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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels September 16, 2004 Oregon Cabaret brings back popular '50s genre By Richard Moeschl Arts and Entertainment Editor "Pete 'n� Keely," James Hindman's stylish and entertaining look at a bygone era of TV variety shows and entertainment specials, will take the stage at Oregon Cabaret Theatre starting Friday. If you lived during the '40s, '50s or '60s, you know this story well and you've seen versions of it on TV. If you don't remember, then you're in for a fun ride. Imagine a fictional couple who become a very famous singing duo in the 1950s. They get married and become a very famous husband and wife duo, appearing on a number of TV specials. The marriage lasts for 12 years and in 1963, they get divorced. "Those 12 years together were three of the happiest days of my life," Pete recalls. To which Keely responds, "Ba-dump-bump." But wait. There's more. The two pursue solo careers and, as often happens, are not particularly successful. In 1968, the sponsor of their previous shows, Swell shampoo, decides to put on a reunion special to bring them back. "If Swell can get Pete and Keely back together," the commercial announces, "think what it will do for your split ends!" The OCT audience will be the studio audience for the "live" broadcast. The studio orchestra will feature Darcy Danielson on piano, Jim Malachi on drums and Bruce McKern on bass. The music for the show includes standards from the era of TV specials, with some originals added. The style is '60s swinging pop, jazz-influenced sounds. Danielson plays the part of the band leader Dolores who is like the Doc Severinsen or Paul Schafer character on late night TV. She found the music delightfully arranged. "These arrangements stay true to the style," she said. "The originals sound like they came from that era." The singing is almost always duets with a few solos. "I really like harmony and this has a lot of harmony," said Susannah Mars, who plays Keely. "Stylistically it's a little edgier than the straight Big Band kind of sound. Singers were like instruments in the '40s big band jazz. In the '50s and '60s, they are personalities." Pete and Keely, though fictional, have a little touch of some other famous singing couples: Steve and Eydie, Sonny and Cher and Robert Goulet and Carol Lawrence. The show evokes the whole era of TV variety shows and specials, an era that is pretty much gone. "I remember the 'Carol Burnett Show'" Mars said. "There was a sense of theater and reality that made viewers feel they really knew the (people in the show). My best friend Wendy's mom, Carol, always called these people by their first names." And when performers appeared on TV, viewers always had the feeling they were talking to them. "I like the fact that they're bringing back a format where people had time to get to know the performers," Mars said. "Nowadays, the star-making machine is so different. It's geared to younger people. And the attention span has been whittled down almost to zero." The arc of the couple's relationship is the main story and it moves through everything, from what they're singing to their banter during commercial breaks. "Steve and Eydie always had that banter back and forth," said Jim Giancarlo, OCT artistic director. "They were working constantly." "It cracks through," said Gregg Preston, who plays Pete. "And the cracks get bigger." But through it all, what remains is the loving sense of humor. Oddly enough, the real Steve and Eydie will be opening at the Sahara Club in Las Vegas the same weekend as "Pete 'n� Keely" opens at OCT. Giancarlo is thrilled that he was able to rent the original costumes from the original off-Broadway production that premiered in 2000. "They were designed by Bob Mackie, the quintessential show-biz designer who created gowns for Carol Burnett and all of Cher's outrageous glamour costumes from the 'Sonny and Cher� TV show," Giancarlo said. "His costumes for 'Pete 'n� Keely� are the height of late '60s glamour and chic." Preston is from Seattle, where he has appeared at ACT, the Empty Space, Village Theatre and the Group Theatre. Mars hails from Portland, where she performs in musical theater. She most recently appeared in Portland Center Stage's production of "Bat Boy." Giancarlo is directing with musical direction by Danielson. Set and lighting design are by Craig Hudson, sound design is by Frank Sullivan and wig design is by Victoria King. Kathleen Mahoney is the stage manager. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams