Jeff Hyslop Articles

   And Pippin is� now that's a little more difficult. A celebration of life, this Broadway musical certainly is. More accurately it's one grand death defying magic trick. A medieval commedia and soft rock opera at the same time, with music by Stephen Schwartz of Godspell fame. And a dance spectacular, choreographed on Broadway by Bob "All That Jazz" Fosse. What's Pippin? The perfect summer show.
      It opens July 4 at the Arts Club Theatre on Granville Island, and director Bill Millerd counts it as one of the most ambitious shows he has ever tackled. A soft sculpture set has been designed to evoke the medieval period, this being the tale of the exploits and foibles of the first-born son of Charlemagne � Pippin. Multi-level staging, trap doors and a variety of special effects are used to evoke a magical atmosphere, including a smoke-and-light screen which allows passage through what appears to be a solid wall.
     "I would like people to use their imaginations when they enter the theatre," says Millerd. "We're playing with the relationship of fantasy and reality."
     Choreographer James Hibbard, a Los Angeles native with a wealth of experience in film and musical theatre, has assembled a strong chorus of dancers by selecting the top talent from CBC shows like The Raes and Rene Simard which he directs.
     There are two husband-and-wife teams involved in Pippin. Hibbard's multi-talented wife Charlene Brandolmi plays Pippin's evil stepmother and Ruth Nichol plays the romantic Catherine who wins the heart of Pippin, played by her high-stepping husband Jeff Hyslop, above photographed in flight over Granville Island. (More on Nichol and Hyslop, page 8.)