maria Thibodeaux (Prudy Pingleton), Declan Hickey (Wilbur Turnblad), Helaina Savoie (Principal), Christopher Abraham (Mr. Pinky), Madison Ezell (Gym Teacher), Whitney Nguyen (Matron 1), Isablla Cooley (Matron 2), Madison Fullerton (Beatnik Chick), Grant Dulplichain (Male Guard), and Meghan Moor (News Caster).

The Council members and Councilettes were played by Tyler Thomas (Brad), Cagle Kaogh (Tammmy), Caden Hyde (Fender), Reagan Cotton (Brenda), Manuel Domingues (Sketch), Emma Juhala (Shelley), Zane Doucet (I.Q.), and Triity Arnold (Lou Anne). The Run and Tell that Teeens were played y Imani Poullard, Jacog Tatmon, Celise Landry, Dezarai Aleris, Caqleb Broussarrd, Jayla Guillory, McKenzie Matthews, Iman Poullard, Elijah Roberts, Dorien Smith, and Cheysh Young Mr. Pinky's staff was played by Naomi Ratcliff, Whitney Nguyen, and Grant Duplichain. The Dynamites were played by Alonzia Carlon (Judine), Jasmine Semien (Kamilah), and Jordyn Darone (Shayna). Ensemble members included Manuela Iervoililino, Madison Williams, Kinsey Vidrine, Ajah Moore, Shontenaisha Monuel, Jameszetta Henry, Courtney Crader, and Emma Babin.

The vocals for singing were not as up to par as one might expect, with wavering notes and sometimes off-pitch singing, but that was usually only at the beginning of a song and could easily be chalked up to first night jitters. All of the cast remembered blocking and choreography which was amazing being there was so much of it and these are high school students who are not in a class, but an after school drama club.

For this reviewer, it was a little disappointing that a male did not play the role of Edna Turnblad as is often traditional in productions of Hairspray, however, that is not required. The effort that went into the staging of the musical is obvious and community should definitely support these hard working teens.

Hairspray Jr. is in Lake Charles for two more performances. It is being performed by the Barbe Drama Club even though it takes place in the auditorium of the LaGrange High School auditorium. Tickets to see the play are $7 and can be bought at the door. The play runs for aobut and hour and half and there is no intermission.

You can see the play at the following times:

Saturday, October 19, 2019 at 7pm
Sunday, October 20, 2019 at 2pm

LaGrange High School is located at 3420 Louisiana Ave., Lake Charles, LA, 70607