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Post by JeriJet on Apr 16, 2013 15:36:12 GMT -5
Thanks, Brenda -- have to read this right away -- since I read that he started it in 1951.... Later: ah, yes, I'd been to that website before. Found this under their "History" tab..... explaining the 1973 "renewed focus"..... The beginnings of the Theatricum Botanicum stretch back to the early 1950s when Will Geer, one of the many actors victimized by the McCarthy Era Blacklisting, opened a theatre for Blacklisted actors and folk singers on his Topanga property. He also cultivated a large garden and, unable to find work in Hollywood, Will and his wife, actress Herta Ware, earned a living by selling vegetables, fruit, herbs, and theatre. With the advent of television's "The Waltons" and subsequent popularity of Will's portrayal of Grandpa, in 1973 Will Geer re-gathered his family (who were now working actors at theatres across the country) and together they formed a non-profit corporation, The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum. Audiences flocked to free workshop performances of Shakespeare, folk plays, and concerts featuring such well-known artists as Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Della Reese & Burl Ives, among others.
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Post by weezer29 on Apr 16, 2013 20:41:16 GMT -5
You look great in those pics, Brenda. I was thinking things looked a little overgrown in the pics, but then had to think about your comment about how Will might have preferred the more natural look and that may be true. I did have to think about how many mosquitos might hanging out there. LOL Don't know if I would like to be there at sundown.
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Post by ForeverWaltons on Apr 17, 2013 8:15:29 GMT -5
You look great in those pics, Brenda. I was thinking things looked a little overgrown in the pics, but then had to think about your comment about how Will might have preferred the more natural look and that may be true. I did have to think about how many mosquitos might hanging out there. LOL Don't know if I would like to be there at sundown. Oh, the snakes crawl at night, that's what they say...when the sun goes down, then the snakes will play!
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Post by nedandres on Apr 17, 2013 22:01:08 GMT -5
Hello everyone, Did anyone here on the forum see Will Geer in his Broadway performance (1963-64 season) as the father in the musical "110 in the Shade," written by the same people who wrote "The Fantasticks." I have heard the cast album, and caught a revival with Audra McDonald (see attached photo) and John Callum (in the Geer role) in 2007. It's a wonderful show. I would have loved to see him in that part, but I wasn't born in 1963. Just wondering if there are any fans who would have caught him in that. Greetings to everyone from us in Ecuador, Ned
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Post by nedandres on Apr 17, 2013 22:08:31 GMT -5
Hi again, while I'm here, and so that everyone can "know" me a little better, I will attach a family photo (which is a bit outdated now, I will try to send a newer one later). We have four children: Joel (9); Amelia (7) and Jacob and Elías (14 months). They are fraternal twins, so they probably couldn't play John Curtis Willard in a remake of the Waltons. HA!. But Marisol and I feel very blessed, and tired, to have this gift of TWINHOOD. Does anyone else on the forum have twins? We should share successes and challenges with one another? Blessings to all, Ned
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Post by Brenda on Apr 17, 2013 22:30:14 GMT -5
You have a beautiful family, nedandrus. I don't have twins, but I was a teacher for many years, and I've taught several sets of twins. Sometimes the parents would want to keep them together, so I would have both children. In other cases the parents preferred different classes for their children, so I would have only one. At the small elementary school where I taught, we had 3 sets of triplets at the same time. So for 3 years in a row, I had triplets, or at least part of a set of triplets in my class.
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Post by weezer29 on Apr 18, 2013 3:24:35 GMT -5
Hi again, while I'm here, and so that everyone can "know" me a little better, I will attach a family photo (which is a bit outdated now, I will try to send a newer one later). We have four children: Joel (9); Amelia (7) and Jacob and Elías (14 months). They are fraternal twins, so they probably couldn't play John Curtis Willard in a remake of the Waltons. HA!. But Marisol and I feel very blessed, and tired, to have this gift of TWINHOOD. Does anyone else on the forum have twins? We should share successes and challenges with one another? Blessings to all, Ned View AttachmentNo twins for me, but I have sisters who are twins. They are older than I am. I always remember they were referred to as the Twins. Or someone would say which twin are you? Welcome to the Forum.
