Theater

More than 13 years after its first Broadway performance, Passing Strange is finally making its Utah debut. The raucous rock musical will be performed at Salt Lake Acting Company from April 6-May 15.

Written by Stew and Heidi Rodewald, both members of the rock band The Negro Problem, Passing Strange follows the artistic and personal coming-of-age of a young Black man in 1970s California, referred to only as Youth (Carleton Bluford). Youth, seeking what he calls “the real,” may be inspired by the gospel music he hears in church, but he still rejects the conservative Christian faith of his mother (Dee-Dee Darby-Duffin). With commentary from the wry, fourth-wall-breaking narrator (Lee Palmer), Youth travels to Europe in search of “the real,” diving headfirst into a messy exploration of sex, family and identity.

Though Passing Strange was embraced by critics and won a Tony Award, the musical is an underappreciated cult favorite rather than a big mainstream hit. Still, there remains a fan base for the show and its eclectic score, which features energetic rock songs with influences of soul, gospel and avant-garde music. One of those fans, Spike Lee, filmed the Broadway production in a documentary that premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. (That’s not the musical’s only Utah connection. The creative team first developed Passing Strange at the Sundance Theater Lab in 2004 and 2005.) Now, Utah audiences will have their first chance to see the musical live onstage.

Before leading this production at Salt Lake Acting Company, director Todd Underwood was a fan of the show’s score, especially after watching the cast’s memorable performance at the 2008 Tony Awards. “I need to know this piece because this one little number is blowing my mind,” he thought to himself. Now, Underwood’s appreciation for the musical has only grown. “This piece continues to reveal itself to me every single day…It can change people, can heal people, can give voice to things that maybe you didn’t know needed.” 

For Underwood, the narrative of Passing Strange contains poignant parallels to his own life. He grew up in Tuscumbia, Ala. in a devoutly religious household—his grandpa even founded the church his family attended. He too discovered his love of music through the church—and eventually rejected some of the teachings he grew up with. After coming out of the closet in college, Underwood took his first professional job touring with a production of Blackbirds of Broadway in Europe, a period that was formative in his own self-discovery. 

As Underwood discovered his own personal connections to the material, he encouraged his cast to bring their own experiences and identities to their performances. Underwood describes the protagonist’s journey as “finding what Blackness means for him and how he can be his most empowered self in that Blackness.” To facilitate that same journey with his actors, Underwood’s process began with what one cast member called an “emotional inventory”—in one-on-one interviews, he asked each cast member “what was your search for your Blackness?” Underwood wanted to emphasize that racial identity was a process of discovery, not a fixed state. “It’s a constant search to see where you fit in, in the skin that you’re in,” he explains.

While Underwood says he always tries to create a safe, trusting environment for every production he directs, his experience with Passing Strange has been unique. “There aren’t a lot of all-Black shows that speak to Blackness, so to be able to share and be open and honest in a room like this is incredible,” he says. “There’s a freedom that I wish could go on in all spaces.” As the cast has shared their own stories, Underwood has gone through his own emotional inventory. He cites one particularly poignant line from Passing Strange—speaking with an important mentor, Youth says, “I don’t feel as ugly as I did yesterday.” “My journey is realizing that I’m not ugly because of my skin color, that I’m not ugly because I’m gay and I’m not ugly because I’m black and gay,” Underwood says.

While Passing Strange is rooted in the specific experiences of Black identity, Underwood says the musical is “universal in its themes—love, family, searching, acceptance.” “You learn a lot going to the theater, especially theater like this, where you are probably being exposed to something that you’ve never even thought of before. And I hope that the ride that [audiences] go on is one of joy and self-reflection and light.”

---

For more information and ticket sales, visit Salt Lake Acting Company’s website. Read more about theater in SLC.

In the wake of a worldwide pandemic shutdown, an earthquake that shook Salt Lake City and sudden isolation from others, Teah (Estephani Cerros), a single, LDS woman, goes to see a therapist and instead finds herself on a dating show. Aftershock, by Utah playwright Iris Salazar, will premiere next week at Plan-B Theatre, following the story of Teah as she, prompted by her therapist/game show host (Yolanda Stange), takes a step back to inspect not just life and dating, but also herself and her loneliness.

