A look at what’s coming up onstage in 2025, plus an interview with Vail’s Jill Gordon and the upcoming Weekend with Will
In our first episode of the New Year, hosts Alex Miller and Toni Tresca pored over the upcoming calendar and picked out a bunch of cool shows coming up onstage this year. From Denver to Durango, Fort Collins to the Springs and everywhere else around the state, we created a list of shows that are new or new-ish to Colorado as well as some old favorites that we haven’t seen in a while.
Later in the episode, Toni catches up with Jill Gordon, who’s organizing the Weekend with Will festival in Eagle County Jan. 23-24.
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Transcript
Created by AI ghouls; take it with a grain of digital salt
Alex Miller (00:00)
Hey, hello and welcome to the OnStage Colorado podcast. I’m Alex Miller.
Toni Tresca (00:04)
And I’m Tony Tresca and we are kicking off our first podcast of the year with a look ahead at some of the exciting stuff that’s on the horizon for Colorado theater in 2025.
Alex Miller (00:15)
Yeah, there’s a ton as we were looking ahead on the calendar and just seeing what’s coming up between the big theaters, big and small all around the state. It looks like it’s gonna be a pretty lively year in Colorado theater. So we’re gonna get to some of the things that we can all look forward to coming up. So we’ll get to that in a sec. But first, let’s talk a little bit about what we’ve seen lately. So, I mean, not a lot of new stuff live theater wise since our last episode.
since we had a few weeks off, we can always talk about some of the film and TV we caught over the break just for fun. Tony, what did you’re always busy watching things on the screen set? What’d you see?
Toni Tresca (00:51)
Indeed. Yeah. So it’s been pretty quiet for me since we last recorded. I actually took a little bit of time off, which was very nice. I very much enjoyed that time. But I went back, I’ve definitely watched some movies and I went to a really cool screening at the Sea Film Center on Sunday of Les Sémérailles, which is kicking off its Janice for January series. So Janice is a
production company dedicated to remastering classic films. So this is a classic French crime noir film from the 60s, and it just looked absolutely breathtaking on the big screen. Never seen it before in this format. And so was very, very cool to get to see that on the big screen with a bunch of other film fans. And I’m be checking out a number of these kind of films throughout the month, because their artistic director, Keith Garcia, over there has really done a nice job.
of curating all of the Janus releases that they remastered in 2024. They’re doing them all in January, just spread out. So I’m checking stuff out like Seven Samurais and the Time Masters, just these really classic pieces of cinema that I’ve never seen on the big screen.
Alex Miller (02:06)
That’s cool. Yeah, think Janus is what inspired the word January. one of the… It was a Roman god, wasn’t it? I think maybe for his…
Toni Tresca (02:14)
That’s right. Yeah, yeah. We got that fun fact told to us by
Keith Garcia on Sunday. He shared that Janus literally translates to January. So he thought it was fitting.
Alex Miller (02:26)
Yeah. Cool.
Toni Tresca (02:28)
And then I also use the holiday season to catch up on films that are going to be popping up during the awards season. Perhaps a little known fact about me, or maybe not if you’ve been listening to this podcast for long enough, but I love an awards show. I love making my spreadsheets. I know, yeah. I love making my spreadsheets. I love following along. I love watching the award shows. So I just caught up on a bunch of films like.
Alex Miller (02:44)
We knew that.
Toni Tresca (02:55)
Complete Unknown, Baby Girl, the documentary’s daughter. And I ate up the Golden Globes when they aired on January 5th. I thought they were a very tight show hosted by Nikki Glaser, who’s a comedian who actually had the chance to interview last year when she was in Denver ahead of her New Year’s Eve show. She’s a roast comic who she blew up huge after her roast of, God, I should know this. He’s the sports guy. Tom Brady.
Alex Miller (03:14)
Yeah, I remember that.
Uh-huh.
Toni Tresca (03:24)
The
big roast on Netflix, she kind of blew up out of that. But she did a nice job at the Golden Globes, know, she making fun of people in the room. She made a ditty joke. She went there. So I thought it was pretty good. And the awards, the awards they gave out were quite unexpected. One of my favorites, The Brutalists ended up taking home best drama. So I was pretty happy about that. And then Amelia Perez with a comedy or musical beating my precious Wicked.
Alex Miller (03:37)
Ha ha ha ha.
Toni Tresca (03:53)
But I guess I’ll let it pass.
Alex Miller (03:58)
All right, that’s great. Yeah, I am kind of the opposite. I’m not that terribly interested in award shows, except for the Henry Awards, of course. And a quick save there. But yeah, sometimes I’ll watch some of them, but I didn’t watch the Golden Globes. But I did, every holiday season, my son Andy and I watched the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the extended versions, which are close to four hours each. So was quite the marathon.
Toni Tresca (04:06)
Of course.
Alex Miller (04:25)
And it was interesting since we’ve been watching these films for so long, we’re at the point where we’re picking them apart in places where it’s like, well, that doesn’t make any sense. Why did they do that? Stuff that after the shine of all the cool stuff that goes on in those films, it still, it really holds up. There’s a little bit of CGI that you’re still like, boy, that probably would look better if they did it today. But for the most part, it’s damn good looking films and such a great story.
Toni Tresca (04:59)
Yeah, I was just gonna say I’ve actually never seen Lord of the Rings. I’ve not seen, not even the shorter version of them. Although I guess not that much shorter. They’re still pretty long, so I’ve heard. But I’ve never seen any of them. I I’ve read The Hobbit and I tried reading Lord of the Rings when I was younger and I couldn’t get into it. And I’ve seen The Hobbit movies, which I know is sacrilege.
Alex Miller (05:04)
What?
Mm-hmm.
Yeah
Toni Tresca (05:24)
from talking with Lord of the Rings fans who are like, you need to see Peter Jackson’s original, but I just haven’t.
Alex Miller (05:25)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay. That’s all right. Yeah. Yeah. I a long history with those films because when I was, when they first started coming out, I was in LA and I was working for a magazine. And so I was getting press tickets or press, you know, I was getting to go to the press showings, which were like a week before they were released generally. So my son, my older son, Austin, got to see the first two Lord of the Rings films before any of his buddies. So he was, had bragging rights to go into school and we had a lot of fun with that. But
The other thing we watched was the second season of Squid Game. At first, I was like, I don’t know, but it was pretty interesting. I think they did a decent job picking up where it left off and taking a different approach to it. But I think a lot of people have been watching that and checking it out. It’s a crazy show.
Toni Tresca (06:18)
Yeah, I’ve heard a ton about it. saw it was Netflix’s, it beat Wednesday, season one of Wednesday to become Netflix’s biggest debut of all time for a streaming series, which I think that’s it. It was like 60 million people tuned in within like the first little window when it was on Netflix, which I just thought was crazy, but I’ve never seen it. That’s another one I have not seen, but I hear all the hype about it.
Alex Miller (06:44)
Was that for the first season or the second season that they had?
Toni Tresca (06:48)
This
was for the second season, it just happened, yeah.
Alex Miller (06:50)
Okay,
yeah, that makes sense because it was kind of unknown when they first started. The other one I was going to shout out, and I didn’t watch this whole thing, but my wife Jen loved it, and a friend of the pod, Mandy Moore, choreographer, she did a fundraiser. It was just a one-off, a fundraiser for cancer. And they had a bunch of guys that had different types of cancer who were basically reenacting the Full Monty.
on stage in front of an audience and Mandy directed choreographed the whole thing. And they showed a lot of her, you know, in the process of getting these guys into shape. So it was pretty cool. So maybe she’ll do more.
Toni Tresca (07:30)
What was that on?
Was that streaming somewhere or where did you watch that?
Alex Miller (07:34)
I don’t know. I think it might’ve been on network, but I don’t know. Like I said, Jen, I just kind of popped in and watched a little bit of it. She was checking out the whole thing in between the. Yeah. Yeah. So, anyway, but yeah, other than that, I just been kind of, I dunno, I was kind of just vegging over the, over the holidays. And like I was telling you before we started, I’ve been in a fierce battle with the technology of the onstage Colorado website switching.
Toni Tresca (07:41)
course Mandy Moore is our local Colorado girl.
Alex Miller (07:59)
website hosts and just having a nightmare time of it. it’s, it’s pretty much back to where it needs to be. It should be faster and performing better for people that are on there. I still have a little work to do on the calendar, but yeah, we’re poised for another big year in 2025.
Toni Tresca (08:15)
One such event that we’re looking forward to in kicking to kick off 2020-25 is one that’s hosted by my interview for this week. It’s Jill Gordon who is she’s a Vail resident and she’s organizing an event series called Weekend with Will over in Vail January 23rd and 24th. And this is a series of events just designed to integrate Shakespeare into the community there. There’s going to be an academic panel. There is a performance and
a couple of performances and discussions and things like that. And we really just dive into, the interview is actually really fascinating. We kind of start from the point of critics are kind of saying Shakespeare is just this old dead white guy. Why do we even need to perform it? And I asked her that question directly and her answer I thought was really profound. And it just kind of led us to this interesting conversation about the value of Shakespeare and why she created this event, which is gonna be happening later this month. I’m excited to share that interview.
Alex Miller (09:00)
Mm-hmm.
Cool.
So before we get into our main topic, I also wanted to ask, it seems like we’ve got some theater news that’s popped up here and there. Do you want to get into that a little bit?
Toni Tresca (09:23)
Yeah, so I guess start off with the Arvada Center. So they are getting a new box office. They shared, yeah, that’s That’s exciting. They shared some photos of the kind of demolition that’s already begun in their lobby. And they said that they were super excited to be starting 2025 with a construction project to overhaul our dated box office space, making it newer, nicer to visit, and better to work out.
Alex Miller (09:30)
Woo!
Yeah, I saw that.
Toni Tresca (09:49)
They did note, however, that construction is going to be ongoing in the lobby until mid-January, so just be mindful of that if you’re stopping by. But they do have a temporary box office space set up in the lobby so that purchases can still be made in person during the normal hours. And, of course, you can always do purchase tickets online or over the phone.
Alex Miller (10:11)
which is what you would probably do anyway. yeah, you you do pop in there for will-call or stuff and it is, it was kind of a weird setup. was, it was not that well laid out. And of course the Arvada Center is a little different than a lot of theaters where you walk in and it’s like, if you’ve never been there before, you’re like, where’s the theater? Cause you got to kind of wander up these stairs and through art galleries and dance studios and stuff like that.
Toni Tresca (10:31)
yeah, in other ticketing related news, you just mentioned that it’s always best to like kind of buy online. But if you were hoping to go to the Denver Center and get your tickets this week, well, you are shit out of luck because they are transferring to a new hosting platform over there, integrating some new security features. And so the box office for the Denver Center is down this week. So that’s the week of January 6th. And so…
Alex Miller (10:34)
You
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (10:58)
You cannot access, you can’t use their ticketing platform to buy any tickets. There’s no shows scheduled at this time. But you can call their box office and they can help you, but they will not be able to sell you a ticket.
In other news down in Colorado Springs, Funky Little Theater Company’s lease was not renewed. So this was shared by the troop on their Facebook page. On December 31st, they noted that it had lost its space at the Westside Community Center. In a letter penned by Kim King, who is the assistant director of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services, she stated that this decision had been made unanimously by the Westside and Parks and Recreation and Cultural Services.
because the company had, and I quote, been unable to find a path forward that meets the requirements of the lease, unquote. It then went on to kind of request that this decision not be questioned or significantly discussed during any public meetings out of respect to Mr. Chris Medina, who is the artistic director over at Bunky Little Theater. And we had on the podcast last year.
Alex Miller (12:02)
Yeah,
yeah, that’s too bad. We always hate to see theaters lose in their space, but of course we don’t know the whole story. So I’m not gonna weigh in and say that the city of Colorado Springs are evil bastards. Cause I, you know, we just don’t know who knows. But yeah, hopefully, hopefully Funkin can find another, another spot to cause this was like their second move in as many years, I think.
Toni Tresca (12:26)
That’s right, yeah. They’ve been moving around quite a lot. It seems like it is, like in many markets around Colorado, it is very difficult for a performance group to acquire space. And Colorado Springs is just no exception. So they’ve kind of been bouncing around.
Alex Miller (12:41)
Okay, well in happier news you had another item from the True West Awards.
Toni Tresca (12:47)
That’s right, so the final True West Award from John Moore over at the Denver Gazette went to Betsy’s Jessica Robly and Mark Reagan. They were the 2024 Colorado Theater Persons of the Year. John honored their commitment to proactively help so many other arts organizations in a significant and unprecedented way. Mark Reagan’s upended the norm by donating.
about a million dollars of his own money to neighboring arts organizations in 2024. And in 2025, Mark estimates that that number is gonna grow to 1.3 million. So I mean, not only are they doing really impressive work to carry on the legacy of Betsy that has been so firmly established in the Boulder area, but Mark is actively making a financial.
investment in the arts community around the state. I’m talking Boulder Ballet, we are talking Colorado Shakespeare Festival, we’re talking local theater, another Boulder based troupe that you could say is kind of their direct competition. But Mark’s not saying that. He is saying the rising tide raises all ships. And so he’s giving money back to the community. And for that, I really do agree with John’s pick here. It’s doing a lot of great work over at Betsy. So congratulations to you, Jess and Mark.
Alex Miller (14:00)
Yeah, yeah, Marcus like the theater angel around here. And he’s also been a regular contributor to Onstage Colorado advertising Betsy shows. So we’re very grateful for that. I think, you know, I think most theater people would probably say if I had a bunch of money, would go sprinkle it all around to the theater company. So he’s getting to kind of live out a dream and he really enjoys, you know, helping out. So and of course, it helps out the theater is a great deal.
Toni Tresca (14:26)
Absolutely. next, yeah, go ahead.
Alex Miller (14:30)
I was just gonna say of course this Theater Person of the Year is the culmination of like 30 odd awards that John gives out every year, and we even got one which was cool so.
Toni Tresca (14:40)
Mm-hmm. Yeah, that was pretty exciting to see. It was a really lovely piece that he wrote. And John’s gonna be on our show next week as a guest host to talk about the True West Awards that he puts together, as well as a bunch of other fun stuff happening in the local theater scene.
Alex Miller (14:58)
Yeah, yeah, he should be tan and rested because I know he took off. don’t know about tan, but he should be rested because he said he took, he actually took a couple of weeks off, which is a very rare thing for John. He’s a real hard worker. So, all right, well, before we get to diving into what’s up coming up for 2025, we’re going to take a quick break and we’ll be right back.
Toni Tresca (15:04)
Ha ha ha.
Mm-hmm.
Alex Miller (15:22)
On Stage Colorado is brought to you by the Aurora Fox Arts Center presenting Gee’s Bend. The play tells the powerful story of a family of quilters from the isolated town of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, as they confront the struggles of segregation, household conflict, and the Southern Freedom Movement. The show runs from January 31st to February 23rd. Tickets at aurorafoxartscenter.org. On Stage Colorado, On Stage Colorado,
Onstage Colorado receives support from Candlelight presenting Rodgers and Hammerstein’s classic musical Oklahoma, where a high spirited rivalry between local farmers and cowboys provides a colorful background for Curly, a charming cowboy and Lori, a feisty farm girl to play out their love story. Running January 23rd through March 30th in Johnstown. Tickets at ColoradoCandlelight.com. Support for Onstage Colorado comes from the Boulder Ensemble Theater Company, Betsy, whose production of Hope and Gravity plays at the Denver Savoy January 23rd.
through February 16th, and at Boulder’s Nomad Playhouse, February 21st through 23rd. This puzzle of a play touches on love, sex, and the tenderness that lies just beneath the surface of our interconnected relationships. Tickets at Betsy. Tickets at BETC.org. On Stage Colorado is brought to you by the Town Hall Arts Center, presenting Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. Christopher Durang’s outrageous farce is a take on the works of Chekhov that includes a fortune-telling cleaning women,
That includes a fortune telling cleaning woman, an aspiring young actress, a farmhouse full of secrets, sibling rivalries, resentments, and trysts for a raucous comedy that plays January 17th through February 9th. Tickets at townhallartcenter.org.
