Well it is that time of year when the birds start singing, the sun starts shinning and the 50′s music is in full swing! Our next show is Life Could Be a Dream and it is going to be a fun filled show with many favorites from the 50′s including “Sh-Boom.” Did you know that song was originally recorded by the Chords! It was a top ten chart topper in 1959, recorded both by The Chords and The Crew-Cuts!

Here are some fun facts about the 50′s!

• In 1951 CBS Broadcast it’s first baseball game in color: Brooklyn Dodgers vs. Boston Braves
• In 1951 the cost of a first class stamp was 3 cents.
• In 1952 Mr. Potato Head was the first toy to be advertised on TV.
• In 1954 Elvis Presley made is first recording called “That’s All Right.”
• In 1955 Disneyland opened in Anaheim, CA.
• In 1956 Norma Jean Mortenson changed her name to Marilyn Monroe.
• In 1957 Wham-O began production of Pluto Platters, also known as the Frisbee.
• In 1957 the Detroit Lions defeated the Cleveland Browns (59-14).
• In 1958 the Wham-O company trademarked “Hula Hoop” and within 6 months, they sold 20 million.
• In 1959 Ruth Handler introduced “Barbie” at the New York City Toy Fair.

So there you have it a look back on the 50′s! Full of poodle skirts and chocolate malts! You don’t want to miss this show, it will leave you singing, dancing and smiling all the way out the door! Visit mbtheatre.com for more information or call the box office at 248.370.3300 for tickets. Get them now because they are going fast!

Stay tuned….

-Casey S. Hibbert©

What was your experience teaching Travis Walter? (What was he like as a student?)(What did you expect to come of his professional theatre career?)

Travis came into our program when it was still small.  I believe I was teaching the beginning acting class at the time.  My first thought was to wonder how he found us.  There tend to be more women than men in a theatre major in any university.  And so it is encouraging when someone as intelligent and interested as Travis shows up.  I remember his favorite play was A Walk in the Woods by Lee Blessing.  It’s a two-person play about arms negotiators—an American and a Russian—and how their relationship develops over a year of negotiations.  It’s a heady but brilliant play and one of my favorites, so I was immediately impressed with his good taste.  J  He was also a bit of a rebel.  I remember having a “reining him in” talk with him early on.  He was more interested in certain aspects of undergraduate education than others.  I was the same way when I was in college.  So, I recognized the syndrome and encouraged him to do the things that actually would get him a degree in theatre and not just selected experience.  He must have known I was speaking from a place of understanding, because he appeared more focused on all of his studies after that.  He was a leader as an actor and later we found him a VERY organized stage manager who was reining his directors in!  His sense of humor was always a great gift to any rehearsal, and he tended to progress quickly working on any production, no matter his role.  I always knew he would have a career in the theatre.  I just didn’t expect he’d stay so close to his geographical and academic roots!

What’s it like to work with him now?

He’s been working at MBT in a number of capacities for many years, but aside from my coming in to dialect coach from time to time, my first project with him was the farce Boeing, Boeing three years ago.  He cast me as Bertha the maid.  It was a plum role and, as written, she is on stage during some of the funniest moments in the show.  Travis LOVES to laugh and smiles most of the time.  Any actor would love rehearsing a comedy with him in the room.  The cast was polished at farce and so rehearsals were hysterical since Travis lets people try anything as they are working.  He doesn’t say no to even the most outlandish idea.  That is always fun for an actor.

So now, he has hired me to direct The Constant Wife and he is my “producer.”  As a producer Travis babysits the progression of all departments to make sure things are on schedule and there are no snags as we move toward opening.  He voiced his observations in auditions and sometimes drops into rehearsals.  He roves from the rehearsal hall, to his office, to the shops to get the current picture.  He has a gift of expressing opinions in an off-handed way in conversation.  But, no one can miss them if they are paying attention.

When Travis called to ask me to direct The Constant Wife, he told me he wanted to have a female director for the project.   He felt that our central character Constance’s situation might beg a woman’s touch.  He gave up the opportunity to direct this wonderful play, to see what a feminine energy at the director’s table might bring to the story.  I admire that strong sensitivity to the text.

