Whitbytheatre.Ca BOOK Byjeff Whitty February 8-24, February 905.668.8111
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WHITBY COURTHOUSE THEATRE | 2017/18 THE MUSICAL MUSIC AND LYRICS by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx BOOK BASED ON AN ORIGINAL CONCEPT by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx BOOK by Jeff Whitty 2018 PROGRAM February 8-24, whitbytheatre.ca Whitby Centennial Building, 416 Centre St. S. | 905.668.8111 Avenue Q is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT APRIL 19, 20, 2018 – 7:30PM APRIL 21, 2018 – 1:30 & 7:30PM Fairview Library Theatre 35 Fairview Mall Dr. For tickets and information: spotlightmusicalproductions.com The Official Printer of WCT! 905-430-7939 105 Industrial Dr, Whitby 100 Brock St, S. Whitby, ON 905-430-3774 www.lafontainewhitby.ca WHITBY COURTHOUSE THEATRE PRESENTS BOOK by Jeff Whitty BOOK BASED ON AN ORIGINAL CONCEPT by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx MUSIC AND LYRICS by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx ORCHESTRATIONS AND ARRANGEMENTS by Stephen Oremus Producer Director Heather Doucette Monique Essegern Music Director Stage Manager Choreographer Edward Niles Dave Rabjohn Tasha Dizazzo Set Design Costume Design Puppet Design Ian Handscomb Monique Essegern Monique Essegern Donna Gunter Video Projection Design Lighting Design Sound Design Christopher Seaman Greg & Pauline Poulin Margo Rodgers The world premiere of AVENUE Q was presented by the Vineyard Theatre and The New Group, New York City, February 2003. AVENUE Q premiered on Broadway at the Golden Theater on July 31, 2003, produced by Kevin McCollum, Robyn Goodman, Jeffrey Seller, Vineyard Theatre and The New Group. Avenue Q has not been authorized or approved by the Jim Henson Company or Sesame Workshop, which have no responsibility for its content. Avenue Q is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.MTIShows.com The taking of photographs, videotaping or other video or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited. FROM THE DIRECTOR In early 1971, I was a young, stay-at-home mom confined to a tiny three-room apartment with my new baby girl. To relieve the boredom, and save my sanity, I began watching a children’s television show called Sesame Street. It was novel, funny, and best of all utilized puppets as the main characters. Founded by public television producer Joan Cooney in 1969, the Children’s Television Workshop, now called Sesame Workshop, collaborated with writer, director, and puppeteer Jim Henson. The ‘Muppets’ Jim created for the show were unlike the glove puppets or marionettes on the classic children’s programs that I had grown up with. Sesame Street’s colourful characters like Kermit the Frog and Cookie Monster appealed to children and adults alike, teaching kids everything from empathy to arithmetic. The musical, Avenue Q is more than just a satire of Sesame Street, it is an homage to Henson’s creativity and Muppet character creations, as well as children’s educational TV programming. Despite Sesame Workshop’s assertions that the puppet characters, Ernie and Bert have no sexual orientation, Avenue Q’s Rod and Nicky, who are very similar in look and nature to their television counterparts, are free to address the question of their homosexuality. Avenue Q’s creator, Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez present other adult situations, like racism, and ‘simplify’ their complexity by creating a charming, catchy song, “Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist,” as a teachable moment in the show. In telling Princeton’s story in Avenue Q, Lopez and Marx relied on their own autobiographical ‘coming of age’ in the 1990’s and 2000’s. They grew up as part of the ‘entitled’ Generation Y (also identified by The New York Times as ‘Generation Why Bother’) who were taught by their parents and teachers that they were ‘special’- that they could do anything. Children’s television echoed that. “Follow your passion” became the pervasive career advice. Not surprisingly, Gen Y’s were disappointed about what they experienced instead. Like Avenue Q’s residents Princeton and Lucy the Slut, many became downtrodden and disillusioned when the reality of adulthood set in, and they found themselves in their ’20’s and ‘30’s still living with their parents, still searching for their purpose in life. Princeton’s opening number, “What Do You Do With A B.A. in English” could be an anthem to this generation. In an interview conducted by Aaron Dobbs and Lily Oei in 2004, Marx and Lopez were asked the question, “Why puppets?” as the vehicle to address the show’s themes. The pair explained: “…puppets were so cute and friendly, they had a wider latitude to go further than humans could go without being distasteful. MESSAGE Sometimes thoughts and words that would probably be offensive in a human’s mouth