Alex Miller (17:01)
All right, we are back and ready to look ahead into 2025’s theater landscape in Colorado.
Toni Tresca (17:07)
Yeah, so just a quick note about what we’re using our criteria to kind of define this is it’s not going to be the entire year since not all theaters have released their schedules fully to the public. A lot of theaters do do it kind of half and half. So in terms of their season announcement, but that doesn’t mean we can get through the summer pretty well and cover a lot of stuff. But this list is by no means everything that’s going on around the state.
For that, you’re gonna have to head to the Onstage Colorado Calendar and view every event that’s happening all around the state. These shows are more of just, these are things that either we have not seen produced here in Colorado ever or not in a very long time or shows that just really tickled our fancy.
Alex Miller (17:56)
Right, right. So I’ll kick it off here with one at Town Hall Art Center in Littleton. is Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, which is a Christopher Durang play that I haven’t seen. I’m really excited to see this one because I love Durang’s work. This is going to be January 17th through February 9th. If it’s true to form, it’ll be very funny and looking forward to that over there. And then another one that this is kind of like not high art.
but back to the future, the musical is gonna be at the Buell. So this is the touring Broadway production running, decent run, January 22nd through February 9th. My buddy Matt saw it in New York and said, really, it was quite good. And they were pretty impressed by the special effects that they were able to do. And it’s certainly based on one of the greatest popcorn flicks of all time.
Toni Tresca (18:47)
do love Back to the Future. That whole trilogy is a lot of fun. And I also have a couple of friends who saw the show in New York and they said, well, the acting and the songs were all pretty good. The real star of the show is that DeLorean and how they are able to make it fly on the stage.
Alex Miller (19:03)
Yeah, sounds cool. So all right, what do you’ve got next, honey?
Toni Tresca (19:09)
So first off, I got A Case for the Existence of God. So this is going to be over at Denver’s Curious Theater, January 16th through February 16th. And this play unfolds in a cubicle where two seated people unexpectedly choose to bring one another into their fragile worlds. So this is a regional premiere of the Broadway hit, and it offers a poignant exploration of the lives of two single fathers. And I think this sounds like a really cool play. I’ve not actually ever seen it before.
and it’s directed by Warren Sherrill, who is the Associate Artistic Director over at Miners Alley. Next up for me is She Kills Monsters, which is happening at Aurora’s Vintage Theater, January 17th through February 23rd. And this is a comedy about a journey of discovery that involves Stungeons and Dragons and the main character’s deceased sister.
This is actually one of two collaborations that Vintage Theater is doing to kick off the year. This collaboration on She Kills Monsters is with Insight CoLab Theater. Samantha Sanders is gonna be leading the charge over there on that production. And this script is, it’s very funny, but it’s deeply emotional in a way that I think that log line does not do justice. It’s a…
Alex Miller (20:24)
Uh-huh.
Toni Tresca (20:28)
kind of an exploration of a character’s queer identity and kind of some of the struggles that they face through the context of Dungeons and Dragons and this highly mythical setting.
Alex Miller (20:37)
Okay, that sounds pretty nerdy. Nerdy slash all kinds of stuff going on in there. Next two I have are both comedies. The first one is The Reservoir. This is Denver Center Theater Company. So we saw the reading of this. This is a Colorado playwright, Jack Brash. We saw the reading of it at the 2023 Colorado New Play Summit and loved it. It’s a very funny dark comedy.
Toni Tresca (20:44)
Yeah.
Alex Miller (21:03)
based on, you know, the main characters, I believe, he’s an alcoholic, and it has to do with, you know, his family and his grandmother he’s really close to. And it’s a really, it was a really unique piece, exploring some dark terrain in a very funny way. So I’m really looking forward to seeing the stage, you know, the full production of that. And then another one, I have to say, I’m really looking forward to this. And this is another one I saw the reading of, because Betsy did a reading of this show, Hope and Gravity.
last year and it was just fantastic. I mean, it was like one of those readings where you’re like, I don’t need to see the full production. That was great. So this is a Michael Hollinger play and it’s a very, very funny, clever script about intersecting lives around an elevator accident. So looking forward to that. That’s later in January 23rd through February 16th, Betsy.
Toni Tresca (21:54)
I missed that reading, I do remember you raving about it. So I was excited to hear that Betsy decided to incorporate that into their full season.
Alex Miller (22:02)
I would have been surprised if they didn’t.
Toni Tresca (22:04)
Yeah. My next pick is Ghost Quartet. This is being done by the Catamounts in kind of an immersive style over at the Dairy Arts Center in Boulder, January 18th through February 8th. And this show focuses on how souls circle one another from one life to the next. It’s written by Dave Malloy, who people might recognize from his work on Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet. He’s the kind creator of that. And it explores this question in a song cycle.
that interweaves four stories across seven centuries, including a fairy tale about two sisters, an astronomer, a lazy evil bear, a retelling of Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher, and a contemporary fable about a subway murder. It’s a hell of a lot, and it shouldn’t work, but if the score is any indication, because I’ve not ever actually seen this, this will be the kind of original premiere of this production after it debuted in New York a couple of years ago,
Alex Miller (22:46)
Holy crap, that’s a lot stacked in there.
Ha ha ha ha!
Toni Tresca (23:02)
but the score is just next level out of this world. And it demands all of the actors play the instruments live on stage. And that is an element that the Catamounts will be honoring in this production.
Alex Miller (23:14)
Alright.
Toni Tresca (23:15)
So my next pick is over in Colorado Springs. It is the world premiere of In Her Bones at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College, and it runs February 13th through March 1st. So when it follows, when an unexpected blizzard forces a UC Berkeley first year student Mia to wait out at the storm at a rural highway gas station and General Sador in Southern Colorado, she’s forced to confront a past that she’s both fleeing and seeking out. As she shares family,
memories with the store owner to pass the time another world creeps in. This production explores the complicated legacy of crypto-Judaism in the Southwest, which I just I thought sounded like a really interesting idea for a play. I had never heard of crypto-Judaism, but apparently it is this kind of sect in which you are Jewish, but you don’t actually say that you are Jewish. You don’t publicly identify as being Jewish, which is interesting.
Alex Miller (24:12)
Okay, so it
doesn’t have anything to with cryptocurrency. This is a different crypto.
Toni Tresca (24:15)
No, no, no, no, this I’m not asking you to invest in any crypto
in crypto Judaism. No, no, this is it’s a it’s a term.
Alex Miller (24:22)
Ha ha ha ha!
Yeah,
that’s funny. My next one is way down south in Durango, Merely Players are doing a show called Swing State. So this is February 7th through 16th. And I was reading about a story about a widow in rural Wisconsin post pandemic, and it sounded really interesting. And also Merely Players has been at it for a long time down there. And I reached out to Mona Wood Patterson is the artistic director down there. And I’m to get her on the podcast.
before this show opens. So stay tuned for that. reached out to her and hope to get her on because she’s got, and I was looking at her resume. was like, holy crap, this is like the theater person’s theater person. So hope if you hear this Mona, give me a buzz. Let’s get you on the pod. And then another one that sounded interesting is at Firehouse Theater, which has been killing it lately in Denver. Blues for an Alabama Sky. So this is based in 1930s Harlem during the Great Depression.
It sounds like a pretty interesting show and this is going to run February 9th through March 9th and that’ll be at the John Han Theater in Denver.
Toni Tresca (25:27)
Cool. My next pick is loosely inspired by Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. It’s Clybourne Park and it’s being done at the Arvada Center, February 14th through March 30th. So the scene is set in one house on Clybourne Street in Chicago’s South Side. And in 1959, a black family moves in and in 2009, a white family does. In between, everything changes, attitudes, demographics, and property values.
