LITTLE NUGGETS FROM JEWEL BOX THEATRE Our 58th Season! CHICAGO DIAL M FOR MURDER THE FOURPOSTER AS LONG AS WE BOTH SHALL LIVE ON GOLDEN POND LIGHT UP THE SKY Jewel Box Theatre An Oklahoma Tradition jewelboxtheatre.org Chuck Tweed - Production Director James Gordon - Box Office Manager 1-6 pm Tuesday/Friday 3700 North Walker (405) 521-1786 Oklahoma City, OK 73118-7031
P A G E 2 Musical Director Tim Goff Choreographer Shawna Linck Jewel Box Performances run Thursdays through Saturdays 8:00pm and Sundays at 2:30pm For Reservations Call 405-521-1786 Tuesday Friday 1-6 pm
P A G E 3 TICKET INFORMATION The box office opens for reservations for Chicago on August 13, 2015. For season ticket patrons, the box office opens two days early August 11, 2015 to make/change reservations! During the production, Box Office hours are 1-7 Tues-Sat And Noon-1:30 on Sunday. Call 405-521-1786 Individual Ticket Prices For Chicago Adults $25 Students $20 Seniors (Age 65 and over) $20
P A G E 4 Jewel box theatre Named Oklahoma Community Theatre Association s 2015 theatre of the year! Jewel Box Theatre s own Jana Hester Named One of Oklahoma Community Theatre Association s Charles Hair Volunteers of the Year
P A G E 5 AUDITIONS Saturday, Sept 19 and Sunday, Sept 20 2pm ~ 5pm The Fourposter Director: Terry Runnels November 12-December 6, 2015 As Long As We Both Shall Live Director: Don Taylor January 21-February 14, 2016 Actors will read furnished sides Resumes and photographs are required Jewel Box Theatre Casting Policy It is the policy of Jewel Box Theatre to cast regardless of race, color or disability. Determined by the quality of the auditions, the director will cast the best choice for each role after everyone has had an opportunity to audition. If invited to audition by the director, this does not guarantee that you will be cast. Jewel Box Theatre does NOT pre-cast roles unless announced on the audition notice. In addition, on occasion, a cast might be expanded to accommodate a large turnout of performers. If, after auditions, the director believes that a particular role cannot be cast satisfactorily, other actors may be contacted for a second audition.
P A G E 6 A Conversation With Director ~ Chuck Tweed Why do you like this show? Several reasons: The entire score is so fun; The idea of doing it as vaudeville is genius; To watch such fun characters come alive is beyond thrilling. It s been 30 years since you first directed this show. What s different? The question should be: What isn t different? So much has changed in our entire world, which I won t go into. A fun note is I did Chicago in the 80 s when I was a teacher at Carl Albert High School, changing only a few words. The President of OCU heard I was doing it, and called me saying Lyric was considering it, and what was the reaction at the school? I told him it was a big hit! Next thing I heard, Lyric was not doing the show. Back then, Bob Fosse s choreography was not so well known. Most every theatre now uses his brilliant work. Our 1985 version was much more tame than the one you ll see in 2015. We ve added more Razzle Dazzle!
P A G E 7 A Conversation With Director ~ Chuck Tweed What do you like about the 20 s? What a time the Roaring 20 s must have been to see. They ushered in such inventions as the washing machine, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, radios, automobiles, pop-up toasters, the talkies, phonographs and records. Wow! The 20 s were also called the Jazz Age, associated with modernism, sophistication and decadence. And, oh, the fashion! Well-tailored pinstriped suits and handkerchiefs, trilby hats, suspenders, bow ties, black patent leather shoes and spats for the men; fringed beaded Flapper dresses with pleats and garters, short hair called a bob, garters to hold up silk, woolen or rayon stockings were the rage for women. What was your most embarrassing moment on stage? Director Richard Lemin said I would change on stage in a show at the old Stage Center, which I refused. He kept insisting. I said I d do it BUT not wear the double pair of boxers most theatres do, but wear my briefs as the long tuxedo shirt would cover me. Opening night I got the shirt that barely covered my bottom. When the time came to change, I did not bend over to change the pants on stage, I simply dropped them to the floor and picked them up with my foot. I heard a couple of people gasp in the audience (it was the 80 s). Afterwards at the opening party, as I walked down the line getting food with a young couple across from me moving down also, I noticed them smiling at me. She asked if they could ask a question.
