Mobile Theatre Guild

above: Murrell, Bloom, Vanderbeeck & Dennis

Click on thumbnails to enlarge

CAST

Pseudolus--Gene Murrell

Hysterium--Glenn Vanderbeek

Prologus--Buffi Peter

Senex--Don Bloom

Domina--JoAnn Olivera

Miles Gloriosus--Scott Wright

Erronius--Daniel Mainwaring

Hero--Zeb Brown

Philia--Stacy Driscoll

Marcus Lycus--Gary Dennis

Proteans--Buffi Peter, Jake Coleman, and Brent Murrill

Gymnasia--Sharon Cobb

Gemini--Gwen Jones, Teresa Ashcraft

Vibrata--Kerrie Benson

Tintinnabula--Amy Robertson

BAND

Stan Chapman, conductor, bass

Chris Steele, Gretter Diaz-Suarez, keyboards;

Chris Kern, percussion

above: Wright

PRODUCTION STAFF

Choreographer: Kerri Benson

Costume Design: Rebecca Britton

Scene Design/Technical Direction:

Connie Smith

Lighting Design: Philip Tapia

Stage Manager: Robin Pool

Asst.Stage Manager: Mary duBruyne

Crew: Zach Briggs

Lighting Control: Ashley Dennis

Props Chair: Libba Tallant

Hair & Wig Design" Sherrick Sandy

Set Construction Assistant: Michael Waldron

Follow Spot: Debbie Lake and Bridget Chapman

Graphic & Web Design/Publicity:

Rudy Auerbach

Special Thanks Dr. Lee VanDyke, the University of South Alabama Department of Dramatic Arts and to the Theatre USA Costume Shop for their support of this production

THE CREATORS

Larry Gelbart (book) is best known as the writer of TV's M*A*S*H*, the screenplay for Tootsie, and bookwriter for the musical Cty of Angels. Co-author Burt Shevelove was a Broadway director and writer and responsible for the successful revival of No, No, Nanette.

Stephen Sondheim is Broadway's most esteemed composer and lyricist. His best-known works include A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, Into The Woods, Follies and Company (recently revived on Broadway) and Sweeney Todd which is currently being made into a movie by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp.

LINKS

Academy of Achievement's in-depth interview of Stephen Sondheim including audio and video clips

http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/son0int-1

Vincent Canby's NY Times revue of the 1996 revival

Smithsonian article on Sondheim

http://www.smithsonianmagazine.com/issues/2002/august/sondheim.php

A full-screen surround photo of the forum today

http://www.arounder.eu/fori/lucaemartinafullscreen.mov

A beautiful digital rendering of the Forum as it looked in 400 BC

http://dlib.etc.ucla.edu/projects/Forum

Website of British novelist Lindsay Davis whose Last Act in Palmyra is a mystery involving a troupe much like one which produced Plautus' comedies

http://www.lindseydavis.co.uk/index.html

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED

ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Book by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove

Originally directed by George Abbott

Directed by Louis Courie

Musical Direction: Stan Chapman

SETTING:

Ancient Rome.

PLOT

The son of the lecherous Senex and his battle-ax of a wife Domina, a young man named Hero is infatuated with Philia, a beautiful courtesan who is promised to a real hero, Captain Miles Gloriousis.. While his parents are off on a trip, Hero promises his crafty slave Pseudolus that he will grant him his freedom if he can help him win the heart of Philia.

The story is loosely based on three plays by the Roman writer Plautus (251-183 B.C.) : Miles Gloriosus, Pseudolus, and Mostellaria.

THE SHOW

"Forum" opened in 1962 and swept the Tony Awards with trophies for best musical, book, actor (Zero Mostel as Pseudolos), and director. It was revived in 1973 for Phil Silvers and in 1996 for Nathan Lane; both actors won Tonys for their portrayals of Pseudolus.