On Broadway 1956 opens this Thursday June 28th with 8 talented actors, performing pieces from Broadways shows that opened on Broadway in 1956.  This cast includes a few
returning actors to Tibbits and several new faces as well. Two new faces amongst the cast are Tyler Whiteman and James Bleecker. 

Tyler Whiteman (on the right, wearing a green shirt), is originally from St. Louis, MO.  He is entering his Junior year as a BFA Musical Theatre student at Missouri State University in Springfield, MO.  Tyler will also be joining us in the musical Chicago this summer here at Tibbits.

Tyler landed into theatre in a very interesting way.  When attending a community college for a general studies degree, not sure of his career path, several friends of his persuaded him to audition for a show at the college, Footloose.  After being cast in the show, he never looked back, but raced forward in pursuit of a performance degree.  Since then, he has worked for Citilites Theater and Stray Dog Theater in St. Louis, he has performed three summers at Six Flags around the St. Louis area and also performed shows at Missouri Baptist University.  His dream acting role is Jamie in The Last 5 Years, and when asked what his advice would be of people wanting to enter the theatre world, he stated, "It's never too late." 

Another new actor at Tibbits this summer, James Bleecker (pictured above in the blue shirt), is originally from Fort Myers, FL.  He now is entering his Junior year as a BFA Musical Theatre student at Western Illinios University in Macomb, IL.  James will also be seen this summer in Chicago and Funny Money. 

James told me that he took a break before attending college, and believes that his time spent co-founding Harrison Hilltop Theatre in Davenport, IA from 2007-2010, educated him in a way that has now prepared himself much more for college than after leaving high school.  James started performing at age 6, when his mother realized he needed a creative outlet for his talent of impersonating TV personalities and reenacting commercials back to his family. 

Even though this is James' first summer here at Tibbits, he had his first summer stock experience last summer working for Gaslight Theatre in St. Louis.  He was nominated for a Kevin Kline award for his performance that summer in Thrill Me, the Leopold and Loeb Story.  James' dream role is Alan in Equus, which he may have a chance to perform next year.  His advice to aspiring actors is to develop a thick skin, make sure you realize what you want out of life, what kind of theatre you want to do, and go after it. 

It looks like both of these gentleman are doing just that, come see them in person in the On Broadway 1956 review playing for two weeks at Tibbits, opening Thursday, June 28th and closing Saturday, July 7th.

Tibbits Summer Theatre countdown is on...

3 days  before the tech crew arrives and starts work in the Tibbits shops

6 days before the first actors arrive for "Pinocchio" rehearsals

9 days before the next group of  actors arrive and begin rehearsals for "On Broadway 1956"

14 days until the opening of Popcorn Theatre with "Pinocchio"

20 days until "On Broadway 1956 opens"

Don't let too many days pass before you get your tickets. The summer will be gone before you know it and you don't want to catch yourself at the end of the summer saying "I had wanted to see that!" 

Stay tuned on this blog for the summer for more posts, interviews, and inside stories on the company and the productions. 

Costume Shop

Okay, it’s Alexandra, now it’s time to take you into the costume shop. In my exploration of Tibbits Summer Theatre, understanding where the lovely costumes come from strikes me as another interesting topic to give you a fuller understanding of what you see on stage.

I had no idea what to expect the first time I went to help in the costume shop, it turns out the department has two of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. The sincere and hard working designers making the costumes this summer are Erin Tucker and Theresa Hartman. They are both crazy busy with work this summer. Normally, two designers split the main stage shows and one person gets the children’s theater. This year there are two people for all of the shows.

As I looked about the basement full of clothes, I wondered if they make all of the costumes new for the shows. Theresa said most of the costumes come from existing things that are altered and just a few are made from scratch. Theresa happened to be making a red dress from scratch that day. She said it all depends upon what’s needed and the time they’re given.

With all this work to do, I asked what kind of hours Theresa and Erin work. Generally they work a 9-5 job, but sometimes they come back and work between 7-10 pm. After watching them perform a fitting or two, they were ready to assign me a job. My first job was to sweep the floors. I swept along and every few feet, bent over to pick up the endless amount of dropped pins. I quickly realized even the simplest task wasn’t going to be easy.

Job number two was taking the pile of clothes off the floor and putting them all on hangers. It was actually very enjoyable; it was neat to see all of the different items which inhabit the costume shop. My last job was organizing the wall of purses, clutches and jewelry. This was awesome. I’ve never seen such an array of bags and jewelry. I was up and down off of a folding chair and smiling every minute. My respect for Erin and Theresa grew with every up down on the folding chair.

These two work extra hard during the summer, then go back to school and study for the rest of the year. I had fun in the costume shop and it has been a joy sharing my experiences with you.

