News

Philip Morris: PLAIDLY SPEAKING in the Times Union

Created September 5th, 2010

Philip Morris
CEO of Proctors, Schenectady

Plaidly Speaking

September 4, 2010 at 11:59 am by Philip Morris

I hate to admit this in some ways, but I am a died in the wool acappellaist. I love singing and adore the responsibility and “feeling” of being part of the sound of chords and transitions and lyrics coming together.

This admission feels old fashioned sometimes, though a cappella singing has hip young practitioners as well as tons of college advocates.

So, why “Plaidly Speaking?”.

Well, I sort of melted hearing and seeing “Forever Plaid” at my own theater the other night. The simple story is just enough to hang 90 minutes of fabulous singing onto. The performers, now part of our community for almost a month, are charming, good actors and have acappellaism down perfectly. The music is tight and will make anyone smile.

Me……I even had a goofy tear or two. Maybe the tear of a lost dream (I always wanted to be a member of the King Singers), or maybe the tear of knowing that there is both an ageless as well as timeless nature to singing, and listening can be as sublime as performing.

If there is an acappellist in you, catch “Forever Plaid” before it leaves September 12th.

PROCTORS: 2010 BROADWAY LEAGUE NATIONAL EDUCATION GRANT RECIPIENT

Created September 2nd, 2010

BROADWAY LEAGUE ANNOUNCES 2010 NATIONAL EDUCATION GRANT RECIPIENTS

Programs Support Arts-In-Education And Audience Development

SCHENECTADY-BASED PROCTORS AWARDED

New York, NY – September 2, 2010 – The Broadway League announced today the recipients of its fifteenth annual National Education Grants. These grants support innovative programs that enable students from coast to coast to experience touring Broadway as a form of artistic expression and as an educational tool.

The 2010 National Education Grants program bestows $5,000 to ten presenters of touring Broadway shows across the U.S. for the development or support of education programs associated with touring productions.

A significant number of touring Broadway shows are featured in the various programs: 9 to 5, Dreamgirls, In the Heights, Mary Poppins, Next to Normal, Shrek the Musical, The Lion King, and West Side Story.

This year, organizations were selected from the following cities: Atlanta, GA; East Lansing, MI; Greenville, SC; Nashville, TN; Philadelphia, PA; Sacramento, CA; Schenectady, NY; Seattle, WA; Tampa, FL; and West Palm Beach, FL.

The following three venues are first-time grant recipients:
Kimmel Center, Inc. – Philadelphia, PA
5th Avenue Theatre – Seattle, WA
Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts – West Palm Beach, FL

Since it was founded in 1996, the League’s National Education Grants program has awarded $750,000 in grants to support the education efforts of Broadway presenting organizations. The League administers this program with generous additional financial support from Theatre Development Fund.

During the past year, theatre education professionals at organizations that present touring Broadway productions have worked closely with local teachers and community organizations to create activities that engage young people with theatre and enhance their academic experiences.

“We salute our member organizations’ dedication to teaching impressionable young minds tolerance, literacy, peace, tradition, cultural identity, and more via the performing arts,” commented Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of The Broadway League. “Stories told through the pinnacle of plays and musicals not only educate students about the world at large, but exposure to live theatre creates a lifelong habit of theatre-going."

This year, the ten programs that were awarded grants of $5,000 each are as follows: (*Please note that contact telephone numbers and emails are for reporter follow-up use only and should not be included in any publication. Thank you.)

The Fox Theatre – Atlanta, GA
The Fox Theatre’s “No Place to Hate: Teaching Tolerance Through the Arts” program is a new project to increase students’ awareness of the arts, help students understand tolerance for other people’s beliefs and culture, and enhance the students’ critical thinking skills. Two different student groups will attend performances at The Fox Theatre and engage in associated activities. The program will introduce 120 high school students to West Side Story who will participate in workshops dealing with gang violence, prejudices, and respect for others, culminating in the creation of their own play. Sixty-five elementary students will be introduced to Shrek, the Musical and learn about tolerance, improvisation, and storytelling, resulting in a book filled with stories they have written.

