Everybody, Finally Happy Is?

"Everybody, finally happy, is?" Yoda asked Miss Allison Erskine, sadly shaking his head, as he watched her texting and chatting on Facebook with the Broadway Knight Jedis and Padawan Learners.  "Their Princess Leia Organa Solo, you must be!"

"Not everybody is, Da--, I mean Yoda," she said.  "You know how it is when you have divas on the stage.  First Wolfman and his stubborn refusal to be a fashion consultant.  Then Mini-Me, demanding someone more interesting for Club 14 than Alex.  Now Ciara!  Can Spaccarelli and Tober be far behind?  If this keeps up, the script for the spring show is going to be at least 300 pages long . . . just sayin'!"

Scene.  At rise, a Dixieland band marches onstage, serenading the recently crowned beauty-queen, Cheyenne Ariel Harris.  She wears an emerald green "Gone with the Wind" dress and carries a white parasol which she twirls with her delicate, white-gloved fingers.  Brad Thompson leans in his Starbucks' doorway, smitten with Cheyenne's radiance.  He smirks at the Bayou band's bombast, in spite of himself.  Sensing Cheyenne's distaste for facial faux-pas, the famed jazz trumpeter, Maynard Armstrong and his Basin Street Blues Band, strikes up the Ira Gershwin/Vernon Duke tune, "I Can't Get Started with You."

Merry . . . Wait a Minute!

"A Merry Christmas, to the Broadway Knights, I wis--" Yoda said, as Miss Allison Erskine interrupts.

Wait a minute, wait a minte, wait a minute!  We have another problem.  The Wolfman has given his seal of approval . . . but . . . well . . . it appears he's not the only diva, haunting the GMS stage.  Mini-Me has definitely embraced her role as the villain, and has refused to perform, unless she has "someone more interesting in her club."  Whatever will Alex say, when he discovers that his presence is not welcome at Club 14?  We can't return to our Christmas festivities until we fix this problem.  Otherwise, the Actors' Equity Union will shut us down.  Just sayin'!

"Always, the Jedis, with my script, have problems.  But, a solution to Jack's problem, I have."

Scene.  Tuesday afternoon.  Three-twenty-eight.  Freddie "Mercury" Johnson, who has been moonlighting at Club 14- "Not for the money, but for the music," he says- plays "Bohemian Rhapsody" on an antique concertina.  Viola enters, upstage center, dressed in a red sequined dress, carrying a steaming cup of cocoa and a fly-swatter.  Blowing the dallop of whipped cream in Freddie's face, she swats the concertina out of his hand, and tells him to get lost.  As he slinks off-stage, he is confronted by Viola's new house band coming onstage, the aging rockers, The Asian Rockers, a grunge band from Portland, Maine.

Let's Hold on a Minute!

Daddy . . . I mean Yoda . . . we have a problem!  It appears that the Wolfman's debut as leading man has left him feeling like a diva, refusing to play a fashion consultant.  So I guess we're going to have to scrap our original idea- that was so good!- and start all over again.  You know how it is: nobody respects the brilliance of the playwright . . . just sayin'!

"Kay-o, kay-o, kay-o!  Write a tailored role, acceptable to Mr. Rogers, I will."

Scene.  A city street in the Louisiana delta.  Stage right, we see a Starbucks, owned by Pierre "Schwarzenegger" Lafitte and his betrothed, Antoinette "Snoopy" Balfour.  Antoinette has left her life as a mall managers daughter, changed her name, to search for life's meaning.  Next door, center stage, is Club 14, an avant-garde discotheque owned and operated by the villainness, Viola "Jack" Long, a distant relative of the infamous Huey Long.  In order to drive business to his establishment, Pierre moonlights as the emcee at the club on weekends, when Reba Wilson Firestone rolls into town to perform torch songs for the college students who travel to the metropolis from LSU.  A second Starbucks, owned by the star-crossed lover Bradley "Wolfman" Thompson- who always dresses in dark suits, starched white shirts, and lime-green ties- abuts Club 14, stage left.  Brad's love interest, Georgia peach Cheyenne Ariel Harris, has promised to marry him when he finally learns "to wipe the smirk off your face."  Brad has recently hired former skater, Freddie "Mercury" Johnson, who aspires to become the next Billy Joel, to play piano in his cafe.  Freddie plays seventies songs every time Brad enters the set.

As the curtain opens, we see the two Starbucls owners leering at each other across the set, Bradley still having not learned how to wipe the smirk off his face.  Pierre has brought in a group of Beat Girls from New York City to dance in front of his establishment.  Brad has hired a ballerina from the Baton Rouge Ballet to compete.  Viola has brought in a former mall security guard from Detroit to maintain her iron-fisted control of the street.

Proud, I Was...

"Proud, I was, with the Broadway Knights!" Yoda exclaimed, after their performance of The Envelope.  "A talented group, they are!  The next theatrical leap, I cannot wait, for them to make.  Georgetown Middle School, proud of them, should be."  And with that, he took up his laptop and wrote the story line for the spring show:

Scene.  Carlton "Wolfman" Jones, a star-crossed lover, works in an up-scale bridal salon, as a fashion consultant.  He is dressed in a well-tailored suit, a white shirt, and a pink tie.  The salon owner, the villianess, Cruella "Jack" Seville, rules her shop with an iron fist.  Her best fashion consultant, Cheyenne Ariel Harris, who has shelved her love for music history and headed to the big city in pursuit of huge sales' commissions, is the object of Carlton's affection, but since Cruella will not tolerate romances in her salon, Carlton has to keep his ambitions under wraps . . . Meanwhile, a young bride, Autumn "Snoop" Perro, enters the salon in search of the perfect dress.  Carlton and Cheyenne try to assist her, but are stymied at ever turn by her two aging Hippy parents, Melanie "Sunflower" Perro and her stoner husband, Don.  Melanie repeatedly vetoes dresses, because, as she tells Autumn, "They clash with my leather jacket and tattoos!"  In her distorted effort to provide ambience, Cruella has hired a piano player, former skater Freddie "Mercury" Matthias, who plays seventies music every time Carlton enters the set.

"Perhaps, because tired, I was, this idea, into my head, did spring," Yoda said, when questioned by the Mistress of the Game.  "But stretch the Jedis, I will, so better they can be, when to high school, they go."

Welcome Back, Mistress of the Game!

The Broadway Knights Theatre Academy was blessed, Thanksgiving Eve, by the presence of the Mistress of Theater Games, Miss Allison Erskine.  And what a thrill to see her cut down to size in an improv exercise by Alyson Tober, The Invader of Personal Space!