ErinTucker, Costume designer for Crazy for You and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, provided the basic steps to creating costumes for a show:
1. Script reading (understanding the show, the characters, their costume needs)
2. Meeting with the director (learning the director’s vision for the show)
3. Historical research and renderings (understanding and creating a visual base for the costumes)
4. Pulling and building (using the costumes in the shop as a base for creating the costumes and fitting them for each character)

5. Dress rehearsals (Seeing how the costumes work for each character, how they play together on stage, and making minor adjustments)

Shown above: Rendering of the chorus girls’ costumes for Crazy for You - Erin’s unique design featured reversible bodices which allowed for quick changes and multiple looks.

Hair on Broadway or at the Tibbits

Charles Burr here:

If you watched the Tony Awards back in June, you saw Hair win Best Revival of a Musical. I was very taken with Anne Hathaway's introduction to the the company's performance of the title song. It is exactly why I chose it to be part of the 2009 line up of plays.

She said:

"As we enter a new chapter in our Nation's history, the Public Theatre's production of a powerful and controversial show about the turbulent 1960's returns to Broadway. It's questioning of authority and message of hope urges us to accept the idea that if you change your life, you can change the world."

You can start by seeing one of the last three performances.....

HAIR: 3-5-0-0 -- The End of Week 1

Hello readers. Patrick Young (Musical Director) here. Just wanted to give you a quick update on the rest of the week. It has been a very busy time, and I am excited to report a lot of great progress. On Saturday night, the cast had to work at the theater to help strike the Leading Ladies set so that we could load in the set for Hair. It went very quickly, but while they were working there, I had a chance to meet our band for the show. We are using a rock combo for this show - Electric Bass, Electric Guitar, Drums, and a Synthesizer. On Sunday, when we put the band and the cast together it was magic. Since I have heard them together, I have had all sorts of new ideas, and in listening to the music, have found some lyrics that really stick out, and I want to share some of my favorites with you.

3-5-0-0 --- Why write a song called 3-5-0-0? Through our research, we realized that this number is where many people consider the start of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. On March 8, 1965, President Johnson sent 3,500 marines (the first ground troops) to Da Ning airbase. They were greeted by Vietnamese women and 4 American advisers with a bed sheet saying "Welcome to the Gallant Marines".

Walking in Space --- This is the number in the show where Claude begins a bad trip. However there are some beautiful phrases in the song, including the writings of Shakespeare, that show just how educated the youth of the era were, and also what they were really protesting for, and why they used certain drugs. It wasn't to just get loopy, all though that is all we hear of when drugs are mentioned. One of my favorite lyrics is as follows. "WALKING IN SPACE WE FIND THE PURPOSE OF PEACE - THE BEAUTY OF LIFE YOU CAN NO LONGER HIDE - OUR EYES ARE OPEN WIDE".

So I am sure in reading this entry, if you aren't familiar with Hair already, you may be a bit surprised at all the controversial topics that are brought up in the show. Yes, we do talk about all of the following - Sex, Drugs, War, Government and Passive Resistance, Interracial Dating, and Discrimination. And for those of you wondering - we also perform the nude scene. Our director has been very clear from the first day of rehearsals that this scene must be there for a reason, and not just as an excuse to get naked on stage. I feel that the cast has done an amazing job in making an important scene very tasteful, and it shows a humans rebirth in a way that may seem shocking just thinking about it, but is beautifully done and very liberating to watch.

I hope to see you this week at the show, and as I mentioned in my last entry, on Saturday (July 25th) we invite any ticket holders to that performance to stay and talk with the cast and the artistic staff about putting the show together, as well as your thoughts on the production. EVERYBODY in the cast, crew, and artistic staff are very proud of this show, and we would love to share this story with as many people as possible.

Hair: GIVE ME A HEAD WITH LONG BEAUTIFUL HAIR

Rehearsal Days 2 and 3

Hello readers. Patrick Young here, Musical Director for Hair here at Tibbits. We have had a very busy couple of days, and I am excited to report some great progress. By the end of today's rehearsal we have already learned all of the music in Act 1, and have also staged and choreographed over 70 percent of the act. This can take much longer in some situations, but I give full credit to the effort of the cast in learning their parts, and doing their work at home.

Even though none of the performers lived through the Vietnam War (or as the government called it...a conflict), they are not only learning the music and movements needed for the show, but are also researching events of the time to see what the media reported at the time, as well as recollections and writings from people who lived during the era, or served in the military, in order to bring this show to you.

Since we have learned the music, we are now putting scenes and songs up on their feet, and moving away from just singing around the piano. It as amazing to watch our director, Ray, and our choreographer, Ali Gritz, getting the cast up on their feet and bringing the words and music to life. Hair, the title song of the show, is a number not to be missed as the cast not only tells their story, but also bring their happiness and excitement right out into the audience!

We also had a visit from our costume designer Erin Tucker today, who brought in wigs and other costume pieces for our performers to begin working with. It is amazing to see the difference having long hair can make, and how much more in touch with the character the performer can get. Most times, costumes are brought in during tech, but in a show such as this where so much is dependant on getting into the right mind set for the characters, every little bit helps - and let me just say that they look great!

