There’s a woman with a beehive and a poodle skirt selling
tickets from inside a 15-foot soft serve ice cream cone.
Gilroy – There’s a woman with a beehive and a poodle skirt selling tickets from inside a 15-foot soft serve ice cream cone. There are young children with oversized pompadour hairdos handing out programs. And there’s a 20-foot jukebox pumping out a Elvis Presley tune that just begs theatergoers to enter. There’s no doubt about it – this is the 1950s.
In director John Bisceglie’s latest theater project, “Shake, Rattle & Roll!,” he has recreated the post-World War II-era of rock, hop and innocence through elaborate sets and costumes. The production features about 75 children and 30 adults singing and cutting a rug to medleys of classic rock tunes, such as Beach Boys’ “Surfin’ Safari” and Bill Haley’s “Rock Around the Clock.”
“Big and bright and over the top – that’s sort of my brand of comedy,” said Bisceglie, who has written and directed about 35 musical productions in 15 years in Gilroy.
His latest production fits the mold – every actor has a custom-fit wig and a costume hand-assembled from vintage clothing collected during two months of scouring thrift stores. In addition, many of the women’s dresses were custom-ordered and made with more than 80 yards of cloth.
The production – which takes place on a raised platform extending from the main stage and surrounded on three sides by seats – features props from beads to inflatable guitars to wooden cars. Some of these are tossed into the audience as souvenirs during the performance.
“It almost has a cabaret-cruise ship feel,” said Bisceglie, whose “real job” is in business development and sales. “What we love to do is take it and do the era to the T.”
The cost of such a complete production is in the tens of thousands. The registration fee of more than $200 per participant covers more than $15,000 of the expense. Attendance can cover an additional $47,000 if all 13 productions during the next two weeks at the South Valley Middle School cafeteria sell out. However, this is not likely even though several shows have already sold out, said producer Judy McBrearty.
The expense and effort put into both the direction and sets are worth it, said Joy Cabreros, who is in the production with both her husband and 9-year-old son. Her daughter has also appeared in past productions.
“I think it gives the kids a lot of pride,” she said. “They’re part of not just the stage, but everything.”
Even the youngest performers did not mind the marathon practices, which often stretched more than eight hours and late into the night.
“I like being here a long time,” said 6-year-old Thomas McCoy, whose parents are also both in the production. “I like staying up till midnight just practicing this play because it’s funner than going to bed super-early.”
McCoy and other children are a welcome part of the production and an opportunity to mentor peers, said 16-year old William Hoshida.
“They latch on to you,” he said. “It’s kind of warming.
Having a variety of ages creates a feeling of kinship among family members that is conveyed to the audience, said 23-year-old assistant choreographer Jennifer Lazarus, who has acted with Bisceglie since she was 7.
“It makes it a whole family experience,” she said.
