"Victor/Victoria Is a Hit!

JAMES BEAMAN CONTINUES AS HENRI LABISSE IN "VICTOR/VICTORIA" AT STAGES ST. LOUIS THROUGH OCTOBER 9!

"THE ROAD TO QATAR!" ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM NOW AVAILABLE AT ITUNES!

So, it's official. Audience and critics alike are enjoying our production of "Victor/Victoria" at Stages St. Louis:

It's all wrapped up like a tune-filled souffle that's light and delicious and completely engaging and enjoyable. ~Broadway World

We have settled in for the few remaining weeks of our run here, and everyone at Stages is delighted with the way our production is bringing their 25th Anniversary Season to a glittering close. I am having fun with my extended cameo as Henri Labisse, and am scanning the horizon for the next performing opportunity. St. Louis is graced by several top notch professional theatres. Along with Stages, there is the Rep Theatre of St. Louis, which produces a full season of nationally recognized plays and musicals, including new works which have gone on to Broadway; and every summer, Forest Park comes to life with the Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis, performing on a massive stage outdoors in a beautiful natural bowl for thousands of spectators. I had the great pleasure of playing Casca in "Julius Caesar" in 2006 at the festival and am looking forward to auditioning for their 2012 offering, "Othello." These theatres have been very welcoming and I have had the pleasure of meeting members of their artistic staffs and sharing my work with them. I look forward to returning to St. Louis very soon!

"Victor/Victoria" Production Week!

JAMES BEAMAN OPENS FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9 AS HENRI LABISSE IN "VICTOR/VICTORIA" AT STAGES ST. LOUIS!



We are launching into tech week here in St. Louis as we prepare to open Stages' ambitious and glitzy production of "Victor/Victoria," the jewel in the crown of their 25th Anniversary season. I must say, the rehearsal process has been a great pleasure; director Michael Hamilton's meticulous approach has yielded a show that already has polish and great style. Adding the costumes, lights, scenery and other elements will take us all to that next level. They have pulled out all the stops at the theatre to make this a lavish and opulent production, stretching the limits of the intimate space to the maximum to create the art deco world of 1934 Paris. For a sneak peek at rehearsals and a look at some of the designs, visit the Stages St. Louis website and click on the video in the lower right corner of the main page.

I am greatly enjoying my role as the conniving weasel, Henri Labisse. Inspired by the comic masterpieces of creator Blake Edwards, I am doing more than a little homage to Peter Sellers' Inspector Clouseau, with a French accent thicker than gruyere cheese! Labisse gets his comeuppance for trying to foil the plans of Victoria and her fairy godfather Toddy by getting completely beat up during the course of the show. By the time the finale rolls around, I have two bandaged hands, a broken nose, a limp, and a head bandage. Being the one genuinely sour note in a show full of sweetness and glamour is a real treat and I'm having lots of fun. In case you don't remember Labisse from the film of "Victor/Victoria," here is a link to the scene in which Julie Andrews auditions for him at Chez Lui. Labisse is played here by veteran character actor and Blake Edwards favorite Peter Arne.

Reviews and production photos to come! "Victor/Victoria," which is already selling like mad, runs through October 9.

Le Jazz Hot

There are some movies that become not just favorites, but ingrained parts of my life. "Victor/Victoria" is one such. When the film was released I was a freshman in college, and I saw it for the first time with my Mom. We fell in love instantly with the movie and when the credits rolled at the end we just stayed in our seats and watched it through again. It's a perfect thing, a gleaming, multi-faceted gem. Meticulously and joyously directed by Blake Edwards, it features Julie Andrews, James Garner, Leslie Ann Warren and Robert Preston in some of the best performances of their careers. Of course, you know the story: a down-on-her-luck soprano in the Paris winter of 1934 is adopted by a struggling cabaret singer who has the brilliant idea of passing her off as Europe's greatest female impersonator. Against a background of luscious art deco sets and costumes, this romantic comedy sizzles and tickles... a truly satisfying experience. By now I know every line and every frame of the film. Michael Hamilton, the director of our production of the stage musical here at Stages St. Louis, also has a special connection to the movie, which resonated for him as much as it did for me back in 1982, with its message of acceptance and freedom of sexuality and gender. Michael intends to not only put on a glitzy and entertaining show; he also intends to make sure that the heart of the story is there too.