A couple of parting thoughts to think about until the next time I write - this show is all about Americans in the 60's, and because of this some very interesting issues can come up. Who were the hippies - Were they a group of delinquents? Were the sex and drug crazed maniacs? Or were they people who just wanted to make a statement and were willing to go to any length to get people to listen to them? We don't claim to know the answers to these questions, but once you see the show, you may see a different side to hippy culture that you may not have seen before. We open in just under a week, and hope to see you at one of our performances. Plus, mark you calenders for Saturday the 25th, when we will have a special talk back after the performance that will give you a chance to talk with the perfomers as well as some of the creative staff about their thoughts on the show, as well as more information on how we put together a musical here at Tibbits.

Rehearsal Diary for HAIR--Day 1

Hair: THE DAWNING OF THE AGE OF AQUARIUS - Rehearsal Day 1

Hi everybody! My name is Patrick Young, and I am the Musical Director for the upcoming production of Hair. This is only our first day of rehearsals and the cast is already sounding wonderful. I will be writing here throughout the rehearsal process to tell you about what goes into making a great musical here at Tibbits, and offer you a glimpse into our world as performers.

Today was the first day of rehearsals, and although all shows are put together differently, we almost always talk on the first day with our director (Ray Gabica) about their concept and ideas for the show as a whole. We are fortunate for this show, since all of our cast members are under 30, that we have a director who experienced the events of the late 60's, and is able to bring in past experiences, along with all of the research that has been done about the era, the Vietnam War, and what the mood was like in those times. We were quite fortunate to have a full hour to discuss this with him, ask questions, and then we got down to singing our first musical number.

As the Musical Director, I get a lot of freedom in how vocal rehearsals work, and since I am brand new to the theater, I got a chance to go through and talk with the cast members, do some scales on the piano, and figure out where peoples voices sat. We have a great group of singers in this show, and a lot of them have a broad vocal range, so it is a matter of figuring out when they will sing melody, and harmonies, and where they sound strongest. We got to work on "Age of Aquarius" which is the opening number to the show, and after an hour of rehearsal they already sound great on it! Being able to combine such amazing music along with the ideas of the director can sometimes be a challenge, but Ray, the tribe, and I seem to be on the same page, which helps things go quickly.

In addition to learning the opening number, and also teaching parts for a number of full cast songs, we also got a chance to figure out who says which lines. Most shows are set up so that when you cast the performers, they are given a certain role, and that is their track for the show. This is more of an ensemble piece, and although certain characters have already been cast (Claude and Berger for example) we still have to pick out trios, soloists, and various other parts.

Overall, today was an amazing first day, and I am looking forward to the rest of the process, and will keep you updated on how things are progressing.

I Love You.....Caps the Season

I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE

"If this show were a blind date, you'd feel relieved, grateful and pleasantly surprised." Newsday, 1996

I love this show. We produced it, one of the first productions in Michigan, in 2001. Obviously, our audience loved it too. It is the most requested musical to bring back that we‘ve ever had. To quote from the CD liner notes: "In a theatrical age of mammoth spectacles and brooding musical dramas, I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change is a rollicking throwback to a nearly extinct theatrical genre: the musical comedy revue. With book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro and music by Jimmy Roberts, I Love You... reinvigorates the revue by taking a hilarious and tuneful joyride through the dizzying spectrum of modern male-female relationships.

In 1995, I Love You... premiered at New Jersey's American Stage Company, where, in the middle of one early performance, a woman in the audience couldn't help but blurt out, "This is my life!" From that moment on, the creators knew they were on to something. The following season, I Love You...moved to New Haven's Long Wharf Theater, and then on August 1st, 1996, I Love You... opened off-Broadway at The Westside Theater, where it was hailed as "Entirely winning! A show for real people about real people." (Gannett Newspapers).”

I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change played for 12 years--5,001 performances-- since it opened in 1996 to become the second longest running show and longest running revue in Off-Broadway history. The musical has been showcased in more than 400 cities world-wide including London, Tel Aviv, Amsterdam, Sydney, Seoul, Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles, Toronto, Boston, Chicago, Mexico City, Barcelona, Budapest, Prague, Milan, Johannesburg, Dublin, Buenos Aires, Berlin, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, and Taipei. In addition to its enormous success, the Off-Broadway production has been the site of over 50 marriage proposals.

"It's SEINFELD set to pop music!"Newark Star Ledger, 1996"Hilarious! The most entertaining show on or off Broadway!"Gannett Newspapers, 1996

Hair on Broadway....or at the Tibbits....

I thought it would be interesting for you to read what one of the co-authors wrote about the creation of Hair....

The origins of Hair by the author, James Rado:

"A guy from Washington, D.C. (James Rado) and a kid from Pittsburgh. Pa. (Gerome Ragni) met in New York City when they were cast together in a new off-Broadway endeavor, HANG DOWN YOUR HEAD AND DIE, a musical revue whose theme was Capital Punishment. Following the shortest run in show biz (one night), the two young men continued their friendship and soon set out to write their own show, a musical they entitled HAIR. The two became three when they joined up with a cat from Montreal, Canada (Galt MacDermot) who had settled into the New York area to live and who set their songs to music…

The show opened at the Public Theater and began to stir some excitement, earning largely favorable reviews, with a great one from Clive Barnes (who had some reservations mixed in with his praise), lead critic of the New York Times. Downtown (even without the "nude scene") HAIR proved to be a very warm ticket.

