playbill vip

Director's Note:

It isn’t easy deciding on a show, as there are so many things to take into consideration. I wanted to do a show that could play well in our space that wasn’t too set-intensive; one with a large cast, including multiple featured roles (but not too many males); one that could showcase the talents of the cast; and one that would be fun. Anything Goes has long been one of America’s most celebrated musicals, thanks largely to the many standards like the title song, “It’s De-Lovely,” “You’re the Top,” and “I Get a Kick Out of You.” When I saw clips of Sutton Foster performing “Blow, Gabriel, Blow,” in the 2011 revival, I fell in love. I felt like this was a show that could challenge us but also play to our strengths. Eric proved he could more than handle the character of Billy with his performance in the thrilling Wait Until Dark last spring, and I knew we have several talented young ladies who could contend for the major female roles. The cast proved they could handle more choreography with the work on Grease.  

One of the biggest challenges with this show, however, is some content that uses bygone racial stereotypes for laughs. Because it is integral to the plot, we couldn’t cut it, but we decided to make a conscious effort to show that although the passengers fall for it, Billy (and Moon) never fool Hope, and certainly never fool the audience with their costumes or their antics. We hope you find it more of a celebration of the ridiculous lengths to which some people will go in order to be with their love. On behalf of Phil, Quintin, Brian, and Jim, as well as the rest of the department, I hope you enjoy the show, and thank you for supporting Taft Performing Arts.

--Mr. Bryan Wilson

Running time for Anything Goes is approximately 2 hours, with a 15 minute intermission.

No flash photography is permitted, and please silence all electronic devices.

Production rights obtained from Tams Witmark, 560 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022, http://www.tams-witmark.com/