Some new art and a step back in time...

Hi all! First off, here are some recent pieces that have fallen from my pen. Stage manager Ronn Goswick is currently working on a show called Baby It's You which tells the story of a chapter in pop music, a woman who fostered the beginning of the Shirelles and went on to manage such artists as Burt Bacharach and Dionne Warwick. The show closed yesterday, but it will likely be starting up again soon.

Also, here is my contribution to my weekly project over at Squigs Knows His Lines. Jason Robert Brown, creator of such amazing Broadway shows The Last Five Years and Parade, is married to Georgia Stitt, a brilliant composer in her own right and music director/vocal coach. They and their daughter Molly currently live in LA when not gallavanting around the world on musical adventure. Georgia commissioned a sketch last year when Jason opened his most recent Broadway show, 13, and I was able to work with both of them on the piece which was presented on opening night of the show.

I had a lovely time last night as the guest of friends John and Victor at the Candlelight Pavilion in Claremont. We had done shows together there back in the late 90s, and now John is artistic director. We had a good meal and watched 42nd Street. So many old friends were in the cast, and it was lovely to see them doing good work AND truly wonderful to reminisce on so many fond memories of that place.

Today is a day off from the Pimpernel show and I look forward to getting out and enjoying this beautiful day. In the midst of all I have going on (the show, lots of fun art, a looming tax prep appointment) I'm trying to get out and have some adventures. I did make a fun trip with my friend Nancy yesterday. I'll post some photos of that... but not yet. I'm taking some other folks to see this spiffy site on Thursday and I don't want to spoil the surprise. Other than that, I'm looking forward to our weekly visit to the Escondido farmer's market and a trip back home to visit with my Wichita peeps and possibly see a show. So as you can see, I'm staying happily busy. Life is good.

So until later, y'all... Take care. Peace and love!

Quick post: Grandpa and tires...

Just so I'm not posting my once-a-week entry about the weekly art, I thought I'd jot a quick note about some recent thoughts...

I just got the tires replaced on the car. I'm hitting that point in the ownership of a vehicle that things start wearing out, and most recently the tires have been wearing down. I found a flat tire last week which gave me some incentive to shop around for package deals. Anyway... it feels good to have some new stuff helping me roll along. Next... brakes.

I've been thinking about my Grandpa lately. He passed away around 13 years ago which seems like an incredibly long time. Grandpa Al never met a stranger. Seriously. He could strike up a conversation with anybody. I have a harder time with this. While I have found that chatting with "strangers" has led to such interesting revelations, it's still difficult. Grandpa was such an example of how we can all make the world a better place. If there are fewer strangers, the world is smaller. And it's a shorter distance between need and help. Just my brain working overtime.

Hope y'all are doing great. Keep an eye out for new Monday art as well as a posting of a piece I recently created for the closing of a fab show.

That's all for now. Take care, all! Peace and love.

A delinquent post... and art on a sad topic.

What has happened to me? I literally thought I was getting set to post an entry after only a half a week. But it's been a week and a half. For the three of you keeping track of me here, I'm so sorry. Time sometimes flies out of control out here in Welk land.


The key item of this week's posting is a sad one. Over on my Squigs Knows His Lines page, I'm dedicating this week to Natasha Richardson. My thoughts and prayers go out to her family at this tragic and sad time.

I've just returned from San Diego. After the Pimpy matinee today I packed a picnic supper and headed south to Balboa Park. I sat on a bench, savoring a sandwich and enjoying the waning sun and big chunky clouds above the Museum of Man. Then I picked up my ticket at the box office and found my seat at tonight's performance of Working. I was a guest of Donna Lynne Champlin who is an amazingly talented actress, lovely person, and a real class act. (I had done a sketch of her that I posted on Squigs Knows His Lines on March 9, and it was really fab to get to meet her in person this evening.) She and fellow cast members (and crackerjack band and crew) really knocked the show out of the park. The show is a series of vignettes featuring folks in various careers as interviewed by recently-passed Studs Terkel, giving voice to countless folks who shape our country but rarely get the spotlight. I was a puddle. The original late 70s production has been trimmed and updated. I really really enjoyed it.


Oh, and since I missed posting last week's SKHL sketch, here it is. I chose to honor Florenz Ziegfeld, showbiz mogul and creator of his own brand of the follies, on the anniversary of his birthday. In the sketch he's surrounded by some signature girls and a few of the stars that entertained on his stages.

I'm happy to say that tomorrow is the day off for the Pimpernel gang. I will likely spend some time working on a commissioned piece, and I really hope to get out and enjoy what is supposed to be a really beautiful day. Take care, all! Peace and love.

