Show Commentary

- It is with some regret that we bid a fond farewell to My Fair Lady. The show was a definite success, and the audiences are still talking about the show to cast members and each other. Special kudos to costumes and the orchestra. Their hard work and skill brought the cast to an even higher level of character perfection. There are many scenes that we will remember for ever. Especially since the show photos are done! We've already begun work on the next musical, so the letdown isn't as great, but My Fair Lady will be missed.

- The second weekend of My Fair Lady is upon us. There are still good seats left. I would gush again about the show, but I no longer have to. With the wonderful audiences we had the first three performances, you should be able to find someone in your town that saw the show. Just ask them. They'll tell you to be sure to see it yourself while you still have a chance. The show is a joy from beginning to end, and the cast and crew have made it come to life in a way that will leave you with a smile on your face that will last for some time. Three performances remain. Come and see what thousands of hours of work, and dedication can put together.

- We put the final touches on the show last night. Today, the final touches are going on the set and technical details. Tonight, the first audience gets the chance to enjoy what I have been seeing grow for these past six weeks.

Most of you know the story. In six months Henry Higgins takes a flower girl from the gutter and makes her into a lady mistaken for a princess. In six weeks, we've grown from a group of local amateurs into a professional show that will exceed everyone's expectations.

Once again, here we are with a show that people will be talking about for some time to come. Don't be one of those that say; "I meant to get tickets but I just didn't move fast enough!" Here's your warning. As dear Eliza Doolittle says at the Ascot. "Move your Blooming . . . "

- I sat and watched this show last night with renewed admiration for our wonderful cast and crew. It is a great production with so many things to enjoy. The Ascot scene is beautiful to behold, and Get Me to the Church on Time makes me grin from ear to ear every time I see it. The orchestra is doing a fantastic job, as are all the production crews. Somehow, through all my enjoyment of the show, I seem to be able to find those few things that I want to change to make it just a bit better. I'll leave it up to you, the audience, to tell this cast just how well they have done. My Fair Lady opens this Friday Sept 30, 2005. There are good seats left for most performances. Be one of the first to see the show so that you can have the joy that comes from telling someone else just how much they will love the performance too!

- It's detail time for My Fair Lady as we roll into our final week of rehearsals. The show needs some polish yet, but we have five more rehearsals, and these dedicated folk will pull it together. I once again am impressed by the vocal talent in this area. We've had our difficulties with this show in terms of illness and other conflicts, but the cast is pulling things together now. The final rehearsals are critical as we get all the aspects of the show put together. Lights are busy making the final adjustments, set work is winding down, although there are still LOTS of details we want to get to in terms of painting drops. The orchestra is sounding great. Sound is working to use the acoustics of this wonderful opera house to bring every word to every seat in perfect clarity. Best yet, we're all having a great time. Even the prodution crew hasn't settled into the last minute panic that normally accompanies the final week of rehearsals. We've got a great show here. Don't tell the cast that yet however. I'm working to push them to an even better show that I know they have inside. Just to give you a taste, here are some more pictures from rehearsal. This group from the production number, Get me to the Church on time.

- It's been a very busy time, but the show is coming along very well! The cast is working hard to get lines, songs, and dances learned. Thus far everyone is having a great time. That bodes well for you the audience as if we are enjoying this after weeks of rehearsal, we can pretty much guarantee that you will enjoy it come the performance.

I have been very negligent in getting photos of the rehearsals online. Once again, one of our cast members has bailed me out by bringing their own camera along. Thanks to Kim, here are some more pictures of a rehearsal. This is normally the time when I as a director am going nuts and wondering how we are going to pull it all together (even though we always do!) For some reason, perhaps the cast, perhaps the great orchestra, perhaps the stage, sound, and light crews, or a combination of all of them, I find myself oddly calm. Things are as I want them to be, and we've got time to finish heading toward a great show with the OHP production of My Fair Lady. I hope you have your tickets!

- The show continues to evolve. The characters are getting more and more solid, and cast members are out of their books more and more. That's good, because as of next Monday, they won't be allowed to have them onstage any more. That's always an interesting part of the rehearsals. People normally find out how well they knew their part even when they *think* they didn't! With thanks to Russ, I've got a few pictures to share with you of our Sept 6th rehearsal.

- My how time flies! Yes... things are happening with My Fair Lady even though I've been too busy to keep you updated. Perhaps that's good! It does let you know we're working hard on making this another fantastic show.

We're deep into rehearsals and set work now. Orchestra has begun their rehearsals, and joins the cast after Labor Day. Choreography has gone well. We have a few songs yet to finsh up, and a LOT of polishing yet to do of course.