"That's funny.  I didn't lose!  Tober can get in my space, but, you see, I'm a big proponent of invading personal space, and if I had fought back, she would have been on the ground!  Just standing there was an act of mercy on my part.  I mean, come on!  The kid is a stick!  It's the truth.  I'll give the kid some credit, though, for knocking her classmates over like stacks of dominoes.  Now, if Matt Rogers, Joanie Shinn, or Spaccarelli had been there, I might have lost an argument or two.  But I guess we'll never know, since they were too cool to show up.  I mean, it's not like I come down every day, or anything.  If that's all they care, I'll time all of my visits, so they don't have to see me!  And for the record, I'll concede that I'm glad I didn't have to fight Mr. Benjamin Erskine.  I probably would have lost!  Just sayin'!"

"Fun, it was, the Padawan Learners, to watch," Yoda said, following the class.  "Pity, other things, the Jedis had to do.  Interesting, it would have been, seeing whether Mr. Rogers, Ms. Shinn, and Ms. Spaccarelli, the Dark Side, would have crossed to."

Sometimes, the Less Said....

"Impressed, with the Broadway Knights, today, I was," Yoda said, following the first complete, uninterrupted run-through of The Envelope.  "Chills, I had, watching Mr. Rogers and Miss Shinn, channeling anger, in Act 2, Scene 2!  Did a great job, all the young ones, and teachers, did.  Proud, of their acting, they should be."

The Gospel According to Jacobi

Writer, artist, actress, comedienne, musician, evangelist...Evangelist?...Preacher of the gospel of John?  John Pierpoint?  Really?  Has Ciara Jacobi finally discovered her calling?

There's no denying that Ciara knows more about Jingle Bells than any person should.  And the enthusiasm with which she speaks of Mr. Pierpoint's less-than-successful life does bring a tear to the eye, although it should be because of sadness, not hilarity!  What person, watching from the house of Georgetown Middle School's theater, failed to notice Matt Rogers' and Jack Shinn's thinly-veiled glee when Ciara delivered the line: "Five years later, he was dead!"

"Has the gift, the child does!" Yoda giggled, trying to persuade Ms. Jacobi to deliver her lines slow enough that they could be understood by creatures other than hummingbirds.  "If figure out, she does, the discipline of timing, rolling in the aisles, the audience, she will have."

How Many Days Do the Padawan Learners Get Off, Anyway?

National election?  Over.  Return Day?  Over.  Veterans' Day?  Hey, wait a minute!  The Broadway Knights Theatre Academy is going to lose another rehearsal?  "Make me happy, this does not!" Yoda said, extending a bony finger like the Grim Raeuber, indicating Thanksgiving break.

While Jedis Messick, Bendistis, Spaccarelli, and Yeo may not need a lot of rehearsal time to learn their lines, Jedis Shinn, Rogers, Raeuber, and Wilson need as much time on the boards as they can get.  And Padawan Learners Bradley, Ingrassia, Johnson, Lecates, and Herlihy?  Well, it goes without saying that if they don't learn the acting ropes soon, they may wind up being hung by them come December 17.

"Important, it is, that the Padawan Learners and Jedis, ALL, to every rehearsal, get," Yoda said, sagely rubbing his chin.  "Come, the December Ides will, before they know it.  If, ready they are not, embarrassed, they will be."

So, What's in the Card?

Tears, tears, and more tears.  "Nice job, the Broadway Knights did, reading through the show script," Yoda said, after this evening's rehearsal.  "Proud of the students, was I.  But, ask not, what in the envelope, is.  The playwright, only, the answer has."

The reaction of the cast, at the end of the first reading of the full script, proves how invested many of the Broadway Knights are in the winter show.  And if acting is doing, what about Ciara Jacobi's interpretation of the stage direction to deliver her lines "like a Southern evangeliist."  Who knew that she felt so passionately about music history, John Pierpoint, and Jingle Bells?  And what about that Georgian accent?  After such a stirring monologue, it won't be surprising to find out that Mr. Benjamin Erskine's music class is standing room only, tomorrow.

Even Mrs. Shelly Erskine, Mr. Benjamin Erskine's mom, tried to find out what was in the card Tiffany gives Jack in Scene 7.  "Tell you, I will not," Yoda said, when she asked.  "Better left, some things are, until the night of the performance."

The Night of a Hundred Understudies

Has anyone in the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy noticed the many faces of Matt Rogers?  One rehearsal he's five foot six inches tall with wavy, dark hair.  The next, he's five foot nine inches tall with straight, slightly lighter hair.  The next, he's five foot eleven inches tall with a buzz cut!  Cameleons have nothing on him!

And he's not the only one.

Consider the case of Alyson Tober who, in one scene, looked remarkably like Brittany Yeo, and in another, was the spitting image of Wuendy Juarez-Sanchez.  Or Kaitlyn Cash, who resembled Allie Spaccarelli.  Or Brianna Lecates, who appeared to be Joanie Shinn's doppelganger, until she metamorphosized into Logan Hudson.  Perhaps most startlingly, Mrs. Melody Heubner, who looked an awful lot like the waifish Rachel Bradley.

"Need to get the right actors in their proper roles, pretty soon, we do!" Yoda remarked, following rehearsal.  "Confusing, it is, when part of the cast, only, is here.  Impossible, it is, to figure out what a scene will look, or sound, like, until everyone, in their place, is."

Who Knew, a Joke, They Could Not Recognize?

The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences called, and Mr. Vaughn Hogans', Joanie Shinn's, and Mrs. Shelly Erskine's Oscars are ready.  Can those three sell a script, or what?  You know the acting is stellar when some of the people watching the closed-circuit TV broadcast get...well, irritated.

If interpreting a script is about suspending the viewers' disbelief, these three definitely hit a home run.  Everyone at Georgetown Middle School, especially the teachers who eat with Mr. Hogans during last lunch, already know about his unfortunate fascination with floating strips of Oscar Mayer bologna- pork, not beef- in a bowl of lime Kool-Aid, but, apparently, many people had no idea that his wife wouldn't allow him to buy Oreo's.  Surely, the irritation had nothing to do with the cell phone!

The fact that Yoda wrote the script may have had something to do with the reaction.  "Called on the Force, not the Dark Side, I did, to come up with the concept.  And cool, it was" he said, smiling.  "Not know, did I, that question, anyone would, Mr. Hogans' dietary choices."  As for the cell phone?  It was a prop!  "Who knew, a joke, they could not recognize?" Yoda said.

So You Think You Can't Dance

Smart Padawans learn from their mistakes.  Intelligent Padawans learn from others' mistakes.  Broadway Knights Theatre Academians?  Can't means won't!  Learn a lesson from Padawan Vicidomini: Acting is doing!

How is it that when presented with the chance to dance with a pretty young lady like Alyson Tober, Sal Ingrassia decided he'd rather do the monkey than the mambo?  Did he think that Yoda had asked him to perform to Dancing with Myself?  Apparently he has not heard how Kirby Wilson captured Tiffany Raeuber's heart- a thought that boggles the imagination, we know- in The Blue Note.