How does it feel to be returning to Meadow Brook Theatre as a Director?

I was fortunate enough to be asked to direct And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank by James Still in 2005.  It is a play adapted from the book “Eva’s Story” recounting Eva Geiringer Schloss’s experiences during the Holocaust as a friend and posthumous stepsister of Anne Frank.  The project was unique as the person at the heart of the play came from England and joined us for 10 days, answering questions from the audience after every performance.  This generated a group of survivors to volunteer to come after each remaining performance and tell their own stories and answer questions.  Aside from working with the generous ensemble of actors and designers that brought the story to the stage, facilitating the talkbacks after each performance was one of the most profound moments I have experienced in the theatre.

Being asked to direct The Constant Wife is a different kind of invitation.  It lets me explore this unique work that will surprise its audiences with its forward thinking.  Most people would not believe this was a play written by a male playwright in 1926.  We’ve assembled an acting company that can find the fun wherever it hides, so rehearsals have been a romp.

 What do you like about the Constant Wife?

W. Somerset Maugham’s The Constant Wife takes a whimsical look at double standards.  The situations that pop up are unpredictable and unfold in all directions.  Every character has a place in the social scheme of things and some entertain other possibilities.  Scandal may or may not be alive in the Middleton household, but even the thought of it gets some folks’ knickers in a twist.  If we do our job, the audience will ask themselves what they would do in the same situation, and will look at their spouse very differently on the way home!

Anything interesting you’d like to add for me to add about the show/you/Travis/anything? Any stories or comments that might be interesting for the paper?

Travis played a number of roles for me during his time as a student at Oakland—musical and non-musical.  One of the stories that comes to me was when he played Manus for me in Brian Friel’s Translations.  It is an Irish play, and Manus is a teacher living in the shadow of his father and in love with a spirited local girl.  Manus has a limp which is less apparent to others than to himself.  He lives upstairs in the hedge school and often has to go up to gather things for his father.  We were getting close to opening and doing what is called a speed-through where the actors speak as fast as they can and do everything quickly without leaving anything out.  It’s a valuable tool for finding new ideas and picking up the pace of the performance.  We stopped at a certain moment and had to do it over and over again quickly.  It happened to be a moment when Manus has to fetch something from upstairs.  Travis tried not to complain as we watched him “limp quickly” up and down the stairs for about 10 minutes!

Well here we are at the end of another show! It is hard to believe, it feels like just yesterday we started our 47th season. Well if you haven’t seen White’s Lies you are missing out. This is one of the funniest shows that we have had here! It has gotten great response from our audiences! We have had some people come back for their 2nd and even 3rd time! Trust me when I say that you do not want to miss out on this opportunity! Call the box office to get tickets now! 248.370.3300.

Now we have a fantastic show coming up next! I got to sneak down and listen to some of the rehearsal and let me tell you this is going to be an amazing show! I have always liked the music to this show and the cast is incredible! For those of you who don’t know we are doing Next to Normal the 2010 Pulitzer Prize winner for Drama. It is a musical about a family dealing with some serious issues.

Diana Goodman, a suburban housewife, struggles through life as she battles mental demons in the form of bipolar disorder coupled with hallucinations that stem from a trauma sixteen years earlier. Her husband Dan, an architect, fight to keep her mind and his family stable but that fight becomes increasingly problematic as Diana decides to stop taking the piss given to her by her doctor. After several failed attempts to stem the tide by means of talk therapy with a different doctor, she eventually falls into an even darker place and attempts suicide. At the suggestion of her new doctor, Diana is convinced by her husband to submit to electroconvulsive therapy that causes her to have short-term amnesia. Throughout her struggles, Diana’s relationship with her daughter Natalie becomes strained because Natalie feels invisible in the eyes of her mother, who prefers the superhero-like image she has created for her son.

So there you have it! It is going to be an amazing show that you will never forget! Trust me when I say that you don’t want to miss this so either! Call the box office now for you tickets 248.370.3300.