Salazar took the inspiration for this play from both her own experience as a single woman in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and from others’ experiences around her. “It’s 50% things I’ve actually seen or experienced and 50% made up,” she says.

Salazar had been wanting to write a play about single LDS people, and before the pandemic had written another story about a group of single LDS women that she described as more “cutesy.” But that wasn’t what she was aiming for with this play—she wanted to write more honestly and not sugarcoat the often painful experiences of single people in a religion that strongly emphasizes marriage. After shelving this previous play for a while, Salazar drew inspiration for Aftershock from social media posts she saw from other women openly describing the loneliness, depression and isolation they were experiencing in the pandemic. Salazar says this seemed to especially impact single LDS people, since they do not commonly move in with their partners without being married.

She says it was a challenge to write about therapy and living alone—she herself lives with her mom and brother. To create the character of Teah, she relied on her own interpretations of social media posts about others’ experiences. “I couldn’t relate to that loneliness that I would see people post about on Facebook, so I really had to explore that,” Salazar says.

That doesn’t mean Salazar avoided writing about her own emotions—there are still aspects to Teah that Salazar relates with. She says this personal connection makes this play unique compared to previous plays she has written. Salazar says she typically resists sharing her personal life onstage, but Aftershock required her to be a lot more vulnerable and open about her own emotions.

“I’m more hesitant to share personal things,” Salazar says. “But with this play, that 50% that I did put in there, I was like ‘Oof, this is a lot and people who know me are going to know what’s me.’”

Working a full-time job, Salazar hasn’t had much time to see her play comes to life in rehearsals. However, she has seen enough to feel excited about the play’s premiere next week. She particularly noted the natural flow of the actors, remarking that the actors appeared like they had been together forever.

For the viewers, Salazar noted that “the pandemic has really damaged connections” between people and their friends and family, resulting in some of the loneliness that Aftershock will explore, and she hopes that this play inspires people to find ways to reconnect.

“I hope that they take a step back and try to find those connections again or get help if they need help,” she says.

---

Aftershock will be performed at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center April 7-17, and will stream virtually April 13-17. For more information, visit Plan-B Theatre’s website. Read more Utah theater stories from Salt Lake magazine.

For many 00s kids (and plenty of their parents), the image of Will Ferrell joyfully terrorizing a Macy’s belongs in the Christmas movie canon along with the A Christmas Story leg lamp and the pathetic tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. Now, the modern Christmas classic is getting the full Broadway treatment in a musical production at Pioneer Theatre Company beginning this Friday.

Based on the 2003 movie, Elf follows Buddy the Elf, who at 6’2” sticks out like a sore thumb among the elves at Santa’s Workshop. As an adult, Buddy the Elf learns that he is no elf at all—he is a human who was adopted after sneaking into Santa’s bag as a baby. Heartbroken, Buddy leaves the North Pole and heads to New York City to connect with his real father. Far from Santa’s Workshop, Buddy’s overwhelming love of Christmas and childlike personality confuses, annoys and ultimately wins over the cynical New Yorkers he meets.

For people of my generation—young enough to still believe in Santa when the movie came out in theaters—Elf is a permanent Christmas staple. (The movie is tattooed in my brain from countless day-before-winter-break viewings in elementary school. It still feels most appropriate to watch it on a clunky TV rolled into a carpeted classroom.) Almost two decades later, the film’s mix of self-aware humor and warm and fuzzy Christmas cheer still works—the endlessly quotable dialogue and earnest performances make the holiday movie cliches go down like candy (and candy canes, candy corn and syrup). This musical adaptation, which premiered in 2010, captures the nostalgia of the film and adds a peppy Broadway-pop score.

Elf’s debut at PTC was back in 2013, where it became the company’s most popular holiday production ever. In this new production, Buddy is played by Max Chernin, who was last seen at PTC in Bright Star, with actors Antoinette Comer, Christopher Gurr, Mary Fanning Driggs and Jason Simon playing the other lead roles. Elf’s director, Alan Muraoka, has plenty of experience with family-friendly entertainment. In addition to a decades-long career as both a theater actor and director, Muraoka is best known for his role as Alan on Sesame Street. (The character was introduced in 1998 as the owner of Hooper’s Store, and Muraoka has been a cast member ever since.) This year, he co-directed an episode of the show, “Family Day,” that introduced a family with two gay dads. 