Bruce Norris’s biting dark comedy takes on the specter of genderfication in our communities, leaving no stone unturned in the process. This script is, I have read it, it is amazing. I am so excited to see that the Arvada Center picked this really gutsy work to stage and kind of kick off their 2025. And I just saw that the cast list dropped today as we’re recording this and it’s a stacked cast, so I’m excited to see it.
Alex Miller (26:25)
Okay.
Is that in the big theater or the black box?
Toni Tresca (26:30)
I believe it is in their black box theater, but don’t quote me on that.
Alex Miller (26:34)
Okay, yeah, usually they’re doing the musicals in the bigger one. But I know they’re also doing a Lyle the Crocodile kids show and I’m not sure where they were doing that one. That one’s on for a while as well for the little ones.
Toni Tresca (26:47)
My next pick is Agent Romeo. This is being done by the Denver based contemporary ballet company Wonderbound. And it is taking place February 27th through March 9th. So Garrett Ammon, who is the artistic director over there, promises to upend the Shakespeare classic in this modern star-crossed romance. Romeo is an undercover FBI agent tasked with infiltrating the mob.
Alex Miller (27:11)
Hahaha.
Toni Tresca (27:12)
while Juliet
is the daughter of a mafia kingpin. Which, you know, it sounds like it could be fun. It sounds very similar to the, did you ever see the Baz Luhrmann adaptation of Romeo plus Juliet? lot of fun. It’s also contemporary. It’s also set in the middle of a gang war. No FBI agents. Romeo is not that in that version of it, but it seems like a pretty fun way to do Romeo and Juliet.
Alex Miller (27:14)
Wow.
No, I haven’t.
Toni Tresca (27:40)
If you want to see this, would go ahead and get your tickets now because as we keep saying on this podcast and we will keep saying it until it stops being true, Wonder Band shows sell out in advance. So you better get on it.
Alex Miller (27:52)
They do indeed. The next show I wanted to mention is one with a fantastic title, The Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed. And this is at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College to do the entire name of the facility there. February 28th through March 30th. So this is called a rock and roll parable with significant messages for today’s audience based on a children’s book by Mo Willems.
So Wilbur and all his fellow naked mole rats in the tunnel have always been naked. So wondering what other possibilities are out there. When Wilbur discovers a love for clothing and style, so things proceed from there. that sounds like fun. It sounds like it’s a kids show, but also sounds like probably fun for adults as well, which all the best kids shows are also good for adults.
And then a little closer to Denver here in Littleton at Town Hall, they’re doing Night Mother, February 28th through March 9th. So this is from Pulitzer Prize winning playwright, Marcia Norman. And it’s about a mother and daughter working on it through some really dark moments and a fateful decision. And it sounds like it’s like one of those real crucible type situations and it features Billy McBride and Megan Van Day, so great cast.
there. So looking forward to night mother at town hall.
Toni Tresca (29:16)
Although we noted in our kind of roundup of 2024 that the Colorado New Play Summit wasn’t one of our favorites from last year, it is always exciting to see a festival completely devoted to bringing new work to life. And so that’s why I’m including the Colorado New Play Summit over at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts on this list. It’s taking place two days, March 1st and 2nd, and it’s going to be featuring four readings of new works, including Bog Friends by Jose Sebastian Alberti, How to Conquer America,
Alex Miller (29:27)
Yep. Yep.
Toni Tresca (29:46)
A Mostly True History of Yogurt by David Myers, who, that name sounds familiar. David Myers actually just worked with local theater company on 237 Virginia Avenue. And now he’s got this reading over at the Denver Center. They’re also featuring If God Were Blue by Kerry Perloff and Rust on Bone by Bianca Sams.
Alex Miller (29:50)
Ha ha!
Okay, yeah. I was just gonna say, if you haven’t been to the Colorado New Play Summit, or really any play festivals, I really suggest you get out there. You can buy a pass to the summit, but you can also drop in and just see an individual show. And I think that they’re pretty reasonable ticket prices. And it’s really neat to be able to see a reading of something and then a couple of years later, see it come back as a full production.
Toni Tresca (30:07)
And then also in, oh yeah, go ahead.
Alex Miller (30:32)
And it’s just a different way to kind of see the life cycle of a play. It’s really cool.
Toni Tresca (30:38)
Also, if you are at all interested in meeting people in the theater community from not only around the state, but around the country, it is a great place to just talk with other like-minded folks who are deeply interested in the future of the theater industry. I always end up finding myself in some of most fascinating conversations in the lobby between the shows.
Alex Miller (31:01)
That’s true. Yeah, it’s a lot of fun. It’s a lot of, mean, it it is the theater, theater people’s event in Colorado for sure.
Toni Tresca (31:10)
Also in the Denver area, I want to shout out the Menagerist over at Buntport Theater. So this is an original play that they’re going to be doing March 7th through the 29th. And all the information that they’ve released at the time is that it is a satirical reimagining of the Glass Menagerie. So looking forward to seeing that. I just saw a brilliant production of the Glass Menagerie last year at Vintage Theater.
Alex Miller (31:17)
Love it.
Toni Tresca (31:37)
feel like I’m primed for this satirical take on it.
Alex Miller (31:40)
That’s great. Yeah, Bunt Porter always does fun stuff.
My next one is way out on the Western slope at Colorado Mesa University, ride the cyclone. And I mentioned this also because it’s at the Astereo Theater, which is this fabulous new facility they built out there. So if you do happen to be out there mountain biking and fruta or something like that, you might want to try and check this out. And so we were talking about an elevator accident in
Just a little bit ago, this is a story about 16 choir students, their lives are cut short in a freak roller coaster accident. And then there’s a mechanical fortune teller, shades of big there, invites them to tell their story in a song for the chance to return to life. So it sounds pretty interesting. Ride the cyclone at the Astaria Theater later in February.
The other one is Downstate at Curious Theater. This is going to be March 13th through April 20th. So this is, it was a winner of the Drama Critics Circle, the Outer Critics Circle and an Obie Award. It’s the story of four men convicted of sex crimes who share a group home post-incarceration. So talk about a subject that, you know, most people or playwrights don’t want to touch with a 10-foot pole.
But everybody’s got stories, that will be typically challenging piece of theater sounding at Curious March 13th through April 20th.
Toni Tresca (33:09)
Yeah, I’m already afraid to see what Kristi Montor Larson has in store for us. She’s the director of that production, but it sounds deeply uncomfortable in the best way. My next pick is Life of Pi. This is the touring production of the play that’s gonna be coming to the Buell in Denver, March 18th through the 30th. And it’s based on the novel that sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.
Alex Miller (33:15)
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (33:37)
And it tells the epic story of perseverance after a boy is shipwrecked in the middle of a Pacific Ocean. And it tells how he survives on this lifeboat with four companions, a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan, and a royal Bengal tiger. This production is told with a really, what looks to be really impressive, like world-class puppetry, and to kind of bring those to life and kind of create all of these, this whole ocean on the stage in front of you.
Alex Miller (33:51)
you
Toni Tresca (34:07)
I have a couple of friends who saw this production when it was done in New York and this was one they said should not be missed. I really like Ang Lee’s film that he did of Life of Pi, I guess a couple years ago now, but it’s a really good story.
Alex Miller (34:18)
Yeah, yeah, that’s good.
And one of the rare touring Broadway shows coming through the Buell that’s not a musical, right?
Toni Tresca (34:27)
That’s a great point. Yeah, it’s super rare that non-musical shows will actually do a national tour. But I guess perhaps because this is based on a book that’s so popular and has a movie that people can relate to, the producers thought that life of Pi, people will see it. yeah, my next pick is completely different.
Alex Miller (34:39)
Yeah.
Yep, everybody’s heard of it.