Ticket sales for members are going well, but there are plenty of good seats available. Public ticket sales begin Thursday September 1st. Be sure to get your order in early for one of the six performances. Don't forget that we offer a 2pm Sunday October 2nd matinee performance as well as the other 5 7:30 pm performances on Sept 30, Oct 1, 6, 7, 8, 2005. We're getting ready for you, are you ready for the OHP production of My Fair Lady?

- We had a great rehearsal last night. It was summer rehearsal number three, and we finally had all our ducks in a row for some dance as well as some singing. We've been spending the time on the largest of the "production numbers" which will be "Get Me To The Church On Time".

Everyone seemed to enjoy the rehearsal, including the dancing, as witnessed by these pictures. We made great strides in getting this started. Rehearsals begin again in full force August 15th. For now, we'll let people finish up summer plans, enjoy the Missoula Children's Theater next week at the Opera House as well as the Clayton Co. Fair the next week. Watch your mail for your opportunity to support the OHP with your membership. We hope to get those out in the next couple of weeks! Stay cool. I'll be back with our progress in August!

- We have now had two rehearsals. The cast is doing a wonderful job. It is a very good experience as a director to have people pick up parts as well as what this cast does. I always threaten to record some of the first rehearsals so that I can later play them back and ask the question, "Did you ever imagine that we could come this far in this short of a period of time?". This time, I won't even bother. Three or four times through a section, and although it is far from perfect, the sound that is coming off the stage is a pleasure to listen to.

The cast doesn't realize it yet, but they are only setting themselves up for me to be even more demanding. It is getting the rest of the production crew excited as well. Work is progressing on the set, and things are looking good. We have at least one more "summer rehearsal" to touch on some other songs and dance. Then we hit the full rehearsal schedule in mid August.

- It's official. The cast list is up on the site and we are ready to go. Work has begun on set design and choreography. We spent a night and actually moved much of the drops already. New drops are ordered for certain scenes. The first rehearsal is planned for June 30th and we hope to have the material in hand by that time. We're looking forward to having the full cast together for the first time. Speaking of cast... if you notice a mis-spelling of a name in the cast listing please let me know right away! Drop a note to ohp@icsbbs.com and I'll get things corrected.

- I know that everyone is wondering on the casting of the show. It is indeed cast, and we are in the process of calling and confirming with cast members. This always takes a bit more time during the summer. If you haven't heard, you can email Kay or I, and we'll get back to you with the results. As soon as everyone is contacted, we'll be putting the list online.

At this point in time, we hope to begin with some chorus / dance rehearsals on June 30th. If we can get a beginning on some production numbers, it will make the rest of the rehearsals go very well. Stay tuned! I hope to have the entire cast list posted soon. The talent turned out, we had several new faces, and this is going to be another great show.

- I've placed information online dealing with TRYOUTS for this show. You can Click Here for that information. The show will involve a large cast of talented singers, actors, and some dancers. As is the case with all our shows, if for some reason you can't make tryouts, please contact us as soon as possible to let us know. You can email ohp@icsbbs.com, or call Kay (245-1591) or myself (873-2378) for more information.

- Let the excitement begin! Tryout dates are set for My Fair Lady. The tryouts will be Tuesday May 31st and Thursday June 2nd at 7pm in the Elkader Opera House. As usual, please enter by the parking lot side door. I will be compiling information and have more info, including an online tryout sheet that you can fill out ahead of time, during the next couple of days. Stay tuned!

- I've been spending a lot of time listening to the songs from this show. The more I listen, the more I enjoy! Many absolutely wonderful songs. This will NOT be an easy show, but then, the OHP always loves a challenge as witnessed by the success of last fall's The Wizard of Oz production.

We've received the contract for My Fair Lady and are meeting this coming weekend to set tryout dates and discuss specifics for this production. With busy May schedules, it's looking more like it will be an early June tryout. Spread the word. This show requires a cast of 38+ talented people. We'll need singers, dancers, and people with good dialect skills. We know you're out there. Come take part in an experience that you'll never forget!

- It's official, well... as official as it can be until we obtain the official rights to do the show. The fall musical for this year will be the blockbuster My Fair Lady! Plans are already underway for casting in late May or early June. That will give us the summer to work on costumes and set as well as some possible choreography rehearsals for some of the fantastic dance songs like Get me to the Church on time and With a Little Bit of Luck. Rights have been applied for. As soon as we have secured those rights we will set tryout dates.

- Discussions have drifed away from a musical review type show, back to another blockbuster musical. There just wasn't enough response or time to do a review show at this time. We will be announcing the name of the fall production as soon as everyone is onboard with the choice. We guarantee it will be one that you will be thrilled to see!

-

We are far into  discussions about an upcoming fall show.   At this point in time we hope to have a sort of OHP Homecoming Musical Review of the past 39 years of OHP musicals as we begin our 40th season!

CHG