Boo! Cheer! Hiss! Melodrama
The Draper Arts Council spring Melodrama is set to hit the boards in February, and Draperites are preparing to express their approval and disapproval of the characters in the traditional ways.
Directed by Sherry Smith, "Adrift in New York or Her First False Step" features the usual cast of characters, from the evil city man Francis (Desperate) Desmond (Jason Jones) to innocent and gullible farm girl Nellie Weston (Jessie Wintch), with side trips to brave and forthright Jack Merriwell (Derrik Legler). And there are the usual extras, Nellie's sister (Keri Taylor), aunt (Collette Memmott) and father (Gordon Jones), plus courageous lawmen and nefarious henchmen.
"Adrift" is not a musical, but it will feature quite a bit of singing. The second act is set in a New York honky-tonk and music hall, and several of the cast members will present songs from the Gilded Age, such as "Strolling Through the Park," "Gold Will Buy Most Anything (But a True Girl's Heart)," and "Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-Ay." Honky-tonk owner Dan Fogarty (Chris Jones) says this last number will feature audience participation and promises to reveal the "true" lyrics to this traditional number.
DAC Secretary (and producer of this show) Gordon Jones also promises entr'acte olios featuring even more numbers from the period, and more audience sing-alongs. This promises to be a fun-fantastic evening for the whole family that you will want to see more than once.
"Adrift in New York" will run for three performances, Feb. 25, 26 and 28 at 7:30 p.m. Although this is a DAC production, it will be presented at the friendly and intimate stage (well within reach of thrown popcorn) of Draper Historic Theatre, at 12360 South 900 East. All tickets are $5, and are available (along with more information) at the DAC website (www.draperartscouncil.org) and at the door.
So tune up your vocal cords, reserve your popcorn early and join us for a rousing night of hissing, booing and (finally) cheering, as the maiden's virtue (and the family mortgage) is saved from the dastardly villain (have we given too much away?).