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Post by flyaway on Apr 18, 2013 7:13:35 GMT -5
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Post by JeriJet on Apr 18, 2013 9:20:26 GMT -5
Hello everyone, Did anyone here on the forum see Will Geer in his Broadway performance (1963-64 season) as the father in the musical "110 in the Shade," written by the same people who wrote "The Fantasticks." I have heard the cast album, and caught a revival with Audra McDonald (see attached photo) and John Callum (in the Geer role) in 2007. It's a wonderful show. I would have loved to see him in that part, but I wasn't born in 1963. Just wondering if there are any fans who would have caught him in that. Greetings to everyone from us in Ecuador, Ned Yes -- I saw it.... was living in Manhattan at the time and working mostly on production crews wherever/whenever I could.... decided to spend the bucks on "110" because Robert Horton was in it !! (he was my favorite in "Wagon Train").... FYI, Geer was nominated for a Tony -- best perf. by a featured actor.... Glad you brought this up, because I had completely forgotten about Geer... weird, because I'm usually pretty good at remembering things from my misbegotten youth !! Also attended The Fantastiks several times over the years, including Jerry Orbach as the original El Gallo -- a great show to take visiting friends to, because it was cheap and off-broadway. Still the longest-running musical EVER in the world !! Always loved both scores by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones, "Try to Remember" being my favorite...
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Post by nedandres on Apr 18, 2013 21:00:43 GMT -5
Hi JeriJet, That is SO cool that you saw Will Geer in this role. I really love the score, especially "Raunchy" which is somewhat tongue-in-cheek and totally innocent by today's standards. It was superb to hear Audra McDonald with her lush voice sing those songs. She was so gracious with the people at the stage door after the evening show, too. What can you tell us about Will's performance, if you remember? I think Inga Swenson played the lead. She later played in the sitcom "Benson" if I am remembering correctly. I have enjoyed seeing Richard Thomas, Michael Learned, and Ralph Waite in various theatre roles over the years, but I would have been in "all my glory" to have seen Will live. Oh well. So pleased that someone here on the forum had the experience. Thanks for sharing about it. Oh, I also saw "The Fantasticks" in NYC during its original run, not the production that later ran at the newly named Jerry Orbach Theatre off-Broadway. I saw it at the Sullivan Street Playhouse where it played for years and years, nearly an eternity. I also played Bellomy, the girl's father, during my college years, so it was great fun to see it live in New York. I think my favorite soon is "Soon it's Gonna Rain." Hearing the score brings back so many lovely memories of my younger days. Okay, enough about me. Take care, everyone. Blessings from Ecuador!
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Post by JeriJet on Apr 19, 2013 8:38:56 GMT -5
Sorry, nedandres, can't remember much about Will in The Fantastiks -- it was almost 50 years ago, and I wasn't all that aware of him at the time. It was also soon after I moved into Manhattan.... at first I lived a short walk away from The Sullivan Street Playhouse, on Thompson Street in Little Italy, just south of Greenwich Village.... and, I was focussed more on the career of Jerry Orbach....
I'm so glad you got to see it at the Playhouse -- wasn't that amazing? Most folks here wouldn't know that the theatre was so tiny, only about 150 seats.... I have always thought that's part of the reason it lasted so long -- not many people could see it at the same time!! -- and the fact that it was so cheap and plenty of inexpensive restaurants closeby!!
Remember how they would pull a couple of folks up from the seats onto the "stage" -- I always managed not to sit on the aisle, but did try to make sure my guest was, and once it happened!! (but I believe that was after Will was in it...) -- It's hard for me to imagine the play being produced on a "normal" stage, instead of in-the-round (actually half-round) almost at ground level.... Sounds like you have done that -- will you tell me how it differed?? THANKS!
"Soon It's Gonna Rain" became a favorite of mine, too, but not until Streisand did it in 1963 or 64....
Sounds like you're a thespian at heart -- would love to chat more!!
Jet
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Post by sdw on Apr 19, 2013 10:43:57 GMT -5
A few years ago I saw a production of The Fantaticks at The Barter Theatre in Abingdon Va.I really enjoyed it,I like the song Try To Remember.
