A Message from the Chairman… Good evening to you, one and all, and welcome to the Rhoda McGaw for what is already our second production of this calendar year… and it’s only early May! We followed the drama of our November production of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street with Mozart’s delightfully playful comic opera The Magic Flute in February, and now, in another sharp change of direction, we present to you the hilarious, madcap musical farce by Lisa Lambert, Greg Morrison, Bob Martin and Don McKellar – The Drowsy Chaperone. A clever parody of American musical comedy of the ’20s, the story – quite literally! – takes place around a ‘geeky’ middle-aged, musical comedy fan at home playing the original cast recording LP (remember those?!) of his favourite piece, the fictional 1928 hit The Drowsy Chaperone. The show comes to life around him on stage as he provides ironic but affectionate running commentary on the characters, the plot and the musical numbers. The show was first performed in Toronto in 1998, but didn’t materialise on Broadway until 2006. It was nominated for multiple Broadway (2006) and West End (2008) theatre awards, receiving five Tony Awards and seven Drama Desk Awards. However, despite this impressive pedigree, major productions in Canada, the US, the UK and Japan, including two North American tours, and a significant ‘cult following’, it has never quite been afforded the popular theatrical ‘A-list’ status it undoubtedly deserves… as we are confident you will see for yourselves. As Chairman it is with great pleasure that I extend my thanks to our Director for this production – and my friend of approaching 40 years – Jeff Raggett, to our Choreographer and Assistant Director Lorraine Landon, to our Musical Directors Kris Rawlinson and Sam Coates, to our rehearsal accompanists Bob Good, Julie Corden and Jonathan Rhodes-Smith, the hard working members of my Management Committee, the strikingly talented cast, our tireless and good humoured crew led by Lisa Young, our wonderfully imaginative set designer Mike Bartlett, and all associated volunteers, for the countless hours they have all put in to present this show to you. Additionally, I would like to thank all of our sponsors, advertisers and benefactors who have assisted with such generous support for this show: without them, it would simply not be economically viable to stage a production such as this. This coming November, in keeping with our tradition of staging rare pieces based on classic literature (most recently, of course, Bernard J Taylor’s take on Wuthering Heights last May), we will be performing Lawrence Rush’s musical version of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice. We hope to see you here for that. Finally, I’d like to thank you, our supportive public, and the Life Members and Patrons of Woking Amateur Operatic Society. Enjoy the show! Lee Power Chairman WAOS May 2016 Woking Amateur Operatic Society (WAOS) is a musical theatre company based in Woking, Surrey. We have produced over 80 shows since its formation over 40 years ago. We are a registered charity and produce two shows a year, here at the Rhoda McGaw Theatre, as well as fundraising concerts and other social events. We welcome all newcomers to the society, both on and off-stage. If you are interested in performing in or volunteering to help in any aspect of our theatre productions, please email [email protected] The National Operatic and Dramatic Association (NODA) was founded in 1899 and has a membership of around 2,500 amateur theatre groups and 3,000 individual enthusiasts throughout the UK who are engaged in staging musicals, opera, plays, concerts and pantomime in a wide variety of performing venues, ranging from the country’s leading professional theatres to tiny village halls. NODA's mission is to support the education and information needs of individuals and organisations with high quality services and products that contribute to the success of amateur theatre, as well as encouraging appreciation of the sector by participants and audiences alike. They aim to give a shared voice to the amateur theatre sector; to help amateur societies and individuals achieve the highest standards of best practice and performance; to provide leadership and advice to enable amateur theatre to tackle the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century. If you would like to find out more about NODA and its range of services, please visit www.noda.org.uk During the interval, you will have a chance to enter our free draw to win 2 free tickets to our next show! The winner of The Drowsy Chaperone ticket draw is: J. Askew Synopsis The Man in Chair, a mousy, agoraphobic Broadway fanatic, seeking to cure his "non-specific sadness", listens to a recording of a fictional 1928 musical comedy, The Drowsy Chaperone. As he listens to this rare recording, he is transported into the musical. The characters