February 12, 2025 • 8 mins
The Grand Rapids Civic Theater joins us for a Talk of the Town!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Talk of the Town on news radio with
thirteen hundred and one oh six nine FM Steve Kelly
and Brett Pakita from West Michigan's Morning News. The production
is underway. It's called The thirty nine Steps. Grand Rapid
Civic Theater is the place. The website grct dot org.
Director of Marketing and Communications, Nadias Skidmore is here. Good Mory,
(00:20):
Hello hi and playing three characters. May Fletcher is in
studio with us as well. May, thanks for doing this.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
TOI thank you so much. Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
May is playing Pamela, Annabella and Margaret. But we'll get
to that in just a couple of seconds. So how
do you make a Alfred Hitchcock anything a comedy?
Speaker 3 (00:40):
Well, I would say that that is an excellent question
for the playwright. However, my answer for that is just
the way that a piece of literature or art film
can evolve over time, right, and the way that we
can continue to adapt this work, you know, in an
(01:00):
artsy answer that thank you, thank you, thank you. That's
what I'm here for, you know. But this is based
on a nineteen fifteen spy novel that then became a
Hitchcock film in the nineteen thirties, and then Overtime has
just been adapted in different ways, and we are doing
this play that is this fantastically hilarious, funny farce and
(01:23):
a really enjoyable spin on this story.
Speaker 4 (01:25):
I like, that's my favorite Nadia answer yet. Well, and
I've got two for you, Nadia, so you know where
I'm going to go here. One is that truly does
stand the test of time. You're talking like ninety years. Yeah,
that has not incredible the second production, so I want
to dig a little deeper in that with you and
how it has maintained its popularity. And then the second
thing is another ground up at Civic Theater. First and
(01:47):
all last year you were talking about this, so this
continues for twenty twenty five for you guys, I mean
outside the box, right, doing different stuff.
Speaker 1 (01:54):
That has ability.
Speaker 3 (01:55):
Absolutely. You know, our next show after this is Disney's
Camp Rock, and that's the only show in the season
that we've produced before. So the thirty nine Steps it's
a first timer for us. And in terms of it,
you know, kind of keeping its popularity all these years.
This had a really great run on the West End
over in London, and then it was also brought over
(02:17):
brought over here and had a really great Broadway run
as well. And so because it is this really delightful,
fast paced, enjoyable play. It only has a cast of
four characters, you can produce it on a stage as
elaborate or as bare bones as necessary. And so even
though it can be produced at a higher level like
(02:39):
what we're doing at Civic, it's just a really great
accessible theater piece for people to play with and experiment with.
And I think that's one of the things that has
helped it keep its popularity because it doesn't matter if
you have a theater that can only seat one hundred
people or a theater like ours at Civic that seats,
you know, over seven hundred. It's something that can be
(03:02):
enjoyed by all different audience sizes and produced on all
different kinds of theater budgets.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
It is running now through February second grct dot org.
For more informations, you can just put slash thirty nine
steps to find out more information. So what is more
challenging and we bring May Fletcher into the conversation that
it's a comedy which is not easy to pull off,
or that you get to be three different people in
the play tell us about that mate.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
They kind of almost work hand in hand a little bit.
So we were lucky enough to work with a dialect
coach our first week of rehearsals, Amy McFadden came in
to help us. We have probably six or seven different
actions at this show. I have three different ones German,
British and Scottish. Well boy, Yeah, so that was a
new experience for me. But honestly, the most fun of
it has been. We blocked the show very quickly so
(03:49):
that we could just play for a month and a
half and we got to find that comedy together as
a quartet. Every day we were building a little bit more.
Our director Eric hands pretty much yes and everything we
wanted to do, and so it allowed us to just
find the humor, find the bits, find our relationships from
one character to the next, both within ourselves and to
each other. And so honestly it made the process really
(04:12):
enjoyable and probably easier than one might expect, just because
of the fun that we had.
Speaker 4 (04:18):
All Right, two part question here do you take the
work home with you? So do you have three different
accents that you talk to your friends in when you're
going home? And The second one is did you ever
screw up the accent with the character in your practice session?
Speaker 2 (04:30):
I was okay individual characters because they have different lines.
I think if it was improvisational then I would maybe
fall between the different ones. I'm pretty fortunate we have
two actors playing two different clowns who within the scene
on stage will switch between two different characters with different accents,
different hats, different clothes. For me, I get to play
(04:50):
them very individually. So luckily I'm German and then I'm
Scottish and then I'm British. So for me that was
a little bit easier as far as bringing it home.
There are definitely some sen q's that come out of
my mouth instead of thank you, And there's also a
running bit through the show where the clowns say thank who,
and so that has also become a very big part
of my dialect.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Wow, it's not just the lines, right, it's the sure
the accent and so you play off each other. You
mentioned and I did stand up once, and the hardest
part for me wasn't necessarily remembering everything, it was remembering
what was next after I said something. So yes, talk
to us a little bit about cues. Do you get
them from other people, or how do you know what
(05:31):
to do next?