Wharton Center for Performing Arts – East Lansing, MI
Wharton Center for Performing Arts, partnering with Bingham Elementary, will conduct literacy workshops on writing reviews and short plays centered around Mary Poppins. “Mary Poppins Preview/Review Literacy Project” will enable 90 fifth grade students to attend a performance of the touring Broadway production of Mary Poppins and participate in workshops dealing with analyzing live theatre, previewing and reviewing a show, and modernizing classics.

Peace Center Foundation – Greenville, SC
Using content from West Side Story to promote awareness of gang violence and alternative means of social engagement, the Peace Center will provide 40 teenagers from Greenville’s West End neighborhoods with the opportunity to attend West Side Story at the Peace Center for the Performing Arts, and to participate in Greenville’s “West End Story” program. This initiative includes a series of workshops with teaching artists, master classes with professional artists, facilitated discussions with community leaders, and a week-long summer camp exploring themes and various art forms found in West Side Story.

Tennessee Performing Arts Center – Nashville, TN
The Tennessee Performing Arts Center will give 48 high school students the opportunity to explore major themes from the musical In the Heights as well as develop an artistic work based on their own personal life experience in their program, “In the ‘cliff.” Students will attend a performance of In the Heights, engage in workshop sessions dealing with tradition, cultural identity, and internal and external expectations of self, take a backstage tour of the show, and participate in a question and answer session with the cast.

Kimmel Center, Inc. – Philadelphia, PA
“In the Heights: Beyond the Performance,” a program from the Kimmel Center, is an interactive, educational experience for high school students focused on the themes of multi-cultural identity, immigrant communities, and sense of self and family. Students will attend a performance of In the Heights, engage in a question-and-answer session with the cast members, and participate in a workshop with a teaching artist to explore the relevance of the themes in their own lives. They will then create their own creative writing project to be presented at the Kimmel Center’s Commonwealth Plaza stage.

California Musical Theatre – Sacramento, CA
“Scribblin’ in the Margins” is a literacy-based theatre education project for 105 culturally diverse sixth-through-eighth grade students. Using In the Heights as a model, they will learn how to write monologues about life in their communities and will perform these monologues in English and Spanish for kindergarten through fifth grade students and their families. The monologues will be compiled and published, and the program culminates with students’ attendance at a performance of In the Heights at the Sacramento Community Theatre.

Proctors (Arts Center and Theatre of Schenectady, Inc.) – Schenectady, NY
With Disney’s The Lion King in mind, Proctors has developed a year-long project focused on African studies, diversity, and life cycles. Four hundred and seventy pre-K through fifth-grade students will participate in multiple, guest artist driven lectures including: African storytelling, Tribal mask making, Adrinka symbol and cloth design, and African dancing and drumming. They will then teach their skills to another grade, continuing the circle of education. After attending a performance of The Lion King, they will also participate in a post-performance discussion with the cast. *Contact Christine Sheehan, 518-382-3884 x112 or csheehan@proctors.org.

5th Avenue Theatre - Seattle, WA
The 5th Avenue Theatre will present three “Fridays at the 5th” workshops for high school students with a strong interest in musical theatre in conjunction with upcoming tours of In the Heights, Next to Normal and 9 to 5. “Fridays at the 5th” provides opportunities for students to work with professional artists, develop performance skills, and gain meaningful insight and connections to each show. Workshops include a two-hour practicum with a teaching artist, pizza dinner, pre-show discussion with a member of the technical crew, ticket to that evening’s performance of the show, and post-show talk back with the entire cast.

Straz Center for the Performing Arts - Tampa, FL
The Straz Center for the Performing Arts’s new program “Shrek Broadway Education Project” will engage 75 kindergarten through eighth-grade students from three schools in a multi-week, in-class journey exploring the evolution of a story from the pages of a book to the big screen and to a Broadway stage. Students will learn the differences between each art form and will be introduced to elements of storytelling, character development, and design. With these tools, they will create an original character that will be used in a final classroom project. The program will culminate in the students seeing the touring Broadway production of Shrek, the Musical at the Straz Center.

Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts – West Palm Beach, FL
Dreamgirls will be the focal point for the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts’s program “Young Women Pursuing Dreams Through Performance Discovery.” Middle and high-school aged young women will attend the touring Broadway production of Dreamgirls, engage in a talk-back with the cast, and participate in resident artist seminars and workshops focused on lyrical dance, scene improvisation, lyric writing, and vocal performance to create their own public performance for the community.

