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Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

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#1

Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 11:51am

So for a community theater that I participate in, we are deciding between five shows, and I would really like all of your help. These shows are: The Boy Friend, No, No, Nanette, Sweet Charity, Li'l Abner, and Thoroughly Modern Millie. We generally try to go with shows with large casts, big dance numbers, fun music, not huge sets, not huge costumes etc. To give you some idea of our past shows we have done: State Fair, Anything Goes, Bye Bye Birdie, Good News, 42nd Street, The Pajama Game & The Music Man. The list goes on and on, but I think that you get the general idea. So out of the shows, which one would you do and why? Thanks!

Updated On: 2/19/06 at 11:51 AM

#2

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 12:01pm

Where are you doing community theater? PM me.

Anyway, scratch The Boyfriend. It's an awful show. I say Millie, but that's because I love it.
#4

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 12:09pm

Li'l Abner! This was the very first show I ever did and it is so much fun! You get to portray these over the top characters and really have fun with the sets and costumes. The songs are so much fun and give lots of room to crazy dance numbers.
(Martha Graham from a letter to Agnes de Mille) "There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening That is translated through you into action, And because there is only one of you in all time, This expression is unique. If you block it, It will never exist through any other medium And be lost. The world will never have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, Nor how valuable it is, Nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours, clearly and directly, To keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware Directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction, A blessed unrest that keeps us marching And makes us more alive than others."
#5

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 12:14pm

ok, do you guys think that Charity and Millie are to much of a star vehical? the cast ranges from 7th graders to people that just graduated 12th grade.
#6

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 12:22pm

In that case, yes, I think Charity and Millie might be a bit much for them to carry, unless you have a particularly gifted triple-threat female.
"You just can't win. Ever. Look at the bright side, at least you are not stuck in First Wives Club: The Musical. That would really suck. " --Sueleen Gay
#7

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 12:55pm

I'd have to go with Millie...it seems the most fun out of all of those
Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic. --Dave Berry
#8

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 1:08pm

NO, NO, NANNETTE--None of the others mentioned, even belong in the same category of this masterpiece. NANNETTE is full of fabulous roles to play, songs to sing and dances to dance. It is one of the GREATS. NONE of the shows you mention come remotely close to being a NO, NO, NANNETTE. Good luck with whatever production you do.
"Blow out the candles Robert and make a wish. Want something, want SOMETHING."
#9

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 1:20pm

I'd have to go with "Li'l Abner." It's a show that should be done more often than it is. It has great score and is very funny besides. Guess I'd have to say "Millie" would be my second choice.
#10

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 1:32pm

From the shows that you've already done, it seems as if your group tends to go with the "classics". With this in mind, while my first choice would be "Millie" I second Colleen Lee that unless you have a very strong female lead, it might not be the best choice. Same with "Charity". "Li'l Abner" is a show for a big cast, lots of options for dance, a lot of entertainly silly fun in its concept and casting, won't break the budget on costumes or sets, and will fit into the classics tradition you have going with your past shows. It's also age-appropriate.
"And the postman sighed as he scratched his head, you really rather thought she ought to be dead..."
#12

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 3:09pm

i dont know if one of these posters was kidding, but:

no no nanette is horrible. stay away from it at all costs.
Bob: "there is a chance, albeit a microscopic one, that our baby at some point in his or her formative years will get lodged in a tree" ~Related~
#13

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 3:13pm

Did they release the Millie rights for non-pros?

I'd go with Charity or Millie. If you have a superb leading lady to cast. Pick up the book "Let's Put on a Musical". It is great for choosing a show that will suit your company best.
#15

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 3:20pm

I think Millie is a better choice. But Sweet Charity or Thoroughly Modern Millie. I think the kids would appreciate Millie more then Charity.

Horton, do you know if you can get the new endign to Sweet Charity?
#16

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 3:24pm

"So is Li'l Abner a star vehicle?"

Not in the same sense that Charity or Millie is. You have several leading roles, but there isn't one big, leading role that by necessity has to carry the show.
"And the postman sighed as he scratched his head, you really rather thought she ought to be dead..."
#17

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 3:26pm

Millie is such a cute show and can be done with simple sets!
"Are you sorry for civilization? I am sorry for it too." ~Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck
#19

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 8:33pm

Well your past shows seem to have all been more comedic, happy, nondramatic shows. I'm assuming you're looking for more of a show like that than one where half the cast dies?

Going by that...I can't explain why, I've never done it, and I wouldn't call it one of my favorite shows, but Kiss Me Kate is what's coming to mind. There's some nice dance numbers there, fits in to the comedic/happy pattern, the leads have to be good but not necessarily star triple threats. I'm sure you can figure out some way to get sets and costumes to not be huge.

Oh, and I very much agree with not doing the Boyfriend. Did not like that show at all.
"If there was a Mount Rushmore for Broadway scores, "West Side Story" would be front and center. It snaps, it crackles it pops! It surges with a roar, its energy and sheer life undiminished by the years" - NYPost reviewer Elisabeth Vincentelli
#20

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 8:34pm

Kiss Me, Kate is exactly what I was going to suggest also.
"You just can't win. Ever. Look at the bright side, at least you are not stuck in First Wives Club: The Musical. That would really suck. " --Sueleen Gay
#25

re: Please Help! Community Theater Decision!

Posted: 2/19/06 at 9:23pm

yes, it is tams-witmark

ETA: And this was my 1000th post. I am officially a loser!
"You just can't win. Ever. Look at the bright side, at least you are not stuck in First Wives Club: The Musical. That would really suck. " --Sueleen Gay

Updated On: 2/19/06 at 09:23 PM

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