"The young Padawans, an important lesson, must learn," Yoda said.  "Consider Jedis Hogans, Palmer, Erskine, and Chamberland, they should.  Remember Jedi Knights Bendistis, Messick, Rogers, Raeuber, Shinn, Spaccarelli, Tober, Yeo, and Wilson.  Model trying new things, they do.  Better actors, it makes them."

Not Always Saying Lines, Acting Is

"Not always saying lines, acting is," Yoda reminded the Broadway Knights Theater Academy, while working on a scene from A Charlene Brown Winter.  "A face, you have.  Arms, legs, hips, hands, fingers, you have.  Shoulders, neck, you have.  Eyes, mouth, you have.  Use them!"

And the Obi-Wan nominations for presenting character without lines, go to:

• Tiffany Raeuber, as Lauren Lynch, accepting the only party invitation that matters from Bradley Thompson.
• Jack Shinn, as Charlene Brown, realizing that her best friend, Brad Thompson, wants to go to Lauren's party, more than he wants to hang out with her.
• Allie Spaccarelli, as Christina Cross, oh, those inimitable eyes, and facial expressions!
• Sal Ingrassia, under-studying Bradley Thompson, passing the invitation to Lauren.
• Mikala Herlihy, as Holly Holmes, riding her skate board through the crowded food court.
• Brianna Lecates, as Crystal Lyons, interacting with Lauren, during "Bust a Move."

An honorable mention goes to Josh Vicidomini, as the hapless wall-flower, Steve Johnson, who would do anything to get Lauren to notice him, except come down-stage without a cue from Yoda.

And the Obi-Wan goes to....Tiffany Raeuber for her stellar presentation of the emotion, grief, while playing sculptures.  Whatever sense memory she used to bring that emotion to her person- crying is always okay, when you're on the boards, Tiff- is something that she should store in her acting warehouse for future use.

Just Blame the Wolfman and Facebook

"I really love those BKTA kids," Miss Allison Erskine said from Gettysburg College today, "at least most of them!"  What caused such a measured reaction from the Mistress of Theater Games?  Just blame the Wolfman and Facebook.

"I know Joanie is trying to be the best actor she can be and all, and she is pretty talented, okay, maybe a little more than 'pretty,' maybe more like reeeeeally talented, and Lord knows that she can screech, 'My name is Sylvester McMonkey McBean!' with the best of them.  But leading theater games?  In my house?  On my stage?  I mean, sheesh!  The kid forgets that I first acted on that stage when I was eight years old.  Eight years old!  In Cat on a Hot Tin Roof!  You know.  Tennessee Williams?  I gotta tell ya, if Mini-Me keeps this up, I'm gonna have to come to Georgetown and slap her down....just sayin'!"

You can almost see the smile crossing Matt Rogers' lips like a midday sun emerging from a storm cloud, as he pecked on the computer keyboard, doing this bit of long-distance Facebook gossiping about Jack.  One has to wonder what would happen if the remainder of the Jedi Knights- Alex, Allie, Alyson, Brittany, Kirby, Madison, Rebecca, and Tiffany- would friend Allison and do some world wide web warbling of their own?

Watch Out, Allison!

"Hard to tell the difference, sometimes, it is," Yoda said, after watching Miss Allison Erskine's protege, Joanie "Mini-Me" Shinn, leading the theater game, Bibbity-Bobbity-Boo, Thursday afternoon.  "Get some of the Padawan Learners out, I could not.  The young Jedi, a fine job, she did."

Perhaps Allison did too good a job teaching the theater games, but Allie, Alyson, Brandon, Kenya, Matt, Meredith, and Sammie just refused to be eliminated from the game!  No amount of trickery could get them out.  So, in a last ditch effort to get the stage cleared, Yoda called upon Jack to use the Force, and channel her Jedi mistress.  Once Matt fell, the rest tumbled like a row of human dominoes.

The Broadway Knights even managed to draw an audience of teachers, thanks to impending parent-teacher conferences.  Perhaps, next time, we could have a vegetable off between the Georgetown Middle School teachers and the theatre academy students: the losers could treat the winners to pizza.  Better keep your wallet handy, Mr. Pepper.

Happy Birthday, Miss Bendistis!

Happy Birthday, Miss Bendistis!  But what made you think that such an auspicious occasion would give you the right to use a cell phone in the theater of Georgetown Middle School?

Sure, you could argue that it was Matt Rogers' idea; he did, after all, write the script for the Friday announcements, which required you to break school rules in the first place.  You could also blame Rebecca Wilson; she, of course, directed the scene, and encouraged you not to put it in your jeans pocket.  But in the end, it was surely you, yourself, who proved your guilt, by trying to hide the cell phone behind your script.  As Shakespeare might have written, "Madame, how like you this play?"  And, of course, the logical response would have to be something like: "The lady doth protest too much, methinks."

All kidding aside, Miss Bendistis, you were wise to use Matt Rogers' cell phone, instead of your own.  When Alyson Tober tells Mr. Williams, and he traces the calls you made within the building, it's Matt's phone, not your own, that he will seize.  Having Jack text Mr. Turssline on Matt's phone, guarantees that it will be he, and not you, who will spend the next twenty days on social probation!

Farewell, Mistress of the Game

The Broadway Knights Theatre Academy bids another fond farewell to The Mistress of the Game, The Great Gleek, Miss Allison Erskine, as she rides over the Chesapeake and through the woods, back to her Gettysburg College apartment.

"I didn't appreciate it when Yoda called, and said, 'Get up, you must.  Disappointed will the Jedi Knights and Padawan Learners be, if come to see them, you do not,' and drug me out of bed, and told me I couldn't sleep in, or take a shower, or eat breakfast, or brush my teeth- yeah, Tober, I know you hugged me, get over it!- on my last day away from Gettysburg!  The sun was still in bed, ya know, so why couldn't I....oh, never mind...I love those guys, ya know?  But what was up with their synapses....synapsi....oh, just forget it: what was up with their slow functioning brains, and why can't they understand that Be...uh, I mean, Mr. Erskine, may be able to take flubber and make an elephant the size of a Cadillac, and may be able to get all red in the face picking the thing up and all, but did he have to through it on top of Mini-Me, and crush her like that?  I mean, sheesh!  Where's my theatrical legacy, ya know?  Okay, okay, so I was glad I got up.  And I enjoyed playing in the Broadway Knights' sandbox more than I want to admit.  And I can't wait to see their Chr....uh, winter show....just sayin'."

"Home for four days, and still the verbose side the child embraces!" Yoda said, shaking his head, after reading this quote.  "Mini-Me?  Hmm?  Hmm.  A certain resemblance in the child's early acting, and looks, both, can I see."

