Irish Comedy Tour to stop in Springfield
February 19, 2012(As originally seen on MassLive by Keith O'Connor)
St. Patrick's Day is weeks away, but CityStage in Springfield into an Irish pub on Friday and Saturday nights.
The Irish Comedy Tour takes the party atmosphere of a Dublin pub and combines it with a boisterous, belly-laugh-trio. The clever, or as some call them "clover" comedians, whose ancestors hail from the Emerald Isle, include the Detroit-born Derek Richards, Boston-born Mike McCarthy, and from Dublin, Derrick Keane.
"It's an Irish pub and comedy show thrown into a food processor," laughed Richards.
Audiences will be treated to Richards' tales about his mom's dog, the holidays and dating a stripper. He has appeared on the Bob & Tom Show, XM and Sirius satellite radio, and the Weather Channel's Top 10. McCarthy's no-holds-barred humor has landed him on Comedy Central and Showtime. The "comedy barbarian," as he calls himself, takes no prisoners when it comes to poking fun at society's most sensitive topics. And Keane, who has performed with many of his home country's favorite acts, including the Dublin City Ramblers and the Wolfetones, will add some authentic Irish music to the show.
"It's also our first show in Springfield," said Richards, who traded in the cold for the heat of West Palm Beach, Florida, where he now resides. "But, two of the guys currently live in Massachusetts, Mike in Fairhaven and Derek in Marshfield."
Richards said the idea for the Irish Comedy Tour was born back around St. Patrick's Day in 2005, when a friend who owned a theater in Florida asked him if he could "get some guys together and do a show."
"I threw something together haphazardly, but we didn't have a guitar component to the show. Because people loved what we did, I knew we had something that we could develop more and move forward with. But, I didn't want the show to be just stand-up….I wanted a supporting act to make it more like a party," said Richards.
"When traveling, after shows I would always go to an Irish pub. You know what you're going to get there….a guy in the back playing music and inappropriate jokes being told. And it was that cool vibe and energy from an Irish pub that I wanted to bring into the theater," he added.
The result was an R-rated show.
"We have adult content and language that is not for kids. People who are 18 and under just can't relate to me. I'm 45 and Mike is 42, so the things we joke about and the comments we make are for our demographics," said Richards.
"Mike has kids and talks about being the youngest of nine in an Irish Catholic family, and what it's like now to experience what his parents went through raising him. Mike is five feet, six inches tall and bald….he's high energy like a little tornado and comes out in a kilt," he added.
Richards said that Keane begins the show with traditional Irish pub dining songs and "throws in a few jokes to get the crowd fired up." The comedian is up next, followed by more songs from Keane and then McCarthy's shtick, before all three appear on stage for the finale.
A regular on the Armed Forces entertainment tours, Richards was featured in Newsweek, Not Quite Prime Time, for taking part in one of the first comedy shows post 9/11 at Camp X-Ray, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. His most recent military tour took him to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Dijbouti, Qatar and United Arab Emirates.
"My father served in the Navy and my grandfather was in the Army after he came over here, and I have respect for what they do. It's a job I don't want. But one of the biggest rewards is to be able to go over there and perform for the armed forces….to give them a slice of home. One performance was actually held in a parking lot and I had no microphone. They sat there on the concrete in 85 degree weather to hear my jokes. You just won't find a more captive and appreciative audience," said Richards.
The irreverent trio, who released a DVD titled "Dublin' Over," has performed at venues across the United States and Canada, including B.B. King Blues Club and Grill in New York City, Showcase Live in Foxboro, and major Las Vegas and Atlantic City casinos. Additionally, Richards has two live compact discs called "Sensitivity Training" and "Who's Your Daddy?"
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Tribute band to bring Pink Floyd 'Dark Side of the Moon' to concert stage
February 15, 2012(As originally seen on MassLive by Keith O'Connor)
Classic Albums Live returns to Springfield on Saturday night when an ensemble of some nine musicians comes to CityStage to recreate one of the most popular records in rock history - Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon."
"It's our flagship show, the first we ever did nine years ago, and at that moment in time when it hit the stage, I knew the album series would turn into something of weight," said Craig Martin, founder of the Classic Albums Live moniker.
"It's hippy trippy stuff with blistering guitars and crazy keyboards with some beautiful vocals. We've performed the album on stage now over 100 times and have done a lot of tweaking along the way. For example, the clock sounds are done organically on stage with everyone up there hitting something. And, we recently added a layered vocal sound to the performance, just like you hear on the studio album," he added.
"Dark Side of the Moon," a landmark recording characterized by its sonic nuances, experimental sounds, and advanced recording techniques, was released in 1973. It became the group's first number one album on the U.S. charts and went on to stay on the Billboard Top 200 for a massive 741 weeks, establishing a world record.
Classic Albums Live takes some of the world's most enduring recordings and recreates them live on stage, as Martin is fond of saying, "note for note, cut for cut," minus all of the "gimmickry and cheesy impersonations."
Martin gave birth to the idea of recreating an entire album on stage while driving back from a gig in Montreal. The Canadian pitched the idea to the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto and their first performance of "Dark Side of the Moon" was a sellout.
"Why not start with 'Dark Side of the Moon?' I'm 50 years old and grew up in the seventies with it, and I used to put the album on to help me study. I have some weird connection with it," said Martin.
"What makes the album so special is the fact it turned all of us into internal movie makers. We had to become directors when listening to it and rely on our imagination since there were no elaborate videos to promote a song or album back then," added the show producer.
"It's funny, we've spent years striving for no personalities on stage, for our players to be faceless, and the exact opposite is beginning to happen. Some of the performers are actually starting to have their own fans," said Martin.
One of those performers is Rob Phillips, who performs the licks of guitarist David Gilmour from Pink Floyd.
"He is amazing and looks just like Jesus. Rob understands and loves this music and people just love him. He's a master of Pink Floyd, you won't find any better Pink Floyd guitar player in the world. He is note for note and sound for sound, with no disrespect to Gilmour. If you're playing on stage with Rob, then you better step it up a notch," said Martin.
In addition to "Dark Side of the Moon," Classic Albums Live has brought some of the greatest classic rock albums to the stage including "Sgt. Pepper" and "Abbey Road" by the Beatles, "Thriller" by Michael Jackson, "Rumours" by Fleetwood Mac, "L.A. Woman" by the Doors, "Let It Bleed" by the Rolling Stones, and a host of others.
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'Blast!' coming to Symphony Hall
February 9, 2012(As originally seen on MassLive by Keith O'Connor)
Having a "blast" is a family affair for Andrew Barlow.
On Sunday, the percussionist will be drumming up a storm when the Tony Award-winning "Blast!" comes to Springfield, bringing its powerful musical performance of drum corps passion and precision from the outdoor arena to the theater stage at Symphony Hall.
Barlow, who completed his graduate work at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in percussion and music education, is no stranger to Blast!. While his current tour with the show began last year, his wife Melissa was in the cast for six years.
"She's at home now and I'm on the road for two to three months at a time, then with a month off. I dearly miss her, but we're making it work. She supports me with all that she does and understands and thinks this is a good opportunity for me," said Barlow, who is on tour in the United States through April, followed by performances in Japan through October.
"Blast!" all began with the Star of Indiana. Since the group's founding in the fall of 1984, James Mason has been the creative force behind the popular drum corps. A lifelong veteran of drum and bugle corps and other musical activities, Mason marched in a World Championship corps, then directed Star of Indiana to the World Championship title in 1991. Since 1993, he has been shaping the evolution of Star of Indiana from a com Merging drum corps's pageantry, marching precision, and instrumental virtuosity with the repertoire, props, costuming, staging, dance moves, and special effects of musical theater, Mason's Blast! made its world premiere in December 1999 at the London Apollo Theatre and went on in 2001 to win a Tony Award for Best Special Theatrical Event and a 2001 Emmy Award for Best Choreography. The 60-member troupe of experienced young performers from three standard drum corps sections – brass, percussion, and visual ensemble – is said to have "overwhelmed" audiences unfamiliar with the demanding performance skills of drum corps.
Born on athletic fields across the nation which were home to Star of Indiana – "Blast!" is steeped in the tradition of military and outdoor pageantry, drum corps, bands, and color guards which have a long history in America. Often rehearsing some 12 hours a day through heat, cold, dust and rain, they create thrilling performances where athleticism, musical talent, kaleidoscopic movement, and showmanship combine to create an art form that is both competitive and entertaining.
"Blast!" is not traditional musical theater, but it's not traditional drum corps either. As artistic director Mason explained on the "Blast!" website," Nothing has ever been staged like this before. We're truly creating a new musical genre with "Blast!." Taking what Star of Indiana did on the football pitch, shrinking it to a theater, staging it with bold, theatrical lighting, set design and sound enhancement is really a change." According to Barlow, Blast! has "something for everyone from ages 3 to 93."
"The show has every type of musical genre in it from jazz to Latin and from techno to rock and roll….depending on who and where you are in life, the show will appeal to you on some level," he said, noting audiences will hear everything from Samuel Barber's "Medea" to Chuck Mangione's "Land of Make Believe."
In addition to studying percussion at UMass, Barlow also attended Mors Hill College in North Carolina. He said he was drawn to percussion early in life.
"We were introduced to all the instruments at school in the fifth grade. I didn't know you could actually learn how to drum in school. I started in the sixth grade and my parents were all for it and I latched on immediately," said Barlow.
Barlow currently resides in Allentown, Penn., with his wife.
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Holyoke High School Band FLASH MOB
2/12 - BLAST!
February 2, 2012(As originally seen on DidYouWeekend.com by Eric Sutter)
Winner of the 2001 Tony Award for Best Special Theatrical Event and the Emmies for Best Choreography, "BLAST!" will rock Symphony Hall. Born on athletic fields across the nation, steeped in the tradition of the military drill teams, precision drum corps and color guards, this thrilling production promises to be bold and lively with athleticism, musical talent and kaleidoscopic movement which are merged into an art form. In The Spotlight interviewed percussionist Andrew Barlow.
ITS: Hi Andrew. We are very excited about "BLAST!" making a stop in Springfield. Can you tell us who influenced you to get into this performance style?
Barlow: My elementary teacher from North Carolina influenced my decision to get into music and percussion. Later, when I was at UMass, Dr. Brian Tinkle urged me to go further with it as did Tom Hamel.
ITS: When did you start this challenge?
Barlow: Well, when I was around 7-8, I was tutored on piano, and around age 10 the world of percussion opened up to me.
ITS: When did you get involved with "BLAST!"?
Barlow: This is my first tour, but it all began in the 90′s.
ITS: What can we expect from the cast of "BLAST!"?
Barlow: Well, it's a mix of music, theatre and dance. The co-ed cast is split evenly between the musical ensemble of percussion and brass and the visual ensemble of sabers, rifles and flag waving. The dancers add an angelic quality. It's amazing.
ITS: Is there a notable highpoint in the performance?
Barlow: Definitely, when some of the cast interact with the audience. Then we sing one song in the performance…the American folk song "Simple Gifts."
ITS: How many people make up the cast?
Barlow: The entire ensemble numbers 40 with 5 swings of which I am one. I perform percussion and double as a swing captain with other duties in the performance.
ITS: Thanks and good luck! We'll be looking for you.
Barlow: Sure enough!
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