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17TH ANNUAL TENNESSEE WILLIAMS FESTIVAL IN THE MISSISSIPPI DELTA

by Joel Vig

A festival celebrating one of America's greatest playwrights took place over the weekend of October 16-17 in the tiny town of Clarksdale, Mississippi. it was in this small Mississippi town that Tennessee Williams (1911-1983) spent some of his happiest years growing up. While many people associate the name Tennessee Williams with places like New Orleans, Key West, Provincetown, and New York City, (all locales he favored as an adult) it was in Mississippi that the writer was born and spent many of his formative years. the people, the settings, and the situations in many of his classic plays and films spring from this picturesque little town in the heart of the Mississippi Delta.

Williams' grandfather, Walter Edwin Dakin, was the rector at St. George's Episcopal Church in Clarksdale for many years. The Williams family while living in Clarksdale never had a home of their own but lived with Reverend Dakin and his wife Rosina in the rectory. The house sits in the very shadow of the Episcopal church. Tom and his beloved sister Rose would play in the house, the church, and the stone patio behind the rectory. Tom would often accompany his grandfather on calls throughout Coahoma and Tunica counties and would hear the gossip and stories told by the parishoners. Many of the colorful characters who populated the town turned up later in the one act and full length plays that williams would write. The town of Clarksdale which, Tennessee would rename in his work Glorious Hill, would play an important part in many of Williams' stories, plays, and screenplays.

St. George's Episcopal Church still stands and has been beautifully maintained. An organ recital on Saturday afternoon by church organist David A. Williamson was one of the festival's many activities. The recital was followed by a reception at the Clarksdale Women's Club across the street. Like all of the rest of the performances and panels and speeches, the concert was free and open to the public. Special thanks for this goes to the festival's generous sponsor's who included Coahoma Communitiy College, the Mississippi Arts Commission, the Mississippi Humanities Council, and the Rock River Foundation. Sitting in the church and listening to the organ music, one could almost imagine Williams' characters such as Lucretia Collins, Amanda Wingfield, or Alma Tutwiler slipping in quietly and sitting in the back.

The Tutwilers were a Clarksdale family. Throughout the town there are glorious homes with family names familiar to anyone who knows the plays of Tennessee Williams. The Cutrer mansion, saved from demolition only a few years back, was one of the sites open for a tour followed by complimentary dessert and coffee. The Wingfield home still stands and is owned by a local artist. Legend has it that Grandmother Wingfield collected glass animals and inspired the idea that Tennessee used so brilliantly as the central metaphor in his play THE GLASS MENAGERIE.

The world of Tennessee Williams completely saturates the town of Clarksdale and its history. People and places from his childhood are favorite stories shared by local residents who knew them first hand. A contemporary of Tennessee's remembered as a school bully was named Brick. Tennessee was victimized by Brick while growing up, but had his revenge by using that name for a character in CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF who struggles with his latent homosexuality. The real life Brick went into a career in law enforcement. The Moon Lake Casino, which figures so prominently in many of Williams' plays, is still in operation and located just a few miles outside of town. The large stone angel, which is the central set piece in both ECCENTRICITIES OF A NIGHTINGALE and SUMMER AND SMOKE was inspired by a huge stone angel tombstone in the largest cemetery in Clarksdale. The angel still stands and looks as though she will for eternity.

What is known as the Baby Doll house is now a beautifully restored home used as a law office. The real Baby Doll grew up in another historic home, the Clark house, now a refurbished mansion which is operated as a luxury bed and breakfast. According to local residents, the real Baby Doll was outraged that Tennessee would use her name for one of his scandalous characters. It is one of the strange paradoxes that one of Baby Doll's kin, Sherrye Williams, is a featured performer in the festival. She performed this year, as she has in years past, the character of Amanda Wingfield in one of the short plays performed on the verandas and porches of historic houses around town. The "porch plays", as they have come to be known, are always one of the highlights of the festival.

