advertised. And now he turns his attention to what is potentially a much bigger triumph--this appalling thing he calls "loveless copulation" at the Chicken Ranch. Although many of the state's politicians have, in fact, been customers of the brothel, they are eager to preserve their political careers and thus choose to publically denounce the Chicken Ranch and its inhabitants. Finally, in spite of the protection of the local sheriff, Miss Mona, the proprietress of the Chicken Ranch, is thrown out onto the street along with all of her girls, even as Melvin P. Thorpe receives a commendation from the Governor for his services to the state of Texas.
Presented at The Palace Theatre
80 Hanover Street, Manchester NH
Thursday November 27 @ 8pm
Friday November 28 @ 8pm
Saturday November 29th @ 2pm
Tickets $15 for Adults
>> Scroll down for a List of Songs and a Detailed Show Synopsis <<
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Program Book Advertising Information
(prices updated 10/3/03)
Click Here to open Word Document, or
right-click, select "Save As..." to download the file to your computer
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Schedules
Click here for Rehearsal Schedules for Cast and Crew
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Production Staff
Director: Betty Thomson
Music Director: Celeste Milukas
Pit Conductor: Jed Holland
Choreographer: Bobby Fonacier
Stage Manager: Brian Burke
Asst Stage Manager: Denise Burke
Producer: Jack Trommer
Asst. to Producer: Beth Ann O'Hara
Costumes: Mary Selvoski, Betty Thomson
Technical Director: Joe Vago
Set Build Manager: Joe Vago
Set Design: Dick Marshall, Lacy Long, Jack Trommer, Dave Nelson, Joe Vago, Betty Thomson
Set Styling: Lacy Long, Betty Thomson
Set Build: Joe Vago, Jack Trommer, Nelson LeMay, Brian Burke, Lindsay Peterson, Roger Albright,
Ken Drinan, Pat Napolitano, Eric Scheiner, Dave Nelson, Mike O'Keefe
Set Painting: Lacy Long, Bert DeWaters, Betty Thomson, Pat Delzell, Sally Nutt, Catherine Andruskevich
Set Graphics Design: Lacy Long, Bert DeWaters
Lighting Design: Dave Nelson
Lighting Hang: Dave Nelson, Joe Vago
Sound Design: Joe L. Vago
Lighting Run: Doug Penney
Spotlight Run: Renee Fortin
Sound Run: Mike O'Keefe
Treasury: Anne Young
Props Masters: Jack Trommer, Pat Napolitano
Asst.Props Master: Catherine Andruskevich
Set Crew: Jack Trommer, Pat Napolitano, Adam Young, Matt Gregg, Tyler Whitney, Scott Cocchiaro
Advertising Director: Lindsey Peterson
Program Manager: Sara Scheiner
Promotions: Eric Scheiner
Sales: Sara Scheiner
Poster Design: Bert DeWaters, Lacy Long
Graphics: Bert DeWaters
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Cast List
The New Thalian Players wish to extend their heartfelt thanks and gratitude to everyone who has auditioned for this production of "Best Little Whorehouse in Texas". The casting decisions were extremely difficult with so many talented applicants and only a finite number of roles available. The following individuals have been selected for this production.
Mona Stangley........................Susan Sartorelli
Mona Stangley........................Barbara Lawler (Saturday Performance)
Jewel .....................................Dana Shellmire
Sheriff Ed Earl Dodd ................Al Lindquist
Melvin P. Thorpe ....................Nathan Barnes
Doatsey Mae ..........................Maggie Murphy
Angel......................................Tracy Smith
Shy.........................................Anne Marie Young
Senator Wingwoah ..................Gary Evans
Governor .................................George Piehl
Mayor Rufus Poindexter ...........John Campanello
Edsel Mackey .........................Ken Drinan
C. J. Scruggs .........................Roger Albright
TV Colorman ..........................Jim Rogato
Angelette Imogene Charlene .....Aimee Labrie
Announcer ...............................Joe Karas
Bandleader ..............................Mark Crowell
MONA'S GIRLS:
Ginger ............Jeanne Bailey
Beatrice ..........Katryn Baker
Eloise .............Debbie Comire
Dawn ..............Michelle Bossie
Durla ..............Andrea Albright
Taddy Jo .........Lori Smith
Ruby Rae .......Donna O'Bryant
Linda Lu .........Jen Bowen
CHORUS:
Martha Holland
Sheila Melanson
Lindsay Peterson
Sally Nutt
Dallas Bergeron
Andrea Deachman
Aimee Labrie
Catherine Andruskevich
Stacy Huot
Caroline Soucy
Joe Karas
Ken Drinan
Jim Rogato
Roger Albright
John Campanello
Mark Crowell
Paula Brennan
Brian Duchesne
AGGIES:
Dallas Bergeron
Joe Vago
Tyler Whitney
Scott Cocchiaro
Kai deMello-Folsom
Tom Caron
Ryan Murphy
Bobby Fonacier
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Schedules and Information
REHEARSALS
Check the BWHiT Schedules web page for details on where and when rehearsals will take place.