P A G E 8 A Conversation With Director ~ Chuck Tweed Ready for battle, I grimaced: Yes? She smiled with We were wondering if you were a swimmer. You have a swimmer s body. Very nice. I smiled and beamed Of course I m a swimmer!! Yeah, you already know it was a big fat lie. BIG! What are your favorite shows you ve Directed at Jewel Box? Hard one! There is something about every show I have directed that is special. But, I would have to pick Nunsense. It is our most-produced show with over 100 performances and six more for a benefit. The audience can t get enough of that show. Add to that the brilliant casts (with the amazing, hysterical Pat Tweed as Mother Regina leading the pack), and I had the perfect show. Second would be A Few Good Men, which was ready to open a week before we opened. I gave very few notes that last week of rehearsal. As Production Director for 37 years, what stands out most? How, with the board, directors, actors, crews, volunteers and audiences, we continue to grow and learn. When I started in the 70 s, there were 278 season patrons; we now have 2,200. Lucky us! We started a national playwriting competition with over 15 world premiers, and a Gem Awards Banquet that is the
P A G E 9 A Conversation With Director ~ Chuck Tweed highlight of the season as we honor acting/directing excellence as voted by season patrons who have seen all six shows. Who are some of the Broadway stars you would have loved to see/work with? I could not even imagine watching Bob Fosse work! I know he was hard on his dancers, but the results were pure genius. Although he died September 23, 1997 while working on a new production of Sweet Charity with his ex-wife and work partner Gwen Verdon, many shows that are performed world-wide are done re-creating his brilliant ideas. The first time we did Chicago here, his name was not that well known. Oh, how times do change! Don t miss Chuck s production of CHICAGO August 20 September 13 At Jewel Box Theatre!
P A G E 1 0 2015-2016 Jewel Box Theatre Board of Advisors It takes a village, literally, to keep the cogs rolling at Jewel Box Theatre. In addition to our wonderful group of volunteers, the Board of Advisors oversee everything from Play Selection, Gem Awards, Opening Night Parties, Auditions and many other aspects to keep Jewel Box Theatre shining as the gem it is. If you have any questions about our theatre, suggestions you d like to pass on, or just a comment, please feel free to stop one of the Advisors and speak to them. They will be wearing a name tag, so they re easy to spot! Dana Billingsley Amandanell Bold Joan Corbin Patty Empie Carolee Galbraith Jan Garrett James Gordon David Hester Jana Hester Pauline Johnson Shawna Linck Carol McDonald Roger Oxford Craig Rauch Jane Hall Rodkin Bruce Smallwood Geneva Smallwood Don Taylor A Mari Thomas Dalton Thomas Chuck Tweed
P A G E 1 1 Original Lobby Art When visiting Jewel Box Theatre, be sure to check out our original lobby art in liquid chalk by Jime Wimmer Artistic Talent at Jewel Box Theatre isn t just on the stage!
P A G E 1 2 Theatrically Tweed I am so ready to open the 58th season with Chicago! It will be thirty years to the month when we did it before. BUT, this time it has more Razzle Dazzle. The cast is perfect, along with the electrifying choreography of Shawna Linck and Tim Goff's amazing musical direction. This show has been hard work, but so rewarding, knowing what the audiences are going to see explode on stage. We have many new people in the cast, and they have been a delight to meet and watch during rehearsals, with them giving so much. They will make it all look so easy ~ we know it isn't. Christopher Sieker's costumes are a show unto themselves, watching him choose the right costume for each actor. Always an amazing job! The rest of the season promises to be shows that will you will remember for a long time. We run the gamut from comedy to drama, including On Golden Pond, which our patrons chose. Boot Camp! I am so happy it has turned into such a huge success. The first year we had 4; the second year there were 12; and this year we have 51. Yes, 51 people signed up to watch an audition, as many rehearsals as they wanted, and a performance for all six shows this season. They asked very good questions, watched, and saw the many hours it takes to put on a show. Thank you, Boot Campers! Oh, and they get a T-shirt that says they survived Boot Camp. This is going to be a banner year for your theatre. We were voted Oklahoma Community Theatre Association's Theatre of the Year, and Board Member Jana Hester won the Charles Hair volunteer of the year. Hooray for us! We are now ready to start the season with merry murderesses Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly as they take on Chicago. See you at Jewel Box!
