Great show! We saw it last night and loved it. We so enjoy that Clovis has talent enough and a great theater to give the community a first rate production! Keep up the good work Centerstage...you are something we can all be proud of!

Thank you so much for the great review! I'm so glad our exuberant energy is flowing into the audience so well! As a teen dancer it really helps to get the adrenaline going. I'm looking forward to the rest of our performances!

As a proud member of the CenterStage Board and a proud Pick-A-Little Lady, I would like to thank you all for your support of CenterStage Clovis Community Theatre! And thank you Mr. Munro for your review!

Thanks so much Mr. Munro for your review of our show. It has been a labor of love for me, and I'm honored to be a part of this incredible cast. Thanks for aknowledging our efforts, and the fine work by our director Greg Grannis!

I liked the kids and the singing and music was great. I liked the live orchestra. That always excites me. Everybody played their part well. The sets amazed me, they were huge and beautiful. I would recommened they show to everyone. A must see. A great family show.

I would like to thank the cast,crew,director and centerstage staff for an incredible experience with the Music Man. I have enjoyed performing as Constable Locke and with the supreme traveling salesman in Rock Island. Not only has this been an incredible experience but a show of such high caliber due to the constant effort for all to reach deep to perform at their best at every moment of the show! I would like to thank Greg Gannis and his incredible direction. I truly want to thank Don Munro for his incredible review that speaks highly of our efforts to hopefully meet his standards of theatre performances. I would encourage anyone not to miss this fun filled Musical for an unforgettable experience.

Fantastic show. I am a man who typically hates musicals, but this was so fresh and funny that I laughed out loud a great deal. I agree with Munro on several things--the production value was great, the use of a live orchestra added an inestimable value, and the leads were a bit weak. Harold was a bit bland when he needed to be more seductive to the crowd (granted, it's a hard balance to strike...the physical/theatrical demands of the songs are extremely taxing), and Marian was shrill and overpowering when subtlety should have ruled.
But the REAL treat in this production was the minor cast. In particular, Mrs. Shinn was absolutely hilarious. I'd seen the actresses talents underused in other productions, but she really stole the show every time she hit the stage. Tommy Djilas and his doting girlfriend were a really dynamic pair. The quartet was fantastic.
I was particularly thrilled to see that many of the funnier roles were given to female characters, which you don't always see in a musical. As mentioned above, the mayor's wife, his daughter, and all the henpecking ladies of town in their dance group...they were priceless. They really knocked it out of the park with their misguided exuberance and their raw hilarity. Spectacular show...and this coming from a guy who hates musicals.

This show is a must see. The opening train-car scene will knock your socks off. It is cleverly staged and the timing of the boisterous traveling salesmen is beyond belief. It sets the stage for an afternoon (I saw the matinee) of wonderful theater and music.
Jennifer Goettsch is hilarious as Mrs. Shinn -- loved her "trickle, trickle" as the fountain. Leigh Murray did a great job as the outspoken Irish mother of Marian. And young Nathan Fennacy is terrific as Winthrop. He had just the right expressions, and boy can he sing! Then, of course, there are the main characters -- Brent Moser and Sarah Lofgren as Harold and Marian. They are both seasoned actors and beautiful, strong singers.
Thanks to everyone involved in this delightful show. I'll be humming these songs for weeks to come!

I was at opening night and just had to go again! The second performance I saw was even better. The members of the cast seem to be enjoying themselves so much that one can't help get excited too. I particularly loved all the delightful youngsters who were so enthusiastic. Shelby Funk has the greatest smile! (No, I'm not related to her). The teen dancers are wonderfully entertaining, the sets and costumes stunning and the entire cast does a superb job. Mrs. Shinn,Tommy and Zaneeta, the Men's Quartet and the Anvil Salesman were particularly memorable. What other pastime brings people of all ages together? It is heartwarming to see an intergenerational show where everyone is having fun and at the same time bringing such pleasure to the audience. The humor is amazing in this production. If you need cheering up this show will do it! Congratulations and Thanks Centerstage!

I would like to thank my fellow cast members, the fine orchestra, volunteer parents, grips, and all the techies that have worked so hard. My special thanks to Greg, who is an actor's dream. He allowed me to take Eulalie and create a character I have come to love. I would like to recognize our teen dancers,who are a remarkable group of young people.
Thank you Mr. Munro for your fine review. On behalf of Eulalie and the "Urnettes", thank to the community for continuing to support community theater.

