30 Days of NYMF on BroadwayWorld Day 9: The Big Time

By: Sep. 10, 2005
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In September of 1995, Douglas Carter Beane's To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar was the #1 movie in America. Doug received many offers to write new movies, but one of the best calls came from Oliver Stone. Mr. Stone wanted Doug to create a comedic take on Steven Segal's Under Siege. Doug happily complied, but where Mr. Stone saw more explosions, Doug saw more showtunes. The movie was never made, but the idea stuck.

And what was the idea? When a United Nations peacekeeping ship is taken over by terrorists from the Dreggish Republic it comes down to the most unlikely duo to save the day -- the cruise ship entertainers. Husband and wife lounge singers from Atlantic City lead a ragtag group to defeat the bad guys and change the world for the better.

Doug decided to take this story and write a full-blown stage musical for Drama Dept. in 1997. He turned to his pal, Douglas J. Cohen, to write the music and lyrics and an informal reading was put together. The response was overwhelmingly positive and, after a flurry of re-writes, another reading was put together.

Over the next several years, the show went through re-writes and refinements and Drama Dept. was all set for a production in the fall of 2001. That production was canceled and the script was put in a drawer.

Along came the New York Musical Theatre Festival and we jumped at the chance to put on the show. The end result is one part Anything Goes, one part Under Siege, a little Ealing comedy and a whole lot of heart.

Christopher Ashley (All Shook Up) directs and the production stars David Beach (Urinetown), Ray Bokhour (Chicago), Bradley Dean (Man of LaMancha), Joanna Glushak (Sweet Smell of Success), Debbie Gravitte (Tony Award, Jerome Robbins' Broadway) Jackie Hoffman (Hairspray), Michael McCormick (Gypsy), Patrick Quinn (A Class Act) and Sal Viviano (The Full Monty).

Most performances are now sold out, but there are a few seats left for Sept. 19 at 1pm; Sept. 22 at 4:30; Sept. 26 at 1pm; Sept. 27 at 1pm and 4:30pm. Tickets are $25 each and can be purchased at www.NYMF.org or by calling Theatermania at 212.352.3101.

For more information and fun photos, please see www.DramaDept.org



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