Show r f HH STANDARD-EXAMINE- R FRIDAY JUNE 22 1S50 0 FEATURES EDITOR: f f' Tii Hp“l 625-427- TELEVISION MOVIES COMICS r - ? - GiDuc©' DuDG Ogden native loves musical theater By Pro view OGDEN — Troy Fisher leads V' £ jn MARILYN ASILDSKOV staff Standard-Examn- exercises for the actors in Utah Musical Theatre the way an aerobics instructor conducts class: with energy animation and constant attention to the health of each person As his fingers zoom up and down the piano pounding out a series of scales Fisher’s face contorts to reveal how well — or how poorly — the group is doing A water bottle adorned with the popular ad slogan “Just Do It” sits on top of the piano suggesting Fisher’s approach to musical theater And near the water bottle sits a bottle of nose spray which after the rehearsal ends Fisher will recommend to his singers many of whom are new to the West and still unaccustomed to the dry desert air 30 and a nav Fisher tive of Ogden is in his fifth season as musical What “South Pacific' Who: Utah Musical Theatre When: 7:30 pm June 28-July 3-- 7 Matinee 2 pm July 7 9 Where: Browning Center for Performing Arts Weber State College Ogden warm-u- p no-fril- 30 S Tickets: $9aduits $8students and seniors $29season package Information 628-850- 0 Fisher says “One time in Iowa I directed a ls ! 5 won- - derfui production of ‘Man of La Mancha But the review in the newspaper said ‘Troy - 3M Fisher and his ensemble provided pleasant background music Back ground music I wanted to kill that reviewer" -- director of Utah Musical Theater He has overseen productions of “I Do! 1 Do! “Baby” ' -- Goes" “Anything s or managing director Such is the life of a musical director “Gypsy" “The Music Man! and “Grease” to Obviously music is as integral to musical theater as yeast is to a loaf of bread It is the element that differentiates a musical from a straight play the part that gives rise to the 4 larger story Music U also the name a few Fisher lovek best Troy Fisher “It’s America’s art Only 10 years old UMT is a theater form” Fisher says of musical theater “I company that attracts talent itare across love it because'it is an outlet for my talthd country foj Us suitimer lineup of ents" Five years ago Fisher had no idea he showj at Weber State College s musical director Fisher is the un- could rnake his living as a musical direcdirector tor He was planning to become a music iero — the second-strin- g the ope whose name comes second on teacher having attended a small teach- -! i'VV Sm MUSIC on 40 '' program lists following that of artistic V ele-"xne- nt al v I - v i i Sheri ' i j: ' JacobsStanUara-Examine- r Ogden native Troy Fisher is in his fifth season as musical director of Utah Musical Theater Utah Musical Theater offers global season n j: Utah Musical Theatre offers the possibility of transport to faraway places this summer — Polynesia Ancient Rome Dickens’ London and Argentina All shows start at 7:30 pm on the Weber State College campus in Ogden Matinees are slated for 2 pm the second Saturday of each show in addition to the evening performance Here’s a rundown of the season: 0 “South Pacific” plays June July 7 The South Pacific of World War II is the dramatic background for this Rodgers and Hammerstein classic Two love stories develop: one between Nellie a naive Navy nurse and Emile de Becque a worldly French planter the other between Joe Cable a Navy lieutenant and a beautiful Polynesian girl 28-3- 3-- For-bu- t Fisher works on ‘South Pacific’ with members of Utah Musical Theater sh The stories join when de Becque and Cable go on a dangerous mission behind enemy lines “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” plays July 12-1- 4 17-2- 1 ’ The opening number “Comedy Tonight" sums up this hilarious musical based on the comedies of Reman playwright Titus Maccius Plautus Its characters include the conniving Slave the callow hero the doddering old man the seductive courtesan the lustful husband and his shrewish wife Confusion mounts as this story unside-splitti- folds “The Mystery of Edwin brood” 31 Aug 8 Charles Dickens’ final and unfinished work is the basis for this Tony Award plays July 26-2- 1- -4 t ufr ff§© I 0 sgD arnmnsoaDso I Founder of theater 'finds' success By MARILYN Standard-Examine- r ABILDSKOV w 1 NEar V family-oriente- staff LAYTON — Karma Astle was a little naive when she started up the Wasatch Playhouse one year ago But that innocence paid off “It’s a good thing I was as dumb as I