REMINDER: We’d like to remind everyone that our friends at the Highline Historical Society will be presenting “Soldiers in Petticoats: The Struggle of the Suffragettes” at the SeaTac City Hall this Sunday, Feb. 21st, beginning at 2pm.

Local actress Tames Alan will perform, dressed in full period costume and acting totally in character, to talk about the struggle of American women to gain the right to vote. From what we hear, Tames does an excellent job of acting so this should be entertaining.

Plus…it’s FREE.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Highline Historical Society’s “Soldiers In Petticoats: The Struggle of the Suffragettes”

WHEN: Sunday, Feb. 21st beginning at 2pm

WHERE: SeaTac City Hall, located at 4800 South 188th Street in SeaTac.

COST: This is a FREE event.

INFO: From a press release:

In the authentic clothing of a suffragette, Actress Tames Alan returns to talk about the struggle of American women to gain the right to vote. In 1867, the passing of the 14th Amendment defined “citizen” as “male,” thus denying women the right to vote. On this 100th Anniversary of women’s right to vote in Washington State, learn how American women adopted the militant tactics of English suffragettes to earn the right to vote and regain citizenship in their own country. Discover how the suffragettes influenced child labor laws, the use and dispersal of birth control, the Temperance movement, and the right of women to earn a college degree.

This engaging program is free.

It is brought to the community by the Highline Historical Society with the support of Humanities WA.

Immediately followed by a reception for the elected women of Highline.

Tames Alan is an actress, historian, and fashion history teacher who has combined her skills to create Living History Lectures for people of all ages. Since 1986, she has been touring her programs throughout the United States and Canada, where she is known for in-depth research and a lively presentational style. Tames studied theater and history at Willamette University in Oregon and theater at the American Conservatory Theater and the Dell Arte School in California. She taught fashion history at the Art Institute of Seattle, and is a historical consultant to museums, libraries, and historical festivals throughout the Pacific Northwest.

For more information, visit the Highline Historical Society’s website here.

Burien Little Theatre’s classic, 50s-themed rockin’ version of Arne Zaslove’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” continues at the Burien Community Center this weekend, with shows Friday and Saturday at 8pm, and Sunday at 2pm.

Tickets are $7-$20 online (click here to order) and $17-$20 at the box office, with the $10 student ticket price in effect until the end of the month.

The show runs through Sunday, March 21st.

If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s a video promo that shows off the production – check out the costumes, slicked back hair and big sideburns:

Read our previous coverage here.

BTB Advertiser West Seattle Montessori School and Academy will be presenting the play “Mulan” this Thursday, Feb. 4th, and Friday, Feb. 5th at West Seattle High School, at 7pm both nights.

Starring in the play will be the schools’ lower and upper elementary students.

Directing is WSM’s faculty member Mary Springer, local founder and artistic director of Twelfth Night Productions.

The tale of Mulan contains universal themes – that often the individual must sacrifice for the greater good, and that the path of personal discovery lies in that sacrifice.

Tickets are $7 in advance and $10 at the door.

Since 1985, West Seattle Montessori School has been an integral part of the West Seattle Community. Offering preschool through 8th grade education, WSMS prides itself on fostering independence and intellectual curiosity, stimulating personal growth, and encouraging innovation and a love of learning.

The school and academy are now enrolling for the 2010 – 2011 academic school year.

For more information, please contact the main office at (206) 935-0427, or visit their website here: www.WestSeattleMontessori.com.

Play location:

West Seattle High School
California Avenue SW and SW Stevens Street, in West Seattle

Ticket information: www.westseattlemontessori.com/updates/mulan

[Would you like to have a “Blogvertorial” Ad and/or Event Listing like this on a popular, fast-growing website seen by nearly 50,000 interested Local Readers every month? Email us for more info, or check out our Advertise page!]

BTB Advertiser E.B. Foote Winery wants our Readers to know that this is the final week for Breeder Theater’s “Snowbound,” which ends its run Sunday, Jan. 31st.

The only shows with tickets available are this Wednesday (Jan. 27th) and Thursday (Jan. 28th), so you’d better act fast (you can order online here).

Written by local playwright T.M. Sell and directed by BTB Photographer Michael Brunk, the story is set at a lodge in the Washington mountains (see our Review here and our Non-Review here). As winter snows block the passes stranding the guests, the local sheriff stops by with troubling news about an escaped convict:

• Could one of the guests be the suspected killer?
• Can any of them really be trusted?
• And just how many references to Alfred Hitchcock titles are in the show anyway?

“Snowbound” also features music by Nancy Warren. The stage manager is Andrew Pogue. The cast includes Andrew Smith, Laura Smith, Teresa Widner, Steve Scheide, Kelly Johnson, Scott Green, Martin J. McKenzie and Brenan Grant.

Here’s the schedule:

• Friday Jan. 15
• Saturday Jan. 16
• Sunday Jan. 17
• *Wed. Jan. 20 (benefits Highline College Foundation)
• Friday Jan. 22
• Saturday Jan. 23
• Sunday Jan. 24
• Wed. Jan. 27 – TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE
  
• Thursday Jan. 28 – TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE
• Friday Jan. 29 – SOLD OUT!
• Saturday Jan. 30 – SOLD OUT!
• Sunday Jan. 31 – SOLD OUT!

Tickets are just $20, and include the play, hors d’oeuvres and a wine tasting by E.B. Foote.

You can purchase them at the winery (127-B SW 153rd in Burien; 206-242-3852), at CorkyCellars in Des Moines (206-824-9462) or online here.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

• And Now, Our Actual Reviewer Reviews “Snowbound”
• Non-Reviewer Doesn’t Review Breeders Theater’s “Snowbound”
• PHOTOS: Behind-The-Scenes Peak At Breeders Theater’s “Snowbound”
• The Pass May Be Closed, But Tickets Are Now On Sale For Breeders Theater’s “Snowbound”

Burien’s Hi-Liners will be holding auditions for their upcoming production of “High School Musical 2” on Jan. 25th, 29th and 30th, and they’re looking for talent.

And for the first time ever, they’ll be featuring a student band as well.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Auditions for “High School Musical 2” including for a student band

WHEN: Monday Jan. 25 ~ 4-8pm; Friday Jan. 29 ~ 4-6pm; Saturday Jan. 30 ~ 3-7pm

WHERE: Lake Burien Presbyterian Church, located at 15003 14th Ave SW.

INFO:  High School Musical 2 On Stage! synopsis: What time is it? Summer time! School’s out—and the Wildcats  are back for an all new adventure. Join Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, Ryan and the rest of the East High gang as they dive into the enchanted world of Lava Springs Country Club and put their talent to the ultimate test!

Click HERE to sign up to audition.

Do you play an instrument?  We need Drums, Electric Bass, Guitar, Keyboard, Trumpet, Trombone and Sax for our band!  You’ll receive training from our music director and play for every performance of High School Musical 2!

Sign up for a band audition HERE.

NOTE: All auditioners are asked to be available for Callbacks. If you are not available, please inform the directors at your audition.

COST: Tuition for this production is $350.00, which includes a T-Shirt and DVD of the show. For information regarding payment plans and other forms of financial assistance please contact The Hi-Liners at 206-617-2152.

DATES: Performance dates and times will be:

• Saturday April 24 ~ 7:30pm
• Sunday April 25~ 1:30pm
• Friday April 30~ 7:30pm
• Saturday May 1~ 7:30pm
• Sunday May 2~ 1:30pm

All performances will be held at the Renton Carco Theater, located at 1717 SE Maple Valley Highway in Renton.

Tickets will go on sale in February.

Sign up here: http://www.hi-liners.org/mainstage/audform.html

Just in Time for Valentine’s Day fun, and priced at an affordable $14 (for two!), Burien Little Theatre presents Arne Zaslove’s 1950’s Rock ‘n’ Roll musical romantic comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

Here’s more info from a press release:

This Valentine’s Day do something exciting for your sweetheart and take your honey to a matinee at the Burien Little Theatre for just $14. That’s right, Feb. 14, St. Valentine’s Day, is “Seven Dollar Sunday” at BLT! That means all tickets are just $7 on Feb. 14: Better live theater at a low low price. Add dinner after the show with The Mark Restaurant and Bar’s dinner and a show package, and you have a complete Valentine’s Day event for two for just $54. Valentine’s Day simply can’t get any sweeter. So get out your poodle skirt, find your rotary phone, call up your sweetheart and make a date for Feb. 14th. But hurry, Seven Dollar Sunday is always a sellout and when it falls on St. Valentine’s Day, tickets will be gone before you can eat a box of chocolates.

Directed by Burien Little Theatre’s own Maggie Larrick, this Midsummer will have you singing along with star-crossed lovers during this romantic comedy from Feb. 12 through Mar. 21.

“It’s the most approachable of Shakespeare’s shows,” said Larrick. “And the musical numbers in each scene really tell the story.”

The play is set in a 1950s gymnasium at Athens High School on graduation day 1957, and in a neighboring forest. A group of magical fairies intervene and meddle with the lives of two young copuples for whom “the course of true love never did run smooth.” Botched love spells, hilarious characters and 1950’s rock ‘n’ roll make this show a treat for young and old, those in love and those between love.

Midsummer opens February 12 and runs through March 21. Shows are Fridays & Saturdays at 8:00pm and Sundays at 2:00pm.

Show Dates & Times:

• February 12 at 8:00 p.m.    Friday
• February 13 at 8:00 p.m.    Saturday
• February 14 at 2:00 p.m.    Sunday Matinee - Seven Dollar Sunday
• February 19 at 8:00 p.m.    Friday
• February 20 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• February 21 at 2:00 p.m.    Sunday Matinee
• February 26 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday
• February 27 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• February 28 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee
• March 5 at 8:00 p.m.          Friday
• March 6 at 8:00 p.m.          Saturday
• March 7 at 2:00 p.m.          Sunday Matinee
• March 12 at 8:00 p.m.        Friday
• March 13 at 8:00 p.m.        Saturday
• March 14 at 2:00 p.m.        Sunday Matinee
• March 19 at 8:00 p.m.        Friday
• March 20 at 8:00 p.m.       Saturday
• March 21 at 2:00 p.m.        Sunday Matinee

Tickets are available online at www.burienlittletheatre.com, by email at tickets@burienlittletheatre.org or by phone at (206) 242-5180.

For more information about BLT, please visit www.burienlittletheatre.com.

Burien Little Theatre is holding open auditions this Monday, Jan. 18th for its upcoming readings of “Dinner with Friends,” a bittersweet comedy about marriage, fidelity, infidelity and friendship written by Donald Margulies.

Male and female actors are sought who can play characters in their early 40s, but keep in mind that you don’t necessarily have to be these ages to read the roles.

The time commitment is minimal as three to four rehearsals are planned, and there will three public readings.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Open auditions for Burien Little Theatre’s “Dinner with Friends” readings

WHEN: Monday, Jan. 18th, from 7pm to 10pm

WHERE: Burien Little Theatre, located at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of SW 146th St. and 4th Ave SW in Burien

CONTACT: Maggie Larrick, Marketing – email: maggielarrick@earthlink.net; phone: 206-246-0088

INFO: From a press release:

Auditions for readings of Dinner with Friends at Burien Little Theatre

Burien Little Theatre invites actors to audition for readings of “Dinner with Friends,” a bittersweet comedy about marriage, fidelity, infidelity and friendship written by Donald Margulies. Male and female actors are sought who can play characters in their early 40s. You don’t have to be these ages to read the roles. The time commitment is minimal as three to four rehearsals are planned, and there will three public readings.

The readings will be at Burien Little Theatre: Saturdays Feb. 20 and March 6 and 20 at 2 p.m., which are the second, fourth and sixth Saturdays of Burien Little Theatre’s winter production of Arne Zaslove’s 1950s rock & roll musical version of the comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

Auditions will consist of cold reading from the script Monday, Jan. 18th, from 7pm to 10pm.

Make audition appointment or just show up. For appointment, contact readings@burienlittletheatre.com or call 206-242-5180.

Please also bring resume and headshot if available.

Auditions will be in the conference room at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien. For directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com.

Character List:

• Karen – Early 40s. Married to Gabe
• Gabe – Early 40s. Married to Karen
• Beth – Early 40s. Married to Tom
• Tom – Early 40s. Married to Beth

by Mark Neuman

We had a regularly scheduled staff meeting at The B-Town Blog’s dorm room-like offices Wednesday morning, where a non-regularly scheduled question was asked.

“Hey Neuman. Can you do a review of the dress rehearsal of the comedy ‘Snowbound’ at E.B. Foote Winery (BTB Advertiser) tonight?”

“Well, uh, I’ve never actually reviewed an actual play before,” I stammered.

“Good,” said Blog Editor Scott Schaefer. “I’ll expect your review in the morning.”

Great. What do I do now?

Honesty is the best policy I reminded myself, so hours before I arrived at the winery, home of many Breeder Theater’s productions over the past several years, I “pre-wrote” my opening review paragraphs, which I now present, for the reader’s approval:

In the spirit of full disclosure it should be noted that, first of all, in addition to never having reviewed a play before, I met ‘Snowbound’s’ author, playwright T.M. Sell, almost a third of a century ago, while hanging out at the Highline Community College newsroom, where my pals would, late at night, put the school newspaper, The Thunderword, to bed, as they say in the biz.

Second, I intended the above paragraph to be as run-on-ish as it appears.

Third, I was lucky enough to have made the pleasant acquaintance of ‘Snowbound’s’ director, Michael Brunk, last year. He is a brilliant Photographer, and we work together with Schaefer on the blog.

Michael’s skill with the camera is amazing. He reaches the summit on his photographic mountain climbs so amazingly frequently that we blog staffers just stare skyward and declare: ‘Good Brunksmanship!’