Blake Edwards always intended to make a stage musical of his film but it took many years before it made its Broadway debut in the mid-90s. By then, unfortunately, Julie Andrews' formidable singing powers were beginning to wane, and it was this show that caused the vocal damage which resulted in the botched throat surgery which robbed Ms. Andrews, and all of us, of her glorious voice. The show was plagued with problems... Henry Mancini passed away before completing the score, which was brought to the finish line by Frank Wildhorn, with somewhat mixed results... the press was rather hard on the show, and the Tony Awards gave it only one nod--a sentimental nomination for Julie Andrews, which she, in solidarity with a production she felt deserved better recognition, declined. Nevertheless, I was there, with my Mom, at opening night, and I can tell you that the charm of the story, the wit of Blake Edwards' direction, and the grace and style of Ms. Andrews all made for a lovely evening in the theatre. I am delighted to be a part of a revival of the show which promises to be gorgeously mounted and full of heart and high comedy.

My history with the score of "Victor/Victoria" goes even further. Back in 2002, toward the end of my career as a cabaret performer, I created a revue of the songs of Leslie Bricusse which borrowed its title from the central ballad of "Victor/Victoria," "Crazy World."
Awarded the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs MAC Award for Revue of the Year, the show, which starred lovely singer Goldie Dver and me, featured songs from all of Bricusse's scores, and we had great fun plucking some of the best songs from "Victor/Victoria" out of context and using them in innovative ways; songs like "Gay Paree," "Paris By Night," "Paris Makes Me Horny," and "Living in the Shadows." It's been really gratifying to express my love of this material, and being a part of this production of the musical is a rare and wonderful opportunity. We began rehearsals this week and I can tell you we have an energetic and gifted cast, and the design plans for the production are ambitious and beautiful. It's gonna be good!

MIDSUMMER UPDATE

JAMES BEAMAN PLAYS HUBERT IN SHAKESPEARE'S "KING JOHN" WITH TAFFETY PUNK THEATRE COMPANY AT THE FOLGER THEATRE IN WASHINGTON, D.C. MONDAY AUGUST 1!

BEAMAN WILL PLAY HENRI LABISSE IN "VICTOR/VICTORIA" AT STAGES ST. LOUIS FROM SEPTEMBER 9 THROUGH OCTOBER 9!

"THE ROAD TO QATAR!" ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM HAS BEEN COMPLETED AND WILL BE RELEASED LATER THIS SUMMER!

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Greetings friends! I hope you are enjoying your summer. Summertime can either be a busy time or a big slump for an actor, depending on what kind of summer theatre one has lined up for oneself. My summer is a mix of both. After the delight of making my Merry-Go-Round Playhouse debut in "Anything Goes," I returned home to enjoy some extended time off, during one of the slower times of the year for auditions, and I have taken advantage of the time to visit family and reconnect with friends.

Next week I will have the pleasure of doing my third Bootleg Shakespeare collaboration with the innovative Taffety Punk Theatre Company. This time it is "The Life and Death of King John," and I get to play the really powerful role of Hubert, a man who starts out as the henchman of a corrupt monarch and who find his moral center and his humanity by enduring a brutal ordeal. In true Bootleg fashion, this amazing company of actors will gather at 10AM on Monday, August 1 and spend the day staging the play, giving one performance for a packed audience. It is an electrifying experience for all that makes Shakespeare come alive in a way most people never imagined possible. For a look at this year's video preview, showing moments from last year's "Two Noble Kinsmen" click here.

A few weeks later, I will head out to St. Louis to begin rehearsals for "Victor/Victoria," the rarely produced musical based on the fabulous Blake Edwards film of the same name , which just happens to be one of my all time favorite movies. The musical marked the return to Broadway of the great Julie Andrews back in the mid-nineties, and I had the pleasure of seeing the opening night performance. The show is being produced by Stages St. Louis, where I had a wonderful romp playing the role of Jerry/Daphne in the musical of "Some Like It Hot," "Sugar." I am delighted to have the opportunity to return to the theatre to celebrate their 25th Anniversary Season. My role of the scheming Henri Labisse is a delicious character turn for me, a conniving and pretentious little man with an absurd French accent. I am looking forward to this art deco confection of a show, and of course I will blog about the process, so stay tuned!

And finally, I have been told that the final cast album mix of "The Road To Qatar!" is complete and is ready to be released along with a beautiful full color booklet including show photos, and notes and lyrics by Stephen Cole. I am told that it sounds great and I am both nervous and excited about hearing my first ever cast album. If you are one of those geeks who has to be one of the first to add this show to your collection, you can keep track of the release of it at the Jay Records website. And of course, I will eventually be putting tracks from the CD on my website's media page. It's a real joy to know that this fun show will have a continued life through this recording. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I enjoyed performing and recording it!

Full Circle

"ANYTHING GOES" CONTINUES ITS SOLD OUT RUN AT MERRY-GO-ROUND PLAYHOUSE THROUGH JUNE 22ND!



