Black Box sets holiday show and auditions
The Black Box Theatre in downtown Moline opens their holiday show “The Ho, Ho, Ho Show” on Dec. 7th, at 1623 5th Ave.
Written by Cheryl Coons with music by Eric Lane Barnes, Michael Duff, Beckie Menzie and Tom Sivik, the cabaret-styled show features a potpourri of song styles, from jazz to doo wop, according to a theater release.
“I heard about the show many, many years ago through my brother who is friends with Cheri,” said Black Box co-founder Lora Adams. “When I had The Evergreen Theatre in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, I asked if they could expand the show into a two-act musical. They did and it had a wonderful run.”
Now, many years later Adams contacted Coons about going back to the original cabaret version. “Cheryl updated some lyrics to reflect the time we live in, and we now are getting ready to put it on at The Black Box,” she said.
Songs include “Chia Pet,” “Mrs. Clauses Lament,” “Mistletoad,” and “Carol of the Bells,” which the script points out kills more singers each year due to lack of oxygen. “The show is just a tongue-in cheek look at the holidays, with a heavy dose of sentiment thrown in for good measure,” said Adams.
The cast features returning BBT performers including Kirsten Myers (“All Is Calm”), Jacqueline Isaacson (“Hello Dolly,” “Ride the Cyclone”), Taylor Lynn (“Ride the Cyclone”), Kira Rangel (“Natural Shocks”), Roger Pavey, Jr. (“Hello Dolly”) and Tyler Henning (“Hello Dolly”).
The show is directed and choreographed by Andrea Moore with music direction by Karl Bodenbender. Costumes and set design will be done by Lora Adams.
Coons serves on the National Council of the Dramatists Guild, the national trade association of playwrights, composers, lyricists and librettists. She has written lyrics and/or book for more than a dozen original musicals, including River’s End (ASCAP Foundation Harold Arlen Musical Theatre Award, Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award, Theatre for the American Musical Award), At Wit’s End (Carbonell Award), Sylvia’s Real Good Advice (Joseph Jefferson Award), Female Problems (After Dark Award), and Phantom of the Country Opera, published by Music Theater International.
The “Ho, Ho, Ho Show” runs Dec. 7 to 17 and tickets are available at the Black Box website HERE. Wisenheimer Improv takes over on Dec. 15th so “The Ho, Ho, Ho Show” returns on the 16th.
Dec. 10 auditions for ’24 shows
The Black Box will kick off its 8th season in 2024 with two musicals, and auditions will be held for them on Sunday, Dec. 10.
At 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. will be for “Thrill Me: The Leopold and Loeb Story” and from 3 to 5 p.m. for “Jane Eyre: The Musical.” Those auditioning should bring music in your key, photo, resume and rehearsal and production conflicts.
The breakdown is:
“Thrill Me: The Leopold and Loeb Story” (first directed by Lora Adams in 2016 at The Speakeasy in Rock Island, starring Adam Cerny and Tom Taylor) is a musical by Stephen Dolginoff based on the lives of Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, the infamous “thrill killers” in Chicago, who murdered a 14-year-old boy in 1924.
The music direction will be by Ron May, and the theater is seeking two 20-something men (Bari-Tenor), who must be comfortable with a same-sex kiss. Leopold and Loeb were 19 and 18, respectively, at the time of their crime.
“Thrill Me” will rehearse in January and be performed Feb. 9 to 24, 2024.
“Jane Eyre: The Musical” will have auditions Dec. 10 from 3 to 5 p.m. It’s a musical drama with music and lyrics by composer-lyricist Paul Gordon and a book by John Caird, based on the 1847 novel by Charlotte Brontë.
There will be doubling of roles except for Jane and Rochester. There are roles for females that look 12-15 years old.
Also directed by Adams, the show’s music director will be Amy Trimble.
The show will begin rehearsal Jan. 22 and be performed March 15 – 30, 2024. “Jane Eyre” is sponsored in part by The Moline Regional Community Foundation.
You may submit by a video for these auditions — however it must be received by 5 p.m. on Dec. 10 at theblackboxtheatre.com.
