Category Archives: Theatre

Elvis Lives in Central Arkansas this weekend

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Celebrity Attractions, in association with On Stage Touring and Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. (EPE), is presents ELVIS LIVES at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center October 23-25, 2015.  ELVIS LIVES, is a multi-media and live musical journey across Elvis’ life featuring winners from Elvis Presley Enterprises’ annual worldwide Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest, each representing Elvis during different stages in his career.

The Elvis tribute artists will be joined by a live band, back-up singers and dancers, along with an Ann-Margret tribute artist, as well as iconic imagery made available from the Graceland archives.  The high energy show features Ultimate winners, Bill Cherry, Kevin Mills and Jay Dupuis as the principle cast for the production of ELVIS LIVES.

Welcomed by Hutchinson Financial, ELVIS LIVES will take the stage at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center October 23-25.  Celebrity Attractions’ 2015-2016 Broadway Season is held at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center, located on the campus of Maumelle High School.  The performance schedule is Friday at 8 pm, Saturday at 2 pm and 8 pm, and Sunday at 2 pm.

Tickets are priced $35, $55, and $65.  Tickets are available by phone at (501) 244-8800 or (800) 982-ARTS (2787) or online at http://www.ticketmaster.com. Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more by calling (501) 492-3312.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow unfolds at the Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre

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aacctSleepyHollow_posterWashington Irving’s classic tale comes to life as the Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre continues its 2015/2016 Main Stage season with The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, October 23-November 8.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is an American Halloween classic. Gremlins, ghosts and galloping headless horsemen will haunt audiences Fridays at 7 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m., October 23 through November 8. It is recommended for third grade and up.

Ichabod Crane is the newly-hired schoolmaster of Sleepy Hollow, a superstitious little community in New York’s Hudson Valley, 1790. He persistently professes his disbelief in all things supernatural—until the night of Katrina Van Tassel’s Halloween Frolic, that is. Riding home that evening, Ichabod comes face to face—so to speak—with Sleepy Hollow’s most feared and famous ghost.

The cast includes:

  • Paige Carpenter of Lonsdale, as Hilde Winetraub;
  • Geoffrey Eggelston of Sioux Falls, S.D., as Ichabold Crane;
  • Mark Hansen of Little Rock as the Pastor and Van Ripper;
  • Lauren Linton of Memphis, as Katrina Van Tassel;
  • Aleigha Morton of Little Rock, as Widow Winetraub;
  • Nick Spencer of Nashville, Tenn, as Brom Van Brunt;
  • Rhett Booher of Little Rock as Cornwall;
  •  and Sarah Tennille of Little Rock, and Max Green of North Little Rock.

Adapted by Frederick Gaines from the story by Washington Irving, it is directed by John Isner. Bradley Anderson is the artistic director. Costumes are designed by Erin Larkin, technical direction by Drew Posey, lighting design by Mike Stacks, properties design by Miranda Young and Sarah Gasser is the stage manager.

 

Show times: Fridays at 7 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m.

Ticket prices: $12.50 General admission, $10 for Arkansas Arts Center members, $10 per person for groups of 10 or more (Children 2 years of age and under are free, however the child must remain in an adult’s lap at all times.)

Best enjoyed by third grade and up.

Creative Class of 2015: Jessica Sabin

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Jessica sabinThough she doesn’t appear on stage much anymore as an actor or dancer, Jessica Deloach Sabin is still very much a participant in cultural life.

As the newly appointed executive director of Arts Advocates Arkansas, she is working to be an arts advocate for every county in Arkansas. Among her focuses are the implementation of new state standards for arts education, developing a legislative arts caucus among  elected officials, and creating partnerships statewide and nationwide to ensure the arts and creative economy continue to grow and flourish in Arkansas.

She is also an active supporter of Historic Arkansas Museum and is busy working on their upcoming Candlelight Gala, which also celebrates HAM’s 75th anniversary.

