My goal is both to make things universal and also bring back the actors’ and audience’s memories of the time.” “I can bring any time back to the present. “Each era has its own time frame and character, but people have always been the same,” she said. I smile a lot.”Īs for the trip back in time, she said she stayed true to the costumes, music and scripts of each period. “I push people beyond their boundaries, and I push myself beyond expectations. I have to work with people over and over-I have to push people beyond their comfort zone,” she said. Valenti admits that doing comedy as well as singing and dancing is a challenge. “Once people achieve something beyond their normal, the world opens up to them. “We wrongly assume that older people can’t do certain things, but I want to set the bar higher,” she said. She unabashedly draws out the maximum from her actors. “This is only my second shot at directing, but Bob and Barbara said that I ought to try this,” she said, adding that she has a degree in directing from Cal State Fullerton, where she studied Shakespeare. I could thank so many people.”ĭirector Valenti is a newbie at the Theatre Guild. We have a lot of talent on stage, backstage, in advertising and techies. “Since I retired five years ago, I’ve become in awe of the talent here in Laguna Woods. “I am back in the schoolyard with my friends and have fun and just play,” he said. Matonti said that for him and many seniors like him, acting can be a bit scary at first, but it also turned into a lot of fun. “Some of his jokes were incorporated into the show, but I will not copy him but be inspired by him.” “I watched a lot of Bob Hope videos, and I am a World War II history buff,” he said. Hence the show was created as a fundraiser for veterans and ultimately was designated by the Theatre Guild’s board, which includes Vietnam veteran Al Hicks, to raise funds for the Fisher House near the Veterans Affairs hospital in Long Beach.įisher House operates similarly to the Ronad McDonald house where patients under treatment can stay free accompanied by loved ones.Ĭalling the show a “trip back in time,” Matonti said he did a lot of online research about USO shows. “He had done M*A*S*H-type shows with friends and neighbors, variety shows to use as fundraisers, and wanted to do something like that for Christmas this year,” Powell said. She credits Matonti with coming up with the concept and pitching it to her after she wrote last year’s Christmas show. “I grew up with the music from World War II through my parents,” she said. Calling herself a child of the ’60s, Powell said she was drawn to the show’s time frame.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |