| The TriArts Trumpet | ||
|
||
|
||
|
||
| No. 10 / Vol 08 | Email Subscriber Newsletter | June 5, 2008 |
|
||
|
||
|
||
Backstage Dates on Girls’ Night Out What could be a more perfect excuse for a girls’ night out than a rollicking performance of The Full Monty? After the hootin’ and hollerin’, the laughs and the tears, the two hottest guys on stage will meet and greet ladies in groups of eight or more backstage, after the June 20 performance. Scott Laska (Jerry) has a huge TriArts fan club, and George Corso (Keno)…well, check out his photo on this page. Be sure to tell the Box Office you need backstage passes for your group on that night. And no need to bring any folding money for stuffing.
The Light Bulb Moment The book, Broadway Musicals: The 101 Greatest Shows of All Time, describes The Full Monty this way: “Buffalo, New York; it’s the heart of the rust belt, and the economy sucks. Jerry, an unemployed, divorced father, is at the end of his proverbial rope with nowhere to turn. He meets his friend Dave outside a ladies-only strip club. With Dave’s wife inside watching the muscles, Jerry and Dave decide to sneak into the club and see what’s going on. The two men are transfixed at the spectacle, especially the amount of money tucked into the dancers’ G-strings. “The day after, things go from bad to worse for Jerry when he’s served papers: his ex-wife is seeking sole custody of his son, Nathan. Something has to be done—and now. A neon light bulb goes off over Jerry’s head, and he comes up with the idea of getting his friends, a group of ‘real men,’ young and old, black and white, fat and buff, gay and straight, to join him in an evening of stripping. “They won’t stop with G-strings either; the big draw is that the men will go the ‘full monty.’ There are many obstacles along the way, but in the end the men pull together, discover their inner he-man, and ‘let it go.’” Will TriArts go the “full monty”? You’ll just have to come and find out for yourself! Directed by Bob Durkin, Music Directed by Michael Berkeley
|
|
A Tongue-in-Cheek Interview with Full Monty Producer Alice Bemand “For a minute there I thought we were in trouble,” says TriArts’s Alice Bemand. All the guys in our Full Monty cast were just right, but this play has to open with a bang. Keno, the Chippendale stripper, has to look so good to the ladies, that he inspires the down-and-out Buffalo guys to do the same. “It’s a huge moment, our opener. The music, the spotlights, the va va va voom. The bump and grind. The ladies in the club yelling. The body under that opening spotlight’s gotta be…you know…top shelf. And he’s got to know how to move. So we started the big search for that special body. Michael Berkeley and I auditioned, but we still hadn’t found that special guy. “I asked myself: Where would you go to get a heavenly body? To a fitness center. So I called Marc Miles of the Northeast Athletic Club and asked him to recommend a special star. And Marc came through, all right. He sent George Corso, an amateur bodybuilder and personal trainer who seems carved out of ivory. “I knew it right away: That’s our Keno! Buffed and beautiful, he’ll open the show as the Chippendale stripper who inspires the down-and-out Buffalo guys to do the same. “This producing is sometimes tough work, I thought, as we auditioned all those great-looking guys. But you know, somebody’s gotta do it.”
|
Last summer 125 kids signed up, many in more than one workshop. Enrollments in all workshops totaled 170… One of the new workshops for 2008 is Stage Combat and Martial Arts for Theatre, billed as an intro to stage combat, stunt work and mixed martial arts. (Executive Director Alice) Bemand said “I am a firm believer in the power of the arts to make a difference in a child’s life.”
You can check them out at 
