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By Tom Fitt 26 November, 2009 |
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| Over Easy | |||
The aforementioned James is none other than James Blackman, founder and executive producer of Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities (CLOSBC). He says unapologetically that Dr. Seuss saved his life, so this South Bay theater icon is returning the favor with the Dec. 2 opening of “Seussical the Musical” at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center. Maybe he just needed the opportunity to return that floppy striped hat. Though certainly not Grinch-like, the producer has upon occasion taken on a somewhat green complexion in light of turbulent economic times, though, like the beloved story of the Christmas buster, happy endings are in sight. There really was a Dr. Seuss. Theodor Seuss Geisel (March 2, 1904 – Sept. 24, 1991) published over 60 children’s books. His works include Green Eggs and Ham, Cat in the Hat, and One Fish Two Fish, Red Fish Blue Fish. Numerous adaptations of his books include 11 television specials, three feature films, and the Broadway musical. Getting back to Blackman’s life and the doctor’s coming to his rescue, Blackman says, “There was no diagnosis for what I had when I entered grade school. In first grade, they didn’t understand how somebody my age could be so highly socialized and have the language skills, with all the gestures. Everything was artistic; I could do anything and make anything. But to sit me down and have me read was like asking me to breathe under water. “In first grade they started with basic math, reading and writing skills. Today I think they’re teaching algebra in the womb. The mothers swallow chalkboards and the kids come out singing Vivaldi. Back in the days when they did things a little slower, they didn’t know where my magic key was.” Fortunately, an astute elementary teacher led Blackman to a pile of books and handed him Go, Dog, Go. Shortly thereafter, he was introduced to Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham and Horton Hears a Who. “I loved the pictures,” says Blackman. “I was stimulated by the art, and that made me want to know what was going on in the pictures. It was Dr. Seuss who gave me the ability to read.” The colors and rhymes of the books that so endeared Blackman were put to music – solid, upbeat, rock-style songs – in 2000 when the Tony Award-winning team of Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens brought their new show to the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway. A slightly less known fact is that Monty Python’s Eric Idle was involved in the original conception of the project. Directing CLOSBC’s “Seussical” is the omni-present Stephanie Coltrin, a young lady of extreme talent whose work schedule reduces her social life to brief conversations with her husband Chris Beyries (CLOSBC tech wiz) over stale coffee in the rehearsal hall. It’s Christmastime With Santa adjusting Rudolph’s carburetor, Blitzen sleeping off a binge and many underemployed elves looking for seasonal work (try Macy’s), December is the perfect time for CLOSBC to mount a feel-good kids’ show. Last year it was “Fiddler on the Roof.” In Blackman’s words, “Nothing says Christmas like ‘Fiddler on the Roof.’” Mazal tov. “We have sooooo many children in the South Bay. About every third year we throw in the towel and do something like ‘Cinderells’ or ‘Annie’ or ‘Peter Pan,’” says Blackman. “Funny, the men of the South Bay – not the women – say to me, ‘Why am I going to a freakin’ kids’ show?’ Then they see the shows, they are all reminded of the Christmases they had with their children, and they say, ‘This is great. You’ve got kids running around and they’re laughing and giggling. It’s a beautiful memory and I can go home and I don’t have to deal with them.’” Blackman admits that children’s shows offer a special challenge. “I think the problem with a lot of people – and this is not to sound snarky – is, when some companies do children’s programming, they end up trying to do it on the cheap or there’s a sub-narrative that ‘they won’t notice; they’re kids…’ Nothing could be more the opposite with us. My thing is that, these are children and let’s kill them with the ‘Wizard of Oz’ and let’s have Peter Pan fly through the air. So, I say because it’s a kids’ show, you put the pedal to the metal and really dazzle them.” In the case of “Seussical,” that means that the 4,000-pound elephant in the room is really a 4,000-pound elephant! Welcome, Horton. (No, there won’t be animals onstage, but beware of the pit musicians.) The State of the Theater Economic times are tough. This is not news. How are the coffers of CLOSBC holding up when the term “disposable income” has become a rumored memory? “Every eight years, it’s horrible,” says Blackman. “I get the Olympics and