Other highlights of this year's festival included a return for the 4th straight year of Broadway legend Tammy Grimes. The two time Tony Award winner performed in a reading directed by New York director Joel Vig of PORTRAIT OF A MADONNA. Carmel Lonergan, a producer for the BBC, returned for the 2nd year to present the radio documentary she put together which aired this last August to an audience of 13 million listeners. Lonergan was bowled over by the festival and expressed the hope that the local residents would realize what an amazing treasure they have. Her goal for the documentary was to transport listers to Clarksdale to give them an insight into who Tennessee Williams was.

Speakers and scholars this year included Ralph Voss, Travis Montgomery, Colby Kullman, Ann Fisher-Wirth, and Kenneth Holditch, the writer and scholar who was instrumental in founding the festival with Panny Mayfield 17 years ago. Industry professionals included local musician Daddy Rich, Alice Walker and Johnny McPhail of Oxford, Mississippi, Erma Duricko and Timothy Brown of the Blue Roses Theatre Company, Jeff Glickman of Pensacloa, Florida, David Kaplan of the Provincetown Tennessee Williams Festival, and Thomas Keith, editor of New Directions Publishing of New York City. Mr. Keith donated books of Tennessee Williams plays to high schools across the state of Mississippi.

Perhaps the most exciting part of the festival was the participation of scores of high school students from around Mississippi. Competing for money for their school drama departments and trophies for themselves, they performed monologues, plays and even participated in the local tradition of the "Stella calling" contest. These students' interest and their teachers dedication to opening them up to the world of this great playwright will help to guarantee a new generation who will thrill to the words of Tennessee Williams.

TIMOTHY BROWN,ERMA DURICKO, AND JOEL VIG IN THE HISTORIC JOHN CLARK HOUSE--CHILDHOOD HOME OF REAL LIFE BABY DOLL
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

SUSAN CONNELL HOLDS A PICTURE OF THE LATE BABY DOLL WHO WAS A DISTANT RELATIVE OF SUSAN'S LATE HUSBAN WILLIS CONNELL
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

SHERRYE WILLIAMS, ANOTHER DISTANT RELATIVE OF THE LATE BABY DOLL, PERFORMS AMANDA WINGFIELD AS A PORCH PLAY
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

MISSISSIPPI HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS SURROUNDING PROFESSIONAL ACTOR JOHNNY MCPHAIL OF OXFORD MISSISSIPPI
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

JOHNNY MCPHAIL PERFORMING "THE LAST OF MY SOLID GOLD WATCHES" AS A PORCH PLAY
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

SCHOLAR ANNETTE SADDICK STANDS IN FRONT OF THE RESTORED CUTRER MANSION
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

3 TENNESSEE WILLIAMS SCHOLARS--RUTH MOON KEMPHER, THOMAS KEITH, AND ANNETTE SADDICK -- STANDING OUTSIDE GROUND ZERO, A POPULAR MUSIC CLUB OWNED BY FAMOUS CLARKSDALE RESIDENT ACTOR MORGAN FREEMAN
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

ACTOR/DIRECTOR JOEL VIG, UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI SCHOLAR ANN FISHER-WORTH, AND ACTRESS TAMMY GRIMES
PHOTO: COLBY KULLMAN

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Riviera Hotel and Spa At 50....Golden Anniversary For Iconic Palm Springs Hotel

by Joel Vig

The year 1959 in America was a time of change. The country was coming to the end of an eight year presidency of Dwight Eisenhower and in November a glamorous, young successor, Senator John F. Kennedy, was elected. Both Alaska and Hawaii would gain statehood by the end of 1959. Pantyhose and the Barbie doll were introduced to the American consumer in that year, and the U.S. set off an international space age buzz with the launch of a rocket with two monkeys on board.

In Palm Springs, the buzz that year was about the Riviera, a new hotel and resort built by Irwin and Mark Schuman, the brothers who owned and ran the wildly popular Chi Chi Supper Club with its famous Starlite Room. The Starlite Room featured a roster of stars including Ella Fitzgerald, Jack Benny, the Andrews Sisters, and a wide range of vaudevillians from the sedate and proper Edgar Bergen to the provocative Gypsy Rose Lee.

Some skeptics doubted the Schuman brothers and their choice of the location at the corner of Vista Chino and North Indian Canyon Drive as being too far out of the commercial loop of downtown. But the Schuman Brothers proved them wrong with a hotel success story that is their greatest legacy in Palm Springs.