In addition to the National Education Grants program, the League also administers similar grants for education programs affiliated with Broadway productions in New York City each year.

The Broadway League, founded in 1930, is the national trade association for the Broadway industry. The League’s 600-plus members include theatre owners and operators, producers, presenters, and general managers in over 240 North American cities, as well as suppliers of goods and services to the theatre industry. Each year, League members bring Broadway to nearly 30 million people in New York and on tour across the U.S. and Canada. Visit www.BroadwayLeague.com. Follow on Twitter @TheBwayLeague or on www.Facebook.com/BroadwayLeague.

For more information on The Broadway League’s education programs, call Rachel Reiner at (212) 703-0215.

# # #

Press Contact for The Broadway League:
Elisa Shevitz
(212) 703-0225
Eshevitz@Broadway.org

"Lady of Spain" on the accordion. It’s a hoot.

Created September 2nd, 2010

‘Forever Plaid’ still in fashion at Proctors
Published: Thursday, September 02, 2010

By Bob Goepfert
The Record

"Forever Plaid" first opened in 1990 and has been a mainstay at regional and local theaters ever since. Sometimes I think I’ve seen a production of it (or one of the two sequels) every one of the 20 years it’s been around.

As jaded as I am about the show, I have to admit I’ve seen very few "Plaids" that are as good as the production playing the G.E. Theatre at Proctors in Schenectady. Each member of the cast has long history performing in the show and the director Guy Stroman played Frankie in the original production. If you want to experience an authentic "Forever Plaid" this is the one to see.

Without question the major lure of the show is the music. It includes every popular song sung by those ‘guy groups" who used tight harmonies to churn out hit after hit in the 1950s. During its 90-minute length, the show uses 30 songs, all of which are certifiable classics. If you are of a certain age the music is more than a lure, it’s a magnet.

However, the show is more than an oldies concert. Though frail, the plot has a lot of heart as it deals with four guys who have been denied their opportunity for fame. It’s not likely success would have been theirs, but during the show you want them to have it.

The key to the success of any production of "Forever Plaid" is the affection garnered for the individual performers. If you like them, you will like the show. At Proctors you love the performers.

The idea is that Sparky (Marcus Stevens), Smudge (Joseph Domencic), Jinx (J.D. Daw) and Frankie (Chris Couch) first meet in high school and form the Plaids. After graduation they take jobs and continue to rehearse and sing where ever they could get a booking. On their way to a gig they make a detour to pick up their custom made plaid tuxedos. On that detour their van is hit by a bus full of Catholic school girls. The supreme irony is the girls were on their way to the Ed Sullivan Show to see the Beatles perform.

The Plaids were killed without ever wearing their plaid tuxedos, but they have been permitted to return to earth in order to fulfill their destiny and perform a posthumous concert in front of a live audience. This is the concert that will be playing at the GE Theatre until Sept. 12.

Though the tight harmonies of songs like "Three Coins in Fountain," "No Not Much," "Shangri-La" and "Magic Moments" are well performed and pleasant, the feigned awkwardness of the group and the goofy over-precise choreography wears thin rather quickly. Certainly it’s necessary to establish their lack of talent and professional awkwardness, but we’ve seen it all before and it seems artificial.

However, once the Plaids establish their personalities and interact with each other and the audience the show becomes theater. When the characters start to have fun the audience cannot deny them. This is especially true when they volunteer a "volunteer" from the audience to help play the piano for "Heart and Soul." They group rocks with the Calypso sequence - and they get the audience to enthusiastically participate in a sing-along to "Matilda."

The highlight of any "Plaid" production is the 3 minute 11 second version of the Ed Sullivan Show. Three guys do a plate juggling act, a knife throwing routine, ballet sequences, and act a scene using hand puppets. They also imitate a juggling seal, Jose Jimenez and Topo Gigio, while the fourth plays "Lady of Spain" on the accordion. It’s a hoot.

"Forever Plaid" is one of those enduring shows that always offers fun. This is an opportunity to see a production that defines why the work has endured for twenty years and will likely be around for another 20.

