Grant High School - Memoirs Yearbook (Portland, OR)

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 As Dainty June. Maggie Barton tap-dances with an amazingly agile cow. performed by Deanna Smith and Kristin Thelin. Playing Louise. Shelley Stevens shares her sentiments with her sister June, as they sing a duet, “If Mama Was Married.” Overcome with gratitude for their first big break. Tom Jones. Maggie Barton, Ethan Kramer, Rebecca Kimball. Jennifer Myles, Gina Garnero and Marlon Berkson sing to Mr. Goldstone. played by Jason Beveridge. Musical 27

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Playing Baby June. Wendy Buel taps a patriotic finish to Let Me Entertain You ” In a characteristic pose as Mama Rose. Rebecca Kimball dramatizes “Rose's Turn in the closing number of the show As Uncle Jocko. Tim Miller faces severe criticism from Rose after her children. June and Louise, lose a talent contest. Glitzy extravaganza spares no expense The spring musical Gypsy, directed and choreographed by Bruce MacDonald was one of the biggest, most expensive, and one of the best productions the Grant drama department has ever produced. The musical, based on the biography of Gypsy Rose Lee portrayed the influence of a strong stage mother. Mama Rose, on her daughter Louise. The opening scenes, set during the declining Vaudeville era, featured Wendy Buel and Jeni Loney as the child stars. Baby June and Louise. Hauled around the country by their ambitious mother, portrayed in a showstopping performance by Rebecca Kimball, the girls tap-danced and sang countless versions of the familiar. “Let Me Entertain You.” When asked about her powerful performance as Mama Rose, Kimbell quipped, “It’s a good play, a good musical and the pan was made for me,” After hiring some extras, Mama and her daughters travel to New York, and with a little help from their new manager Herbie, played by Ethan Kramer, the new act is booked in a theater. About his role in the production Kramer stated, “1 wanted to get involved, but when I found out I got a lead, I was surprised.” The years pass and June and Louise grow up. To show this during one of the show’s more spectacular dance numbers, flashing chaser lights and a strobe created a time-stopping effect while Maggie Barton and Shelly Stevens took their places as a mature June and Louise. The struggle of Mama Rose and her docile daughters spans the girls’ adolescence but it brings no rewards of stardom. Their travels did feature several dynamic dance sequences and jazzy songs, however. A cast and crew of over a hundred students hoofed their way through scenes that included a moving train and a tap-dancing cow. Karen Dixon commented about her role as one of the dancing newsboys, “I wanted to be in a big production because there are more choices in parts for underclassmen.” Through it all Louise, played by Shelley Stevens longed for a normal life. In her poignant solo, “Little Lamb,” in which she yearns fcr a real pet and a place to keep it, Stevens won the hearts of the audience. In the course of their travels, June, played by Barton, elopes with Tulsa who was played by Tom Jones. Soon Mama Rose and Louise found themselves without an act. They receive some show business advice from strippers, played by Valerie Menely, Wendy Shelton and Daniella Duvall in an eyepopping, hip-swiveling rendition of “You Got To Have A Gimmick.” It is at this point that Louise decides she can make it in show business without her mother’s help, singing a revolutionized version of the show’s signature song, “Let Me Entertain You.” 2t

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Reluctantly, Mama permits the newly named Gypsy to develop her own career, but she also decides she will become a star of her own show. The character of Mama closed the production with “Everything’s Coming Up Roses,” a tune Kimball makes her own in a finale that brought the audience to their feet for a standing ovation and several curtain calls. The set, built by Rogue Conn was one of the most elaborate sets Grant has ever seen, and not only was it used for Gypsy, but it was also used for Rose Festival. The set consisted of a runway platform with hundreds of hand-wired chaser lights, which extended from either end of the stage in a semi-circle around the orchestra pit, out into the seats. There was also an overhead arch which incorporated florid roses and more chaser lights. The stage itself featured a crimson curtain of thousands of light-catching mylar strips, making the Gypsy set one of the “glitziest” in Grant’s history. Louise celebrates her twelveth birthdate for the third time while Mama Rose. June and the Newsboys played by John Frost. Tom Jones. Paul Mans. Dan Nissila. Bret Wonderlick and Doug Petrina look on. As strippers. Tessie Tura. Mazeppa. and Electra. Wendy Shelton. Danielle Duvall, and Valerie Menely demonstrate what they mean when they sing. “You Gotta Get a Gimmick.” While Mazeppa asks Louise. “Whaza matta wid strippin,’ Tessie encourages her to change her point of view and her profession. The cast and orchestra for G ps i, the largest in recent memory, assembles on stage to take a bow. Taking her first walk down the runway in a burlesque show. Shelley Stevens as Gypsy Rose Lee sings “Let Me Entertain You.” 28 Musical