Dixie Actors Form Ties That Bind

Dixie Swim Club (L to R): Anne Craft is team captain “Sheree;” Erin Osgood is self-absorbed “Lexie;” Debra Rockey is the hard-luck “Vernadette;” Kandi Krumins is naïve ex-nun “Jeri Neal; and Julie Yolles is hard-boiled attorney “Dinah.”

If you are lucky, you have made some friends in this life that you know will always be there for you.  Perhaps you met in school, and maybe you don’t even see each other that often, but whenever you do you pick up right where you left off without missing a beat.  These “best friends forever” friendships are what make life precious.  You can tell your BFFs the truth, even when it hurts, and you can share in each other’s triumphs and tribulations.

The five women in the Dixie Swim Club portray characters that share such friendships.  In fact, the actors have bonded so closely that their mutual admiration makes for a richer experience onstage.  Two actors were kind enough to share some self-realizations and also some personal reflections about their fellow cast mates.  Anne Craft said, “If you know anything about me, you know I am Sheree.  She says the same things I say so I didn't have any trouble getting the tone or emphasis of her words.  I have been accused of organizing the lives of other people.  I have been guilty of making decisions for other people and deciding what was best without consulting them.  I run a tight ship in the make-up room and have firm rules about the costumes.  I have been labeled as ‘particular’ which I think is a nice way to say I'm bossy and a little mean.  Some people are scared of me.  I wish Sheree could be more sexy, or enjoy alcohol more, be a funnier character or perhaps be more naive.  But she is pretty straight and plain.  I see myself as having that same demeanor. I think Sheree is a likeable character and once you get to know her you see how genuine she is.  The same could be said for me.  It isn't necessarily easy playing a character so similar to yourself.”

   

Of her fellow actors, Anne observed that “Erin's character (Lexie) is very over the top at times, and she takes the spotlight whenever she can.  Kandi's 77-year-old Jeri Neal is fabulous.  She has the stiffness and shakiness of an elderly person.  Debra is a true storyteller.  Her tales of woe are meaningful and you can see that her character is sad about her life, but won't let that get her down.  Julie found a routine and her professionalism shines through.  She plays Dinah perfectly.  I think as a whole, I have learned that each woman is truly dedicated to the craft and to this show.  In Dixie I have learned that while my character is the least glamorous, I am a necessary character and need to be the straight gal in order for the other four to shine.”

Debra (a/k/a “Rockey”) notes that “each actor is cast perfectly to her persona.  Erin is Sexy Lexie.  Anne is extremely organized.  Julie was born with an ego and to be a diva.  Kandi is as authentic and whole as they come.  I always see the comedic side of life.”

While Rockey has befriended the entire cast, she feels that her character Vernadette connects the best “with Lexie, because I am the anti-Lexie – the total opposite of all she is and stands for. I also connect with Jeri Neal, because of her vulnerability and honesty. Combine these characters behaviors and you have Vernie - she is as comfortable in her skin as Lexie is in hers.  And Vern just tells it as it is – ‘what you see is what you get.’” Rockey is quick to note that “I also love Dinah and Sheree - as the team and the experience would not be the same without them.”

How does the real life Rockey relate to her character Vernadette?  Rockey said, “I was never the cute girl, or the popular girl, or the rich girl growing up.  I relied on my wit and boldness to get me through situations. No matter what is thrown in my path, I charge ahead.  So ... my pre-30 days were all Vernadette-building.  After 30, I figured out that this personality worked very well in the business world, so I let 'er rip!”

The Dixie Swim Club concludes October 25th – 27th.  Reserved seats for this comedy sponsored by Mall, Malisow & Cooney, P.C. are available now at www.farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office (248) 553-2955.  

Kandi Brings Out Sweetness in her Dixie Alter Ego

Kandi Krumins is all sweetness and light
 as the fun former nun, Jeri Neal McFeeley

Kandi Krumins’ character in the Dixie Swim Club is Jeri Neal McFeeley, a former nun who has been called a “ditzy ray of sunshine.”  Kandi admits that she “struggled, at first, to find Jeri Neal.  In real life, ditzy women rather annoy me, and sometimes Jeri Neal says some things that sound ditzy. However, she's just naive.  I had to learn to give her a break, love her for who and what she is, and watch her grow into herself.”  

Kandi brings creativity and imagination to her portrayal of Jeri Neal, whose character really matures (literally and emotionally) during the course of the play.  Jeri Neal goes from pregnant nun, to unwed mother, to the bride of a younger man during the course of the play.  And with each scene, Jeri Neal grows up a little more.  As Kandi says, “Jeri Neal is the positive thinker in the group that's full of sunshiny love.  She's also the late bloomer in the group, off to a later start than her friends, but continually makes choices throughout the show that surprise them.  What I enjoy most about Jeri Neal is her ‘cup is half full’ way of looking at life.  No matter what happens, she ends up being positive; the one who reminds everyone about the good in life.”