Salt Lake spoke with Muraoka about Elf, Sesame Street and his career in television and theater.

Salt Lake: What can audiences expect from Elf? 

Just in time for the holiday season, this show brings fun and memorable songs, wonderful humor, energetic dancing, and a great story with heart. The idea of Buddy the Elf searching for his family and a place to call home and along the way spreading kindness and joy which touches everyone he meets is the greatest message to share during this time. This is the perfect show to share with family and friends, and I am very excited for everyone to come back to the theatre to join in on the fun.  

SL: Tell us about your experiences working with this cast and crew at Pioneer Theatre Company. 

This is my first time working with Pioneer Theatre Company, and I am so grateful for the opportunity. Everyone on the creative staff is so welcoming and collaborative, and I appreciate it. 

Our cast is filled with a combination of great local talent and NY actors, and I’m always amazed how quickly in theatre, strangers can bond and become a family. I have personal experience with several of the cast and creative staff. Our Musical Director, Tom Griffin, hired me as an actor for my first professional job back in LA back in 1983. Choreographer Rommy Sandhu and I have been acquaintances for years but have never worked together until now. One of the actors, Howard Kaye, and I did the original Broadway production of Miss Saigon back in the mid-90’s, and another cast member, Danielle Decrette and I did the National Tour of Lincoln Center’s Anything Goes back in 1989 and shortly after she gave up performing to raise three beautiful girls. This is her return to performing after many, many years. 

SL: You have spent more than two decades on Sesame Street, but you also have worked extensively in theater. What excites you about working in live theater? 

I love both theatre and television for different reasons, but the most wonderful and unique thing about theatre is that it is live. Anything can happen in live theatre, and so every performance is slightly different. I love how the audience actually plays a huge part in this as well. Actors feed off the energy of an audience, and so the audience is a vital piece of the overall experience of theatre. 

SL: You have worked both behind and in front of the camera on an iconic show for children and families. What have you learned on Sesame Street about performing for this specific audience? How did you apply this experience to Elf, another kid-friendly production?

Sesame Street has taught me so much, but the greatest thing it has taught me is how intelligent and intuitive children are, and so you must always be honest with them. I always approach every show with finding the truth and honesty in the material. What are the essential heart moments? Where and how does humor come into the world? You always start there, and then find what the style of each production is and augment and heighten from there. Elf lives in a very fast-paced, almost sitcom style, but it has such a huge heart as well. So, it’s finding the balance and energy required so that both elements shine. 

SL: You recently co-directed “Family Day,” an episode of Sesame Street featuring a gay couple. What did it mean to you to share this story featuring a queer family?

It is very important to me that everyone feels represented on Sesame Street, because we strive to be a world of inclusion, diversity, kindness, and love. I was very proud to be a part of this episode which shows that there are many kinds of families and that every one of them should be understood and accepted. 

SL: You have now been on Sesame Street for more than 23 years. When you were originally cast, did you ever expect to perform in the series this long? What interests you in coming back every season?

 My first season of Sesame Street was back in 1998, and we were celebrating 30 years on the air. In my head as an actor coming from theatre, a run of a show is anywhere from a few months to a couple of years. So, in my head I thought, “If I make it to five years on the show, that will be a great run.” So now that I’ve been at Sesame for 23 years, it’s both astounding and surreal. What makes Sesame Street so unique and special is that since we have been producing new shows for 52 years, we are able to address current issues that affect children both here in the US and throughout the world. This past year and a half is a perfect example. During the pandemic we realized that both children and families had so many questions, and so we created a partnership with CNN to host Town Hall specials about COVID where children and parents could submit questions, and a panel of experts (doctors, scientists, and educators), along with our beloved Muppets, helped provide answers and support. We also created specials in response to the necessity of the Black Lives Matter movement (Emmy-winning The Power of We), and in response to the increase of racial incidents against Asian Americans (See Us Coming Together, which premieres on Thanksgiving Day on HBO Max, PBS, and YouTube). I am extremely proud to be a part of a show that educates, entertains, and teaches children everywhere how to be smarter, stronger and kinder. 