While at UALR, she was a W.K. Kellogg Foundation NextGen Scholar and a Friday Sturgis Scholar, and earned a triple major in Political Science, Theater Arts and Liberal Studies from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where she served as vice president of the student body.  She was also a member of the UALR Martin Luther King, Jr. Academy and as a Chancellor’s Leadership Corps Scholar and Ambassador. She also earned her certification in Philanthropy and Voluntary Service from Georgetown University in 2006. As a current member of Class X at the Clinton School of Public Service, she spent her summer in Italy working on a service project.

A graduate of El Dorado High School, she now makes her home in Little Rock with her husband, State Representative Warwick Sabin.

Red Octopus is doing the “Electrick Boo-galoo”

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ROT Halloween2015

Photo by Sarena Kaye (LtoR) Scott Dombrowski, Jason Willey, Sara Cunningham, Michael Goodbar, Alli Clark and Anderson Penix pose as characters from the upcoming Red Octopus Theater Halloween show “Electrick Boo-galoo!”

Electrick Boo-galoo!, the new original sketch comedy show by Red Octopus Theater, runs through October 24, 2015, at The PUBLIC Theatre, located at 616 Center Street, in downtown Little Rock.  Doors will open at 7:30PM and the show will start at 8:00PM.  Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for senior citizens, military, students and anyone in costume.  No reservations or online ticketing and there will be refreshments available.  The show is recommended for mature audiences, child tickets are $876.

Red Octopus Theater is one of the oldest and scariest sketch comedy troupes in the nation having continuously performed since 1991.  This year’s Halloween show promises to be one of their battiest original shows ever.

Creepy comedy will commence with a fireside chat with the president in “The State of Breakfast”.  Things will get weird in the “The Witchiest Witch Doctor” and even weirder in the new game show, “Find Me A Cult.”  But don’t worry, if you aren’t freaked out by that, you will be by “Pumpkin Spice Apocalypse” and “The Camp Fire Gories”  There will also be some serious political insights in “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Rose.” A special old lady will be making an appearance, along with a few other crowd favorites that it just wouldn’t be Halloween without.

The cast includes Alli Clark, Sarah Cunningham, Scott Dombroski, Michael Goodbar, Sam Grubb, Nichole Henry, Anderson Penix and Jason Willey with special guest, Luke “Ramthor” Rowlan. Performances are open to all ages, but recommended for mature audiences because of adult language and situations, again, child tickets are $867.

Red Octopus will begin working on their annual holiday show, Pagans on Bobsleds XXIV, almost immediately following Electrick Boo-galoo! and it will run December 9-12, 2015.

For more information please contact Red Octopus Theater at (501) 291-3896, or RedOctopusTheater@gmail.com. Red Octopus is also online at www.redoctopustheater.com.

Creative Class of 2015: Justin A. Pike

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Justin PikeDirector, actor, theatre-man-about-town Justin A. Pike has worked with just about every theatrical organization in Central Arkansas.  When he is not director, choreographing, designing, producing, and/or acting in a show, he can generally be found in the audience watching one.

Currently, a production of The Rocky Horror Show, which he directed, is being performed at the Lantern Theatre in Conway.  Later this week, Reefer Madness opens at The Studio Theatre in downtown Little Rock.  Pike serves as the Artistic Director of that theatre.

Listing all of his roles at various Central Arkansas theatres would take much space.  Among some of his more recent efforts are directing Xanadu at The Studio Theatre, starring in The Music Man for the Royal Players, directing Legally Blonde for the Royal Theatre, acting in Baby for Community Theatre of Little Rock, and directing Footloose for the Royal Players.  He is equally at home working with comedies, dramas and musicals.