The BKTA Sandbox

The Great Gleek is coming to play in the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy sandbox on Monday- can you smell the main ingredient with which Yoda is cooking?

Asked for a brief quote to include in the BKTA blog, a bone to draw Wolfman Rogers to the auditorium, a slight morsel to feed to GMS's aspiring actors and actresses, The Great Gleek said, "What wisdom shall I impart.  I only have so much time.  I could be an intern on the Broadway, next summer.  But I will condescend to your amateur stage for such a time, that you may glean knowledge from my wealthy purse...just sayin'!

"If Wolfman doesn't come to the theater," The Great Gleek spat, "I will hunt him down, and stare at him, very disapprovingly!  Not that he's the only one that matters.  I will hunt any of the Jedi Knights down, and...."  Ironically, The Great Gleek made the self-same gesture as Jack Shinn, the BKTA actress who plays the hall monitor in the Friday GMS commercials!

The Great Gleek Cometh

It's only Saturday, but Monday's coming, and what a Monday it will be!  Anyone who's part of Broadway Knights Theater Academy- especially the Jedi Knights- will want to do their best to be in the GMS theater, Monday morning, to meet our mystery guest, The Great Gleek!  Jack?  It's time to get your Gleek on.

Who is this interloper who would invade our inner sanctum?  A person who thinks, "Glee is dumb in the traditional sense, because in the traditional sense, theater is, ya know, presentational and, um, and- wait, what have I said so far?- but seriously, though, Glee does what I love: it takes themes and ideas that you'd never think of putting together in a show, and then uses them in such a way that you get a plot line- granted it's ridiculous- it's the type of show I can watch it, and one minute be rolling with laughter, and the next, wanting to scream because the performances are so good, and the next minute, weeping because they take songs like "I Want to Hold Your Hand"- which is a sappy love song- and turns it into a touching song about a father and son; and it's creatve genius....just sayin'."

"Powerful you have become, Gleek, but the verbose side I sense in you," Yoda said, upon reading The Great Gleek's quote.  As he walked away to get his lightsaber for Monday's rehearsal, Yoda mumbled, "Happens to every person, sometimes, it does.  But who's this one's Jedi master?"

Cast to Type, or Not? That Is the Question.

It's exciting to have so many talented teachers, participating in Broadway Knights Theater Academy!  But with so much talent in the house, we should have known that something was up, when Yoda told us, "Cast to type, I always, do not."

After many anxious inquiries, Yoda has decided that, rather than tape the teacher's cast list to a varnish-deprived door, in a dim hallway or, worse, on a wall in one of the stage wings, he'd post it on a blog- and, by default, the Broadway Knights' Theatre Academy Facebook page- for all the world to see.

• Mrs. Jamie "DJ Jazzy J" Chamberland, Jane Foskey- Band Director
• Mr. Ben "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Erskine, Christopher Cross- Mall Owner
• Mrs. Shelly "Velvet Fog" Erskine, Lisa Brown- Lounge Singer, Mother
• Mrs. Melody "Annie Camden" Heubner, Melanie Johnson- High School Teacher, Mother
• Mr. Vaughn "Grandmaster V" Hogans, Martin Monroe- Tool and Die Maker, Dad
• Mrs. Christina "Shutterbug" Palmer, Debra Jones- Mall Photographer
• Mr. Bill "La Cage aux Folles" Pepper, Dr. Robin Lehman- Professor of Music at State University

After submitting his list, Yoda said, "Cast to type, or not?  In the eye of the beholder, it is!"  Is Mr. Erskine really that mean and nasty?  Can Mrs. Heubner possibly be that sweet?  Should Mr. Hogans keep the shades?  What about covering his shaved dome with a do-rag?  And, perhaps most importantly, how will Mr. Pepper look with a leopard-print fanny-pack and a pink sweater tied around his neck?

And Speaking of Talent....

You have to know, if the teachers are openly weeping during a rehearsal, something is going very right at the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy.  Kudos to Tiffany Reuber, Matt Rogers, Josh Vicidomini, and Joanie Shinn, all of whom brought a load of emotion and a depth of character- far beyond their years- to "A House Is Not a Home."

But they weren't the only stars in the scene.  Obi-Wan nominations, for supporting actor, would have to go to Bianca Campbell, Brianna Lecates, Alex Messick, Kenya Neal, and Geosha Thomas for doing a fantastic job, staying in character in the background of such an emotional scene.

"Age matters not, in acting," Yoda said, following the rehearsal.  "Just watch them.  Judge them by their age, do you?  Hmm?  Hmm.  And well you should not.  For their allies are the Force and hard work, and powerful allies they are!"  One other thing Yoda said: "Okay to cry, Jack, it is."

All Hail Grandmaster V!

Like Dr. Victor Frankenstein's monster, Kirby "Li'l D" Wilson's Blue Note character lives- and now he has a legal guardian!  Who knew that Georgetown Middle School had so many talented teachers?

First, the Broadway Knights Theater Academy was blessed with Mr. Bill Pepper, Mrs. Melody Huebner, Mrs. Christina Palmer, Mrs. Shelly Erskine, and Mr. Benjamin "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Erskine.  Then we discovered Mrs. Jamie "DJ Jazzy J" Chamberland.  Now, at long last, we have been blessed with the LL Cool J of GMS, Mr. Vaughn "Grandmaster V" Hogans- and he can Bust a Move....at least we hope he can.

After his first rehearsal, Yoda contacted the American Theatre Wing and Grammy award committees, alerting them of this new talent.  In a related gesture, Governor Jack Markell has banned Kanye West from the state of Delaware until after Mr. Hogans receives his statuettes.

That Good

Wow!  The first day of full cast rehearsals for the Winter Show is over, and the Broadway Knights Theater Academy is well on its way to having two numbers ready for its December performances.  "Worked hard, the young ones did," Yoda said.  "Proud of the Jedi Knights and Padawan Learners, I am!"

Who would have thought that Kaitlyn Cash's Padawan Learner group would win the sculptures game, or that Mrs. Jamie Chamberland wouldn't stop the music, or that Josh "Lurch" Vicidomini could be an effective stand-in for Matt "Wolfman" Rogers, or that Allie Spaccarelli could channel a grieving Gollum?

Perhaps the reason for the BKTA's profound success was the fact that Mr. Benjamin Erskine's birthday was today, and he left early to celebrate, or perhaps, most probably, the Broadway Knights are motivated, this school year, to be that good!

And the Obi-Wan Nomination for Dance Goes to....

Miss Jamie Chamberland may be new to the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy instructional staff, and she may be audio-challenged, but she certainly knows a thing or two about middle school dances!