I grew up watching the movie version of The Music Man, and knew the songs and the story from a very young age. Consequently, with all the intonations and specific expressions ingrained in my mind, I expected to be disappointed by a live version that certainly could not replicate what I was so familiar with. I expected to be distracted by every little deviation. I was most happily wrong. The musical struck the perfect balance by telling the old story in a fresh and engaging way. I forgot where I was and became immersed in the singing and the humor.
My favorites were without a doubt Tommy and Zaneeta, and the live orchestra was an excellent addition.

Thanks to Donald Munro for the nice review. Me and my brothers and dad are all in the show. Two of us are in the ensemble, dad is a traveling salesman and one of us is Winthrop. We have had so much fun being a part of this show. The cast is talented and treats everyone like a family. We've learned a lot from our director. This play has so much excitement, music and funny parts. We hope everyone will come out and see the show! We promise you'll have a great time!!!! The Fennacys

After seeing the show, I am just awed by the talent that exists in this area. We are so lucky to be entertained by such creative, entertaining people. My hope is that Centerstage continues in the future to receive the community support so apparent on opening night. It was a treat to spend a few hours with the folks of River City, as well as the outsider from Gary, Indiana. Hooray for EVERYONE!

Thank you Mr. Munro for the wonderful review of Music Man. I have been behind the scenes helping many of the younger performers this summer and also have observed first hand the amount of time, effort, and hard work that goes into putting on a show like this. To see the community come together and share their talents so willingly has been truly a pleasure. I am so thankful to all who have given up a large portion of their summer to make this happen. Thanks to everyone that has come and seen the show your energy and enthusiasm makes the show even better. To those of you who haven't seen the show, come and bring the whole family. It has something for everyone, you won't be disappointed!!!

I was in the cast as Gracie Shinn and I had a BLAST!!! It was an honor to have worked with such a talented cast and awesome director, Greg Grannis. I totally encourge anyone who likes to perform to audition for Center Stage's next show. It is a great bonding experience. I met alot of really cool people that I hope to keep in touch with.

My family and I attended the play on Friday. The entire cast did a fantastic job. I am a fan of the movie, and the production was right on.
Great Job!!!

Oh my goodness. Well, I'm glad everyone involved had such a good time. I saw the performance closing night, and out of the 20-some-odd productions of Music Man I've seen in my life, this one belongs at the bottom of the list. There were some good points, among them the wonderful sets and some great costumes (although not for everyone: Marian had some ill-fitting and very unflattering costumes to deal with), a wonderful tenor in the quartet (among the best I've ever heard), a very funny Charlie Cowell, and great energy from everyone involved. However, I'm sorry but this felt more like some kind of cartoonish mockery of what Meredith Willson wanted when he wrote The Music Man. He intended this show to be a loving remembrance of the childhood town where he grew up, and instead it became an exercise in mugging and over-acting. There was not one person on that stage that presented an honest portrayal of a real person, nor did I ever feel any kind of real connection between any of the characters on stage. I'm glad people enjoyed Shipoopi (and I feel that was indeed the strongest group number), but this show is about so much more than Shipoopi. It's about relationships - between parent and child, man and woman - and they just weren't there. This show should tug at your heartstrings by the end, and that just didn't happen at all. The leads were all fine, and definitely had potential to be good in their parts, but I blame the director for the completely misguided direction this show took in the end. The Marcellus and Tommy were the most over-the-top portrayals of those characters I've ever seen, and all their ridiculous mugging and attention-grabbing was embarrassing. I don't blame them either, as I'm sure they are talented young men. Where was the director to rein them in? And while it's great to hear a live orchestra, I've heard tracks down at Roger Rocka's there were 10 times better than the out-of-tune playing I heard from that orchestra. They practically ruined the end of My White Knight, and were so slow in the other love ballads for Harold and Marian that it was almost uncomfortable. I'm sorry to go on such a rant, but I can't imagine how Mr. Munro could have given such a positive review to a show that was so misguided. I really want to support Center Stage, and I hope they continue to grow and get better, but this show was not a step in that direction. If all you're looking for is tons of people on stage and high energy, I guess it was fine. But I'm looking for more than that, and it really came up short for me.

I'm actually laughing out loud at the previous comment. I, too, have seen productions of "The Music Man" dozens of times, and this was the best production ever. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, of course; it's just that this time, mine is right. Often times, what one looks for in a production is what one will find. I found entertainment and joy. That's what I paid for, and I left happy.