The Riviera was the first hotel in the country to be built in a wheel configuration with multiple buildings fanning out like spokes from the central courtyard. The swimming pool was built in the center of the courtyard to be a hub of recreation and social activity. The layout of the hotel with its "futuristic" and unique shape was perfectly suited to the communal mindset of the 1960's.

The hotel had its own golf course, tennis courts, and, with the brothers connections to the top headliners of the day, a cabaret called the Mediterranean Room housed in its own building. Built like a state of the art Vegas showroom, the tables were set on three tiers rising from the stage. A horseshoe shaped bar ran along the back of the upper tier. Local residents and hotel guests attended performances by orchestras led by Desi Arnez, Tommy Dorsey, and Count Basie, and star performances by Bob Hope, Raquel Welch, and Trini Lopez to name just a few. First hand accounts attest to the room's great acoustics and perfect sight lines.

According to legend, Elvis Presley made an arrangement with the hotel to use the room during off hours to rehearse music both for his live shows and for his movies. Frank Sinatra and his "Rat Pack" were regulars. Daughter Nancy Sinatra actually stayed at the hotel while filming the motorcycle film "The Wild Angels" in 1966. Sonny and Cher at the height of their fame and popularity frequented the hotel. Years later, Sonny would kick off his celebrity tennis tournament at the Riviera and even opened his namesake restaurant on the grounds of the hotel.
According to local gossip, a fight with the city over signage for this restaurant is what led Sonny to run for Mayor and opened the door for his whole political career.

With the death of the Schuman brothers, the hotel changed hands a number of times. Both the Hilton Group and the Radisson Corporation owned the hotel for a time. Many preservationists were worried that the hotel might be torn down and condos or commercial buildings would take its place. Years earlier the famed Riviera golf course had been sold off to build apartments. In 2006, the Noble House Hotels and Resorts purchased the Riviera and began a 70 million dollar renovation.

Like the title of the old Neil Sedaka song "Everything Old is New Again". The massive renovation was much more than paint and carpet, bedspreads and drapes. The bones of the hotel and its buildings remained intact but interiors were gutted and reconfigured. The result is a beautifully designed homage to the spirit and feeling of the original period combined with a sense of whimsy and high style. It is perhaps a living example of what author and designer Jonathan Adler describes in his book titled "My Prescription For Anti-Depressive Living". It is fun and hip filled with gorgeous color and bold pattern and groovy design. It has been described as a Hollywood Regency style, a kind of "Old Hollywood Glam" with a twist.

The color palette remains throughout the hotel and the 406 lavish rooms and suites. Predominant colors are warm browns, whites and creams, and a color described as "Sinatra Orange", a particularly 60's shade of burnt orange that was supposedly the favorite color of the "Chairman of the Board". Both rooms and suites have marble clad bath rooms with separate showers and tubs, state of the art electronics and internet, plasma televisions, cordless phones, and step out patios or balconies. Every guest also has the opportunity of spending the night with Marilyn Monroe as every room has a large pop art portrait of the iconic star who was often spotted at the hotel when ever she was in Palm Springs.

The original layout of the hotel had self parking between many of the buildings giving the hotel more of a motel look. These areas have now been transformed into small parks and gardens, including a special wedding garden for those wishing to have an outdoor ceremony.

The original rectangular swimming pool has been replaced with an irregularly shaped pool described as an ink blot configuration. This area, popular not only with guests but with many Palm Springs residents, has received rave reviews. Food and drink can be purchased in the intimate areas near the many fire pits and the seating near the pool. Private cabanas with large blowup photos of period bathing beauties are available for small private parties and there is the hip Bikini Bar at the far end of the pool area. Little wonder that this was chosen for the site of the Miss California Pageant.