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Post by wmfan/waltonsportwriter on Apr 19, 2013 11:01:51 GMT -5
Wow amazing I never would have known that was Will Geer when he was young. He put on some weight later in life. Also sometimes I dont recognize actors or actresses as much outside the Waltos time droid that we all see so often like early in life or at the reunions. WmFan
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Post by JeriJet on Apr 21, 2013 16:16:30 GMT -5
Sorry, nedandres, can't remember much about Will in The Fantastiks -- it was almost 50 years ago, and I wasn't all that aware of him at the time. It was also soon after I moved into Manhattan.... at first I lived a short walk away from The Sullivan Street Playhouse, on Thompson Street in Little Italy, just south of Greenwich Village.... and, I was focussed more on the career of Jerry Orbach.... I'm so glad you got to see it at the Playhouse -- wasn't that amazing? Most folks here wouldn't know that the theatre was so tiny, only about 150 seats.... I have always thought that's part of the reason it lasted so long -- not many people could see it at the same time!! -- and the fact that it was so cheap and plenty of inexpensive restaurants closeby!! Remember how they would pull a couple of folks up from the seats onto the "stage" -- I always managed not to sit on the aisle, but did try to make sure my guest was, and once it happened!! (but I believe that was after Will was in it...) -- It's hard for me to imagine the play being produced on a "normal" stage, instead of in-the-round (actually half-round) almost at ground level.... Sounds like you have done that -- will you tell me how it differed?? THANKS! "Soon It's Gonna Rain" became a favorite of mine, too, but not until Streisand did it in 1963 or 64.... Sounds like you're a thespian at heart -- would love to chat more!! Jet Just had another thought.... in addition to the fact that I really don't remember Geer from Fantastiks... Since I hung around in the Village, sometimes in the coffee houses in the early sixties, you'd think I would have seen Geer there, too.... he reportedly knew a lot of the folk singers of the era.... Oh, well, maybe I did -- it was a long time ago.....
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Post by nedandres on Apr 21, 2013 16:16:35 GMT -5
Hi JeriJet! I don't remember seeing audience members go up on stage during "The Fantasticks"; however, I do remember how intimate the stage was. It was wonderful, as if the players were playing just for me. You asked if I were a thespian at heart. Well, kind of. I did many plays and show in high school and college: "Bells Are Ringing," "Carnival," "The Sound of Music" (twice), "The Fantasticks," "The Crucible," "Esther" (musical based on the Bible story, written by my college roommate who now teaches at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY), and "West Side Story." I really enjoy acting, but the closest I come to acting now is playing DJ during my two daily radio programs in Ibarra, Ecuador. Being DJ in Spanish is much different than my radio days in English (my previous life---HA!). People often ask me why I don't produce a musical here in Ecuador. We have 14 month old twin boys and I have two jobs (station manager at the radio station and local director of a theological seminary), so the time is just not there at present. I used to go to NYC a couple times a year to see shows, when I was single, that is. Last year I was in the States resolving visa issues, and I did see "Mary Poppins," which closed last month, so I was happy to see that. The year before I saw "War Horse" at the Lincoln Center which was very impressive. Haven't seen the movie yet, but to see the artistry of the people "portraying" the horses was amazing. Prior to that I caught "A Little Night Music" with Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch. I enjoy the theatre very much. I previously mentioned that I had seen Ralph Waite, Michael Learned, and Richard Thomas in different performances. Ralph I saw in "Death of a Saleman" and another Arthur Miller play whose title escapes me at the moment. Michael I saw in "Love Letters," "The Sisters Rosenweig," "Safe as Fences," and "Gore Vidal's The Best Man". For the latter I trudged by bus for 4 hours in a blizzard to arrive, but it was well worth it to see Michael arrive sans makeup to the theatre. She was sweet and gracious as always. Richard I saw in "Citizen Tom Paine" and "Tiny Alice." I always enjoyed seeing the shows that I had a chance to see. Nowadays our budget is limited and theatre in Ecuador is not very prolific either. But God has given me a rewarding life to live and a chance to serve others, for which I thank Him. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. Blessings from Ecuador.
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