Dish-Houston

By DISH Contributor Scott Arthur

Children searching the Houston skies for something magical this time of the year might just see a flying boy before they spot a red sled. With a burst of fairy dust, Peter Pan lands at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts for a dozen days beginning December 11. Somewhere on stage in between the Carol of Christmas and the Cracker of Nuts, try to make time to see a holiday show where you probably don’t already know all the dialogue and music. As part of TUTS’ “A Lot To Love” season, Peter Pan is a unique, family friendly attraction of spectacle and fantasy. The thrill of flying, timeless magical moments and a captivating hook promises to mesmerize young and old alike. Highly recommended!

As an early Christmas offering, we’re gifted with a legendary performer portraying a legendary character. The ever sparkling Tony Award nominee Cathy Rigby returns to play the elusive Pan. Her early days of gymnastics anchored by decades of theatrical and vocal experience allow her to bring Peter to life on stage as no one else has. When she dons the iconic outfit and takes flight, the years also seem to fly away. Rigby is spry, energetic, and thoroughly delightful. As an added bonus, some of Houston’s Humphreys School of Musical Theatre students are cast as supporting actors in the Lost Boys ensemble.  I’ve seen the previews – and I can’t wait.

And just like Tinkerbelle zips from place to place, allow me to briefly land on another subject. Peter Pan features “lost boys.” As a member of the Star of Hope Homeless Mission staff I see lost boys and girls every day. They seem especially lost over the holidays.

In Neverland the kids don’t want to grow up. Homeless children sometimes have to grow up too quickly or are robbed of their childhood because they are constantly moving from school to school, neighborhood to neighborhood and shelter to shelter. I can easily imagine some homeless families serving a “pretend feast” for dinner ….sitting in front of cold beans and rice …hearing the TIC TOC of approaching doom. They don’t have an ageless boy to save them …but they do have YOU. And I wanted to take a moment to thank all of you who have contributed to the Star of Hope Mission during the years – and encourage those who have yet to support us. Your contributions help us offer the tools to change lives ….even save lives. Don’t stop. Your ARE making a difference. Clap if you believe!    

Tickets (starting at only $24) are available on-line at TUTS.com, by phone at (713) 558-TUTS (8887), outside the Houston area at (888) 558-3882, or in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, located at 800 Bagby at Walker, Monday - Friday 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., and Saturday - Sunday 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) is proud to announce the international musical sensation and four time Tony Award nominee Jekyll & Hyde will run at Hobby Center For The Performing Arts Oct. 10 – 21, 2012 as TUTS’ opening show for its 2012-2013 “A Lot To Love” season.  After four thrilling, chilling years on Broadway and multiple world-wide tours, this dark and dangerous love story returns in a stunning new production that includes all the classic songs (“This is the Moment,” “A New Life,” and “Someone Like You”) that first grabbed audiences by the throat and transformed Jekyll & Hyde into a theatrical phenomenon.

The musical stars Tony Award nominee Constantine Maroulis in the dual title role of Dr. Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde.  Starring alongside him will be Grammy nominee and R&B superstar Deborah Cox as Lucy.

Several stage veterans will join the headlining cast.  Teal Wicks, whose credits include Wicked’s Elphaba on Broadway, will play Emma Carew.  Laird Mackintosh, who played on Broadway and in the first national tour as George Banks in Mary Poppins, will portray John Utterson.  Richard White, whom audiences will remember from the lead role in TUTS’ Zorro and Phantom, Broadway’s Most Happy Fella and the national tours of Urinetown and Camelot, will play the role of Sir Danvers Carew.

TUTS’ presentation of Jekyll & Hyde is part of a 25 week national tour leading up to a Broadway engagement of the show starting in April 2013.  TUTS fittingly serves as a stop during the tour as the show originated right here in Houston.

Conceived for the stage by Tony and Grammy Award nominee Frank Wildhorn and Steve Cuden, Jekyll & Hyde features a book & lyrics by two-time Oscar winner, Emmy winner and four-time Tony Award nominee Leslie Bricusse, music by Frank Wildhorn, and will be directed and choreographed by Tony Award Nominee Jeff Calhoun. 

The musical is based on Robert Louis Stevenson’s acclaimed novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde about a London doctor who accidentally unleashes his evil alternate personality in his quest to cure his father’s mental illness.