Toni Tresca (34:50)
It’s Twelfth Night done by Bowls with the Bard in their classic stone Shakespeare style at the Coffee Joint in Denver, April 3rd through the 16th. And they promise that you’ll be able to see one of Shakespeare’s most gay plays in a way you’ll never see it again, featuring a whole lot of Mary Jane. Twelfth Night is quite a bit of fun. It’s got a lot of cross-dressing. It’s got a lot of mistaken identities. It’s got shipwrecks, so I guess it is kind of similar.
Alex Miller (34:55)
You
You
yeah?
Toni Tresca (35:19)
to Life of Pi in that regard. There’s a couple songs in there. I’ve been in Twelfth Night before. It’s a fun play.
Alex Miller (35:20)
There you go.
Mm-hmm.
My next one is Perfect Arrangement. So this is another one from Firehouse in the spring, April 5th through May 4th. So this one sounds really interesting. says, it’s inspired by a true story from the American gay rights movement. And it’s done in a madcap classic sitcom style and about how couples are forced to stare down the closet door, as it says. So that sounds pretty intriguing at Firehouse Theater in Denver.
And then my next one needs no introduction and it’s certainly something that’s been around a long time, but I am super excited to see Little Shapaharas because it’s probably my favorite musical. It’s going to be done by the Denver Center’s theater company. It’ll be in their Big Wolf Theater, April 11th through May 25th. And yeah, I know you love it too, Tony, so I know we’ll be there for that one.
Toni Tresca (36:19)
Absolutely. Even if it is just a very lavishly produced production of Little Shop of Horrors, I will be very excited for that. They don’t need to necessarily reinvent the wheel for that show, for me to enjoy it.
Alex Miller (36:34)
Right,
right.
Toni Tresca (36:37)
But if you are looking for something a little more on the newer side, then my next pick might appeal to you. It’s National Bohemias over at Miners Alley in Golden. This is a world premiere written by a local playwright, Luke Sorge, about Thaum and Oscar, who are two estranged brothers who return to their tiny hometown They find that their oldest brother, John, has taken their mother out of her care facility and is planning to put an end to her suffering. Legal ramifications, financial implications,
and family history are all uncovered as is John’s true motive. I just thought this sounded like a deliciously nasty time over there. It’s quite a log line.
Alex Miller (37:15)
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (37:20)
And then in a totally different direction, a bright star over at Candlelight Dinner Playhouse in Johnstown will be on April 10th through June 8th. And this is inspired by a true story and features the Tony nominated score by Steve Martin. Yes, that’s Steve Martin and Eddie Braquel. And it tells the sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and 40s.
Alex Miller (37:35)
Yep.
Toni Tresca (37:46)
And it follows literary editor Alice Murphy, who meets a young soldier just home from World War II, and he awakens her longing for the child she once lost.
Alex Miller (37:56)
Okay.
Toni Tresca (37:57)
Have you ever seen Bright Star? I haven’t. I know a lot of people really love it, so I’m glad to see Candlelight staging it.
Alex Miller (38:00)
Yeah, I don’t, if I have,
was long enough ago that I don’t remember.
anyway, so from from that, we go to Cruise to Nowhere. This is at Steel City Theatre in Pueblo in May, early May. So this is an immersive thing. So a group of people meet on a cruise ship.
And then they take live audience votes to choose their own adventure in this, and it’s comedy, it’s a mystery, and it’s what the audience chooses and every night will be a different show. So that sounds like a lot of fun for theater goes in Pueblo. And then out in the mountains slash Western Slope, These Shining Lives at Thunder River Theater Company, April 25th through May 11th. So this is a historic drama by Melanie Marnic.
that follows Catherine Donahue and her fellow female workers at the Radium Dial Company. So this is an interesting story. I first heard about it in a Kurt Vonnegut book, I can’t remember which one, but he talked about how these women were painting watch dials with a paint that had radioactive material in it so that it would be visible in the dark, would glow in the dark. And of course they all got sick, so it’s about the…
you know, this poisoning and workplace safety standards and ultimately led to changing labor laws in America. So Missy Moore, AD out there, has taken on a real interesting topic for this one and they always do great work. So that’s The Shining Lives, April 25th through May 11th in Carbondale at Thunder River Theater Company.
Toni Tresca (39:30)
Cool. My next pick is over at the Denver Center’s Killstrom Theater, and that it is the Hot Wing King, and it’s running April 25th through May 25th. So, me too, it’s fun one to say. so this one is set on the eve of the annual Hot Wang Festival in Memphis, Tennessee, when Cordell Crutchfield thinks he’s finally found a recipe that’s going to land him the coveted title of Hot Wing King.
Alex Miller (39:38)
Love the title.
Toni Tresca (39:59)
With the crown prize money and the relationships with his other chefs on the line, Cordell must confront what it means to be a black man, father figure, and family member. This play won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize and is a bolsterous in-your-face dramedy. So sounds like a lot of fun and very thought-provoking too. My next pick is also a newer work. It’s an original piece that Family Theater Company, who is Denver’s premier
Alex Miller (40:16)
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (40:28)
Disability Theater Troupe. They’re doing a touring production of Pericles, an adaptive performance for people with cognitive disabilities. So they’re going to be touring this to CU Boulder, the Community College of Aurora, and TheaterWorks all throughout the month of May. And this production is adapted from the Shakespeare play Pericles in collaboration with Kelly Hunter and the Flute Theater. If you want a little bit more information about the kind of the
ways that they’re going to be making Parakles more accessible and understandable to the contemporary audience, particularly those with disabilities. We had Ben Ranaan, who is the artistic director of Family, and he broke down not only this show, but all of Family’s 2025 season. So can go back and listen to that for more information.
Alex Miller (41:14)
All right. My next one is The Wiz. So this is the touring Broadway production at the Buell, April 8th through 26th. So this is a big…
Broadway musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz with a real soulful spin on it. It was real famous because they made a film out of it that had Michael Jackson in it and some other big stars. And this is the first tour of The Wiz in 40 years. And Tony, I got to tell you, this was one of the very first shows I ever saw on Broadway when it was new in 1975. I guess I was around 11. And I’ve mentioned before that I had the wonderful opportunity that back
Toni Tresca (41:43)
Whoa.
Alex Miller (41:52)
in my high school or my grammar school, junior high, like field days were like, hey, we’re gonna go see a Broadway matinee and we’d all get in this bus and go out and see shows. And of course, you know, at the time I didn’t realize what an amazing opportunity and privilege that was. And I look back now, I’m like, man, I saw some amazing banger shows back then. So that one’s one I’m definitely looking forward to checking out. Next one is On Your Feet. So this is gonna be at Town Hall. This is May 23rd into June 22nd.
So this was, this is about Gloria and Emilio Esteván. They came from Cuba and took the world by storm with their fusion of Latin rhythms and pop. And so this is, guess, their story about how they became, you know, big stars here in America. So it sounds like a pretty cool origin story.
Toni Tresca (42:43)
Mm-hmm. My next two picks that I’m excited about in 2025 are actually two movie musical adaptations. So first up is Little Miss Sunshine over at the Aurora Fox Art Center, June 6th through the 29th. And this is a musical adaptation of the Academy Award winning film of the same name that celebrates the power of love, determination, and the joy of following your dreams, no matter the obstacles. And this is one of my favorite movies of
of all time. Little Miss Sunshine, it’s so sweet. It just follows this family as they take a road trip to help their daughter enter this beauty pageant that ends up being a complete farce. And along the way, all of these interpersonal conflicts get revealed. A character may die unexpectedly along the way. And it’s just a really fun film that I’m curious to see how the musicalized version.
Alex Miller (43:14)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (43:42)
works on stage because so much of that film is on the road in this car. So I’ll be curious to see how they make that compelling theatrically.
Alex Miller (43:47)
Right.
Yeah, for sure.