‘Forever Plaid’ still in fashion at Proctors, says The Record

Created September 2nd, 2010

‘Forever Plaid’ still in fashion at Proctors
Published: Thursday, September 02, 2010

By Bob Goepfert
The Record

The key to the success of any production of "Forever Plaid" is the affection garnered for the individual performers. If you like them, you will like the show. At Proctors you love the performers.

Capital Improvements in GE Theatre Showcase the PLAIDS

Created August 31st, 2010

FOREVER PLAID Highlights Noteworthy Capital Improvements In GE Theatre at Proctors

Schenectady, NY – To take a lead from a biblical reference, when four gifted actor/singers take the stage at the GE Theatre at Proctors for each performance of FOREVER PLAID, there’s no hiding their good looks, showmanship or musical “talents under a bushel.”

The best of the PLAIDS is front and center for all to see and hear, in large measure, the result of recent, major updates to sound and lighting equipment in the 4,000 square foot black-box GE Theatre at Proctors. The enhancements help to showcase the PLAIDS at their best, and contribute to the intimate, nightclub atmosphere of GE Theatre and the play, which has brought audiences to their feet at every performance. FOREVER PLAID continues to play at Proctors until September 12.

According to Karen Johnson, Capital Campaign Director for Proctors, the updates are but another element in the ongoing $30 million capital improvement initiative at Proctors that began in 2004.

A recent matching grant, she says, coupled with a gift from a private benefactor, has enabled Proctors to update the 15-year old equipment in the GE Theatre that had been removed from Proctors Mainstage in 2007 and installed in the GE Theatre that year.

The combined $60,000 improvements expand Proctors capacity to present live shows through the introduction of a new state-of-the-art sound system (d&b audiotechnik T. System & a Yamaha LS-9 mixing console), which replace a 15-year old system from the historic theatre. While the sound system for film had been new, the sound for live entertainment had not been upgraded in the recent capital expansion.

In addition, Proctors added two 40’ trusses for additional lighting positions. One is over the stage and one at the rear of the theatre, a dead center lighting point. Two motors were purchased to power these trusses and for other related uses in this theatre.

The recent installations were completed by the Proctors stagehands under the supervision of Technical Director James Petersen. Proctors has a crew of two backstage managers and six employees who operate both the Mainstage and GE Theatre for the Proctors arts and entertainment complex; each has specialized skills in sound, lighting, and general stagecraft. Dan Sheehan, Operations Director at Proctors, along with William Blunck, sound technician, helped select the equipment.
“These improvements are very transparent,” says Mr. Sheehan. “The speaker system is as non-descript as it was before, but the technology, and resulting sound quality, are a leap forward of twenty years. If not visibly apparent, our audiences will experience these upgrades through the enhanced quality of the technical aspects of any live GE Theatre presentation.”

Opening the Doors to Cost Efficiency, Audience Satisfaction
The GE Theatre is completely wheelchair accessible with its flat floor. It also has built-in hearing stations. The recent equipment additions heighten the experience of those who frequent the GE Theatre to the level of the larger Mainstage at Proctors by improving the sound and technical capacity for enhanced lighting and scenery.

A smaller, more intimate space, the GE Theatre often is able to offer lower ticket prices, further extending the possibility of participating in live performances to Capital Region residents of varying income levels. Many art forms, which have a smaller anticipated audience than a performance in the 2,700 seat Mainstage house, can be made available in the GE Theatre, enabling Proctors to schedule more diverse events to meet the expectations of the region’s wide and evolving tastes and interests.

The multi-purpose GE Theatre has a 35’ x 50’ screen and 436 raked seats that facilitate use as an open, flat space with a sprung danceable floor, as a theater or giant-screened movie house.

The GE Theatre has hosted recent events that include folk singers and comedians and the regionally produced Amahl and the Night Visitors and Brundebar. Proctors Films Programs in the GE include the wide-format iwerks films for public and arts in education as well as opera from La Scala, ballet, an Annual Animation Festival, a 24-hour science fiction series and the It Came from Schenectady monthly alternative movie offerings.

In September, Proctors will debut a 3-D adventure produced at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. RPI and Proctors will collaborate to bring this breakthrough, animated, scientific film to Capital Region audiences.

