“Potatoes or rice?”
That was the big question Tequesta native John Mercurio got to ask in his job as a food server decades ago at the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theatre.
How his fortunes have changed. Today, he is the musical director of Tintypes, the turn-of-the-20th-century musical revue that begins previews on Tuesday at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre, the successful reincarnation of Reynolds’ operation.
And next season, Academy, a new musical whose music and lyrics were written by Mercurio, is on the Maltz schedule.
Mercurio has collaborated on several shows with his childhood friend, Maltz artistic director Andrew Kato. It was Kato who enlisted him to teach the Tintypes songs to the cast and to lead the seven-piece band during the show’s run.
Mercurio was familiar with the show, having lobbied — unsuccessfully — to have it produced at North Palm Beach’s Benjamin School when he attended there.
The score ranges from the upbeat rhythms of George M. Cohan to the lilting waltzes of Victor Herbert. Audiences will hear such patriotic numbers as You’re a Grand Old Flag and Stars and Stripes Forever, as well as such less well-known songs as Jonah Man and I’m Gonna Live Anyhow Til I Die.
Much of it is familiar territory for Mercurio. “I’m very familiar with that rag style, the syncopation that started to come about in music at that time. I love that music,” he says. In addition to playing piano in the Tintypes band, Mercurio sings in the second-act opening number, Ragtime Dance.
Of the show’s score, Mercurio says, “It feels like an American songbook. You’re reminded of the wealth of American music. The tunes are just so entertaining, the vocal arrangements are gorgeous, it’s foot-stomping good music. It’s five-part harmony all night long. It’s certainly nostalgic, but it’s not just nostalgia.”
Maltz announces 2010-11 season:
John Mercurio’s Academy, a prep school musical based on the Faust legend, will have its professional world premiere at the Maltz (Dec. 7-19), fresh from an acclaimed debut at last year’s New York Music Festival. The show also will mark the first main-stage directing job for the theater’s artistic director, Andrew Kato.
Also on the Jupiter playhouse’s subscription season will be:
Twelve Angry Men — Reginald Rose’s classic drama of jury deliberations (Nov. 2-14).
The Sound of Music — The musical genesis of The Von Trapp Family Singers, set against the rise of the Nazi Party in Austria (Jan. 11-30, 2011).
Jolson at the Winter Garden — A world premiere musical about vaudeville and Broadway great Al Jolson featuring vintage songs of his era (Feb. 22-March 13, 2011).
Crazy for You — The Tony Award-winning musical comedy about a New York hoofer out west, filled with songs by brothers George and Ira Gershwin (March 29-April 17, 2011).
For more information on the upcoming season at the Maltz, contact the box office at (561) 575-2223 or visit online at www.jupitertheatre.org.
Reynolds group’s new script readings: One of the main reasons Ken Kay agreed to sign on as executive director of the new Burt Reynolds Institute for Film & Theatre is the opportunity to host staged readings of new, unpublished scripts for the stage and screen.
This Saturday, he kicks off his New Voices, New Visions program with a series of three short plays by veteran South Florida filmmaker Frank Eberling.
The scripts are: Drowning in the Gene Pool, an un-romantic comedy; Winter Storm, a political thriller; and Blinded, a comedy with live music. The evening concludes with a talk-back session involving the cast, the director and the writer.
Tickets are only $5. The series takes place at the Burt Reynolds Institute & Museum, 100 N. U.S. 1, Jupiter, beginning at 7:30 p.m. To learn more, call (561) 743-9955 or visit www.brift.org.
On the horizon: Palm Beach Shakespeare Festival is out to spook us with Stephen Mallatratt’s British ghost story, The Woman in Black, at the spiffy new Seabreeze Amphitheatre, Carlin Park, Jupiter, from Thursday to Feb. 14. Admission is free. Call (561) 575-7336. … Farther south, at Fort Lauderdale’s Parker Playhouse, the national tour of The 39 Steps, the long-running stage adaptation of the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock thriller of spies, murder and an accused innocent man, plays Wednesday to Feb. 28. Call (800) 982-2787 for tickets.
STAGE NOTES
RECENTLY REVIEWED
CHEMICAL IMBALANCE: Through Sunday at Caldwell Theatre Company. A spoof of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. “Presumably (director Clive) Cholerton had in mind an evening of mindless fluff, something reminiscent of Charles Ludlam’s bygone Ridiculous Theatrical Company. That turns out to be a deceptively tall order, and the results at the Caldwell are simply embarrassing.” — Hap Erstein. 7901 N. Federal Highway., Boca Raton. Call: (561) 241-7432
SINS OF THE MOTHER: Through March 7, Florida Stage, Manalapan. Legendary playwright Israel Horovitz spins a haunting mystery exposing the tragic truths that bind the families of a small New England fishing town together as a closely held secret threatens to tear the town apart.
An explosive new drama about revenge and forgiveness. “Richard Crowell has devised two richly detailed, very solid sets, marvels in the cramped quarters that Florida Stage will soon be leaving. By summer, they will move on to the Kravis Center. And with Horovitz’s theatrical connections and his dramatic skills, Sins of the Mother will be moving on to stages all over the globe.” — Hap Erstein. Plaza del Mar, 262 S. Ocean Blvd., Manalapan. Tickets: $38. (561) 585-3433.
NOT REVIEWED
SWING: Through Sunday at the Lake Worth Playhouse. A song-and-dance show celebrating the Swing era. 713 Lake Ave., Lake Worth. Tickets: $25-$29. (561) 586-6410
A … MY NAME WILL ALWAYS BE ALICE: Through Feb. 14, The Delray Beach Playhouse, Delray Beach. A musical revue featuring a delightful variety of sketches, scenes and songs that celebrate women. 950 N.W. Ninth St.. Tickets: $25. (561) 272-1281, ext. 4