Much to the sadness of many long time Palm Springs residents, the Mediterranean Room is no more. The building that housed it has been transformed into the SpaTerre, one of the best equipped spa facilities in the area. Beautifully designed in a color palette of aqua and brown, the space exudes a sense of peace and tranquility. The influences, in both decor and treatments, spring from Balinese, Thai, and Indonesian influences. Images from all of these areas of the Buddha are present throughout. Body wraps, facials and massages are given such exotic names as "Volcanic Earth Clay Ritual", "Javanese Royal Treatment", and "Cleopatra's Milk Ritual". Many of the treatments can be done in special double rooms for husband and wife, same sex couples, or parent and child. A complimentary fitness center with state of the art machinery adjoins the spa facility.

While walking through the spa, I could almost feel the presence of some of the performers who had played the Mediterranean Room over the years. When I told my guide, Tracey Jardin, the lovely Hawaiian woman who is the public relations manager for the Riviera, how many local people had expressed their disappointment that the show room was gone she quickly pointed out that the building was preserved and that the emergence of a reborn Mediterranean Room, at some point down the line, is not out of the realm of possibility. As she spoke these words, I couldn't help but wonder if the large iconic portraits throughout the hotel of stars like Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. made from tiny Guatemalan silver coins were shimmering their approval of this idea.

Our lunch was in the hotel restaurant called Circa 59. If you asked Liberace to design a steak house this is probably what you would get for decor including a razzle dazzle ruby red chandelier of mammoth proportion. At the recommendation of the server I ordered the fish tacos, which were beautifully prepared and presented and delicious. The portion was just the right size. For dessert, the creme brulee was exquisite, served with tiny petit four sized cup cakes and a spun sugar basket filled with fresh orange sections. It is not surprising that the restaurant has developed a strong local following who come regularly to the hotel just for the food.

For preservationists who wish to see part of the original decor, the Grand Ballroom remains almost unchanged. The nearly 20,000 square feet space was designed as an oval configuration with a built in stage. Over the years the full range of political, sports and entertainment superstars have played that stage for social and charity events. The nine dazzling crystal chandeliers are the original lighting fixtures designed for the space.

Special events throughout the Palms Springs season attract a wide and diverse group of guests. A recent Palm Springs International Film Festival allowed hotel guests to rub shoulders with Anne Hathaway who stayed in the hotel's Presidential Suite. Modernism Week brings guests from around the world to not only tour through homes in the classic desert mid-century modern style but to stay in a hotel that is itself a temple to those style doctrines. Gay and Lesbian events are a large part of the Palm Springs social calendar and the hotel has always been one of the most popular venues for these events to be held. The close proximity to hiking trails and the aerial tram. jeep tours and hot air ballooning, museums, zoos and world class shopping attract guests of all ages and backgrounds. The only common denominator seems the wish to have a great time.

Perhaps the one consistent thing I found when speaking with long time Palm Springs residents about the Riviera is the great sense of relief that she is still around. Without exception, no one who has known her over the years even calls her the Riviera. She is known by the much more familiar nickname "the Riv", a kind of term of endearment. In a town that has often had little regard for its own history and an unofficial policy of out with the old and in with the new, it is almost miraculous that she has survived. Now, like a grand old lady of the desert, unashamed of her age but certainly not wanting to look it, she has had a fantastic facelift and is back and better than ever. This is certainly reason for celebration.

For information about the Riviera Hotel and upcoming special events, log onto www.psriviera.com or call (760) 327-8311.

Rm 2100 interior

Circa 59 firepit

Circa 59 day patio

Starlite lounge

Arcade vignette

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Elvis Presley Tribute Weekend Hosted in Iconic Palm Springs Home

by Joel Vig

For millions of fans around the world, August 16th will be forever remembered as the day the "King of Rock and Roll" died at his Memphis home, Graceland, in 1977. Each year in Palm Springs, as a celebration of Elvis Presley and his entertainment legacy, a special event featuring tours and a remembrance concert takes place at the home where Elvis spent some of his happiest times. Often referred to as the "Honeymoon Hideaway", this is the house where Elvis and Priscilla came to directly from their Las Vegas wedding ceremony to spend their honeymoon and their first time together as a married couple.

The house itself is almost as iconic as its most famous occupant. Built as the personal residence of developer Robert Alexander in the early 1960's, the cost of the original construction was a staggering $300,000.00. The house is built on a slope, and the architect took full advantage of the topography to allow maximum interior light and spectacular views. Robert Alexander and his ffather George owned a residential development company and are credited with doubling the size of Palm Springs with the homes built by their firm. Alexander homes are, to this day, much admired and sought after for their fresh modern lines, their use of innovative materials, and their sophistication of cloor and shape.

