The Music Man!
The Music
Man
Plays May 20 thru June 19
There's a wonderful musical pulling into the Racine Theatre Guild
stage that has delighted audiences since its Broadway debut in 1957. The Music
Man, a feel-good story about a fast-talking con artist in a small Iowa town,
opens May 20 at the RTG and runs five weekends through June 19.
Be prepared for a good time with wonderful characters, from the
verbose salesman Harold Hill to the librarian Marian, from the lisping youngster
Winthrop, to the pompous mayor Shinn and his overbearing wife. After its tremendous
Broadway run through 1961, and its hugely popular touring productions, The Music
Man became a movie in 1962, with Robert Preston recreating his role as Harold
Hill.
A recent television production of the show starred Matthew Broderick
as Harold Hill and singing sensation Kristin Chenowith as Marian. Revivals of
the show have graced Broadway stages in 1965, 1980 and 2003. It has toured worldwide,
gaining particular popularity in Asia and in the former Soviet Union.
Meredith Willson, a man with a modest career in music, radio and
television, got the idea to write a musical about his home town in Iowa, and
The Music Man was born. Willson is one of the few people to write the entire
musical: book, lyrics and music, and he will be linked with The Music Man forever.
The rousing march, "Seventy-Six Trombones," leaves a legacy to band
directors everywhere. His other hit, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, was a sensational
stage play and was made into a now-classic movie.
In case there is anyone who doesn't know the story, The Music
Man follows a con artist/salesman named Harold Hill, who arrives in the small
town of River City, Iowa. He sells the townspeople on the idea of a boys' band,
getting them to order non-existent musical instruments and band uniforms. Hill
plans to skip town before his con is discovered. The trouble is, he has fallen
in love with the town's librarian, Marian Paroo, who brings out the best in
him.
Other characters include the skeptical mayor, a school board barbershop
quartet, a ladies' group led by the mayor's wife, and Marian's younger brother,
an introverted lisping boy who comes out of his shell with enthusiasm to join
Hill's band. If there's any theme at all, it is the transforming power of music
and love to reform toughened hearts.
The songs from The Music Man have gone on to a life of their own,
including "Trouble," "The Sadder but Wiser Girl," "Marian
the Librarian," "Wells Fargo Wagon," "Lida Rose," "Gary
Indiana," and one of the few Broadway songs to ever make it as a Beatles
hit, "Till There Was You."
The Racine Theatre Guild is thrilled to produce The Music Man,
after failing to get the rights to the show in previous years because of nearby
productions. It impressed even hard-boiled critics when the show debuted on
Broadway and won five Tony Awards, including best musical and best actor for
Robert Preston.
"Mr Willson's music is innocent; the beat is rousing, and
the tunes are full of gusto," wrote Brooks Atkinson in the New York Times.
"The Music Man is a marvelous show, rooted in wholesome and comic tradition."
"The brightest, breeziest, most-winning new musical to come
along since My Fair Lady," wrote Walter Kerr in the New York Herald Tribune.
"It is a new musical in the old manner; it has blare and
brass; it jiggles and jumps, it has speed and style, and its people are beguiling,"
wrote John McClain in the N.Y Journal American.
If you don't already have tickets, you'll want to call the box
office immediately to reserve seats for this blockbuster musical. The Music
Man opens Friday, May 20, and runs five weekends through June 19. For information
or to reserve tickets, call the Racine Theatre Guild Box Office at 633-4218.
From the Director - Doug Instenes
No "Trouble" at the RTG
We are extremely pleased to produce The Music Man as the concluding show of the RTG's 67th season. The excitement that has been building over this production for months has allowed us to add four extra performances.
It's a mysterious thing when a musical becomes a classic, the way The Music Man has. What is it about the show that has an irresistible appeal through the generations?
Very few adults don't know the story and at least one song from the show. The songs stick with you, years after you exit the theatre.
A number of cast members told me they always wanted to be in this show and
waited a very long time to get the opportunity. In fact, so did I. When I was
in 7th grade, I was asked to audition for the role of Winthrop in a high school
production. Sadly, the director didn't have the foresight to cast me. To add
a little salt to the wound, my younger sister was cast in the boys' marching
band. As former RTG director Norm McPhee would say, shows are like trains, another
one will come along. However, many of us waited at the station for 20 or more
years. Finally, the train to River City has indeed arrived and we are all extremely
happy to be on it.
As always with big-scale musicals, the success of this show is due to the hard
work of hundreds of volunteers. This enthusiastic and supportive cast and crew
has accomplished so much in a realitively short time. We extend our thanks to
everyone who has helped.
Please join us for this wonderful family musical. And if you don't have them
already, I hope you will buy season tickets. It's never too late to get on the
RTG bandwagon.
The Music Man book, music and lyrics by Meredith Willson
Cast
Marian ........................Megan Lyne
Harold ........................Matt Specht
Mrs. Paroo .................Betty Petersen
Winthrop ....................Steven Wright
Shinn ..........................Gary Stamm
Eulalie .........................Irene Greeley
Amaryllis ....................Anneka Barrow
Zaneeta Shinn .............Megan Patzke
Gracie Shinn ...............Erin Martin
Marcellus ...................Nick Holub
Charlie Cowell ............Joe Vignieri
Tommy .......................Brent Palm
Barbershop .................Bob Gall, Robert Hansen, Brian Lynch, David Van
Swol
Ensemble: ...................Heidi Andes, Kate Potter-Barrow, Bob Benson, Connor
Benson, Kathy Berg, John Bruening, Mark Geisler, Geoff Greeley, Ellie Hammond,
Andy Hansen, Matthew Harris, Jamie Johnson, Mary Kveton, Alyssa Maurer, Norgie
Metzinger, Heather Rash, Jerald Rogers, Angie Sauvageau, Brittany Schumacher,
Mike Shelby, Robbyn Wilks, Teri Wilson, Jim Yorgan
Crew
Director ........…….……...Doug Instenes
Music Director ……..........Greg Berg
Choreographer ….….........Kara Ernst
Scenic Design ……............Charles Erven
Technical Dir. ..……..........Kurt Oian
PSM ……....…….............Ron Halvorsen
Stage Mgr./Lts. ….…........Michael Kurhajec
Props …….……...............Dana Strauss
Costumes …........…..........Sharon Molina
Sound …………...............Eric Goodwin
Makeup ………................Jeanne Christensen
Light Design ……..............Kevin Edmonston
Prod. Assistants ……........Eric Guttenberg, Mike Pirtle, Amy Pirtle,
Danny Pirtle, Katy Pirtle, Julie Moore, Rachael Caskey, Michell Miller, Paula
Martin, Gordy Strauss, Russ Stetler, Kelly Kauzlarich, Carol Forbes, Nicole
Monaghan, Katie Kowbel, Ryan Christensen, Janice Rovik, Sydney Rovik, Kathy
Rovik, Donna Nielsen, Bruce Ford, Nat & Richard Cycenas, Jo Rodrick