Members blsmn Posted October 17, 2007 Members Share Posted October 17, 2007 try something like Always Patsy Cline or Honky Tonk Angels which are both really popular on the dinner theater circuit. as a guitar or bass player if you can make your own charts you can definately do those.iQUOTE]Wow - Honky Tonk Angels - what a surprise it is to see somebody in here mention that show. I am a drummer and have been technical director for a school district and community theatre for the past 12 years, and when I decided to take a stab at directing a show for community theatre that is the one I chose. What a fun show - great country tunes, and the 2nd act had people in stitches. Only downside was that for the first show I decided to direct, I also played in the pit and designed the lighting, and pretty much designed and built the set:freak: All that chaos aside, I guess I enjoyed it enough to do it again 2 years later - another sweet little revue called Blues In The Night. Anyway, don't mean to ramble - was just surprised by the reference to Honky Tonk Angels and thought I'd respond. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mickeydean Posted October 17, 2007 Members Share Posted October 17, 2007 Wow - Honky Tonk Angels - what a surprise it is to see somebody in here mention that show. I am a drummer and have been technical director for a school district and community theatre for the past 12 years, and when I decided to take a stab at directing a show for community theatre that is the one I chose. What a fun show - great country tunes, and the 2nd act had people in stitches. Only downside was that for the first show I decided to direct, I also played in the pit and designed the lighting, and pretty much designed and built the set:freak: All that chaos aside, I guess I enjoyed it enough to do it again 2 years later - another sweet little revue called Blues In The Night. Anyway, don't mean to ramble - was just surprised by the reference to Honky Tonk Angels and thought I'd respond. Honky Tonk Angels was written by Ted Swindley who also wrote Always Patsy Cline. He hires me whenever he is doing something in my neck of the woods and sometimes asks me to get the band too. he is writing a sequel to Honky Tonk Angels last i heard. I have some REALLY GOOD stories about working with that guy but none i could put up here LOL!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members blsmn Posted October 17, 2007 Members Share Posted October 17, 2007 Honky Tonk Angels was written by Ted Swindley who also wrote Always Patsy Cline. He hires me whenever he is doing something in my neck of the woods and sometimes asks me to get the band too. he is writing a sequel to Honky Tonk Angels last i heard.I have some REALLY GOOD stories about working with that guy but none i could put up here LOL!!! Have you ever done Bachelor Pad? Have been considering getting a perusal for it.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mickeydean Posted October 17, 2007 Members Share Posted October 17, 2007 Have you ever done Bachelor Pad? Have been considering getting a perusal for it.... nope never did. when i was at American Music Theater they did original productions. i played 300+ shows a year so i have missed some of the really cool stuff that most guys get to do. i am hoping to still do some of those shows. i have done Always Patsy Cline and Honkey Tonk Angels a whole mess of times.The steel player i work with all the time just did "Always" with Sally Struthers up in New England for a run. I couldn't go. Heck, I would have done it for lobster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bigdaddydave Posted October 18, 2007 Members Share Posted October 18, 2007 Thanks for the advice, guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bendafender Posted October 23, 2007 Author Members Share Posted October 23, 2007 I'm curious. What are the theater bass players using for amps? I'm using a Fender Bassman 150 and so far I like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassred Posted October 23, 2007 Members Share Posted October 23, 2007 I used my Peavey Basic 12 for most shows because the music director only needs to be able to hear everyone, and the sound guy is going to want control anyway (having done sound for a bunch of theatre productions I can understand why, it's definitely different from concerts!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mickeydean Posted October 23, 2007 Members Share Posted October 23, 2007 i see a bunch of those little hartke amps one guy i work with a bunch uses a Strawberry Blonde because he uses it for upright too. that one really sounds good to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bendafender Posted December 3, 2007 Author Members Share Posted December 3, 2007 We're doing Beauty and the Beast. We opened Nov 16 and run thru Dec 8. One of the props in the musical is a book with a nice red and gold cover. The only requirement for the book was that it had no pictures, because Gaston says to Belle "How can you read this? There are no pictures in it." Between acts, someone finally decided to look in the book. Anyone care to guess what the book was? Yup. Full-blown narrative porn!! (no pun intended). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members summit111 Posted December 5, 2007 Members Share Posted December 5, 2007 My Brothers, I play percussion for a local casting and production company for musical theatre. The producers are staging a Christmas show in (2) weeks using Motown and other R&B songs. They have been rehearsing with the (7) singers for several months. They forgot or overlooked to hire a band, and the call went out last week. Most of the musicians are either booked or on vacation. The regular bass player and I know the songs, but the keyboard, guitar, and horn section was just a trainwreck waiting to happen. Though I hated to do it, I suggested the dreaded "backing tracks," and that's what they did. So, the bass player and I will be playing all your favorite Christmas songs along with a computer and (7) fantastic vocalists. Anyone else using backing tracks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mickeydean Posted December 5, 2007 Members Share Posted December 5, 2007 My Brothers,I play percussion for a local casting and production company for musical theatre. The producers are staging a Christmas show in (2) weeks using Motown and other R&B songs. They have been rehearsing with the (7) singers for several months.They forgot or overlooked to hire a band, and the call went out last week. Most of the musicians are either booked or on vacation. The regular bass player and I know the songs, but the keyboard, guitar, and horn section was just a trainwreck waiting to happen.Though I hated to do it, I suggested the dreaded "backing tracks," and that's what they did. So, the bass player and I will be playing all your favorite Christmas songs along with a computer and (7) fantastic vocalists.Anyone else using backing tracks? almost every big show i did. you have my sympathies. i absolutely hate it.talk about train wrecks.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bendafender Posted December 11, 2007 Author Members Share Posted December 11, 2007 Anyone else using backing tracks? No, but last year I and my usual pit mates recorded tracks for a show we couldn't perform due to timing and budget constraints. Hated to do it, but we had no choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PJMPirate Posted December 11, 2007 Members Share Posted December 11, 2007 I'm an actor and I do both straight and musical theater... as such, I love pit musicians!My Brothers,I play percussion for a local casting and production company for musical theatre. The producers are staging a Christmas show in (2) weeks using Motown and other R&B songs. They have been rehearsing with the (7) singers for several months.They forgot or overlooked to hire a band, and the call went out last week. Most of the musicians are either booked or on vacation. The regular bass player and I know the songs, but the keyboard, guitar, and horn section was just a trainwreck waiting to happen.Though I hated to do it, I suggested the dreaded "backing tracks," and that's what they did. So, the bass player and I will be playing all your favorite Christmas songs along with a computer and (7) fantastic vocalists.Anyone else using backing tracks?Oof... I was in a production of South Pacific that used backing tracks... after the scene break in "Nothin' Like a Dame", when we're supposed to go into our big dance sequence, the track starts in the wrong place, and we had to improv for a solid minute before it got to the proper place. Talk about a deer-in-the-headlights moment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bendafender Posted December 12, 2007 Author Members Share Posted December 12, 2007 I'm an actor and I do both straight and musical theater... as such, I love pit musicians!Oof... I was in a production of South Pacific that used backing tracks... after the scene break in "Nothin' Like a Dame", when we're supposed to go into our big dance sequence, the track starts in the wrong place, and we had to improv for a solid minute before it got to the proper place. Talk about a deer-in-the-headlights moment... Yup. Many good reasons to use live music for musical theater, this being the most obvious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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