But after a 6-week run, Joseph Papp was done with it…. No show had ever gone from off-Broadway to Broadway before. Still Jerry and I were determined and knew that somehow, some way, we would find someone who would be able to help us move it uptown … Jerry and I had rewritten the text, and, with Galt, had added 13 new songs, expanding the score from 20 to 33 numbers.…We wanted a new director whom we had chosen, Tom O'Horgan…We installed and experimented with the new script of HAIR. Tom used various "sensitivity exercises."… The Tribe was taught how and encouraged to work organically with us on the material. It was a very exciting, smooth-going, yet tumultuous, rehearsal process. We opened at the Biltmore Theatre on April 29, 1968 (6 months after off-Broadway), and Clive Barnes, who had some reservations about the off-Broadway version, raved about our transformative work, which was hugely gratifying. For the most part, the critics hurrahed. HAIR was a hit!

HAIR has played pretty much continuously ever since its opening at Broadway's Biltmore Theatre on West 47th Street. It was translated into many languages and produced around the world, from Japan and Australia to South & Central America, from Europe to Israel."

>

Charles adds: With it’s freewheeling story line and barbed comments on sex, drugs, military service, money, religion and other contemporary concerns, it’s vibrant and often memorable rock score, and a sprinkling of nudity, it shattered Broadway conventions and ran 1750 performances, while the London company performed it 1997 times. It’s back on Broadway. And here at the Tibbits for the first time, July23 thorough August 1.

'Leading Ladies' Strut Their Stuff this July

Leading Ladies is about Leo and Jack, two British actors whose careers are so far on the skids that they're performing "Scenes from Shakespeare" on the Moose Lodge circuit in Pennsylvania's Amish country. They think their luck might change, however, when they hear about Florence, an old lady in a nearby town who is about to die and leave a considerable legacy to her nephews from England. Leo convinces Jack that they should impersonate the heirs--Max and Stevie. Their foolproof plan hits a snag, though, when they arrive on the scene and realize the woman's long-lost relatives are nieces and not nephews….should they give up? Never! They don skirts and become Maxine and Stephanie. The plot only complicates as they fall in love with two beautiful girls…

So what is it about men in skirts? Charley’s Aunt. Some Like It Hot. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. The Coldwater Rotary Show….There are certain things that are always funny…men walking in heels for the first time, bad wigs on “women” who are outlandishly tall, the locals enamored of these new glamazons…

I could write about how the tradition goes back to the plays of Ancient Rome---but it’s summertime. This strikes me as the perfect farce for this summer. A play with no hidden messages, just lot and lots of laughs. And boy, do we need that now!

"Ken Ludwig gives the audience something powerful and potent: laughter and a guiltless evening of Theatre-going."--Village News

"Leading Ladies is a highly combustible and continuously hilarious new comedy by Ken Ludwig, Broadway's reigning comic writer."--The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Jack Benny in the film of Charley's Aunt, 1941--Twentieth Century Fox

Top image is Arthur Askey in the British film Charley's Big Hearted Aunt, 1940

Hair and Tibbits Summer Theatre

I think for the first time in the history of Summer Theatre, we will be doing a show in Coldwater at the same time that a revival of the same show is the hottest ticket in New York City. Hair is back on Broadway.

Usually the agents who license the shows to us are very protective of the rights. They want to have no other productions. If the show is on tour, they will not allow other professional theatres the rights to do the show until the tour closes. They want no competition. This is why we are still not allowed to do Chicago.

Well, for what ever reason, Tams-Witmark is letting us do Hair concurrently. You can "Let the Sunshine In" right here in Coldwater. Oh, and I'm told by the box office, that it has quite a nice pre-sale...

Tibbits Summer Theatre Gearing Up

I’m a bad person. (Well, that’s a little strong…)

I’m a bad writer. (Well, I like to think not…)

I’m a bad blogger. (Well, perhaps that’s the right term. And the right tone…)

I have not gotten into the habit of being able to record events that might be of interest to those reading this blog who are looking for potentially fun facts about how Tibbits Summer Theatre is put together.

I will go back and catch you up on some of the things I've been doing to get ready for summer, but let me say that casting is complete, the design teams are in place and I just have a few orchestra members to hire! We start in 30 days! YIKES!!!

Charles Burr--AD

Tibbits is looking for artists to create and donate the images for its summer shows. The art contributed by regional artist the last two years has given Tibbits a fun look for its summer theatre brochures and other materials. It has also given many artists a unique outlet for their work and printed materials to build their portfolios.