And fourth, speaking of E.B. Foote Winery, I actually know THE E.B. Foote. The Footes were among my best friends growing up, going way back to first grade. Chris Foote and I visited his parents as they were just finishing building out their first winery, in South Park, also about a third of a century ago.

Okay. Full disclosure is out of the way.

At the winery Wednesday night, minutes before the house lights did what house lights do just before a play is about to start, I looked over and Thank Goodness there was my blog colleague Gina Bourdage, with her friend Jack, who reminds one of a quiet and calm Jack Black.

“I’ll be doing the review of the play tonight,” said Gina, confidently. Wisely, Schaefer had recalculated the assignment.

“And I’ll just tell the story of a Regular Joe such as myself who never sees theater,” I responded.

“Fine,” smiled Gina as she and Mr. Black moved on.

Relieved, to say the least, that Ms. Bourdage would handle the rough stuff, I felt free to muse over and note such things as the jar full of multicolored M&M’s at the table of hors d’oeuvres.

“M&M’s at the hors d’oeuvres table!” I said to myself, because, well, no one else was within earshot. “Clearly Sell’s and Brunk’s contracts demanded the confection. And just as clearly, the winery refused to be limited to just one color, Led Zeppelin style. Or was it The Who? Lynyrd Skynyrd? Well, anyway.”

Gina will provide details of the play under a different headline, but let me give you a thumbnail of “Snowbound”:

Dean Martin plays an airline pilot who has an affair with a beautiful flight attendant, played by Jacqueline Bisset…

Then…oops, sorry…those are my notes from the first film I reviewed, “Airport,” for the Lafayette Elementary School Gazette back in 1970.

Let’s see here. Lemme get a little better organized. Okay. Here we go:

“Snowbound” is a mirthful production that concerns a group of unique personalities stuck in a lodge near the pass, just off I-90, in a wicked snow storm. The roads are all closed for the foreseeable future. And wouldn’t you know it? An inmate has escaped from the state pen in Monroe. A killer, perhaps? Is he among those stuck in the lodge?

What will T.M Sell think of next? See the play (it starts this Friday, Jan. 15th), and find out. It’s terrific, especially for the $20 price, which includes wine tastings, hors d’ouevres and of course, a great and entertaining play chock full of lots of Sellishness and Brunksmanship (you can buy tickets online here).

Stage Manager, Andrew Pogue, when asked before the show what advice he gives to anyone about to stage manage their first play, said: “Don’t start out with ‘Annie.’ And use checklists. Lots and lots of checklists.”

When asked after the dress rehearsal by this reporter what advice he had for anyone wanting to write their first play, T.M. Sell said “Know what you want to write, and stick with it. The initial writing part is relatively easy. It’s the rewriting process that can be difficult.”

He then said “Now Neuman, please go away and don’t contact me again for another third of a century.” (Just kidding, folks.)

Nancy Warren arranged the music and sang beautifully. Word is that regular Breeder Theater goers complain if Nancy does not sing somewhere during a performance.

An audience member, who I will refer to as “Becky” because, well, her name IS Becky, said “Of the four Breeder Theater plays I’ve seen, ‘Snowbound’ is the funniest. I laughed repeatedly.”

Kelly Johnson, who plays Glenda, the mother of Binky, has been acting since childhood. She has advice for prospective actors about to read for their first part: “Go bravely,” said the auburn beauty.

Go, ready to enjoy yourself, to “Snowbound.” I heartily recommend it. It runs through January 31st.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

• PHOTOS: Behind-The-Scenes Peak At Breeders Theater’s “Snowbound”
• The Pass May Be Closed, But Tickets Are Now On Sale For Breeders Theater’s “Snowbound”

The B-Town Blog’s “B-Town Breakdown With Amy Bouska” video this week features a rather unique interview with Burien’s own Manuela Horn, known to many as the 6′2″ “Yodeling Dominatrix” who got das boot from NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” last summer.

Manuela’s also a professional actress and multi-talented performer who has done gigs not only for local events like Burien’s own Oktoberfest, Brat Trot, but Seattle’s Teatro Zinzanni, Yahoo in New York City and many others.

She’s also a Mom (!) and lives in Burien (!!), and here’s the interview:

From her website:

The Yodeling Dominatrix’ name is “Hildegard van Schlag.” She stands 6 foot 10 inches tall and dominates her subjects with yodeling. Unfortunately her dungeon is completely full and has no availability for new subjects (so sorry). “Hildegard van Schlag”, is available to reign over special events as imported royalty or MC and loves subduing audiences with a 15-minute set of earbending yodels. Her list of requirements is extensively extreme. If you think you have a community worthy of her attention or want to invite her to an event she will happily send two of her minions to inspect it.

Here are some other vids of Manuela:

“Whipping Bells” by the Yodeling Dominatrix:

Beer Drinking Song at Oktoberfest:

Manuela Horn at Teatro Zinzanni:

If you’d like to book Manuela for a holiday party, email her here.

Read our previous coverage of Manuela here.

View Amy’s previous “B-Town Breakdown,” a video interview with local artist Rebecca Miller here.

A few months ago, The B-Town Blog posted a request from the Burien Little Theatre for a baby grand piano to be used on stage for “Christmas with the Crawfords,” the campy new musical comedy that opens this Friday, Nov. 27th.

BLT had four people kindly offer their baby grand, and thanks to BTB Reader Kathy Reed, on Monday, Nov. 23rd, her piano was delivered. BLT of course paid for professionals to move the piano in and back out, and BLT will have the piano tuned now that it is in the theater space and again when the piano gives up the stage and returns home.

“This is the first time in BLT’s 29 seasons that a baby grand has graced the stage,” said Eric Dickman, Artistic Director. “We are all very excited.”

Ann Sager, the music director for “Christmas with the Crawfords,” who will play the piano during the run of the show says, “Since the first day of rehearsal I have been looking forward to sitting down at the baby grand and playing my heart out for the audience.”

Managing Director Maggie Larrick adds: “This is Joan Crawford’s house on Christmas eve 1944.  Joan would not have a lowly upright.  The script called for a baby grand, and thanks to our supporters we have a baby grand on stage.”

“Christmas with the Crawfords” opens this Friday, Nov. 27th, and runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm.

For ticket information, show times and dates, click here.

To purchase tickets quickly and securely online, click here.

DON’T FORGET there are FREE readings of “a Christmas Story” at 2 pm this Saturday, Nov. 28th, as well as Dec.12th.  That’s right, FREE readings!

Burien’s Hi-Liner’s 2009 Annual Fundraiser will be a Halloween Murder Mystery Dinner and Silent Auction on Friday, Oct. 30th from 6pm to 10pm at the Normandy Park Cove.

The Hi-Liners is funded from ticket sales, tuitions and donations from a variety of sources. The average MainStage production costs exceed $75,000, and this annual fundraiser will help offset those costs as well as support area youth.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Hi-Liner’s 2009 Fundraiser Halloween Murder Mystery Dinner & Silent Auction

WHEN: Friday, Oct. 30th from 6pm to 10pm

WHERE: Normandy Park Cove, 1500 SW Shorebrook Drive in Normandy Park

TICKETS: Click HERE to purchase event tickets and raffle tickets.

COST: Adults 18+ – $30 • Children 7-17 – $20

INFO: From their website:

Join us for a thrilling evening of food, fundraising, entertainment, who-done-it’s and more, that children ages 7-100 will enjoy! (Children must be 7 and up and be accompanied by an adult)

Enjoy a buffet dinner catered by long-time favorite, Sal’s Deli. There will be a silent auction, a cash bar and a raffle or two, along with director/acting coach Tony Curry and Events On The Edge as our fabulous entertainment! All proceeds of this event will go towards supporting The Hi-Liners theatrical programming for students and young adults.

MURDER MYSTERY THEME
Reality Bites: A TV/Film producer and director from L.A. are in town auditioning new talent and looking for new ideas for a new reality television show and film work. They heard that The Hi-Liners organization is bursting with talent and they want to find their next star! Director/ acting coach Tony Curry, Kate Moyer, Lynne Randall and other Hi-Liners will be there to audition for the part. After an unfortunate turn of events, they all become suspects in the murder of a private investigator who was investigating their backgrounds before they get signed. More suspects are discovered as the night unfolds, until eventualy, the murder is revealed.

Want to get even closer to the action? Would you like the opportunity to make your loved one a potential suspect in the evening murder mystery? Here’s your chance to snitch on your spouse, rat out your children, and set-up your friends…all for just $5!

Simply purchase a $5 raffle ticket for each individual that you’d like to incriminate and we’ll take care of the rest. Several suspects will be chosen from all of the raffle ticket purchased.

To purchase event tickets and raffle tickets, click HERE.

The Hi-Liners is independent and has received no financial or material support from the Highline School District since 1987.

For more information, visit www.hi-liners.org.

No, this list didn’t come from Letterman, as he was “too busy with an assistant”…but here are the Top 10 Reasons to see “Psycho Beach Party” at Burien Little Theatre this weekend:

10. Everyone deserves a little Escape this time of year.

9. Everyone cool is doing it.

8. Plenty of free parking.

7. Talk amongst yourselves. I’ll give you a topic. Psycho Beach Party, it’s neither Psycho, nor a Beach, nor a Party. Discuss.

6. The lighter side of mental health awareness!

5. Girls in Bikinis.

4. See what everyone is talking about!

3. Because “Wicked” already closed.

2. It’s better live theater!

And the #1 reason to see “Psycho Beach Party” at Burien Little Theatre this weekend:

1. They can’t have the Party without You!

Here are the showtimes for this weekend – and remember, you can purchase tickets easily online by clicking here:

• Friday, Oct. 9th – 8pm
• Saturday, Oct. 10th – 8pm [BONUS at 2pm FREE presentation of “Two Wheels North” in conjunction with Book-It Repertory Theater and Highline Historical Society]
• Sunday, Oct. 11th – 2pm Matinee

More info, as well as other showtimes, are available here.

Burien Little Theatre’s latest production, “Psycho Beach Party,” opens this Friday night Oct. 2nd at 8pm at the Burien Community Center, and below are photos taken of a recent rehearsal to give you an idea of what to expect (just be sure to mentally add costumes, great music and a professional production):

Click to View Burien Little Theatre’s Photo Slideshow

“Psycho Beach Party” is described as:

“Gidget” meets “The Three Faces of Eve” in this 1987 comic send-up of those 1960s beach party movies.

Chicklet, a perky Malibu teenager, joins a group of beach bums to learn to surf.

Unfortunately, she has multiple personalities, including that of a sinister vamp out to conquer the world.

Welcome to Malibu Beach 1962 style on the set of Psycho Beach Party, the first play in Burien Little Theatre’s 2009-2010 “escape” themed season. Psycho Beach Party, written by Charles Busch, is a 1987 spoof of those popular and campy 1960s beach party movies. Busch’s send-up blends ”Gidget” with “The Three Faces of Eve” through the story of Chicklet, a perky Malibu teenager, who joins a group of beach bums to learn to surf. Unfortunately, Chicklet has multiple personalities, including that of a sinister vamp out to conquer the world. Watch out, the surf’s up!

Psycho Beach Party will run at BLT from Oct. 2 through Nov. 1. Tickets at the box office are $17 to$20, except on Seven Buck Sunday Oct. 4 when all tickets are just $7. Significant savings are available by buying online at www.burienlittletheatre.com. Shows are Fridays and Saturday nights at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m., except there will be no performance Oct. 16. As a special bonus, BLT will provide FREE readings on four Saturdays during the run. A full performance schedule is available at www.burienlittletheatre.com/page2.html.

The Story
Playing off the classic beach party theme – Psycho Beach Party features Chicklet, our heroine – a Gidget-like character who adores surfing and abandons her lifelong friend to take surfing lessons with the Great Kanaka, the king of the surf bums. But while she learns to surf odd things happen on the beach. People are knocked out and shaved, and not just their heads end up missing hair! Who wields the razor? And who is Ann Bowman, the seductive dominatrix? At the biggest party of the year, the luau, all is revealed. Join BLT and the fun-loving cast of Psycho Beach Party for bikinis, surfing and madcap mayhem.

The Author and Production
Charles Louis Busch, author of Psycho Beach Party, is an American actor, author, dramatist and female impersonator known for his many appearances on film and in off-Broadway productions. Busch was nominated for a Tony Award in 2001 for his play The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife. Busch’s other awards include a Sundance Special Performance Award for Die, Mommie, Die, and in 2006 he won Honorable Mention at the Tribeca Film Festival for A Very Serious Person.

Psycho Beach Party was first performed in 1987, and featured the author in the title role of Chicklet. In 2000 the play was adapted for film by Robert Lee King, and featured Lauren Ambrose as Chicklet and Amy Adams in the role of Marvel Ann.

The Cast
Psycho Beach Party is directed by Zachariah Robinson, with Melissa Malloy as assistant director. The show features the comedic talents of:

• Adam Hegg (Yo Yo)
• Miranda Sita (Dee Dee)
• John Mallory (Nicky)
• Greg Brandell (Provoloney)
• Jon-Erik Hegstad (Start Cat)
• Kris Hamberg (Chicklet)
• Rhys Henley (Kanaka)
• Emily Elkins (Berdine)
• Jackie Greybill (Marvel Ann)
• Anna Richardson (Mrs. Forrest)
• Alex Novotny (Bettina Barnes)

BONUS – Special Performances:
During the run of Psycho Beach Party, Burien Little Theatre is proud to present three free Saturday afternoon readings of The Undescended, a new work by Christopher Bailey. This haunting psychological tale is full of twists and turns. Please join us at 2 p.m. on the following Saturdays to enjoy this unique opportunity: Oct. 3, Oct. 24 and Oct. 31. There will be question-and-answer sessions with the author after the readings.