Stay Tuned…

Casey S. Hibbert©

To all of you who may be coming to our 2pm performance today, please note that parking will be limited in our main parking lot due to Oakland University Commencement. There are spots blocked off for our patrons in this lot as well as the lot behind the theatre just off Wilson Blvd. If you have any questions please call the Box Office at 248.377.3300. Thank you for your patience and cooperation.

First off thank you for being patient and waiting for this post to come. A while ago here at the theatre we had a video the Christmas Carol set being constructed. As many of you know we do A Christmas Carol every year and it is a family favorite! We look forward to this show every season and so do the patrons. If you have not seen it yet, now is the time to start a family tradition! This is a classic story and everyone knows it. Anyway…this year I really wanted to bring back that video, so over the last week I have been putting together a timelapse video of the set being constructed. It took a while to get it edited and to the finished product. We are so happy with this video we are planning on doing them for every show for the rest of this season and next. So keep your eyes peeled for more videos to come! So come see A Christmas Carol here at MBT running Nov 16 – Dec 23 for ticket information call our box office at 248.370.3300! And without further ado….I give to you A Christmas Carol construction in 1:30!

Turn on your speakers and listen to our carollers! Also don’t be afraid to watch in full screen!

Stay tuned…

Casey S. Hibbert©

Stay tuned this Wednesday for a special post!
Casey S Hibbert©

I hope that everyone has had an amazing summer, but it is time to start our season! Our box office officially opens today at 10am! So don’t forget to call and reserve your tickets! Which show are you most excited about? Also we have a fundraiser coming up so if you would like to know more information please contact us at 248.377.3300!

SAVE THE DATE!

Meadow Brook Theatre
celebrates

MOTOWN

Please join us for dinner and
dancing to the fabulous
sounds of Motown

Featuring music from Serieux

Serieux!

Saturday, October 27
Cocktails 6:30
Dinner 7:30
Great Oaks Country Club
Rochester Michigan

All proceeds to benefit
Meadow Brook Theatre
Tickets $125 per person
Call 248.377.3300 for more information

Cash Bar, Cocktail Attire, Valet Parking, Silent Auction

Stay Tuned…

Casey S. Hibbert©

Welcome back to another fantastic season! We had quite a few things happen this summer. We had Sister Robert Anne’s Cabaret Class, which was a hit! Everyone enjoyed this show! We also had a very important fundraiser, Feet for Seats!

Feet for Seats is our annual 5k Fun Run/Walk. All the proceeds help Meadow Brook Theatre to continue giving you quality entertainment. This year was no exception, we have many people show up to run/walk and they enjoyed live entertainment, food, as well as a bounce house!

A few reminders…our Box Office opens Monday Sept. 10 at 10am. So don’t forget to purchase your tickets for this wonderful season! For you season ticket holders, your tickets will be arriving at the end of this week or beginning of next week. If you need to change a date on your season tickets you can do so on Monday the 10th. Hope to see you at our 47th season! Stay tuned…

Casey S. Hibbert

She has arrived! Tomorrow is Sister Robert Anne’s Cabaret Class and you don’t want to miss it! It is a fun, hilarity filled night with plenty of singing, laughing and who knows maybe even you can be part of the show! So if you say to yourself this weekend, “Wow I am really bored. I need to get out!.” Well I am here to tell you “Sister Robert Anne is here to help you out!!” So come to Meadow Brook Theatre Thursday at 2pm or 8pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 8pm or Sunday at 2pm. See what all the fuss is about! To purchase tickets call the box office at 248.377.3300 or visit ticketmaster.com! See you this weekend! Stay tuned…

Christine Mild as Sister Robert Anne

Casey S. Hibbert©

Well, the season has officially come to a close! This has been a wonderful season and we look forward to another great season! But if you are still in the mood to come see a show, don’t forget about Sister Robert Anne’s Cabaret Class! It will be here for 5 shows only July 12-15. Call the box office for more information 248.377.3300 or visit our website mbtheatre.com.

Did you have a favorite show this season? What was it and why?

Also for you subscribers don’t forget to turn in your Andes Awards ballot as soon as you can! The Andes Award will be held here at the theatre on June 29th at 7pm appetizers and beverages at 6:30pm. Hope to see everyone there!

Stay tuned…

Casey S. Hibbert© – Guest Blogger