Music, dance & acting rehearsals will be every Sunday starting September 21st, from 12 noon to 6pm.
Specific rehearsal times will be scheduled for each person between these hours. Schedules will be sent out via email after the first rehearsal.
Weekday rehearsal times will be scheduled as needed for some speaking roles or dance numbers during the hours of 6pm-9pm. These schedules will also be emailed to you.
CONFLICTS
After Auditions please coordinated all scheduling conflicts through the Stage Manager (not Director).
MISSED REHEARSALS: We ask that you be available every rehersal, but we understand if you must miss 1 rehearsal. Missing 2 or more rehearsals becomes a hardship on the cast.
MEMBERSHIP
COMPLIMENTATRY TICKETS
Cast and Crew who have paid their membership fee for the year, are eligible for 2 complimentary tickets for the following performances:
- Saturday 11/29 @ 2pm
SET BUILD/PAINT/DECORATE
Will be at the New Warehouse on Saturday's in September through November, from 9:30am until 3pm-ish. Please check the Schedules page for more info.
SET LOAD IN
Everyone will be needed to assist with the load. Meet the Technical Director and the Director at 11am on Sunday 11/23/03 at the New Warehouse location (150 Dow Street, Manchester).
If you are helping with lighting, meet at 11am at the Palace Theatre.
Rehearsal will start around 5:30pm.
TECH WEEK
Sunday 11am - 5pm Load in; 5pm-5:30pm Dinner; 7pm-Orchestra Rehearsal
*Monday 5pm - 11pm Tech Cue-to-Cue. All Tech and stage crew are needed at the Palace
Tuesday 6pm Call for everyone. 7pm Full Run Thru (costumes, makeup, sound, lights, stage crew)
Wednesday 6pm Call for everyone. 7pm Full Run Thru (costumes, sound, lights, stage crew)
PERFORMANCES
Thursday 6pm Call for everyone. 7:30 house opens. 8pm performance
Friday 6pm Call for everyone. 7:30 house opens. 8pm performance
Saturday Noon Call for everyone. 1:30 house opens. 2pm performance
STRIKE
Strike will take place on Saturday November 29th immediately after the 2pm show - and BEFORE any parties begin. Technical Director and Producer will coordinate.
Please bring a screw gun if possible.
OFFICAL COMPANY PARTY
The Official Company Party will be held at "The Chateau" on Hanover Street (2 blocks east from the Palace Theatre). Lindsay Peterson is the event coordinator.
The cost per person is $13. Lindsay will be collecting money up until November 23rd. This dead line can not be extended because the Chateau needs a head count. Please feel free to mention the cast party to NTP members that are not actively involved with BLWiT.
There is a bar very close to our banquet room however drinks are not included in the meal price. Dinner will include ham, chicken, veggies, pasta and will be buffet style. See Lindsay for an exact list of buffet items if anyone wants a complete list of food.
The Chateau will be ready for us to arrive at 7pm. Dinner will be ready around 7:45pm. Please do not leave strike until Betty, Jack, and Joe have released you. Please check with all 3 before leaving strike.
Lindsay will be at all scheduled rehearsals to collect money and reserve your spot.
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Songs
20 Fans
A Lil' Ole Bitty Pissant Country Place
Girl, You're A Woman
Texas Has A Whorehouse In It
Twenty-Four Hours Of Lovin'
Doatsy Mae
The Aggie Song
The Bus From Amarillo
The Sidestep
No Lies
Good Old Girl
Hard Candy Christmas
A Friend To Me
Watch Dog Theme
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Show Synopsis
THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS tells the story of a little Texas brothel known as the Chicken Ranch--so named because, during the Depression, customers were allowed to pay with poultry! As the story begins, two new girls have just arrived at the Chicken Ranch looking for employment. One of the girls is obviously an experienced street whore, the other has come straight from the farm where she was molested by her father. Miss Mona, the proprietor of the Chicken Ranch and a former prostitute herself, immediately sizes up both girls. She allows both girls to stay, but gives the first girl a quick makeover, forcing her to remove her tarty blonde wig and sunglasses and change her name to "Angel."
