Pickleville Playhouse fans crowd theater
The Pickleville Playhouse acting troupe wrapped up their tour of “Bandito Rides Again” this weekend with performances at Logan’s Ellen Eccles Theatre.
“Bandito Rides Again” is the sixth play Pickleville Playhouse has performed as part of their original “Bandito” series. T.J. Davis, writer of the “Bandito” series and performer of the Bandito role, said this show has been a different experience compared to other Pickleville shows.
“This show has been really successful and it has to do with the cast,” Davis said. “Everyone’s individual talents have complimented each other to make it a really good show. It keeps the audience’s attention the whole time.”
Blake Oyler, the show’s sound engineer, agreed.
“It’s enjoyable to be part of a crew and cast that’s so close,” Oyler said. “We perform it so many times, but we treat it like it’s a new show every night.”
Pickleville Playhouse has a notable fan base in Logan, said Eric Sackett, an actor from this weekend’s performances. The auditorium was almost completely filled and “Bandito” paraphernalia was being sold outside the auditorium.
“The Bandito craze is strong,” Sackett said. “The Logan audience is always awesome. There’s a really big following here, so there’s always a fantastic audience.”
Davis said the theater and crowd here feel like “home” to him.
“You can feel it,” Davis said. “It just connects really well with the audience here.”
“Bandito Rides Again” is comedy that gets the audience involved both vocally and physically. A vaudeville-esque pianist plays live background music onstage throughout the show, and the actors’ musical numbers cover a variety of musical styles.
“We hope to bring a different kind of live theater experience that can’t be found anywhere else in the country,” Davis said. “We hope to bring quality, unique, completely clean entertainment. We feel it brings families together.”
“It was hilarious, really fun,” said Tyler Butikofer, a junior majoring in electrical engineering. “I would come to one of these shows again.”
The performances of “Bandito Rides Again” Friday and Saturday night were the last from the tour through Logan and Salt Lake City, but they will be performing the show from June to September at their home venue in Bear Lake.
“If you like to laugh, you have to come,” Sackett said. “There’s no better use of your time than coming to see ‘Bandito.’ I’ve never heard a negative comment about the show.”
“Bandito Rides Again” is co-directed by T.J. and Andrea Davis. Information on summer shows can be found at picklevilleplayhouse.com.
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