Monday, November 24, 1997
Students are exposed to classic theater style
THEATER:
Musical revue of Jerry Herman’s songs takes class to bygone
eraBy Aimee Phan
Daily Bruin Staff
"Mame." "Mack and Mabel." "Hello, Dolly!"
These are just a few of the popular musicals that will be
sampled for the UCLA Musical Theater Workshop’s "Songs of Jerry
Herman," a musical revue honoring the Broadway composer and
lyricist’s body of work. Students in the workshop will be singing
and dancing to some of Herman’s most celebrated songs Wednesday
afternoon in the Schoenberg Hall auditorium. Though the concert is
only open to Music 15 students, it is a chance for them to practice
their performance skills.
John Hall, the director of the Musical Theater Department, chose
Herman’s music after the famed composer put on a performance with
the Center for the Performing Arts that showcased his greatest
hits. Hall thought it would be a good idea to expose his students
to a more classic musical-theater style that they might not be
familiar with.
"For a lot of people in my generation, Jerry Herman is the most
successful living-theater guy," Herman says. "He wrote fabulous hit
shows but then, for a while, he wasn’t popular anymore. I thought
there was a lot of good stuff in his repertoire for auditions."
Gary Busby, the teaching assistant for the workshop, agrees that
the students needed to learn more about the older classic styles in
order to familiarize themselves with the roots of American musical
theater.
"We’ve done the hippie rock ‘n’ roll stuff, but this is the
bread and butter of musical theater," Busby says. "For these
students, there are stock characteristics they must learn about
playing these characters. We’re giving students who haven’t been
exposed to these stock characters experience in this
repertoire."
Indeed, some of the students who were not familiar with Herman’s
work soon became fans, appreciating the composer’s wide variety of
songs and the era of the classic musical in general.
"Each song has its own particular charm," says Jill Simonian, a
second-year pre-communication studies student. "It shows a bunch of
different flavors and switches from the funny to the serious to the
romantic."
Amir Proushani, a fifth-year theater student, also admires
Herman’s songs and is glad that the class is focusing on this older
musical time which was once celebrated for its timeless charm and
universal appeal.
"This was the golden age of comedy, an era of American comedy
that kind of got lost," Proushani says. "It had the ability to be
classy and cheeky at the same time."
The show is designed in a unique format that will rely on the
students’ witty dialogue and running gags instead of concentrating
on one long narrative. Herman’s greatest hits will be interspersed
with short comic sketches that put a whole new meaning into the
classic songs.
"Rather than singing song after song, we’re going to have a fun
format," Busby says. "It will have skits like a morning game show
where it’s all sung. Since the show is for the Music 15 class, it’s
one of their concerts where they can just have a good time."
Some of the highlights in the show include a big tap-dance
number and a running gag of one dancer eager to show off his Carol
Channing impression from the musical "Hello, Dolly!"
Carlos Jones, the movement instructor and choreographer of the
workshop, shared the students’ enthusiasm about the dance numbers
in the show and wasn’t worried about the lack of experience some of
them had when it came to tap dancing.
"The big tap production is the most difficult because a lot of
the students haven’t tapped," Jones says. "But they’re mastering it
and [are] working really hard. They’ve been really interested and
anxious about learning, so if they keep this energy, they can
really progress."
While the tap number may have been the most difficult scene to
establish, Hall came across a different kind of problem when it
came to casting someone to play Carol Channing’s irreplaceable role
of Dolly Levi. After watching the girls try their best at imitating
Channing, Hall discovered that the best person to play a
notoriously masculine actress might have to be a male.
"Of course, the best Carol Channing impression has to be a guy
because none of the girls could do it," Hall laughs.
The illustrious role went to Thomas Lenk, a fourth-year theater
student. Lenk describes his opportunity to play Dolly as a parody
that will escalate throughout the show.
"I’m a ‘Hello, Dolly!’ reject," Lenk says. "I keep trying to do
my Carol Channing impression for everybody, but no one will let me
and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger."
While the students and directors of the Musical Theater Workshop
are excited about their first performance of the school year, they
see the revue as a continued process of learning and good practice
for their big production coming up this winter, Stephen Sondheim’s
"Into the Woods."
"This show is preparing them for the big show where we spend our
whole budget," Hall says. "It also gives us a chance to see who
works well under pressure, who’s got that confidence and who freaks
out."
AARON TOUT/Daily Bruin
The Music 15 class chose to perform Jerry Herman’s songs for
their classic humor and style.AARON TOUT/Daily Bruin
Members of the Musical Theater Workshop rehearse for "The Songs
of Jerry Herman."