appear in his dingy apartment. The plot of the show-within-a-show centres on Janet Van De Graaff, a showgirl who plans to give up her career in order to marry an oil tycoon, Robert Martin. However, Janet is the star of "Feldzieg's Follies", and a lot of money is riding on her name to sell the show; and Feldzieg, her producer, is being threatened with bodily harm by two gangsters employed by his chief investor (a reference to the gangsters-turned-actors in Kiss Me Kate). Disguised as pastry chefs, these two pun-happy thugs threaten Feldzieg to stop the wedding, in order to ensure Janet's participation in the next production of Feldzieg's Follies. In order to save himself, Feldzieg enlists Aldolpho, a bumbling Latin Lothario, to seduce Janet and spoil her relationship with Robert. Meanwhile, Janet is having doubts about her groom. Disguising herself as a French woman, she tempts Robert into kissing her, and a massive misunderstanding emerges. The ensuing plot incorporates mistaken identities, dream sequences, spit takes, a deus ex machina, an unflappable English butler, an absent-minded dowager, a ditzy chorine, a harried best man, and Janet's "Drowsy" (i.e. "Tipsy") Chaperone, played in the show-within-a-show by a blowzy Grande Dame of the Stage, specializing in "rousing anthems" and not above upstaging the occasional co-star. Watching from his armchair, Man in Chair is torn between his desire to absorb every moment of the show as it unfolds and his need to insert his personal footnotes and his extensive-but-trivial knowledge of musical performances and actors, as he frequently brings the audience in and out of the fantasy. Director – Jeff Raggett Whilst this is Jeff's first visit to direct for WAOS he has directed over 150 different productions; plays, musicals, operas, revues and concerts. He has worked extensively in theatre and television since tender years. He is an accomplished tenor with numerous stage credits spanning 30+ years. His recent work includes roles in: Vandalis, Regina, Sarahs War and the recently released film The Exorcism of Anna Ecklund. Radio and audio work includes Count Dracula in an audio drama of the book Dracula as well as The Phantom of the Opera and Journey to the Centre of the Earth. He recently played The Castellan in Dr Who spin off Eternity Rises, produced especially to raise money for the BBC's Children in Need appeal 2015. Recent stage work includes: Emile in South Pacific, the tenor Tito in Lend me a Tenor, Larry in Sincerely Yours and the Rogers and Hammerstein Song book. Jeff also runs ONEMORETIME Musical Productions, a revue company for both corporate and theatre evenings including; Noel & Cole (A marvellous Party), Blue eyes to Buble, and Beatles, Boublil & Bacharach. He has also worked in areas of Cultural Development and Theatre in Education. Jeff is currently filming the role of Mr Earnshaw in a new version of Wuthering Heights for release September 2017. Jeff wants to thank the company as a whole for the hard work and exacting preparation for this production which has been great fun to work on again. Musical Director – Kris Rawlinson As Musical Director: The World Goes ‘Round (St. James Studio & The Pheasantry), Beauty and the Beast (Epsom Playhouse), Starting Here, Starting Now (The Pheasantry), West End Switched Off (St. James Studio), Concert for Alice (Ambassadors Theatre), Kris Rawlinson & Friends (The Pheasantry), Been On Broadway, Sopragette, La Petite Divatante, Verrallations, and SMASH-ing (The Pheasantry), Streets (Hackney Empire & Cockpit Theatre), The Singers Soirée (Battersea Barge), Cabaret in the House: Michael Vinsen (Lauderdale House), RENT (Civic Theatre, Chelmsford), Our House (Civic Theatre, Chelmsford), If It Only Even Runs A Minute (Landor Theatre). Other Theatre credits include: Beauty and the Beast (Theatre Royal Windsor), Copacabana (Assistant MD, National Tour), The Phantom of the Opera (Rhoda McGaw Theatre, Woking), Sister Act (Civic Theatre, Chelmsford), Another Way (Cockpit Theatre), Geek! A New Musical (Tristan Bates), Avenue Q (TNT Productions, Enfield), Jesus Christ Superstar (Civic Theatre, Chelmsford), Les Misérables (Rhoda McGaw Theatre, Woking). Recordings include: West End Switched Off, Vol. 1 and A Very West End Christmas (Parallel Productions), Saffron Street (Kerrie Angell). In 2013 Kris founded Parallel Productions, a young production company with a focus on new musical theatre work. Through this company, Kris produced the charity EP A Very West End Christmas with fifty West End performers, and most recently musically directed and produced the company's first full-length album, West End Switched Off, Vol. 1. Musical Conductor – Sam Coates Sam trained classically and in jazz piano at Birmingham Conservatoire before gaining a BMus (Hons) Creative Music Technology degree from the University of Surrey. Whilst in training he studied jazz piano under Mike Williams, Will Todd and Tim Richards.