Kandi’s own positive outlook is a great fit for Jeri Neal, and sometimes it’s hard to know who is rubbing off on whom.  Kandi “believes that if you truly ‘get into’ a character, you have the ability to take some part of that character with you and incorporate it, if you choose, into your own personality.  That said, the more I play Jeri Neal, the more I'm thrilled to have gotten her role!  I think that most of us could use a little more Jeri Neal in our lives.  I hope to keep as much of her alive as possible when the show's over.”

Kandi “wanted to be in the Dixie Swim Club because they are a diverse group that loves each other despite their differences.”  She finds it “humorous that the cast seems to be as diverse in real life as we are on stage, but that we still have a great bond.  In many ways it feels like we HAVE known each other our whole lives.  As we have spent increasingly more time together, the show has come more and more to life. Playing off my fellow cast members' emotions has become a rush.  I also find it humorous how Tim and Rick, being fine actors themselves, have become more of our ‘coach’ and ‘assistant coach’ than director and assistant director. After voluntarily directing a cast consisting of five diverse, headstrong women (and we are), they both deserve medals of their own.”

Kandi last graced the Barn stage a year ago as the adult Jean Louise Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird.

The Dixie Swim Club runs through October 27th.  Reserved seats for this comedy sponsored by Mall, Malisow & Cooney, P.C. are available now at www.farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office (248) 553-2955. Find us on Facebook under “Farmington Players.”  

This Rockey’s a True Fighter

Debra Rockey (right) plays Vernadette,
who bonds with her swim club "sisters"
including Erin Osgood (left) as Lexie

That Debra Rockey goes by her last name might not surprise you. “Rockey” suits her personality and physical presence to a tee.  But what’s even cooler is how well her name fits her character in the Dixie Swim Club.  Rockey plays Vernadette Simms, a true fighter and survivor if ever there was one.  In Dixie, five college swim teammates reunite at an Outer Banks beach house for a girls-only weekend every August that is always full of fun, fights, and twists of fate.  

Rockey offers comic relief as Vernadette, a hard luck case who has a deadbeat husband, a felonious son, and a daughter who bounces between cults.  Rockey describes Vernadette as “a solid woman - physically and mentally.  I think Vern knows that the way you make God laugh is by telling him your plans.  She just keeps on going through everything that is sent her way.  Nothing will get Vern down and what keeps her going are her swim club, her biscuits, and her memories.”

Despite her bad luck, as Rockey says, “Vernadette is a survivor. She may not be the cutest character or the best dressed or have any waist (she hasn't seen hers in years) but she is as solid as a rock. And, she lives for August in the Outer Banks with her four fabulous friends.  It is the one thing that she can count on - the team that always wins, in and out of the water.”  Similarly, of her fellow actors, Rockey says, “I love my ‘swim team’.  We have been working together for several months now - filming the videos, eating, rehearsing, eating - and it feels like we have known each other for twenty years. Each of us are magically a living version of our Dixie Swim Club self.   Typically I perform musical theater, so it has been a bit strange to be on stage and not singing my heart out.  But know that on the inside, I am singing - 'cause I'm just thrilled to be a member of this great cast and to share this story with our audience.”  

While this is her Barn debut, Rockey has performed throughout Michigan – in Grand Rapids' Civic, Circle, and Actors Theaters, and Novi and Ann Arbor Civic Theaters.  She has also appeared on Detroit's Boxfest and Second City stages.  Favorite productions include Annie, Sweeney Todd, The Producers, Anne of Green Gables, Baby, and Divine Stella Divine.  Her favorite roles so far are "Stella" in Follies, and rich "Lady Cucuface" in Madeline.  

The Dixie Swim Club runs October 5th – 27th.  Reserved seats for this comedy sponsored by Mall, Malisow & Cooney, P.C. are available now at www.farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office (248) 553-2955.  

Julie Yolles Finds Southern Comfort in Dixie

Julie Yolles as Dinah Grayson, Esquire

Julie Yolles may be from Birmingham, Michigan, but she’s been in so many “Southern” plays that you might think she’s from Birmingham, Alabama instead.  As she says, “I guess I’m becoming a ‘Southern’ veteran, having been in Miracle Worker, Steel Magnolias, Last Night of Ballyhoo and now the Dixie Swim Club.” In Dixie, five women -- teammates on their college swim team -- reunite every August at a North Carolina beach house for a girls-only weekend that is always full of fun, fights, and twists of fate.