When Joanie asked Yoda if he'd be willing to assist with the Georgetown Middle School Student Council's dance, he said, "Caperone your dance, I will, if a good job, in rehearsal, today, you do."  Imagine her surprise when he appeared in the cafeteria!  And true to Mrs. Chamberland's prophecy, most of the Broadway Knights did their best to play the role of wall flowers.  Sure, the BKTA student council members were working the concession stand, but....but....Miss Spaccarelli and Miss Bendistis, what's with that game of hide-n-seek you were playing behind the milk carts?

Acting is doing, and so is dancing!  And the Obi-Wan nominations for best Broadway Knights at a middle school dance go to:

• Alyson Tober, for her portrayal of Karen Lynn Gorney in Satuday Night Fever: The Hip-Hop Generation
• Brandon Horton, for his portrayal of Fred Berry in What's Happening at Georgetown Middle School?
• Kevona Morgan, for her portrayal of Jennifer Beals in Flashdance Goes Middle School

One final theatrical observation: With all deference to Miss Chamberland, perhaps BKTA ought to consider recruiting Mrs. Tracy Clark to run their sound board.  At least she understands the importance of not stopping the music....and, as Yoda said, "Had the good sense, she did, to NOT play The Chicken Dance, while at the dance, I was!"

But, since acting and dancing are doing, wouldn't it have been great to see Mr. Benjamin Erskine channeling Grandpa Jones channeling Roy Clark channeling Grady Nutt channeling Buck Owens channeling George Lindsey in the Broadway Knights' next video: Hee Haw Amateur Minute?

We're Back!

Acting is....What's the word we're looking for here, Mr. Vicidomini?....oh, that's right, DOING!  And now that the auditions for the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy are over, it's time to for all good Jedi Knights and Padawan Learners to get their character on.

One has to wonder what Miss Allison Erskine would have made of newcomer, Seth Johnson, coming into Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, and leaving with the Wolfman's girl.  And wasn't it great to see Mr. Benjamin Erskine's reprise of Saturday Night Fever's Tony Manero- at least until BKTA's new technical advisor, Mrs. Jamie Chamberland, ruined the dance party by cutting off the music.  Sure, she said she was learning the system, but isn't it just as likely that seeing her co-teacher, looking like a survivor from Survivor, dancing like Robin Williams channeling Nathan Lane channeling Will Farrell channeling John Travolta was more than she could bear.

After the first day of instruction, Yoda says, "A good year we will have, if one lesson the Knights and Learners will grasp: Do.  Or do not.  There is no try."  N'est pas, Mr. Vicidomini?

The Wolfman Cometh

GMS administrators said it couldn't be done.  Staff members, sensibly enough, asked why we would want to do it in the first place.  Mr. Erskine and Mrs. Palmer assured us that our reputations as actors would take a hard hit, and that much of the student body would be outraged by this abominable, doomed exercise in self indulgence- and that is surely true.
      But Matt Rogers thinks this is the Broadway Knights' finest hour.
     "It's what we were put on this earth for," he said, on condition of anonymity.  "To cause terror and confusion at Georgetown Middle School.  To alienate our teachers and peers who were beginning to feel comfortable with the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy.  To try something that- as far as I can tell- has never been done: A full five minutes of film shot on the GMS stage, to hip-hop-jazz fusion, featuring, well, me!"
     The film to which Rogers refers is The Blue Note, the Broadway Knights' first.  It is, to Matt's mind, "far and away the most beautifully crafted, technically accomplished short ever made by any middle school....anywhere....ever."
     "It was a lot of work," he said, sliding his hipster Ray-Ban's onto his always-tousled hair, darting his eyes around in search of the paparazzi.  "Most middle schools are, you know, ordinarily a shoot and scoot, digital outfit.  Generally speaking, they don't have lights, cameras, sound, or people to run them.  And they certainly don't have, well, you know....me!"
     Miss Allison Erskine, the goddess of theater games, doesn't agree.
     "What they don't have is, well, someone like me," she said, reaching into her handbag and extracting a stack of 8 X 10 glossies.  "I'm the one who made the Wolfman, a nickname acquired by Rogers after he was asked to crawl around on the stage during a theater game, acting like an animal.  If it hadn't been for me, he'd 've never rolled his shoulders and leered.  There'd be no him.  Just sayin'."
     "I'm a little disappointed that Matt thinks the movie's all about him," said Tiffany Raeuber, the film's femme fatale.  "Take Joanie and me and Alyson out of the movie and he'd be making wolf eyes at himself."
     "We're very excited about the film's release," said a source close to Mr. Michael Williams, the school's principal.  "Given the difficult economic times we find ourselves in, the potential revenue boost from this project could mean donuts and coffee in the faculty lounge."
     The long-awaited public release of The Blue Note has been scheduled for the first week of September, pending the final editing by Gettysburg College.  Pre-release copies of the movie and a press packet have been sent to film critics at The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times.
     Security has been increased at Georgetown Middle School in anticipation of the film's release.  Several special limousines, disguised as school buses, will be used to safely get Matt and his Broadway Knight co-stars to and from school.

More than Working at Grotto's

Calling all Broadway Knight Theatre academians: The time has come for some serious tablework- and we're not talking about putting out plates and silverware, doing dishes, or storing left-overs in the fridge.  We're definitely not talking about getting a wait-staff job at a restaurant, or playing a game of ping-pong or pool.

What we are talkiing about is: sitting around a table, eating Doritos and cake- do you smell what Joanie Shinn is cooking?-, drinking punch, and doing a read through of the winter play.  What we are talking about is: establishing characters, intentions, subtexts, and motivations before any more Padawan Learners are permitted into the academy.  What we are talking about is: discovering whether Brittany Yeo can still get in touch with her inner-five-year-old, Madison Bendistis is still a good mother, and Alex Messick has the physical strength to remove Mr. Bill Pepper from the stage.

Now Miss Allison Erskine might have you believe that tablework has something to do with working at Grotto's Grand Slam in Lewes until you can pay your college tuition and buy your own car.  But don't you believe it!  Tablework is really about taking the next step in your theatrical training.

And Now for a Brief Commercial Message

Do you remember back in the day when we were a mere drama club and we'd never heard of ninja or busy bee?  Do you remember when Miss Allison Erskine was only a mass of pixels on Mrs. Erskine's computer screen instead of the crazed mistress of theater games?  Do you remember the weekly commercials we did, during the Friday morning announcements?  Well, guess what?  It's time to get our advertising groove on!