On Saturday, Oct. 10 at 2 p.m., Burien Little Theatre, in association with Book-It Repertory Theater and the Highline Historical Society will also host a free performance of the world-premiere adaptation of the book Two Wheels North, by Evelyn McDaniel Gibb. The story has been adapted for the stage and directed by Annie Lareau. Two Wheels North is a timely true tale of two young men and the cycling trek of a lifetime: it’s 1909 and roads are rough as they make their way from their home in Santa Rosa, Calif., to Seattle for the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition. A prize awaits, but the real reward is the adventure!

About Burien Little Theatre:
Theater has been a tradition in Burien since 1955. Incorporated in 1980, the Burien Little Theatre (BLT) has been a leading producer of quality live theater serving residents of the Seattle and south Puget Sound areas. As the company grows in exciting new directions right along with the City of Burien, Burien Little Theatre’s Mission is “to be an entertainment leader by producing intriguing professional shows. Our audience will be treated to productions of the highest artistic integrity, which excite, engage and involve both the local and expanding theatrical communities in the Puget Sound region.”

BLT is a nonprofit 501c3 entity and operates on revenue from ticket sales, donations, grants, sponsorships and volunteers.

To reserve tickets, email your reservation to tickets@burienlittletheatre.com, call BLT at (206) 242-5180, or purchase them online here. More ticket info available online here, including discounts on group purchase.

You can also “Play With Your Food” (dinner and a show) – for just $35.00 per person you get a fantastic two-course dinner that includes several choices for an entree and either salad or dessert at the Mark Restaurant and Bar and you get a ticket to that night’s performance! (You save on the price of dinner and on the ticket! Double the savings and enjoy a night out. You deserve it!) See BLT’s Play With Your Food web page for full details.

by Scott Schaefer

Burien’s own Hi-Liners’ fall production of the family-friendly “Thoroughly Modern Millie” wraps up this weekend (Saturday, Sept. 26 at 7:30pm and Sunday, Sept. 27 at 1:30pm) at the Highline Performing Arts Center, and we’d like to encourage all our Readers who haven’t been to go see it.

Not just to support the Hi-Liners, a great non-profit that helps kids channel their passions into pure talent (which you’ll definitely see on display, as this show is professionally produced and is hilarious!), but also because the Hi-Liners need your help.

If you don’t believe our endorsement, here are some others:

“The kids were absolutely AMAZING and I can’t wait to see it again next weekend!”, said one audience member.

“I laughed so hard that I nearly fell out of my seat!” said another.

“It was the most professional student production I’ve ever seen!” raved another audience member.

But don’t just rely on what you hear…go see the show and experience it first hand on its closing weekend – good seats are still available – to purchase a ticket, please visit their website at www.hi-liners.org or by calling 206-617-2152

Kathleen Edwards, our Artistic Director, has said it very well:

“We are not in existence to create professional actors and actresses. The Hi-Liners exist to help produce quality people who become assets to our community and our society in general.”

So far over 4,500 young people have experienced our program since 1994 and I am proud of each one. If our program sounds like a worthwhile addition to our community and you have enjoyed our shows, I hope you will take the time now to insure that we are doing this next year and for many years to come.

The Hi-Liners is a 501 (C) 3 Corporation and all donations are tax deductible. If you would like to make a donation to the Hi-Liners organization, please visit our website at www.hi-liners.org/support.

Thank You so much for your support and I hope to see you at the show!

- Gerry Gilbert
President
The Hi-Liners Inc.

We saw the show last weekend, and we were thoroughly impressed by the acting (especially Alexzandra Gorski as Millie, Kate Moyer as Mrs. Meers, Max Seifert as Mr. Graydon and Taylor Moury as Miss Flannery), the outstanding dancing/choreography, music (there’s a live orchestra in the pit), singing, and of course the hilarious script which includes some knock-out numbers done by local youths.

You should know that we saw this the day after returning from Vegas, where we saw some shows (including Cheap Trick doing Sgt. Peppers!), and we gotta say, this Hi-Liners production rivaled what we saw there.

That my friends is a thorough endorsement from The B-Town Blog, not only of our own Hi-Liners, but of the entire cast as well as Director Kathleen Edwards, Music Director Mara Ostrand, Choreographer Taryn Darr and every single other person involved!

Buy your tickets online, right now, right here (or by calling 206-617-2152) and support local arts and local youth!

Burien Little Theatre is seeking adult actors to play characters ranging from age 2 to 49 (including some cross-dressers) to audition for the musical comedy “Christmas with the Crawfords” on Monday, Aug. 24th and Tuesday, Aug. 25th.

Auditions will be:

• Monday, Aug. 24 from 7pm to 10pm
• Tuesday, Aug. 25 from 7pm 10pm
• Callbacks are Wednesday, Aug. 26 from 7:30pm to 10:30pm

“Christmas with the Crawfords,” was created by Richard Winchester and written by Mark Sargent.

SYNOPSIS:

Featuring Hollywood’s most famous dysfunctional family, this musical comedy pays tribute to and parodies Tinseltown’s “Golden Age.” To revive her ailing career, Joan Crawford arranges a live radio broadcast in her home on Christmas Eve, 1944, but uninvited celebrity guests hog the spotlight to sing their holiday favorites. A surprise hit since 1992.

SCHEDULE:

• Performances will be at Burien Little Theatre in Burien weekends from Nov. 27 to Dec. 20, 2009.
• Rehearsals begin Sunday, Oct. 18.

Stage director is Steve Cooper and music director Ann Sager.

PAY:

• $100 stipend provided.

AUDITION DETAILS:

• For auditioning, please prepare two short contrasting songs (serious/comedy; ballad/patter) and a short comic monologue under two minutes long. Accompanist will be provided.
• Please also bring headshot and resume.
• Actors invited to callbacks will do cold readings from the script and working with music from the show.
• Please make an audition appointment: audition@burienlittletheatre.com or call Burien Little Theatre at 206-242-5180.

LOCATION:

• Auditions and callback will be in Studio 2 at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien. For directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com.

CHARACTERS (*Note: Traditionally, many of these are cross-dressing roles, particularly Joan Crawford, but we are open to either gender):

• Joan Crawford – Traditionally, a gender-bending role, but we are open to either gender, age 39, famous movie star, desperate to revive her ailing career
• Christina Crawford – Female role, age 5 (but played by an adult), Joan’s daughter, actress and author, who became best known for writing “Mommie Dearest,” an expose of alleged child abuse by Joan Crawford
• Christopher Crawford – Male role, Joan’s son, age 2 (but played by an adult)
• Shirley Temple – Female role, age 16, famous movie star, she’s a sugar-coated tough cookie
• Jane Crawford – Female role, age 36, Joan’s “sister,” actually a younger version of Baby Jane as played by Bette Davis in “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?”
• Andrews Sisters – famous singing trio who also appeared in several films
• Laverne – Female role, age 33
• Maxene – Female role, age 28
• Patty – Female role, age 26
• Hedda Hopper – Female role, age 59, film actress and famous Hollywood gossip columnist
• Judy Garland – Female role, age 22, famous movie star and singer
• Gloria Swanson – Female role, age 45, famous movie star on the downside of her career
• Hattie McDaniel – Female role, age 49, African-American signer and film actress, best known for her role as Mammie in the film “Gone with the Wind”
• Carmen Miranda – Female role, age 35, Portuguese-born Brazilian samba singer and famous star of stage and screen
• Ethel Merman – Female role, age 36, famous stage actress

And while we’re not in charge of these auditions, we’d recommend NOT bringing any wire hangers…ever!

Burien’s Hi-Liners are presenting “Thoroughly Modern Millie” beginning with special weekend “preview” shows Sept. 12th & 13th at Renton’s Carco Theater, then continuing for the two weekends of September 19th/20th and Sept. 26th/27th at the Highline Performing Arts Center, 401 South 152nd Street.

What do you do after a show like Peter Pan? That was the sixty-four dollar question for The Hi-Liners and their Artistic Director Kathleen Edwards.

“Every year our big fall MainStage show is the highlight of our season. After “flying” Peter Pan all over the Highline Performing Arts Center last year, we were not sure how we were going to top a show like that. Thoroughly Modern Millie is a “newer” Broadway musical that we believe will challenge our kids and our organization to keep moving forward, in other words, just the show we are looking for!”

Taking Broadway by storm in 2002, “Thoroughly Modern Millie” is based on the Oscar-winning film starring Julie Andrews and Mary Tyler Moore. This romantic musical is filled with tremendous dancing that captures the style and mood of the roaring twenties. Bring your tap shoes and tap back to Manhattan at the height of the Jazz Age when women were just beginning to enter the workforce, raising their hemlines and rewriting the rules of love.

This feel good performance directed by Kathleen Edwards and choreographed by Taryn Darr, (most recently seen in the 5th Avenue Theater’s production of “Catch Me If You Can”) will have you humming “everything today is thoroughly modern” for weeks!

“Thoroughly Modern Millie” will have a special “preview” weekend performance at the Renton Carco Theater on September 12th and 13th, then will play for just two more weekends – September 19, 20, 26 & 27 at the Highline Performing Arts Center, 401 South 152nd Street, Burien.

SNEAK PREVIEWS:

• Saturday, Sept. 12 – 7:30pm Renton Carco Theatre
• Sunday, Sept. 13 – 1:30pm Renton Carco Theatre

MAIN PERFORMANCES:

• Saturday, Sept. 19 – 7:30pm Highline PAC
• Sunday, Sept. 20 – 1:30pm Highline PAC
• Saturday, Sept. 26 – 7:30pm Highline PAC
• Sunday, Sept. 27 – 1:30pm Highline PAC

And here’s a special offer from the Hi-Liners:

Introducing, our best discount ticket offer ever… Millie Madness Pricing!
Purchase 4 or more tickets and receive $5.5 off per ticket!
Purchase 12 or more tickets and receive $7.5 off per ticket!
Purchase 20 or more tickets and receive $10 off per ticket!
(discount pricing valid for Highline Performing Arts Center performances only)
Click HERE to purchase tickets!

For tickets and information please visit www.hi-liners.org or phone 206-617-2152.

The Hi-Liners MainStage produces two major Broadway musicals each year featuring a live orchestra and high-end production values. Students ages 9-22 participate in a rigorous audition and rehearsal process based on the Actors Equity Association model. Members of the cast are mentored and supported by local professionals in all fields of the theatre arts. In these productions we strive to meet the highest artistic standards in every way, and to provide our young actors with a truly memorable, quality experience. The Hi-Liners, South King County’s premier youth theatre, is dedicated to the advancement of fine arts opportunities through live, high-quality musical theatre and education for young people.

Burien Little Theatre is seeking male actors to fill two remaining roles in the comedy “Psycho Beach Party,” by Charles Busch.

There is a $100 stipend provided for each, and rehearsals will begin Sunday, Aug. 23rd.

Performances will be at Burien Little Theatre from Oct. 2nd through Nov. 1st, 2009.

Here are the roles in need of some psycho actors:

• Star Cat is a handsome surfer in his early 20s who dropped out of college to stick with his true calling, being a beach bum.
• Kanaka, in his early to mid-20s, is the macho Big Kahuna of the surfers.

Contact Burien Little Theatre to arrange a time to audition: audition@burienlittletheatre.com or 206-242-5180.

Synopsis:

“Psycho Beach Party” is an over-the-top, gender-bending spoof of the beach party movies of the ‘60s. Get down with this sexy, multiple-personality, coming-of-age comedy. Chicklet, a perky Malibu teenager, joins a group of beach bums to learn to surf. The hilarity ensues when her multiple personalities wash up to the surface, including “Anne Bowman,” a sinister vamp out to conquer the world.

The Stage Director is Zachariah Robinson and the Assistant Director is Melissa Malloy.

For more information, visit Burien Little Theatre’s website.

(surf sign photo courtesy Robyn Gallagher)

Our friends at Burien Little Theatre are inviting actors to audition for a reading of a new full-length play, “The Undescended,” by Christopher Bailey on Thursday, Aug. 13th from 7pm to 10pm.

Actors are sought who can play women’s roles ranging in age from mid-20s to late 30s and men’s roles ranging in age from mid-30s to late 40s.

The time commitment is minimal as two to three rehearsals are planned, and there will be three public readings in October at Burien Little Theatre.

SYNOPSIS:

• Mysterious psychological drama with darkly comic moments.

PUBLIC READINGS:

• Saturdays Oct. 3, Oct. 24 and Oct. 31 at 2 p.m.

AUDITION INFO:

• Auditions will consist of cold reading from the scripts on Thursday, Aug. 13th from 7 to 10 p.m.
• Make audition appointment or just show up.
• For appointment, contact readings@burienlittletheatre.com or call 206-242-5180.
• Please also bring resume and headshot if available.
• Auditions will be in Room 5 at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien. For directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com.

CHARACTER LIST:

• Jim Atwater: Psychiatric resident in his mid to late 30s
• Tom Maser: Jim’s colleague, a psychiatrist in his mid to late 40s
• Diane Atwater: Jim’s wife, an attorney in her mid to late 30s; the couple has no children, which has created an issue
• Lana Devlin: Jim’s psychiatric patient, in her mid to late 20s

For the third year in a row, Burien Arts is sponsoring two free Shakespeare in the Park performances at Dottie Harper Park – “King John” on Saturday, July 25th and “The Comedy of Errors” on Saturday, August 1st.

Both performances will begin at 7pm.

