Evil Dead: The Musical

While I was looking for a way to fill a Halloween evening off here in Fredericton NB I stumbled across a poster advertising a local community theatre production of Evil Dead: The Musical.  I have heard a lot about this show over the years, and friends of mine were actually in the original Toronto production, but I had never seen it.  I thought it would be a hoot to score a $20 ticket, and I wasn't disappointed.  Presented at a cute little theatre at the local francophone community center, the show featured a quirky local cast, that may not have had professional talent, but they certainly had a lot of heart. 

With its very own blood splash zone in the front row, this show focused on the gory, campy off beat humour that made Bruce Campbell and The Evil Dead trilogy of movies cult classics.  Blood packets and Hudson sprayers full of fake blood doused the audience throughout the show, much to their obvious delight.

With songs like "What the fuck was that?" and "Do the Necronomicon" the show kept tonights small audience laughing throughout.  Some of the cast may not have had the vocal range to belt these rollicking tunes the way they were written, but I will give them credit for their attempt.  They certainly were committed.

The show certainly had its share of technical difficulties, missed mic pick up, miss-cued sound effects, wigs falling from cast members heads, lighting levels that left the cast in near total darkness...the list goes on.  It was a little bit like being forced to watch the final performance of Waiting for Guffman.

Despite the technical elements of the show being a propper Tour De Farce I want to give full kudos to the 2 young ladies who played Cheryl and Shelly, as both of them had the pipes to sing their respective roles, and knew how to act their way out of a wet paper bag, qualities unfortunately not shared by the rest of the cast. 

Regardless, I laughed pretty hard both with, and at, the cast, and the show provided a solid two hours of entertainment.

Opening Night!

Hard at work, now calling the show from backstage!

Our adventure continues!  After an easy travel day that included our first meal stop at a Walmart so that everyone could stock up on food and supplies, we arrived at our first performance destination, New Haven, Connecticut, home of Yale, on Thursday night, and quickly settled in to our luxurious suites.   Life on the road is always easier with nice hotel rooms, especially ones that have full kitchen facilities. 

The cast and band immediately arranged a pot luck dinner, because they are just that sweet.  A little later on Charles and I headed downtown with Kirsten, our swing tech, and John, our audio tech to the Theatre district for a substantial meal.  As the crew had to do their first load in call at 7am Friday morning, it was an early night.

Friday morning at 10am four of the cast and myself were scheduled to appear for a Q & A session at a local performing arts high school, arranged by the educational outreach division of the Shubert Theatre.  The five of us had an absolute blast sharing our stories with the students and faculty. They were such an engaged, generous audience that I sense all of us came away from it feeling even more pumped about our Opening Night performance that night. The local media was also in attendance, and we actually made the local paper & online section of their website.  Here's the link: http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/the_downbeat_and_the_lowdown_delivered_to_co-0p_actors/

After the Q & A session I caught a ride over to the historic Shubert Theatre to see how the load-in was going, and see if I could be of any assistance.  The remainder of the cast had the afternoon free to explore the town and rest up for our big night.

The view from the 2nd balcony! 
There were a lot of stairs to climb to get this shot!

The crew has just about finished the load in
at this point.

The view from the stage.
I couldn't get the 2nd balcony
in the shot.

 The Shubert Theatre here in New Haven Connecticut was built in 1914, and has hosted premiers of many landmark American plays including Oklahoma and A Streetcar Named Desire.  It really is a beautiful space with a wonderful staff, and a great local crew.  By the time I arrived on Friday afternoon, our touring crew was pretty much done load in, so I helped out where I could, mapping out dressing room signage, and prepping the space for the casts arrival. 

We got our very first on the road sound check, all 15 minutes of it, and then it was the cast's 1/2 hour call.  On the road you almost never get a lot of extra time to prep for a show...it's just a fact of life, and we all have to work within our limitations, while striving to deliver the absolute best possible show to each and every audience.

Our Opening Night performance had it's share of minor technical bumps and hiccups, but the cast were on fire!  The zeal and energy that they bring to this show every night truly is inspiring, and the audience loved it.  We received an immediate standing ovation for the curtain call.
Post show our producers had arranged an after party for us at a local pub, and I can guarantee that a good time was had by all. 

