We’ll start by introducing Mr. Tom Drury.

He submitted his bio the other day for the program and he listed some boring stuff. He was in some movie about Daniel Boone, he performed on a USO Tour, he played Tevya in Fiddler on the Roof, blah blah blah blah… I mean who hasn’t performed in SE Asia on a USO tour?  And Tevya? Really? He wishes he was a rich man–but he’s not! So why should we pay attention to him. Poor people aren’t interesting!

No… the best part about Mr. Tom Drury?  (Wait for it… )

He plays the BANJO!!

And the guitar… but the BANJO!! It’s like the pretty skinny cousin of the fat guitar. Guitars are fine, but because banjos are skinny, they’re clearly better.*

Come and see the show opening Thursday, Feb 16th and you’ll see Mr. Drury play both the guitar and the banjo. We realize that To Kill a Mockingbird  isn’t a musical, but when you’ve got talented musicians in a cast, it would be a tragic waste to not have them play for audiences.

Stay tuned for more cast introductions!

*As a fat girl, I can make fun of fat people or instruments all I want. If you’re skinny, it’s offensive. But because I’m pleasantly plump, I can make these kinds of jokes.

Posted by Eve Speer

Right now, the theatre is empty.

I love looking at the empty stage and imagining the shows before they come to life.

In this space, audiences and players will come together and create beautiful worlds.

In just a couple of weeks, audiences will join players in Maycomb County, Alabama.

The empty chairs, the empty stage . . .

The theatre is a magical place. Soon we’ll come together as artists and audience members and the whole space will transform into a whole new world filled with life and beauty.

Join us when we open Thursday, Feb. 16th at 7pm. You can get your tickets by visiting www.midvaletheatre.com.

Posted by Eve Speer

On the other hand, I bet we all know people who are such great storytellers that we can’t wait to hear what they have got to say next. Generally, the latter group paid close attention to other people who were fun and interesting to listen to and then honed those skills.
Acting lessons are a great place to begin to gain these skills. This is a place where we begin to give distinct personality to a voice and help you to stand out in a crowd as a performer, storyteller, speaker, and teacher. Acting lessons are a fun, non-threatening way to gain insight and innovation to move you to being the “go to” person within your organization. You will learn voice modulation techniques as well as physical movement so that your messages come across more clearly.
These skills are used by celebrities, film and TV personalities, business professionals, educators, public speakers, ministers, broadcast journalists, musical theatre performers, radio personalities, stand-up comics, talk show hosts, beauty pageant contestants, musicians, vocalists, choir members, etc. All must be able to clearly communicate points of view and key information to audiences. These skills also help you in your every day life as you develop ways of being better understood with what is being said. Dedication in your work brings so many possibilities in their careers.
To become successful and effective we must develop the full potential of your vocal skills and qualities. You must become an expert communicator and storyteller. The good news is that it can be done in a fun environment. We will work on sharp observation and active listening skills. These make you stand out as the strong, caring communicator you will become.
We will also work on shifting focus. This is the difference of moving your own personal focus from what you have to say to how well the information is being received and understood on the receiving end. You will also begin to feel more connected as you go through various stages in getting established from meetings and workshops to auditions and interviews. This will help to heighten your awareness of the impact you have on others. This will also help you shift your focus from being self-conscious to audience-awareness when you perform or speak and will make you more comfortable at any meet and greet type opportunities.

Posted by Holly Evans

We have a few students interested in moving forward with an actor’s workshop. The workshop will be held weekly, 5 weeks in a row. Contact us at mmstperformingartsacademy@gmail.com or just email the theatre at midvaletheatre@gmail.com if you would like to learn more. Visit www.midvaletheatre.com for more information on private lessons and classes.

I’m thinking about how I am going to talk to set builder extraordinaire Johnny about Cassidy Ross’s set design for To Kill A Mockingbird today while I’m at the theatre.

And I’m smiling inside remembering the warm beautiful feeling I felt while I was at the theatre last night waiting for Qwik Wits to begin.

I was out in the lobby. People were pouring into see the show. Taylor was at the counter. Holly and Daxx were working away in the kitchen. And Taylor said these magical words that changed everything for me:

“Do you want to try Holly’s sliders? They’re only $3 for two.”

Something inside me compelled me to say, “Yes. Please.”

Taylor: “With cheese and onions?”

Again, led by a mysterious power I cannot explain, I nodded.

Taylor: “There’s cheddar cheese, but I like nacho–”

Me: “Cheddar! I hate nacho cheese!”

Holly called from the kitchen, “Do you want ketchup, mustard, and mayo?”

The question overwhelmed me. I was trying to imagine each flavor in my mouth and I couldn’t figure out what to say. Finally she rescued me and just promised to do all three. Again, I nodded.

Five minutes later I bit into the most delicious little slider. So fresh, flavorful. So warm and savory.

I know that you come to the theatre to see the shows…. but think about it… isn’t there a little part of you that PRETENDS to come to the theatre for the show because you’re too afraid to admit that the real reason you’re there is to eat Holly’s famous sliders?

You’ve got a great excuse to enjoy the sliders tonight at the Midvale Main Street Theatre! Showtime starts at 10pm! The comedians at Qwik Wits are in top form. Audiences were rolling last night. Come and see the show and enjoy some delicious food at the same time.

Posted by: Eve Speer

These are the talented kids playing Dill (the future Truman Capote), Scout (young Harper Lee) and Jem… (who is someone wonderful too, I’m sure.)  The kids playing Scout and Jem are brother and sister in real life. I have funny stories about these three, but I’ll save those for later.

This is a picture of some of the gentlemen in the cast. The guy playing Atticus is a rhetoric professor at UVU. Bob Ewell is played by Tom Drury, a great old actor and banjo player!

But this entry is about a dog.

One of the guys in the cast, Joe Puente, has a little dog that is 13 years old. The dog’s name is Phil. Phil is old, wise, and near deaf. Joe brings him to rehearsal every night. The dog wanders across the stage at will, which I frankly love! The play is about a little southern town and most of the scenes take place outside, so watching a dog walk across the stage at random moments just cracks me up.

There’s a scene where the kids tell Calpurnia about a mad dog coming down the street. Calpurnia goes up to the Boo Radley house and says, “Mad dog! Mad dog’s coming!”

And like clockwork, Phil comes trotting onto the stage EVERY TIME she says this line. He enters from the right entrance and everything. It cracks me up! And the kids and Calpurnia all react appropriately running from the dog and screaming “Mad dog!” and so Phil, who is generally perfectly quiet, picks up his head and barks.

It’s a riot.

And that is generally how rehearsals go.

There are serious moments, but most of the time, we’re just having a wonderful time laughing and working.

If you can make it, I’d love to have you see this show!

Posted by: Eve Speer

Announces Auditions for:

Ten Times Two; The Eternal Courtship

Auditions and performances will be held at the Midvale Main Street Theatre for Ten Times Two.

Auditions July 23, 2011 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Callbacks July 30, 2011 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

More information is available on our Midvale Main Street Theatre main site.

NOTE:  If you haven’t yet purchased tickets for “The Tempest” which begins this week, it’s not too late. Tickets are available on our website at the above link! The Tempest is also an Around the Globe Theatre Company production.

Callbacks will be  July 30, 2011 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

are July 23rd at the Midvale Main Street Theatre from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

are July 23rd at the Midvale Main Street Theatre from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

This month, Around the Globe Theatre Company presents William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” directed by Beth Bruner. The Tempest will run on various dates from July 15-30 of 2011. We are both eager and pleased at the work this company is doing in bringing these great works to life.

August brings us Titus Productions under the Direction of Jake Andersen with Peter Pan. You may have seen their Rock Opera of Alice in Wonderland at the Midvale Main Street Theatre last Summer. I’m confident that this will prove to be every bit as delightful.

Last, but certainly not least, we are announcing auditions for Sweeney Todd. They will be held August 23rd at the Midvale Main Street Theatre at 7:30 pm. We invite you to go to our main Midvale Main Street Theatre website for more information on any of the above shows or auditions.

Have a safe and happy summer!

Tammy Ross

Lots of Laughs This Week at the Midvale Main Street Theatre!

Hello Friends, and Happy Summer! Make this a week filled with laughter by coming to the Midvale Main Street Theatre. This week on Thursday night, our favorite group of zanies will be performing a special benefit for Utah Autism Give. This is a big win for everybody because you and your friends and family get a terrific night out and the dedicated folks at Utah Autism Give get 100% of the proceeds.

But Wait…That’s not all!

Also this week, we have the fabulous, nationally known, magician and comic Al Lampkin performing right here at the Midvale Main Street Theatre! Al has played to huge audiences that I’m sure many of you are aware of, such as the Tonight Show, the Rodney Dangerfield Comedy Hour, Disney World, and so many others. Recently, Al Lampkin was named Best Comedy Act of the Year by his fellow Magicians. Don’t miss this opportunity to see a truly great family show!

And…we’re not done yet.

For those of you who would love somewhere to go a little later bit later on at night, we have our Quick Wits Comedy Improv Troup performing both Friday and Saturday night at 10:00 p.m.

You can call the theatre for more information or go to our main website at Midvale Theatre for further details. We hope to see you there and thank you in advance for making the Midvale Main Street Theatre such a fun place to be!

Tammy Ross  Best Comedy Act of the Year

Wow, what an incredible run this has been!  The Cast and Crew is exceptional, the Reviews have been great, and the audiences have had outrageous amounts of fun! Thank you all for making this run such a success. We are experiencing sell-out crowds and standing ovations as well as audiences who meet the cast after the show collecting autographs and hearts along the way!

Just look at what theatre reviewers have had to say: Utah Theatre Bloggers Association and Backstage Utah! We so appreciate your kind words as well as your advice on where and how to tweak a few things for the future. We hope you will come back again and again to enjoy our performances.

To our amazing cast, we are down to 3 performances…(one tonight and two tomorrow). It comes with a certain amount of sadness to see this magnificent event end. Having each and every one of you in your exact roll(s) has been nothing less than spectacular. I am so proud to include every one of you as members of my extended family. You are amazing, every one of you, and I hope to see you all again in rolls at the Midvale Main Street Theatre.

Now, let’s go take this show out with Sizzling Style!

Love and Gratitude to each and every one of you who has worked on, starred in, and supported this production.

Tammy Ross, Director