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Feature Story on The Gaslight Theatre in the Arizona Daily Star's Caliente 
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 | A Scene from The Gaslight Theatre's 2007 'Secret Agent Man, or, Gangsters Away.' The Gaslight Stages five musical melodramas annually in its 242 capacity theater. Arizona Daily Star |
By Levi J. Long - LLONG@AZSTARNET.COM - Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.12.2007
All Photos in this Article by James Gregg / Arizona Daily Star
"There's something about stepping into the Gaslight," said Cindy Martin, who attended the Gaslight's current production, "Secret Agent Man, or Gangsters Away" with her family. "It's different from your average day-to-day world. It's the music, the acting that lets you forget everything - it's a fun escape."
The Gaslight, which operates year-round, stages five musical melodramas annually in its 242-capacity theater, selling about 150,000 seats every 12 months.
That breaks down to about nine shows a week, and most performances quickly sell out. When the theater is not staging its own shows, it hosts entertainers and musicians in its Monday night concert series.
"What we offer is family-friendly entertainment, an experience that families can have together almost any night of the week," said owner Tony Terry Jr., who founded the company 29 years ago.
The formula, developed early on, has become hard-wired into the brains of performers and audiences alike. It's a die-hard recipe that features heroes and villains, wacky musical numbers and post-show olio acts that never fail to gets folks clapping and cracking up together.
"We want people to clap, boo and hiss. We treat the audience like an extra cast member," said director and playwright Peter Van Slyke, who has penned at least 60 original Gaslight productions since 1978. Often he changes lyrics of pop songs and adapts them for the show, such as "My World" set to the tune of "My Girl" in "Secret Agent Man."
Most of the shows are tweaked over the years to add current pop-culture references or songs - and are then staged again. "Secret Agent Man" has been produced three times since its debut in 1987. Costumes and sets are also recycled.
"We have all original shows, productions, costumes, lyrics, you name it," said Terry, a savvy producer who knows that you don't have to pay expensive royalties if you write your own shows. With at least 100 melodrama theaters around the country, the Gaslight ranks as one of the best, said Joel Dorr, editor-in-chief of the San Diego-based DramaBiz magazine, which covers theaters around the nation.
The Gaslight shows aspire to the kind of comedy seen during the golden days of "Saturday Night Live," Dorr said.
Comedy veterans such as Chevy Chase and Gilda Radner knew what audiences reacted to, just as Tony Terry Jr., Peter Van Slyke, and scene designer Tom Benson know what works for their theater, Dorr said. Over the past 29 years, the theater has moved from doing plays featuring a few musical numbers to almost full-scale musical and dance productions, Van Slyke said.
While the shows never veer far from the formula, an air of spontaneity prevails.
"If anyone feels the need to improv, that's a good thing," he said.
For 25 years, audiences have come to know actor Armen Dirtadian in numerous shows.
His first Gaslight show was "The Pirate King," staged in 1983.
Since then, Dirtadian has done one to three shows a year.
"The Gaslight has been great to me," said Dirtadian, 54, who has a role in the upcoming "Robin Hood" show. "The audiences have been wonderful. They're a lot of fun. . . . Over the years they've gotten to know us. They'll know that we'll ad-lib a line or cut up anytime, and I think that's what they're looking for."
Though there have been a few mistakes - jokes that didn't quite work - there are times when a gaffe gets guffaws.
In "Secret Agent Man," for example, there's a scene in which a robot has its power switch turned back on. But the sound-effects guy, Jeff Bendock, pushed the wrong button and the audience heard a foghorn instead of the intended sound.
"It got a huge laugh and it ended up as part of the show," Bendock said.
And all that funny stuff, proudly cornball and cheesy, keeps the audiences coming, show after show, year after year.