Toni Tresca (43:54)
And then next up is the touring production of Some Like It Hot over at the Buell Theater in Denver, July 8th through the 20th. So this is based off of the film and it’s set in Chicago when Prohibition has everybody thirsty for a little bit of excitement. But two musicians are forced to flee the Windy City after they witness a mob hit. And they decide that the best way to get out undetected is to
go on the road as two feet, as two dress up as two women and go on the road as touring musicians with a girl group. And obviously shenanigans ensue. It’s a wild, it sounds like a wild musical. They’ve really, Casey Nicholaw directed it in New York. And if know anything about Casey Nicholaw, he loves a tap dance number and as do I. So, tap something like it hot based off of the score is super duper tap heavy. There’s apparently a tap,
Alex Miller (44:32)
You
Okay.
Toni Tresca (44:52)
a Scooby-doo-esque tap sequence in which they’re running away from the mob that I need to see now. Right now.
Alex Miller (44:57)
Yeah
Scooby-Doo Tab Sequence, say no more.
All right, well, I’m just gonna hit my last three here. My Brilliant Divorce at Bob Blue up in Fort Collins. This is May 23 through June 8. It’s a one woman show that is poignant and hilarious and pathetic. It says here as a woman scorned, searching for the right sequel, it says. So it strikes a chord for any woman who’s been through a divorce and for everyone else. So that sounds like a pretty interesting show. And I’m just gonna mention another one at Bob Blue, which sounds really interesting too.
The Revlon Girl, so this is in June. And this is kind of a sad story for sure. It’s about a, so in 1966 in Wales, this school bus has a terrible accident where this thing, this blob of coal waste, they call it a coal tip, fell onto a school bus and killed 116 children, which is just an astonishing, I don’t know if you can fit 116 kids on a bus, but.
But it centers on a group of the grieving mothers who secretly meet with each other to seek consolation and all that. So sounds like a really impactful show. Up there at Bob Blue. And then my last one is N. Juliet. So this is Ampersand Juliet. This is a real buzzy show that’s going to be at the Buell and a touring Broadway production June 4th through 15th. So this was actually written by one of the writers from Schitt’s Creek. It’s a musical that
sort of flips the premise of Romeo and Juliet and says what would happen if Julie didn’t kill herself after Romeo dies so it’s a she ditches her famous ending for a fresh beginning and a second chance of life and love her way so I’m looking forward to that one as well.
Toni Tresca (46:44)
Cool, yeah, it sounds like fun. I’m also gonna just do my last three now, take us out. My first one is also at BuzzBlue in Fort Collins. They’ve got a lot of exciting stuff on the docket. And this is an original work. It’s called Special Sauce. It’s being done for three nights only, August 8th through the 10th. And it’s about horror podcast hosts, vampire pizza delivery workers, and menacing Pomeranians. So they,
Alex Miller (47:12)
Ha
Toni Tresca (47:14)
That line alone was why I had to include it on this. Those are three of the most random things all thrown together and we’ll see if it works. This is a show that it promises will sink its teeth into you when it makes its debut as part of the Bas Blue’s brand new original works program.
Alex Miller (47:16)
Yep.
I love it.
Wow, lot of Bob Blue action. That sounds pretty intriguing.
Toni Tresca (47:40)
Yeah, have to make that drive up to Fort Fun.
Alex Miller (47:42)
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (47:44)
Next pick is the legend of Annie Bonny. This is being done by Two-cent Lion over at the People’s Building, August 23rd through September 6th. And this is a world premiere musical about Anne, an ambitious 18th century housewife who enters the realm of piracy at the beginning of its very violent end. With a sword at hip and adventure in hand, Anne seems poised to claim everything she’s ever wanted, so long as she can avoid a watery grave of the hangman’s noose.
Alex Miller (48:13)
Ha ha
ha.
Toni Tresca (48:14)
A new pirate musical that kind of is grappling with the legacy of piracy. I think it sounds like it could be a hit. It’s by some local writers here. Two-Sint-Lines, one of our faves. So I’ll definitely be checking that one out.
Alex Miller (48:25)
Yeah.
I love it. You know, I’ve been watching, I like Vikings and pirates and stuff like that. And I’ve been watching the Netflix series, Black Sails, and Anne Bonny is featured pretty prominently in that show. So I was like, and I saw it, was like, Anne Bonny, cool.
Toni Tresca (48:43)
shit, I didn’t know it was a real person. I thought this was fictitious. Well that makes it even more interesting.
Alex Miller (48:45)
Yeah, no, she’s real.
Toni Tresca (48:49)
my final pick for things to look be on the lookout for in 2025 is Divo Royale at Miners Alley in Golden. This is running October 3rd through November 8th. And it’s written by Jeff Daniels and directed by Lynn Mateo. It tells the story of three stay at home moms from the Midwest who share a deep obsession for Celine Dion.
On a whim, they decide to take a spontaneous trip to New York City to see her in a one night only concert. But what unfolds on their journey leads to an evening filled with side-spitting hilarity. This is another hit show that is coming to Colorado direct from the Purple Rose Theater, which is Jeff Daniels’ theater, that brought the company’s last year’s hit, A Jukebox for the Algonquin.
Alex Miller (49:32)
Yeah, Paul Strelie is a member of the Purple Rose. And so there’s a little bit of a connection there between this really famous theater that Jeff Daniels stood up and Miners Alley. So it’s a really cool, cool connection there to Colorado.
So, all right, well, I was just gonna mention, I was poking around to see who’s announced summer stuff, like some of the rep seasons. They’re not all out, but I will say that Creed Rep is doing Xanadu, 39 Steps, the Fantastic and Silent Sky. Rocky Mountain Repertory is playing it safe. They’re doing Frozen, Guys and Dolls, Footloose and Nonsense. And then at Colorado Shakespeare Festival, as we’ve mentioned before, they’re having kind of an abbreviated season because there’s a lot of work being done out there.
with the outdoor theater, but they are doing The Tempest, which is probably my favorite Willie the Shake show, as well as Richard the Second, which is tough sledding. Unless you’re super into those histories, those can be a challenge for people, but I think I might check that out. And then for their original practices show, which is just a one night stand, they’re doing Dr. Faustus. So man, I would love to get to that as well.
Toni Tresca (50:40)
What you think Alex? Will 2025 be the year that we finally make it to a Colorado Shakespeare Festival original practice? Yep.
Alex Miller (50:47)
I know we tried last year and I think the year before and yeah it’s just I
don’t know why they only do one one time I think they might do two in the day but they should do more of those I’m really curious about them so it’s just they do it kind of as it was done back in the day at the Globe Theatre I guess and so anyway well wow a ton of stuff to look forward to and I apologies to all the theaters that you know we and I we haven’t mentioned everybody but we will certainly be getting to
all this stuff over the course of the year in our subsequent podcasts and our Colorado Headliners. So never fear, we’ll get to it. This was just kind of a, just a little bit of what your appetite for the theater season ahead.
Toni Tresca (51:27)
Yeah, since we just talked about a ton of shows, we are going to skip our usual look ahead at Colorado’s stuff via our headliner section. And we’re going to jump right to my interview that I did with Jill Gordon about Weekend at Will. And I think one of the reasons I was really excited to have her on is just we don’t often hear a ton from people on the Western slope, particularly theaters in that area and what’s happening there. So.
This is a really cool opportunity to just hear a little bit, not only about Weekend with Will that she’s organizing, but learn a little bit more about the scene out there.
Alex Miller (52:04)
Yeah, I know we’ve puzzled about this before, you and I used to work in Vail at the Vail Daily, so I’m pretty familiar with what’s going on out there. And there was there is a theater called Porchlight Players, they do stuff sort of sporadically, but they actually are doing a whodunit comedy called Curtains in the Brush Creek Pavilion in Eagle, February 14 through 22. So you might keep an eye on that if you’re out there. But yeah, for now, let’s get to your interview. Here we go.
Alex Miller (52:33)
Joining me today on the On Stage Colorado podcast is my friend, Jill Gordon. Thank you so much for taking the time to be here today, Jill. Hey, Tony. I’m happy to be here. Thanks for having me. Yes, of course. So you and I met actually at the University of Colorado Boulder. We were both in the graduate program over there, the MA program for theater and performance studies.