If you’re interested there's detailed information on the website http://www.tibbits.org/. The art is not due until January, but we’d like to at least know if you intend to submit. Call 517-278-6029 or drop us an email at Tibbitsoperahouse@Tibbits.org.

Bop She Bops Update!!!!

Hello Everyone!!!! Tiffany Wiesend here. We are all getting really excited for performances of The Bop She Bops. Today we rehearsed with our drummer John, or as we call him "Uncle Dave" which was fantastic. He truly is an incredibly skilled musician. The drums have really added a lot to our performance and we can't wait to open on Thursday. Do check out the video below... I think you will enjoy it. Well, I better bop on out of here, I have a lot of bop-she-practicing to do :) I love bop-she-puns...

Bop She Bops!!!

Everyone should prepare to tap their toes and remember classic songs from the 1950's, 60's, and 70's. The Bop She Bops will bring fun, laughs, and maybe even a few tears through fantastic songs from this exciting era.

Right now we are just in the beginning stages of rehearsal for the show. My name is Tiffany Wiesend and I am one of the Bop She Bops ladies, along with Brynn Curry, and Katie Lemos. We are so excited to have the honor of performing these terrific tunes. Eric Silvertree is also involved, playing my father in the show, and our biggest fan and greatest supporter. We're having a ball in rehearsals getting to know these songs!

Take a minute and get a sneak peek in the rehearsal process with our secret rehearsal cam below! :)

Set Design and Little Women

The Set for Little Women

This is Charles. While Little Women closed a week ago, I thought our audience might like to hear about (and look at) this highly innovative set.

Here is Set Designer Lex van Blommestein talking about his first impressions for the concept of the set:

"When I first read the script for Little Women I realized that it is not as simplistic as some musicals. There is a rich story, that involves other fantastic stories wrapped within. I had to develop a visual idea that allowed for an interesting way to portray the rich and embellished tales that are spinning in Jo March's head. In the end, the decision became clear... bring it back to the story(ies). I had to keep the fantasy alive and interesting without making it seem like it was being acted. Using a semi-transparent material on the walls allowed for the hazy dream like stories of Jo's head to be played, while in front of the walls the reality of the musical can come to life."


These first three images are the preliminary sketches of how the set might work.






Once the set was okayed by Ray Gabica (the director), Lex and the Technical Director, Chuck Griffin, sat down to figure out what kind of materials could be used that would give the set the look Lex wanted but be within the budget for summer theatre. Scrim, the material that allows light through it when lit from the back and opaque when lit from the front, is very expensive.

Lex and Chuck decided to use a much more cost effective cheese cloth that had many of the same properties. It is never as opaque, but since we never had to see a "realistic" wall, it would work well--always giving a slightly ghostly feel to the room. Once the frame was built, the cloth was stretched over it and sized with a mixture of water and glue. Chuck demonstrates the look of the raw flat.


Next, it was Lex's turn to paint. Since the whole play is composed of Jo thinking back over her life, he opted to see fragments of the wall, not a hyper realistic look. Notice how the wall paper stencil fades in and out over the flat. The stencil is cut by hand and used to get the regulated pattern of the wallpaper. In the attic it is a suggestion of the lath showing through the plaster. For the floor he painted large pages of manuscript.


Ray wanted the show to always remind us of Louisa Alcott's (and, hence Jo's) literary roots. Great panels looking like books on a shelf were used to hide the house and provide other locations. Here Charlie Cochran and Chuck hold up the frame before it is covered with regular muslin.



Here is one completed and ready to go to the paint area. The workshop is located in the same building as the paint shop. Our property storage is there, too. The building is located about half a mile from the theatre. It's very convenient---until you need to transport the set to the theatre in the rain.


The platformed area helped define where we were at any given moment in the musical. The highest area was the attic. A sitting room area was to the left that could double in both the house and the boarding house. And an entrance/passageway was to the right of the attic. Here the platforms are just built and put in place for the first time at the scene shop.

Th Designer and Scenic Artist, Lex van Blommestein with the Little Women wallpaper stencil. Lex guesses he spent 55 hours painting the walls, platforms and floor.

Room Service Performance, Shows One and Two

Prior Reports:
Day 1 - Sunday, 29 June: Read-Through and Act One Blocking
Day 2 - Monday, 30 June: Act Two and Act Three Blocking
Day 3 - Tuesday, 1 July: Act Three Blocking, Publicity, and Working Act One
Day 4 - Wednesday, 2 July: Working Act Two and Meet the Cast
Day 5 - Thursday, 3 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 6 - Friday, 4 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 7 - Saturday, 5 July: Work Session and Designer's Run
Day 8 - Sunday, 6 July: Load-In*, Hang and Focus, and Running Lines
*Including one-minute timelapse video of the set going up!
Day 9 - Monday, 7 July: Costumes, Props, and Adjusting to the Stage
Day 10 - Tuesday, 8 July: Stage Management, Box Office, and Dress Rehearsal
Day 11 - Wednesday, 9 July: Final Dress Rehearsal

Thursday, 10 July: Opening Day Double Run

Hello! I'm Eric Silvertree, taking you behind the scenes into life in regional professional theater, with a day-by-day weblog covering Room Service, the third production in Tibbits Summer Theatre's forty-fifth season, from the first day of rehearsals to the last day of performance.