was or I never would have had the guts to do it” says Astle founder and director of the playhouse “Finding funding getting a cast — it was quite an undertaking But I really believe in this” Wasatch Playhouse is the latest addition to Northern Utah’s growing roster of community theaters Like Perry’s Heritage Community Theatre to the north' and Bountifufs community ensemble to the south Wasatch Playhouse plans to tackle two already established art forms: comedies and musicals And it makes no apologies for doing - so “Any group needs to understand its au- dience” Astle says “So we’re going after m d audience” the Last year Wasatch Playhouse produced “See How They Run” as well as “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” which played to sell-ocrowds The theater established for itself a board of trustees and a board of directors Perhaps most important it won financial backing from Layton City as well as the Utah Arts Council “I didn't have a clue” says Astle a former dancer when asked how one goes about organizing a theatrical company “I’m a choreographer but to administrate or found a theater? Well I didn’t know a thing” Today the Layton woman feels confi- dent enough to say Wasatch Playhouse is here to stay The company’s big summusical mer production the “George M!” will star JD Stokes of Roy as George Cohan the composer who produced such favorite songs as “Yankee Doodle Dandy” “Give My Re- - mm ff ut ! y HirHln4l toe-tappi- 101 11111 i"' f ilir‘"' Sheri JacobsStandard-Examine- r Karma Astle former dancer stands with cast of ‘George Ml’ gards to Broadway” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag” The big goal is to scout out a permanent home For now the company performs on local high school stages and rents rehearsal space from local businesses the theater needs a room of its own a place to produce its four shows a year “When you have no home of your own you’re at the mercy of everyone else” Astle says Quality then goes up and down like a roller coaster “You lose your audience and you lose your mo y mentum” Astle believes community theater is important because of the cultural identity it can provide a town Specifically she thinks Wasatch Playhouse is important for purely practical reasons “It’s centrally located between Ogden and Bountiful” she says “There’s a need here” That need cuts both ways: The community needs a theater and theater people need a company “If you’re not a professional but you’ve got some talent there’s nothing for you here” says Astle r4”" r“ mil ill-fat- ed “Evita” plays Aug 9-- rt f" -- 4 n 14-1- 8 This is the fabulous myth of Eva bit actress mistress and wife to Argentine dictator Juan Peron “Evita” Pe-r- on with spectacular music by Andrew Lloyd Weber chronicles Eva’s rise to power from her humble beginnings in the country seeking fame and fortune in Buenos Aires meeting her mentor and husband and then facing a tragic early death Preview What: ‘George M!‘ Who: Wasatch Playhouse When: 7:30 pm July 7 9 sn I winning play The story revolves around two lovers Edwin and the fair Miss Rosa Bud and their courtship Rosa is adored by other men as well one of whom is Edwin’s Uncle Jasper The ensuing jealousies provide the motive for Edwin’s untimely disappearance but who did the deed? It’s up to the audience to decide 12-1- 4 Where: Layton High School auditorium 440 Wasatch Dr (north of Gentile Street) Layton Tickets: $350adults $3students and senior citizens $15family pass Information 771-393- 4 who fits into that category herself After devoting herself to dance performing professionally for a year with the regionally recognized Ballet West Astle made a decision: Dance was not the end-a- ll for her “I made a decision that this was not what I wanted to do I wanted a home I didn’t want to live on the road I wanted a family” Wary of the sacrifices she would have to make Astle said she finally realized that “when you’re a professional dancer that’s all you do” So she decided to stop And for her she says “it was easier to stop altogether” Astle ended her short career dancing the role of the temptress in “Faust" “It was a great role to go out on” she says recalling the feisty character She then met her husband a doctor of family medicine at Brigham Young University The two wed and took off for the Midwest where Astle got involved with community theater as a choreographer “I couldn’t even see a ballet for a long time” she says “it upset me so much See PLAY on 4D |