The Alexander firm began by building modest homes, many for less than $20,000.00, but they soon developed a more elite clientelle. Many of the well known Alexander homes are situated in the
Los Palmas section of Palm Springs, the neighborhood of choice for many of the "Old Hollywood" set looking for a desert getaway. The Alexanders built homes for Harold Robbins, Dinah Shore, and Dean Martin. President Kennedy stayed in an Alexander home owned by his brother-in-law, actor Peter Lawford, whic was, coincidentally, not far from another Alexander home built for actress Marilyn Monroe.

By the early 1960s, the Alexanders were in the center of the social scene in Palm Springs. In September of 1962, Look Magazine ran an eight page article filled with pictures of the Alexander residence at 1350 Landera Circle. For much of America, this modernistic vision of irregular shaped rooms and industial materials, with central heating and air conditioning, with built in vacuum and counter top Nutone mixer, and ceramic tiled kitchen island with a built in charcoal grill and overhood exhaust fan was more like an exhibit from the World of Tomorrow at the Seattle World's Fair than a house that people really lived in.

The Alexander legacy in Palm Springs came to an abrupt and tragic end. On November 14, 1965, both George and Robert along with their wives, were killed when their plane crashed into the Little Chocolate Mountains near Indio while en route to Burbank airport. Robert's only heir, daughter Jill age 11 years, lost both her parents and grandparents and the Alexander firm was shuttered.

As they say in film, fade out...fade in. One year later Presley's manager, Colonel Parker, was looking for a place in Palm Springs for his famous client to be able to get a way from the pressures of life in Hollywood. The Alexander home was leased for $20, 000.00 for one year and secret plans began to take shape to have the wedding of Elvis and Priscilla take place at the home. But all does not go smoothly. A "Gladys Kravitz style" neighbor, journalist Rona Barrett, gets wind of the story and suddenly a media circus unfolds. Paparazzi from around the world fly in and camp out in front of the house hoping for the story and the pictures to go with it. In what seems more like a scene from a screwball comedy than real life, Elvis and Priscilla with a small entourage sneak out a hidden stairway from the bathroom of the master suite through the back yard in the dead of night with only the light of flashlights to the waiting private limos and the lear jet provided by Frank Sinatra. They are married in a quiet secret ceremony in Las Vegas and then fly back to the home in Palm aSprings for their honeymoon. When the newlyweds pulled up to the front of the house, Elvis not only carried his bride over the threshhold, but up the driveway and the stone lily pad steps built above and through a waterfall at the front entrance of the house.

This is only one of the many stories shared by the knowledgable and friendly staff who guide the tours through the house. Chris and Sam not only love the house, but are huge Elvis fans and have a vast knowledge of both the professional and private lives of the Presley family and friends. They live and breathe Elvis Presley, from the shirts and brooches that they wear right down to thier Elvis tennis shoes. Framed letters and photographs throughout the house tell the story of a period in time of peace and happiness for Elvis and his new bride.
In addition to the guided tours, on Sunday, August 16th a concert of Elvis Presley's music was performed by tribute artist Marlon Von Ratibor. Marlon, a well known entertainer in Southern California, has studied Presley for years and his knowledge and skill pay off with a performance filled with nouance and attention to detail. Marlon's costumes are authentic recreations, many done by the same craftsmen who made Elvis's stage and personnal wardrobe. The signature sunglasses were made by Dennis Roberts who made the famous shades for the "King" himself. Even the rings on his fingers and the TCB (stands for "taking care of business") with lightening bolt pendant that Marlon wears around his neck are authentic replicas.

With a rich baritone voice, Marlon performed a wide range of songs from the early rock and roll classics to spirituals and patriotic standards. The lips, the hips, the gestures and the gyrations all capture the spirit of the man who many feel was the greatest entertainer of all time. The capacity crowd that filled the house cheered and clapped throughout the show, both for the man performing and for the man who had been his inspiration. Near the end of the two our concert, Marlon acknowledged that as close as he tries to perform like Elvis, there is only one man who will be forever the "King".