GreenStage, the Puget Sound’s premier outdoor Shakespeare company, will be performing the plays at Dottie Harper Parks’ “bowl,” and all are welcome to bring a blanket, picnic dinner and enjoy the shows for no charge! GreenStage has been performing in regional parks for 21 years, and Burien Arts says they’re “thrilled to be able to bring such a notable theatre company to our local audience!”

The July 25th performance of “King John” offers the opportunity to see this rarely produced play in an intimate, exciting atmosphere.  In “King John,” the 13th Century has just begun and the English crown is being contested – both France and Austria are threatening war. Disagreement is at the core of a story filled with political intrigue, assassination plots, unfortunate accidents and the never-ending conflict between England and France. Combining the ruthlessness of Richard III, the antics and moral uncertainty of Hamlet and the raw familial relationships of King Lear, you may find yourself in the world of a play that seems strangely familiar.

On August 1, GreenStage returns to give Burien residents the opportunity to relish in the distressing events of a life that is not yours with “The Comedy of Errors.” Forget what you know and delight in what you see! With two pairs of identical twins wandering around the same town, misunderstandings and confusion are the order of the day. Antipholus of Syracuse travels to a foreign land to find himself well known, while Antipholus of Ephesus becomes a stranger in his own home. Shakespeare’s idealized adaptation of a farce by Plautus is a dizzying comedy classic that anyone can lose themselves within. With a gender swapped cast, this production invites you to go with what you know, trust in what you see, and believe in whatever you wish!

Burien Arts is a local non-profit with a more than forty-year history and a commitment to bring innovative and creative arts programming to local residents. In addition to sponsoring the Shakespeare in the Park performances, Burien Arts also runs the Burien Art Gallery, produces the Highline Vintage Jazz Festival and partners with other civic and non-profit organizations to ensure the arts thrive in our community.

Dottie Harper Park is located at SW 146th and 4th Ave, and all performances will take place in the park’s “bowl.” Parking is readily available in the old Burien Library parking lot.

For more information about these performances, or about Burien Arts, please contact Erin Williamson at Burien Arts, or visit their website at www.burienarts.org.

Have you ever acted? Have you ever dressed in drag? Are you psycho? Love the beach? Like to party?

Well then, you’d better get yourself down to Burien Little Theatre’s open auditions for the over-the-top gender-bending comedy “Psycho Beach Party” on Monday, July 27th and Tuesday, July 28th!

BLT is seeking actors to play characters ranging in age from 15 to 45 for this Charles Busch comedy.

Here are the details:

SYNOPSIS:

“Psycho Beach Party” is an over-the-top, gender-bending spoof of the beach party movies of the ‘60s. Get down with this sexy, multiple-personality, coming-of-age comedy. Chicklet, a perky Malibu teenager, joins a group of beach bums to learn to surf. The hilarity ensues when her multiple personalities wash up to the surface, including “Anne Bowman,” a sinister vamp out to conquer the world.

Performances will be at Burien Little Theatre in Burien from Oct. 2nd through Nov. 1st, 2009.

AUDITION SCHEDULE:

• Monday, July 27th from 7pm to 10pm
• Tuesday, July 28th from 7pm to 10pm
• Callbacks are Wednesday, July 29th from 7 to 10 p.m.
• Rehearsals begin on Sunday, Aug. 23rd.

SALARY:

• $100 stipend provided

REQUIREMENTS:

• For auditioning, please prepare a comic monologue.
• Callbacks will consist of cold readings from the script.
• Please also bring resume and headshot.
• Please make an audition appointment: audition@burienlittletheatre.com or call Burien Little Theatre at 206-242-5180.
• Auditions will be in Studio 1 and callbacks in Room 4 at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien. For directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com.

CHARACTER LIST:

• Yo-Yo — Male role, age range late teens to early 20s: Handsome male surfer who has a thing for hair stylings and food. Best friends with Provoloney.
• Dee Dee —Female role, age range late teens to early 20s: Sexy chick in a bikini.
• Nicky – Male role, age range late teens to early 20s: Handsome male surfer.
• Provoloney – Male role, age range late teens to early 20s: Scrappy little surfer. Friends with Yo-Yo.
• Star Cat – Male role, age range early 20s: Handsomest of the male surfers. Dropped out of college to stick with his true calling, being a beach bum.
• Chicklet – Traditionally a gender-bending male role, but we’re open to either gender, character is age 15: Perky high school girl determined to learn to surf even though it’s a male-only sport. Also has multiple personalities–including a dominatrix who plans to take over the world, a black grocery store clerk and a psychiatrist—triggered every time she sees the color red.
• Kanaka – Male, age range early to mid 20s: Macho Big Kahuna of the surfers.
• Berdine – Female, age 15: Hopelessly nerdy, but spunky. Chicklet’s best friend.
• Marvel Ann – Female, age range 15 to 16: Gorgeous high school vamp. It’s all about what men can do for her.
• Mrs. Forrest – Female, age range 32 to 45: Spitting image of Joan Crawford. Chicklet’s mother. Harshly protective, controlling of Chicklet.
• Bettina Barnes – Female, age range mid-20s to 35: Incredibly glamorous movie star. Hiding out at the beach after running away from the set of her latest cheesy sexploitation film. Plans to head to New York to study “serious” acting with Lee Strasberg.

So come on all you talented yet psycho gender-bending partyin’ B-Town Blog Readers – get your stuff together and go audition! Maybe if you get the part we’ll even let you write a first-hand experience blog about it…

We’d like to part the curtains and reveal our latest Advertiser: Breeders Theater’s “The Last Magician,” a musical comedy that starts this Friday, July 10th at E.B. Foote Winery (at a bargain price of just $20, which includes the play, wine tasting and hors d’oeuvres).

This will be the company’s 16th production at the winery, following on the heels of its critically acclaimed winter show, “Prairie Heart.”

“Prairie Heart was reality, and this is fantasy,” says local playwright T.M. Sell. “It’s a parable, and it will be interesting to see what people take away from it.

“It’s an idea I’ve had for a long time, but I couldn’t write it until I really knew what it was about,” Sell says. “I hope it works in multiple levels.”

The show is directed and choreographed by Teresa Widner, with music by Nancy Warren and costumes by Melissa Sell.

The cast features:

• Adrienne Grieco
• Eric Hartley
• J Howard Boyd
• Steve Scheide
• Nathan Hicks
• Laura Smith
• Brenan Grant
• Doug Knoop
• Kelly Johnson
• Michael Brunk
• Pamela Mohn

Show dates at E.B. Foote Winery are:

• July 10, 11, 15, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 24, 24, 26

Doors open at 6:30pm and the show starts at 7pm. Sunday shows start at 2pm and the doors open at 1:30pm.

Performances will be at E.B. Foote Winery, which is located at 127-B SW 153rd Street in downtown Burien. The show includes tasting of E.B. Foote’s award-winning wines and hors d’oeuvres, still for only $20.

Tickets are available at the winery, 206-242-3852 and at Corky Cellars, 22511 Marine View Drive, Des Moines 206-824-9462.

FEATURED PERFORMER:
J Howard Boyd

J Howard Boyd has been with Breeders Theater almost from the very start — in a staged reading of Malpygion/Piglet at Highline College in 2000.

Since then, he has appeared in Waiting for Merlot; Murder in the Newsroom; Piglet; Arctic Jack Klondike; both episodes of Justin Time, Space Commander; Love’s Painful Itch; Truffles Chantrelle and the Curse of the Singing Mummy; Viva Zavada!; Soap Bubble; Grape Expectations; Out of the Nest; Crazy/Naked; and Prairie Heart.

In addition, he directed Justin Time 2.0; Truffles Chantrelle; Rescues, Inc.; Viva Zavada!; and Grape Expectations.

Boyd first met BT founder T.M. Sell in playwriting class at Western Washington University.

“Howard was the guy everybody wanted to read their work,” Sell recalls. “He had game.”

Some years later, they reconnected through a mutual friend, and when BT was founded, TMS thought of Howard immediately.

“I’m a fourth generation entertainer. I first set foot on stage at the tender age of 5 years as Astayanax in The Trojan Women (and I’ve been dying on stage ever since),” Boyd says.

“God gave me talent and blessed me with a family that nurtured it. It is my duty to use that talent in service to God and community. Art, in all its many variations, is an essential component to human existence. I am not very good at creating art from nothing, but I hope I can play a small part in bringing art into the world as an interpreter through acting, directing and singing.”

Favorite roles over his long career include Allan in Play it Again, Sam; Otto von Bruno in Bullshot Crummond; Doc in Come Back, Little Sheba; Rev. Cannon Chasuble in The Importance of Being Ernest; and Maj. Gen. Stanley in Pirates of Penzance.

Favorite parts for BT have included the other Carbuncle from the Justin Time saga; Scottie the Pressman in Murder in the Newsroom; “the many roles I played in Crazy/Naked;” and Cacciatorre in Out of the Nest.

“And most recently, I am really having fun with Silly Sylvanus in The Last Magician,” Boyd says.

Boyd says the positive experience of working with BT keeps him coming back.

“I like TM and Nancy a lot. They are good people, and I like working with them. I am very impressed that they have been able to make a go of this crazy business we call ‘Show’ without losing their house, day jobs or marriage,” Boyd says.

“Nine years ago they decided to see if they could find a way to showcase TM’s plays, and nearly a decade later they, with the generous assistance of Sherrill at E.B. Foote Winery, have established a well-loved community event in beautiful Burien.”

Please note: to keep ticket prices at an affordable $20, Breeders Theater does not accept credit cards. You can reserve tickets with a credit card, but you will need to pay by cash or check at the door. If you have to charge your credit card, there is a $5 fee per ticket. Otherwise, they do not take credit cards at the door.

Remember, E.B. Foote is a working winery. In winter, that means dress warmly, but in summer, it means think layers. It can get pretty warm in the winery, as we have to turn the air conditioning off during the show (or you wouldn’t be able to hear the actors).

“We’re always thinking ahead, and we’re already thinking about the winter 2010 show. Tentatively, we’ll be doing Snowbound,” Sell said. “It’s a mystery set at a snowed-in inn in the Cascade Mountains. We’ve already had one read-through, and the cast had a lot of suggestions, so there’s some more work to be done.”

For more information on The Last Magician, including where and how to buy tickets, please click here.

Burien Little Theatre took part in the 88th Annual 4th of July Parade last Saturday, and they sent us this photo slideshow of them preparing for the event, in costume promoting their upcoming play “Psycho Beach Party” which opens Oct. 2nd.

“Psycho Beach Party” (you can buy tickets online now) is “Gidget” meets “The Tree Faces of Eve” in a 1987 comic send-up of those 1960s beach party movies. Chicklet, a perky Malibu teenager, joins a group of beach bums to learn to surf. Unfortunately, she has multiple personalities, including that of a sinister vamp out to conquer the world:

Click to View Burien Little Theatre’s Photo Slideshow

Burien’s Hi-Liners will be holding auditions for their musical “Thoroughly Modern Millie” on June 5th, 6th and 7th, and they’re looking for talent.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Auditions for “Thoroughly Modern Millie”

WHEN: June 5th at 4pm, June 6th at 12:30pm and June 7th from 12:30pm to 4:30pm

WHERE: Lake Burien Presbyterian Church, located at 15003 14th Ave SW (map below)

INFO: “Thoroughly Modern Millie” is a high-spirited musical romp that has all of New York dancing the Charleston. It’s the zany new 1920’s musical that has taken Broadway by storm! Taking place in New York City in 1922, Thoroughly Modern Millie tells the story of young Millie Dillmount, who has just moved to the city in search of a new life for herself. It’s a New York full of intrigue and jazz – a time when women were entering the workforce and the rules of love and social behavior were changing forever. Based on the popular movie, the stage version of “Thoroughly Modern Millie” includes a full score of new songs and bright dance numbers.

NOTE: All auditioners are asked to be available for Callbacks. If you are not available, please inform the directors at your audition.

COST: Tuition for this production is $350.00, which includes a T-Shirt and DVD of the show. For information regarding payment plans and other forms of financial assistance please contact The Hi-Liners at 206-617-2152.

DATES: Performance dates and times will be:

• September 12 – 7:30pm Carco Theatre
• September 13 – 1:30pm Carco Theatre
• September 19 – 7:30pm PAC
• September 20 – 1:30pm PAC
• September 26 – 7:30pm PAC
• September 27 – 1:30pm PAC

Sign up here: http://www.hi-liners.org/future/audform.html

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Support the arts and our community!

8 Brand New Plays 
by Washington State Playwrights 
to Benefit Hospitality House

Burien Little Theatre presents the
 Winners of the Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwright Festival

In this economic climate with nonprofits losing funding, and people looking for affordable and accessible entertainment, Burien Little Theater has just the ticket with 16 opportunities to enjoy local talent while benefiting several local nonprofit organizations. The Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwrights Festival, opening May 1st, offers 4 weekends of plays and readings featuring award-winning entries by Washington State writers. Fifty percent of the very affordable ticket price — all staged performances $10 — benefit local women’s shelter Hospitality House. Burien Little Theater’s Festival, sponsored by the City of Burien and the Mark Restaurant & Bar, will also be accepting donations of food for local food banks.

The Festival is staging a total of four shows: two one-act and two full-length plays. Each performance will feature two plays, a one-act and a full-length. From May 1 – May 10 the plays staged include First Place winners The Reprieve (one-act) and If Spiders Made Honey (full-length). From May 15 – May 24 audiences will be treated to Famous Last Words (one-act) and Man Defeats Nature (full-length). In addition, readings of the Honorable Mention winners will be held on Saturday afternoons at 2 pm.

The Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwrights Festival will run at the Little Theatre from May 1 – May 24 (opening night is May 1). After each play the audience is invited to discuss the show with the actors and, when available, the playwright. These talk-backs provide playwrights with fresh ideas, valuable comments, and honest audience response. Tickets are $10, and the Saturday play readings are free with donations requested. A performance schedule including dates, times and shows is available at www.burienlittletheatre.com or call the ticket office at 206-242-5180.

ABOUT THE BILL AND PEGGY HUNT PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL:
The mission of the Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwrights Festival is to encourage, promote and showcase previously unproduced theatre works written by Washington state residents, and stage the winning plays at Burien Little Theatre.

The Festival was named to honor Bill and Peggy Hunt’s dedicated service to community-based theater and their devotion to and involvement with Burien Little Theatre. Peggy Hunt joined Burien’s theater organization in 1960 with a leading role in the play Harvey. Over the next 35 years both Bill and Peggy appeared in and directed plays, designed and built sets, served on the Board of Directors, and were involved in some aspect of every theater project. Since Burien Little Theatre officially launched the Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwrights Festival in 1999, the company has continued to successfully produce the Festival. This year Burien Little Theatre chose 8 playwrights to be honored with awards including First Place, Second Place, and Honorable Mentions in One-Act and Full-Length categories.

Show Info May 1 – May 10:
The First Place Award-winning plays will be performed the first two weekends of the Festival, May 1 – 10. The Reprieve, recipient of the First Place Award in the One-Act Plays category was written by Judith A. Jacobs and is a poignant comedy about sisterly relations and what happens when the family peacemaker, after a brush with cancer, starts speaking her mind. The play is directed by Melissa Malloy and features the acting talents of Lee Ryan, Petra Huntington, and Kirsten McCory.

If Spiders Made Honey, recipient of the First Place Award in the Full-Length Plays category, was written by Dave Tucker and addresses issues of connection in a modern society. With her brother Derek dying of cancer, Camille is searching for Joanie Huneycutt, an internet icon who has inspired Derek with a blog about her own bout with cancer. Fortunately, Camille’s job takes her to Joanie’s hometown, to meet the next winner of a literary award. As Camille’s professional and personal lives collide, things turn out to be different than they seem, raising some poignant questions about the value of our own contributions to society. Directed by Holly Rose, the cast includes Loren Walton, Julie Smith, Brittany Henderson, Stephen Scheide, Jerusha Warner, Dan Gomez, and Jackie Graybill.

The plays that received Honorable Mention awards in the festival will be read aloud by actors Saturday afternoon beginning at 2 pm. The readings are free and each reading includes both a one-act and a full-length play. The plays featured on May 2 include Penny Loves Butchie Hartog, recipient of an Honorable Mention award in the One-Act Plays category written by Ann Teplick, which will be read by Anna Richardson. The play details how obsession with fire and a boy named Butchie Hartog lands a 16-year-old girl in juvenile detention. Sinking Bass Turds, recipient of an Honorable Mention award in the Full-Length Plays category was written by Russell Weeks. This award winner tells the story of a blind writer, Ar Carey, who is out to expose Wall Street greed and corruption under the guise of writing a biography about one of its rising stars. Sinking Bass Turds will be read by actors Clyde Hill, Anna Richardson, Kate Carlson, John Ruppeck, and Grace Reamer.

Show Info May 15 – May 23:
Starting May 15, Famous Last Words, recipient of the Second Place Award in the One-Act Plays category will be performed. Famous Last Words, written by Michael Wallace, is a sharp-witted drama of two teenagers who are brought together in a graveyard by school bullies where things are not as they appear. Directed by Don MacEllis, the play features Elise Baleto and Jeffrey Myre for the May 15-17 performances and Samantha Hill with Kevin Schilling during the May 22-24 run.

Man Defeats Nature, recipient of the Second Place Award in the Full-Length Plays category, was written by Christopher Bailey and will be directed by Zachariah Robinson. Featuring the acting talents of Russ Kay, Geni Hawkins, Peter Li and Emily Elkins, the play opens on the one-year anniversary of a mountain’s eruption and tells the poignant story of a father who still searches daily for his son, missing in the explosion, and clashes with other family members who want to move on.

The plays that received Honorable Mention awards in the festival will be read aloud by actors Saturday afternoon beginning at 2 pm. The plays featured on May 16 include Freight, recipient of an Honorable Mention in the One-Act Plays category written by Freddie Brinster, and will be read by Anna Denton, Robert Stephens, and Doug Cottrill. Freight tells the story of a strong, crusty captain of an old freighter desperately trying to hold onto her 43 year old son who just as desperately needs to leave in order to “grow up.” The Days of Future Passed, recipient of an Honorable Mention Award in the Full-Length Plays category and written by Sean Walbeck, is the story of a Bellingham Star Trek club that comes up with a cockeyed scheme to attract new members by installing a statue at the local museum. The reading will feature Grace Reamer, John Flynn, Doug Cottrill, Kate Carlson, Anna Richardson, John Ruppeck, James “Tuck” Tucker, and Jeri Hein.

ABOUT HOSPITALITY HOUSE:
The mission of Hospitality House is to help women find home, health and hope. Hospitality House is a 9-bed homeless shelter for South King County women and has been operating for the past 8 years at the Lake Burien Presbyterian Church under the sponsorship of 12 local churches. During the performance run of Burien Little Theatre’s Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwrights Festival, 50% of the ticket sales will go to Hospitality House.

COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE TO BENEFIT LOCAL FOOD BANKS:
YOU CAN HELP THE COMMUNITY! Burien Little Theatre will hold a food drive during the entire performance run to benefit the White Center Foodbank and the Highline Area Foodbank. You can help when you come to the performances by bringing in nonperishable food items such as: tuna fish, cereal, canned soups, condensed milk, canned meats, pastas, and peanut butter.

ABOUT BURIEN LITTLE THEATRE:
Community-based theater has been a tradition in Burien since 1955. Incorporated in 1980, The Burien Little Theater (BLT) has been a leading producer of quality live theater serving residents of the Seattle and south Puget Sound areas. Burien Little Theater’s Mission is to make every audience member’s experience at BLT a welcoming, lively and fun escape from the everyday world, beginning the moment they walk in the door, by providing high-quality, accessible and exciting theater. 
BLT is a nonprofit 501c3 entity and operates on revenue from ticket sales, donations, grants, sponsorships, and volunteers.

Schedule for the Bill & Peggy Hunt Playwrights Festival:

• May 1 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday – Opening Night 
May 2 at 8:00 p.m.  Saturday
• May 3 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee
• May 2 at 2:00 p.m. Complimentary Play Reading
• May 8 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday
• May 9 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• May 10 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee
• May 9 at 2:00 p.m. Complimentary Play Reading.
• May 15 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday
• May 16 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• May 17 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee
• May 16 at 2:00 p.m. Complimentary Play Reading
• May 22 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday
• May 23 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• May 24 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee
• May 16 at 2:00 p.m. Complimentary Play Reading

Burien Little Theater is located at the Burien Community Center Building at 425 SW 144th Street in 
Burien; 
(206) 242-5180. The Community Center is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of 4th Avenue Southwest and Southwest 146th Street in Burien (map below).

Ticket Prices & Packages:

• General admission: $10.
• Senior and student admission: $10.
• 50% of all tickets sold will benefit Hospitality House
• Play Readings (held on Saturdays at 2 p.m.) are no charge, although donations are appreciated.
• Dinner and a Show Package: This package includes a two-course meal at Mark Restaurant & Bar plus a ticket to the show; cost is $30 per person.

TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
Show tickets may be purchased safely and securely online here on via phone at 206-242-5180.

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Burien Little Theatre has released its May schedule, which will include readings from winners of the Bill & Peggy Hunt’s Playwright’s Festival.

BLT will also feature “Recession Pricing” for all of May, with tickets priced at just $10.

You can buy tickets safely and securely online here:

You can also email tickets@burienlittletheatre.com or call (206) 242-5180.

As for the playwright fest:

Experience wonderful brand-new works written by up-and coming playwrights from Washington state and never produced anywhere else.  Come see the winners of the 2009 playwrights festival!

The festival is graciously sponsored by the City of Burien.

Half of all ticket sales for the Playwrights Festival go to Hospitality House to help homeless women.  (Sorry, this means NO Five Buck Friday during the Festival.)

There are four shows, two one-act plays and two full length plays in the festival.  One one-act play and one full-length play will be performed together.  Two shows for the first two weekends and then the other two shows for the last two weekends.  Don’t miss out!  Come twice and see ALL the winners! – The shows are recommended for audiences age 15 and older due to occasional language.

SPECIAL – SPECIAL – SPECIAL – Every Saturday there will be a FREE reading of the honorable mention plays! (we will pass the hat)!  Starts at 2 pm!  See details below:

“The Reprieve” a one-act play written by Judith A. Jacobs AND “If Spiders Made Honey” a full-length play written by Dave Tucker:

• May 1 at 8:00 p.m. Friday – MAY DAY!
• May 2 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday – Plus free play readings at 2 p.m. – “Penny Loves Butchie Hartog” and “Sinking Bass Turds”
• May 3 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee
• May 8 at 8:00 p.m. Friday
• May 9 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday – Plus free play readings at 2 p.m. – “Penny Loves Butchie Hartog” and “Sinking Bass Turds”
• May 10 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee

“Famous Last Words” a one-act play written by Michael Wallace AND “Man Defeats Nature” a full-length play written by Christopher Bailey:

• May 15 at 8:00 p.m. Friday
• May 16 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday – Plus free play readings at 2 p.m. – “Freight” and “Days of Future Passed”
• May 17 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee
• May 22 at 8:00 p.m. Friday
• May 23 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday – Plus free play readings at 2 p.m. – “Freight” and “Days of Future Passed”
• May 24 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee

A few things to note:

• The play readings are free to the public.
• Tickets for the productions are just $10 with one half of the ticket price ($5) being donated to Hospitality House.
• BLT is conducting a food drive for local food banks, so please bring non-perishable food stuff.
• There is a “play with your food” option (dinner and a show) at the Mark Restaurant and Bar – a two course meal and a ticket for just $30.00 per person. Call the Mark at (206) 241-6275.
• If you brought food for the food drive and bought a ticket, you could enjoy live entertainment and feel self-righteous from all of the good you are doing for the community!

Burien Little Theatre’s next production is The Lady’s Not for Burning – a hilarious romantic comedy about unexpected love and a small 14th-century town in an uproar over a reluctant bride, a falsely accused witch, and a soldier determined to be hanged. Painfully tender and deliciously funny, this modern comedy – sponsored by KUOW and BTB Advertiser The Mark Restaurant & Bar – was written by English playwright Christopher Fry.

The play tells the story of a discharged soldier, Thomas Mendip, who wants to be hanged, but has committed no crime so he confesses to any; and an accused witch, Jennet Jourdemayne, whose alleged crimes are ludicrous, but the Mayor and town are determined to believe Jennet a witch regardless. Hilarity ensues as events and circumstances turn inside out, ending happily for all.

The Lady’s Not for Burning will run at Burien Little Theatre from 
Feb. 13 – March 8 (opening night is Friday, Feb. 13th). Tickets are $5-$18. 
A performance schedule including dates, times and ticket prices is available at www.burienlittletheatre.com or call the ticket office at 
206-242-5180. You can also buy tickets directly online by clicking here.

The play, although set in the Middle Ages, was based on World War I veterans returning back home. In a 2002 interview, Fry describes his play as a comment, told in a comedic voice, about a hypocritical post-war society that has no use for its veterans, marries for money, overlooks crimes when expedient and condemns a girl who lives alone and dabbles in science. Fortunately for the audience this perspective is delivered through Christopher Fry’s witty language ending on a note of hope and love.

COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE TO BENEFIT LOCAL FOOD BANKS
Burien Little Theatre and the City of Burien Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department in partnership with the White Center Food Bank and the Highline Area Food Bank will hold a food drive during the performance run. You can help when you come to the performances by bringing in nonperishable food items such as:

• Tuna fish
• Cereal
• Canned soups
• Condensed milk
• Canned meats
• Pastas
• Peanut butter

Donations will also be accepted on non-performance days at the main Parks office located in the Community Center.

THE CAST
The Lady’s Not for Burning is directed by Ken Holmes and features the talents of:

• Mike Albert (Thomas Mendip)
• Anna Richardson (Jennet Jourdemayne)
• Thomas Maier (Richard)
• Emily Elkins Cochran (Alizon Eliot)
• John Ruppeck (Mayor Hebble Tyson)
• Don Samman (Edward Tappercoom)
• Eli Simons (Humphrey Devize)
• Brooks Farr (Nicholas Devize)
• Laurie Winogrand (Margaret Devize)
• Mike Andrew (the Chaplain)
• Mark McQuinn (Matthew Skipps)

ABOUT BURIEN LITTLE THEATRE
Community-based theater has been a tradition in Burien since 1955. Incorporated in 1980, The Burien Little Theatre (BLT) has been a leading producer of quality live theater serving residents of the Seattle and south Puget Sound areas. Burien Little Theatre’s Mission is to make every audience member’s experience at BLT a welcoming, lively and fun escape from the everyday world, beginning the moment they walk in the door, by providing high-quality, accessible and exciting theater. 
BLT is a nonprofit 501c3 entity and operates on revenue from ticket sales, donations, grants, and volunteers.