AMC has Mad Men, but GMS has Broadway Knights.  Who needs a creative director like Don Draper when GMS has Mr. Benjamin Erskine, anyway?  Just take a look at these Broadway Knights Padawan Learners- yes, I looked it up, and that is the accepted plural- and the actors they could replace:

• Healthy Choice has Julia Louis-Dreyfus, GMS suggests Tiffany Raeuber.
• Gieco has the Caveman, GMS suggests Matt "Wolfman" Rogers.
• Old Spice has Isaiah Mustafa, GMS suggests Alex Messick.
• Progressive Insurance has Stephanie Courtney, GMS suggests Joanie Shinn.
• Activia has Jamie Lee Curtis, GMS suggests Brittany Yeo.
• State Farm has Eddie Matos, GMS suggests Kirby Wilson.
• Chase Sapphire has Molly Culver, GMS suggests Alyson Tober.
• Exedrin has Elisabeth Moss, GMS suggests Allie Spaccarelli.
• Covergirl has Drew Barrymore, GMS suggests Madison Bendistis.
• Delish has Rachael Ray, GMS suggests Rebecca Wilson.

How many of these professional actors do you suppose would willingly do a weekly public service announcement for Georgetown Middle School?  But then again, how many Broadway Knights do you suppose would turn down a boat-load of cash?

Public Relations Is Everything!

As Jennie "JWoww" Farley, Michael "The Situation" Sorrentino, and Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi know, public relations is everything!  If Alyson Tober had the kind of PR these three stooges have, it would be she, rather than Kent Boyd, in the So You Think You Can Dance finale.  "An app for that I have," Yoda says.

Thanks to Miss Allison Erskine's participation in our summer program, the Broadway Knights Theater Academy is getting a write-up on the Gettysburg College web site.  It seems the theater department at GC is intrigued by the remarkable progress the students made under her student-tutelage.  The fact that Miss Erskine will shamelessly attach copies of her 8 x 10 glossies for the public's consideration shows that she has learned well from Jersey Shore's cast.

Now if the gate-keepers of the Broadway Knights Theater Academy Facebook could just learn to link this blog and any other wirte-ups to their page, Rebecca Wilson might wind up on the YouTube competition of America's Got Talent.

Why Not Kirby Wilson?

So how is it that Justin Bieber gets a movie deal and a book deal, but Kirby Wilson doesn't?  As a pseudo-Howie Mandel might say, "What's the deal?"

Sure Justin Bieber put a few videos on YouTube and got discovered by Scooter Braun and promoted by Usher.  Sure he is 16 and looks like he is still in middle school.  And, of course, that's the point.  Kirby is in middle school, and he always gets the girl....okay, girls.  Do you think Justin Bieber could get the girl without singing a note, dancing a step, or putting on make-up?  As pseudo-Shakespeare would say, "Me thinks not!"

Anyone who follows this blog will have the inside track on the soon-to-be-released, The Blue Note.  And for your Obi-Wan consideration, may we suggest the names: Matt Rogers for Best-Supporting Actor and Tiffany Raeuber for Best-Supporting Actress?  As a pseudo-Horton might say, "Justin Who?"

Miss Erskine Says....and Yoda Says

"So I went to see 'Eclipse,' and it wasn't bad by Twilight standards," says Miss Allison Erskine.  "But what made the director think that a brooding Robert Pattinson is more attractive than the most beautiful person I've ever seen: Taylor Lautner?  Just sayin'!

"I'm just so frustrated with the director because, okay, he cast Robert Pattinson in the first movie and he did wellish.  But then he's just stuck with him!  And I don't know what he's doing.  Robert is making these acting choices that just take you out of the story.  He's supposed to be head-over-heels in love with Bella, but whenever he's within two feet of her, he looks like he'd rather vomit than kiss her!  Then you have Jacob, who has every right to be in pain when he's around Bella, because she's in love with a dead guy.  But he is always smiling and and is surrounded by this warm light (and that was a good directing choice... Bravo!)  Well the point is, when you're watching the movie, I don't want Bella to be with Edward, because it doesn't communicate to me.  With Jacob love is easy because it's like breathing...he just loves her.  Love just is.  And, I mean, it might just be my personal preference, but love between Bella and Edward has to be fought for, and it shouldn't be that way!"

"Find your character, you must, the point is," says Yoda.  "Focus.  Focus.  You must learn focus."

Lights, Camera, Action?

Screenwriting is easy.  And now that BKT Productions has its own digital movie camera, can anyone say, "Lights, camera, action?"  How about this for our first fifteen minute short?

Nathan Patinkin (Matt Rogers) is a frustrated actor who lives in his studio/apartment with girlfriend Stormie Wether (Alyson Tober) who plays Snow White at a D-List amusement park in Passaic, New Jersey.  Their flat is located above Disco Tech, a dance studio run by off-off-Broadway choreographer, Tony Hustle (Mr. E), who always dresses in tight white bell-bottoms, an open-collared tangerine silk shirt, enough gold chains to anchor the Queen Mary, and white patent leather boots.  A group of studio musicians, El Capitan and Chenielle (Mr. Bill Pepper, Mrs. Melody Hubner, Mrs. Tracy Clark), performs at Disco Tech every night, rattling Nathan's dishes from 11 until 2; they are joined on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays by Saree, a trio of boistrous blond Bollywood dancers (Madison Bendistis, Allie Spaccarelli, Brittany Yeo).

After months of auditions, Nathan finally lands the lead role in the regionally acclaimed musical, Playing with Paintbrushes, in which he plays Pablo DaVinci opposite Linda Streisand (Rebecca Wilson) who plays Pablo's favorite model, Lisa Mona.  As rehearsals begin under angsty director Orson Hitchcock (Alex Messick), Olive Stone (Jack Shinn), the script supervisor, takes a strong dislike to Nathan.  One Wednesday morning while awaiting the deaf sound man Amadeus (Kirby Wilson), Olive drops a jelly donut sprinkled with itching powder into Nathan's lap.  Seeing Nathan's gyrations, El Capitan and Chenille strike up the Eleven O'clock Number, "Pigment Gets in My Eyes," and Saree dashes onto the set, thinking they have missed their cue.  In her haste, Saree superstar, Nu Deli (Allie Spaccarelli), collides with a stage light, causing it to fall on Toni Chenille (Mrs. Tracy Clark)....

Okay.  So maybe BKT's first film should be a full-length feature.  Can anyone say, "Over-budget?"

Monday Mourning

Scene.  Monday, July 26, 2010, 8:00 a.m.  The stage is dark and bare.  The auditorium is empty.  Allie Spaccarelli is still sleeping, but for once hasn't missed her bus!  Alex Messick and Madison Bendistis, for the first time in weeks, are not late.

Yoda enters, stage left.  "No more training do they receive, this summer.  Already know they, much of what they need.  But not all.  Not quite yet.  One thing remains.  Performance.  They must confront an audience.  Then, only then, actors they will be.  And confront them they will."

Do the Padawan miss the academy?  Miss Allison Erskine certainly does.  She places pining post on the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy Facebook page.

