Tue, Feb 09 2010
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Published June 25, 2009 11:53 pm - ‘The Producers’ Peach State’s monster of a comedy musical By Dean Poling As Dr. Randy Wheeler prepares to describe Mel Brooks’ “The Producers,” Peach State Summer Theatre Production Stage Manager Cristin Downs announces, “OK, let’s get this monster of a show going.”
With just minutes ticking away to a full dress rehearsal, Wheeler smiles and says, “That’s exactly what this show is. A monster.” “The Producers” was a monster musical hit on Broadway. It is a live musical adaptation of Mel Brooks’ non-musical 1960s comedy of the same name starring Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. The premise is a scam: Two men produce a show designed to fail so they can collect the insurance money. Brooks adapted the Broadway musical version to star Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick. This adaptation became a live phenomenon earlier this decade, and the musical was later re-adapted into a film version of the live show. Local producers hope “The Producers” will be a monster hit for Peach State, too. Yet, when Downs and Wheeler refer to this show being a monster, for now, they’re referring to its sheer scope. Some examples: l “The Producers” features every member of the PSST! cast and crew in a non-stop whirlwind of performance, costume changes, scene changes, and more. l It’s not unusual for supporting cast members to play several roles as part of a show’s ensemble. Some “Producers” cast members play so many different supporting characters, they need their fingers and a couple minutes running start to count just how many characters they play in the show. — This many different characters means plenty of costume and wig changes backstage. One actor has three costume changes during one song, Wheeler says. — Earlier this week, the cast and crew spent 10 hours rehearsing nothing but scene changes and costume changes. Ten hours so that during the performances, these changes would seem seamless, snap, snap, snap, a smooth-running show in a matter of two and a half hours. Pacing is one of the many tricks behind “The Producers.” It’s a farce with gigantic production numbers. “For the most part, ‘The Producers’ is a big, traditional Broadway comedy-musical,” Wheeler says. “The music is hummable. The characters are fun. But it’s all channeled through the mad mind of Mel Brooks.” “The Producers” is fueled by non-stop gags that roll into show-stopping production numbers. This means dancing also fuels “The Producers.” One dance number after another. Dr. Wheeler’s wife, Jacque Wheeler, who is also PSST!’s artistic director, is the show’s choreographer. Dr. Wheeler says, “With the amount of dancing, this show is as much Jacque’s as it is mine. Now, I understand why the Broadway show’s original choreographer was also its director.” Yet, with all of its production numbers and the all-hands-on-deck necessity of the ensemble cast, “The Producers” remains very much a star vehicle. The spotlight is shared by John Allen Biles and Johnny Machesko playing the scheming Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom, two characters who are on stage almost every minute of this show’s running time. “Max,” Randy Wheeler says, “is one of the most challenging roles in musical theatre.” 
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