Five Questions for Leigh Scarritt

San Diego theatre veteran Leigh Scarritt is appearing with Lyric for the first time this season, as Aunt Alicia in Gigi. Leigh is a regular on San Diego stages including Starlight and the Old Globe. She’s an actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, director, writer, and composer, who also teaches voice and is a personal exercise trainer (whew). Leigh wrote, composed, and directed the play Angels Among Us at the Coronado Playhouse. She has appeared in television shows including Three's Company, Too Close for Comfort, General Hospital, and The Jerry Lewis Show. Her movie appearances include Used Cars with Kurt Russell and In Search of My Son with Richard Thomas. She took a break from rehearsals to answer our Five Questions.

When did you know you wanted to be in musical theatre? 

I think I did my first prossional show when I was maybe 4. I was Gretel in The Sound of Music. My grandfather was dying at the time and he came to see the show. It felt like a gift for him and it was such a gift for me that even though he was ill, he came to see it. I remember the power of his love from the audience and my love for him, and that anchored me in the power of love as it transferred over the pit lights.

Also, I was a very painfully shy kid. I always felt the most free and the most myself on stage.

Did you have a mentor? Who was it, and what did he or she do to encourage you?  

My mother’s a brilliant musician herself, and really planted in myself and my siblings the love for art in every different form, whether painting or sculpting or instrumental music, theatre… She birthed that and fostered it. Then there was a wonderful woman here in San Diego named Deanne Johnson, who picked my out of a lineup for a show at Lyric Dinner Theatre when I was 16 -- the lead in Babes in Arms. She saw something in me that she thought was worthwhile. It was my first lead role as an adult, and I got my Equity card from that. I must have done 20 shows for her in the next 20 years.

What’s the most unusual or useful advice you’ve ever received concerning your career? 

Don’t try to be someone you’re not, be exactly who you are, so you get hired for the right projects. Don’t try to chase your tail.

What do you think most people would be surprised to know about working in musical theatre?  

It ain’t all that glamorous backstage! Sometimes there’s only one toilet.

If you could have a different job, what would it be? 

I wouldn’t have a different job! My first job is being a parent, and I would completely content if that was all I had ever been. But any other profession -- no.

Tenor Benjamin Robinson Chats about “Gigi” and More

 After a triumphant Lyric debut as Frederic in last season’s Pirates of Penzance, young tenor Benjamin Robinson tenor returns this season Gaston LaChaille in Gigi and will be back in spring as Marco in The Gondoliers. This year he also makes his debut with the Cape Cod Symphony in a program of Viennese operetta alongside former co-star and Lyric favorite, Megan Weston, and sings Lieutenant Joe Cable in South Pacific with Anchorage Opera. 

1. What was it about the role of Gaston that interested you? What do you like best about performing with Lyric?

This role is really different from what I usually do; he's grown up and sophisticated.  He can have anything he wants, but he is most moved by Gigi, who is an unlikely choice. 

Working at Lyric is great not only because of the beauty of San Diego, but because this theatre offers me a chance to grow when I come here. Jack and Leon are very insistent that I get something out of my experience, and expand on what I bring to the table.

  

2. There is an iconic performance of Gaston on film, by Louis Jourdan. How will your portrayal be different or similar to his? With a famous role like this, is there pressure to either copy his style or be completely different?

Louis Jourdan certainly oozes confidence, class, and style and I would be lucky to get away with one of those three in my own life. I think the audience wants to see similarities to Mr. Jourdan's performance, but I think that this lies mostly in the "nuts and bolts" elements: my deportment, my "charm," and my likability. Personally, I see Gaston as someone who has been waiting a lifetime to get out of the rut that his social life has presented to him. I really want to work up to riding this wave of discovery that Gaston experiences as he and Gigi begin to have a romantic chemistry. 

3. What do you like about being a traveling artist? What habits have you developed to make life on the road easier?

Certainly coming to places like San Diego make being a traveling artist a nice lifestyle. I haven't been in "the biz" for a long time, but already I look forward to returning to places I've previously worked so I can see the friends I've made, eat at restaurants that I remember, and try new things. I really love getting to know a place thoroughly, and you do when you get to stay there for a month at a time! 

Life on the road for me is FULL of bad habits- I can never remember what to pack!  It has helped to condense my traveling life to as little stuff as possible. I think the thing that helps the most though is contacting old friends or family in the area and making arrangements to see them. I have family in Huntington Beach that I rush up to see when I get my first break from rehearsals. Reconnecting with people has really been a highlight of this kind of travel. 

4. What's on your iPod? How do you pass the time when not working?

I'm a complete opera geek- I've been listening to the fabulous Carol Neblett (a southern California native) in La Fanciulla del West lately. When I stray from classical music, I really appreciate singers who can sing! Christina Aguilera, Norah Jones, Beyonce. 

When I'm not working, I love gardening- don't have a garden in Boston, but I love going home to my parents in Michigan and working outside. In high school I was a swimmer, so if I can get to a pool, I do. Other than that, I occasionally subject people to my cooking experiments (never baking!). Sometimes that ends up being better than bad.

Don’t miss Ben and the rest of the talented cast of Gigi - tickets are on sale now.

Challenge Grant: You Can Help Lyric Get “Back in the Black”

Every now and then generous donors to nonprofit organizations will come up with what is known as a Challenge Grant. These grants are a promise to match donations – that is, for every dollar the organization raises, the donor will match it. If you’ve been considering making a donation, doing it as part of a Challenge Grant is a great opportunity to increase the value of your gift at no cost to you.