SL: You recently directed another Utah production: the world premiere of Gold Mountain with Utah Shakespeare Festival. Tell us about this production and your experience with it.

Gold Mountain was special for me because it was a culmination of seven years of collaboration between the composer and playwright Jason Ma and myself. We both felt that the show was a testament to the history of these Chinese railroad workers who helped build the Transcontinental Railroad, literally helped to create the United States of America, and then were erased from the history books. It was a labor of love, and I was so happy with the production, the actors, the designers, and that the reception from the SLC community was so warm and welcoming. We hope it has a bright future, and we are grateful that it began in the state where these two trains met back in 1869. 

SL: Had you been to Utah before directing these two productions? How have you liked being here? 

I have spent time in both Cedar City and SLC, and I have to tell you there are times that I look up at the mountain ranges with the sun hitting them in the morning and at sunset, and it takes my breath away. I was last in SLC and Ogden in 2019 when we celebrated Spike 150 with a concert version of Gold Mountain, and I was charmed by the city, the people, and the food. One of my favorite food items that is available here in the city are a pastry called a Kouign-amann, which is basically a croissant which is rolled in sugar, so it is both caramelized and buttery. My personal favorites are from Eva’s and Les Madeleines, and I’ve introduced all of our NYC actors and designers to these little pieces of heaven. I gave a bunch of them to the Gold Mountain cast and crew for Opening Night, and they absolutely loved them. 

SL: Tell us anything else you would like readers to know about this musical.

For many of our cast this is their first live show back since the pandemic shut down theatres throughout the country, and so there is a sense of urgency in wanting to get in front of live audiences once again. So, we are ready for you SLC. I hope you are ready for us.

---

Elf will be performed at Pioneer Theatre Company from Dec. 3-18. For tickets and more information, visit their website. Read all of our theater coverage.

Here’s how surreal it feels to attend live theater again in 2021. In Pioneer Theatre Company’s performance of Ain’t Misbehavin’—the company’s first production in 18 months—one of the biggest cheers of the night happened when the cast first walked on stage and, all at once, took off their face masks. Yes, it was touching to celebrate a long-awaited return to the theater, but it may have pointed to how audiences’ standards have lowered since the beginning COVID-19. Now, we’re just happy to see a full human face in person.

Luckily, this show would be a success even if we weren’t all newly relieved to finally watch performers live on stage. Ain’t Misbehavin’, which debuted on Broadway in 1978, is a revue featuring the music of Fats Waller, a jazz composer and performer with hundreds of well-known songs in the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s. The musical shows off Waller’s remarkable versatility as a musician equally adept at comedic novelty songs, aching ballads and uptempo ragtime numbers. Ain’t Misbehavin’ includes nearly 30 of his best-known original songs and covers in its breezy 90 minute runtime, bookended by fast-moving montages with shorter snippets of his music.

The performance is mostly musical numbers, and besides brief sketches and introductions, dialogue is sparse. Still, you don’t need to be a particular fan of Waller, or even this era in American music, to find something to appreciate. I came in knowing next to nothing about Waller’s songs or career, but I found plenty to enjoy in the cast’s performances. Some of the songs are tied to news events of Waller’s era—a World War II-themed sequence includes references to wartime scrap drives in “Cash for Your Trash” and ”When the Nylons Bloom Again,” which describes a mid-1940s nylon shortage that caused riots, theft and a robust black market. However, most of the songs are remarkably timeless, and even in the most old-fashioned numbers, audiences can hear the blueprint for sounds in rock and R&B that remain influential today.

The five cast members—Tyla Collier, Tyrick Wiltez Jones, Mariah Lyttle, Terita Redd and DeMone Seraphin—are uniformly excellent. Remarkably, Redd gives a strong performance even after she was hit by a car and injured shortly before opening night. (Some of her blocking was modified.) Jones, an excellent dancer, brings panache to the choreography from director Gerry McIntyre, and Seraphin shines in the musical’s goofiest comedy songs. Equally as important, the on-stage orchestra, led by music director William Knowles, nailed each lively arrangement in the wide-ranging score. (Sadly, the musicians were obscured by glass barriers, though extra safety precautions never hurt.) 