Saturday was a double show day, and I took the time to explore the Yale Campus between shows.  What an incredible experience!  The campus is simply breath taking, and I wish I had had more time to explore all of the nooks and cranny's of this stunning educational institution. 
  It really was something worth seeing.  I also hit the campus bookstore and picked up a wicked new Yale sweater that immediately makes me look smarter :)

Here's a few of the photo's I snapped of the campus, they hardly do it justice!

 

 

I have also started uploading some of my tour shots to my Facebook Photo Album, which is a tradition I started the last time I went out on the road - They should be accessible under the Godspell Tour Album.  Enjoy!
Tomorrow we perform our final matinee here in New Haven, before rolling out for our next destination - Fredericton New Brunswick.  Check back in a few days for another update!

I Blame Charles...

So the big day has finally arrived.  Day one of our 13 week North American tour of the Drayton Entertainment Production of Godspell.  The Tour is being produced by TMA/ Moonglow Productions out of NYC, headed by the same people who produced the tour of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels that I had the opportunity to go out on a few years back.

This time around it is 11 Canadian Cast Members, 2 Canadian Stage Managers, 5 American Crew, and our American Company Manager who I am hoping will keep us "between the mailboxes".

We boarded the bus at 9:45am in Cambridge ON, and after what was a teary goodbye for some of our cast, we set out on our very first travel day.  Our only real goal today was to make it across the border into the U.S. and then travel about 50 percent of the way to our first venue - New Haven Connecticut.  It was smooth sailing the entire way to our first stop.  We breezed through customs in record time - 40 min from arrival at the border to departure.  Not too shabby for a bus filled with a mixed production company of Canadian Cast and American Crew.  No fuss, no muss, no worries, and no delays.  It was pretty slick.

As far as being out on the road, I was actually surprised at how quickly I found myself falling into my old touring habits.  I grabbed the same seat on the coach that I had the last time I went out (It really is all about being at the back of the bus), and settled in very quickly.  I have found that on the road you have to rely on technology to keep you entertained...tablets, e-readers, laptops, and portable gaming systems are your best friends, and keeping them charged is a primary concern!  My tablet and PS Vita got a solid work out today, as we passed through Ontario's wine country, and down into New York State.  The number of sets of headphones in use on the bus is very encouraging.  This group has already figured out that it is up to them to keep themselves entertained while they are on the bus.  We also put on our first group movie after the lunch break, but to be honest, I have no idea what it was because I was deep into Uncharted: The Golden Abyss on my PS Vita at the time.

I was also amused by a few of the casts ability to nap on the bus on day one.  Regardless of all of the excitement and energy that they had when we left Cambridge, a few were able to stretch out and catch a few z's before we even hit the border.  No question, they will adapt just fine to life on the bus.

We arrived in Syracuse NY in time for dinner and didn't waste any time making plans.  After a healthy stop at the hotel bar, the majority of us wound up catching a free shuttle down to Syracuse Suds, in the market district for dinner.  While the craft beer was far from stellar, the food was decent, the live jazz was fun, and the company was second to none.   From there, small groups peeled off to do whatever they wanted, but the gang I was with, which included my unflappable ASM Charles,  started a little pub crawl that took us to four or five local establishments, every one of which was more interesting than the last.  After sampling more than our share of the local craft brews, and some fresh mussels, We ended our evening at a fantastic hole in the wall bar called Al's which had the biggest wall of liquor that I have ever seen... which was impressive in and of itself.  (We're talking 15' high x 36' long folks!) Also, when I asked the bartender if they had a bottle of  Crown Royal Cask #16 on hand, he readily acknowledged that they had it, and was happy to pour me a $15 ounce.  HEAVEN. 

(I really do need to pick up another bottle of that while I am out on tour to bring home as a special treat for myself.)   On top of the great bourbon/scotch selection, there was also a hip trio playing at Al's and we stuck around to hear them play for a good 35 min... reminded me a lot of Death Cab For Cutie.  A very mellow sound with lot's of interesting instrumental combinations.
After walking home - about 1.54 miles - BTW a big Thank-you to iphones for keeping us from getting totally lost in strange new cities - we went our separate ways.

Tomorrow is another straight travel day before we load in for our first show on Friday night.  I smell a friendly poker game in my future.

So, now I'm on Godspell...and soon headed out on tour!

