The SF Bay Area Theatre Blog

Here's an eyewitness report from Opening Night that proves once again that live theatre is nothing if not unpredictable:

On Annie's first entrance early in Act I, she tries to sell the game she has shot. Asked what she has to sell, by hotel owner Wilson, she responds, "Quails, ducks, pheasants, geese squirrels, possums, wild turkeys, rabbits..." If she had been sitting in the eighth row center, she might have noticed a squirrel which dropped from the theatre lighting position above, into the audience, before scurrying out of sight. Apparently so intent on Annie's performance, there was barely a flutter in the audience.

A few minutes later, however, while Annie was singing "You Can't Get A Man With A Gun," if she had been looking upstage, she might well have gotten a squirrel, as our friend (We're naming him - only a guess at the true gender - "Irving," after our composer, Irving Berlin), scampered onto the stage, darted upstage and crossed from left to right, jumping ("squirrel choreography" of course) a couple of times to be silhouetted against the orange sky.

Other audience members reported our stage-struck Irving dashing down the full length of the theatre aisle.

After the performance, Foothill veteran (The Most Happy Fella, The Music Man) Hank Lawson, who with his wife Marcia were in the opening night audience, along with director Jay Manley, managed to corner Irving and then scoot him outside and into the night.

Which all just goes to prove that even in the animal kingdom, "there's no business like show business!"

I'm just glad the squirrel had a happy and unharmed ending!

We had our final dress last night with an audience. Wow, was that awesome to finally have an audience!

Annie had a wardrobe malfunction during "Sun In The Morning". During the song her ball gown bodice progressivelly got unzipped in the back. "Charlie" and "Sitting Bull" watched as the zipper went progressively down her back.

Charlie presumed that Sitting Bull would try to zip her back up when he met up with her at the end of the song. Well, Sitting Bull was so mesmerized by her performance that it went in one eye and out the other. In the wings Charlie and SB confabbed about what to do. Charlie was the next to go on and interact with Annie. He tried to zip her back up and failed.

Meanwhile, Sitting Bull was in the wings trying to figure out what he could do to help her out. In the course of trying to figure it out he missed his cue to come back on stage (fortunately no dialogue.)

Annie finished her scenes, didn't lose her composure, and got kudos from us for dealing with the whole thing without breaking character.

Finally, during the curtain call, Sitting Bull lost his headdress. His last costume change is extremely quick, and he forgot to slip off his wig from the previous scene. So, in the Fianl Shooting Match he entered with 4 pigtails, not 2. When he went to make his bow his headdress slid off his head.

I hate to admit it, but that's the beauty of live theatre - you never know what to expect!

Luckily it is Sitting Bull Steve Completo himself exposing his own missed entrances and more above. Having had a wardrobe malfunction or two in my time...one of which concluded with me just tearing the damn skirt off, throwing it off stage and finishing the number in my crinoline...I can certainly sympathize with Jessica/Annie.

The show most definitely goes on, no matter how improperly clothed we may be!

Last we heard from director Jay Manley he told us stories about the original Annie Get Your Gun and how it made its way to the Broadway stage. And he promised us more information about this version of Annie (the recent revival version) and what exactly is different about it. So here is that info:

The “New” Annie Get Your Gun, “Political Correctness,” and What Changed
By Jay Manley

When Annie Get Your Gun first bowed on Broadway in 1946, the notion of “political correctness” was unknown. As a nation, we have become more conscious of our pluralism as a people with the rise of “liberation movements” - African-American, Hispanic, Asian, Gay, Senior, disabled… well, the list goes on and on!

“Political correctness” has become something of a joke, and sadly, in my opinion, it is now even fair game for it to be virtually discounted. While it has certainly seen plenty of silly excesses, at its best, political correctness for me means a respect for others, their traditions and history, and a conscious attempt to continually educate oneself about others. In that way, I think we stand the best chance of honoring and not stupidly offending others.

Amen!

So what does all this have to do with Annie…?

Annie, in its initial presentation, is a potential “P.C. Felon” on two counts: I have talked to many women who are turned off by Annie’s mindless adoration of Frank (an estimation very much bolstered by the awful film version). Then there’s the depiction of Native Americans (in 1946, we just called them “Indians”) which is pretty hard to stomach in 2006.