The leads highlight the playhouse stage with astonishing charisma, comic timing and vocal talent...Beaman hits his own comedic stride as the cliche-confused Englishman with a deeply buried wild side. ~AuburnPub.com


Wrapping things up here at Merry-Go-Round Playhouse, where our hit production of "Anything Goes" will close on June 22nd. It has been such a pleasure to work here and I look forward to coming back in future seasons! I look to the horizon now and to my next creative endeavors, which include "Victor/Victoria" at Stages St. Louis, and an exciting return to Shakespeare and the great theatre town of Washington, D.C. in a play that started my journey as a classical actor.

The year was 1978, and my Dad was working in the theatre department at Boston University. The graduating class was going to perform Shakespeare's "King John" and the director, who was also the head of the acting program, wanted a young boy to play the pivotal role of Prince Arthur. I was already a pretty precocious little actor, and I auditioned along with a few other faculty brats and won the part. To this day, I can remember everything about the process of rehearsing and performing that play. It was a dream come true to a 12 year old who had already decided he would be the next Laurence Olivier. Arthur is the best of Shakespeare's roles for a child actor and he plays several very dramatic scenes, one in which he manages to talk his jailer, Hubert, out of putting his eyes out with hot irons at the behest of the King; and there is a gripping death scene, in which Arthur leaps from a tall wall and perishes in his attempt. I can say without hesitation that playing Arthur on the Boston University Theatre stage was the catalyst for a passion for fine acting and for Shakespeare that has carried me through the last 30-plus years in my work as an actor.

This summer, I will return to "King John" as Arthur's would-be assassin, Hubert de Burgh, in the next of Taffety Punk Theatre Company's Bootleg Shakespeare productions to be performed at DC's Folger Theatre. I have written before about the great work my friends Marcus Kyd and Lise Bruneau have been doing with their company, and I related the story of the Bootleg series, but for those who don't know... Bootleg Shakespeare is a one day theatrical event. Weeks in advance, director Lise Bruneau assigns roles in the selected play to both company members and actors in the extended Taffety Punk family; the actors do their text work and memorize their lines, and then show up the morning of the scheduled performance for a day of rehearsal, which really is comprised of rudimentary staging and the sorting out of entrances, exits, a few props and bits of business, including any fight sequences or dances. Then the play is presented free of charge to a packed audience. It is a spontaneous and thrilling experience for everyone and a true test of the actor's ability to jump right in and make it work! I have done two of these and am delighted to be asked back to do another.

Hubert is a great character. Based on an historic figure, legend has it that Hubert was covertly enlisted by the usurping King John to eliminate the true heir to the throne, the young Prince Arthur.
In Shakespeare's play, while acting as the young boy's jailor, Hubert becomes attached to the child and when the time comes for him to carry out the execution, he finds he can't go through with it and spares Arthur's life. He lies to the King, putting him off with news that Arthur is dead until he can find a way to free the prince and return him to his mother and the King of France, who are at war with John. Tragically, Arthur takes it on himself to try and escape and dies in his attempt, and the devastated Hubert joins the fight to bring down the usurping King John. A wonderful journey for an actor--to go from hardened mercenary to noble hero in the course of the play. I look forward to savoring every moment of my one night run!

The Gypsy in Me

JAMES BEAMAN CONTINUES AS LORD EVELYN OAKLEIGH IN "ANYTHING GOES" AT MERRY-GO-ROUND PLAYHOUSE THROUGH JUNE 22!


‎Lord Evelyn is one of those thankless roles, the stuffed-shirt Englishman, but Beaman gradually soars with it to comic heights, eventually tearing his shirt open and doing a Douglas Fairbanks set of leaps, waving a big sword and singing "The Gypsy in Me." ~SYRACUSE.COM



I am not certain I agree with this reviewer that Evelyn is a thankless role, but I will say that the part presents some seductive traps for the actor. It would be all too easy to put on a funny accent and a bunch of tics and mannerisms and call it a day with this thinly written caricature of an Englishman. Adam Godley, in his Tony-nominated turn in the role in the current Broadway revival, circumvents this by giving a somewhat understated performance, by being actually British, and by being so funny looking (tall, gangly, with a long face and outrageously large ears). In my case, I saw Evelyn as being as iconic a figure in this classic show as the brassy Reno, or the gangster Moonface Martin in his signature disguise as a Christian missionary, so I knew he had to fit in with the writers' conception of a foppish Englishman. But the challenge to me was to make the character attractive enough and lovable enough that the audience would accept that he winds up with Reno, the leading lady of the piece.