Yoda sighs, exiting stage right.  "Dark times to the theater have come.  Many days have I waited for them.  Actors they will be.  Great shows they will perform.  But more training they require."

Allie Spaccarelli stirs under the covers....Scene drop.

And the Obi-Wan Goes to....

Since the American Theatre Wing has the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre (Tony), motion pictures has the Academy Awards (Oscar), off-Broadway has the Off-Broadway Theater Awards (Obie), and The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has the Emmy Awards (Emmy), it only seems fitting that the Broadway Knights Theater Academy should have an equally pretentiously-named award, but alas we are from Slower Lower Delaware and decided it would be best just to leap to the abridged euphemism.

The coveted Obi-Wan- named for a Jedi Knight- recognizes achievement in the Georgetown Middle School theater academy and is presented by Yoda to the Padawan who has grasped the lesson: "Use your feelings, young one, and find real character you will."  And the Obi-Wan goes to....

• The Eva Le Gallienne Obi-Wan for Shakespearen Monologue: Joanie Shinn, "To Be, or Not to Be"
• The Wizard-of-Oz-Judy Garland Obi-Wan for Singing: Rebecca Wilson, "Temorary Home"
• The Dick Van Dyke Obi-Wan for Comedic Stage Presence: Kirby Wilson, "The Blue Note"
• The Lon Chaney Obi-Wan for Wolfman Stage Presence: Matt Rogers, "The Blue Note"
• The Cassandra Peterson Obi-Wan for Grim Reaping: Tiffany Raeuber, "Don't Lose Your Head"
• The Janet Leigh Obi-Wan for Eerie Death Scene: Allie Spaccarelli, "Don't Lose Your Head"
• The Carmen Miranda Obi-Wan for Salsa-Hip-Hop Dance: Alyson Tober, "The Blue Note" 
• The Jim Carrey Obi-Wan for Elastic Facial Expressions: Brittney Yeo, "Sculptures"
• The Sir Lawrence Olivier Obi-Wan for Shakespearean Melodrama: Alex Messick, "Row, Row, Row, Your Boat"
• The Vanna White Obi-Wan for Puzzle Presentation: Madison Bendistis, "Don't Lose Your Head"
• The Tammy Wynette Obi-Wan for Standing by Her Man: Logan Rae, "No Place that Far"
• The Viola Spolin Obi-Wan for Theater Games: Miss Allison Erskine, "Bibbity, Bobbity...Boo"
• The John Travolta Obi-Wan for Disco Dance: Mr. Benjamin Erskine, "Stayin' Alive....Barely"
• The Ansel Adams Obi-Wan for Stage Photography: Mrs. Chrisina Palmer, "Sculptures"
• The Shirley Temple Obi-Wan for Dramatic Exuberance: Bailey Erskine, "Frozen French Fries"

Yoda, Obi-Wan "Mr. Ben Erskine" Kenobi, and the academy thank all of the parents, teachers, and administrators of these award-winning Padawan cum Jedi Knights for allowing them to enter our far-far-away galaxy.  George Lucas would be proud.  May the Force of the Theatre be with you!

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

Good night, good night!  Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Okay.  So it was noon, not night, when the academy students left the theater for the last time until the 2010-2011 school year begins.  And the sorrowful parting was sweetened by Jack Shinn's delicious two-berry cake.  But for all the work Yoda put us through early in the day, which academy Padawan would have missed Alex Messick's Shakespearean rendition of "Row, row, row your boat," Allie Spaccarelli nearly losing her head to the Grim Raeuber, or Kirby "Hip-Hop" Wilson getting all he could handle from Tiffany at the Knight Klub?

While we had a lot of fun, one of the best things about the academy is the family that we have become.  What have we learned, you might ask?  "Only what you take with you," Yoda says.

Stayin' Alive...With Apologies to the Bee Gees

What does Tony Manero have that Mr. E doesn't?  Agility, a white suit, a disco ball, and Saturday Night Fever!

Well, you could tell by the way he used his walk, he's a disco man: no time to talk.  Music loud and glasses smoked, he's been kicked around since he got stoked.  And now it's all right.  It's okay.  And we tried to look the other way.  We can try to understand the GMS effect on man.  Whether he's a brother, whether he's a mother, he's stayin' alive, stayin' alive.  Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin', and we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive.  Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive, stayin' alive.  Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive.

Expressionism?  Think Heavy D doing John Travolta in aviator glasses!  Realism?  Watch for the video on Broadway Knights Theatre Acaemy Facebook.  Good thing Mr. E's Stephanie Mangano wasn't in the house!

And Speaking of Auditions....

Will I cut my hair?  Will I dye it?  Am I available between 3:00 and 6:00 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays,  and Thursdays?  Can I sing and dance?  If I'm not cast, will I work in the technical side of the show?

Today was our audition workshop.  For two grueling hours we answered questions, read, acted, were given direction, read and acted again, and ultimately each had our turn in the "hot seat."  How fun was having our audition critiqued in front of the whole academy?  Not much!

On the bright side, three of us got cast in our faux show: Alex Messick as Gandalf, Allie Spaccarelli as Bilbo Baggins, and Alyson Tober as Gollum.  Perhaps tomorrow, Yoda will audition Mr. E, Mrs. Palmer, and Miss Erskine and put them on the hot seat.  I hope they remember to bring their asbestos underwear.

When Teachers Come Calling

You know Broadway Knights Theatre Academy is becoming a hot commodity at Georgetown Middle School when teachers are requesting parts in the 2010 winter show; co-writers Matt, Jack, and Tiffany beware!

One of the hottest musical acts of the 2010 spring show, "Reduced Seuss: A Tip of the Hat to the Shakespeare of Silliness," was the teacher duet Mr. Bill Pepper and Mrs. Melody Huebner- although Mr. Pepper's Denny Terrio dancing style is still under discussion.  Mrs. Michelle Erskine's and Mrs. Christina Palmer's rendition of the Zax was show-stopping.  And Mr. E's comedic antics brought a whiff of Jim Carey to our Wonderful World.  So when Ms. Peggy Mullane contacted us on the Broadway Knights Theater Academy Facebook fan page and suggested she might be interested in being part of the winter show, "Home for Christmas," we were very excited.

Imagine the implications of a panel of students giving the test- audition- while the teacher takes it.  Can anyone say, "Easy 'A'?"  No wonder Yoda wants to give us a workshop on auditioning tomorrow.  We wonder how many teachers will be there.

La Cage Aux Faux

"Always two there are, no more, no less; a master and an apprentice," said Yoda to Obi-Wan "Ben Erskine" Kenobi..  "Help you I can."