Life has been very busy lately, as I suddenly and unexpectedly changed shows mid-week, bidding goodbye to my compact little guy group musical review show and jumping onto a sit down run of Godspell here in Waterloo that found itself in need of a Stage Manager 24 hours before its first public performance due to a medical emergency.  Being the glutton for punishment that I am, I jumped in to help at a moments notice and made the show happen. I actually ran 3 full shows on day 1, a personal first! (one student matinee of Godspell, and 2pm and 8pm performances of Legends of Harmony).  Calling  9 shows as opposed to the standard 8, plus standard rehearsals makes for one hell of a long week, especially when you tack on the added stress and pressure of an Opening night.
I have to extend a big thank-you to the production teams for both shows, as they really pulled together to make my transition a smooth one for both shows.  Everyone here at Drayton Entertainment really are rock stars who are amongst the best there are at what they do.  It is always such a pleasure to work with such outstanding individuals!  Everyone involved in both of these productions is total A Team material.

So despite turning my life a little sideways for 5-7 days, the upside of this new assignment is that I will now have a much better handle on the show when I head out on the road for a 13 week North American Tour. 

I had been contracted for the tour a few weeks back, and am really looking forward to getting to go out on the road for another adventure abroad.  I am especially pumped about tour dates in both New Brunswick and British Columbia as I have never been to those Provinces, and I am looking forward to getting to see some more of our beautiful country.  We are also headed to plenty of city's in the States that I haven't ever been to, so that will be entertaining.

Also, a big shout out to Charles, my ASM on the Road, he is one of my favourite people, and I trust him to have my back and keep me out of trouble, just as I will be looking out for him.

Obviously there are a lot of people that I am leaving a home that I am going to miss like crazy, but it's only a 13 week engagement, with a couple of decent hiatus's so it's not really like I am gone for very long.  I will always have the carrot of home dangling in front of me, keeping me motivated on the road.

I plan on using WWWWD to keep everyone posted on the entire tour experience, with lots of photo's on facebook, so please come back often after Oct 22nd for all the updates.

The Cottage

A few weeks back I was lucky enough to have had the opportunity to spend a couple of days relaxing up at "the cottage" with my cast and crew. A spacious, modern, winterized home on the shore of Lake Simco, "the cottage" is owned by the aunt and uncle of the MD of my current show and was a perfect destination for a little get away for the members of our production company. Seven of us were able to make the trip, and a great time was had by all. Our MD proved to be a wonderful host, and an incredible chef, making all of our meals from scratch.
I was the first to brave the waters of Lake Simco, swimming right off the dock. I was actually pleasantly surprised at the temperature, considering that is was mid September. At one point two locals actually canoed past by me, as I stood chest deep in the frigid water and looked at me like I was nuckin' futs.
Watching theatre folk be sportific is always entertaining, and the impromptu volleyball game we had was no exception. We spent more time chasing the ball through the hedgerow into the neighbours yard than actually playing volleyball.
Yours truely hit the booze a little hard on day 2, I may have started with a cold beer at 8am, and graduated to a gin ceasar by 11am, and double fisting beergaritas by 1pm. Long story short I put myself to bed by 6pm, where I stayed until 7am on day 3. Lesson learned...when pacing oneself on an all day bender it is important to take breaks for food, and the occasional glass of water.
Despite my inherent stupidity, I had a great time bonding with my cast, and it was a much needed release from the stress and pressure of a very busy summer season.

Cards Against Humanity Hiaku's

Penis Envy
Praying The Gay Away
Frolicking.

God
Laying an Egg
The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

The KKK
Ethnic Cleansing
Puppies

William Shatter
Bill Nye the Science Guy
Vigilante Justice

New Age Music
Hot Pockets
Woman's Suffrage

Sentinels - This Should Be Good!

If you stuck around after the credits at the new Wolverine movie, this will be old news to you, but this photo, tweeted by Bryan Singer the director of the upcoming movie X-Men: Days of Future Past, confirms that Trask Industries will feature prominently in the plot of the new film. For those of you who haven't read the comic books, the CEO of Trask Industries: Bolivar Trask is the creator of the Sentinels. Giant mutant hunting robots that pack an incredible arsenal of weaponry, and have the ability to adapt and neutralize most mutant powers, various incarnations of the sentinels have been a staple villain in the comic books for years. With any luck, the film, which features some returning members of both casts of X-Men: First Class, and the original X-Men trilogy, will stay fairly true to the Days of Future Past, comic book plot line. Which I will keep to myself, so as to not spoil anything.
Here's a gratuitous photo of Hugh Jackman on set because Wolverine is my favourite. X-Men: Days of Future Past is scheduled for release May 23rd, 2014. It will be worth the wait!