High Spirits (1964)

MARCH 19 - APRIL 12, 2009

Book, Music and Lyrics by HUGH MARTIN and TIMOTHY GRAY
Based on the play “Blithe Spirit” by NOEL COWARD

Noel Coward's sparkling comedy Blithe Spirit is reinvented as a sassy and sly 60s musical. In Coward's tale, writer Charles Condomine and his wife are bedeviled by the mischievous spirit of the first Mrs. Condomine. Eccentric medium Madame Arcati conjures up the naughty ghost and endeavors to send her back to the other world.

Hugh Martin (Meet Me in St. Louis) and Timothy Gray wrote the songs which include Home Sweet Heaven, I Know Your Heart by Heart, The Bicycle Song and You’d Better Love Me.

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Directed by GREG MACKELLAN
Musical Direction by DAVE DOBRUSKY
Choreography by TOM SEGAL

BIOGRAPHIES

		MEGAN CAVANAGH (Madame Arcati) is best known for her role of Marla Hooch in A League of Their Own. Other films include Robin Hood: Men in Tights, For Richer or Poorer and Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. On TV, she currently stars on Exes & Oh’s and The Mighty B!, and has appeared on Home Improvement, Friends, Will & Grace, The West Wing, and ER, to name a few. An Actor’s Equity member since 1987, Megan returns to 42nd Street Moon, where she recently appeared as Hollywood gossip columnist Isadora St. John in Out of This World.
		DEREK TRAVIS COLLARD (“Forever” Singer/Arcati Beatnik) is making his Bay Area debut with this production. He recently moved here from NYC where he was seen in Angels (Pre-Broadway Workshop), Treaty! The Musical! (Lucille Lortel Theatre), Christmas Carol (McCarter Theatre), Nunsense A-Men (Sister Amnesia), and The Gold Wuthakee (Lincoln Center). Other regional theater roles include Fagin in Oliver, Snoopy in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Miss Great Plains in Pageant, Tobias in Sweeney Todd, Bazzard in The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and Riff Raff in Rocky Horror Picture Show.
		KATHLEEN DEDERIAN (Mrs. Bradman/Arcati Beatnik) makes a welcome return to 42nd Street Moon, having last appeared in Plain & Fancy. Favorite roles here include Luce in The Boys From Syracuse, ditzy maid Maizie in Cat and the Fiddle, and Russian agent Kostya in Leave It To Me!. She also played Germaine in Picasso at the Lapin Agile (Hillbarn), Sarah in Company (Masquers), Emma Goldman in Ragtime (Woodminster), and Margaret Mead in HAIR (Mountain Play). A non-profit fundraiser offstage, Katie currently works for Smuin Ballet.
		GIANA DE GEISO (Coral/Arcati Beatnik) returns for her second 42nd Street Moon production. She was last seen on the Eureka stage in Ben Franklin in Paris and has been patiently waiting for her next show with this fantastic company! Recent roles include Mehan Winterhalter in the workshop production of Fountain of Youth and Nancy D in Custom Made's A New Brain. Some of her favorite roles are Shelly in Bat Boy: The Musical and Lil in Last Summer at Bluefish Cove.
		MICHAEL PATRICK GAFFNEY (Charles Condomine) returns to 42nd Street Moon for another “Uncommon Musical!” Some of his previous shows with the company include: Coco, Li’l Abner, Mack & Mabel, Minnie’s Boys, and his personal favorite, Finian’s Rainbow. He also had the great honor of performing in last year’s Gala, You’ve Got Possibilities. Other theater companies Michael has worked with include The Aurora Theatre Co., Encore Theatre Co., Word for Word, Porchlight Theatre, Broadway By the Bay, Playground and California Conservatory Theatre.
