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SILVER SPUR THEATER SERVES UP ‘FOOL’S GOLD...,’
SIZZLING SUMMER MELODRAMA, JULY 9 – AUG. 14
“It takes a Village” (Salado) to make melodrama’s mirthful “movieola”
SALADO, TEXAS (July 1, 2010) – If you are looking for laughter, entertainment, live music, silver screen silliness, family fun or just a cool, historic spot to beat the summer heat, then head for Salado’s Silver Spur Theater and its original melodrama: “Fool’s Gold or The Pernicious Prospector’s Prevaricating Ploy,” running Fridays and Saturdays from July 9 through Aug. 14.
The professional theater at 108 Royal Street, a block from the Stagecoach Inn beside IH-35, serves up all that and more in its Sixth Annual chapter of onstage-on-film shenanigans and bravado, complete with villains, aliens and an inspired silent chase film that involved many local businesses and individuals.
In this melodramatic chapter, the peaceful village succumbs to an outbreak of “gold fever” brought on by the villainous Jason J. Jargonaut. Can Ranger Grainger save Marigold Feingold and the citizenry from the peril that ensues? This and other questions are answered with a healthy dose of slapstick, song and satire enjoyed by all ages.
Performances are at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays, with 2 p.m. Saturday matinees. $15 for adults; $12 for senior citizens, military personnel and students with ID; and $8 for children aged 12 and under. For matinees, $10 for adults and $8 for all others. Group rates are available. For reservations, call the box office at 254-947-3456. For directions or more info, www.SaladoSilverSpur.com or www.saladosilverspurtheater.com
"This show is chock-full of the side-splitting slapstick and searing satire that have made this summer event a must-see for locals and visitors alike," said Grainger Esch, Co-founder and Executive Director of the Silver Spur, located in an historic granary and feed store.
"It is cheer-the-hero, boo-the-villain fun -- guaranteed relief from this summer’s headache-inducing headlines," said Esch, who co-authored the play with Karen Ewton.
The playwright also portrays “Pace Park Ranger Clark Grainger.” Yeah, a “good guy.” On the dark side is “Jason J. Jargonaut” (Tom Rolls), a corrupt government regulator who has worked for all the acronym agencies. This broken bureaucrat has come to Salado to run the old “Golden Fleece” scam.
The cast also includes such characters as “Billo Beckittybaugh,” (Tony Blackman) owner of “Beckittybaugh’s Singin’ Telegrams & Septic Service,” an artist with aspirations for his own singing radio news show. Then there is “Marigold Feingold,” (Ewton) a suffragette, astronomer and treasure hunter with no time for romance.
“Mrs. Ima “Ma” Feingold (Betsy Tyson), Marigold’s mother, has plans to revitalize her alma mater, Salado College, as the new president, and to find Marigold a husband. Meanwhile, “Miss Katrina Love” (Shannon Ash) is the proprietress of Miss Kitty’s Passion Palace and Spa.
Katrina will encounter some strange patrons in “Atari,” (Garrett Clark) an alien, (a la “Avatar”,) as well as secret sidekick and confidante to Ranger Grainger. His crew includes aliens “Nintendo” and “Sega,” cameo roles played by alumni of the Spur’s Summer Youth Theater Camp.
Teenage actor Clark and Blackman, the long-time Technical Director of the playhouse, reside in Belton. All other cast members reside in Salado. Nearly all the actors are long-time performers on area stages and known as the Spuradicals when at the Silver Spur. Rolls, like Esch, is long-time graduate of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s Clown College.
KD Sperling of Round Rock (a Miss Katrina alternate), recently moved to the area from California where she earned a vocational theatre degree at the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts. This is her fourth Spur production, having appeared in “Steel Magnolias” and “Countergirls,” and having directed Bell, Book and Candle.
Movieola Features Citizens, Businesses
The “movieola,” which links the two acts and the storyline’s action, has become a highlight of the annual melodrama, with many everyday citizens and businesses take part. The silent film is accompanied with live piano music by Nelda Milligan of Harker Heights.
Some of the “locations” and participants include the Salado Best Western Hotel, Roy T's Bakery, Salado Swirl & Sip, Salado Wine Seller, Inn on the Creek and Alexander's Distillery. John Davis is credited with a wide range of bizarre and wacky props.
“The movieola follows and references such Greek tragedies as ‘Jason and the Argonauts’ and ‘The Odyssey,’” Esch noted. “But we've included a flying saucer scene, a barroom fight, and both Great Race and Wiley Coyote-type stunts. And the audience favorite, of course, is the on-screen pie fight.”
ABOUT THE SILVER SPUR: (Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1791506943&ref=ts)
The Silver Spur Theater is located in the renovated Guest and Sanford Granary & Feed Co., 108 Royal St., in historic downtown Salado, a few blocks from the Interstate 35. Reviving a bygone era of family entertainment, the theater offers its trademark blend of live vaudeville acts, live music, plays and classic cinema. Weddings, reunions, business conferences, concerts, field trips, dances, even customized private shows are held in the historical venue, with catering available from the Stagecoach Inn and nearby restaurants.
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