Summer Fool’s Festival: “Violet”

Who doesn’t love a good musical?  Last week I met with a couple of the core artists at the Liberty Theatre in Hailey, RL Rowsey and Denise Simone, to discuss the upcoming Summer Fools Festival.  Although we are still 10 weeks away from the opening, I can feel the excitement in the air… most likely carried by the sounds of saws and hammers as the set builders in the background were at work creating yet another masterpiece.   

The musical for this year’s festival is “Violet”, written by Brian Crawley and Jeanine Tesori.  Following is the description taken from the Company of Fools website:

“Set in 1964 in the Deep South during the early days of the Civil Rights Movement, Violet follows the growth and enlightenment of a young woman accidentally scarred by her father. In hopes that a TV evangelist can cure her, she embarks on a journey by bus from her sleepy North Carolina town to Oklahoma. Along the way, she meets a young black soldier who teaches her about beauty, love, courage and what it means to be an outsider. One of the most acclaimed off-Broadway shows of the ’90s, Violet astounded critics and audiences with its powerful story and its energetic, toe-tapping Gospel, Rock, Country, and Rhythm and Blues score.” Featuring Andrew Alburger, Jana Arnold, Michelle Carter, Scott Creighton, Keith Moore, Cheryl Morrel, Cliff Todd, Kevin Wade and Debra Wagoner.

A genuine sincerity and sweetness that can pierce through one’s skepticism… blessed with some lovely indigenous music… a smart amalgam of country, church and blues.
- Seattle Times.

While I enjoy all of the productions by Company of Fools, I personally think that the musical is a style at which they absolutely excel.  John Glenn, another core company artist, will be the director for this play.  Like everyone involved with the Summer Fools Festival, John is another incredible individual with over 30 years of varied experience in the world of professional theatre.  Musical direction for this play will come from the VERY talented RL Rowsey, and the only thing I can tell prospective viewers of this performance is that everything will be top notch! 

For more information on the Summer Fools Festival, visit the Company of Fools website and for discounted theatre/lodging packages you can visit The Inn at Ellsworth Estate website.

Ivan Neville Rocked the House Ya’ll!

Last night’s performance at The Mint by Ivan Neville and Dumpstaphunk was a huge success.  The ringing in my ears that will continue for the next couple of days is a small price to pay and a nice reminder of the amount of fun I had at the concert.  I especially liked the cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son” and another song called “Put it in the Dumpster”. 

Hailey’s finest turned out for the event, and I was happy to see that the place was absolutely packed.  Since we are dipping into our slack season, I was worried that there wouldn’t be enough locals interested in spending their Thursday evening out on the town; sometimes it’s great to be wrong!  Although I was at work and didn’t make it for Lura’s performance at The Liberty Theatre, I did see her enjoying Neville and Dumpstaphunk’s performance later on in the evening.  This post is a little short because I am quite tired today.  More this weekend on Company of Fools!

‘Company of Fools’ Announces New Season

I consider the Wood River Valley to be the last “civilized” area before entering into the great wild wilderness of central Idaho.  Just beyond our northern borders lie rugged mountains, open valleys, a few roads, and even fewer people.  As such, we do our best to fit this oh-so-vague and somewhat arbitrary definition of civilized.  One of those things that actually lends credence to the title “civilized” is the small but professional theatre group based out of the Liberty Theatre in Hailey called the Company of Fools. 

Before I had crossed the threshold of the Liberty, it was already my (second) favorite building in town!  (The Inn of course is #1)  The art-deco facade out front stands out brilliantly on Main Street and lends an exciting quality to the town.  I had always wondered what curious denizens occupied this space and when I attended the Christmas performance of “Fools Holiday Songbook” in the winter of 2004 I was not disappointed.  The performance itself was delightful, and the theatre, while absolutely historic, has incredible equipment, great views, and the most comfortable seats I have ever been in!  I’ve come a long ways since this first quick glimpse into the world of the theatre and now we work with the Fools on a regular basis to kick around different ideas, provide theatre/lodging packages, etc.

The reason I am mentioning them in today’s blog is that they just released the new season for 2008-2009, and I am very excited to see what’s coming up.  The next production is the Summer Fool’s Festival, taking place from July 1 2008 to August 3 2008.  This is composed of three plays performed on a rotating basis at the Liberty.  I don’t have specific dates for each play in the  Summer Fool’s Festival, but as soon as I have this information I will post it.  I also realized that to go into detail on all the plays in one blog would be a little excessive, so I have decided to focus on one play per blog, give a little background, and make a few comments.  Today is just the intro:)  I’ll list the plays below. 

Summer Fool’s Festival:  July 1-Aug. 3 2008
Violet
Collected Stories
Noises Off

Jack & the Beanstalk  Oct. 8-26 2008

It’s A Wonderful Life: Live Radio Play  Dec. 17 2008 - Jan. 4 2009

The House of Blue Leaves  Feb 18 2009- March 9 2008

 

Thursday April 10: It’s Happenin’ in Hailey!

Two world-class musicians will grace downtown Hailey with their presence next week.  Lura, a Cape Verde native, will be performing at The Liberty Theatre at 730pm.  My first question was “Where the heck is Cape Verde?”  Turns out this is a small island chain off the western coast of Africa.  It was uninhabited originally but colonized by the Portugese in the 1500’s.  I checked her out on YouTube, just like the ad in the paper asked, and was immediately taken in!  If I had to describe her voice I would say “raw honey”; it’s definitely worth hearing!  Please follow the link above to check it out.  If you’d like tickets, please call 208.726.9491

The second musician comes from New Orleans, LA, and goes by the name of Ivan Neville.  He’s the son of famed musician Aaron Neville.  I am originally from Baton Rouge, so the chance to see another Louisiana native here in Hailey is all the reason I need to go!  Ivan and his band, Dumpstaphunk, perform, if you haven’t already guessed, blues and funk.  Feel free to check them out on YouTube  I was very excited to see that The Mint will be offering half-price tickets ($12.50) if you present your ticket from Lura.  The Show will start at 10pm and the ticket does include a free drink.  See you at the show!  208..788.MINT for tickets.