‘Remember the Magic’ celebrates Disney and Broadway
The Old Barn Community Theatre has produced a new musical for all ages, called “Remember the Magic.” The production showcases a compilation of songs from animated Disney movies, Broadway musicals and films, all pulled together in one celebratory medley.
Katherine Newman, the show’s director, said she hopes the production will raise money for the theater and pull in a diverse audience.
“We’ve got a few numbers that, guaranteed, people (have) never heard of,” Newman said.
Costume designer Sarah Knowles said Disney was chosen because it’s some
thing people know and feel.
“Just the magic you can feel that Disney brings,” Knowles said, “so many people know (the) songs (who) can come and watch the show and sing along with them, and it really brings people back to their childhood.”
The songs are performed by 27 cast members who play a variety of roles, usually between 10 and 12 characters per number.
“We do every number in full costume, full character,” Newman said.
In addition to directing, Newman has choreographed all the dances, and she plays several characters, the most recognizable, she said, is Ursula from “The Little Mermaid.”
Jeffrey Olsen, a doctoral student, said he has acted in various venues since he was 11 years old and previously worked as a theater teacher for middle and high school; however, this is the first Old Barn performance he’s been in.
Olsen said he wanted an opportunity to fit his passion for acting into his busy schedule when he tried out for the “Remember the Magic.”
“Because it’s a Disney review, it’s a kind of homage to the Disney corporation,” Olsen said. “(We’ve) selected music from over 75 years of the corporation, from Snow White all the way up through Tangled.”
Olsen, too, plays an array of characters, such as Beast, Jiminy Cricket and a chimney sweep.
“As it is a variety show, there will always be acting involved, but it’s primarily singing and dancing while everybody acts within character,” Olsen said.
Newman said the trick to pulling off this kind of showcase medley is choosing songs based on the cast’s ability. So each musical number was tailored to the voices and talent she had available.
Spouses Joshua and Kassie Winkler are the musical directors for the show. With limited rehearsal time, Kassie Winkler said the couple had to depend on the cast’s talent to pull it all together.
“It’s made the show a lot stronger in having dedicated cast members,” Kassie said.
Other than the nostalgic Disney element, Kassie said she enjoys this particular performance because of the cast members’ high-energy.
“People go there for the fun of community theater, because they really want to put on a good show and give good feelings to the audience,” she said.
Knowles wanted to make sure that some costumes, such as the Disney princess dresses were true to the movies and recognizable to the audience, but she also wanted to make sure she wasn’t just repeating Disney designs, she said.
Certain costumes required higher levels of creativity, Knowles said, because dressing up as hyenas and seagulls isn’t really feasible.
“For most of the numbers, we’ve had to do our own interpretation of the number on the stage,” Newman said.
The fact that the show comprises a medley of contiguous songs, rapid costume changes sometimes taking 30 seconds or less are required, and Newman said Tinker Bell is there to provide the audience with distraction, appearing throughout the show to tie everything together.
After doing theater for 21 years Newman said this particular performance is “a lot more complicated than a normal show.”
“It’s so easy to do a show where you’ve got one character,” she said. “But in a review, every time you step on stage you’re a different person. It’s a lot of fun to be able to express yourself in those ways that can be really complicated, because you’ve got to really invest yourself in those 12 different characters, rather than just one.”
Producer Heather Gleason said audiences should not expect a carbon copy of the Disney movies.
“It’s way different from the movies,” Gleason said, “especially because most of the numbers selected are animated. It’s different from anything you’d expect to see.”
The show ends with a mashup of a bunch of Disney songs, Newman said.
“There are no throwaway numbers in this show,” she said. “We really want our audience to enjoy every single number.”
“It’s a nice mix of (songs) that hopefully will allow people to engage their own memories of Disney from all the different avenues that have connected with people,” Olsen said.
Performances continue through Saturday.
– l.nemelka@aggiemail.usu.edu