By Patty Montagno
Staff Writer
The 2015 Garland Summer Musicals opens June 12 with the spectacular Broadway spectacular “West Side Story.” The show runs June 13, 14, 19 and 21.
The second show is “Crazy for You.”
Producer Patty Granville said this will be a blockbuster season for the organization.
Wylie resident Buff Shurr will direct both shows. Sachse High School technical Theater Director Joe Murdock and a group of Sachse High School students will be building the sets again this summer for both musicals.
Granville said Jeremy Dumont would be the choreographer for “West Side Story”.
“He did the national tour of the show for several years and knows the show thoroughly,” she said. “Jeremy was our featured song and dance performer in “42nd Street” and also choreographed “The Music Man.” Since then he has been doing non-stop productions with the Dallas Theatre Center and Casa Manana. We finally have been able to bring him back to Garland.
Joseph Jones is choreographing and starring in “Crazy For You.”
“He was our star and co-choreographer of “Singing in the Rain” and many other GSM productions,” she said. “He also choreographed “Thoroughly Modern Millie” last year and has been featured in numerous other GSM productions.”
Granville said the board wanted two strong dance productions because that is what “our audience wants.” “These are two of the most amazing musicals because they have the incredible music of Bernstein and Gershwin and the dance numbers are spectacular in both shows,” she said.
West Side Story features an incredible Leonard Bernstein score, according to Granville, combined with the Romeo and Juliet love story and Jerome Robbins brilliant choreography.
The second show of the season is “Crazy For You.”
Granville said audiences love Gershwin and that is why GSM will be presenting “Crazy For You.” The show runs July 17 through July 26.
It’s filled with those magnificent songs that everyone knows said Granville knows including “I Got Rhythm;” “They Can’t take That Away From Me” and many more.
Granville explained that Eastfield College has been a partner with GSM since its inception in 1983.
“I initially visited with Eastfield and Richland Colleges in 1982 to set up the educational partnership with the Dallas Community College District whereby we could give college credit to those participating in the productions on stage as well as backstage. It has been an amazing program,” she said. “Each summer, approximately 30 scholarships are awarded to local students to earn academic hours rich with educational and mentoring opportunities that allow local high school and college students to engage in all aspects of musical theatre, technical collaboration, set design and artistic expression.”
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