The acting exercise was straight-forward: Express emotion through movement, as a series of songs is played.  Things were going along great, even when Cartman snarled, "Come, Sail Away."  Then we stalled on the Broadway tune, "Mr. Cellophane."  Yoda suggested that Obi-Wan show- not tell- by performing the tune for the students as Robin Williams would have in "The Bird Cage."  None of the cast had any idea how much acting range Mr. Erskine had until Yoda suggested he do it a second time as Nathan Lane's character!  When Mr. E twisted his shirt into a scarf....well, let's just say range doesn't begin to cover it!

All those cell phones in the theater, and not a single one within reach!  It's a good thing for Mr. Erskine that- thanks to school policy- what happens in GMS theater stays in GMS theater.

The Hardest Role We'll Ever Play

Anyone who says Shakespearean roles are tough to play should have been in the Georgetown Middle School theater today!

When we walked into the auditorium and saw "The hardest role you'll ever play is yourself," we knew the day was going to be challenging.  What me?  Play myself?   Sure Shakespeare said that "all the world is a stage," but here?  Now?  Without a costume or make-up?

The exercise was probably the most challenging thing we've done so far this summer, particularly the first part, when we looked into the mirror of one of our classmates playing us.  But experiencing Jack playing herself, transforming into Joanie, was something special.

Around the World in Eighty Minutes

A smart actor learns from her mistakes, an intelligent actor learns from someone else's.  Thanks to a field trip to Possum Point Players dress rehearsal of "Around the World in Eighty Days," the Broadway Knights Theatre Academy students had a chance to do both.

With brains in our heads and feet in our shoes, we trekked the quarter mile to the theater to watch the show.  To ensure an educational experience, Yoda told us to practice writing director's notes, answering the query, "What went right and what went wrong?"- a question we academy students face under his tutelage multiple times, each day.

Did we mention that Delaware is experiencing a drought?  The only conclusion we could draw from the downpour that greeted us when the show ended and we had to return to the school on foot, was that the god of the theater, Dionysus, preferred that Yoda had told us to leave our notebooks at the school!

Forget Johnny Depp

Casting Alice in Wonderland is so much better when the Fates intervene.  Could Lewis Carroll have ever imagined Kirby as Alice, or Tiffany as Tweedle-dum?  Okay Tiffany....Maybe!

But could L.C. have imagined the Smoking Caterpillar as the Godfather or a stoner?  Alex's rendition of the caterpillar as Marlon Brando had everything but a horse's head.  And Brittany playing the same role as Tommy Chong?  Tell us Miss Yeo, what exactly was it that you had in that kazoo?

Every day seems to bring new growth in the students' acting skills.  Who needs Johnny Depp, anyway?  We have our own maniacal Mad-Hatter, right Madison?

Characters Without a Word

The academy students practiced finding real emotions and real presence through the theater game "Sculptures."  Their artistry would have made Michelangelo proud!

And talk about physical presence.  Was it the home-made chocolate chip cookies or the Kit-Kat bars that turned Matt into such a wolf man?  One thing for sure, he can take direction: Roll your shoulders, lead with your nose!  Once Yoda told him that he never wanted to see dead eyes again, Mr. Rogers left them out of his emotional neighborhood.

And Kirby as The Man?  Never has a fedora- and a wolfy wingman- transformed such a wallflower into the hottest property in our Birdland set!  The seventh grade at Georgetown Middle School had better brace themselves for their newest BMOC.

BKTA Gets Real

What a difference a day makes!  Who are these full-body actors?

You have to know that the students are gaining ground when Tiffany Raeuber's million-dollar smile is replaced by a look of genuine concern.  Real Emotion?  Real Presence?  Even though neither Allie nor Alyson can spell the words, they certainly have learned how to bring them to the stage.  And what about Alex and Brittany demonstrating trust by presenting romantic emotions far beyond their years?

But perhaps the most interesting scene of the day was delivered by Kirby, acting out Bon Jovi's power ballad, "I'll Die for You," opposite our twenty-one year old Gettysburg College theater major, Miss Allison Erskine.  Maybe he should be cast as Gandalf instead of Bilbo Baggins!

Publick Edukashun Iz Gud

Our first day back from the Fourth of July holiday found us on stage, playing several warm-up games.  Thankfully, no Language Arts teachers were present!

Things got off to a killer start with a few brisk games of "Bang."  While the stage was ultimately strewn with bodies, we still had a great time.  Then came the acting game, "Busy Bee," which requires us to scurry around the stage, playing bees, until the leader calls out a letter and we freeze in the shape of anything that starts with the called letter.  Creativity is key if you want to win; duplicate characters are eliminated.

When "K" was called, Mr. Ben Erskine went through the cast's poses and when he asked Allie Spaccarelli what she was, she informed him that she was a "kougar."  A "KOUGAR"!  When Mr. Erskine pointed out that the word is "cougar with a 'C'," Allie was stunned.  But imagine the cast's surprise when two rounds later- with "N" being the called letter- Alyson Tober told Mr. Erskine that she was a "nuckle sandwich!"  Again, Mr. Erskine pointed out that "the word 'knuckle sandwich' starts with a 'K'."  Alyson argued with him, trailing him across the stage, saying, "NNNNNN."

Good to know that that public education thing is working out for you, girls!

PBS at GMS

When principal Mr. Michael Williams asked us to create a dramatic presentation for Georgetown Middle School's Positive Behavior Support program, odds are he didn't expect a guillotine to be part of the play; but hey, our school has their problem students just like everyone else's!

The initial rehearsals started off innocent enough.  Jack, Matt, Alex, and Madison did a great job.  But when Alyson Tober insisted on violating school rules by chewing gum and wearing flip-flops, what choice did we have but to name the play, "Don't Lose Your Head!", and slide Allie Spacarelli's neck under the blade?

So far Allie has managed to keep her head, but if Alyson keeps violating school rules, Tiffany may find herself replaced by GMS's real Grim Reaper, Mr. John Turssline!

Who Was that Masked Woman?

Who knew that inviting Miss Allison Erskine, a theater major from Gettysburg College, to share her stage experiences with us would lead to bodies strewn all over our stage?

We probably should have known something was rotten in Delaware when she suggested we play the theater game "Bang."  Having us play quick draw in the name of "focus" was a dastardly way of eliminating any future competition she might have on the Great White Way!

How many of our little troupe, you might ask, survived Miss Erskine's O.K. Corral moment?  Enough to perform the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet, provided we cast an old-fashioned dust mop as the object of Romeo's affection!

An Academy Is Born!

Was it Sponge Bob's mysterious appearance on the classroom's white board or Jack Shinn's rendition of Shakespeare?
After months of clubbing, our theatrical troupe finally climbed the stage steps and formed Broadway Knights Theatre Academy.  So what if we have to write our own plays?  So what if we have to give Mag Lights to the audience to light our stage?  So what if we have to ask half of our patrons to bring lawn chairs to straddle the broken seats in the school's auditorium?  We're on the stage and THAT is ALL matters!