Happy Opening Week!

We at"Laundry and Bourbon/Lone Star" are SO excited to be opening this week! Dress rehearsal tonight, and then a show at 8 p.m. tomorrow and Saturday, finishing up with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday. Get your tickets here.

Here is a link to an interview John Hamilton at thepinetree.net filmed for us this week. It's been amazing seeing how the cast has gelled over the past few weeks of rehearsal, and it's going to be an AWESOME show!

Cheers,
Krissi Krob
Stage Manager

Poster!

Come see the show!



Poster by Tasha Unninayar, Illustrator Goddess.

Behind the Scenes with the Cast

A sweet interview on ThePineTree.net with the cast of "Laundry and Bourbon/Lone Star":

Meet Your Cast and Crew!!

From left: Cyndie Menard, Thom Heath, Lara Ford, Robert Zellers and Susannah Allatt.

We are so excited to present "Laundry and Bourbon/Lone Star," opening April 24 at the Black Bart Playhouse, 580 S. Algiers St., Murphys. For more information visit www.murphyscreektheatre.org.

Here is some vital information about the cast and crew:
Lara Ford (Elizabeth Caulder) – Lara is happy to be working at the Black Bart Playhouse for the first time! She appeared most recently at MCT as Gwendolyn in “The Importance of Being Earnest.” Other MCT shows include Rosalind in “As You Like It,” Rosie Pye in “Humble Boy” and Lady Olivia in “Twelfth Night.” She has also worked locally with Stage 3, SRT, MAC and CAR. Her favorite roles from Humboldt State University include Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet” and Frankie in “Voice of the Prairie.” She also co-wrote and appeared as Etty Hillisum in “An Interrupted Life, The Diaries of Etty Hillisum” while obtaining her geography degree at HSU. You may see her looking at your power lines some time soon as she works locally as a forester for ACRT. She would like to extend her deepest thanks to her family and tribe for their continued support, to Graham for all the fabulous roles that he has let her have fun with, to Susannah for all of her brilliant ideas over the years and to Matt for everything he does.

Cyndie Menard (Amy Lee Fullernoy) – Cyndie was born and raised here in the Calaveras Foothills, where she still resides today. Her theatrical career began in 1995 with the Metropolitan Players, when she appeared onstage for the first time since high school in “Guys & Dolls.” After being bitten by the theater bug, she would continue to be seen on foothill stages in such productions as “Bus Stop” and with Murphys Creek Theatre in “Crimes of the Heart,” “Tom Jones” and “A Servant of Two Masters.” During a brief move to the valley in the late ’90s, she accepted the role of lead vocalist of a rock ’n’ roll cover band for three years. In 1999 she formed Bombshell Entertainment, performing all over the foothills and the valley as Marilyn Monroe. In 2001, Cyndie discovered Kiley’s Dinner Theatre, where she has been seen in four Elly nominated plays: “Funny Money,” “Yorick & Company,” one of the singing Andrews sisters in “A Tribute to Abbott and Costello” and “Nearly Departed.” Other Kiley’s performances Cyndie has appeared in are “California Suite” and as the director of “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” and “Flights of Fancy.” Some Foothill theatrical endeavors include Stage 3 productions “All Grown Up” and “Flights of Fancy.” Cyndie appeared in the original comedy “Southern Exposure” by Tom Amo at Smiler’s Comedy Playhouse in Stockton, a role for which she received a People’s Choice award for best supporting actress. In winter 2003, she directed the children’s Christmas musical “A Star Is Born” for the Shining Stars Drama Team in San Andreas. In February 2004, Cyndie appeared in the Shoe String Co-op production of “Little Shop of Horrors,” which she not only directed but appeared in as well, taking on the role of Audrey while rehearsing for Stockton Civic Theatre’s “Sugar,” in which she played the title role. Later in 2004 she appeared in “Laundry and Bourbon” as Hattie and “Nearly Departed” as Janice at Kiley’s Dinner Theatre. Cyndie started 2005 out at Kiley’s with “Flights of Fancy,” which she proudly directed. Later that year she appeared at the Empire Theatre in Tom Amo and Rob Chase’s “A Night Without Pants.” In 2006, Cyndie had the honor of performing in the San Francisco Fringe Festival in a revival of Rob Chase’s “Yorick and Co.” The rest of 2006 was devoted to working with youth, beginning with the Calaveras High School production of “Beauty and the Creep” followed closely by the Christian Family Learning Center’s Christmas production, “Miracle on Main St.” In 2007, Cyndie appeared in the Rising Phoenix Theatre production of “Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar and Grill,” for which she received a nomination from the Sacramento Area Theatrical Alliance for best supporting actress in a dramatic role. Last year she was honored to join forces with Calaveras Children’s Repertory Theatre to direct “101 Dalmatians” at the Brett Harte Theater. CCRT will be right here at the Black Bart Playhouse in a production of “Guys & Dolls, Jr.” directed by Cyndie in June. It brings Cyndie great joy to be back on the Black Bart Playhouse stage, where she first worked with Graham Green in “Crimes of the Heart” back in 1995! She wishes to thank her three beautiful children – Pandora, Quinton and Chandler – as well as her loving husband, Louis, for all their love, support and encouragement.

Susannah Allatt (Hattie Dealing) – Susannah was most recently Sandra in “A Thousand Clowns” at Stage 3 Theatre. Also at Stage 3, she was Annelle in “Steel Magnolias” and before that she performed in “Greetings, Anton in Show Business” and “Flights of Fancy.” Prior to that, she performed in “The Last Night of Ballyhoo,” “The Crucible” and “My Fair Lady” at MAC. It has been many years since she did a play for MCT and she is thrilled to be involved with the Black Bart Playhouse.

Thom Heath (Cletis T. Fullernoy) – Thom is no stranger to the Black Bart stage. He has been a Player off and on since 1990, when he appeared in his first speaking part in “On the Bridge at Midnight.” Since than, he has “trod the BBP boards” many times, even going so far as to serve on its board of directors. He is excited to make his debut with Murphys Creek Theatre.

Sean Lewis (Roy Caulder) – Sean last appeared in the 2008 Black Bart Players production of “The White Sheep of the Family.” Before that he was seen in the 2006 BBP production of “Love, Sex and the IRS.” Raised in the Bay Area, Lewis now lives in San Andreas.

Robert Zellers (Ray Caulder) – Robert’s first foray into theatre was in Murphys Creek’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor.” Since then he has appeared as George Gibbs in Stage 3 Theatre’s production of “Our Town.” Zellers is a biochemistry major at the University of California, Merced, so he is balancing a full load of science classes with a part-time job in the laboratory while staying involved in theater on the weekends.


Graham Scott Green (Director) – Graham started Murphys Creek Theatre in 1994. Back then he and a few friends had an idea to bring a high-quality theater arts program to Murphys. Now, MCT attracts artists and audiences from all over the country and has developed an outstanding acting conservatory program for the children of our community. Green splits his time between the foothills and Sacramento, where he works for the B Street Theatre, Capital Stage, and Sacramento Theatre Company. Green also writes and produces interactive murder mysteries for his company, Mysteries Made.


Krissi Krob (Stage Manager) – Krissi is excited to be behind the scenes of this wonderful production. She is usually seen onstage, having been is such foothill productions as “The White Sheep of the Family,” “Stop the Presses!” and most recently as Wolf Moon Dance in MCT’s “Escanaba in da Moonlight.” Krissi would like to thank Graham for his infectious passion for theater, the cast for teaching her so much about the creative process, Kyle for putting up with her and Eric for just being Eric.


Kyle Eastman (Assistant Stage Manager) – Kyle is a 15-year-old sophomore at Bret Harte High School. This is his second time assistant stage managing at Murphys Creek Theatre. He enjoys working for MCT and can’t wait for the next show!


Joshua Steck (Managing Director, Lights) – Joshua is pleased to be part of the MCT venture. He has worked for MCT for several years doing scenic art and this year has accepted the position of managing director. He is looking forward to collaborating with Graham to achieve the vision of sharing art in the community. A filmmaker by trade, Joshua is organizing the first International Calaveras Film Festival, to take place at the Black Bart Playhouse, and will be teaching filmmaking classes in the educational program.

A Note From Our Artistic Director

Graham Scott Green is the artistic director/theater guru here at Murphys Creek Theatre. He is one of the founders of the company, and coordinates the wildly successful Mirror Project program in addition to direction zillions of plays. Here, Graham gives us some insight into our next play, "Laundry and Bourbon/Lone Star," opening April 24.

After the great success of “Escanaba in da Moonlight,” I didn’t want to return to obscurity for four months, so I had to come up with a show that would fit into the season. I have always loved the two one-act plays “Laundry and Bourbon” and “Lone Star.” Written as companion pieces, together they make up a play called “1959 Pink Thunderbird.” But I prefer the title “Laundry and Bourbon/Lone Star.” The pink Thunderbird figures in the story but is never really a part of the action. Conversely, laundry and bourbon are both prevelant in the first half of the show and Ray and Roy swill plenty of Lone Star in the second.

LBLS is now a period piece. Set in the mid ’70s in Maynard, Texas, Roy Caulder is having trouble getting anything started since coming back from Vietnam. I was concerned that it would seem a little antiquated. But it occurred to me that we are still dealing with those issues. Same issues, different war. Some things never change. And the issues of love and family that Elizabeth wrestles with in the first half are timeless. The question of where our heart decides to take itself and drag us along has been the same since time immemorial.

But what I really love about these plays is the way the playwright, James McLure, has crafted characters of depth and humor. Roy is a foulmouthed, self-absorbed redneck but his loyalty and deep love for his family and friends redeem his profanity. Ray may be a little slow, but his heart is in the right place. Hattie is a neurotic mess but her relationship with Elizabeth is unflappable. I think each of us can identify with at least a part of these characters and the struggles they are going through. That’s what makes this an excellent example of a well-crafted play.
I’ve been having a great time working on these shows. I’m working with fabulous actors and crew. I feel blessed that my job involves laughing a lot. There are times in rehearsal I have to stop for a chuckle break. I hope audiences will find this play as fun as I do.