FOREVER PLAID seems tailor-made for the intimacy of the GE Theatre at Proctors, and audiences – who have embraced every showing with a standing ovation -- seem to agree. More? Visit proctors.org or follow this link: (http://www.proctors.org/events/forever_plaid)

FOREVER PLAID: "genuine nightclub intimacy," says TIMES!

Created August 27th, 2010

“Forever Plaid” at Proctors’ GE Theatre, 8/26/10
August 26, 2010 at 11:02 pm by Greg Haymes
By GREG HAYMES
Special to the Times Union

SCHENECTADY – “We’re Forever Plaid,” announced Sparky, one of the four members of the fictious early-’60s guy group. “And we’re dead…”
Well, you gotta admit, that’s not the standard introduction to a jukebox musical.

“Forever Plaid” – currently on the boards at Proctors’ GE Theatre through Sept. 12 – is, in fact, a pretty standard jukebox musical, and it’s chockful of fabulous four-part vocal harmonies, ala the Ames Brothers and the Four Aces. But even if those names don’t resonate in your memory banks, you’ll likely still have a grand time at the show because it’s really all about the music, and the four guys who play the members of Forever Plaid nail the songs – from the opening “Three Coins in the Fountain” to the closing “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing” – with a delightful vocal blend, spiked with a side order of wry comedy.

Oh yeah, that “dead” thing?

Well, the premise is that these semi-professional singers were on their way to pick up their matching plaid jackets for a big, important gig when their car was slammed into by a busload of Catholic school girls on their way to see the Beatles’ debut on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” The girls, of course, were fine, but the Plaids died. Now they’ve returned from the Great Beyond to sing that final show that they never got to perform.
So the 90-minute performance is more like an extended retro comic nightclub routine than an actual play, but it’s fun. And thanks to director-choreographer Guy Stroman, the actors/singers Chris Crouch (as group leader Frankie), J.D. Daw (as the perpetually nose-bleeding Jinx), Joseph Domencic (as dsylexic bass-singing Smudge) and Marcus Stevens (as, well, Sparky) manage to carve characters out of Stuart Ross’ somewhat underwritten script without resorting to stereotypes.

Appropriately for a close harmony group, none of the actors pulls focus. It’s all about the blend, both musically and character-wise. Of course, each member does take a solo turn, with Daw (on Johnny Ray’s “Cry”) and Domencic (on Tony Bennett’s “Rags to Riches”) making the most of their spotlight tunes by breaking free from the restraints of the oh-so-white, buttoned-down group songs to really cut loose and belt one out.
Local musicians Graham Doig on piano and Mike Wicks on acoustic bass ably provide all the necessary musical backing. Anything more would get in the way of the vocals. And the staging in the GE Theatre – complete with the requisite audience interaction – gives the show a genuine nightclub intimacy.
*
“Forever Plaid”
Performance reviewed: 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 26
Where: The GE Theatre at Proctors, 432 State St., Schenectady
Running time: 90 minutes; no intermission
Continues: 7:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; 1:30 p.m. Thurs., Sat., Sun. Through Sept. 12.
Tickets: $20-$35
Info: 346-6204; http://www.proctors.org
*
Greg Haymes is a freelance writer from the east side of the Hudson.

"Music is the story" in FOREVER PLAID says GAZETTE!

Created August 25th, 2010

http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2010/aug/25/0825_plaidrev/

Theater review: Music is the story in ‘Forever Plaid’

August 25, 2010
Updated 8:48 a.m.

BY CAROL KING

Even if you’ve already experienced “Forever Plaid,” you must not miss the production being presented at Proctors. It is stylish, immensely entertaining and an audience pleaser — as evidenced by the standing “O” it received on the day I attended. I can imagine this production receiving many standing ovations. It’s that good!

Related story
For Gazette theater writer Bill Buell's preview of this show, click here.

‘Forever Plaid’
WHERE: GE Theatre at Proctors, 432 State St., Schenectady

WHEN: Previews Friday and Saturday; show opens Tuesday night at 7:30 and runs through Sept. 12. Check for performance dates and times

HOW MUCH: $35-$20

MORE INFO: 346-6204 or www.proctors.org

First there are the classic songs of the ’50s: “Three Coins in the Fountain,” “Sh-Boom” and “Love is a Many-Splendored Thing,” among so many others. Then there are the harmonies that made those songs iconic.