Ain’t Misbehavin’ generally keeps it PG, but many of the songs are, well, a lot naughtier than you might expect. The cast clearly revels in the songs’ rowdier moments. In “Find Out What They Like,” Lyttle and Redd milk the contrast between the old-fashioned (read: sexist) gender dynamics in the lyrics and the ribald connotations just below the surface. The show’s most outrageous song, “The Viper’s Drag,” begins with “I dreamed about a reefer 5 feet long,” and Jones’ slinky performance of the number is one of the few times the musical’s nightclub setting feels genuinely seedy. 

The creative team for Ain’t Misbehavin’ favors a scaled-back, simple approach, especially compared to the flashier musicals PTC sometimes produces. At times, the actors performed with scripts nearby, though the production never felt unrehearsed. The period costumes, by Sarita Fellows, look great, and the actors make simple modifications for some numbers rather than full costume changes. Jo Winiarski’s scenic design is especially effective—the stage initially looks like an in-progress rehearsal space, but gradually added lights, curtains and other elements create a 1930s nightclub before our eyes. In the show’s best moments, the simple approach pays off. In a clear highlight the cast performs “Black and Blue,” a heartbreaking 1929 song about the personal horrors of American racism. The performers literally just sit and sing to an unadorned arrangement, but their striking harmonies are more than enough to evoke the pain in the lyrics, written by Black songwriter Andy Razaf, that sadly remain relevant almost a century later. 

---

Ain’t Misbehavin’ will be at Pioneer Theatre Company through Sept. 25. More information and ticket sales can be found on their website. Follow more arts and entertainment stories from Salt Lake magazine.

Last spring Salt Lake City lost our Sister Dottie. Actor Charles Lynn Frost passed away on May 19 at age 67 from colon cancer. Sister Dottie S. Dixon, the creation of Frost and Troy Williams, was more than just a star of stage and a long-time staple on the radio in Salt Lake, both on KRCL and X96. The beloved character, a Mormon housewife from Spanish “Fark” (“the Spanish,” as she also called it), admonished all of us to love everyone equally (“on account of m’ gay son”). The loving, chiding character, what with her gay son and all, was integral to helping grow acceptance and understanding for LGTBQ people in our city. She was the lady in the ward we all knew, a familiar figure, especially for queer Mormons.

She dished out lots of advice and casserole recipes over the years, especially on her KRCL show What Not, What Have You and Such as That with Sister Dottie S. Dixon. A selection of these shows was compiled several years ago onto a CD called This I Know. We sat down, gave it a sentimental listen and imagined a text chat with Sister Dottie from up there in “Celestial.”  ’Preciate ya Sister!

“Repressing your authentic self is like telling a flower not to bloom or a butterfly not to come out of its cocoon.” 

“I got something to say to people who ain’t interested in caring for the planet. First of all, climate change is affecting everybody and it’s everybody’s business. That means you! And when your crops, your animals and even your 11 children are as shriveled up as Orrin Hatch’s second face lift don’t be blaming the liberals for not warning you.”

“Sometimes we Mormons could use some aversion therapy ourselves.”

“I learned in the Bible that God so loved his pagan children that he had to have his chosen people up and kill them all. That way they wouldn’t corrupt all the true believers. Now some people might think that a bit cruel but it just shows you how much love our Heavenly Father for all of his people. It really makes sense if you don’t stop and think about it too much.” 

“Sometimes, when you think someone is evil most likely it’s just you being plain old ignorant. So wise up and open up your heart to those that are differenter than you are.”

“Remember your values and always be modest and appropriate when courting a sweetheart regardless of your orientation or non-conforming gender expression.”

“All you straight men stop acting so macho just so people don’t think you’re gay.” 

“You don’t have to be rational as long as you have a testimony.”

“I just wish all of God’s children would stop bickering all the time…When the hell are we going to stop fighting and name-calling and just start to love one another? It’s time we all grew up and behaved like adults, dagnabit!”

---

While you’re here, subscribe to Salt Lake magazine.