are more acceptable — and even funnier — coming out of a puppet. “ In creating the puppets used in WCT’s production, I was inspired by Rick Lyon’s designs for his puppet characters in the original 2003 Broadway production of Avenue Q. Since I am not a professional puppeteer or puppet maker, I was limited by the resources at hand, as well as my amateur knowledge of sewing, gluing, and pattern making. I am indebted to my assistant Donna Gunter whose support and encouragement during the seven-month long construction period helped keep me sane, and whose ideas often flowed when mine did not. Monique Essegern CAST CAST (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE) Princeton .............................................................................................TODD APPLETON Brian ............................................................................. CHRISTOPHER PEZZARELLO Kate Monster ....................................................................................... JESSICA FODOR Nicky ................................................................................................................GREG WHITE Rod .......................................................... ALEXANDER MANTIA (puppet captain) Christmas Eve ............................................................................................... OLIVIA JON Gary Coleman ..................................................................................STEVEN SUEPAUL Trekkie Monster .....................................................................................KYLE ROBERTS Bad Idea Bears ......................................................LISA FERREIRA, GREG WHITE Mrs. Thistletwat .....................................................................................KYLE ROBERTS Lucy the Slut ............................................................................. ALLYSON POLIDANO Ricky ...........................................................................................................KYLE ROBERTS Newcomer ................................................................................. ALEXANDER MANTIA & VIDEO PROJECTIONS VOICE RECORDING ARTISTS KAI FERREIRA, HUDSON ORDANIS, ZOE ORDANIS, CASSIDY SMITH, BAND LILY WILLCOTT, AUSTIN WILLCOTT, MADELEINE WHITE, MORGAN WHITE AND PHIL PIZAK BAND Conductor ...............................................................................................EDWARD NILES Keyboard 1 ................................................................................................ SAM MOFFATT Keyboard 2 .......................................................................................................SARA CAIN Guitar/Banjo ................................................................................................ERIK MOODY Bass ...........................................................................................................EZRA SHERMAN Reeds ........................................................................................................JEFF DENSHAM Drums ........................................................................................................ROB THERRIEN Percussion..............................................................................................TYLER REZNICK DID YOU KNOW... In 2002, a major controversy erupted when an HIV-positive puppet debuted on the show’s South African edition. Yellow-furred Kami, whose backstory includes a South African upbringing as well as a mother who died of AIDS, was meant to educate children on the disease. Conservative critics accused the show of promoting homosexuality and prematurely educating youngsters on AIDS. SCENES & MUSICAL NUMBERS PROLOGUE “The Avenue Q Theme” ................................................................................COMPANY “What Do You Do with a B.A. in English?” ...................................... PRINCETON ACT ONE Scene 1 – The Avenue: Morning “It Sucks to Be Me” ..............................BRIAN, KATE MONSTER, ROD, NICKY, CHRISTMAS EVE, GARY COLEMAN, AND PRINCETON Scene 2 – Nicky and Rod’s Apartment: That Afternoon “If You Were Gay” ............................................................................NICKY WITH ROD Scene 3 –Outside Princeton’s Apartment: The Next Day “Purpose” ..............PRINCETON AND COMPANY (AKA ‘SINGING BOXES’) Scene 4 – On the Avenue: Later That Day “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist” ...............................PRINCETON, KATE, GARY, SONGS BRIAN, AND CHRISTMAS EVE Scene 5 – Kate’s Apartment / On the Avenue: A Week Later “The Internet Is for Porn” ........................ KATE, TREKKIE MONSTER, BRIAN, & GARY COLEMAN, ROD, AND PRINCETON Scene 6 – On the Avenue: A Week Later Scene 7 – Kate’s Apartment: A Week Later “Mix Tape” ...............................................................................KATE