The rehearsal process is over now, and today we hit the stage and performed for an audience for the first time - and the second time. Today was a double run, meaning we had both a 2pm matinée and an 8pm evening performance. Our volunteer ushers had their work cut out for them preparing enough program flyers for the day.

First, though, for the morning session. I'm also performing in The Tortoise and the Hare and Other Fables by Aesop, part of the Tibbits Popcorn Theatre series for children. We have two more shows Friday and Saturday morning, but we haven't done the show since last week. To refresh our memories - and make sure that the set changeover from Little Women to Room Service hasn't created any problems for us - we had a brush-up rehearsal Thursday morning. It went great, and we'll have no problems re-opening the show tomorrow.

On to the afternoon. The stage manager of a show determines what time the cast is due to report in for a performance. That check-in time is referred to as call. Call times vary with the needs of the show. If the whole cast is in very elaborate costumes, or special makeup, or in a musical that requires time to warm up the voice, call may be an hour or more before the curtain goes up. Room Service has fewer pre-show demands on the actors, so Justin set our call at half an hour.

We're free to show up early, of course, and an actor who doesn't appear on stage until late in the show may be given a call time later than the rest of the cast. We each, by now, have a pretty good idea how long we personally will need to get ready, and we each have different ways of using the time. Some actors prefer to arrive early and get ready long before curtain time, then spend the extra time relaxing in the dressing room or greenroom. Some actors would rather get everything done just in time to hit the stage, because extra time spent waiting makes them nervous and jittery.

Either way, we're kept on track by Justin, who makes regular announcements of the time remaining before the show begins. One important timing mark comes just under a half-hour before curtain, when we hear that the house is open - meaning the ushers have begun showing the audience to their seats in the auditorium. The final announcement comes at two minutes to curtain time, when the stage manager calls us to take our places for the beginning of the show.

Then the house lights go dark, the stage lights come on, the curtain rises - and we begin. I'll talk more about what goes on backstage during a performance in later reports. Today, I'd like to tell you about some of our friends in the community of Coldwater, Michigan, and the special things they did for us on opening day.

The good folks at the United Methodist Church have a kind spot in their hearts for the Tibbits company, and on the days when we have two back-to-back performances they take special care of us by having the whole company over for dinner between shows. After washing off the makeup and changing back into our own clothes, we walked three blocks over to the church, where they had a great buffet with chicken casserole, tacos, rolls, salad, fresh fruit, iced tea, orange juice, coffee and dessert laid out for us. They've hosted meals for us on double-run days for many years now, and besides being grateful for the food, those of us who return to the Tibbits season after season are always happy to see them again. It's a delightful time spent catching up with friends. In the photo above, we raise our glasses to United Methodist volunteers Linda Luce, Diane Godfrey, MaryAnne Bair, Jerry Welborn, Carol Tinervia, and Marianne Hodson. Thanks again for your love and support!

We're just as grateful to the Northwoods Coffee Shop and owner Michelle Milnes, who started a new tradition this year. On opening nights, Northwoods re-opens late after the show, and we have the chance to relax and mingle with some of the folks who've just seen us on stage. It's wonderful to be able to meet and chat with the audience in such a pretty and comfortable place, and both the coffee and the food are excellent. Many of us at Tibbets make Northwoods a regular stop during the day, and the opening night receptions are a special treat - Michelle gave us each a beverage and dessert of our choice on the house!

As for the shows themselves, we couldn't be more pleased with how much the audiences enjoyed themselves. A lot is said about how much actors like the sound of applause, but there's one thing we love even more - the sound of a whole houseful of people helpless with laughter. Our double run on opening day left us very tired, but very very happy. We hope you'll come down and share the fun!

Room Service Rehearsal, Day Eleven

Prior Reports:
Day 1 - Sunday, 29 June: Read-Through and Act One Blocking
Day 2 - Monday, 30 June: Act Two and Act Three Blocking
Day 3 - Tuesday, 1 July: Act Three Blocking, Publicity, and Working Act One
Day 4 - Wednesday, 2 July: Working Act Two and Meet the Cast
Day 5 - Thursday, 3 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 6 - Friday, 4 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 7 - Saturday, 5 July: Work Session and Designer's Run
Day 8 - Sunday, 6 July: Load-In*, Hang and Focus, and Running Lines
*Including one-minute timelapse video of the set going up!
Day 9 - Monday, 7 July: Costumes, Props, and Adjusting to the Stage
Day 10 - Tuesday, 8 July: Stage Management, Box Office, and Dress Rehearsal

Wednesday, 9 July: Final Dress Rehearsal

Hi! I'm Eric Silvertree, one of the cast of Room Service opening Thursday, 10 July at Tibbits Opera House in Coldwater, Michigan.


