Yay!

My trilogy of Cy Coleman shows is now complete for another decade or so! I saw Barnum in 2006 (never seen it before aside from the Michael Crawford DVD), City of Angels in 2008 (before that 1999 at OCHSA and 2005 at Chromolume) and now Will Rogers Follies in 2010.

I first saw this show in Downey in 1997* and it became a very powerful and formative part of my life. Will Rogers touched the hearts of so many people during his life with his affable wit and simple common sense. This show (done in the style of a Florenz Ziegfeld Follies) is a delightful biopic of Will’s life.

An absolutely phenomenal production and an absolutely adorable setup out in Claremont. A decent size stage plus dinner theatre makes this an absolutely amazing experience! I only wish I had known that when I had booked tickets and they told me “jackets for men, dresses for ladies” that it wasn’t going to be enforced. 🙁 Not that I mind getting dressed up, I just wish they kept the riff-raff out! 😉

*I didn’t know this until we spoke with Danny Michaels after the show…he remembers that production because the Cherokee eagle / angel wasn’t seen until the finale and he had recently lost someone and it was a really touching experience/reminder from the show.