My first instinct was to drawn upon the qualities of British actors who I saw as personifying the type of English archetype Lord Evelyn represents. First actor who came to mind was the great Terry-Thomas, whose gap-toothed grin and over-articulated speech made him one of the most popular comedic actors of the '50s and '60s.
This was a good starting place, but even though Terry-Thomas made a career out of being a womanzing 'bounder' I still wanted to evoke a slightly more refined quality. For this I looked to ultra suave and elegant English actor Ronald Colman, whose thin mustache and gentle ways gave him a profound dignity in films like "The Prisoner of Zenda" and "A Double Life." Toying with these two icons as inspiration, I found a way to give Evelyn the guffawing laugh and absurd upper crust accent, but also provide him with a refinement befitting his station and an understated sex appeal that would get Reno's attention.
My last film icon inspiration informed Evelyn's private fantasies of who he'd prefer to be--the swashbuckling rake Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. I had two opportunities to expose Evelyn's secret yearning to be a man of panache--one is the scene where Evelyn is alone in his underwear in his stateroom fencing with himself in the mirror; the other is his big Act Two number, "The Gypsy in Me," where he lets his hair down and finally declares his passion for Reno. By incorporating all these inspirations, I was able, I hope, to make Evelyn more than a stock character, a man of propriety who secretly wants to be a part of the modern world of jazz and fun that was the early 1930s. The other notable quality I drew from the script was the fact that, unlike any of the other characters in the story, Evelyn has no agenda. He is guileless and rather innocent, while Billy employs tricks and deceptions to steal Hope away for himself, while Reno schemes with Moonface to break up the engagement, and while Hope herself carries on a secret amour with Billy as her mother manipulates her into a loveless marriage with the wealthy but hapless Evelyn. I think that the sweet innocence I bring to Evelyn gives the audience one more reason to fall for him.

"Anything Goes" is a classic of the musical theatre. As a classically trained actor, I know that when I approach a character from a Shakespeare play that has been done many thousands of times over the past 400 years, it is my duty not only to give the audience some of the qualities they expect from the character and his story, but also to infuse him with new life and a sense of freshness. This is part of the fun of being an interpretive artist. The material has stood the test of time, so how do I bring myself and my own imagination into play in bringing the character to life? My hope is that while the audience gets to enjoy the familiar tunes and outrageous gags of this iconic musical, they may also make some discoveries they didn't expect along the way. We have just over two more weeks to romp about on the S.S. American. More to come!

Bon Voyage!

JAMES BEAMAN PLAYS LORD EVELYN OAKLEIGH IN COLE PORTER'S CLASSIC "ANYTHING GOES" AT MERRY GO ROUND PLAYHOUSE IN AUBURN, NY JUNE 1-22!



Summer stock is one of the enduring institutions of show business. Anywhere you find sun and water and vacation homes in America, you might just find a little hard working theatre presenting a breakneck season of light entertainment, mostly musical comedies, for your delectation. It has been a few years since I have done true stock, which usually these days refers to the seemingly impossible task of mounting an elaborate musical in less than two weeks, sometimes even in one, thus allowing the venue to pack a full slate of shows into the all too brief summer season. Merry Go Round Playhouse has been a part of the summer landscape in the lovely Finger Lakes district of upstate New York since the early 1970s, and has been run by Artistic Director Ed Sayles for 30 years. The theatre itself is housed in an old building that once housed a carousel, nestled in a bucolic setting in a local public park. Having endured and evolved over the years, and with major recent upgrades to the theatre facility, Merry Go Round is well established, and continues to grow under Ed's direction. The theatre is creating a new festival of musical theatre which will be performed in four venues in the region, presenting and developing new shows, in addition to their mainstage series. Ed is directing our opening production of "Anything Goes" and it is clear that this man has great affection for, and vast knowledge of, the tradition of music theatre.

"Anything Goes," which is currently enjoying a splendid Broadway revival, is perhaps Cole Porter's most beloved and enduring musical (with "Kiss Me, Kate" a close second).
A bubble of a show, it follows the hijinks of a group of vivid characters as they make their way across the pond from New York to London on an ocean liner. The show is a feast of Porter classics including "I Get a Kick Out Of You," "It's Delovely," "Easy To Love," and "Blow, Gabriel, Blow." In short, it is a delicious little gem that audiences just love. Our cast is made up of seasoned veterans and an ensemble of young performers either still in college or just out of it--summer stock has always been a training ground and a starting place for talented kids and Merry Go Round offers that in spades. I have the pleasure of playing the quintessential dorky Englishman, Lord Evelyn Oakleigh, who is fascinated by all things American and who is continuously attempting to pepper his conversation with American slang, and getting it hopelessly wrong! He ends up marrying the brassy nightclub chanteuse Reno Sweeney, a role created for the legendary Ethel Merman, and here being served up with style and sass by the wondrous Julie Cardia. I could not ask for a more delightful leading lady.

I will be blogging throughout my stay here in Auburn, and will of course offer photos and reviews as they become available. Meantime, if you find yourself in the Syracuse/Ithaca/Finger Lakes region, come on over and set sail with us and "Anything Goes!"