At Proctors, there are also excellent production values, witty direction and choreography (Guy Stroman), and a high-powered cast of four actor/singers who generate megatons of energy.

The story goes that the harmony group “Forever Plaid” was on route to its first big gig when a bus filled with Catholic high school — on their way to see the Beatles’ U.S. television debut on the “Ed Sullivan Show” — slammed into them. The girls survived but “The Plaids” were killed instantly.

Mysterious return
Then “through the power of harmony and the expanding holes in the ozone layer . . . and (other) astro-technical stuff,” the boys were allowed to return to Earth to perform the concert they were supposed to give all those years ago.

It’s not much of a story, and it doesn’t have to be. That’s not the point. What is important is the music and the performances. And the performances are sublime.

I am mentioning the guys in alphabetical order, because there is not a “star” among them, just a perfect blending of talent. Chris Crouch plays “Frankie;” J.D. Daw is “Jinx;” Joseph Domencic is “Smudge;” and Marcus Stevens plays “Sparky.”

The names may be familiar, but in this production, the personalities become distinct. Crouch goes down on one knee before a female audience member — who seemed thrilled by the gesture — for a romantic, leading man type version of a love song. Daw has nosebleeds and plays “Lady of Spain” on the accordion during the hilarious three-minute, 11 second version of “The Ed Sullivan Show.” Domencic, as Smudge, keeps messing up the choreography, and Stevens’ Sparky takes lots of Tums and writes his song lyrics on the palm of his hand as he prepares to sing “Perfidia.”

Band antics
Even the band gets in on the act. When musical director and pianist Graham Doig accompanies the group in a Latin number, he dons a Carmen Miranda hat then falls over because of its weight. In a very funny moment, he takes a union break for a cigarette and Domencic takes over the piano for a “Heart and Soul” segment that brought an adorable lady up on stage and into immediate stardom. The lady volunteered to play the top part of the perennial piano favorite and she was made “an honorary Plaid.” She loved every minute of it and so did I.

‘Forever Plaid’ evokes 1950s on GE stage at Proctors

Created August 20th, 2010

http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2010/aug/19/0819_plaid/

‘Forever Plaid’ will evoke 1950s on Proctors GE stage
Thursday, August 19, 2010
By Bill Buell (Contact)
Gazette Reporter

Joseph Domencic, Chris Crouch, Marcus Stevens and J.D. Daw star in
"Forever Plaid" at Proctors.

“Forever Plaid,” Stuart Ross’ off-Broadway smash musical hit about four
crooners who get one last shot at hitting the perfect note, will take
center stage at the GE Theatre at Proctors from Friday through Sept. 12.

This production is being mounted by the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, the
company that staged “Miss Saigon” on the Proctors main stage earlier this
month. Friday’s 7:30 p.m. performance and two shows on Saturday (1:30 and
7:30 p.m.) will be previews, with the show actually opening next Tuesday
night at 7:30.

“Forever Plaid” is a story about four high school friends from the 1950s
who formed a singing group in the hopes of making it big in the music
world. On their way to a performing gig which might have launched them to
bigger and better things, the car the four men were riding in was slammed
broadside by a bus carrying Catholic teenagers on their way to see “The
Beatles” on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” All four members of “Forever Plaid”
were killed.

That is where the show begins as the four men are strangely reunited to
sing their songs and bemoan the past.

“Forever Plaid” opened in New York City in May of 1990 with Ross also
serving as the director. It is the second longest-running off-Broadway
musical in history, behind only “The Fantasticks.”

‘Forever Plaid’
WHERE: GE Theatre at Proctors, 432 State St., Schenectady
WHEN: Previews Friday and Saturday; show opens Tuesday night at 7:30 and
runs through Sept. 12. Check for performance dates and times
HOW MUCH: $35-$20
MORE INFO: 346-6204 or www.proctors.org

Making up the four-man cast are Chris Crouch as Frankie, J.D. Daw as Jinx,
Joseph Domencic as Smudge, and Marcus Stevens as Sparky.
Crouch has performed in national tours of “The Music Man” and “Ragtime,”
and has also appeared in previous productions of “Forever Plaid” as the
other three characters in Sacramento, Charlotte, N.C. and Boston.
Daw, Domencic and Stevens have all performed around the country in various
regional theaters, and have also been on stage numerous times at the
Pittsburgh CLO.