Pimpernels and ranunculus...

Just so I'm not following my once-a-week track record, here's a wee message from hump day. Pimpernel is plugging away. The cold/flu that has ravaged the cast seems to be mostly on its way out. It's amazing to see the effect of close backstage quarters and onstage contact when it comes to passing the germs. There are still a few that are battling, but hopefully the worst is in the rear view mirror.


It has been really pretty here in Escondido. Sunshine and moderate temperatures. I've particularly enjoyed the weekly routine of going to the farmer's market each Tuesday between shows with compadre Victor and whoever else wants to tag along. We enjoy a wealth of produce and all sorts of artisan foods. And this week I went especially nuts over the fresh flowers. I've discovered that I really like ranunculus! So I bought a few inexpensive bunches along with some sweet smelling freesia, and now my apartment looks like a florist. Really nice!

Anyway... that's all for now. I'm gonna hit the drawing board tonight and hopefully knock out a few projects as I go. Take care, all! Peace and love.

What's with the weekly posts?

Hey all! Sorry for being MIA all but once a week. The time just flies by when the ink is a-flyin' and the curtains are a-risin' and a-fallin'. This past week I've tackled a couple caricature commissions in addition to the weekly sketches (see below). The show is going well and it's been great to welcome some friends to the Welk to see the show. There's a nasty cold/flu going through the cast, though, so backstage is permeated in Purell and Lysol. Everyone has been a trouper, but it's a really great thing to have the day off tomorrow.



Here are tomorrow's postings on my "Squigs Knows His Lines" Facebook page. Above is Stephen Schwartz, composer of Wicked, Godspell, Pippin, and many more Broadway hits. His birthday was just this past Friday and the next day he opened his revised adaptation of Studs Terkel's Working at the Old Globe Theatre nearby in San Diego. I'm looking forward to seeing him in concert with special guests tomorrow evening. I've also featured Donna Lynne Champlin who is co-starring in Working at the Globe. I had the pleasure of seeing her work in 3hree at LA's Ahmanson and on Broadway in the recent revival of Sweeney Todd. An amazing talent.

So that's it for today. Maybe I'll be a bit more timely with my posts in the coming week. In the mean time, I need to get some rest. I'm fighting off the cast germs and I've gotta take the car in for servicing tomorrow. Thrilling to be sure. Take care, all! Peace and love!

Monday! More art...

Yes, it's Monday and I've posted new art over on my Facebook page, "Squigs Knows His Lines." And I present it here as well.



First (above), I've featured Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury in Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's Sweeney Todd. Yesterday was the 30 year anniversary of the premiere of this musical theatre masterpiece. Next, the long-running revue Forbidden Broadway (since 1982) closed yesterday. I've featured creator Gerard Alessandrini.

After catching a few winks, I'll be enjoying a day off and meandering back to the ol' Welk. (I'm currently at home in the Valley.) Pimpernel has been going well. Audiences are really eating it up. There's also a new feature on Saturday nights at the theatre... free cabaret. Cast members and musical director Justin Gray perform after the show. The inaugural event was really well received.

Well, I've gotta get some sleep. Take care, all! Peace and love.

New Monday art!

Hi all! Just a quick post today. I have the day off and have a whole lot of "doing nothing" to get to. But I wanted to show you the latest weekly sketch I've posted on "Squigs Knows His Lines."

I was a bit stumped this past week and then I got an e-mail from Eric Schaeffer, artistic director of Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA. (I had worked with Eric when he directed Snow White: An Enchanting New Musical at the Mouse House.) He offered a suggestion for a weekly sketch. Signature's re-envisioned production of the mega musical Les Misérables closed yesterday. I had been wowed by photos I had seen of the production, and so after Eric dropped a line I thought it would be fun to tackle a sketch celebrating the show. They also recently found out that the production was nominated for 13 Helen Hayes awards (the regional awards in the D.C. area).

I'm really enjoying the exercise of creating something each week. It's got me constantly on my toes with my eyes and ears open. I look forward to keeping this going for as long as possible, celebrating the many facets of the theatre. Yes, I may document a Broadway performance or a fab regional production, but I may also give a nod to Jr. in Alabama playing Marian Paroo at her high school or an amazing dresser making some actor's show a dream in New Mexico or one of the theatre's great forebears of the Golden Age. There's so much to celebrate in theatre. I have a lot of paper and plenty of ink, and I'm excited about all the possibilities.

But now I'm taking the day off. I typically draw every day, but I occasionally need to remind myself to take a break. I'm going to get in the car and head out to get some fresh produce. Then I'm having dinner with good friends. Onward! Peace and love, y'all!