Besides Elvis Presley related events in January, May, and August, the house is available for daily tours by appointment. The house is also available as a location site for private and corporate events. For more information call (760) 322- 1192, or log onto www.elvishoneymoon.com.

THEATRE AT SEA

The Theatre Guild celebrated its 90th birthday with what would have to be called a most spectacular party. On board the luxurious 6 star Regent Seven Seas Navigator sailinng trans-Atlantic from Florida to Monaco during the first two weeks of May, 2009, the Guild assembled a remarkable group of stars from stage and screen for a never to be forgotten two week voyage.

Director and performer Lee Roy Reams working closely with Production Manager Ron Nash and Philip Langner, son of one of the Guild's founders Lawrence Langner, put together daytime entertainments and lectures as well as evening performances which highlighted the Guild's major achievements in the American theatre. For more than thirty years the Guild has been producing their Theatre At Sea programs. Some of the evenings tried out by the Guild on board ships around the world have gone on to Broadway and Off-Broadway stages as well as regional venues around the country. The list of stars who have taken part on these voyages over the years is truly amazing; Lillian Gish, Helen Hayes, Richard Kiley, Roddy McDowall, Colleen Dewhurst, Juliet Prowse, Larry Kert, Kitty Carlisle Hart, Eli Wallach, Anne Jackson, Rue McClanahan, Patrice Munsel, Alan Arkin, Tammy Grimes and many more. The lineup for the 90th Birthday Cruise included the First Lady of Theatre At Sea Academy Award winner Patricia Neal, Academy Award winner Shirley Jones, Broadway leading ladies Carol Lawrence and Donna McKechnie, Academy Award nominee and classical actress Susannah York, former Miss America Susan Powell, and well known concert singers Richard White and Betsy Craig among others.

The Guild's contribution to the American Musical Theatre provided two great evenings of entertainment during the cruise. The Theatre Guild deserves the credit for first bringing the talents of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart to the public's attention with a revue called THE GARRICK GAITIES. Rodgers and Hart went on to write many of the songs which are considered classics in the Great American Songbook. When Rodgers lost Hart as a writing partner due to illness, it was again the Guild that first highlighted the work of Rodgers with his new partner Oscar Hammerstein II in a production originally entitled AWAY WE GO. While out of town the show looked like it had no chance for success, but by the time it opened on Broadway the title had been changed to OKLAHOMA! and the rest, as they say, is theatrical history. Other milestone Theatre Guild musical productions included PORGY AND BESS, CAROUSEL, BELLS ARE RINGING, and THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN. The music from these shows was brought to glorious life by singers Lee Roy Reams, Donna McKechnie, Richard White, Susan Powell, and Betsy Craig under the musical direction of Phil Reno.

But the Theatre Guild did much more than musical theatre. Magnificent productions of straight plays by George Bernard Shaw, Thornton Wilder, Eugene O'Neill, Tennessee Williams and many others were another one of the major contributions the Theatre Guild made to the American Theatre. William Shakespeare was a particular favorite of founder Lawrence Langner. As a tribute to this tradition, Susannah York provided a splendid collection of monologues and scenes which captured Shakespeare's most memorable women. Solo performances by legendary stars have become a hallmark of the Theatre Guild. On past cruises over the last 30 years audiences have been thrilled to watch legends like Helen Hayes, Carol Channing, Zoe Caldwell, and Colleen Dewhurst. This year performances by Patricia Neal, Shirley Jones, and Carol Lawrence brought the ship's audience to their feet cheering.

During the course of the voyage, special private cocktail parties and dinners provided Theatre At Sea passengers a chance to mix and mingle with the stars. One particular highlight was an exclusive tea party held at Government House in Bermuda hosted by the Governor and his wife. A private tour of the house and the grounds, conducted by the Governor himself, pointed up the rich history of the house and it's occupants and visitors over the years. Pictures of kings and queens, presidents and statesmen, and sultans and emperors adorned walls and shelves.

