In terms of movies and comedies in general, 1974 was something of a watershed year. From movie director Mel Brooks came not one but two films destined for classic status: “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein.”
More recently, Brooks converted two of his movies to Broadway musicals. For “Young Frankenstein: The Mel Brooks Musical,” Brooks wrote the music, lyrics and, with Thomas Meehan, the show’s book.
The musical spent over a year on Broadway, followed by national tours and a London remount.
The Little Theatre of Winston-Salem will bring the singing, dancing and comical “drama” of Brooks’ invention to the Dunn Auditorium at the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, starting Friday night.
“Young Frankenstein” follows the American grandson of the infamous Victor Frankenstein, who created a monster from dead body parts in his Transylvania castle.
Frederick, the grandson (played by Lane Fields), is pursuing a career as a scientist — until he inherits the creepy castle and must visit it. He leaves behind his fiancée, Elizabeth (Amber Engel), and encounters an eccentric group of “assistants” at the castle: the hunchback Igor (Seph Schonekas), the flirtatious lab assistant Inga (Kayla Guffey), and the housekeeper Frau Blücher (Katie Jo Icenhower).
When he finds his grandfather’s research and the old laboratory, he abandons reason and becomes the mad scientist he was meant to be.
The cast includes Mike Burke, Matthew Cravey, Troy Hurst, Jim McKeny and Jeffrey Payton. The ensemble is made up of Roberts Bass, Shelly Beard, Elissa Brannan, McAyla Butler, James Crowe, Kaelyn Fansler, Charity Hampton, Isaac Hampton, Angela Hodges, Matthew Monroe and Tenesia Turner.
Philip Powell is in charge of putting all this energy and classic comic lines on the stage, with the aid of music director Dan Dodson and choreographer Becky Koza.
“It’s fun to take on this show that I was totally unfamiliar with, because I didn’t know the music,” Powell said. “It’s faithful to all the madcap comedy that’s in the original. To see all that played out on stage is fantastic and fun.”
Powell finds that it reminds him of “Rocky Horror,” which was both a movie and a stage play as well.
“I think there’s at least a 50 percent chance,” as with “Rocky Horror,” that “the audience will be mouthing the lines before the actors get done with them,” he said.
One aspect that differentiates the musical from the movie, Powell noted, is that there are multiple big dance numbers. “We’re bringing a lot of production values to it.”
Lane Fields, Little Theatre’s executive director, added that “audiences are in for a real treat with the choreography. It’s just so energetic and fun.” “I think ‘Young Frankenstein’ might have been the first Mel Brooks movie I saw, and that was when I fell in love with Mel Brooks,” Fields said about his role as Frederick. “It’s such a great character, and of course, it’s Gene Wilder,” he said. “Any time you can step into his shoes, it’s incredibly daunting, but also a lot of fun, because he leaves you so much”
Schonekas is taking on another indelible character in the not-always-useful Igor, played in the movie by Marty Feldman. that’s weird is that I’m a 6-foot-3 Igor. I don’t think that’s entirely best suited to the character.”
But bringing in the laughs remains the top priority. “It’s fun because everything I get to do in this show is just to make people have a good time,” Schonekas said.
Guffey, as Inga, said, “I come from a place where I really like to feel out the character and dig for myself before watching how others might have played her. Things such as how sentimental is she, how much does she just like attention, how does she feel about each person in this story.”
Eventually, part of the cast watched the film, with Teri Garr in the Inga role. “I think I just found that I already had some similar tendencies to what I saw in the movie,” Guffey said.
“Our challenge with this show,” Fields said, “is staying truthful to the movie and its well-known lines,” while also accommodating the song and dance additions.
Fields has no worries, though.
“What I have found the case to be ever since I moved here,” he said, “is how hard casts work in this town, how they will give everything to make sure that the production comes off. This cast is no exception. They raise the bar for everybody. It is a great ensemble.”
The musical spent over a year on Broadway, followed by national tours and a London remount.
The Little Theatre of Winston-Salem will bring the singing, dancing and comical “drama” of Brooks’ invention to the Dunn Auditorium at the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, starting Friday night.
“Young Frankenstein” follows the American grandson of the infamous Victor Frankenstein, who created a monster from dead body parts in his Transylvania castle.
Frederick, the grandson (played by Lane Fields), is pursuing a career as a scientist — until he inherits the creepy castle and must visit it. He leaves behind his fiancée, Elizabeth (Amber Engel), and encounters an eccentric group of “assistants” at the castle: the hunchback Igor (Seph Schonekas), the flirtatious lab assistant Inga (Kayla Guffey), and the housekeeper Frau Blücher (Katie Jo Icenhower).
When he finds his grandfather’s research and the old laboratory, he abandons reason and becomes the mad scientist he was meant to be.
The cast includes Mike Burke, Matthew Cravey, Troy Hurst, Jim McKeny and Jeffrey Payton. The ensemble is made up of Roberts Bass, Shelly Beard, Elissa Brannan, McAyla Butler, James Crowe, Kaelyn Fansler, Charity Hampton, Isaac Hampton, Angela Hodges, Matthew Monroe and Tenesia Turner.
Philip Powell is in charge of putting all this energy and classic comic lines on the stage, with the aid of music director Dan Dodson and choreographer Becky Koza.
“It’s fun to take on this show that I was totally unfamiliar with, because I didn’t know the music,” Powell said. “It’s faithful to all the madcap comedy that’s in the original. To see all that played out on stage is fantastic and fun.”
Powell finds that it reminds him of “Rocky Horror,” which was both a movie and a stage play as well.
“I think there’s at least a 50 percent chance,” as with “Rocky Horror,” that “the audience will be mouthing the lines before the actors get done with them,” he said.
One aspect that differentiates the musical from the movie, Powell noted, is that there are multiple big dance numbers. “We’re bringing a lot of production values to it.”
Lane Fields, Little Theatre’s executive director, added that “audiences are in for a real treat with the choreography. It’s just so energetic and fun.” “I think ‘Young Frankenstein’ might have been the first Mel Brooks movie I saw, and that was when I fell in love with Mel Brooks,” Fields said about his role as Frederick. “It’s such a great character, and of course, it’s Gene Wilder,” he said. “Any time you can step into his shoes, it’s incredibly daunting, but also a lot of fun, because he leaves you so much”
Schonekas is taking on another indelible character in the not-always-useful Igor, played in the movie by Marty Feldman. that’s weird is that I’m a 6-foot-3 Igor. I don’t think that’s entirely best suited to the character.”
But bringing in the laughs remains the top priority. “It’s fun because everything I get to do in this show is just to make people have a good time,” Schonekas said.
Guffey, as Inga, said, “I come from a place where I really like to feel out the character and dig for myself before watching how others might have played her. Things such as how sentimental is she, how much does she just like attention, how does she feel about each person in this story.”
Eventually, part of the cast watched the film, with Teri Garr in the Inga role. “I think I just found that I already had some similar tendencies to what I saw in the movie,” Guffey said.
“Our challenge with this show,” Fields said, “is staying truthful to the movie and its well-known lines,” while also accommodating the song and dance additions.
Fields has no worries, though.
“What I have found the case to be ever since I moved here,” he said, “is how hard casts work in this town, how they will give everything to make sure that the production comes off. This cast is no exception. They raise the bar for everybody. It is a great ensemble.”