We both entered the same year in 2022 and we became fast friends and remained in contact even though you and I are in different parts of the state. So I’m located over in Boulder County and you live full-time out in Vail where you work as a yoga instructor and you teach Shakespeare in places like Colorado Mountain College and things like that in the community. So I just wanted to invite you on today to talk a little bit about
the community in Vale, as well as your work to bring Shakespeare to that community. Well, thanks for having me. I’m so happy to see you. I wish I saw more of you, but we’re both so darn busy. again, thanks for having me. And I’m here to talk about an event that I have been putting together and thinking about for several years, actually. And it’s called Weekend with Will. And that’s going to happen the end of this month.
Yeah, so that event is weekend with Will and that is going to be at the kind of at the end of the tail end of January and we’ll get to that more on that in just a second. So stay tuned for that listeners. But first, I kind of just want to have a little bit of a chat with you about Shakespeare, the Bard himself. So he’s become a kind of a performing Shakespeare’s work.
a little bit more controversial these days than it once was. There’s a lot of people, some critics who say that Shakespeare is one of the old dead white guys and that maybe his work shouldn’t be performed as much in today’s society. So I guess I just kind of want to start there. What would you say to those critics and why Shakespeare? You know, that’s a really interesting question and that is central in a way to what I’m trying to do.
You know, there are people who really love classical. I mean, I’d have to get into defining classical, but the classical idea of Shakespeare in the pumpkin pants and arms kind of in the air and this and the endow. But there’s people that that takes Shakespeare in a, in a new context and try to look at it in terms of 2025 and
I guess what I would say to your question is that even though there are many, certainly many, many authors, playwrights, poets, people in the arts who should be looked at, should be talked about, their voices need to be heard, male, female, any variety of people. But I think what Shakespeare does
and the teaching of Shakespeare, because I am essentially a teacher, is that it raises questions. It raises questions about, for instance, plays like The Merchant of Venice, where some people are saying, well, we shouldn’t teach that anymore, and this is just a white Christian male commenting on the Jewish people in 1590.
You know, it’s a conversation we need to have. We should not have that conversation. And I think that Shakespeare, in many ways, whether you’re talking Romeo and Juliet and youth violence and young love and plays like Lear and aging or Macbeth, certainly the topic of ambition. Those are conversations we should not avoid. They’re conversations we should be having.
and to bring them into 2025 is really, it’s important, very important. Yeah, so it sounds like you’re saying there’s just Shakespeare’s work is tapping into things about the human condition that are a little bit more universal. they, even though there’s the text are set in the Renaissance time or they were written during that time period, excuse me, not all of them are set then.
But they were written in that time period. They have a lot of value to contemporary society today. Absolutely. That is really exactly what I’m saying. I think that I see it in my teaching because I teach adults. And when I say adults, mean older adults who are maybe post-career. And they’ve come back to my class, which is called Shakespeare for Fun.
And they’re intrigued because Shakespeare was maybe never fun for them. And we have conversations about all sorts of things as we study a play. We just spent five weeks watching five different versions of Hamlet and talking about acting and film versus stage and what were the controversies of Hamlet and religion and on and on, but it cracks open contemporary conversations.
And that’s where I lean into is I wanna talk about what are the conversations we need to have, not the conversations we should be avoiding. So Jill, I’m kind of curious. I just realized as we were having this conversation that I actually don’t know the answer to this myself, but how did you get into Shakespeare? What was that entry point for you? That’s so funny you asked me that. was thinking about that this morning.
You know, Shakespeare comes to people at different times in their lives. I have one friend that got into Shakespeare when she was cast as a Midsummer Night Fairy in kindergarten. I know people that, you know, came to it maybe in a high school play. I never had it in high school, but I picked up a very tattered copy of Macbeth when I was probably in my late 20s.
I thought it was something I should read if I wanted to be culturally literate because I had never had any Shakespeare. And I’ve just, you know, I fell down the Shakespeare rabbit hole. And after that, I started going to like Ashland, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and just, I don’t know, it, it captured me. And ever since then, I kind of
worked away at the Canon, which is the collection of his works, and ended up after a long career doing something else entirely, ended up going to graduate school and primarily was a Shakespearean there. So that’s how I ended up there. And you’re continuing to, it was before graduate school actually that you had started teaching the Shakespeare classes though out in Vail, is that correct?
Yeah, I had taken some preliminary classes and I needed a project. And actually when the college heard I was was working on the Shakespeare classes, they said, why don’t you teach a class? And I was like, nobody will take that. And right up to the last minute, I didn’t think anybody was like the class was going to go. And then all of a sudden, about two days before I got an email that said your class is happening. And I was like, no, wow. And interestingly, that class has been going for nine semesters.
with essentially the same group of people with more people joining in. So it’s been a community building experience. It started primarily in COVID and people really needed that, you know, they really needed that community. I just couldn’t agree with you more. I actually also during COVID, I turned to Shakespeare myself. I organized a Shakespeare performance club in which we would all meet on Zoom.
and we would pick a different Shakespeare text and we would spend about, it was about six weeks on Zoom, just reading it together. And then at the end, after we would read an act, we would just all talk and just, a lot of the times the conversations went in a bunch of insane directions, not always super linked to Shakespeare, often linked to political things that were happening in the moment around us and how the text was responding or seeming to kind of get people thinking on things. it’s funny that we both win COVID.
hit turned to Shakespeare. Yeah, that’s so interesting. And I found that with my students and well, and myself too, that things would come up in this class that were very personal. And of course, I told the people in the class, you know, the things we talked about here really have to stay here because people do open up. But when we were looking at the Taming of the Shrew, for instance, one woman
spoke about issues she had had in a marriage. And it was deeply personal. For me, if I can relate one that was very personal, when I had a dog die, I was dealing with some deep grief. And I went and read Constance’s grief speech. And it’s in King John. And
It was like it spoke to me and helped me deal with it. And I thought that is so incredible that over 400 years later, the author of this speech understands exactly why I was feeling the way I felt. And I took a lot of comfort in it. So it’s interesting how Shakespeare, people say, it’s universal, but that word doesn’t really describe it.
That’s a good, I said it that earlier. I know, and I agree with you. It’s universal’s not quite right because it doesn’t tap into the kind of specificity that the language allows you as the, the person performing it or the person who is receiving the information as the audience to really relate to. And I think you are onto something. I’m gonna maybe have to strike the phrase a universal text from my vocabulary when referring to Shakespeare from here on out. But I think it’s just,
really exciting this community building that you were able to do in Vale kind of around Shakespeare. And I’m kind of interested in hearing how that evolved into this upcoming event, Weekend with Will, that’s going to be happening January 23rd and 24th in Vale. So can you just talk to me a little bit about how that idea got started? Yeah, when I was early on in my graduate school career,
Well, first off, I live in Vail. I’ve lived here for a long time and Vail has a very diverse and interesting cultural scene. We have Bravo Colorado, which is a classical music series. We have an international dance festival. I was just about to say Vail has some of the top dance in like the entire country, but it’s noticeably not a ton of theater if I’m, if I understand the local scene correctly.
You do. mean, there is community theater that is, you know, it’s very good. It’s very worthwhile. And I mean, that’s in my opinion, I think they do a great job. But what I noticed was there was no specifically there was no Shakespeare. And that’s in addition to having a very limited theater scene on the western slope of Colorado. But when I started grad school, I had to come up with some ideas for projects.
But it blended into the idea that I was seeing there was no Shakespeare here. There was a lot of other things, but no Shakespeare. And of course I asked myself, why is that? It can’t be that no one here knows anything about Shakespeare or cares. A lot of the people that visit here come from large metropolitan areas and they’re used to high end, big theater. So that’s when it popped into my head, well,
What if I started something and you know, a lot of theater, when you look at small theaters or really any kind of local theater, they start in the upstairs, you know, dining room or conference room or in the back room with a few locals trying to put on something. And I thought, well, I can do that. So I thought, let’s do a small two-day thing called Weekend with Will.