In her first role with the Farmington Players, Julie plays Dinah Grayson, a fast-talking, wise-cracking, hard-boiled attorney who is never far from her martini glass. Julie contrasts her character with herself: “As Dinah, I am supposed to be a very ‘seasoned’ drinker, shall we say.  In ‘real life,’ I’m a cheap date. I don’t drink at all, except regular Coke, which I’m trying to give up daily.  So, now, I need to find myself a handsome professional bartender to show me how to mix the ultimate martini and screwdriver onstage, while staying in character, with a Southern accent and timing my lines correctly.”

Despite their differences, Julie does have one thing in common with Dinah: “I do have my varsity letter in synchronized swimming from Southfield-Lathrup High School.” Some of her talent must have been passed on to her daughter, Madison, who is a state champion on her synchronized swim team, the Troy Synchro Sharkettes.

Julie says she “hit the jackpot” with the Farmington Players.  “I couldn’t have asked for a nicer, more talented, friendly and welcoming cast and crew.  It’s a pleasure and honor, as our director Tim Timmer and A.D. Rick Mickley always say, to share the stage and backstage with them.” Julie says that Dixie’s all-male directing team makes it “intriguing and fun to get that male perspective on the female psyche.”

One challenge facing all the characters is to age 33 years on stage, but Julie is even incorporating that into her role: “I’m having many a ‘senior moment,’ which could be a good thing for my character as there are so many lines to learn and it doesn’t come as easily as it did in the old—or should I say younger—days.”

Julie’s favorite roles include Sylvie in the Female Odd Couple, Aunt Gert in Lost in Yonkers, Chris in Rumors, Columbia in The Rocky Horror Show, Rita in The Vast Difference, Annelle in Steel Magnolias, Pfeni in Sisters Rosensweig, Electra in Gypsy, Lala in Last Night of Ballyhoo, Minnie Faye in Hello Dolly and Virginia in Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up.  By day, Julie is the Social Scene Columnist for the Observer & Eccentric newspapers, a Features Writer for Styleline magazine and a freelancer.

The Dixie Swim Club runs October 5th – 27th.  Reserved seats for this comedy sponsored by Mall, Malisow & Cooney, P.C. are available now at farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office (248) 553-2955. 

Anne Craft is a Natural as a Dixie Chick

Debra Rockey (Vernadette), Anne Craft (Sheree), Julie Yolles (Dinah), Erin Osgood (Lexie), Kandi Krumins (Jeri Neal) are the members of the Dixie Swim Club 

“I'm every woman/It's all in me/Anything you want done baby/I do it naturally”

Like Whitney Houston’s “Every Woman,” Anne Craft sees part of herself in each of the five female characters that make up the Dixie Swim Club:  “Each of the five women is different, and has strengths and weaknesses that I possess.  I could have been any one of these women at one time during her life.  It is rare that a script has so many characters available to five female actors.  We are an ensemble.”  The Dixie Swim Club tells the story of five friends who meet on the college swim team. They reunite one weekend each year at a North Carolina beach house to laugh, love and enjoy life, free from men, children and work.

Anne describes her character Sheree as “a busy body always poking her nose in other's lives.  She feels she can reorganize everyone else to live the perfect life like she has.   Her heart is in the right place but her constant ‘I'm in charge’ attitude can be wearing on her friends.”  Anne can definitely relate to Sheree’s nutritional and organizational skills, saying: “I like that my character is ‘all about good nutrition.’  I pride myself on eating healthfully and it makes me proud that Sheree feels the same way.  She talks about being an athlete and continues with exercise throughout her life.  Sheree is also very organized.  If you saw my house you would see that I am a very organized person.  I have been known to label drawers and cabinet doors so that anyone who uses my kitchen would know where things are and where they are to be returned.”

Like all the characters, Sheree must age on stage from 44 to 77 during the course of the play.  Anne explains how the actors tackle this challenge: “Aging my character ‘down’ to look younger than I am in the first scene is one challenge.  The five characters will not only be wearing period costumes but also costumes that help determine their age.  The other challenge is making the actor's bodies age.  You can add make-up to the face, but everyone loses muscle tone and gravity pulls at everything we women pride ourselves on; top and bottom, front and back.”

Anne has added her own personal touch to the show by being the costumer: “As the costumer for the show, I had the great privilege of working with the Thurston high school girls and watching the process of the passage of time.”

Anne’s numerous Barn stage credits include curious characters such as the soft and chewy dancing pretzel in The Producers, the nameless mute in Gypsy, and the transgender mail carrier in Miracle on 34th Street.  Anne has been with the Farmington Players for four years and serves on the Board as Director of Membership.

The Dixie Swim Club runs October 5^th – 27^th.  Reserved seats for this comedy sponsored by Mall, Malisow & Cooney, P.C. are available now at farmingtonplayers.org or at the box office (248) 553-2955.  Find us on Facebook under “Farmington Players.”