Tickets (starting at only $24) are available on-line at TUTS.com, by phone at (713) 558-TUTS (8887), outside the Houston area at (888) 558-3882, or in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, located at 800 Bagby at Walker, Monday - Friday 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., and Saturday - Sunday 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.  An audio described performance is available Sunday, Oct. 21 at 2 p.m.; open captioning is available Sunday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m. The Hobby Center is wheelchair accessible.  Discounts are available for groups of 15 or more.  Group tickets may be purchased by calling (713) 558-8888 or via email at groupsales@tuts.com.

BY DISH CONTRIBUTOR SCOTT ARTHUR:

Logan Keslar is one of those performers that musical theater teachers point to and say “He did it and so can you.” The talented Mr. Keslar has been to Broadway and back – well back for just a while – as he tours the country in the perennial hit musical comedy La Cage Aux Folles opening April 24^th  at the Hobby Center.

Born in Liberty, Texas he quickly gravitated to Houston and the arts.

“I was drawn to dancing when I was just a few years old. Heck - I was dancing in kindergarten.  My Mom took me to all the classic musicals and really encouraged my interests.” he said. He attended the Humphreys School of Musical Theater and graduated from Houston’s High School for the Performing Arts. “I worked with Tony Award winners, gained confidence and learned how to audition.”

And then ….like everyone else with grease paint in their veins, he moved to New York to be in big time show biz.

“I got my equity card right away. And I was lucky; I knew people, had a few connections and started working after a very short time.”

When Logan was all of 20 years old, he leaped over the pond and was selected to be a singing, dancing gang member in London’s 50^th Anniversary West End production of West Side Story. Four years later he was dancing on Broadway.

Direct from the great white way comes La Cage Aux Folles. The show that will not and SHOULD NOT die. The plot is classic: it focuses on a gay couple: Georges, the manager of a Saint-Tropez nightclub featuring drag entertainment, and Albin, his romantic partner and star attraction, and the farcical adventures that ensue when Georges's son, brings home his fiancée's ultra-conservative parents to meet them.

The original 1983 Broadway production received nine nominations for Tony Awards and won six, including Best Musical and  Best Score. The 2004 Broadway revival won the Tony Award for Best Revival, the 2008 London revival garnered the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival.

The 2010 Broadway revival was nominated for eleven Tony Awards, winning the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. And Logan was part of it. In the touring version of La Cage, Logan continues his Broadway role as Bitelle, one of the six (men in drag) Cagelles - the corps de ballet of the hit musical.

“We’re the only dancing in the show. It’s fun but sometimes exhausting.  It takes almost an hour to put on all that make up and the wig! I have a heavy beard and have to wait until just before going onstage to shave.”

In the 2010 Broadway show, TV star Kelsey Grammer played Georges, in Houston, the role is taken over by Hollywood icon George Hamilton. Different actors different interpretations? “Yes. The energy and style of each lead changes the show. Kelsey led the train. He took charge. George is one of the most authentic and kind men. And he’s really relaxed. Christopher Sieber, who played Georges on Broadway, is now Albin, opposite Hamilton – and he’s hilarious.”

Keslar is playing his hometown. Are you nervous?

“No, all my family friends and teachers are going to be there to support me. I just want them to have a good time.”

Sounds like it will be hard NOT to have a good time. The TUTS production of La Cage Aux Folles runs April 24^th through May 6. For ticket information, call 713-558-8887 or go to http://www.tuts.com

The 2012 Tommy Tune Awards winners have been announced! To a crowd of more than 2,500 people, Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) declared the winners of TUTS’ tenth annual Tommy Tune Awards on the evening of Tuesday, April 17, at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.  Adding extra excitement to the evening, the award ceremony’s namesake and nine-time Tony Award winner Tommy Tune made a special appearance to kick off the show and to present the night’s top honor.

“To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Tommy Tune Awards is an achievement that makes me and the entire TUTS team very proud.  Our city is filled with young performers, and we’re glad we can provide a spotlight for the next generation of musical theatre talent,” said John Breckenridge, TUTS President and CEO.