SCHEDULE FOR “THE LADY’S NOT FOR BURNING”

• Feb. 13 at 8:00 p.m. Friday – Opening Night
• Feb. 14 at 8:00 p.m Saturday
• Feb. 15 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee
• Feb. 20 at 8:00 p.m. Friday - $5 Buck Friday
• Feb. 21 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday
• Feb. 22 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee
• Feb. 27 at 8:00 p.m. Friday
• Feb. 28 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday
• March 1 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee
• March 6 at 8:00 p.m. Friday
• March 7 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday
• March 8 at 2:00 p.m. Sunday Matinee

THEATRE LOCATION
The Theater at the Burien Community Center Building 425 SW 144th Street
 Burien, WA 98166-1545
 (206) 242-5180

The Community Center is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of 4th Avenue Southwest and Southwest 146th Street in Burien (see map below, or get directions at www.burienlittletheatre.com)

TICKET PRICES & PACKAGES

• General admission: $18 Fridays and Saturdays, $15 Sundays.
• Senior and student admission: $15
• Five Buck Friday February 20: All seats $5, with audience members welcome to donate more.
• Discounts available for pre-booked groups of 10 or more; call or visit the website for additional information.
• Dinner and a Show Package: This package includes a two-course meal at Mark Restaurant & Bar plus a ticket to the show; cost is $35 per person.
• Buy tickets directly online by clicking here.

PURCHASE TICKETS
Show tickets can be purchased directly online by clicking here, or by calling 206-242-5180.

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Highline High School’s Drama Club is performing “Clue the Musical” at the Highline Performing Arts Center, located at 401 S 152nd Street, from Wednesday, Jan. 28 through Saturday, Jan. 31 at 7pm.

Tickets are FREE, (oops…we misread: tickets are $20 general admission and $16 for Seniors/ASB Students) and the show sounds even more fun and interesting than say, Col. Mustard in the Kitchen with a Lead Pipe.

Here’s a blurb from the creators of the play’s website:

Based on the popular board game…this rousing, fun-filled musical brings the world’s best-known mystery suspects to life on the stage, and invites the audience to play along to solve a mystery.

CLUE The Musical is an international theatrical sensation, wowing both audiences and press.

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The B-Town Blog is proud to welcome our latest Advertiser: Breeders Theater’s “Prairie Heart,” a new romantic comedy playing at E.B. Foote Winery starting Jan. 16th!

Love blooms unexpectedly in “Prairie Heart,” written by local Playwright T.M. Sell. The plot revolves around Scandinavian pioneers in North Dakota in the 1890s.

“That’s about the time my great-grandparents homesteaded there,” says Sell.  “The story is based on the kinds of stories their descendants used to talk about when I was a kid.  But I think it’s an immigrant experience that a lot of people will be able to relate to.”

The show is directed by Alan Wilkie with music by Nancy Warren, choreography by Teresa Widner and costumes by Melissa Sell.

The cast features:

• Adrienne Grieco
• Luke Amundson
• Eric Hartley
• Melissa Grinley
• J Howard Boyd
• Steve Scheide
• Melissa Malloy

Show dates are:

• Friday, Jan. 16
• Saturday, Jan. 17
• Sunday, Jan. 18
• Wednesday, Jan. 21
• Friday, Jan. 23
• Saturday, Jan. 24
• Sunday, Jan. 25
• Wednesday, Jan. 28
• Thursday, Jan. 29
• Friday, Jan. 30
• Saturday, Jan. 31
• Sunday, Feb. 1st

On Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturday performances, doors open at 6:30pm, and the show starts at 7pm.

Sunday shows start at 2pm and the doors open at 1:30pm.

The annual “Escape from Super Bowl Sunday” show is Sunday, Feb. 1 and starts at 1pm.

Proceeds from the Jan. 29 show go to benefit the Highline College Foundation.

Each performance includes tasting of E.B. Foote’s award winning wines and hors d’oeurves, still for only $20.

Tickets are $20 per person and include wine tasting, hors d’oeuvres, and the play. The winery will be chilly so dress warmly and casually.  Tickets are available at E.B. Foote Winery and at Corky Cellars, located at 22511 Marine View Drive, Des Moines; phone: 206-824-9462. Visit the winery or call for tickets, 206-242-3852 or check out breederstheater.com.

Tickets can also be ordered online at E.B. Foote’s “Current Releases” page here, and Sherrill will call you to confirm a date and other details (credit cards accepted with a $5 fee per ticket OR your credit card can guarantee the tickets, and you can pay at the door with cash or check.)

For more information, contact T.M. Sell at breederstheater@aol.com.

And now, a quick Q & A with T.M. Sell:

Q: What is “Prairie Heart” about?
A: “Prairie Heart” is about Scandinavian immigrant farmers in North Dakota in the 1890s.  From what I’ve heard and read, life was a bit of challenge then, so it’s about what people went through when they got there.  It’s also about the difficulty of romantic life.

Q: How is this different or similar to your previous work?
A: It’s similar in that there’s romance; it’s different in that there’s no mutant aliens, no talking animals, no gods descending from heaven; just fairly normal folks trying to get through life.  But I hope it’s still funny.

Q: Why 1890s in North Dakota?
A: That’s where my great-grandparents homesteaded, near Minot.  We visited there this summer, and it was very interesting.   So parts of the story is based on their stories.

Q: Are there any parallels to modern-day life in the general Burien area?
A: At some level all of our ancestors were immigrants who went through some struggles to get there.  And at some level, most of us have struggled with romance and relationships and trying to figure how to say the right thing to the right person, while hoping that he or she doesn’t laugh in your face.

Q: Tell us about your cast.
A: Luke Amundson plays Ole, a bachelor farmer; he played Tom Monroe in Crazy/Naked last year.  Adrienne Grieco plays Ingrid, a young woman who ends up alone and basically penniless in his town.  Eric Hartley and Melissa Grinley play a more settled, successful farm couple; Steve Scheide plays another young man who is interested in Ingrid; J Howard Boyd plays a narrator who helps explain the story as it unfolds.   It’s a very strong cast and I feel very lucky to get work with them all once again.

Q: I understand you’re doing a benefit show – details please?
A: Jan. 29 is our annual fundraiser for an arts scholarship that we created at Highline College.  We’ve been able to help a dozen students with tuition assistance in the eight years we’ve been doing the scholarship.

Q: Let’s talk about the important stuff now – the wine – what’s on tap for this production? And do the cast members get to imbibe during the show?
A: Sherrill will be tasting six wines, featuring her reds, of course.  I can’t speak for how medicated the cast might be for a show, but they do tend to take their work very seriously.

Q: As 2009 begins, do you have any predictions for Readers of the B-Town Blog?
A: More crazy weather; more timely local news; perhaps more awareness that we really do live in a very nice part of town.

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by Melissa Malloy

Two years ago I did the scariest thing I have ever done in my life.

I pursued my dreams!

I decided to move away from my family and friends in Colorado and come to Washington to follow my acting dreams.  I closed my eyes and jumped not knowing if there was going to be a net to catch me.

My net was Burien Little Theater.

I have been an actress for as long as I can remember.  I see pictures of me as a child, and you can tell I was a ham.  My mom always said I could be in the worst mood and the minute you pointed a camera at me I was all smiles and silliness.  My earliest memories are of me on a stage of some sort.  I was an angel in a Christmas play, flashing my ruffled panties at the audience.  I jumped onstage to dance with the flamenco dancers, even though I didn’t know how.  I stood behind the camera watching a Lite-Brite commercial being filmed trying to figure out who the kids were talking to, waiting for my turn to talk to the imaginary Lite-Brite Man.  I acted out scenes with my friends from the cartoons we watched earlier that day.

As I got older, I started acting in actual plays.  I was Poker Alice in the melodrama “Stop That Villain!,” cutting cards and yelping “YIHAW!”  In high school, I was a theater geek.  I lived and breathed the theater in all forms.  I worked backstage, onstage, in the house, in the box office, wherever I was needed.  The place I felt most at home, though, was onstage.

My first serious play was “Macbeth.”  I played the Third Witch.  It was really the first time I learned what it was to become someone else, to create someone else.  I learned about subtext, motives, language, purpose, and more.  Our teacher, and my first mentor, Mr. Buchanan, let us work on our own to discover the witches’ rituals and dances.  He helped us pry into their lives and discover their motives.  It was exhilarating.  We learned how the movement helps tell the story along with the words.  There was indescribable electricity in the air opening night.  When we crawled out from under our rocks for the first time, I heard the audience gasp with surprise, and I knew this is what I was meant to do.  I was home.

I acted in many other plays throughout high school and chose to major in theater at the University of Colorado.  I learned more about everything.  I was like a sponge.  I learned more about creating a character from the inside out.  I learned how to embody a character physically, and I moved towards playing people out of my comfort zone.  I made an ass out of myself and learned not to care.  Mostly I learned humility, disappointment, and rejection.  I was no longer in every play.  I didn’t get every part I wanted.  I was no longer part of the theater crowd.  I was just another actress struggling to be seen.

After college, I moved back in with my parents.  I felt lost and didn’t know if I had the courage to dream anymore.  College was hard, and I was tired of being told no.  So I quit.  I didn’t do anything for over a year.  What did I want to do with my life?  Where did I go next?  Then I saw an ad in the paper calling for people to audition for a play at the college nearby.  I decided to go for it.  My heart never beat so loud.  It had been over three years since I had been in a play.  I was scared I wouldn’t get a part, but I was even more scared that I would.  I went in for the audition, my knees knocking together so loud I was sure the director could hear.  My mouth was so dry I couldn’t swallow; I was sure I couldn’t talk either.  My name was called, and it was time to jump or run.  I walked down the aisle to the stage, walked up the stairs, walked to the center, turned, took a deep breath, and said “Hello my name is Melissa Malloy and I am auditioning today.”  I got out my monologue, thanked the director, and left.  Two days later, I had a part.  I was now the Female Admirer in Steve Martin’s “Picasso at the Lapin Agile.”  It was a small part, but I always got the biggest laugh.  All of my fears and doubt melted away.  Everything flooded into my memory and I knew where I was supposed to be.  Over the next four years, I challenged myself in unexpected ways.  I acted in my first musical and realized I wasn’t completely tone deaf.  I could sing notes, not that I knew what the notes were, but I could sing them.  I could dance without looking like a spaz.  I joined Theater Masters.  They hold playwriting competitions and the winners get to have their play performed along with nine other short plays.  We would have a week to block, memorize, and get costumes, props, and sets for two venues.  We were cast in no less than three plays: some comedies, some dramas.  It was an amazing challenge that made me feel alive and exhilarated.  I did dinner theater for the first time, moving in and out of the audience interacting with them, improvising more and more because of the unexpected responses.

The time came when I needed to move away from small town life and test my talents in a city environment.  I chose Seattle.  I packed up everything I owned, including a couple of friends, and drove across four states to my new home.  It took awhile to get settled.  I had to find a place to live, a job, another job.  Once I was settled, it was time to start looking into theaters and auditioning.  I looked up every theater in Seattle and went to their websites looking for anything I could do in a theater.  When I got to Burien Little Theater’s site, it had a button for volunteers.  I filled out the information thinking I would be e-mailed in a couple of days because they needed ushers.  Instead I was called twenty minutes later and asked how fast I could get to the theater.  Twenty minutes later I was a stagehand for “Dracula.”  Three months after that I made my Seattle stage debut in “Lysistrata” as one of the Old Women.

I am about to open my second show with Burien Little Theater, “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol” (you can buy tickets online here).  It tells the classic story from Marley’s point of view.  “Marley was dead to begin with…” so we start out in hell.  This show answers the questions of why Marley chose to haunt Scrooge, and how he came up with the ideas of the different ghosts.  It shows how Scrooge’s redemption was Marley’s redemption.  I am playing the Record Keeper, an old woman who enjoys making Marley suffer.  I’m beginning to think someone is trying to tell me something.  Maybe I just have an old soul, or maybe it’s the silver streak in my hair.  I’ll let you decide when you come see the show.

Here’s a video of one of my scenes:

This show has been an exciting challenge for everyone involved.  M. Elizabeth Eller has adapted a four-person script to a six-person script because she just couldn’t decide who to cast, so she cast us all.  Thank you, Elizabeth, for taking on that challenge.  The cast consists of Eric Hamlin as Marley at all stages of Marley’s life, John Mallory as Scrooge at all stages of Scrooge’s life, Allison Wooldridge is the Bogle (the voice inside Marley’s head), Melissa Malloy (me) as the Record Keeper of Purgatory, and Hannah Schnabel and Steve Scheide play everybody else.  There is a minimal set and costume pieces to represent characters, but most things are left to the audience’s imagination.  As an ensemble, I believe we do a wonderful job of drawing the audience pictures of the story.  Elizabeth has done an amazing job helping all of us build our characters into three dimensional beings instead of the caricatures they could have been.  She has helped me “find my inner bitch” as she so eloquently put it.  We have laughed a lot; Eric has cried a lot.  As Elizabeth said last night, with most shows you always feel like you want another week of rehearsal before you open, but this show is right where it needs to be.

So after everyone has stuffed themselves on turkey and stuffing, after a hard day of shoving people out of the way to get that digital camera on sale for a dollar, when you’re tired and black and blue, come in to the Burien Little Theater and watch us torture someone else for a couple of hours.  You’ll be glad you did.  “God bless us, everyone!”

Here’s another short scene from “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol” featuring Eric Hamlin as Marley and Allison Wooldridge as Bogle (did I mention that you can buy tickets online here?):

Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol, an irreverent yet deeply moving take on the Charles Dickens’ classic holiday tale, starts this Friday, Nov. 28th at Burien Little Theatre and plays through Sunday Dec. 21st.

There will be a special appearance by The Dickens Carolers in the lobby before Friday’s opening curtain call.

Tickets are $5-$18, and can be purchased easily, safely and securely online here or by calling 206-242-5180.

Written by award winning playwright and actor Tom Mula, Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol tells the story of Jacob Marley’s heroic behind-the-scenes efforts to save Scrooge’s soul—and redeem his own.

SYNOPSIS:
“Scrooge? I have to redeem old Scrooge? The one man I knew who was worse than I was? Impossible!”

So begins the real story behind the traditional Dickens’ version. The play opens seven years after Marley’s death on Christmas Eve and he is in Hell. Jacob Marley finds himself burdened with the chains of his miserly existence on Earth as Scrooge’s business partner. An imp, Bogle, offers Marley a contract that could release him from his suffering and Marley signs without reading it. Only then does Jacob Marley discover that his only way out of Hell is to change Scrooge’s heart.

THE AUTHOR:
Tom Mula has been a Chicago actor, director, and playwright for more than 30 years. Mula’s novel Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol was published in 1995 by Adams Media and was a Chicago Tribune bestseller. The audio version was broadcast nationwide on NPR for six seasons; the play received the Cunningham Prize from the Goodman School of Drama at DePaul. The production premiered in 1998 at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre (directed by Steve Scott), was Jeff-nominated, and received an After Dark Award. Since then,Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol has been performed in hundreds of productions nationally and worldwide, including South Africa, Australia and now Burien! Currently Mr. Mula teaches in the Theatre Department at Columbia College as an Artist-in-Residence.

COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE TO BENEFIT LOCAL FOOD BANKS:
Burien Little Theatre and the City of Burien Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department in partnership with the White Center Food Bank and the Highline Area Food Bank will hold a food drive during the entire 4-week performance run of Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol. You can help when you come to the performances by bringing in nonperishable food items such as:

• Tuna fish
• Cereal
• Canned soups
• Condensed milk
• Canned meats
• Pastas
• Peanut butter

Donations will also be accepted on non-performance days at the main Parks office located in the Community Center.

THE CAST:
Burien Little Theatre’s production of Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol is directed by M. Elizabeth Eller, a 1998 graduate of Highline High School.

The show features the acting talents of:

• Melissa Malloy
• John Mallory
• Steve Scheide
• Hannah Schnabel
• Eric Hamlin
• Allison Wooldridge

ABOUT BURIEN LITTLE THEATRE:
Community-based theater has been a tradition in Burien since 1955. Incorporated in 1980, The Burien Little Theatre (BLT) has been a leading producer of quality live theater serving residents of the Seattle and south Puget Sound areas. Burien Little Theatre’s Mission is to make every audience member’s experience a welcoming, lively and fun escape from the everyday world, beginning the moment they walk in the door, by providing high-quality, accessible and exciting theater.

BLT is a non-profit 501c3 entity and operates on revenue from ticket sales, donations and volunteers.

Schedule for Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol:

• November 28 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday – Open night treat – The Dickens Carolers will perform in the lobby before the show!
• November 29 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• November 30 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee

• December 5 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday – $5 Buck Friday – SOLD OUT!
• December 6 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• December 7 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee

• December 12 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday – LIKELY SOLD OUT!
• December 13 at 8:00 p.m.   Saturday
• December 14 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee

• December 19 at 8:00 p.m.   Friday
• December 20 at 8:00 p.m.  Saturday
• December 21 at 2:00 p.m.   Sunday Matinee

LOCATION:
Burien Little Theatre is located in the Burien Community Center Building, located at the northwest corner of 4th Avenue SW and SW 146th Street in Burien; address is 425 SW 144th Street (206-242-5180).

TICKET PRICES & PACKAGES:
General admission:

• $18 Fridays and Saturdays
• $15 Sundays
• Senior and student admission: $15
• Five Buck Friday December 5: All seats $5, with audience members welcome to donate more

Discounts available for pre-booked groups of 10 or more; call or visit the website for additional information.

Dinner and a Show Package: This package includes a two-course meal at THE Mark Restaurant & Bar plus a ticket to the show; cost is $35 per person.

BUY TICKETS ONLINE:
Show tickets may be purchased easily, safely and securely online here, or call 206-242-5180.

Sorry for the late notice on this – auditions start TONIGHT, from 7pm-10pm (Mon. Nov. 10th) for “The Lady’s Not for Burning” at Burien Little Theatre, which is located at the Burien Community Center (Room 9), at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien (for directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com).

Here are the details:

• Burien Little Theatre announces auditions for “The Lady’s Not for Burning,” by Christopher Fry.
• Auditions are Monday, Nov. 10 and Tuesday, Nov. 11 from 7 to 10 p.m.
• Callbacks are Wednesday, Nov. 12 from 7 to 10 p.m.
• Synopsis:  A hilarious and romantic comedy about a small 15th-century town in an uproar over a reluctant bride, a falsely accused witch and a soldier determined to be hanged.  Fry’s images and poetic language are delightful, painfully tender and deliciously funny.
• Performances are at the Burien Little Theatre in Burien from Feb. 13 through March 8, 2009.
• Rehearsals begin Sunday, Jan. 4.
• Stage director Ken Holmes.
• $100 stipend provided.
• For auditioning, please prepare a comical Shakespearean verse monologue. Callbacks will consist of cold readings from the script. Please also bring resume and headshot.
• Please make an audition appointment: maggie@burienlittletheatre.com or call Burien Little Theatre at 206-242-5180.
• Auditions and callbacks will be in Room 9 at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien. For directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com.

CHARACTER LIST:

• Thomas Mendip— Age range 25-35
  A discharged soldier who wants to be hanged. Well-read, a pessimist about mankind, far more intellectual and philosophical than the other characters and than one would expect for a soldier.
• Jennet Jourdemayne—Age range 25-35
  A falsely accused witch, well-read, quite intellectual but with a practical side and far more optimistic than Thomas Mendip.
• Richard— Age range 20-25
  An orphaned clerk who falls in love with Alizon at first sight.
• Alizon Eliot – Age Range 18-25.
  A young woman taken out of a convent to marry Humphrey Devize.
• Humphrey Devize— Age range  20-30
  Engaged to marry Alizon, competitive with his brother Nicholas.
• Nicholas Devize— Age range 20-30
  An impetuous young man and competitive with his brother, Humphrey.
• Margaret Devize— Age range 40-60
  Long-suffering mother of Nicholas and Humphrey.
• Hebble Tyson— Age range 40-60
  Somewhat dim Mayor of the little market town of Cool Clary, would rather not be bothered with anything official, brother to Margaret.
• The Chaplain– Age range 40-60
  Tends to fall asleep easily, plays violin.  May be double cast with Skipps.
• Edward Tappercoom— Age range 40-60
  A Justice of the Peace, on the pompous side.
• Matthew Skipps— Age range 40-60
  The “rag and bone man” of the town, who Thomas says he killed and the townspeople are convinced was turned into a dog by the witch. May be double cast with The Chaplain.

The Hi-Liners fall production of “Peter Pan” left behind more than just “pixie dust” after the sold out closing matinee on Sunday, September 21, 2008.

Over 200 canned or boxed food items and $140.00 was collected for the Highline Area Food Bank in Burien. For a donation of non perishable food, patrons received a commemorative picture of themselves with “Peter Pan”.

“Usually we offer souvenir pictures with a MainStage show character for a small fee, as a fundraiser for our organization, “says Gerry Gilbert, President of The Hi-Liners. “Our Gala Fundraising Auction is coming up on October 4, 2008 and we decided to kick off our annual fundraising drive by giving first to our home community.”

For tickets and information regarding The Hi-Liners 4th Annual Gala Fundraising Auction with local celebrity and honorary chair Grant Goodeve, please visit www.hi-liners.org or call 206-617-2152.

Lots of action on the local filmmaker front, and we just heard from Director/Proucer Frank Oliver, who we first reported as seeking funds and locations for his film “War of the Grandmas” on Aug. 24th.

Good news – he’s secured funding for his film and is now auditioning!

Here’s an update from Frank:

I have secured funding for my film project and will be auditioning for cast from now until the end of September.

I will begin principal photography on the weekend of October 10 to 12. Additional scenes will be shot the following weekend of October 17 to 19.

I am encouraging all actors (union/non-union) to audition by visiting the website, reviewing the script excerpt, and sending me a headshot and resume to info@warofthegrandmas.com.

If I or Mary Huckstep see a good fit, we will schedule an initial audition by phone. Actors should be prepared to read from this script excerpt. We are looking for actors with some comedy experience.

I still need help locating some classic cars for the film. There will be no highway or racing. Most times the cars will be parked or driven down a residential street approaching a driveway.

I am looking for a:

• Classic Ford Mustang convertible or any other 50s-60s convertible
• Classic VW Beetle, preferably with a hippie flower power look
• Hummer or any Luxury 4×4 truck
• Mercedes SUV or any other high-end, luxury SUV
• Beat-up cargo van (eg, plumber/pipe fitter van)
• Ford escort (earlier model) or late 80s Chevrolet Cavalier

For more information, visit the War of the Grandmas website here.

Burien’s Hi-Liners are holding open auditions for their upcoming production of Disney’s “High School Musical” on Sat., Sept. 27th from 12:30-4pm at Lake Burien Presbyterian Church (map below).

From their press release:

Warm up your dance moves and start practicing those foul shots as The Hi-Liners DownStage Center presents Disney’s “High School Musical, On Stage!” 

From “Wildcat Cheer” to “We’re All in This Together” the cast of students, ages 7-18 will bring Disney Channel’s smash hit musical to life. 

Incorporating elements from “West Side Story”, “Romeo and Juliet” and “Grease”, this seventy minute one act edition has universal appeal and the timeless message that when we work together, good things happen! 

Auditions are September 27, 2008 from 12:30 – 4:00pm at Lake Burien Presbyterian Church, 15003 14th Ave SW, Burien, WA 98166

Audition is open to children ages 7-18

No previous experience necessary! 

To schedule an audition or for more information about The Hi-Liners, please visit www.hi-liners.org or phone 206-617-2152.

Or click here to signup online to audition.

 DownStage Center is the Hi-Liners’ theatre education arm, presenting low tech, high quality performance opportunities, as well as workshops with introductory, intermediate and advanced-level instruction for students (pre-k through college). 

The Hi-Liners, South King County’s premier youth theatre, is dedicated to the advancement of fine arts opportunities through live, high-quality musical theatre for young people (ages 7 to 22.)

• Children ages 7-18 may audition.
• NO previous experience necessary!
• Performances will be held at The Renton Carco Theater, 1717 SE Maple Valley Hwy ~ Renton
• Seats will be reserved.
• All tickets are $10.
• Tickets will go on sale November 1st!
• Schedule of auditions/rehearsals/production:
  

Auditions	September 27	12:30-4:00pm
Callbacks	September 29	4:30-7:30pm
Mandatory Parent/Cast Meeting	Oct 13	6:30-7:30pm
Rehearsals Monday’s & Thursday’s	Oct 13-Dec 18	4:30-7:00pm
Rehearsals Saturday’s	Oct 18-Dec 20	12:30-3:30pm
Tech Week Rehearsals	January 5-8	Time TBA
Performances	January 9	7pm
Performances	January 10	3pm and 7pm
Performance	January 11	3p

To get you in the proper mindset, here’s the famous “audition scene” from the Disney movie:

More info at the Hi-Liners website.

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by Eric Dickman

Have you ever wondered what happens backstage at a theatre?

Well, you won’t find that out here.

However, you will find out what happens BEFORE there is a backstage.

Burien Little Theatre is getting ready to open “The Rocky Horror Show” (September 26 through November 2 – tickets can be purchased here), and I am the Production Manager.  What that means is that I am the interface between everybody involved in the show and Burien Little Theatre, which is the producer of the show.

Before I explain what that means, let me say a little about how I got here.

Three seasons ago I was one of the people that helped revitalize Burien Little Theatre. After one of our shows from that first season, a group of us volunteers were sitting at The Mark Restaurant (from the beginning, The Mark has been a great supporter). The casts and crews can often be found in the bar there after a show (we often take over the dining room, too).

It was near closing, and we were talking about possible shows to produce in future seasons. The beer was flowing. One of our tech volunteers, a 23-year old, said, “Why don’t you do Rocky Horror?” We loved the idea.

It took a couple of seasons before we could afford the show (this is our biggest budget show, to date). In the interim, we found an actor who we loved for Frankenfurter, and a music director who loved the show. By last January, we were ready to commit to Rocky.

My job started as soon as we officially decided to do the show. That means in January I secured the rights to do the show and started to line up possible directors and designers. The director develops a vision for the show, and the designers execute that vision, with their special additions. I was also smart enough to tag Maggie Larrick, a production manager par exellence to help me out.

Quickly we found a director, Steve Cooper. Burien Little Theatre fans may remember his directorial work from “Waiting for Mr. Green,” “Dracula” and “Mrs. Bob Cratchet’s Wild Christmas Binge.” Steve is great to work with and quickly the show started to take shape, at least in Steve’s mind.

Next, certainly as important if not more so, we found a Stage Manager. Stage Managers run the cast and once the show opens, all key decisions about the running of the show are in the stage manager’s hands. Steve cornered Michelle Rodriguez. Michelle has worked with us before, and she is dream come true.

With Steve and Michelle in place, and knowing this was a big show, I immediately went to the well. In just weeks I had a set designer, Nathan Rodda. Nathan is the in-house set designer for The Gilbert and Sullivan Society. Nathan had done the set for “Dracula.” I knew he was perfect for this show.

Next, came a Lighting Designer. I designed lights for over 30 years, so I have a weak spot for lighting. I needed someone very good, or I would cringe as I watched the show (the curse of having designed lights is that a perfectly good show can be ruined by a misplaced light or bad cue).

Before long, we lined up Dave Baldwin. Dave can do more with a few lights than anyone I know. He worked for years at Intiman. More importantly, he is a gem to work with. No one is better. If you saw “Dracula” or “Lysistrata,” you have seen, and likely loved, Dave’s work.