There's always one in the bunch. Sort of like the local version of The New York Post. Hate what they like, like what the hate. Makes for good reading.

The best production ever? Honestly? You are as entitled to your opinion as I am to mine, but this production was not up to par. If you're looking for over-the-top theatrics and "wocka-wocka" mugging, it fits the bill, but for those of us that are looking for humanity and heart in The Music Man, they were in short supply. And trust me, I'm not the only "one in the bunch", as a good number of people I talked to that are regular theater patrons felt the same way. I guess our expectations are different, and that's fine, but at least I tried to give a balanced view of the show I saw. There were definitely good elements to the show, and I feel this company needs support to keep growing, but saying this was the "best production ever" made ME laugh out loud. To each his own, and I'm glad you got what you wanted out of it.

Marianna, if you felt the company needs support there are more diplomatic ways to go about your critique. What you wrote came off as bitter. Whether you meant it that way or not. Saddly, there are things I agreed with ( not the orchestra, btw, you must have seen it on an off night, or had your own prejudices at play), but not the way you stated them.
You did not give a balanced view, you gave YOUR view.

You didn't get what you wanted based on your own biases, just as Annette DID get what she wanted based on hers.
But let's not pretend that anyone, except Mr. Munro wrote anything close to balanced.

Oy, as handslapping as this post is... I truly want to point out that we can not begin to pretend that what we write, in opinion of anything, is fair and balanced. We walk into performances with our own expectations and judge based on those, and often those alone. You didn't get what you expected. I assume neither did your group, but birds of a feather... and all that cliche'.

Which is where much of my respect for Donald Munro comes into play, even when I don't agree with him. He is upfront with what he expected from a show and is upfront on whether those expectations are met or not. It's HIS judgment call and not THE judgment call. Which, I suppose, is why we are all little comments at the bottom of HIS posts.

I appreciate the points you're making, C1. I can support the company by going to see their shows, and I do hope they're successful - which I say to many people, I honestly hope they really take off. However, that doesn't mean that I can't speak my mind and say when I think it's not their best work.

And I beg to differ, but I did indeed give a "balanced" view. I made a point of saying all the things that I liked about the show, and there were a few of them. Nowhere did I say "This was the worst show I've ever seen, there was nothing good about it!" because that isn't true. I suppose I could have been kinder in stating my reactions to the show, but it's how I felt. And I'm sorry, but neither is Mr. Munro's review completely "balanced" - it's his viewpoint just as much as anyone else's. I've seen him rip shows to shreds when he's not in the mood, with not a good comment in sight - it's still his VIEW. His recent review of Chicago was pretty brutal, and people I've talked to have said it's not as bad as he says. I'll go and make up my mind for myself. I do respect him and his writing quite a bit, but he's just as subject to personal biases as the rest of us.

I happened to disagree with him on this one, when normally I agree with most everything he reviews - we have very similar takes on most of the shows that I've seen. So, I said how I felt and I figured there would be people who would disagree. They can take what they want from the show and be satisfied, just as I can feel that it was lacking. I was not biased against the show, as I am rooting for Center Stage, and I love The Music Man - it's a perfect show for a community theater like this one. I just have certain expectations of my own, and I feel they weren't met.

To be fair, he did say he had certain expectations when going to see Chicago. Something I appreciate, because there are musicals I am the same about. Chicago/Cabaret = sexy and dark and anything even hinting at cute totally gets my goat. There are times I've felt he's been harsh, but I've always felt he's been as balanced as possible.
And I should have made myself clear. It isn't bias against the show, it's bias ABOUT the show. For instance one of my favorite plays, ever, is Frankie and Johnny In The Clare De Lune. I love that play. I will forever see Cathy Bates or Janice Noga or Biz Fiester ( though I don't think Biz has done that show) as Frankie. Frankie is a woman I see in the mirror. She's attractive but in a very REAL way. So, no matter how much I liked what they did with the movie ( Nathen Lane's added character, the surrounding cast of wonderful personalities) the casting of Michelle Pfiefer just irked me. It's my own bais. She was just fine. I think we all walk into certain productions like that, with that expectation of what is familiar or wanted.
You didn't appreciate the comic relief ( and I truly feel your pain), but other people really liked it and for them it made "one of the greatest shows ever". That's all I meant about biases. No, not a bias against a company or production. It's just a bais based on what your own personal expectations are. You look for the warmth, others look for the humor. You and I would have been grand pals on a not so recent production of Bus Stop I saw.