From Nov. 8-18, the Tryon Little Theater (TLT) Workshop will have a new name and new address. It will transform into the studios of WOV Radio, 730 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. For that matter, the date and year will be different as well. It’s Dec. 21, 1942 (no matter what day you attend), and you will be treated to a behind-the-scenes look at that popular weekly variety show, “The Mutual Manhattan Variety Cavalcade.”
The director of the TLT production of “The 1940s Radio Hour,” Donna Orzano, has announced the cast for this nostalgic musical loaded with familiar songs and fun.
Clifton A. Feddington (Ed Harrelson) is the founder and producer of “The Mutual Manhattan Variety Cavalcade.” Singer and former boxer Johnny Cantone (Steve Porter) has sung “The Star Spangled Banner” at hundreds of sports events (including his own unsuccessful attempt at the welter-weight championship). Discovered as the only singing waitress and stacker at Romeo’s Spaghetti House, Ginger Brooks (Petra Harrelson) became an overnight success. Fellow singer Geneva Lee Browne (Susie Kocher) has a voice that can shatter windows and a body to match.
Ann Collier (Carol Cox) has been with the “Cavalcade” for six years following successful tours with Claude Thornhill and the King Biscuit Entertainers. The WOV Radio orchestra is led with a deft hand by veteran band leader Zoe Doubleman (Pam McNeil). The youngest of the singing Gibson brothers, B.J Gibson (Mason Manna) is following the Gibson tradition of singin’, dancin’ and smilin’ his way into the hearts of radio listeners everywhere. Neal Tilden’s (Paul Adams) career is legendary, working with some the greats and near greats in musical history.
Hailing from Ogden, Utah, Connie Miller (Kate Riedy) has studied tap, ballet and ballroom dance and hopes to become a Rockette. Why she’s at a radio station is unclear. Wally Ferguson (Jamie Riedy) came all the way from Altoona, Pennsylvania hoping for his big break in show business.
Tomorrow, Biff Baker (Josh Moffitt) who plays trumpet or saxophone in the band and carries his horn in a brown, wrinkled bag, goes overseas as a member of a fighter squadron. “Pops” Bailey (John Calure) is the stage doorman. He moves slowly and stands still a lot. Stella (Tena Greene-Porter) more or less lives in the control booth with her cables and coffee, as techies do. Rounding out the cast is the company’s stage manager, Lou Cohn (Gordon Pendarvis), who is perfectly content with a job that has plenty of authority but no responsibilities.
The “1940s Radio Hour” takes the stage at the TLT Workshop Nov. 8-11 and 15-18. Performances are at 8 p.m. on Thursday-Saturdays and at 3 p.m. on Sundays. The box office at the Workshop, located at 516 S. Trade Street in Tryon, opens Thursday, Oct. 25. Call 828-859-2466.
– article submitted
by Elvin Clark