Mark Turner, another Pittsburgh CLO veteran, will be the understudy, while
two resident professionals on the Pittsburgh CLO staff, Guy Stroman and
Deana Muro, are serving as the director-choreographer and music director,
respectively.

Among the songs included in the show are “Three Coins in the Fountain,”
“Sixteen Tons,” Shrangri-La” and “Rags to Riches.”

At Proctors, "All's well that ... well, you know... "

Created August 18th, 2010

New Heights, New Horizons
All's well that ... well, you know
By Thom O'Connor
The Daily Gazette, Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Among other tasks, I have been facilitating press relations for incoming shows at Proctors, most recently "Miss Saigon" and "Forever Plaid." In the main, there is a formula to reaching out and connecting the dots between the touring company, Proctors, the actors and local media.

At times, however, things go awry and best efforts to the contrary, shortlived confusion abounds. In the end, all’s well that ends well (as someone famous must have said!) and at Proctors, all usually does end well. And for good reason....

When I awoke at 5 a.m. on Aug. 6 to check email, Facebook, and the local news feeds before going to work, I was delighted to see an article on "Miss Saigon" in The Gazette by the highly esteemed Bill Buell. I scanned it quickly, and excitedly forwarded it to our staff and to "Miss Saigon" tour manager Michael Miller of the Pittsburgh CLO (Civic Light Opera) company to share with the actors when they awoke later in the day.
After grabbing some coffee, I sat down again and re-read the article more carefully. Only in the second reading did I see that the photo in the article had misidentified one of the actors. What unfolded through the weekend was a continuing string of email communiqués trying to discern how the gaffe had occurred and to ensure that despite the error, no one’s feelings were irreparably offended.

When I arrived at work on Monday, I learned that the opening page of the show’s Playbill contained a photo of an actor from a prior production. Wheels were spinning at breakneck speed within Proctors. How it happened was a second-best concern. Changing the image took priority. Throughout the day, no matter where one looked, with few exceptions all Proctors employees and volunteers were carefully tearing the offending page from the Playbill to be replaced by another crew with the new and appropriate image. In every meeting and during every coffee break, one could see the process repeated. Calm heads prevailed – despite trembling innards.

The following day, Proctors CEO Philip Morris wrote in his monthly blog:

“Last night a lush and emotional production of 'Miss Saigon' opened at Proctors. So far the critical review [especially from Michael Janairo, arts and entertainment editor at the Times Union] matched what I heard from the audience…
“For most of the past 30 years, Proctors has been a presenter…Miss Saigon represents yet another approach to bringing terrific events to our region. This production is not “on the road” in a traditional sense, but is co-produced by us … with the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera (Pittsburgh CLO) … This happened through a conversation with the Pittsburgh CLO’s director, Van Kaplan, at a meeting of about 50 performing arts administrators …

“Instead of the traditional show that is packed and designed to go in and out of some number of trucks every week, this show had to be adapted and fit into each of the three theaters that it played. Our backstage staff had to interpret, invent and prepare days in advance for the show to arrive. It was almost as if we had built the show ourselves. Even the feeling after opening night was different. The CLO’s technicians were a team with our technicians. The joy of seeing the show looking good, sounding good and running tightly was a shared experience by both organizations.
“It was a pleasure. And a whole new approach for us. One that we will be replicating in only a few weeks as we work with Van and the Pittsburgh CLO team to present 'Forever Plaid' in the GE Theater. Nice work team!”

Through all the tremors and internal conflicts that surrounded the Playbill and use of photography from a prior production, tour manager Michael Miller and I kept in mind that we were, in the end, part of the same --– and evolving -- team. Without finger pointing, the correction and insertion were made, and actors Josh Tower and Aaron Ramey proved that they are not called professionals for nothing! The events revealed invaluable lessons in teamwork, theatre love, and a makeup course in human error. Bill Buell is still speaking to me, and so all’s right with the world.

------
Thom O’Connor is At Large at Proctors – and loving it, most of the time! One of the biggest challenges of acting At Large as a member of the Proctors Marketing team is that the designated activities change as quickly as day to day. O’Connor chose the quasi-title himself as a best reflection of a wide variety of responsibilities undertaken through more than more than 40 years in marketing communications.

