We performed Thursday, Friday and Saturday night at the Little Theater, and the performances went fairly well. I still cannot see the point in rehearsing for several weeks just for a few shows. Oh well. Wait til I hit Broadway, and I'll be wishing for those "few shows" again! *grin* It was a lot of fun, and oh yes, costumes were made and designed by my mother, Cherry Saito. We thought they looked funny, but they weren't that bad. :) Good work, Mum!!!

Act One: Scene Two
(Littlechap goes off to school and receives his diploma)
Song: "The ABC song" Alma Mater version......Chorus & Littlechap

Act One: Scene Three
(Littlechap finds that he needs a job and goes to apply for one in a factory. Factory music. He flirts with all the girls then spies one that seems hoity toity (Evie) and follows her, trying to get her attention.)

Act One: Scene Four
(Littlechap is chasing after Evie through the streets. They end up on a bus as Littlechap sings.)
Song: "I Wanna Be Rich"...................Chorus and Littlechap

Act One: Scene Five
(Littlechap follows Evie off of the bus, where she tries to tell him to go away. Evie sings.)
Song: "Typically English"................................Evie

Song: "Typically English Reprise".............Evie and Littlechap

Act One: Scene Six
(Littlechap goes to the boss' office, where the boss informs him that Evie is his daughter. Still in shock, Littlechap goes to Evie who informs him that she is pregnant.)
Song: "Typically English Reprise"...................Littlechap

Act One: Scene Seven
(Littlechap and Evie proceed down the aisle to be married, Evie obviously pregnant. During his thanks to his new father-in-law, Evie goes into labor and flees the scene.)
Song: "Lumbered".........................Littlechap and Chorus

Act One: Scene Eight
(Susan's birth. Evie and Littlechap hug her and send her off to school.)
Song: "ABC song reprise".......................Evie and Chorus
(Evie turns to Littlechap to tell him she's pregnant again.)
song: "Lumbered Reprise"..................Littlechap and Evie

Act One: Scene Nine
(Littlechap receives a promotion and moves his wife and daughter with him
to Sludepool. He sends them off to check out the house while he looks over
the factory and is disgusted with what he finds. He tries to get a little
motivation into the girls--actually more for him than the girls.)
Song: "Gonna Build a Mountain"..............Littlechap and Chorus

Act One: Scene Ten
(Jane's birth. Evie hugs Susan and sends her off to school with Jane while
Littlechap sulks because it's not a boy. Evie turns to tell Littlechap that
AGAIN, she is pregnant. They get into an argument. Evie leaves and Littlechap
does a "Stop the World!" scene. Then boy takes his place and has birth special.
He dies, and the whole family comes out to mourn. They leave, sorrowful and in
despair. Littlechap goes to the boss and receives another promotion, this time
in Moscow.

Act One: Scene Eleven
(Littlechap meets Anya, a guide. He talks with her and then she offers for him to
make love to her. They make a date and then she sings.)
Song: "Glorious Russian"................................Anya and Chorus
(Littlechap and Anya are climbing 17 flights of stairs to her room, chatting as they
go, and then they sit down because Littlechap is too tired to go on. They discuss
having children, and then sing.)
Song: "Meilinki Meilchick"...................Littlechap, Anya and Chorus

Act One: Scene Twelve
(Littlechap comes in to chat with the boss and tell him how Moscow was and about a
directorship.)

Act One: Scene Thirteen
(Ilse Brandt comes in to tell Littlechap she is the housework his wife applied for.
Littlechap tries to win her affections, but she is too caught up in Hitler to pay him
much heed. She sings of her fatherland.)
Song: "Typische Deutsche"..........................................Ilse
(Ilse exits and Jane enters to question her daddy about world wars. He has another "Stop the
World" scene.)

Act One: Scene Fourteen
(Family enters and Evie chews Littlechap out for all his affairs, singing a song.)
Song: "Nag, Nag, Nag"..............................................ALL

Act Two: Scene One
(Littlechap talks with the boss again and the boss decides to send him to New York. He
goes to a night club while he's there and hears an American girl, Ginnie, sing.)
Song: "All-American"....................................................Ginnie
(He takes her to a Chinese restaurant. He starts to move in on her, but then he hears
Susan cry out for him in his head. He knows he must go back to London. He tells Ginnie
he's sorry, then returns to London. When he gets there, Susan informs him that she's
pregnant, and he says, "oh well, guess it runs in the family.")

Act Two: Scene Two
(Susan enters, very pregnant, and while Littlechap is making his give-away speech, Susan
goes into labor and has to be rushed off the street. Evie glares at him before storming off.
Littlechap goes to the boss and has a talk with him. His boss proposes that he run for Parliament.
Littlechap considers this and imagines it: Littlechap, MP. He sings.)
Song: "Once in a Lifetime"............................................Littlechap
(interlude into "Mumbo Jumbo)
Song: "Vote for Littlechap"...............................................Chorus
Song: "Mumbo Jumbo"........................................Littlechap and Chorus
(Littlechap imagines himself in Parliament, and as he is making his various speeches, he
falters in a heart attack. Evie comes to help him off stage. He does a "Stop the world"
scene.)

Act Two: Scene Three
(Evie and Littlechap enter into Sunnyvale, where the rich and famous retire. Evie helps him
sit down, and he reflects on their life. He says, "Why did someone nice like you have to love
someone like me?")
Song: "Someone Nice Like You"...............................Littlechap and Evie
(Littlechap goes over to the boss' grave and talks to him. Littlechap is having a sort of dream
where he is being knighted over stupid things. He keeps calling for Evie but she is dead.
Song: "Someone Nice Like You Reprise"..................................Littlechap
(Littlechap starts a "Stop the world" then stops and shakes his head.)