		RUDY GUERRERO (Dr. Bradman/Arcati Beatnik) was previously seen in 42nd Street Moon's productions of Irma La Douce, Gay Divorce (Bay Area Theater Critics Circle Nominee for Supporting Actor), The Golden Apple, Once Upon a Mattress, and Can-Can. Other regional theater credits include performances at Alcazar Theatre, A.C.T., Berkeley Rep, Connecticut Repertory Theater, Foothill Music Theater, The Magic, Marin Shakespeare Company, Marin Theatre Company, TheatreWorks, and Word for Word. Stage awards include numerous Goodman Choice and Bay Area Theater Critics Circle Awards. Television credits include Secrets (Emmy Award). Rudy has a BFA in Musical Theater from the Boston Conservatory and a MFA in Acting from the American Conservatory Theater.
		DYAN McBRIDE (Elvira) works as an actor, director, singer and teacher. Artistic endeavors include works with 42nd Street Moon, Laguna Playhouse, Golden State Productions, New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC), Broadway By the Bay, Willows, Napa Rep, Mondavi Center, Utah Musical Theatre and Performance Riverside to name a few. She serves on the acting faculty at NCTC, UC Davis, Solano College and is an artistic associate with 42nd Street Moon. She is represented by Boom Models and Talent. Bachelor’s: California State University at Fullerton (Musical Theatre), Master’s: UC Davis (Acting). She is a member of the Screen Actors Guild, Actors Equity Association and The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.
		MAUREEN McVERRY (Ruth Condomine) has previously appeared in 42nd Street Moon’s productions of Pardon My English (Gita) and last season’s The Student Gypsy (Zampa). After understudying the role of Madame Arcati for A.C.T’s 2005 production of Blithe Spirit, she finally gets the role she really wanted! This award-winning actress has also previously worked at TheatreWorks, the Marines Memorial Theatre, Theatre on the Square, the Aurora, New Conservatory, San Rose Rep and Stage, the Magic, Marin Theatre Company, the Eureka, and Center Rep. She has also performed in NYC, LA, Dallas, Boston and Connecticut. Coming up: The title role in Moon’s production of Wildcat.
		CARLY OZARD (“Coffee House” Singer/Arcati Beatnik) recently celebrated her one-woman cabaret debut with Bitter and Be Gay! Ozard has played leads in The Golden Apple (42nd Street Moon), Carousel (Lamplighters), and appeared as Sally in Follies. She performed with Foothill Music Theatre, Broadway By the Bay, Altarena Playhouse, and made her Plush Room debut in November 2007. She was also in The Bracebridge Dinner in Yosemite in 2007. Carly was honored to be a part of You've Got Possibilities, the annual 42nd Street Moon Gala in 2008.
		JUSTIN TORRES (Rupert) returns to 42nd Street Moon for his third show, the previous ones being Girl Crazy and Irma La Douce. He has been acting throughout the Bay Area with various theater companies, including Willows, TheatreWorks, and Cabrillo Stage. He recently closed Ray of Light Theatre’s well-received production of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. During the day, he is in the TheatreWorks touring production of Oskar and the Big Bully. Don’t miss him as Hank in 42nd Street Moon’s upcoming production of Wildcat later this spring.
		RENA WILSON (Edith/Arcati Beatnik) portrayed Merry May Glockenspiel in 42nd Street Moon’s production of The Student Gypsy last spring. She was most recently seen playing Cinderella in Into the Woods. Some of her favorite roles include Eliza in My Fair Lady, Fiona in Brigadoon, Hope Cladwell (Shellie Award Nominee) in Urinetown, Marian Paroo in The Music Man, Lily in The Secret Garden, Wendy in Peter Pan (Shellie Award Nominee) and Lorraine in 42nd Street.

