By Erin Randolph erin@dmcityview.com

The last time "Chicago" was performed at the Des Moines Playhouse was in 1983. In that production, the role of Billy Flynn was played by Dale Berry. And when "Chicago" opens the 2005-2006 Playhouse season, the role of the smarmy lawyer will be played by Steve Berry, Dale's son.

"I got to see him in that role and I enjoyed it very much," Steve Berry says of his father. "Now he's anxious to come see the show opening night."

Opening night is Friday, and the play will run at the Playhouse through Oct. 2. As a theater piece, the Tony Award-winning musical "Chicago" has been around since the '70s. Taking place in roaring-'20s Chicago, Roxie Hart (Amy Burgmaier) goes to jail for the murder of an unfaithful lover. There, Hart and another vixen, Velma Kelly (Gena Gedler), vie for newspaper headlines in hopes the publicity will launch them into the spotlight and successful stage careers. They rely on Flynn to help get them there.

Another coincidence, Berry has a law degree. And at 44 years old, Berry feels he's at the right age to be portraying Flynn, making this a role he couldn't pass up.

"I think he's at an age where he's young enough to still be brash but old enough to be experienced at it," Berry says. "The role I'm playing is so smarmy. The last role I played was Jesus in 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and this is on the different end of the spectrum. That's what's so fun about it."

Only recently was the play made into a feature-length movie based on the popular stage show. The general concept is the same, but the staged version includes more in the way of a storyline, Berry says. Film has capabilities the stage does not, including special effects and the ability to pay more attention to detail. However, there's more energy to the stage version, which is a nice tradeoff.

"I think people will be a little surprised if they go see the play," says Gedler, who plays Velma Kelly. "I hope they don't expect to see exactly what's in the movie. And if they do, I don't think they'll be disappointed at all because there's plenty more to see in the play that's not in the movie."

Taking on the role of Velma prompted Gedler to lose weight through diet and exercise. She joined Weight Watchers, following its point system, bought a lot of Smart One meals and ate a lot of salads. She also had to brush up on her dance moves.
"I just felt really strongly about the role and felt that my dancing days aren't out of me yet, so I figured I'd give it one more shot," Gedler says. "I slimmed down as much as I could, took off about 25 pounds and started working on an exercise regimen. I hadn't had to dance for a while in a show. It was a matter of finding out what the old bod could still do. The last show I danced heavily in was 'West Side Story,' and that was '86 or so."
She lost the weight within a two-month span prior to her audition. Velma was the only role 43-year-old Gedler felt she'd be right for in the production, and felt compelled to lose the weight in order to stay competitive.

"When you get older, it's like anywhere: if you want to remain competitive or remain a considered possibility, you have to do what you need to do to appeal to the people who are casting or who are in charge," Gedler says. "It's our mini Broadway. You're doing the best you can locally with what's available to you. If you don't choose to go the big route when you're younger and you want to have family and remain in your comfort zone, it's a nice way to be able to get to do what you really want to do on a smaller scale and still live the so-called normal life."

Gedler says that those in community theater work really hard to give people what they think they might enjoy. And the actors take it seriously. While many of the local performers do have full-time day jobs, they take pride in what they do and they make the necessary sacrifices to give the audiences something they can enjoy - like Gedler choosing to lose weight.

Both Gedler and Berry are veteran performers who have been acting in community theater productions for decades.

"I think once you're bitten by the acting bug, it's really hard to get out of it," Berry says. "A good role comes along every once and a while and you think, 'This may be the last chance to do that one.' I think anybody that's involved in theater, they've got the bug and there's no remedy for it."

Stage Notes

Opening next weekend: The Friends of Drake Arts present "Dinner a la Morte" on Saturday, Sept. 17, a murder mystery dinner theater, at 6:30 p.m. in the Reading Room of the Cowles Library. The cost is $30, which includes a social hour, dinner and show. Call 271-2018 for reservations. "Shear Madness," an audience-participation mystery, premieres at the Temple For Performing Arts on Friday, Sept. 16, at 8 p.m. The run continues through Dec. 4. Tickets are $37.50. "Willy Wonka" comes to the Hoyt Sherman Place Theater on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 17 and 18. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for kids 12 and under. "Miss Saigon" will be performed at Stephens Auditorium in Ames on Saturday, Sept. 17, at 3 and 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $38-$42... StageWest is welcoming Connie Champagne, a well-known San Francisco cabaret singer/actress, in the role of Judy Garland in the theater company's November-December production of "Judy's Scary Little Christmas." Champagne won the Ovation Award for Best Actress of the Year in Los Angeles for her performance in the world premiere production. Speaking of "Judy's Scary Little Christmas," auditions for roles in the play will be held on Sunday, Sept. 11, at 6 p.m. and Tuesday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. in The Mickle Center. Auditions will consist of singing a song of your choice, plus readings from the script. Roles include real-life personas of Ethel Merman, Joan Crawford, Liberace, Bing Crosby, Lillian Hellman and Richard Nixon. Scripts/scores are available by calling Ron Lambert at 243-0022 or Joe Tish at 360-7904... The Civic Center of Greater Des Moines will bring a multi-week engagement of "Altar Boyz," the story of five small-town boys looking to break into the music industry, to the Temple for Performing Arts in January. CV

Comment on this story | Return to top