A Review of "Q"

The creative, collaborative cast of Avenue Q

Okay, so first a disclaimer (after all, I’m a lawyer).  Since I help with publicity and marketing for this show, this can’t really be an objective “review” in the traditional sense.  But having seen Avenue Q on opening night at the Farmington Players barn theater, I wanted to give you my first impressions.

Avenue Q is a roller coaster ride of funny songs, silly jokes, and playful puppets.  The comparisons to Sesame Street (despite all disclaimers to the contrary) are obvious.  But what you might not expect from this show is that Avenue Q is a hard place to live, full of human frailty and life’s disappointments.  It is a bit disillusioning when a wide-eyed Princeton (played by Gary LaKind) has his naïve bubble burst.  And when Kate Monster (Mary Malaney) gets her little heart broken, I even shed a few tears.

This cynical world view – embodied by songs such as “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist” and “Schadenfreude” (pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others) – might make you a little uncomfortable. And if that doesn’t, the vigorous puppet sex certainly will!  It was more than a little awkward watching this show with my 23 year-old daughter, especially during the song “You Can Be as Loud as the Hell You Want (When You're Makin' Love).”

But at its core, Avenue Q really is insightful, funny, and like its characters, has a Purpose. It is also a great showcase for some very talented young actors and vocalists.  Jason Wilhoite and Paige  Wisniewski practically steal the show as the Bad Idea Bears. Connor Rhoades’ mastery with puppets really brings his character Nicky to life. And Bob Cox’s voice, mannerisms and even his tufted haircut make him entirely convincing as Rod, Nicky’s roommate.  Bob explains why it all comes together so well: “Nicky and Rod are a little similar to the way Connor and I act in real life, which could possibly be why our chemistry is good on stage. It also helps that Connor has turned Nicky into a character off stage as well. Lots of times I come into rehearsal, and instead of being greeted by Connor, I get a ‘Oh Hi Bob!’ from Nicky, along with a wonderful puppet hug.”

Avenue Q has a lot of heart. Go in with an open mind, check your political correctness at the door, and be prepared to laugh about things that might be in “bad taste” but still ring true. Avenue Q runs through Saturday August 25.  Get your tickets (while they last) at www.farmingtonplayers.org or by calling the Farmington Players box office at 248-553-2955.  Find us on Facebook under “Farmington Players.” 

It Certainly Doesn’t Suck to Be Gary LaKind

Puppet Love: Kate Monster (Mary Malaney) and Princeton (Gary LaKind)

Avenue Q is definitely not for kids.  But even though most of the characters and cast members are in their twenties, the Internet Generation are not the only ones who can relate to these promiscuous puppets. In fact, Avenue Q may resonate even more closely with Baby Boomers who grew up with Muppets.  So says Gary LaKind of West Bloomfield, who plays the role of Princeton in the Farmington Players’ production.  Princeton is a recent college graduate and a new resident to Avenue Q who is looking for his purpose in life. Gary wanted to be in Avenue Q because “I love the show and I feel like the show truly speaks to someone who is my age. I grew up in the early 1970's, so I watched Sesame Street during its infancy.  I literally grew with Sesame Street.  I can also remember the excitement of watching The Muppet Show when it debuted on network television and seeing The Muppet Movie in the theater.  The lyricist (Jeff Marx) and I are the same age, so we clearly have the same generational sensibilities.  We also attended the University of Michigan at the same time, so songs like ‘I wish I could go back to college’ really resonate.”

When playing Princeton, Gary tries to focus on “Princeton's innocence.  I try to imbue Princeton with a simple, ‘aw shucks’ quality that really highlights the contradiction between a puppet and the adult nature of his words and actions.  The best part of Princeton though, is being able to sing so many amazing songs.”  Gary is no stranger to musical theater, having performed in RENT (Roger), Sunday in the Park with George (George), and Assassins (The Balladeer/Lee Harvey Oswald).  But in his Farmington Players debut, Gary faces some unique challenges, including “to sing, act and move while working the puppet!  I find it quite difficult and I have the utmost respect for those who do it so well.  The art of coordinated movement with the puppet is truly an art form.  We are fortunate enough to have Connor Rhoades, who plays Nicky and is a gifted puppeteer, giving us pointers and assistance.”

Although he loves musical theater and art, Gary lists “husband and father” as his greatest accomplishments, saying “nothing can really compare to my wife and son.”  And his day job isn’t a bad gig either:  Gary practices occupational medicine in metro Detroit.  So when Princeton (and others) sing, “It Sucks To Be Me,” Gary probably can’t relate …  but he is a convincing actor nevertheless.

Avenue Q opens Friday August 10 and runs through Saturday August 25.  Get your tickets at www.farmingtonplayers.org or by calling the Farmington Players box office at 248-553-2955.  Find us on Facebook under “Farmington Players.”