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LIFE
HOT presents the showboat classic 'Anything Goes'
HUNTINGTON -- The BB Riverboats may be gone, but another cruise ship has docked in Huntington for the next two weekends.
The good Cole Porter musical ship "America" is docked at the Ritter Park Amphitheater as Huntington Outdoor Theatre presents the musical comedy, "Anything Goes." The show runs Friday-Sunday, July 25-27 and Aug. 1-3.
Show time is 8:30 p.m., and the pre-shows begin at 7 p.m. Children's pre-show is "Orphans of Broadway." Gates open at 6:30 p.m. for picnics. Full concessions, including picnic dinner boxes, are also available.
Admission is $16 for adults, $14 for seniors (65 and older) and children ages 5-12. Children under 5 are admitted free.
The 1930s musical (written by the team of Guy Bolton, P.G. Wodehouse, Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse) with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, traces the love path of Billy Crocker and Hope Harcourt as they end up on the same ship, the Ocean Greyhound America, bound for England.
Along the way, they run into and get tangled up with a cast of characters that includes "Moonface Martin," the onetime ship's gambler and "Public Enemy 13," who is hiding out on board disguised as a minister, as well as Reno Sweeney, a famed Evangelist-turned-Nightclub singer, with her four beautiful Angels -- backup singers.
Charleston native Kris Corbett, a junior at West Virginia University, who starred in HOT's version of "Oklahoma," plays Billy while Angela Pino plays Hope.
Corbett, who also played Friar Lawrence in HOT's just-over musical version of "Romeo and Juliet," said he jumped at the chance to tackle the role of Billy, who assumes a number of identities after sneaking his way onto the ship in "Anything Goes."
"It's not a well-known show. It was done back in the 1930s and then has been revived about every 20 or 25 years, but it's a classic," Corbett said. "It's such a great show with all of that 1930s comedy in it, and the big dance numbers and the slow songs, and all of the music of Cole Porter. It really has got it all."
Filled with Porter classics, such as "Delovely" and "I Get a Kick out of You," a song made a hit by Frank Sinatra, "Anything Goes" is packed with quirky characters, romance, mistaken identities and lots of lies and good fun.
"People who have not seen the show are going to be surprised at how funny it is," Corbett said. "It's one of my favorites, and it's in my top five of favorite musicals, but there's just not a lot of people who do it anymore. I wanted to do it before it's gone."
Corbett, the wild-haired guy who played Curly in "Oklahoma," said it's been a ball playing Billy and his many characters as people mistake him for Snake Eyes, one of the world's most wanted murderers.
"Billy takes on all these different characters, and it's not only a lot of fun to play, but a lot of people think it's fun to watch and see what happens," Corbett said. "He's a great character to experiment with. He's got four or five different accents from French to Chinese. It's the kind of wild stuff that you don't see in the modern musicals of today."
The show also was literally a perfect fit for the Ritter Park Amphitheater.
Helen Freeman, who is directing the show, said it worked out for a number of reasons -- some great roles for some of HOT's veteran cast and a double-decker stage set that her husband Steve and crew could magically make-over.
"It was a second story set and we wanted to pick a show that we could use the same structure," Freeman said. "Overnight, we transformed a castle into the ship," she said. "After working all day in the heat until about 1 a.m. Sunday night, we had a ship on stage. It rained, and we had to work through the rain. It was unbelievable."
Armed with her team of directors that includes musical director Mark Smith, scenic designer Steve Freeman and choreographer Patti Freeman, Helen said after some hard-core rehearsals, "Anything Goes" is ready to set sail.
Freeman, who also directed "Romeo and Juliet," said taking on two shows has been crazy but has been eased by the number of HOT veterans lining the stage of "Anything Goes," including Debbie Wolfe as Mrs. Harcourt, Angela Hunt (Wolfe) as Bonnie Latour, George Snider III as Moon-Face Martin and Mary Olson as Reno Sweeney.
"Mary could have gone on Broadway, but she just wanted to stay home," Freeman said. "She just graces us with her presence, and when she sings, light shines. George is so perfect as Moon, and their energy together is most wonderful. ... People who want to come out and see great acting, they will see it in 'Anything Goes.' "
Corbett, who will have three days off before he rushes back to WVU to start marching band when the run is over, said he would never pass up the chance to hit the stage with actors such as Snider and Olson.
"They're wonderful people, and it's so great to get to work with such phenomenal actors," Corbett said. "We've become great friends, and they're such wonderful people and wonderful mentors. George has actually played my role before and so I would ask him, 'What about this kind of thing?" They've really had an impact on me, and I hope this isn't the last show we do together."
Freeman said she hopes folks continue to come out and support HOT, the regional theater now in its 15th season. The performances of "Romeo and Juliet" drew an average of more than 500 a night.
Freeman is hoping for even bigger crowds for "Anything Goes."
"We would love to have 1,000 people come out," Freeman said. "I hope that people realize what we are giving to the community. It really is a wonderful thing."
Here's some more information about this year's performances from Huntington Outdoor Theatre:
WHAT: Cole Porter's comedic hit "Anything Goes."
WHEN: Friday-Sunday, July 25-27, and Aug. 1-3. Show time is 8:30 p.m., and the pre-shows begin at 7 p.m. Children's pre-show is "Orphans of Broadway." Gates open at 6:30 p.m. for picnics. Concessions are also available.
WHERE: Ritter Park Amphitheater, located in the hills of Ritter Park above the Ritter Park Rose Garden and Tennis Center.
SPECIAL PRE-SHOW: Members of Elite Performance Academy's Mini Competition Dance Troupe, Junior Dance Company and Senior Dance Company will perform in Huntington Outdoor Theatre's pre-show at 7:30 p.m. today (opening night for "Anything Goes"). They will perform several award-winning solo and group pieces originally choreographed by Marlo Shaver Wentz.
COUNTRY PRE-SHOW: Nashville recording artist and Catlettsburg native Stephen Salyers will perform a special 15 to 20-minute set of his songs tonight. Salyers is appearing in the new "Hannah Montana" movie and has been in several videos and TV shows including the reality show "Tuckerville," starring Tanya Tucker.
HOW MUCH: Admission is $16 for adults, $14 for seniors (65 and older) and children ages 5-12. Children under 5 are admitted free.
GET TIX: Tickets are available at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena Box Office, Borders Books and Music at the Huntington Mall, Empire Books and News in Pullman Square or at the amphitheater gates the night of the shows beginning at 6 p.m. For more information, call 304-523-8080 or 304-412-3393.
HOT CAMP: Huntington Outdoor Theatre will have its 11th annual Performing Arts Camp from Aug. 11-15, at the Elite performance Academy 819, 10th Ave., Huntington. This year's theme for the camp is titled Succeeding through the Arts. Participants will work with some of the finest professionals in the area. There's a morning session (9 a.m. to noon) for children ages 6-12 and an afternoon session (1 to 4 p.m.) for ages 13-adult. A showcase performance will be at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 15.
Cost for the first participant from each family is $80; a second participant will cost $70 and each additional participant will be $60. For more information, call 304-736-2662 or 304-412-3393.
ON THE WEB: Go online at www.hotwv.org.
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