In revising Annie, writer Peter Stone (“1776,” “Titanic,” “Woman of the Year,” “My One and Only,” etc.), uses much of the original book, but does a very deft job of inserting a sly, contemporary take on both of these troublesome issues. In his ‘92 Broadway revision, Annie emerges as a competent, competitive force of nature who is every inch Frank’s equal and requires him to meet her more than half way. The presence of Chief Sitting Bull (who did, indeed, appear with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show) has been adjusted, successfully, as well.

But what else changed in the revision? Peter Stone made the entire new show a flashback, in which Buffalo Bill recalls his heyday. He takes us backwards to recall the story of Annie and Frank. The show no longer begins with a pageant-like opening number about Buffalo Bill, but with the show that is the signature piece of Annie, and perhaps the American musical, as well, “There’s No Business Like Show Business!” Interestingly, this song was added to the original show, when a cover for scene changes was necessary; no one dreamed it would become a virtual anthem for the theatre.

Stone adds two new characters, the bi-racial (Native American/Irish) Tommy, and his love interest, Winnie. The matronly Dolly has been transformed into a much younger, comic character, who longs for Frank, always unsuccessfully. Her presence lends a nice tension to Annie’s relationship with Frank.

Three new songs appear: “Old Fashioned Wedding,” written by Berlin for a post-1946 revival, and two comic/dance numbers for Tommy and Winnie, both of which were written by Berlin for the original production, but never used. Apart from the old “Buffalo Bill” opening number, two other songs have been deleted: “I’m An Indian, Too,” now a rather embarrassing piece of hokum, full of imagined “Indian” words (think of Eulalie Shinn in “The Music Man,”: “I will now count to ten in the Indian tongue,” intending to be taken as authentic) and Frank’s “I’m A Bad, Bad Man.” He was already bad enough! No loss to lose any of these songs, in my opinion.

To my mind, Stone’s revision was a welcome one, which hopefully rescues this classic gem from the musical graveyard. I’ll be interested to see what audiences, and particularly those who loved the original, think about our “new” Annie Get Your Gun.” Feel free to share your thoughts with me - <manleyjay@foothill.edu>

I could swear that when I was in Annie... in 1978 (as a very young person, I assure you) that Old Fashioned Wedding was in there. And because the Internet is a marvelous thing I was able to do a little Googling and discover that after it was added for the 1966 revival version at Lincoln Center, that 1966 version became the most commonly produced version.

I'm glad to hear that "I'm an Indian Too" was cut. That was embarrassing back in 1978!

I have a report form Annie Get Your Gun's first dress rehearsal, and it sounds like a typical first dress to me. A little birdie tells me:

Here's a fun one from last night. Monday was our first night with costumes. As we are all aware, the first night can be hectic as we adjust to the costume changes and how it affects our timing, etc. Late in Act II while Annie and Frank were onstage, everyone was busy changing costumes for the last scenes. Well, the scene went quicker than usual, so when it came time for the scene change (for this show the cast is performing most of the changes) one of the cast members got caught (literally) with his pants down. He made his scene change to much hilarity, and finally got to finish his costume change. The show must go on!

Indeed it must! But who new Annie was blue!

OK, everyone, we know you've been itching for something more than the small discounts Foothill offers via the blog or via its postcard mailer. You asked for it, you got it: Half price tickets for opening weekend!

Here are the deets:

Red Hot Last Minute Offer! BUY ONE, GET ONE FREE!

Due to a glitch in our giddyup, we find ourselves with a whole mess of extra tickets for this Friday and Saturday night's performances. And we want to have a nice raucous crowd for the cast and for the critics! So grab yer pardner and take advantage of a great offer!

Foothill Music Theatre can offer you a fantastic deal on tickets to Irving Berlin's smash hit musical, ANNIE GET YOUR GUN
With full orchestra and cast of 40!

"There's No Business Like Show Business!" So, bring the whole family - corral some friends - and remember it's nice and cool in our air conditioned theatre!

Regular prices:
Adults: $24, Seniors $22, Students: $18, Children: $10 (under 12)

SPECIAL OFFER: purchase two or more tickets and all tickets in your order are HALF PRICE!

(Discount only good for performances July 28 and 29. All sales are final, no exchanges or refunds. We're sorry, this offer is not valid with other discounts and does not apply to previously purchased tickets. But if you have already bought tickets, why not order some more? You must have some friends and family who would love to see this exuberant musical! Or pass this offer on to someone you love!)

To order your tickets, call our 24 hour box office line at 650-949-7414 You must mention the"TWO FOR ONE OFFER" when placing your order.

Please do not try to use this offer in ANY OTHER WAY, e.g. IN PERSON THE HOUR BEFORE CURTAIN! ALL ORDERS MUST BE PAID BY CREDIT CARD. NO COD!

Yes, we're trying to get this offer online too, and I'll update this if we get it done, but in the meantime I'd act quickly and order via phone! (Shudder...real people interaction!! I truly have become an Internet Geek.)

Today we're talking to a couple more AGYG cast members who are making their Foothill debut in this show: Nikki Murgo and Angeline Navarro.

Nikki has been to Foothill productions before and been impressed with the quality, so she was finally motivated to audition. Meanwhile Angeline simply got an audition notice via Bay Area Theatre Bums and thought it sounded like something different. [Side note: it is kinda weird, isn't it, that Annie Get Your Gun was this huge hit filled with songs that are still standards today, and yet is relatively rarely-performed?]

I often wax poetic about how it is often those performances where something goes wrong that become most memorable. When a cast goes through a problem and recovers, it gets the audience on their side...like we're all on the same team. And it reminds everyone that seeing live theatre is a completely one-time-only experience. Anything can and often does happen.

It's no wonder then, that cast members also often pick out mistakes or snafus as the most memorable moments in rehearsal or shows. I always ask cast members for those funny, memorable rehearsal moments, and Nikki and Angie pick what nearly everyone picks: when something goes wrong, and how everyone reacts to it.

In this case Nikki and Angie picked on our two leads, Jessica as Annie and Byron as Frank. One of them secretly cracks up every time Byron botches a lyric in the opening number because he "still kind of grumbles/hums the vocal line." The other swears that Jessica once mangled a lyric so badly in rehearsal that it came out sounding like she has just sung about a "butt mansion."

[Another side note: I really wish I knew the score well enough to even imagine what lyric that was supposed to be! Everybody's got their favorite botched lyric story. Mine involved Little Shop of Horrors, Mr. Mushnik and the line "...all of this great sex coming out of the blue..."]

Angie is a girl after my own heart because she loves "...run throughs because I get to see what everyone has been working on. It's fun to see the puzzle pieces being put together."

Nikki, meanwhile, is the first person I've ever seen answer the question about their favorite part of the theatrical process this way: "I love the challenge of the first vocal rehearsal with all of the sight reading."

After Annie Angie heads back to UC Irvine to continue pursuing her BA in theatre, meanwhile sounds like Nikki is off to get married...and to a guy she met while doing a show, no less! Theatre...it brings good things to life!

Welcome to Foothill Angie and Nikki!

Wendell Wilson has discerning taste, so he has kindly waited to send out his current performance info until he felt confident that they've "finally got it."!

The "it" in question are these two pieces by David Rouda:

WHAT: Sperm WARFARE and Pomp and Circumstance
WHERE: Shelton Theatre on Union Square, 533 Sutter Street, San Francisco
WHEN: Running now.
Thu/Sat 8:00 p.m.; Fri/Sun 7:00 p.m.
Closes Sunday July 30 @ 7:00 p.m.
Running time: 2 hours fifteen minutes plus intermission.

HOW MUCH: $20.00 general admission
HOW TO GET TICKETS: Tickets available at www.Shtickle.com or by calling 1-800-838-3006 anytime.

DESCRIPTIONS:

Set in the sperm sample room of an in-vitro fertility clinic, Sperm WARFARE takes a hard look at how the biological clock impacts male-female relationships in sometimes role-reversing ways. As a 39-year-old determined wife rubs her frustrated husband the wrong way and a sensuous young nurse makes matters worse, husband and wife are forced to define themselves anew.

Set in a law firm and a courtroom, Pomp and Circumstance is about the personal trial of a talented yet suppressed young attorney coming to terms with his father, a famous and reluctantly retiring criminal defense lawyer, as they handle their first, and last, court trials. It explores the boundaries between sex and love, religious law and civil law, acting and reality, and parents and their children.