Well, our final dress rehearsal is over. All the last-minute details have been seen to, all the choices have been made, everything about the show - from the sets to the props to the costumes to the lines to the blocking to the bowl of fruit snacks backstage to keep our energy up - are ready.

Other than to thank all of you for joining me backstage by reading the blog, there's little left to say before the curtain goes up. I'll be back with more reports as the show continues its run, but for now I'll leave you with a little gallery of photographs taken during one of our final pre-dress rehearsals by my partner, Rhett Ramirez. Hope to see you at the show!

Room Service Rehearsal, Day Ten

Prior Reports:
Day 1 - Sunday, 29 June: Read-Through and Act One Blocking
Day 2 - Monday, 30 June: Act Two and Act Three Blocking
Day 3 - Tuesday, 1 July: Act Three Blocking, Publicity, and Working Act One
Day 4 - Wednesday, 2 July: Working Act Two and Meet the Cast
Day 5 - Thursday, 3 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 6 - Friday, 4 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 7 - Saturday, 5 July: Work Session and Designer's Run
Day 8 - Sunday, 6 July: Load-In*, Hang and Focus, and Running Lines
*Including one-minute timelapse video of the set going up!
Day 9 - Monday, 7 July: Costumes, Props, and Adjusting to the Stage

Tuesday, 8 July: Stage Management, Box Office, and Dress Rehearsal

Hi again! I'm Eric Silvertree, a member of the cast of Room Service, the rollicking farce opening Thursday, 10 July at the historic Tibbits Opera House in Coldwater, Michigan.

Time is speeding by as the show gets ever closer to opening. During the morning session, the technical crew - set, lights, props and costumes - were hard at work finalizing all the details, from repairing the facing on a step that one of us accidentally kicked in, to finishing a hat for one of the ladies, to finding the right mix of Coca-Cola and 7-Up to simulate champagne.

The afternoon session was a run without costumes (except for garments changed on stage as part of the show) and in the evening we had another full dress rehearsal. Yesterday, our biggest concern was adjusting to the move from the rehearsal space to the stage. Today, we were back to concentrating on our acting, polishing our performances, and establishing our personal routines for the show. We and the crew all rely on each other backstage to keep things running smoothly. For example, Robert helps Whitney and Sarah by remaking the beds during the first intermission, Brian and Steve help J.R. with a tricky little bit of costuming before he makes a re-entrance, and I help John maneuver the breakfast cart into place so when the door opens, he can wheel it right on.

You've caught sight of the stage management staff here and there in previous posts, but let's get to know them a little better.

In front is Justin Carroll, the production stage manager. Justin started working with Tibbits Summer Theatre five years ago as an assistant, and is now the man in charge when the show goes live and the director turns over control to stage management. Justin is working toward a degree in theatre technology and design at Central Washington University.

Behind him is Whitney Shouse. Whitney is the assistant stage manager for mainstage shows, and serves as primary stage manager for the Tibbits Popcorn Theatre series for young audiences. Whitney is a theatre major at Hanover College in Indiana.

At the lighting control console in back is Ben Paciorkowski, the master electrician. From this nest off to the side of the stage, Ben and Whitney perform the technical aspects of the show - raising the curtain, ringing the telephone on the set, controlling the lights on stage and in the auditorium - while Justin gives them their cues from his post in a booth behind the last row of seats in the balcony. Justin, Whitney, and Ben are in constant communication by headset microphone, and Justin also makes announcements to the actors thorough speakers in the dressing rooms.

We also have dedicated folks keeping things going at the Tibbits year-round. Joan Spaulding is the darling lady in charge of keeping things tidy throughout the building. Cleaning our individual dressing room spaces is each actor's responsibility, but then there's the auditorium, the lobby, the downstairs intermission space with art gallery and gift shop…

Dave Brown is the house technical director, making sure the lights and fans work for us on both floors of dressing rooms, for instance, as well as working with the community theater and other performance groups that use the opera house when Tibbits Summer Theatre is not in season. I never know when I'm going to come across either Joan or Dave when I zip through the place at random odd hours, and Joanie always has a sweet smile and a laugh for me, and Dave's always ready with a new joke.

There are a lot of people involved in mounting a production - not just the actors you see strutting their stuff in the light. We all work hard to bring the show together - and by now, I hope you're as eager to see the production as we are to present it. Here are the friendly people to talk to for tickets!

That's box office manager Jo Summitt on the left, with assistant manager Vanessa Bloom on the right. In the second photo are Shannon McKinney and Sam Haberl.
They'll be very happy to reserve your seats - either in person, or at 517.287.6029. The box office is open from 10am to 5pm every weekday, 9am to 4pm on Saturdays, plus at 7pm (an hour before curtain time) on all dates with evening shows. Room Service opens on Thursday with two shows - a matinée at 2pm and an evening performance at 8pm. We continue Friday and Saturday at 8pm both nights. The following week, we re-open on Wednesday with a 2pm matinée, then complete the run with 8pm shows on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) we have our final rehearsal before we open the doors and bring up the curtain - and your backstage pass with me on the blog will go on all through the run of the show. More coming soon!