To kick off the Lyric season right, a special group of our board members has offered a Challenge Grant, above and beyond their normal contributions. They want to help raise enough money to let Lyric start getting back to where we were a few short years ago, when Jack Montgomery used to be able to announce in his pre-show introductions from the stage, “We're in the black.”

This is how it works: for every two dollars we raise, our board group will match it with one dollar up, to $50,000. For example, if you donate $50, the board will add $25 to your gift. Fulfilling this grant will provide us with an additional $150,000 toward the bottom line. While we rank among the most efficient of performing arts organizations, earning 66 percent of our costs through selling tickets, ticket sales simply don’t cover all our production costs, or the fixed costs of maintaining our beautiful building, the Birch North Park Theatre.

We’ve now been open at the Birch for five years. Did you know that we have hosted approximately 800 events during this time, nearly half of them sponsored by Lyric? Or that there are around 70 new businesses in North Park that weren’t there before the Theatre opened? Or that hundreds of people now have new jobs in North Park? And (nearest to our hearts) dozens of tweens and teens have had the opportunity to enhance their performing arts skills at our summer Academy?

Gifts from supporters like you have helped propel these achievements. Please help us get back to being “in the black,” so we can continue this work. The more generous you can be, the better off we will be in the end. Donating online is easy: just click here. If you prefer, you can send in a check or call the office to make a donation over the phone. Thanks in advance for your support!

Five Questions for Laura Bueno (“Gigi”)

We’ll soon get to see local singer Laura Bueno return to Lyric for her first ever lead role, as Gigi. Laura most recently stole all her scenes as Petra in Lyric’s production of A Little Night Music and as Hope in Anything Goes. She regularly performs with musical theatre companies all over town and in the San Diego Opera Chorus, and somehow finds time to teach ballroom dance to kids.

Laura was nice enough to inaugurate our new “Five Questions” feature. Watch this space to see featured artists answer these same questions all season long.

When did you know you wanted to be in musical theatre?  

Thanks to my parents, I grew up watching the classics, such as The Music Man, Carousel, Meet Me in St. Louis, The King and I, and Gigi. I was hooked on them. When my high school did The Music Man my freshman year of high school, that was it - I knew I was in it for life! As a junior and senior, I had the opportunity to star in No, No, Nanette and State Fair, two musicals that aren't done very often.

Did you have a mentor? Who was it, and what did he or she do to encourage you?  

I've always been inspired by my grandmother, who sang professionally for several years in the 1930s here in Southern California, but who died when I was 8 years old. I have always felt a closeness to her and I know that she's looking down and approves of my career choices. I'd also have to say that my mother has been my biggest cheerleader. She's been to every single one of my performances and has encouraged me to follow my dreams.

What’s the most unusual or useful advice you’ve ever received concerning your career?  

Hmm... I'd have to say that the most useful is that people have always said to not give up. Rejection is part of the process, regardless of how good you might be. Also, don't ever stop studying your craft. There is always room for improvement.

What do you think most people would be surprised to know about working in musical theatre?  

It truly is a tricky and complicated job. You've got to be able to sing, dance and act and completely become a character and make that character your own regardless of how cheesy the plot might be. There are no second takes like in television and film. You've got to go out there and make every single performance better than the last. I'm not sure if that's really surprising, but it sure is true!

If you could have a different job, what would it be?  

I wouldn't want a different job! If I could be in a show all the time, I'd be in heaven. I'd pretty much pick starring in a show over anything else.

Got your tickets yet? See Laura dazzle on stage in Gigi, opening at the Birch on Sept. 24.

High-Tech Innovations Add to Success of Summer Academy

The fifth annual Summer Academy at the Birch North Park Theatre concluded on July 29. Each year middle-school and high school students who are seriously interested in performance careers attend this prestigious program. The Academy offers extensive, in-depth training in every aspect of musical theater performance, from the basics of vocal performance, dancing, and acting to how to prepare for an audition.

This year’s Academy students were from schools all over San Diego, including Canyon Crest, La Jolla High, Corriea Middle, Francis Parker, Dana Middle, Bell Middle, Valhalla High, High Tech Middle Media Arts, The Bishop's School, and Golden Valley High. “They were big on talent,” says Academy director Shirley Giltner. “Everyone was very impressed with the talent level of the students and how much we were able to teach them in such a short amount of time.”

An exciting innovation this year was to make use of technology to add to the students’ learning experience. Teachers conducted a master class with baritone Christopher Johnstone via the free online video chat service Skype.  Board member Alex Tiscareno volunteered his time and expertise to set up a computer link in the classroom so the students could have a live video chat with Johnstone, who was in Denver rehearsing for the national tour of “South Pacific” (he will soon take over the role of Lt. Cable). “It was a wonderful way to expose the students to someone who is currently out there in the thick of it,” said Giltner. Artistic Director J. Sherwood Montgomery led the students in a question-and-answer session and then the students had questions of their own. The Skype master class went so well that Giltner plans to repeat it next year with soprano Andrea Huber.

At the end of the Academy’s month of lessons and training, the students performed “Schoolhouse Rock Live Jr.” on stage at the Birch North Park Theatre for a packed audience of family, friends, and the public.

For more information about Lyric’s Summer Academy please visit the website.