Rich Ott, Today Staff | Surprise Today | August 09, 2006
Have you ever wanted to see a show that allowed you to decide what the performers sing? If so, then Copperstate Dinner Theater has a performance for you. Broadway Jukebox features 120 songs from such well-known Broadway shows as Chicago, Cats, Les Miserables, Show Boat, 42nd Street and Grease, to name a few. For the price of admission $32.95, which includes dinner, tax, tip and the show you get three selections from the giant jukebox that has taken over the stage. While the audience is enjoying dinner included in ticket price is a salad, rolls and entrée (chicken teriyaki, prime rib, salmon or vegetable lasagna), as well as select beverages the cast will come around and collect the jukebox selections. The votes are then tallied and the shows musical director, Judi Holmberg, who plays all of the nights tunes on stage sitting behind the piano, arranges the order of the show about a half hour before the curtain rises.
“I like the fact that it changes every night, it gets the adrenaline going,” said [Lizz Reeves Fidler], one of six cast members that brings the audiences selections to life. The nights show is then written on a big white board in chronological order, with the actors names next to the songs they must perform. So, if it has been awhile since an actor has performed a certain song, they have a few moments to brush up on the lyrics. That is what keeps you on your toes with this show, said Noel Irick, who has managed Copperstate Dinner Theater for 12 years, along with her husband, Peter J. Hill. The latter is the shows creator and director while Irick does the choreography and is one of the six actors on stage.
This marks the third time that Broadway Jukebox, which runs through Sept. 3, has enjoyed a long run at Copperstate Dinner Theater. It was performed in 2003, with Irick and Jesse Berger the lone two returning actors from that cast. Not only has the cast changed, so, too, has the jukebox itself. Each actor is responsible to bring seven Broadway hits that they can perform well. The actors favorites are then mixed with current Broadway hits and old standbys such as On Broadway, Hey Big Spender, Tomorrow and All That Jazz to create the 120-song jukebox. So, for any fan of Broadway, there will be some favorite songs on the massive list. Broadway is one of my favorite genres, so I love singing these songs, said actor Michael Stewart. Stewart, along with the other two male singers in the production, Berger and Charlie Jourdan, are responsible for one of the shows most memorable moments.
Without giving too much away, lets just say that you haven’t seen Hey Big Spender done like this before. And that goes for Tomorrow and the overture to Gypsy. Yes, the show does have a few numbers they do every night regardless of votes, but those regular numbers also are songs that always get picked, Irick said. And after seeing them and the laughter that ensues, who cares if someone selected them or not? If we did every song that gets voted, in its entirety, wed have a four-hour revue, Irick said. Instead, you get a production that averages two hours, though, like the show itself, the length changes nightly. For the actors, who have been performing this run of Broadway Jukebox since early June, change is a good thing. That’s one nice thing, Jourdon said. He added another working for Irick and Hill. They are creative people who are fun to be around, Jourdon said. And that makes it fun to come in and do your job. Jourdan is not alone in having a good time, and that is evident by the performances on stage. “We all get along and have good electricity together on stage,” Reeves said. “I really appreciate the actors/singers in this cast.” So does the audience, even in the evenings participatory number, Stump the Cast. For those members who can do just that pick a Broadway show that ran for at least 500 shows, and if no actor can sing eight bars from a song in that production, you earn a small bottle of champagne. I’ve always been interested in doing audience participation, said Stewart, who created an improv troupe when he lived in Ohio. He had this message for future audience members: Bring some good shows to try and stump us. But I warn you, we are getting better and better as the show goes on.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Broadway Jukebox.
COMPANY: Copperstate Dinner Theater.
WHEN: Through Sept. 3 at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday with dinner served at 6:30, and 7 p.m. Sunday with dinner at 5:30.
WHERE: Inside Phoenix Greyhound Park, 3801 E. Washington St., Phoenix.
COST: $32.95 includes dinner, tax, tip and show. Appetizers, soft drinks and desserts are extra. A full-service bar is available as well.
BOX OFFICE: 602-279-3129.
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