Q: Tell us about The Boy Friend.
Mike: The Boy Friend is a spoof, poking fun at the happy-go-lucky musicals of the time period. Set on the French Riviera in the 1920s, the play centers around Polly and her friends, English youth at finishing school. As a spoof, every aspect of the musical is over the top - practically overflowing with sweetness, light, and ridiculous serendipity.
Q: Why did you want to be part of this show?
Mike: Gene and Coni Anthony are always a joy to work with, and I do love me some tap dancing.
Q: Tell us about the part you play.
Mike: I play Tony, a messenger boy who may not be as he appears on the surface, and Polly's potential boyfriend.
Q: What’s your background in theatre?
Mike: I graduated from Marshall with a BFA in Theatre in 2003 and jumped back into local community theatre a few years ago after a long absence. You may have caught me recently in Pirates of Penzance.
Q: Tell us about the cast and/or directors you’re working with.
Mike: They're all the cat's pajamas, every one. Gene and Coni bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to any project and we're extremely lucky to have them. A large majority of the cast are ARTS company members, and at this point we've become a fairly tight knit family. It's LOADS of fun working with people so well-loved and well-trusted.
Q: Do you have a favorite song, dance or scene in the play?
Mike: "Never Too Late to Fall in Love" with Todd Green and Tiffany McGuire is hysterical, and my buddy Mike Murdock milks Percival Brown for every drop of comic snootery. Molly Maynard has a beauuutiful voice as Polly... if you haven't heard her sing yet you'd better hurry up before she leaves for NYC (seriously!) in a few days! "Sur la Plage" and "The Riviera" are guaranteed to make you grin like a madman.
Q: Why would you urge our readers to see this play?
Mike: How many times have you smirked at how quickly the ingenues of name-your-musical-comedy fell head over heels for each other? How many times have you chuckled at the "horny old goat," or at the gaggle-of-giggling-girly-oh-my-god-is-this-how-you-become-diabetic girls? How about dashing and lovestruck suitors, unlikely romantic reunions, or ridiculously contrived melodramatic situations with 10 o'clock redemption numbers? This musical knows how many times and doubles down.
Q: ARTS now has something available to make each seat more comfortable - so the question is: cushions - yes or no?
Mike: Pamper that behind. You've earned it.
Thanks, Mike! There are two more chances to see The Boy Friend at the Renaissance Theatre - tonight and Sunday afternoon. Don't miss it!
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