Developed by TUTS, the Tommy Tune Awards honor musical theatre excellence at the high school level.  After reviewing and evaluating the 44 participating Houston-area high school productions during the 2011-12 school year, a team of 32 Houston-based theatre professionals made 154 nominations in 15 categories.  The winners are as follows:

• Best Musical – Episcopal High School / Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
  
  
• Best Leading Actor – Billy Cohen as Freddy Benson in Episcopal High School’s Dirty Rotten Scoundrels    
  
  
• Best Leading Actress – Caitlin Finnie as Belle in John Cooper School’s Beauty and the Beast
  
  
• Best Supporting Actor - Mason Patterson as Vernon Hines in Friendswood High School's The Pajama Game
  
  
• Best Supporting Actress – Morgan Starr as Smitty in Klein Oak High School’s How To Succeed….
  
  
• Best Featured Performer – Cheryl Cedillo as Penny Pingleton in Morton Ranch High School’s Hairspray
  
  
• Best Direction – Klein High School / Once Upon A Mattress
  
  
• Best Musical Direction - Episcopal High School / Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
  
  
• Best Choreography - St. John's School / Chicago
  
  
• Best Orchestra - Woodlands High School / Singin' In The Rain
   
• Best Ensemble / Chorus – Klein High School / Once Upon A Mattress
  
  
• Best Crew & Technical Execution – Clear Springs High School / The Drowsy Chaperone
  
  
• Best Scenic Design – Friendswood High School / The Pajama Game
  
  
• Best Costume Design – Stratford High School / Will Rogers Follies
  
  
• Best Lighting Design – Klein Forest High School / Seussical

In addition to the Tony-awards-style ceremony, the evening featured many noteworthy performances.  Tommy Tune kicked off the show with Seesaw’s “It’s Not Where You Start,” Tune’s first Tony Award-winning number, with the all the nominees for Best Leading Actor and Actress as well as Best Supporting Actor and Actress. Other memorable acts included performances from nominees in the Best Musical category, a musical medley with this year’s Best Leading Actor and Best Leading Actress nominees, and a grand finale including two students from each participating school.  

Co-hosts for the award ceremony include Jim Bernhard and Ayana Mack.  Bernhard has written several original productions that have debuted at TUTS and authored the theatrical history Stars in Your Eyes.  Mack is a well-known local radio personality.  To commemorate a decade of the awards program, Stephanie Gibson, the first ever Tommy Tune Award winner for Best Actress, presented the Best Leading Actor and Best Leading Actress awards.  Since winning the award in 2003, Gibson has gone on to play in the national tour of A Chorus Line and Happy Days and covered a major role in Spamalot and The Addams Family on Broadway.  

Among the other notable presenters were TUTS’ Board Chairman Steve Burkett, Ernie Manouse of PBS, St. John Flynn of NPR’s The Front Row, Don Nelson of ABC 13, Stanton Welch of the Houston Ballet, Paul Hope from the Alley Theatre, and Humphreys School of Musical Theatre graduate and cast member from “Smash” Manuel Santos.   

TUTS’ Tommy Tune Awards are designed not only to acknowledge remarkable musical theatre talent at the high school level, but also to encourage future development.  TUTS presented ten scholarships to outstanding participating students of the Tommy Tune Awards including the Ruth Denney Scholarship, named in honor of Tune’s mentor and legendary Lamar High School drama teacher. Students under consideration were required to meet specific criteria set out by the Scholarship Committee, as well as submit an application and essay. The winners include Alma Acosta (Elsik High School), Monica Brown (Kingwood High School), Kate Court (Pearland High School), Elisabeth Del Toro (Friendswood High School), Nathaly Garcia (Elsik High School), Haylee Hoelscher (Houston Christian High School), Jeremiah James (Cypress Ranch High School), Shelby Stark (Klein High School), and Eleonore Verkerk (Stafford High School).  The prestigious Ruth Denny Award, which carries an increased stipend, was presented to Billy Cohen of Episcopal High School.

As Best Leading Actor and Actress, Cohen and Finnie will go on to compete at the national level for the Jimmy Award at the National High School Musical Theater Awards in New York City. Established in 2009, the Jimmy Awards are named after Broadway theater owner and producer, James M. Nederlander.  This year, the program will bring the country’s best high school performers together to compete on Broadway at the Minskoff Theatre on Monday, June 25, 2012.

