I’ve got a song stuck in my head. Let’s see if I can get it stuck in yours, too:

Summer fling, don’t mean a thing, but uh-oh those summer nights

Uh well-a well-a well-a huh

Tell me more, tell me more

Our high school’s musical this year is Grease. For reasons that are still not quite clear to me, the high school music teachers are NOT directing this year, and so they’ve had to find some community members to direct. There was a note in the paper about the new directors and the fact that they were still looking for a pianist to accompany rehearsals, and possibly play for the performances. Something about that really tripped my trigger, and so: guess who is the new accompanist???

I really miss musical theater. The church we attended while I was growing up had it’s own theater troupe — my Dad was actually Stage Manager for quite a few productions, and Mom sewed lots of costumes. I think the first costume she ever sewed was a suit for the man that was Harold Hill in a production of The Music Man. If I remember correctly, it’s the only suit she’s ever actually sewn.

I’ve been in The Music Man twice — once in that same production (they didn’t have enough boys for the boys band, so some of us girls got to be in it, too….). When we were living in the Quad Cities (before the boys were born) I was in a production — I got to be one of the Pick-a-little Ladies. We had the wackiest costumes and hats. I’m pretty sure that we stole the show. By the time of the performances we had our shtick down quite well.

My high school only did a musical the year I was a senior — I got to be Lady Larkin in Once Upon a Mattress. I’m trying to remember the other musicals that I remember watching/being part of the backstage crew/or being on-stage for a bit part: Sound of Music, Brigadoon, 1776, Guys and Dolls, South Pacific, Oklahoma. I’m drawing a blank: it seems like there ought to be more, but I can’t remember what they were. Oh, I think there was a production of A Christmas Carol in there somewhere, not a musical, but still….I had a speaking part in that one.

Oh, here’s a funny theater story: the musicals were always in the fall, but sometimes in the spring there would be a Dinner Theater production — in the Fellowship Hall of the church. One year the show was Life with Father — I got to play the love interest of the teenage son. I needed to wear a hair piece in order to have hair that looked appropriate: and the hair piece they wanted me to use was for a redhead. So, I wandered off to the beauty salon and got my hair colored to match, and every night before the show, my mom and I would go to the salon to have the hairdresser style my hair with that hairpiece. (The things we do for our art, right?) Geesh mom, did you have to pay for all of that? I don’t remember.

At some point during this process, my “boyfriend” had made a remark about how he didn’t think he liked the red hair. As soon as the show was over, I headed back to the hairdresser to have her use all sort of nasty chemicals to get rid of the red hair.

Can you see where this is going? As soon as I showed up with my natural blonde hair again he said “Oh, well I kind of got used to the red hair and think you should have kept it.”

Turkey.

Last time I do anything to my hair (or anything else) just to impress a BOY.

So have you still got the refrain from Summer Nights stuck in your head? I think it goes along with the festive party atmosphere here at my blog. Did you comment on my previous post for your chance at a yet-to-be-determined gift?

Uh well-a well-a well-a huh
Tell me more, tell me more

Later gators!

Suzanne