I was on a roll. Next, the Music Director. I got the guy I wanted. Cool. We needed a Choreographer, Prop Master and a few others, but I had my core in place. We could start working on the show.

What do I do with all these talented people? As Production Manager, my job is to find these people, propose a budget to the Trustees of the theater, which hopefully is passed, and work out the logistics to make the show happen. Thank goodness I have lots of help with the logistics.

Theater at any level is about its budget. At Burien Little Theatre, everyone is a volunteer. We put in hundreds of hours of work a month. Designers, actors and the band each get a small stipend, but that does not even cover the cost of gas for six weeks of rehearsal and six weekends of performances. The rest of us don’t get a stipend. We do it for the love of the theater. Nevertheless, we spend thousands of dollars to put on a show.  Wood, paint, props, fabric for costumes, shoes, make-up, and jells for lights all cost more and more every show. That is why we look to donors, business sponsors and others to support us.

Over the next five months we worked on the show. Ideas were everywhere. Some of them were better than others and some were even possible. The show was on its way. We lined up Shari Barr as our Costumer. She costumed most of all last season, and she had just finished costuming a movie. Our timing was impeccable.

We decided to get some elected officials involved in the show. I started with a visit to the City Council. Kathy Keene was the only one to agree. But who else? The stars lined up. Before long I had City and State officials together with one U.S. Congressman to be a narrator-for-a-night.

Next came auditions. Every show needs a cast.

We had fantastic people come to audition. I sometimes wonder what I add to the audition process, but I would not miss it. It is a thrill to see so many great actors come and give us a glimpse of their talent. We had to turn away at least another full cast of excellent actors.

Steve has a gift for seeing what role each person fits the best. In my next life, I am asking for that gift.

The actor we dreamed of for Frankenfurter came to the audition. He blew us away. He had already memorized the songs. When he sang…well he was “Frank.” He also had his own wild costumes (don’t ask).

We were rolling. Then the sky opened.

First, the night before rehearsals, our Music Director had a personal emergency, and had to drop out. When it comes to a musical, a Music Director, is, well, important.

I was on the phone, as was everyone else involved with the show. The scramble was on. There is a reason why the Production Manager lines up people early. The closer to the show, the harder people are to find.

Next it was “Frank.” He got a promotion at his day job. Great. But that meant he was transferred to San Francisco. Not so great.

Again the scramble was on. If we were honest with each other, Steve, Michelle, Maggie and I would have said we were worried. But no one blinked.

Meanwhile, rehearsals were fully underway. Steve was working the cast. Without a Music Director, we turned to the cast. Luckily, this cast is amazing. They stepped up to the plate and started acting as their own music director. Many casts would not have been up to this challenge (thank you cast).

Around moving the show forward, we searched for a “Frank” and a Music Director. The cast found us a “Frank.” Wow. He fit the bill and more.

We set a date. If we did not have a Music Director by then, we were going without one.

When we could see the opening night date on the horizon, along came Ann Sager (Ann is a friend of Nathan’s). Her day job was Choral Director for a church. We held our breath. Had she seen Rocky (not exactly church music)?

She showed up on a Monday, and sight-read the score for the rehearsal. We were all in love. She was just what we needed. But what about her? After rehearsal she admitted she watched the DVD the night before. Pause. Nervous looks between all of us. Pause. Then Ann said she had costume pieces that would look great on stage.

By the time the whole band showed up to work with the cast, Ann was pounding the 88s, standing and swinging her hair.  Rocky’s devil music had her.

Now, John Flynn, our gifted Set Builder is building the set. We are locating or building props and getting sound effects together, the cast is on the verge of a full run though. Ann needs a synthesizer, but hey, the show looks and sounds great! Hopefully, there will be no more than the usual problems before we get to where we have a backstage to worry about.

“The Rocky Horror Show” opens Sept. 26th and plays through Nov. 2nd at Burien Little Theatre.

Tickets can be purchased online here.

Eric Dickman serves as Vice President of Burien Little Theatre as well as Production Manager for “The Rocky Horror Show.” In his real life, he works as a personal injury lawyer.

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Burien Little Theatre has just announced that it’s holding auditions on Sept. 15th and 16th, from 7 to 10 pm, for the irreverent and moving “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol,” by Tom Mula.

Synopsis:

The “real” story behind Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” this zany tale follows Jacob Marley’s heroic behind-the-scenes efforts to save old Scrooge’s soul – and redeem his own. Set in London in Dickens’ time. Funny, but the stakes are high. The play is in the style of “story theater,” which means the actors speak both dialogue and narrative, usually performing the action as they describe it.

Here’s what the good folks at BLT sent us:

We are seeking male and female actors to play multiple roles ranging in age from children to elderly characters.

Open to all ethnicities.

Please make an audition appointment by sending an email to: pdianemajor@yahoo.com or call Burien Little Theatre at (206) 242-5180.

Come to auditions prepared to perform your best comedic monologue.

Please bring headshot and resume.

Callbacks will consist of cold readings from the script.

Auditions and callbacks will be at the Burien Community Center, located at the intersection of S.W. 146th St. and 4th Ave. S.W. in Burien. For directions, go to www.burienlittletheatre.com.

CAST of CHARACTERS:

• Actor 1 – Jacob Marley:  Male.  Middle-aged.  Awful; a sour, proud, lonely angry old man.
• Christmas Past:  The Artful Dodger.  Obnoxious.
• Christmas Present:  as in Dickens: God.
• A Boy: very young, very sad little Marley.
• Young Marley
• Actor 2 – Bogle:  A small demon.  Funny, mean, lots of energy, enjoys its work, bitchy and powerful when needed.
• A Little Girl
• Actor 3 – Scrooge:  As bad as they say.
• Young Scrooge
• A Damned Soul
• Actor 4 – Record Keeper:  Comfortable old Rumpole type, but a little scary sometimes.
• Fezziwig:  As in Dickens.
• A Damned Woman
• Fred:  Scrooges’ nephew.
• Cratchit:  A low-status office clerk.
• Dick Wilkins:  A bully.
• Marley’s father: A terrible man.
• The Shadow

Performances will be at Burien Little Theatre from Nov. 28 through Dec. 21, 2008.

Rehearsals begin Sunday, Oct. 5 with a two-week break.

Directed by Elizabeth Eller.

$100 stipend provided.

Thursday afternoon, several unsuspecting cast members of Burien’s own Hi-Liners upcoming production of “Peter Pan” were arrrguably shocked when two authentic Seafair Pirates stormed in wearing full regalia, swords, axes, accents and costumes at their rehearsal space at Lake Burien Presbyterian Church.

The raiding scalliwags included “DC” and “ClapEye,” two real, working Seafair Pirates who even have their own trading cards (DC is on the left, ClapEye on the right)

 

The occasion was to help the young Hi-Liner cast, especially those playing the roles of pirates in “Peter Pan,” to better understand how to portray the part realistically.

“I bet you’re all waiting for me to utter that infamous 18th letter of the alphabet, aren’t ya?” quipped DC, whose duds made it obvious that he outranked his lowly co-hort, ClapEye. “But a true pirate never says such a letter, no. A true pirate needn’t stoop to Hollywood cliches and stereotypes, so there’s no need to say that dreaded 18th letter…”

After the entire room agreed by shouting the dreaded 18th letter, DC then entertained them with tales of what accents to use (cockney is best, even though it’s technically inaccurate but sounds ‘piratey’ enough), how to work with props, why pirates always exaggerate everything, how to handle a fake sword or gun, and why his clothes were fancier than ClapEye’s (he outranked him and therefore had more loot).

One highlight of the visit was when DC asked how the young pirates would take a swig from a (prop) Rum bottle. As quickly as you can do Jack Sparrow slurring the 18th letter of the alphabet, a young pirate-acting woman named Gillian Peterson jumped up to volunteer. Below is an animation of her swig:

The Hi-Liners’ “Peter Pan” starts flying at the Highline Performing Arts Center Sept. 6th.

Buy tickets online here.

Hi-Liners website here.

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Remember that old media, the one that came in through a box in a “living room” where you sat in front of it and waited for news or entertainment “shows” to come on and entertain you between commercials?

Yeah…I think it used to be called “Tee Vee” or something silly like that.

Well, apparently, there are still some “shows” being “produced”!

One of which is apparently having an “Open Casting Call” in, gulp…Tukwila, of all places.

The “show” in question is called “America’s Next Top Model” and they’re doing a casting call on Tuesday, Aug. 12th, from 11am to 3pm at the Doubletree Guest Suites Seattle Airport/Southcenter, located at 16500 Southcenter Parkway.

So…do you have what it takes to be Tukwila’s Next Top Model? And we’re not talking iPod or iPhone folks, we’re talking iYaiyai here.

You can download the application here.

More info at the “show’s” “website” (whatever that is…), and here’s a snippet:

“Interested applicants must bring three photographs of themselves, each clearly labeled on the back with their name. One must be a close-up of their face, the second must be a full-length photograph of their entire (clothed) body, and the third must be a full-length photograph of them wearing a swimsuit, and one of these three photographs may be in black and white. Producers are looking for a variety of models including plus size models. Polaroids are acceptable as long as they are clearly visible. Applicants must be between 18-27 years of age, at least five feet and seven inches (5′7″) in height, a United States citizen and currently living in the United States…Cameras will be on location; so all applicants need to arrive camera ready!”

No word yet on whether Producers will ask auditioneers to “show us your Southcenter” or not, but we warn all those seriously thinking of auditioning to watch this video first – you may change your mind:

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Burien’s own Hi-Liners will be staging (or should we say “flying”) their own production of “Peter Pan” starting Sept. 6th and running through Sept. 21st at The Performing Arts Center, located at 401 South 152nd Street.

First produced on Broadway with Mary Martin and Cyril Richard, and more recently a major hit starring Cathy Rigby, this is one of the world’s most celebrated musicals, and includes all the charm of Barrie’s Peter and Tinker Bell and the children, pirates and Indians of Never Never Land, embellished with show-stopping songs.

And it’s all produced locally!

RICH HISTORY, BRIGHT FUTURE

That’s exactly where The Hi-Liners have set their sights – their very bright future.

The Hi-Liners have come a long way since their early beginnings in 1966 in Burien. Mr. William A Moeller, a teacher in the Highline School District, founded a high school summer program he called “The Hi-Liners.” This group quickly evolved into a year ’round district-wide performance ensemble. The Hi-Liners performed extensively in the Western United States in the early 1970’s and received recognition in the prestigious New Yorker Magazine comparing them to other more nationally known groups such as “Up with People”.

In 1991 former members of the group were recruited by Mr. Moeller to do a series of reunion performances to celebrate the grand opening of the then new, state of the art Highline Performing Arts Center. These shows provided the catalyst for annual reunion shows and for the reorganization of The Hi-Liners into a private non-profit company.

In 1994 the new board of directors, many of whom were former Hi-Liners themselves, decided that the Hi-Liners was not about nostalgia but about providing opportunities for young people to experience theater combined with personal growth, just as they did.  The Hi-Liners came full circle, reviving the summer program and dedicating it to providing professional direction in developing a student’s talents in conjunction with the backdrop of quality sets, costumes and a live orchestra, thereby giving both the performers and the audience a genuine musical theater experience.

The audiences have grown each year as The Hi-Liners have matured the quality and complexity of the programs presented. They have taken on big productions such as West Side Story, The Sound of Music and Les Misérables, while developing “DownStage Center,” their high quality youth theatre education program.

Their programs and enrollment have experienced incredible increases in recent years, propelling them to the forefront of youth theatre in South King County.  Now they have set their sights on future development by taking flight with their biggest fall show ever, the high flying Broadway Musical “Peter Pan.”

A NEW DIRECTION

Under the direction of Kathleen Edwards, The Hi-Liners resident Artistic Director,  fifty young people from Seattle and all over South King County have come together to perform this timeless and enchanting tale of the boy who would not grow up.  From the first moment Peter Pan soars through the nursery window to the final battle with the comically fierce Captain Hook, the audience will delight in this fantasy adventure.

“We have pulled out all the stops for this show, “says Edwards.  “We are building sets, the kids are working harder than ever with our choreographer, Kristin Culp and musical director, R.J. Tancioco, and we hired Flying By Foy, the most respected flying company in the world, to “fly” Peter and the Darling children. This is the same company that flew Mary Martin’s “Peter Pan,” in the 1950’s and they “fly” people all over the world in major productions, touring companies and things like the opening ceremonies of the Olympics!

We wanted to celebrate the tradition of The Hi-Liners by taking on a classic like Peter Pan, yet add an element never attempted before in the Highline Performing Arts Center –we wanted to fly!  We want to see these kids soar, both in “Peter Pan” and in life!”

Gerry Gilbert, president of Hi-Liners, agrees.

“We have put together a fantastic show and hope that our many loyal patrons and those new to our productions enjoy this great theater opportunity right here in South King County!”

This Broadway style musical runs consecutive weekends from September 6-21, 2008, at the Highline Performing Arts Center, 401 South 152nd Street, Burien.  For information and online ticket purchases, please visit www.hi-liners.org or phone 206-617-2152.  Tickets are also available at the door with cash or check only.

The Hi-Liners, South King County’s premier youth theatre, is dedicated to the advancement of fine arts opportunities through live, high-quality musical theatre for young people (ages 7 to 22).

Here’s the schedule for the show:

Performances	Sept 6	7:30pm
	Sept 7	1:30pm
	Sept 9	8:00am-3:00pm (Student Shows)
	Sept 12	7:30pm
	Sept 13	7:30pm
	Sept 19	7:30pm
	Sept 20	7:30pm
	Sept 21	1:30pm

Buy tickets online here.

Hi-Liners website here.