Page 28 - 2018 Festival Edition

After waking up around 8 a.m. in his Stratford home on a typical rehearsal day, Jason quickly con- siders his options.
“Do I go to the gym, do I go to yoga, or do I go to the warmup that’s voluntary,” said Jason, who is also Phantom in The Rocky Horror Show this season.
Voluntary warmups begin a little after 9 a.m., about 40 minutes prior to each seven-hour rehears- al; the get-the-blood-moving sessions typically feature ballet or jazz led by dance captain Bonnie Jordan, who is playing Mrs. Dunlop. On the same day, Genny might participate in Jordan’s warmup or head to a local yoga studio for a rise-and-shine session.
No matter the preferred method, they better be prepared once it’s go time.
“It’s a Donna show, so everyone knows that they should be on their ‘A’ game,” Genny said.
“And they should be ready for anything,” Jason added.
Whether it fits into mornings or evenings, cardio is key to keeping up with all the lifts and tricks, Genny noted – dance classes, treadmills, yoga, and ballet have been her go-to methods. Eating well and keeping hydrated are also important – some cast members opted to abstain from alcohol throughout the month-long rehearsal process. Stretching, phys- iotherapy, chiropractic and massage treatments help alleviate any ailments or injuries.
THE MUSIC MAN
After hearing about their respective lifestyles, it sounds like they’re professional athletes.
“We are athletes,” Jason interjected. “I don’t want to say we’re ‘like’ athletes – we are athletes. The way that we train, we just train di erently than
any hockey player or basketball player or soccer player or volleyball player. We just have a di erent regimen of how we go about our sport.”
It’s a good fit for the Sermonias, then, since the pair grew up – the family of four children is from Mississauga – in the world of competitive dancing. Similar to any high-level sport, one of the keys to properly executing Coach Feore’s choreography is stamina.
“Donna has high standards. She brings out the best in all of us and we want to be at that standard with her,” Jason said. “With Donna, she knows each actor and each dancer inside and out, and knows their greatest strengths and she uses that to her advantage, our advantage, so that we’re bringing the best work onto that stage for the audience to see.”
The Music Man, about a charming but fraudulent salesman who arrives in River City, Iowa, to work his usual scam only to find that a bill of goods can be the real deal, has music director Franklin Brasz at the helm of a live 19-piece orchestra. Genny pointed out the musical’s two most well-known songs, Seventy-Six Trombones and Shipoopi, are both lengthy, high-energy numbers. Jason, who debuted in Broadway’s Cats straight out of high school,
added the length of certain songs can add mental stress in addition to the physical toll.
“You have to be in that mind frame of, OK, I’m about to do this eight-minute number and it’s going to go on for eight minutes and, whether I’m ready or not, it’s going to go,” he said. “You kind of have to psych yourself up for it.”
On top of the body and mind barriers, there is an added challenge specific to these two – they’re play- ing teenagers.
“And we’re definitely not,” 32-year-old Genny said, drawing a big laugh out of both siblings.
Jason, 33, dances extensively with 19-year-old Megan Caines, who is in her first-ever musical. A few days prior to the first preview in mid-April, Genny was chatting with Caines, playing Gracie Shinn, when the younger actor made a comment about how tiring musicals can be.
“I thought, OK, if you’re 19 and feeling tired and I’m 32 I’m like, ‘OK, I still got it,’” she said, followed by a big laugh.
The large cast is capped by Daren A. Herbert, from This Means War and several other big-budget mov- ies, as Harold Hill, and winner of CBC’s Over the Rainbow Danielle Wade as Marian Paroo, both of whom are making their Stratford debuts.
The Music Man runs from
April 17 to Nov. 3 at the Festival Theatre.
The Stratford Concert Choir is a 90+ voice community choir committed to the presentation of the best of the classical choral repertoire in an annual 4 concert series.
Our director is Ian Sadler, internationally renowned choral director and concert organist.
If you are interested in joining us in our 2018-2019 season please email sadlermus@golden.net.
Find us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter @stratfordconcertchoir
stratfordconcertchoir.com
Stratford Concert Choir would like to thank the Ontario Trillium Foundation for their support of culture, heritage and the arts through the “Grow Grant” of over $100,00 for our “Music Share Program.”
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PAGE 28
THE BEACON HERALD | 2018 FESTIVAL EDITION