Carnival Barking: Word-of-mouth-maketing By Peter D. Hughes

Created August 18th, 2010

This article appeared the the Schenectady GAZETTE online, Wed., August 18.

http://www.dailygazette.com/weblogs/new-heights-new-horizons/2010/aug/18/alls-well-well-you-know/

Proctors: On & Off Stage
Word-of-mouth marketing: pre-Facebook, Twitter
By Peter D. Hughes
Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Marketing and advertising hasn’t changed much in terms of the message as much as the methodology.
This past winter, Proctors had the pleasure of displaying an amazing assortment of circus posters and memorabilia from the collection of local circus historian and enthusiast, the one-of-a-kind Gordon Turner. As an art piece back in January, fellow It Came from Schenectady partners Larry Mossey, Richard Lovrich and I collected and then carnival-barked to the gallery crowds the following, all messages taken directly off Gordon’s collection of vintage circus advertisements. Think of these as the Tweets and Facebook posts of 100 years ago. OMG…LOL…TGIF

IF I MAY HAVE YOUR UNDIVIDED, UNDERSTANDING AND UNINITIATED ATTENTION PLEASE.
BOYS AND GIRLS, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, CHILDREN OF ALL AGES, PEOPLE OF THE PLANET, CITIZENS OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM, MASSES OF THE MILKY WAY, AND RESIDENTS OF THE UNIVERSE, I WELCOME YOU TO THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, FOR THE CIRCUS IS COMING TO TOWN!
1001 enticements for young and old.
From every viewpoint the greatest circus achievement of the age -- AND ABOVE ALL, IT’S CLEAN!!
Sparks Circus -- presenting the most tremendous array of acts and features ever assembled including the big newly imported European Trained Horse Show!
Grandest arsenic displays in the history of gigantic amusements -- introducing TROUPE AFTER TROUPE of the famous foreign artists now first presented to American audiences.
The most complete mobilization of talent ever known in acts of peril and fascination too numerous to mention in the limited space of this publication.
40 funny clowns -- monkeyshine monarchs from every clime in a convulsing convention led by Paul Wenzel, The King of Pantomime
3 Great Herds of the LARGEST and SMALLEST performing elephants on earth (their equals do not exist!)
More massive magnificence than has ever been seen before on the streets of any city -- don’t miss it.
Ringling Bros. shows -- The big circus that has made all America talk!
The greatest free street parade ever seen! Presented in 30 tremendous sections and every one a big, glorious parade.
Aquarium and Aviary: Complete zoological garden of rare, wild beasts, water-bred animals, gay-plumaged birds, 25 big and little elephants
All exhibited with 1000 other wonders of brute creation
The biggest and stupendous and the ONLY $57,060 pair of stupendous LIVING HIPPOPOTAMUSES
Will Positively Exhibit Rain or Shine, in SCHENECTADY, Saturday, May 28 1898
The Flying Grigolatis Girls -- the wonderful winged women of the sky
The World’s largest and best 25-cent institution
First in size. First in quality. First in newness. First in ALL THINGS.
The one supreme show of the universe, the mightiest multitude of fabulous features ever assembled!!!!
Sparks Circus -- everywhere acclaimed the finest circus the world has ever known -- BAR NONE!
Clean, Wholesome amusement in Enormous Quantities!
Peerless menagerie of rare wild beasts
A comprehensive collection of the most costly and interesting animal specimens known to zoologists.
Presenting a mighty multitude of brand new international wonders, features and innovations!
The biggest in the world Sells Brothers’ Big Millionaire Confederation of Big Railroad Shows-
It is the biggest popular success.
The biggest features; the biggest parade , the biggest tents, the biggest animals
The biggest menagerie, the Biggest Circus , the Biggest Bands
The biggest chariots, the biggest dens, the biggest electric lights
the biggest railroad trains
The biggest marvel, TWENTY TIMES the smallest living, full-grown elephant -- only 36 inches high, 42 inches long, 347 pounds weight.
It has the biggest pile of solid capital invested
Worth nine times its weight in solid silver.
THE CIRCUS IS COMING TO TOWN

Peter D. Hughes barks daily as part of the tireless Marketing Team at Proctors.