Room Service Rehearsal, Day Nine

Prior Reports:
Day 1 - Sunday, 29 June: Read-Through and Act One Blocking
Day 2 - Monday, 30 June: Act Two and Act Three Blocking
Day 3 - Tuesday, 1 July: Act Three Blocking, Publicity, and Working Act One
Day 4 - Wednesday, 2 July: Working Act Two and Meet the Cast
Day 5 - Thursday, 3 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 6 - Friday, 4 July: Run-Through and Meet the Cast
Day 7 - Saturday, 5 July: Work Session and Designer's Run
Day 8 - Sunday, 6 July: Load-In*, Hang and Focus, and Running Lines
*Including one-minute timelapse video of the set going up!

Monday, 7 July: Costumes, Props, and Adjusting to the Stage.

Hi there! I'm Eric Silvertree, back with another installment of the day-by-day backstage blog of Room Service, part of Tibbits Summer Theatre's forty-fifth season of summer stock.

I'm sure you noticed some props and furniture pieces gradually replacing the folding chairs that stood in for the real things during rehearsals at the Jefferson Elementary School gym. On Monday, however, we got our hands on all the genuine articles we'll be using in the show. Minor additions and changes will continue right up to the final rehearsal, but all the departments try to make sure that the technical aspects of the show are as close to finished as possible for the first on-stage run.

Properties master Sarah Simrau had her work cut out for her - there are three and a half pages of fine print on the last pages of the script, listing the props called for in the action of the play - and none of them are allowed to look as though they were manufactured in the twenty-first century. Period suitcases, doctor's bag, dinnerware, linen and towels, a typewriter in a carrying case - all have to be either found, made, or modified from items in the Tibbits stock.

It all looks like a pile of mess as it's brought in, but Sarah and assistant stage manager Whitney Shouse quickly get things organized. Props are either pre-set in the right locations on the set or laid out on tables backstage, with a specific place for each prop, so that we actors always know exactly where everything is and can easily grab what we need and get back on stage.

Lights and set also have some details to attend to, like wiring the lighted sconces attached to the wall above the side tables by the beds. Here you can see Whitney and master electrician Ben Paciorkowski hooking up power to a bell ringer that has the right sound for a 1930's telephone and can be controlled from the light operator's station.

During the morning session, while the crew was busy working on the stage, the actors met in the greenroom. Nobody can agree on why the room set aside for actors to relax offstage as they're waiting to go on is called the greenroom, but it's been called that since at least the beginning of the eighteenth century. Ours is down a flight of stairs from the door opening onto the back of the stage, and it's the perfect spot for the whole cast to go through the dialogue of the whole show from beginning to end, talking our way through the script one last time before we start doing it on a set with stairsteps and doors and furniture and props in our hands.

After lunch, we walked around on the set for a few minutes to get used to the space, and then we began our first onstage run-through. We've been rehearsing on a flat floor without walls up until now, pretending to be holding papers and dishes and things, so we were all a little distracted the first time through, and kept forgetting our lines. That's not a problem - the director expects it to happen, and so do we. When an actor goes blank in rehearsal, he or she doesn't (and shouldn't) waste time apologizing for it. Instead, we just shout "Line!" Someone - usually Justin Carroll, the stage manager - has a script right in front of him, ready to feed us a few words to get us back on track. There comes a point, of course, when we're expected to recover from problems on our own (since we can't shout "Line!" during a performance) but that point doesn't come until we've had a chance to get used to the stage.

For the evening session, we added costumes to the mix. We've paid individual visits to the costume shop for fittings at various times during the last week, but this was our first time wearing them for a dress rehearsal, or rehearsal in costume. Getting used to our clothes, and when we change them for different scenes, is another distraction, but we all settled in very quickly. In fact, I think I was the only one who called "Line!" during the evening dress.

Costuming a show set in the 1930's - or any other historical period - presents the same challenges as gathering props. All the garments have to have to be in the right style, with no obvious color or fabric choices from the wrong era. Some of the clothes are simply pulled from the Tibbits inventory, and some are constructed from scratch. Let's meet the costumers!

In front is Melissa Swanson, the designer for Room Service. Behind Melissa is Kathleen Reid, and behind Kathleen is Em Rossi. Kathleen recently earned her BFA at the University of Central Missouri, and Em is working toward her MFA at Wayne State University. They all share the work as stitchers for every show, but they divide the design responsibilities up. Em designed Little Women, which just closed, and is working on the upcoming show The Goodbye Girl, which follows Room Service. Melissa will design again for The Bop She Bops, and Kathleen is in charge of all the shows in the Popcorn Theatre series for children.

Now that we're on the stage, and into the dress rehearsal phase, we're almost ready to open. Tuesday and Wednesday will be our time to work out the last of our hesitations and uncertainties as we prepare to open the show to the public on Thursday. I'll talk to you again soon!