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Yes, a lot of the script's learning processes learning what
the actor says directly before you. Yeah, and so the
nerve wracking part of that is what if they don't
say what they're supposed to right right? And remembering that cue.
The other thing with this being a comedy is there
are I believe a couple hundred sound effects in this show,
lots of dramatic stings, dramatic music, nineteen thirties music. This
(05:54):
was all originally composed for our show, and we just
started working with that back in tech week, and so
it's a lot of finding that beat, fighting that rhythm.
But with the a comedy and with something like this,
it kind of seels kind of improvy and off the cuff.
But the reality is, as we've been practing this, it's
kind of in your bones at that point and you
(06:14):
feel that timing and feel that rhythm to the point
where maybe there's a couple slips here and there, but
I mean it's almost mathematical at this point.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
That's fun.
Speaker 4 (06:22):
Is it almost like music?
Speaker 2 (06:23):
Then?
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Is it easier because you kind of know from the
sound effects where you are If you've kind of lost
your thoughts for a second.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Absolutely, absolutely, and kind of based on where the other
person just moved on stage or something like that. Yeah,
it is. It is a lot like you know, an
opera almost where it's just one thing right after the next,
and you just you have your cues and your moves
and all of that stuff just kind of locked in
there for you.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
The link is GRCT dot org. Lastly, Nadia tickets and
special nights and I know on Wednesdays you do something
special about folks and what you get to pay for.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
This, Yes, absolutely absolutely so. We have lots of accessible
programming and you learn all about that at GRCT dot
org slash Accessibility. But one of our favorites that we're
really proud of is pick your Price Wednesday. It's where
you can choose what your price point is in order
to attend no matter what you can afford, and if
the suggested prices on the website don't match with what
(07:16):
you're able to do, just call the box office. They're
going to accommodate you for whatever it is that you
need and however it is that you'd like to see
the show that's for our Wednesday night performances. We also
have stage door drinks and libations on January thirty first
and February first. But yeah, we have ASL interpreted performance.
We have a pre show touch tour, which is also
really special that's offered on one night for people who
(07:39):
are visually impaired. They can come in and touch the
scenic design, touch set pieces, get a feel for what
the fabrics are like in a costume. It's just an
incredibly cool experience in a way for people, regardless of
how it is that they need to experience a show.
They'll have the opportunity to do that at Grandarpacific.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Theater GRCT dot org. Slash thirty nine steps to find
out more. Director of Marketing and Communications, Nadya Skidmore, thank you,
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
It's always a pleasure. We love being here.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
Actor in the production, May Fletcher, you figure out which
of the characters she is. Thank you for coming in today.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
This is Talk of the Town on news radio with
thirteen hundred and one oh six nine FM.
This is Talk of the Town on news radio with
thirteen hundred and one oh six nine FM Steve Kelly
and Brett Pakita from West Michigan's Morning News. The production
is underway. It's called The thirty nine Steps. Grand Rapid
Civic Theater is the place. The website grct dot org.
Director of Marketing and Communications, Nadias Skidmore is here. Good Mory,
(00:20):
Hello hi and playing three characters. May Fletcher is in
studio with us as well. May, thanks for doing this.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
TOI thank you so much. Good morning.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
May is playing Pamela, Annabella and Margaret. But we'll get
to that in just a couple of seconds. So how
do you make a Alfred Hitchcock anything a comedy?
Speaker 3 (00:40):
Well, I would say that that is an excellent question
for the playwright. However, my answer for that is just
the way that a piece of literature or art film
can evolve over time, right, and the way that we
can continue to adapt this work, you know, in an
(01:00):
artsy answer that thank you, thank you, thank you. That's
what I'm here for, you know. But this is based
on a nineteen fifteen spy novel that then became a
Hitchcock film in the nineteen thirties, and then Overtime has
just been adapted in different ways, and we are doing
this play that is this fantastically hilarious, funny farce and
(01:23):
a really enjoyable spin on this story.
Speaker 4 (01:25):
I like, that's my favorite Nadia answer yet. Well, and
I've got two for you, Nadia, so you know where
I'm going to go here. One is that truly does
stand the test of time. You're talking like ninety years. Yeah,
that has not incredible the second production, so I want
to dig a little deeper in that with you and
how it has maintained its popularity. And then the second
thing is another ground up at Civic Theater. First and
(01:47):
all last year you were talking about this, so this
continues for twenty twenty five for you guys, I mean
outside the box, right, doing different stuff.
Speaker 1 (01:54):
That has ability.
Speaker 3 (01:55):
Absolutely. You know, our next show after this is Disney's
Camp Rock, and that's the only show in the season
that we've produced before. So the thirty nine Steps it's
a first timer for us. And in terms of it,
you know, kind of keeping its popularity all these years.
This had a really great run on the West End
over in London, and then it was also brought over
(02:17):
brought over here and had a really great Broadway run
as well. And so because it is this really delightful,
fast paced, enjoyable play. It only has a cast of
four characters, you can produce it on a stage as
elaborate or as bare bones as necessary. And so even
though it can be produced at a higher level like
(02:39):
what we're doing at Civic, it's just a really great
accessible theater piece for people to play with and experiment with.
And I think that's one of the things that has
helped it keep its popularity because it doesn't matter if
you have a theater that can only seat one hundred
people or a theater like ours at Civic that seats,
you know, over seven hundred. It's something that can be
(03:02):
enjoyed by all different audience sizes and produced on all
different kinds of theater budgets.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
It is running now through February second grct dot org.
For more informations, you can just put slash thirty nine
steps to find out more information. So what is more
challenging and we bring May Fletcher into the conversation that
it's a comedy which is not easy to pull off,
or that you get to be three different people in
the play tell us about that mate.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
They kind of almost work hand in hand a little bit.
So we were lucky enough to work with a dialect
coach our first week of rehearsals, Amy McFadden came in
to help us. We have probably six or seven different
actions at this show. I have three different ones German,
British and Scottish. Well boy, Yeah, so that was a
new experience for me. But honestly, the most fun of
it has been. We blocked the show very quickly so
(03:49):
that we could just play for a month and a
half and we got to find that comedy together as
a quartet. Every day we were building a little bit more.
Our director Eric hands pretty much yes and everything we
wanted to do, and so it allowed us to just
find the humor, find the bits, find our relationships from
one character to the next, both within ourselves and to
each other. And so honestly it made the process really
(04:12):
enjoyable and probably easier than one might expect, just because
of the fun that we had.
Speaker 4 (04:18):
All Right, two part question here do you take the
work home with you? So do you have three different
accents that you talk to your friends in when you're
going home? And The second one is did you ever
screw up the accent with the character in your practice session?
Speaker 2 (04:30):
I was okay individual characters because they have different lines.
I think if it was improvisational then I would maybe
fall between the different ones. I'm pretty fortunate we have
two actors playing two different clowns who within the scene
on stage will switch between two different characters with different accents,
different hats, different clothes. For me, I get to play
(04:50):
them very individually. So luckily I'm German and then I'm
Scottish and then I'm British. So for me that was
a little bit easier as far as bringing it home.
There are definitely some sen q's that come out of
my mouth instead of thank you, And there's also a
running bit through the show where the clowns say thank who,
and so that has also become a very big part
of my dialect.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Wow, it's not just the lines, right, it's the sure
the accent and so you play off each other. You
mentioned and I did stand up once, and the hardest
part for me wasn't necessarily remembering everything, it was remembering
what was next after I said something. So yes, talk
to us a little bit about cues. Do you get
them from other people, or how do you know what
(05:31):
to do next?
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Yes, a lot of the script's learning processes learning what
the actor says directly before you. Yeah, and so the
nerve wracking part of that is what if they don't
say what they're supposed to right right? And remembering that cue.
The other thing with this being a comedy is there
are I believe a couple hundred sound effects in this show,
lots of dramatic stings, dramatic music, nineteen thirties music. This
(05:54):
was all originally composed for our show, and we just
started working with that back in tech week, and so
it's a lot of finding that beat, fighting that rhythm.
But with the a comedy and with something like this,
it kind of seels kind of improvy and off the cuff.
But the reality is, as we've been practing this, it's
kind of in your bones at that point and you
(06:14):
feel that timing and feel that rhythm to the point
where maybe there's a couple slips here and there, but
I mean it's almost mathematical at this point.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
That's fun.
Speaker 4 (06:22):
Is it almost like music?
Speaker 2 (06:23):
Then?
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Is it easier because you kind of know from the
sound effects where you are If you've kind of lost
your thoughts for a second.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Absolutely, absolutely, and kind of based on where the other
person just moved on stage or something like that. Yeah,
it is. It is a lot like you know, an
opera almost where it's just one thing right after the next,
and you just you have your cues and your moves
and all of that stuff just kind of locked in
there for you.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
The link is GRCT dot org. Lastly, Nadia tickets and
special nights and I know on Wednesdays you do something
special about folks and what you get to pay for.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
This, Yes, absolutely absolutely so. We have lots of accessible
programming and you learn all about that at GRCT dot
org slash Accessibility. But one of our favorites that we're
really proud of is pick your Price Wednesday. It's where
you can choose what your price point is in order
to attend no matter what you can afford, and if
the suggested prices on the website don't match with what
(07:16):
you're able to do, just call the box office. They're
going to accommodate you for whatever it is that you
need and however it is that you'd like to see
the show that's for our Wednesday night performances. We also
have stage door drinks and libations on January thirty first
and February first. But yeah, we have ASL interpreted performance.
We have a pre show touch tour, which is also
really special that's offered on one night for people who
(07:39):
are visually impaired. They can come in and touch the
scenic design, touch set pieces, get a feel for what
the fabrics are like in a costume. It's just an
incredibly cool experience in a way for people, regardless of
how it is that they need to experience a show.
They'll have the opportunity to do that at Grandarpacific.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Theater GRCT dot org. Slash thirty nine steps to find
out more. Director of Marketing and Communications, Nadya Skidmore, thank you,
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
It's always a pleasure. We love being here.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
Actor in the production, May Fletcher, you figure out which
of the characters she is. Thank you for coming in today.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
This is Talk of the Town on news radio with
thirteen hundred and one oh six nine FM.
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