a national election all at the same time. The thing with the South Bay – what comes with smart people who can afford their mortgages – is that they are in tune, regardless of them being Republican or Democrat or Independent. They’re not a despondent group of people. We’re not dealing with people who are so much into their little worlds that they don’t keep up with what’s going on… “And then comes the funny-money paperwork thing with AIG and Goldman-Sachs and all the others that happened right around September when we opened ‘Bye, Bye Birdie’ and all the credit markets were gone. All of us in small to medium-sized businesses lost our lines of credit. For us, it was extremely devastating. We all cleaned out our 401Ks – might as well, they were turning into just paper – and we scrounged up our resources to keep ourselves moving forward.” Then, says Blackman, about the time of last season’s opening of “The Full Monty,” he decided to turn things over to the audience, offering 8-plus percent on loans – the same the banks were paying – in an attempt to rebuild the credit base. During this period, “I had actors who held checks, I had crew that held checks, I had vendors that held checks – no one wanted us to go down,” says Blackman. “The most ardent labor unions, like Local 47 (musicians) and Actors’ Equity, all these people on their own, when I asked them ‘What do you want to do?’ everybody was with us.” CLOSBC has survived. “Regarding the financial part, our company is now stable and it makes sleeping a whole lot better because we can focus on the art again. The most unassuming people of the South Bay came forward; some of them were our volunteer ushers, many people who have walked past me for 18 years and just smiled politely in the lobby or given me a thumbs-up on a show they loved. The most non-gregarious, quiet people were the ones who came forward and said they wanted to help. “It was all very emotional. I felt like Jimmy Stewart in ‘It’s a Wonderful Life.’” The New Season “When we got back on our feet, I saw a staged reading of ‘Bark! The Musical.’ It’s a fun and powerful show about dogs and the personalities they assume of their owners,” says Blackman. “I laughed and I cried. These beautiful creatures come into our lives; they can sleep wherever they want. There are dogs sleeping on couches all over America, and if you’re a dog owner, you don’t care. The sofa in the front room is for the dog to lie on. When company comes over, you flip the cushions. It’s a fun show that celebrates these animals.” Funny, he didn’t say anything about cats… Speaking of Andrew Lloyd Webber, the season’s second show will be “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” This was Webber’s first major production, a collaboration with songwriter Tim Rice (“J.C. Superstar”). “Who doesn’t like King Tut as Elvis?” asks Blackman. “It a fun show and another strong piece by Webber – he can do no wrong.” Blackman calls “Beehive” “a big show with a lot going for it.” It’s a 1960s’ story about the women’s movement in America that our producer likens to the story of his mom. “I watched her, with the styles of hair and the music that she liked, and this musical has all those facets… It’s a cultural walk through the women’s movement, and we see the fashions change and women realizing that they will be playing a bigger role in American culture as their hair becomes free of being sprayed and back-combed.” Another nostalgic romp is “The 1940’s Radio Hour.” “The songbook is, in my opinion, the best,” says Blackman. “1939 was the best year that Hollywood produced film. The 1940s is a culmination of everything from ragtime to jazz to swing, and it waved at the very beginning of what would become rock & roll.” He waxes upon the fact that the purveyors of the great songs from this musical genre were youngsters. “What a sophisticated sense of music; and no one remembers that these players were kids – 19 and 20-year-olds. “America was terrified. We were losing the war on two sides. And the subtlety of ‘I’ll Be Seeing You’ is that this may be the last time that I will ever see you alive, and where you’re going, I don’t know. So, when you’re not here and I’m going to the store, I’ll be thinking of you.” Much is to be offered in the coming season. In the meantime, there’s this Seuss tribute – remember, he saved Blackman’s life – with only one disappointment: Our leader won’t be playing the Cat in the Hat. “Stephanie (Coltrin) and I have talked about it. We know that one day there will be a perfect part for me to do an Alfred Hitchcock. But because we work so hard to suspend belief – and because I’m such a real character – I think I’ve only been on my own stage perhaps three times in my life.” Yes, James, but you can still wear the hat! “Seussical the Musical,” Previews Dec. 2-4, 8 p.m. Regular schedule, |
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