I have been nominated, along with my fellow cast mates for a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Ensemble in a Musical for The Civil War at Ford's Theatre. Here are some of the other nominations garnered from show that I have been blessed enough to be in: THE CIVIL WAR Outstanding Director, Resident Musical Jeff Calhoun, The Civil War, Ford's Theatre Outstanding Musical Direction, Resident Production Jay Crowder, The Civil War, Ford's Theatre Outstanding Supporting Actress, Resident Musical Eleasha Gamble, The Civil War, Ford's Theatre Kellee Knighten, The Civil War, Ford's Theatre Outstanding Resident Musical The Civil War, Ford's Theatre The Canadian Embassy Award for Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Musical The Civil War, Ford’s Theatre
ADDING MACHINE: A MUSICAL Outstanding Lead Actor, Resident Musical David Benoit, Adding Machine: A Musical, The Studio Theatre Outstanding Musical Direction, Resident Production Christopher Youstra, Adding Machine: A Musical, The Studio Theatre Outstanding Resident Musical Adding Machine: A Musical, The Studio Theatre Congrats to all, and I am so proud of all of my fellow cast mates from both of these incredible shows! For a full list of nominees, click HERE.
The year began as the last one ended - with Les Miserables at Signature Theatre. The show was a huge success, and very rewarding to do. The family of people working on it was like none that I had ever experienced, and I treasured every moment of it. We went on to win many awards at the Helen Hayes Awards this year, including "Outstanding Ensemble" and "Best Musical". It was a truly amazing experience.
I went directly into the next show from Les Miserables, which was The Civil War at Ford's Theatre. This show was a pleasure to work on from the start, and ended up being one of the most fun experiences that I have ever had in the theatre. From the cast to the show, it was a sheer delight to perform every night.
In July, I had several things going on. First was my third 6th cabaret at Signature, entitled "The Stephen Gregory Smith Show", which mimicked the Ellen show in format and style. I had about 10 guests come up and sing with me throughout the evening. While it ran a little bit long, it was a fantastic evening of songs and duets that I am very proud of, and very thankful to all of my friends for appearing in with me!
Also in July I started a 3 week workshop process at Signature called "21/24". Two pieces were workshopped different casts of actors. The tow pieces were "The Boy Detective Fails" by by Adam Gwon and Joe Meno, and "The Hollow" by Matt Conner and Hunter Foster. I appeared in the former.
The experience was like theatre summer camp, and was so fun for all of us. Joe Calarco directed The Boy Detective, while Eric Schaeffer directed The Hollow. The Boy Detective is based on Joe Meno's novel of the same name, and concerns a thirty year old former boy detective named Billy Argo. I treasured playing Billy Argo, and this character has become one of my favorites that I have ever tackled.
It was one of my favorite roles I have ever attempted, and I truly hope that Billy Argo comes around again. Only time will tell.
My last full production of the year was at Studio Theatre, in the show Adding Machine: A Musical. This strange little show was the little engine that could. With hardly any set, a minimal costume and lighting plot, and a score harder than any I have ever worked on, this piece is one that I will always hold close to my heart.
I also got to meet and work with David Benoit, who was a pure delight. I valued my time with him so much!
Adding Machine: A Musical was listed in the "Best Of 2009" by both the Washington Post and The City Paper. I am so proud of our little engine that could. It was one hell of a ride.
And as you can see from my earlier posts, I ended the year with the Swinging Santas Cabaret at Signature. So a busy year, all in all. I am so grateful and thankful to all of the people who were a part of all of these experiences. And also thankful to anyone who cared enough to come and see them. I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year! xoxo SGS
Adding Machine: A Musical closed this past Sunday night at The Studio Theatre in Washington, DC. This show was such a labor of love for all involved, and I am so proud to have been a part of it.
The entire experience has been such a creative playground, and such a classroom for me. Seldom does an actor, especially in musical theatre, get to delve into such a deep, rich and twisted character. And to be directed by one of the creators of the piece was also very rewarding and insightful. Jason Loewith( our director, and co-author of the piece) was so fantastic to work with in this process, and knew exactly how to create these monstrous characters while keeping them human and real.
This being the first time that I have worked at Studio Theatre, I was a bit nervous and feeling like a kid transferring to a new school mid-semester. These fears were quickly put to bed when upon the first rehearsal, Joy Zinoman hugged me fiercely and whispered into my ear that she was so happy to finally have me in her theatre. Little gestures like this go such a long way to make a newcomer feel at ease in a new environment. The staff and creative team did their best to make us feel welcomed and supported. I had such a fantastic time working there, and hope that this was only the first of many adventures there to come.
Whatever cast that you belong to in any given show becomes your extended family for whatever period that you spend with them. This family was a hilarious bunch of kooks, just like me, so I felt right at home. Along with spending time with some wonderful actors that I have worked with in the past, I met several new faces that will remain in my life from now on. (To name the names, Katie Nigsch-Fairfax and David Benoit, our Mr. Zero.)
David. What to say about David? He is a force of nature. I watched his "Zero's Confession" every single night, and I never once failed to be in utter awe of the entire performance/song/total package. This song truly is the male "Rose's Turn". Such a bombshell of a song. And the performance that he gave was nothing short of remarkable. Watching him self destruct and explode and then be reduced to a sobbing pathetic mess was breath taking. Adding Machine was, of course, not your typical musical. Both David and I had songs in which we both basically had total mental breakdowns set to music. Also, in saying this, I would be remiss if I did not mention how in awe of the actors that made up the Quartet I was. Katie Nigsch-Fairfax, Channez McQuay, Joe Peck, and Thomas Adrian Simpson were a four person machine. They functioned as one, and were impeccable. I would never want to be in the position that they were with all of their difficult harmonies and all of those numbers...imagine - try memorizing all of the random numbers that they sing throughout the show. It is damn near impossible. They had a very taxing rehearsal process that was very hard on them, but the results were more than worth the toil. Not many of the reviews spent much time (as per usual)talking about the ensemble of the show in depth. Our quartet were damn near the best thing in the show, and gave a foundation to the whole shebang. Without them, there was no show. My love and respect go to every one of them. I had it much easier than any of them. This show is also the last full staged show that I will be doing in the foreseeable future, so as the lights dimmed on Sunday night, my heart felt a sad pang. I know I will miss it so much. But till I get hired again for a show, I will not be on a stage for quite awhile (at least the rest of this theatrical season). This closing was very bitter/sweet. But, time off will only make me love and appreciate my craft more. I know this. In the final analysis, Adding Machine was one of the highlights of my career so far, and I am so blessed to have been a part of it. I thank everyone who came to support it, and Studio Theatre for the wonderful experience that it was. I thank the cast and crew for their amazing work. I thank Jason Loewith and Josh Schmidt for creating such a fun house for an actor to run through and play.
Here is a video that features our music director, Christopher Youstra discussing his excitement about starting the rehearsal process.
On Halloween night, I was struck with the slightest bit of inspiration. I spotted my Michael Myers mask and thought of how perfect it would look with my first costume in Adding Machine - my prison garb. I grabbed the mask and stashed it in my bag. When I was entirely ready for the show, I grabbed the mask, put it on and stalked about backstage in the dark. Needless to say I scared several cast members and crew. :) To quote the original movie, Halloween, "It's Halloween, everyone's entitled to one good scare."