Theatre Under The Stars will cover all expenses for Cohen and Finnie to represent TUTS in this week-long national event. While in New York, Jimmy Award participants will have the opportunity to participate in rehearsals and master classes; receive one-on-one coaching from theater professionals; be seen by casting agents; meet and converse with Broadway actors; and compete for scholarships and other prizes.  The week’s events will culminate in a live awards show where the Jimmy Award for Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress will be presented.

The Theatre Under The Stars Tommy Tune Awards are named for Houston native and Lamar High School alumnus, Tommy Tune.  A performer, director, and choreographer with more than 50 years of stage experience, Tune received nine Tony Awards for his work in the following productions: Seesaw, My One and Only, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, Nine, Grand Hotel, and The Will Rogers Follies.  He was also awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2003 by President Bush.

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) is Houston’s acclaimed nonprofit musical theatre company whose mission is to enrich life through the experience of quality musical theatre and to positively impact lives beyond the stage through innovative education & community outreach programs.  TUTS was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public when it was founded in 1968 at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park and is the only Houston arts organization that has performed there free to the public every year since the theatre opened.  Founded by Frank M. Young and currently under the direction of President and CEO John C. Breckenridge, TUTS has produced more than 300 musicals including many local, national and world premieres such as Kopit and Yeston’s Phantom, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Jekyll & Hyde, and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas as well as critically acclaimed re-inventions of classics Cabaret and Les Miserables.  Through its membership in the Independent Presenters Network, TUTS has helped bring Bombay Dreams, 9 to 5, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Spamalot, Legally Blonde, Ragtime, Curtains and The Color Purple to Broadway and ultimately back to Houston audiences.

In support of TUTS’ mission, TUTS Education programs provide instruction and stage experience for more than 21,000 students annually, allowing them to flourish in a year-round schedule of classes.  The Humphreys School of Musical Theatre (HSMT) offers technique-driven classes for all ability levels and ages, ranging from four to adult.  Through a merger with The River Performing and Visual Arts Center (The River), TUTS provides an accessible and inclusive arts education for children of all abilities that will enhance their development into confident, balanced individuals.  TUTS Education provides extended on-site programming as well as off-site programming for children in schools, hospitals and other community-based sites.

BY DISH CONTRIBUTOR SCOTT ARTHUR:

Some things never get old – they just get better. Such is the case of the new original production of Guys and Dolls at the Hobby Center running through October 7. This musical is all TUTS – and the quality shows.

As a plot review – here is the story in a nutshell: When chronic gambler, Nathan Detroit, finds himself in need of funds to support his floating craps game, Save-a-Soul Missions ultimate good girl Sgt. Sarah Brown, becomes the center of a wager between gamblers Nathan and Sky Masterson. Saddled with an additional distraction, Nathan must keep his long-time show-girl fiancé, Adelaide, from finding out about his continued gambling while dodging a trip down the aisle and the police. Throw in a pack of dancing gamblers and all bets are off with this golden age swing-era musical comedy and winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and Best Musical Revival

1981 beauty queen (Former Miss America) Susan Powell plays Sarah and is no stranger to the TUTS stage.

“I love working in Houston – and I love to eat Tex Mex,” she said. The Oklahoma native lives in New York and is excited about the cast. “98% of them are from New York.”

This Damon Runyon classic is her favorite musical. Powell has played the role several times in her 30 year career and loves the extremes of the character.

“In the beginning she is so righteous and then she gets drunk and becomes just the opposite. I love this role – and I play a great drunk!” she laughed.

Indeed, she fits into the cast like a well tailored glove, entertainingly sliding from “good girl” to “good time girl” with little effort.

Chasing after Brown’s affection is Sky Masterson, performed by Joseph Mahowald.  Audiences will remember Mahowald most recently from 2010’s 9 to 5 as Franklin Hart, Jr.  He has also appeared in Broadway’s Jekyll & Hyde and Les Misérables.

Acting in the role of loveable chronic gambler Nathan Detroit is Matt Merchant whose regional credits include the title role in Bye Bye Birdie as well as Beauty and the Beast and Carousel.  Starring opposite Merchant is longtime Broadway professional Jen Cody as Miss Adelaide, Detroit’s fiancée for 14 years and lead entertainer at the Hot Box.  Cody last appeared at TUTS as Bonnie Latour in Anything Goes and lists Cats and Beauty and the Beast among her Broadway credits.

Guys and Dolls officially starts Sept 27 CLICK HERE for tickets!