Produced by Shtickle Productions & Dana Harrison

Now, in case you're unable to tell from the name of the piece itself, Wendell offers this warning that Sperm Warfare is "R" rated.

After hearing from these grizzled Foothill veterans, I thought it might be nice to talk to another Foothill newbie, like Nina.

This is Nina's first Foothill show, and she comes to Foothill via musical director Cathy Snider, who also directs choir at Nina's school. Cathy shares stories from rehearsals with her class, and apparently she's a pretty good raconteur because she motivated NIna to see for herself. It didn't hurt that Nina had seen Brigadoon last summer and was much impressed. Nina's favorite quote from Annie Get Your Gun musical director (and her choir director): "There's no breathing in musical theatre!"

Nina may be new to Foothill, but she's already hoping to return:

I'd like to return. I love the people. You don't find such a nice dynamic in many of the usual summer shows high school kids audition for. The last show I did outside of Harker had great direction and taught me a lot, but the other kids in it were so cliquey I never really felt a part of it. From day one at Foothill I knew I was part of a show.

Nina's favorite part of the production process is very similar to mine, actually:

I like the time right before a show opens the most. I love the polishing process, the excitement, the full committment of everyone to the cast to the show. For a week or so, you live and breathe and eat and sleep the show--it's fantastic.

With that kind of passion it's not surprising that Nina has high hopes to keep doing theatre, particular musical theatre, for life!

Theatre keeps me sane! I've always had this need to be a part of something, some project or something that challenges my energy and focus. It gives me confidence to know I am a part of a team, to be able to say to my friends "Come see my show! We've been working so hard and we have a great cast and it's going to be amazing!" Theatre's always been
there for me during the happiest as well as the most difficult moments of my life--I can always rely on there being another rehearsal or another production to look forward to. Theatre has taught me a lot--for example, I've always been a little bit of a scatterbrain, but theatre's forced me to work on arranging my schedule and being on time and all that stuff--I like to think it's been helping me to grow up. Either way, I don't think I'd be the same person if not for the shows I've done or the people I've worked with along the way.

In terms of future plans...I will definitely be auditioning for college programs in the fall, and trying to find a place with a solid
balance of academics and performing arts to allow me to continue doing all the things I love to do. I just can't imagine not being involved in theatre, especially music, in the future, and I'm definitely hoping to fashion my future career around it.

I wouldn't be surprised if the grizzled veterans can learn as much from Nina as she learns from them...that kind of passion is contagious!

Reynaldi Lolong from The Encore Theatre Company kindly informs me that many a Foothill alum is involved in his next project:

The Gilded is a completely, 100%, no-source-material original musical about a nomadic troupe of actors, their reluctant yet controlling leader Lisette, and Tobias, an adventurous young writer they meet who becomes caught up in their world.

Lisette and Tobias are played Heather Orth (formerly a member of the Foothill Conservatory, and also seen as Nurse Schott in Urinetown), and Tobias is played by Sean O'Connor (who played another Tobias in Sweeney Todd, also the ensemble of Brigadoon and Annie Get Your Gun).

The reading is being developed and directed by Jaime Martinez, a graduate of Foothill, who has been Jay's assistant director on Sweeney Todd, Urinetown, and Brigadoon. He's also the artistic mind behind the bunnies of Urinetown, the caricature of Bobby at the end of Urinetown, and he's drawing the show posters that are being used in the set of AGYG.

A full cast list, synopsis, and sound clips can be found at www.the-gilded.com - and there's even a blog, charting the adventure of building a new musical from scratch. Readings will be held August 7 and 9, we'll take audience feedback, do rewrites, and do a revised version on September 10 and 11. Admission is free, but space is limited - contact info@the-gilded.com if you'd like to attend.

Steve Completo is on his fourth show with Foothill, counting among his favorites Ragtime "for the grandeur", and Urinetown "for the zaniness".

Now he's adding Annie Get Your Gun to that list "for the realness!"

Steve has a most interesting comment about why he has started being a regular part of the Foothill crowd:

"I look forward to working at FMT because of the way that the actors are treated. We are treated as assets that are utilized, not used (big difference)."

I noticed that myself over the nine years during which I was in Foothill shows. Jay and his staff got more and more efficient, and more and more respectful of their actors' time. I've done my time being called and then sitting around for hours. I've done my time being cast in a role but finding the director wanted to show me exactly how to do it, rather than letting me, oh, I don't know, act...what a concept! So, to work somewhere where actors are respected and valued...it tends to mean a lot.

When asked to name his favorite Annie moment so far, Steve gets all sappy on us (his word, not mine):

"Every moment with this production is a favorite. I know this sounds kind of sappy, but I'm having a ball, even when I'm just waiting to go on stage. I also find myself envying the dancers. Tyler has created some truly fine dance numbers that everyone will enjoy!"

Well, thanks for narrowing it right down, Steve!

Steve's favorite part of the process is a little different than a lot of folks, who usually pick run-thrus (those rehearsals when you first get it on its feet and run things in order and get a real sense of the show...my personal favorite time) or performances. Steve's pick?

"My favorite part of the process is research, especially when the character is based on an actual person (I posted a comment to your Annie background info from Jay on the blog site the other day). I also enjoy the rehearsal process as I try to create the character I'm portraying. Each day is different as we try to add layers to that character.

Jay spoke with me early on about the character, especially the feedback that he had received from a Native American colleague; who decided that he could not participate in the show because of the stereotypes portrayed. As a consequence, Jay asked me to go over the dialog and remove as many stereotypical references in the dialog as possible (he, of course would have final approval).

I had already started research on Sitting Bull, and found that SB was a remarkably articulate and complex individual. Some of the quotes attributed to him are just awesome.

From a bio at the period of time - A "paleface - Charles Eastman" who knew SB wrote that "He was gifted with the power of sarcasm, and few have used it more artfully than he." Eastman further states "as he talked he seemed to take hold of his hearers more and more." And, "As Sitting Bull spoke, so he felt, and he had the courage to stand by his words."

Some quotes from Sitting Bull:

"The earth has received the embrace of the sun and we shall see the results of that love."
"Each man is good in the sight of the Great Spirit."
"Is it wrong for me to love my own? Is it wicked for me because my skin is red? Because I am Sioux? Because I was born where my father lived? Because I would die for my people and my country?"
"If a man loses anything and goes back and looks carefully for it, he will find it."

Hopefully the research will prove itself in the final portrayal of the character (he's definitely not a caricature)."

Steve has a rather unlikely day job, and theatre is a terrific outlet for him:

"I perform because it takes me out of my "real" world. I'm a corporate tax accountant in real life, and find that theatre is my path to stress relief. My boss (who used to own a theatre group) has told me that he envies me because I have a life. I find that my acting helps to create a balance in my life."

I once did a show with a guy who worked for the I.R.S. What is it about taxes that causes such a need for an outlet? Never mind, I think I know. Lucky for us it does

Meet Jessica Raaum, our pistol-packing, sharp-shooting Annie Oakley, and the Annie, of course, for whom Annie Get Your Gun is named.

Unlike many a cast member Jessica has never performed at Foothill Music Theatre before. In fact she almost missed the opportunity to do so this time around!

She had been told about Foothill doing Annie, and that Foothill was a great place to work, but it was only because she happend to go see a closing weekend performance of last winter's Urinetown that she saw a went the Saturday of closing weekend and saw a sign advertising the Annie auditions- only that very day or the following Monday!! Jessica has somehow thought it was the next week and would have completely missed the auditions had she not seen Urinetown! Jessica QUICKLY went and found an Annie Get Your Gun CD (with Ethyl Merman) before going to the audition. The she had a week before the callbacks to get some more research done! So perhaps it was fated for Jessica to be our Annie, right?

Jessica is a real performing addict, and loves just about every part of it for different reasons:

I love the rehearsals as you discover new stuff and start to see the show take form; the run-throughs help boost my confidence as we get more and more stuff cemented in before we open, and performing- well, that's when all the hard work pays off and you get to play!!

It's certainly nice to have an audience!! There's nothing better than a positive response from the audience, but it's our job as actors to keep going, no matter what the audience does (or doesn't do!). They may be loving it silently, you never know.

I totally agree, Jessica.

Jessica hosts at the Octavia Lounge in San Francisco on Friday nights, which she will continue up until Opening Night and then continue after Closing. And after that? Well, she's got some possibilities in the works. She's definitely looking to pay the bills with performing, so watch out for Jessica!