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History
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The Gaslight Theatre can trace its roots to The Last Frontier. Well, sort of. After leaving the University of Arizona's theater program in 1977, founder Tony Terry Jr. left Tucson to take a job as a tour-bus operator in Skagway, Alaska. There were hundreds of tourists getting off tour liners and heading into the town, but there weren't a lot of entertainment venues for them, Terry said. That's when the idea for the Mighty Moose Melodrama Theatre was created. He called UA theater cohorts Howard Allen and Tom Benson and together they started the company and staged "GOLD Fever! or Danger at Bonanza Creek!" But after a long, cold summer and an unprofitable run, the trio decided to come back to Tucson. Not wanting to give up, Terry asked his brother Tom Hill to help open The Gaslight Theatre in an old red barn at Trail Dust Town on Tanque Verde Road. It remained there until 1980, when it moved to the corner of Sabino Canyon and Tanque Verde roads. After 10 years there, the company moved again after it bought the old Jerry Lewis Theatre on East Broadway and Kolb Road. The two restaurants, Grandma Tony's Pizza and Little Anthony's Diner, were later added onto the complex. Terry also owns the Gaslight Print Shop and the Gaslight Costume Rental Shop. |
Here's a closer look at the movers and shakers behind Tucson's most reliable laugh factory:
The impresario
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Tony Terry Jr., 53, likes to show off the silly side of life for multigenerational audiences. That's been the Gaslight's mission since it opened in 1977. Terry, the theater's founder, owner and producer, heads a staff of about 150 employees, including those who work at Little Anthony's Diner and Grandma Tony's Pizza. Terry said everyone - artists, actors, waiters, staff and audiences - contributes to the Gaslight's success. "I want shows that bring families closer together," he said. "I like seeing 3- to-4-year-olds laughing their heads off with their grandparents." |
The Playwright-Director
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Since 1978, Peter Van Slyke, has been the Gaslight's major playwright and lyrist, penning more than 60 original melodramas and olios, the short acts staged after the main show is finished. The shows parody pop culture and are rife with puns. Van Slyke has also directed most of those shows, casting and coaching countless actors over the years. "I'm a piece of the puzzle," Van Slyke said. "I'm in the middle helping to put it all together. It's everyone's talent and wonderful contributions that make the magic happen." |
The scene designer
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Much of the Gaslight's magic comes from its ingenious scene designer, Tom Benson, a wildly gifted artist whose work earns almost as much applause as the actors. Benson, 52, has designed more than 400 backdrops over the years, and he also creates special effects for each show, including a scene in "Secret Agent Man" where a helicopter whisks agent Jake Strong away, only to reappear seconds later as a Ken doll on a toy helicopter. Benson, one of the founders of the theater, said he draws inspiration from old Walt Disney films, which used beautifully painted backgrounds. |
The Players  
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While it's true that the Gaslight players are the Rodney Dangerfields of the local stage scene, it's also true that they are among the hardest-working actors in town. After auditioning and landing roles for an upcoming show, Gaslight's usual gang of thespians spends about a month rehearsing for the show's premiere. That includes learning plenty of zany song and dance routines. Spontaneity is what makes it fun, said Joe Cooper, 54, who started slinging puns in 1983. He plays Director Quill in "Secret Agent Man." The Gaslight's relentless energy level and its playful vibe feed actors and audiences, said actress Sarah Vanek, 26, who plays Venus Galaxy. "We're lucky to have the Gaslight," said David Fanning, 44, a veteran who plays agent Jake Strong in the current spoof. "We get to go out on our playground every night and let everything go." |
The costume designers |
Renee Cloutier and Maryann Trombino are in charge of one of the biggest closets in Tucson - that would be the Gaslight's costume shop, which houses more than 10,000 items. That's an accumulation of 29 years of hats, scarves, wigs, shoes and period costumes. After getting the script for a show, the designers stitch together most of the over-the-top and colorful pieces, including the "claw glove" worn by actor Dave Orley, who plays Clawfellow in "Secret Agent Man." The women used a claw from a toy shovel set and pasted it onto a leather glove. Besides costumes for the shows, the costume shop also outfits all of the servers at the diner and pizza parlor. "We try to add that unique visual element to every show," Cloutier said. |
The choreographer | Audiences can thank Nancy LaViola for the lively dance sequences that grace each production. Anytime movement accompanies music, her choreography comes into play. With "Secret Agent Man" featuring numbers ranging from 1960s pop songs like "Can't Buy Me Love" to the 1970s disco-themed olio, it's hard not to have a good time, LaViola said. Dance is often one of the last elements to go into the show, she said. "I'm fortunate though to work with such a talented group," she said. "It's about our passions being highlighted on the stage." |
The musical director/pianist |
Linda Ackermann decided to try out for a gig at the Gaslight when her children were old enough for elementary school. Eleven years later, Ackermann, 50, a piano teacher with a master's in composition, now arranges the themes and background music for each Gaslight show. She also tickles the ivories before, during and after all of the productions. "Piano is such a constant factor through each show, it's moving and inspirational and a pleasure to play for audiences every night." |
The stage manager |
Brian Gawne, 23, is a silent composer - the man behind the curtain who orchestrates each performance's special effects and scene changes, and makes sure that actors are ready to go. The stage manager and a couple of assistants direct nearly everything going on. That includes operating a system of rigs and ropes used for scene changes. "It's like a jigsaw puzzle, putting everything together," said Gawne, whose dad is Tony Terry Jr. "I've probably seen every show since I was born." |
The lighting and sound designer |
Jeff Bendock, 27, is in charge of creating the sound and lighting effects for every Gaslight show. With the theater's minimal lighting system, Bendock concentrates mostly on sound cues and effects. Whether it's a rocket exploding or a cartoonish punch thrown by an actor, underscoring is everpresent, Bendock said. "Sound does provide an emotion," he said . "If it's too loud it can be distracting, but if it fits in with the scene, it can flow gently with the music. You just have to find that careful balance." |