		GREG MacKELLAN (Director) co-founded 42nd Street Moon in 1993.  He loves visiting Europe in person or on the stage, and is delighted to add Paris’ 18th arrondissement to his Moon European forays, which have included London (The Cabaret Girl), Brighton (Gay Divorce), the Cotswolds (The Good Companions), Paris (Can-Can, Dear World, Oh, Captain!), Budapest (I Married an Angel), Venice (Do I Hear a Waltz?), and Brussels (The Cat & the Fiddle).  His other directing credits for Moon have included such well-received shows as The Student Gypsy, Li’l Abner, Minnie’s Boys, and Paint Your Wagon. Via Broadway by the Bay, Greg also visited Salzburg with the Von Trapp Family. His revised script for Cole Porter’s Out of This World was produced to great acclaim from the London critics at the Chichester Festival in 2004, and has also been done in Los Angeles and Seattle, and twice at Moon.   He guided the NEA-sponsored restoration of Arlen and Harburg’s Hooray for What, as well as the Kern Gala with Rebecca Luker, I Remember It Well with Leslie Caron, and this year’s salute to Charles Strouse.  Greg has produced seven CDs of rare theatre music with performers like Craig Bierko, Patricia Morison, Judy Kaye, Paige O’Hara, and Douglas Sills.
		DAVE DOBRUSKY (Musical Director) is celebrating his 13th season with 42nd Street Moon.  Favorite productions include Out of This World, The Student Gypsy, Plain and Fancy, Li’l Abner, Mack & Mabel, Red Hot and Blue!, Minnie’s Boys, Can-Can, Finian’s Rainbow, Paint Your Wagon (Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award), By Jupiter, Leave It to Me! (recorded), Dear World, Call Me Madam,  and Louisiana Purchase.  He has also appeared with Nancy Dussault, Susan Watson, Andrea McArdle, Marni Nixon, Rebecca Luker and Leslie Caron.  Other Bay Area credits include:  I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change (Ray of Light), Man of LaMancha (BATCC Award), Putting It Together(San Francisco Playhouse); The Fantasticks (Shakespeare at Stinson); Passion, Chess(New Conservatory Theatre); and youth productions of Titanicand Les Miserables(Musical Theatre Works).
		TOM SEGAL (Choreographer) was the director/choreographer for Moon’s Yip Harburg revue, Peddling Rainbows last spring. He also previously choreographed 42nd Street Moon’s productions of Oh, Lady! Lady!!, One Touch of Venus, Li’l Abner, Once Upon a Mattress (Dean Goodman Choice Award) and Minnie’s Boys. He recently directed and staged the world premiere of Shann Nix’s play, Alice Underground and co-directed the 75th birthday tribute to Stephen Sondheim, Simply Sondheim. He is currently an artistic advisor and associate choreographer for the national touring company Dance Through Time, teaches in the Theatre Department of Solano Community College, and is a founding board member of Keys to Achievement, an international piano education program for low-income children.
		KRIS VECERE (Stage Manager) is a San Francisco native and U.C. Berkeley grad. 42nd Street Moon productions include: Leave It To Me!, Pipe Dream, Paint Your Wagon, Oh, Captain!, Can-Can, Hooray For What?, and Irma La Douce. Other credits include: Greater Tuna, Steven Banks Home Entertainment Center, Buried Child, A Chorus Line, Camelot, Educating Rita, Little Shop of Horrors, Abyssinia, and Tintypes.
		ELLEN BROOKS (Lighting Designer) has designed many productions for 42nd Street Moon at the Alcazar, Herbst, Presentation and Eureka Theatres and begins a ninth season with San Francisco’s Lamplighters in April with Noel Coward’s Bittersweet at the Herbst. Other recent productions include Oh, My Godmother at Zeum; Macbeth, Eugene Onegin and Cosi fan Tutti for North Bay Opera, La Traviata and Il Trovatore for Livermore Opera, and Marriage of Figaro and Orlando for Bay Area Summer Opera Theater Institute (BASOTI).
		LOUISE JARMILOWICZ (Costumer) is in her third season as costumer for 42nd Street Moon. She has been costuming around San Francisco for many years. Other groups with whom she has worked, designing and constructing costumes, include Crowded Fire, the Thrillpeddlers, Handful Players, the African-American Shakespeare Co., Children's Fairyland, Stage Door Conservatory, The Lamplighters, the Dark Room Theater, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and many other local artists. www.jarmodesigns.com.
		TOM ORR (Production Manager/Set Decorator) became a Moonie in 2006 (Mack & Mabel, Li'l Abner, Pardon My English, Plain and Fancy, One Touch of Venus, Moon About Town 2007 Gala, Coco and Ben Franklin In Paris; Prod. Asst. for the 2007-08 season). An award-winning lyricist (Dirty Little Showtunes!), Tom had a hit solo show, I Feel A Thong Coming On!, at New Conservatory Theatre Center. Also: Naked Boys Singing!, Trog! (Rhino); Whoop-Dee-Doo!, Take Me Out (NCTC). With Tom Segal, he co-directed Simply Sondheim!