Meanwhile, Melvin P. Thorpe, a television commentator, is about to go on the air with "Nemisis", a watchdog program that is supposedly committed to exposing social and commercial abuse, but in reality is only a front for giving Melvin himself exposure so that he can bathe in the limelight. The previous week, Melvin had scored a big hit by proving that a certain peanut bar contained fewer peanuts than advertised. This week, he has his sights set on the Chicken Ranch. With all the glitz and cheesy showmanship of a bad Broadway musical, Melvin proclaims to his audience the surprising revelation that "Texas Has Whorehouse in It." He declares that this evil must be brought to an end and calls on the local sheriff to shut the Chicken Ranch down. Back at the Chicken Ranch, however, things continue as normal. Angel is settling into her new job and, during a break, takes a moment to call her mama who is looking after Angel's little boy. Miss Mona is preparing for a big rush of business. There is a big football match scheduled, and the prize for the winning team is an evening at the Chicken Ranch. She wants to create a special Homecoming Dance atmosphere for the occasion, so she is dressing all the girls in 1950s style ball gowns (equipped, of course, with Velcro for easy removal!)
The local sheriff, Ed Earl Dodd, an old friend of Miss Mona's, decides to pay her a visit. He informs her of the local crusader's efforts to shut down her establishment, but Miss Mona laughs it off. There have been moral crusaders before, but the Chicken Ranch has always survived. The Sheriff is uneasy, however, as these previous crusaders have never had the power of television to back them up. Ed Earl's apprehension proves well founded. He soon finds Melvin setting up his cameras on the main street of Gilbert in preparation for continuing his attack on the little brothel. The Sheriff hits Melvin with a bylaw, forcing him to pack up his cameras and move out. He gives the television crusader an earful as well, using language which is, to say the least, not very polite. He has unwittingly played into Melvin's hands, however; the sheriff's performance has been caught on Melvin's television cameras and is almost immediately relayed to Melvin's decidedly conservative Texas audience. In spite of this, Ed Earl is unrepentant and swears he would do the same thing if "that sawed-off little shit" came around again.
Although the citizens of Gilbert are beginning to grow a little nervous at all this publicity, life goes on. Preparation for the football match continues, and the players have nothing on their minds but Senator Wingwoah's promise to the victors of a night out at Miss Mona's establishment (even though the senator had spent the night before on KTEX-TV denouncing such establishments--one of those little political necessities.) But the boys' night of pleasure isn't destined to go quite as well as they had hoped. The Sheriff is in the kitchen of the Chicken Ranch, having coffee with Miss Mona, when all hell breaks loose. Melvin and a whole cavalcade of men with cameras suddenly break into the brothel and begin snapping pictures, and chaos soon wins the day.
Although the Governor of Texas is a master of "The Side Step," he can't silence the moral majority that Melvin P. Thorpe has galvanized into action, and is soon obliged to admit that the legendary Texas brothel must be shut down. When the call comes from the governor, it is Ed Earl who must deliver the news to Miss Mona. The girls begin packing their suitcases. Angel makes up her mind to move back home and get a normal job so that she can be with her young son. Miss Mona, however, is not so sure what her next move is. She has never forgotten a night she spent with Sherif Ed on the evening of Kennedy's inaugeration. She wouldn't call it love, but it was a special night for her, and she would like very much for things to be like they were that night. She asks Ed Earl if he remembers what he was doing the night of Kennedy's inaugeration, but he says he has forgotten.
Miss Mona takes a long, hard look at her life, and as all of her girls march off with their suitcases, she sings "The Bus from Amarillo." Then, knowing that somewhere nearby the Governor is presenting Melvin P. Thorpe a plaque in honor of his services to the state of Texas, Miss Mona gathers up her own belongings and steps out into the world, prepared to start a new life for herself.
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Audition Information
Auditions will be held
Sunday, August 24th & Monday August 25th
at 83 Hanover Street, in Manchester NH
(Across from the Palace theatre) in the Third Floor Ballroom
Please have an appropriate song prepared with sheet music for the pianist.
Be prepared to read from the script & learn basic dance steps.
call Director Betty Thomson at 603-483-8671
