If your child is in this production, and they tell you they CAN'T do something... point to the fact that they learned to tap dance in 6 weeks and tell them you just don't buy it. :) . There are no excuses any more! These kids have worked HARD. They have also whined HARD. I have decided that most of this generation does not want to put in work needed to accomplish great things. It's been getting harder and harder since I started this crazy job 18 years ago. So, I hope students will keep taking theatre. There is no escaping hard work in this business, it is a life lesson well learned.
This show happens to be the very first live musical I ever saw on stage, when I was 5 years old. It was the University of Indiana I believe... and I was hooked. There was no turning back. I sang the song, FRIENDSHIP with every group who would put up with me. It was choreographed and re-choreographed by me in my backyard and basement. NO wonder I struggled keeping friends! I LOVE THIS SHOW. Also, my amazing grandparents loved this show. My grandfather Arch Jr. Stokes sang these songs in high school, as my grandma Dauna Stokes Seager would often tell me. This show and I are close. Last year I had the misfurtune of losing my grandma, and I would like to dedicate this show to her memory. She fostered in me a deep love for literature, music, and theatre. She often took me on cultural excursions... many times against my will. Hooray for pushy Grandmothers!
If you are acquainted with The Drowsy Chaperone, you will note that there are many direct similarities to Anything Goes, and it was written to make fun of this show (among a few others). Adolpho and Evelyn for instance... are almost the same character. If you know both shows you should have fun finding all the characters represented in both. There are some decidedly culturally insensetive moments in this show, which reflect the fact that it was written in 1936. We perform the show as written, and have had many deep and meaningful discussions about time period and basic insensetivity. Teenagers are very culturally aware these days, and I am proud of their stance on serious topics. Remember that this is a historical piece of musical history, not to be taken too seriously, and the crazy thing is that it is still funny 82 years later! We have had a great time learning about physical vaudvillian comedy, and I sincerely hope you notice all the fun details the kids have worked on and put into their characters.
Thank you for your support! Thank you for your wonderful children! Thank you to Jemay Marden for teaching the kids to sing like songbirds! I could NOT do this without her, and thanks so much to her mom Liz Whatcott, who made these costumes so amazing! I know I drive her nuts with my scatterbrained ways, but she is marvelously patient. Thanks to our super supportive administration, who understand the importance of Arts in Education. Thank you to Dustin Smith for being my friend, and for coming with his lights and lighting designs to always make the show look and sound better than I thought possible. THank you to my hard-working students who built THE ENTIRE SET. Yes, some of them have a serious work ethic. And to my lazy students, see what hard work can do? :) thank you to my family. They are the BEST thing about my life (Alex, Autumn, Jakey and Vince). Thank you to the Parent committees for putting up with me, and my crazy busy life. They are just the best group any teacher could ask for. Thank you to my choreographers for coming in and doing amazing things with these songs! WOW! Thank you to my parents for making me sit through symphonies, quizzing me on composers, forcing me to finish what I start, and for being a little nuts. :)
As far as the message of this show... NO. Anything does NOT go. As I told my kids, Anchor yourself to the good things in life, and then you will stay afloat.
BON VOYAGE!
Jana Coates- Director
*Director's notes are boring. I don't make the rules though, so here they are.