Act Two: Scene Four
(Jane enters, looking for her father. She asks him why he wasn't at her wedding, and she
tries to tell him that she's had a baby boy, but he is lost in his own little world. He has
a little reverie and then one by one, his affairs appear and talk to him about his own selfishness.
He finally realizes that the only person he was ever in love with was himself.
Song: "What Kind of Fool Am I?"..........................................Littlechap

Act Two: Scene Five
(Littlechap's grandson is born. The death figure appears and Littlechap tells him to pick
on someone his own size. He takes the little boy's hand, and walks with him a little, and then
the boy says, "Stop the world!" Littlechap gives a little narration thought-"You know, the wonderful
thing about a circle is it has no beginning and no end. Now that doesn't prove anything but it makes
you think, doesn't it?")

Singing into the hearts of audiences and having characters bounce from bed to bed is what the Western Nebraska Community College theater program has planned for the spring semester.

This semester the WNCC theater will perform the musical "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off!" by Anthony Newly.

Director Mike Peterson described the play as an every-man story. He said the main character represents almost everyone in the world.

"He is born at the beginning of the play, and we see him progress through his life through maturity. He gets married and he has various relationships in his life with his children, with his employers. But always he is searching for something in his life that he cannot seem to fulfill and he searches and searches and he either finds it or he never really finds it, depending on your interpretation of the play."

Since this musical is such an every-day type of story, Peterson said it holds a lot of opportunity for creativity. "When you approach something that is written in that simple of a manner you can do almost anything you want with it. I chose this play because I wanted to a musical that was simple, and not great big like "The King and I" and "Camelot". They're big and cumbersome and to me a simple show like this has a lot more meaning."

The simple plot of this play is not the only reason creativity flows freely from it, Peterson said. He also said the cast contributes a lot to the creativity and talent to the show. He said, "We have a very talented, hard working cast."

Cast members include Jim Schmucker as Littlechap, Melissa Saito as Evie, Susan Harelson as Anya, Kerri Schwartz as Ilse, Michelle Fraas as Ginnie, Tori Stark as Susan, Brenda Beebe as Jane and Matt Tuzson as Boy.

Fraas described Peterson's cast choices when she said, "Excellent choices for everybody. They are strong actresses and an actor. We're having lots of fun with it. Mike is an excellent director. I love working with him and I love the theater program."

Schmucker summed it up by saying, "I think we're having fun together; when you are one man and six girls in the cast you shouldn't complain, right?"

Littlechap, the main character played by Schmucker, is the only male part in the play. Schmucker described his character as not a very good person. After getting a young girl pregnant, marrying her and having a couple more kids, Littlechap goes on to become a successful businessman, traveling extensively and having affairs all around the world. Schmucker said that at the end of the play Littlechap does not have anything he really wants. "He doesn't have a son, he doesn't have love and he has not been able to love anyone. He's really a sad figure."

Although Schmucker describes his character as being "a sad figure," Fraas said, "Jim--he's excellent. He is the entire play, he's got it all."

Since it is a musical, there will be songs performed by the characters in this play. Some, as Mike Peterson said, the audience might recognize from past years. Broadway hit songs such as "What Kind of Fool Am I?" and "Gonna Build a Mountain," will help add to the show. Fraas described these important parts of the show when she said, "The songs are so funny." Altogether there are 13 songs in the play.

In addition to learning the songs for the play, the actor and actresses also have other preparations to accomplish before opening night.

One example of preparing for a character was given by Fraas, who is preparing herself to portray a night club singer. She said, "I watch a lot of movies trying to get the dialect, trying to get the night club singer act. Just trying to figure out what her past is, where she came from and what made her what she is. I don't know if she hasn't had enough love, if she is out for the fame or if she has had enough of it all."

Schmucker also said he is trying to prepare himself for his role as the main character. "I've got a lot of lines to memorize and solos, so I have to spend a lot of time with my nose in a book to get all of those memorized. I'm finding out as I get older I don't memorize as quickly as I used to.

As far as the character, I just have to work at the character as I read through the lines and figure out what emotions that he feels and try to portray that. He's up a lot of the time, but there is some sadness and anger too."

Schmucker had other things to say about his character as well, "I hope nobody thinks that I am type-cast. It is a challenge to play this character because on the surface he appears to be happy-go-lucky and he is a good businessman and he is doing all of these things. He gets into politics later in life, and as he gets older he gets more sad when he realizes that the things he wants probably will not happen in his lifetime."

In addition to the many preparations that must be made, the different actresses/actor also have their own special goals they hope to accomplish before the opening night of the play. Saito said that before opening night she would like to have more of an understanding of acting, how to work with other people and how to include the audience. "I'm an amateur, so this is just more experience for me."

While talking about what she hoped to see happen with this play, Fraas said she would just like to make the crowd laugh.

Schmucker summed up the goals of many of the others when he said, "I know it's going to be alright when everybody is comfortable with their lines and with their characters and can go out on stage and have fun with it.

"When we can relax enough to do that, if we get to that point, I know we're going to have a good show."

Anyone who wishes to join the characters of this spring musical in their singing, fun and laughter for this every-day type of play may purchase tickets for $5.

WNCC students can get their tickets for free just by obtaining a student I.D. card from the business office.

There will be reserved seating so tickets must be purchased in advance in order to attend the show.

Opening night for "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off!" will be on Feb. 27th, and performances will be every night of the weekend until March 1st.

Peterson said, "We'll have big crowds for this show; they'll love it."