 

Monday Musings – Jay Clark

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Jay ClarkWhen Jay Clark is not on stage at the Arkansas Rep or other local theatres, you will might find him in a pulpit or leading a youth outing at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church.  His “day job” is Pastor with Youth and Their Families at PHUMC.  He is currently an understudy for Vice-Principal Panch in the Arkansas Rep production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. He is set to perform on the 22nd and 23rd this week (Thursday and Friday).  If you saw him in multiple roles in the Rep’s production of Hairspray, you know you’re in for a good show!
After graduating from the American Musical and Dramaitc Academy in New York, Jay worked behind the scenes on Broadway/Off-Broadway productions of The Sunshine Boys(with Tony Randall and Jack Klugman), The Gin Game (with Julie Harris and Charles Durning), Jekyll and Hyde, The Life, and An Evening with Jerry Herman.  He has worked with United Methodist youth in New England, New York City, Arkansas, North Carolina and Nashville.
-My earliest memory was (age and incident)

Maybe watching Aloha from Hawaii. I was only a few years old, but I remember sitting in front of the tv on the bean-bag and watching. It was either this or dancing with a stuffed animal fox.

-When I was in high school and imagined my adulthood, I thought I would be…

An actor, no doubt. Plus I wanted a fulfilling life.

-Star Wars, Star Trek, Battle of the Network Stars, or Dancing with the Stars?

Battle of the Network Stars.

-I most identify with the Winnie the Pooh character of…

Tigger…although I have my Christopher Robin moments.

-The performer I’d drop everything to see is…

Dead or alive? George Burns, Jack Benny, Don Rickles, The Rat Pack – I tend to be old school.

-My first paying job was…
digging ditches and house footings for my grandpa. Then as a radio dj for KRLW in Walnut Ridge
-A book I think everyone should read is….
anything by Dostoevsky
-My favorite season is…
Fall
-We are all geeks (or experts) about something. My field is….
Theatre

See the BEE

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Rep Spelling BeeF-U-N is all the spelling you need to know to go see The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. This musical comedy with heart and smarts is running now through November 8 at Arkansas Repertory Theatre.

A 2005 Tony winner for Best Book of a Musical, Spelling Bee (as it shall hereafter be abbreviated) explores the twists and turns of both the eponymous academic competition and the struggle known as adolescence. While William Finn’s score may not be as strong as some of his other shows, it is a mixture of peppy and heart-felt songs that illuminate the chaos and character of each competitor.

There are six main competitors in the Bee. Each of the adult actors playing these juvenile spellers does a masterful job of balancing the demands of the roles. They must portray youngsters, without it becoming a parody. Ethan Paulini creates yet another endearingly offbeat character at the Rep as Leaf Coneybear. Tessa Faye’s Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre shifts seamlessly between exuberance and frustration. Laura Dadap aptly showcases her many talents as overachiever Marcy Park.

As Chip Tolentino, Tommy Martinez is so clean-cut and charming that his character’s unfortunate physical condition is endearing and not creepy. Conly Basham brings warmth, pathos, and heart to the role of Olive Ostrovsky, which keeps the character from straying into the realm of the pitiful or maudlin. As William Barfee (pronounced Bar-fay, except by everyone else on stage), Patrick Halley embraces the profound oddities and quirks in the character without making him grotesque.

Playing the adults are the warm Andi Watson as a former spelling bee champion intent on reliving her glory days, the officiously hilarious Scott McLean Harrison as a frustrated and frustrating Assistant Principal, and Correy West as a community service grief counselor. Watson and Harrison are kept on their toes throughout the show as they must interact with the guest spellers from the audience.

This is no cookie-cutter production of Spelling Bee. Director Nicole Capri has crafted a production that plays to the unique strengths of each of the actors. She keeps the show moving at a good pace, while allowing it to slow down enough for the audience and actors to enjoy the moments of bliss and melancholy. Capri obviously created a rehearsal environment encouraging the actors to take risks and to have fun.

Musical Director Mark Binns again excels in serving the score, singers and the audience. Mike Nichols’ set recreates a school gymnasium down to the ropes dangling from a ceiling. Shelly Hall’s costumes capture the personalities of each character in a fresh way. Dan Kimble’s lighting and Allan Branson’s sound design are vital to reflecting the different moods and moments as the story sometimes shifts to different planes of consciousness. Lynda J. Kwallek’s props ensure the show has a lived-in look.

While the show may have a message about the value of every person, it is not a “MESSAGE” show. It is intended to be fun. The Arkansas Rep production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee gets the gold cup for providing an enjoyable, entertaining, and enlightening outing at the theatre.