Photo: Professional actors from across the country enjoyed Sunday morning coffee at the Actors House on May 18 before their initial rehearsal of “Something Rotten!,” the first Broadway musical of the summer season to be presented by Thingamajig Theatre Company at the Pagosa Springs Center for the Arts. Photo courtesy Carole Howard.
Professional actors and directors have arrived in Pagosa from across the U.S. and rehearsals are underway now for “Something Rotten!”, the first Broadway musical of the summer season to be presented by Thingamajig Theatre Company at the Pagosa Springs Center for the Arts.
Season ticket holders will get a sneak preview of the show tomorrow, Friday, May 23, from 6:30 – 9pm when they are invited to a special open rehearsal wine-and-cheese event exclusively for them. Doors open at 6pm.
“Something Rotten!” is a Broadway musical comedy about two struggling Renaissance playwrights who are desperate to write a hit to compete with William Shakespeare. The show satirizes both Shakespeare and the Broadway world, with a sophisticated blend of humor, song and dance.
It opens Friday, May 30 and will run in rotation until August 30 with “The Wild Party” opening Friday, June 13 and “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder” opening Friday, June 27.
Ronald Dahl’s “James and the Giant Peach Junior” will be the theatre’s Whatchamawhozits children’s summer camp musical on July 12 and 13.
This year’s fundraising Broadway Gala will take place Tuesday evening, July 29 showcasing the incredible talents of the summer performers.
Favorite actors plus new talent
Artists, designers and performers have come to Pagosa from as far away as New York City and California to perform in “Something Rotten!” and the two other summer musicals, as well as at the fundraising gala. Eight of the actors are much-admired favorites with local and out-of-town audiences from previous performances at Thingamajig. They are Cassandra (Cassie) Brooks, Trevor Brown, Dominic Girolami, Evan Hoefer, Jesse Kortus, Samantha (Sam) Luck, Dan Morrison and Alicia Osborne.
A special treat for audiences is news that Tim Moore, Thingamajig’s artistic director, will perform in “Something Rotten!” He will play several roles including Nostradamus, the 16th century French astrologer, apothecary and physician famed for being able to predict future events.
Others on stage will be talented new faces.
“Something Rotten!” has a cast of 15 actors who play more than 75 roles, including dancing and performing in the chorus, with multiple costume changes. The play tells the story of two playwright brothers in Elizabethan England who are struggling to compete with the huge success of Shakespeare, their contemporary and rival. It was nominated for 10 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and won one.
“Something Rotten!” is famous for its nimble word play, clever historical references and satirical humor. One reviewer called it “pure escapist entertainment,” writing, “It’s hilarious, witty, filled with kitschy dialogue, clever jokes, catchy songs and over-the-top characters that you’ll instantly fall in love with.”
Theatre lovers will especially enjoy one of its songs that has been called “a crash course on classic show tunes and Broadway musicals” because in the nearly eight-minute-long piece there are at least 20 different references to famous Broadway scores.
Dennis Elkins has come from New York City to direct “Something Rotten!” and he is greatly looking forward to the show. “It’s definitely not something out of your English teacher’s textbook,” he says. Elkins is former head of the Fort Lewis College theatre department, and is well known to Thingamajig audiences. At Thingamajig, he starred in dramas including “Red,” “A Picasso” and “A Few Good Men;” played major roles in musicals like “Cabaret” and “Hairspray;” directed hits like “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” “Jersey Boys” and “The Odd Couple: Female Version;” and wrote and starred in a one-man autobiographical trilogy, “box.,” “bag—” and “bloodline.”
Just one example of the talent we’ll see on stage is Jesse Kortus, well known in Pagosa as New York City crap game organizer Nathan Detroit in Thingamajig’s “Guys and Dolls” and Charlie Brown in the theatre’s 2022 holiday show. In “Something Rotten!” Kortus plays Shakespeare, with the opportunity to display his amazing dancing skills in a big tap number in this musical romp.
In addition to his acting roles, Dominic Girolami returns to Pagosa from New York City to be music director for all three shows.
The show is being choreographed by Pia Wyatt. She is professor of theatre and dance at Northwestern State University in Louisiana. Her previous Thingamajig credits include directing and choreographing musicals like “Guys and Dolls,” “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Tommy,” “Mamma Mia” and “Jekyll & Hyde.” Costumes are the responsibility of Nanette Cheffers, resident costume designer, with intern Sophia Raymond. Mackenzie Lowe returns as lighting designer.
Major recruiting trip
The summer actors were recruited by Tim Moore on a month-long audition trip that took him to New York City and the Unified Professional Theater Auditions (UPTAs) in Memphis.
He met with more than a thousand artists in person and many thousands more online before choosing the final summer cast. “I’m looking forward to another fantastic season this summer,” says Moore, “and I know our audiences will love these amazing shows and performers. They represent a return to narrative theatre, works that are based on storytelling with great music.”
Season ticket benefits
To ensure you don’t miss any of the three summer musicals, consider buying season tickets.
Multiple benefits come with being a season ticket holder, including invitations to exclusive happenings like the special “Something Rotten!” open rehearsal wine-and-cheese event tomorrow, Friday, May 23 from 6:30 – 9pm.
Other perks include a free drink on opening weekends, discounted tickets, reserved seats, unlimited ticket exchanges at no extra charge, come-again tickets to see a show again while bringing a paying guest when you attend an Opening Weekend performance, and an invitation to the wine and cheese winter season announcement in August.
Season tickets are $120 per person. Reserved seats are $210 per person. They are available on the theatre’s website at pagosacenter.org or by phoning or texting the box office at 970-731-SHOW (7469). Individual tickets and all show dates also are available on the website.
Friends of the Theatre benefits
You also can pay your annual Friends of the Theatre dues of $40 per person on the theatre’s website. Becoming a Friend brings you many exclusive interactions with the actors and directors throughout the year. Those opportunities include multiple social gatherings like welcome and farewell parties, an exclusive summer cabaret concert, invitations to participate in Tech Tuesday potlucks, Behind the Scenes presentations, a laser light show and dance party, plus excursions to Williams Lake for water sports in the summer and Wolf Creek for skiing in the winter
Thingamajig Theatre Company was cofounded in 2011 by Tim and Laura Moore. It is an award-winning professional 501(c)(3) nonprofit theatre in residence within the Pagosa Springs Center for the Arts. Its talented actors, directors and production experts come from across the U.S. to produce musicals, comedies and dramas year-round. Thingamajig also is dedicated to providing theatrical experiences and educational opportunities for youth and teens in our community.