The final night at sea was a performance of ENCORE,ENCORE! , another Theatre At Sea tradition. Star turns by the illustrious cast held the standing room only audience spellbound. There was even a special surprise guest appearrance by Sinthea Starrr, an long time friend of the Theatre Guild, who was en route to the Cannes Film Festival and boarded the ship in Saint Tropez. Miss Starr took to the stage after a heartfelt introduction by her old friend Patricia Neal. to provide a musical tribute to her late friend Eartha Kitt, who died on Christmas Day in 2008. The standing ovation which ended the evening had the audience clapping and singing along to the Jerry Herman anthem "The Best Of Times Is Now", providing a spectacular finish to a never to be forgotten cruise.

Future Theatre At Sea voyages are planned for the Baltic in August of 2009 on board the Crystal Symphony and the Caribbean in March of 2010 on board the Regent Seven Seas Navigator. For more information contact Theatre at Sea directly at 1-800-752 9732 or e-mail theatreatsea@aol.com.

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JOHN DAVIDSON CURRENTLY STARRING IN PALM SPRINGS FOLLIES

by Joel Vig

It doesn't seem possible. John Davidson, that mop topped, perennially handsome, young leading man starring in the Palm Springs Follies, the show (currently celebrating its 18th season) famous for its conceit of only casting senior citizens. But with an entertainment career spanning nearly half a century, John Davidson at age 67 not only qualifies for Medicare but also for his Follies debut.

John's first appearance on Broadway was in the show "FOXY" starring the legendary Burt Lahr. Other Broadway appearances include the leading roles of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "STATE FAIR" produced by the venerable Theatre Guild and the role of Curly in the Broadway revival of "OKLAHOMA". He has played leading roles in regional and national productions of such hits as "THE MUSIC MAN", "CAMELOT","CAROUSEL", THE MAN OF LA MANCHA", "CHICAGO", Neil Simon's "RUMOURS", and "THE WILL ROGERS FOLLIES". He has starred in movies and television including a three year stint as the host of THE HOLLYWOOD SQUARES, he was a regular host of THE KRAFT MUSIC HALL, THAT'S INCREDIBLE, and THE $100,000 PYRAMID. THE JOHN DAVIDSON SHOW ran for over two years and John had his own theatre in Branson, Missouri for three years. Over the years, John made 80 guest appearances on THE TONIGHT SHOW, the only male singer to achieve that milestone.

On the afternoon I saw the show the matinee audience was filled with women who undoubtedly were fans of Davidson's over the years. John's much anticipated entrance comes early in the second act following a film clip retrospective highlighting his long and varied career. His mop of blonde hair is now a mane of silver but he is still fit and handsome wearing a white silk shirt, black pants, and a black vest. Singing the same song we have just heard on the film clip, "Cuande Caliente el Sol", his voice is as powerful and assured as ever and his ease and charm while entertaining the audience have only become stronger over the years. Moving off the stage and into the audience, John performs a song he wrote himself, "I Sing To Your Lady", as a tribute to a woman seated in the front row of the audience. As the romantic song progresses, John advances from talk to action. Reminescent of Gomez and Morticia Addams of THE ADDAMS FAMILY, John begins kissing and nibbling on the lady's arm. As his ardor grows, the lady's embarrassment follows suit as the audience roars with laughter.

As a finale, Davidson performed a vocal and banjo medley of old favorites and standards which had the audience clapping and singing along. The resounding ovation called for an encore, but John graciously acknowledged the applause and exited in that grand old theatre tradition of "leave 'em wanting more".

In the end, the show proved an ideal fit for John. Chatting with him after the show, he remarked that he had been asked for the last 10 years to play the Palm Springs Follies and that he finally this year worked it out with his schedule. The underlying message of the show (which probably accounts for much of its popularity) is that age is just a number and you really are as young as you feel. This terrifically talented cast of dancing and singing seniors not only entertain but also inspire. They are vibrant and energetic, the men are handsome and the ladies frankly gorgeous. And with featured performer Dorothy Kloss, who at age 85 is listed in the Guiness Book Of World Records as the "Oldest Still Performing Show Girl In The World", John Davidson can still legitimately be considered a juvenile in the show.

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