P A G E 1 3 ~GET FREE TICKETS WHEN YOU VOLUNTEER~ Volunteer and become part of the Jewel Box Theatre family! Choose a position for which you would like to volunteer, call us, and we ll train you! So easy, so fun, and totally free! BOX OFFICE: Greet season patrons and sell box office tickets. At intermission, sell soft drinks and our special Jewel Box blue cups. With sixteen performances per show, you can choose a week night show (7:00-9:30 pm, Thursday - Saturday.) or a Sunday matinee (1:30-3 pm). Get a free T-Shirt, too! PAINT CREW: Choose a show or two or three, and help create the set by painting the walls, floors, doors, and more. When you see the show, you know you helped make it come to life! PROPERTIES: Help the director by finding items needed on the set, or something an actor holds in his/her hand (A tray, glasses, writing pad and pencil, a hanky, etc.). We call them props. Working properties involves organizing/maintaining props during the run of the show. COSTUMES: Work with our resident costumer, Christopher Sieker, preparing costumes for actors to try on, then maintain, iron, sew, and catalogue for the show. HAIR AND MAKE-UP: Such fun to work with stylist Jacque Mooney with wigs and make-up. We have many period pieces this season, so there will be a lot of fun to create hair styles and make-up. So many fun ways to help Oklahoma City s oldest community theatre! Give us a call, and start your theatre journey with us!
P A G E 1 4 Theatre Lores and Legends Break a leg! If you spend any time at all around the theatre, you ll hear this expression. But, where does it come from, and why are theatre folk so keen to use it? When you tell an actor to break a leg, you re really wishing them Good Luck! (EEK! Don t EVER say THAT to an actor!!) While the origin of the phrase break a leg remains an unknown, saying Good Luck is commonly known as bad luck! The earliest known example in print is from Edna Ferber's 1939 A Peculiar Treasure, "...and all the understudies sitting in the back row politely wishing the various principals would break a leg". While there are many theories as to how the expression came to be, such as bowing (to break a leg), stomping feet instead of clapping in the Greek theatre, mis-translations of foreign phrases, and the fact that side stage curtains are called legs, so an actor broke a leg to be viewed by the audience, there is no definitive answer as to the origin. Since it will probably never be known exactly how the phrase came to be, just remember when you hear it, it s not one performer wishing ill-will on another. It s the complete opposite! Next issue: The mysterious Ghost Light
P A G E 1 5 KidsAlive was a great success this summer! More kids participated than were anticipated. They worked hard, learned a lot and gave stunning performances. The KidsAlive legacy will continue throughout the year when they will hold short performances throughout Oklahoma for special needs children. Then a small, select group will head to Atlanta, GA for the Junior Theatre Festival. We re very proud of this group of youngsters! For more information on KidsAlive, and to see how YOUR child can be a part of it next year, visit the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kidsaliveokc
P A G E 1 6 FUTURE AUDITIONS January 9TH & 10TH 2~5 pm ON GOLDEN POND Director: Todd Murray LIGHT UP THE SKY Director: Richard Lemin visit: jewelboxtheatre.org
P A G E 1 7 BENEFIT FOR JEWEL BOX SUPPORTERS You asked for it we ve got it! If you make a $5.00 donation at intermission, we ll give you a Jewel Box insulated tumbler filled with your favorite drink and YOU CAN TAKE IT INTO THE THEATRE WITH YOU. Bring the mug back for future performances and you can have your drink for the regular $1.00 and take it into the theatre This is only for patrons making a donation for the Jewel Box tumbler! Styrofoam cups are NOT allowed in the theatre Check out our website jewelboxtheatre.org
P A G E 18 Visit and Like us on facebook www.facebook.com/ OKC.JBT Or follow us on Twitter! Season Ticket Holders! We got your back! Sign up now for an e-mail reminder when our next show is coming up. Just call the box office (405-521-1786) ~ Tuesday through Friday from 1 to 6 pm and give us your e-mail address. If you have a regular night for your reservations (PLAN A), we ll set you up to receive an e-mail at the beginning of the week of your regular performance night. Season ticket holders who call in to make their reservations for each show (PLAN B) will receive an e-mail reminding you when the box office will open for the next production. It s a busy world out there. Let us take a little of the load off by keeping you posted. We ll do the remembering for you! Be a Jewel Box Volunteer and receive two complimentary tickets to a show Call 405-521-1786 for more information Become part of the Jewel Box Family!