A debut, a comeback and a musical virtuoso — the Burnaby representation is strong at this year’s Theatre Under the Stars productions.
The much-awaited summer season of Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) is back to Stanley Park’s Malkin Bowl from July 6 to Aug. 26, with two musical comedies: The Prom and Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical, celebrating love, acceptance and inclusion.
Taking the helm in these musicals as cast, crew and ensemble members are Burnaby residents Isabelle Morris, Harold Perdomo and Sean Bayntun.
Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical has been a Broadway classic for years. The story, set in a small English village, follows Matilda, a brilliant little girl with a lively imagination, who uses her storytelling ability and magical powers to “fight for the right to be a little bit naughty.”
Morris will be taking on the role of Alice (Matilda’s classmate) in the musical.
For the eight-year-old student at Holy Cross Elementary School, this role will mark her TUTS debut.
“I really wanted to become a famous actor when I grew up,” she said. “There were auditions for this play and I thought, this is going to be my chance.”
Morris first fell in love with musical theatre after seeing a live performance of Hamilton. The Matilda role has been fun, she said, but she admitted to being unprepared for the job's demands.
“I didn’t know it’d be this much work,” she said. “I’m really tired … now that we’re doing tech and our rehearsals end [late night], it’s really tiring.”
The Prom is a comedy about four down-on-their-luck Broadway actors’ attempt to come to a small-town teen’s rescue after her prom gets cancelled, and their journey to finding their “place to belong.”
Burnaby-based Sean Bayntun, who made his orchestral debut as a solo pianist with White Rock Symphony at the age of 16, and at 18 performed as a soloist with the Vancouver Symphony Opera (VSO), will be taking the lead as the music director for the show
The musician, who got his introduction to musical theatre through a TUTS production 20 years ago, described the music in The Prom as eclectic.
“You’ve got … Fosse-type jazz, and almost Rodgers and Hammerstein-esque old musical theatre numbers to Joni Mitchell and even full-on synthesizer dance party [numbers],” he said.
The music is written in a “happy nature” key, he noted, reflecting the storylines. “There are definitely like some really kind of tragic, heart-wrenching moments in the show, but the music always has sort of a bit of a smile on his face.”
“It’s got a lot of hope in it. The lyrics in the songs tend not to go towards despondency and instead, they always feel like they’re looking towards the light, and I think that’s sort of the idea … that things can get better and that things should get better if we continue to work on them,” he added.
The musical also has Burnaby actor Harold Perdomo as an ensemble member.
The Prom role marks a TUTS musical comeback for Perdomo.
After experiencing burnout when he was 24 (in 2006), Perdomo said he wanted to come back to the musical industry as he felt he had a lot of unfinished business with his time with music. “I kind of always felt like I had more to say,” he said. “[Coming back], it’s an incredible opportunity to live the dreams that I had when I was a kid.”
Watching the play, Hamilton, on Disney Plus and seeing people of colour perform was a huge factor in his coming back to musical theatre, he noted.
“The Prom is such a special story,” he said. “And I think that if you can reach just one kid and tell them that they’re OK just the way that they are, that’s really what the whole point of it is.
“When you’re performing, [you get] the opportunity to connect with people and maybe change their perspective or offer them a new idea and a new way to interpret life. And I think that’s something so unique to the profession.".
He hopes that people can walk away from The Prom a little more understanding for anyone that doesn’t feel like they belong to what is “typically considered normal.”
“If you think you’re gay, that’s OK," he added. "Or that if you’re not straight, it’s OK. And that it’s OK to be you just the way that you are. I think that that’s really important.”
The two shows start previews on July 8 and run until Aug. 26 on alternating nights. For tickets and further information, visit tuts.ca
