'Working' opens soon; casting call for 'Drum Song'

"Working," a musical based on the premise of Studs Terkel's book of the same title, opens July 18 at The Acting Company in Yuba City.

Directed by John Elliott, "Working" presents scenes and songs from the lives of blue- and white-collar workers ranging from mill workers to managers and from truckers to telephone solicitors.

This off-beat musical has been around for some time. New York Times critic Peter Marks described it in a March 22, 1999, review as "an unashamed celebration of the common man, as wholesome as a Labor Day picnic."

Terkel's book is a massive compendium of transcripts of his personal talks with men and women about the trials and tribulations of the workplace.

Stephen Schwartz adapted Terkel's book for the stage. The music comes from a number of folk-rock songwriters including, among others, James Taylor and Mary Rodgers.

The 19-member Yuba City cast includes: Stephanie Balmer, Gary Conover, Eleanor Bordsen, Anthony Dost, Shannon Doscher, John Proctor, Paisley Moore, Ada Schmidt and John Trent.

The show is slated to run from July 18 to Aug. 24. Tickets are $15, but some special deals are being offered. For instance, during the first week, military personnel can get in for $10.

Elsewhere, the Community Asian Theatre of the Sierra (CATS) has posted a casting call for "Flower Drum Song," an updated version of a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical set in San Francisco's Chinatown in the 1950s.

The original "Flower Drum Song" musical was based on a 1957 novel of the same title by C.Y. Lee, a working reporter with the two Chinatown newspapers, Young China and Chinese World.

The storyline dealt with generational and cross-cultural conflicts in the Asian community of that decade. It broke new ground as the first Broadway musical with a mostly Asian cast. It was nominated for several Tonys and won one.

The original "Flower Drum Song" had lengthy runs on Broadway and in London's West End, and was released as a movie in 1961, but, overtaken by changing social attitudes and the way some of the characters had been stereotyped, the show was seldom produced.

Then, in 2001, "Flower Drum Song" was revived with a new libretto by David Henry Hwang. It updated the storyline with a fresh view into cultures alive in the Asian community. However, the locale is still San Francisco in 1960.

The new "Flower Drum Song" opened in Los Angeles in 2002 where it won three Theatre Ovation Awards. It soon moved to Broadway where it garnered more Tony Award nominations.

Michael Baranowski directs the CATS production, backed by music director Ken Hardin, choreographer George Jayne and artistic director Lisa Moon.

Auditions will be held at the St. Joseph's Cultural Center, 410 S. Church St., Grass Valley, from 1 to 4 p.m. July 20 and 6:45 to 9:45 p.m. July 21.

According to CATS' advance notices, "All ethnicities will be considered. Please bring sheet music to the auditions for a song you know in your key and are comfortable singing. Also, wear loose, comfortable clothing to dance in and either jazz shoes or tennis shoes to auditions and call backs.

"The first hour will be movement, second hour singing and for the third hour, please prepare a two minute (maximum) memorized monologue. Headshots and resumes are required."

A list of parts showed male and female roles available for characters ranging in age from the early 20s to the 60s. Call 273-6362 or e-mail chanmoon@pacbell.net to register for an audition July 20 to 21.

CATS' office will be closed June 30 to July 9. During that time, you may call 265-9435 to register.

Rehearsals start Nov. 17 at locations yet to be announced. The show itself will run at the Nevada Theatre in Nevada City from Jan. 22 through Feb. 14, 2009.

Previous CATS productions have been first rate. So, if you are a performer who shivers at the notion of paper lantern romance and neon nights in Chinatown, then you might want to audition.

Finally, there is another show in the works about the Chinese in California: "Gunpowder Man," which has only two performances at 2 and 7 p.m. Aug. 3 at the Odd Fellows Hall, 12 Spring St., Nevada City.

Despite its title, this California Stage Company and Duende: Drama and Literature Production is actually a one-woman show about Tiger Lily, a young girl who flees China's horrific Taiping Rebellion in the 1860s and makes her way to California.

Here — disguised as a teenage boy — she works for the Central Pacific Railroad planting explosives in the Sierra Nevada to blast a path to the Pacific Ocean for the transcontinental railroad.

California State University, Sacramento, student Jennifer Ly is the star. Playwright and director Rick Foster will answer questions after her performances.

Tickets are $10. Those 12 years old and younger can get in for $5. Tickets are available in advance online at www.brownpapertickets.com, or at Gold Mountain, Words on Paper, or Nevada City Postal Company in Nevada City. Or they may be purchased at the Book Seller or the Briar Patch in Grass Valley.

Tom Nadeau has written for and acted on stage, screen, radio and television. Write to him at theaterland@gmail.com