Al Ringling Theater

Being from the Upper Midwest, I have long known that the Ringling Brothers Circus originated in Baraboo, Wisconsin. We took a mini vacation there as a child, including Circus World, where the clowns taught my brother to juggle. (Two blog posts in a row mentioning clowns? What are the odds?) However, I did not know that Al Ringling used $100,000 of the circus proceeds to build a theater in Baraboo. It is an amazing treasure right in the middle of an average Midwestern town, modeled after the theater at Versailles. Yes, that Versailles. Before the theater was built in 1915, vaudeville players lost a day between Chicago and Minneapolis. Baraboo was well placed along the route, four hours from Chicago and four hours from Minneapolis. It filled in a day for them so that they could perform (and be paid) during their journey between larger cities. The dressing rooms are virtually unchanged from how they were when they were used by Lionel Barrymore, Mary Pickford and the Lunts. After Vaudeville, it was used as a silent movie house, then a regular movie house, and, for one day, Babes in Toyland. What a joy to join the tradition of such an historic stage.

Bye, Bye Birdie

I moved to New York City in 2003 to do my Master's in Organizational Psychology at NYU. During my last semester at NYU, I auditioned for musicals that fit around my class schedule. Thus, my very first show in New York City was Bye Bye Birdie at Brooklyn Family Theater (BFT) in the spring of 2005. I played Mrs. McAfee, and met a whole crew of wonderful people. I went on to do Wizard of Oz and Snoopy at the same theater, as well as two touring productions that were produced by BFT. The theater closed its doors about a year ago, but I continue to count many of the actors and staff among my friends.

This past week I revisited that chapter of my life as I house sat at what could safely be called the epicenter of BFT. The brownstone in Park Slope, Brooklyn is owned by the house manager of BFT, and the upstairs apartment was once occupied by the artistic director and the business manager / utility player. Now that they have moved on, the upstairs apartment has been taken over by a former BFT actor / playwright and her new husband. They have definitely made it their own, but the echoes of the former tenants were still there in the red walls and the Victorian accents. Being in the place reminded me of read throughs, music rehearsals, and small cast parties.

Bye Bye Birdie was on my mind this week, but also on the minds of many New Yorkers. It just so happens that Bye Bye Birdie is returning to Broadway for the first time since it's original run with Dick Van Dyke and Chita Rivera. Performances started this week. Five of us from that BFT production of Bye Bye Birdie were in the audience for the very first preview. It was a fitting end to a week of reminiscence.