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"There's a Monster in My Closet" debuts at Riverside Children's Theater Date published: 9/2/2010
By COLLETTE CAPRARA FOR THE FREE LANCE-STAR It may be nearing the official end of summer, but there's still time for area families to take one more trip--to an enchanted realm of fantasy creatures! "There's a Monster in My Closet"--a delightful musical with humor, hilarity and heart--debuts at Riverside's Children's Theater this Saturday, and will whisk its audience to the topsy-turvy world of Dream Land. As the story unfolds, young Emily and her best friend, Stephanie, are having a sleepover, when they hear a bump in the night coming from her closet. They can hardly believe their eyes when they witness Emily's (heretofore undiscovered) "closet monster," Murray, sneak across the room and down the stairs to play with her video games. Knowing that their tale would definitely not be believed by other kids (particularly Emily's taunting big brother and his gang), the girls enlist their friends in a plot to trap the monster--and the frenetic action begins. Each of Emily's friends has a distinct character, including a tomboy, a bookworm, a skeptic, a glamour girl and a science-oriented clue-finder. "The kids in the cast do a great job conveying those characters," said Barbara Cochran, who co-directs with her husband, Mel. There is also a spectrum of characters among the Dream Land creatures, including the pompous, self-absorbed Dream King and his sidekick Toady; the impish monster, Murray, with watchful Wanda by his side; and a pair of Dream-Weaver sprites. A broad variety of musical numbers, written by the prolific, award-winning composer Bill Francoeur, aptly conveys each character, with a touch of humor that will delight children and adults. The Dream King struts his stuff with an Elvis-type doo-wop song--and, in a Dixie-land number dubbed "Downright Incompetence," he lambastes Murray for being AWOL from his monster duties. Murray's freewheeling character comes across in his solo, "I Got My Groove On," a James-Brown-style number, complete with blanket/cape. To emphasize the colorful Dream Land characters, the Cochrans chose to create the sets and props exclusively in black and white, and designed them on the basis of drawings submitted by the younger members of the cast and their siblings. In fact, one of the children whose drawing was selected to be used as a set piece will be noted in the program as the "assistant set designer."
Read more stories about Fredericksburg Date published: 9/2/2010
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