And it turned out that one of the board members of the Vale Symposium, which is a terrific nonprofit here, said, ask me, what are you going to do with your degree? And I said, well, I’d like to do this project called Weekend with Will. And she said, let me see if I can get the symposium on board to support that effort. And that’s how it came into being.
And so now this two day event is gonna have a couple of different pieces of programming. You’ve got a panel discussion, you’ve got an opening performance, have the Shakespeare project of Colorado is bringing a theatrical reading of Shakespeare for my father. So it’s a couple of different things. Can you speak on how you kind of shaped the programming for this first event? Yeah, that’s such an interesting question because.
I was told that it’s very difficult to do Shakespeare in Vale. And, you know, of course that was throwing down the gauntlet. And I wondered like, why, what are you, what are you saying about the community? And there is some truth, I think to the idea that, that Shakespeare, because it’s never been a real presence in Vale, you’re not going to put on all of a sudden, you know, Midsummer Night’s Dream or Hamlet or whatever, you’re not going to put on a full
performance and fill a venue here. It’s probably just not, I mean, you could dream about it, but it’s probably not going to happen. It’s hard, it’s expensive. And so I thought I need to start small, kind of like my Shakespeare for fun class and get people’s toes in the water where it’s not so intimidating and get them used to the idea of Shakespeare. Not that they don’t have experience in their own past. Maybe they do have a lot.
but let’s just get them into the idea of Shakespeare in Vale. So we have an opening performance. Go ahead. You want to start? Yeah, you can kind of think of this as like a intro to Shakespeare, Shakespeare 101 for people who are in Vale or kind of dip their toes into the bard. Yeah, although it’s very high quality, is certainly not, it’s not simplistic. It’s
But yet you do not have to be any kind of expert or have any kind of familiarity. It’s really, really good programming. So we have an opening performance called Shakespeare, The Magic of the Word with Clay Jenkinson and Paul Lassicao. And they will spend an hour and a half in Shakespeare’s persona, talking about the language and themes and
kind of a practical guide to overcoming Shakespeare intimidation. And that’s on Thursday night. And then Friday morning, have, I’m absolutely so excited about all of this programming, but this Friday morning, I have, why are we still talking about Shakespeare? Shakespeare and modern cultural relevance. And I a high end, I call them my powerhouse panel, Amanda Jaguer from
University of Colorado, who is an absolute expert in using Shakespeare and in the area of violence prevention. She does school anti-bullying programs. I have Kevin Rich coming, who is an expert in applied Shakespeare, and he is an actor and a director himself. He teaches at the University of Colorado. He’s out of Yale drama, and he can talk about Shakespeare and the way we’re using it in modern contexts.
prison arts, veterans therapy. I there’s a lot of cool stuff we’re doing with Shakespeare now. And then I have Peter Garino, who is my artistic director for the staged reading that we’re putting on on Friday evening. And that is the Shakespeare project of Chicago Shakespeare projects of Chicago. And they’re flying in it’s a one woman show that was written by Lynn Redgrave. And it’s called Shakespeare for my father. So
This play talks about her relationship with her very famous actor father, Michael Redgrave. And the reason I want to lean into that a little bit is to point out that the opening performance is a one man show. Well, he has an associate coming to help, but it’s Clay Jenkinson’s show. He’s being assisted by Paul Lassicao. And then we have a one woman show.
And Michelle Shoup is our actor. And I’m just so excited to do things that are about Shakespeare without trying to say, okay, everybody saddle up and come see a full on play.
Yeah, because I can imagine that if you are somebody who hasn’t had a ton of exposure to Shakespeare’s work and you’re now being asked to go sit down for like, I don’t know, Richard II, and you have no prior knowledge or understanding or relationship to the work or the time period or the themes that were at play in the work or the political happenings of the Renaissance time, it could be really hard to engage.
So I think this is a really interesting kind of way to kind of lead people to Shakespeare or lead people into more theater, reading more classical works as a whole. Yeah, absolutely. you know, Shakespeare, sometimes people don’t really know because when they studied Shakespeare in school, there was a book and they had to get out the book and they had to maybe memorize 10 or 20 lines and they were like, this is terrible. I hate this.
And I have one anecdote that I love. Kevin Klein, who’s a very famous Shakespearean actor, and he’s done a lot of other things as well, but very well regarded as a Shakespearean actor. he always says that when, I think he was either in late high school or early college, his professor wanted him to go see Lear. And he says, went and I sat in the back row with my girlfriend and made out, and then we left. And Shakespeare was not,
calling to him. And it’s so funny that he turned out to be this absolutely exquisite Shakespearean actor. So I respect that. get that. You know, lot of people think it’s too hard. But I get that. I get what you’re saying, though, is people don’t want it to have it be told what to do or what to read or they have this is this is enlightened art and work. have that’s not how you get people. You don’t get people interested in Shakespeare by shaming them.
and making them feel bad for not having any knowledge or not being able to engage with this work. You get people to engage with theater, Shakespeare, art, anything by meeting them where they are. And it sounds like that’s kind of the whole purpose of this event is meeting people where they are. If they have a ton of Shakespeare knowledge, amazing, bring that in. If you know nothing about him, you can show up to this two day event and learn a lot and still really be able to fully engage. Yeah. And I want to, I.
I want to not forget to mention this, that I started to say, and I kind of lost my train of thought, was that people don’t realize that Shakespeare didn’t write like a textbook. He didn’t write a book that says Hamlet on the front of it. Shakespeare was a playwright. He wrote for the stage. He wrote for performance. And you should just be able to go and see performance and enjoy it.
And with the background I’m trying to kind of begin to dig into, and I’m hoping this will become an annual event, is that people will say, you know, I’ll give it a try. I think that sounds like fun, or I think it sounds interesting.
So where should people go if they want to learn more about Weekend with Whale? They should go to veilsymposium.org and there is a section called Arts and Culture and there will be all the information about all the different, the three different things that we’re presenting right now. So veilsymposium.org.
Cool. So go head over to veilsymposium.org for more information on Weekend with Wills events. Again, that’s going to be happening for two days, January 23rd and 24th over at Vail Mountain School. So thank you so much, Jill, for coming on the OnStage Colorado podcast. It’s always a joy whenever I get to chat with you. So just really appreciate you making some time. Thank you so much for having me and it’s great to see you.
Alex Miller (1:14:34)
All right, well, that was a really fascinating conversation, Tony.
Toni Tresca (1:14:40)
Yeah, Jill and I are good friends. We’ve met each other in the university program. And so she’s just a delight to talk to. She’s so knowledgeable too about the on-go the happenings of that area. So real pleasure to just get to talk with her. A little bit of a tease for next week on the podcast, as we noted up at the top, John Moore of the Denver Gazette is going to be our guest host next week to talk a
Alex Miller (1:14:50)
Yeah.
Toni Tresca (1:15:07)
little bit about his process for choosing the winners for his True West Awards and everything arts and culture journalism. And then after that later that week on Sunday, January 19, we’ll be hosting the second annual Onstage Colorado Awards for Theatrical Excellence, aka the Oscars on a Facebook live stream
Alex Miller (1:15:30)
Yeah, like last year, we’ll present a slew of awards to recognize the breadth of talent in our state. So really looking forward to doing that again. And that’ll also be a podcast as well. So if you don’t get to the live stream, it’ll be on the pod. So lots of exciting things on the way. If you want to stay up to date on what’s going on in theaters and comedy venues across the state.
Subscribe to the OnStage Colorado newsletter, The Theater Blast, which comes out every Thursday. And if you like what we’re doing, consider leaving a review wherever you’re listening now, and please tell other theater lovers in your life about our podcast. So thanks so much for listening. I’m Alex Miller.
Toni Tresca (1:16:03)
and I’m Tony Tresca and we’ll see you at the show.
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