Meeting scheduled for Masquers fall musical

SOAP LAKE — People who want to work on the Masquers Theater 2016 musical, “The Little Mermaid,” are invited to a meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday in the theater lobby, 322 East Main, Soap Lake.

This isn’t the audition, said director Stacey Bresee; this meeting is for those people who want to work on the production behind the scenes. “We need folks to help with sets, costumes, props, choreography and lights,” Bresee wrote.

“I thought it would be good to get the planning going early in the year as we have to work around other shows all season,” she wrote. “This will be a big production, lots of different scenes (small and large), so this will mean many sets and costume changes.”

The musical is based on the Disney animated feature, which is based on the 1837 tale by Hans Christian Anderson. It tells the story of the undersea princess Ariel, who falls in love with a prince who lives on the land. The animated version was released in 1989, the theatrical version premiered in 2007 and a live-action film currently is in production.

The Masquers producers are working with the Wenatchee theater group Stage Kids to rent some of their sets, props and costumes, Bresee said. But the rest of the production – additional sets and costumes, all the choreography – will be the work of the Masquers cast and crew, she said. “It makes for each show to be one of a kind,” she said.

Masquers kicks off its 2016 schedule with “Them Three,” a trio of one-act plays, opening Feb. 12. One of the three, “Into the Window,” is an original work written by longtime Masquers actor Jeff Ames.

The company’s schedule also includes “Our Town,” the 1938 Thornton Wilder classic, directed by Cliff Bresee, with Stacey Bresee as assistant director. That’s another reason, along with some family obligations, why she wants to get a head start on preparation for the fall musical, she said.

The company also will present the world premiere of the original play “Aces are Feverish,” written by Spokane journalist and playwright (and former Columbia Basin Herald reporter) Matthew Weaver.

People who can’t make the meeting but want to work on "The Little Mermaid" can contact Bresee by leaving a message at the Masquers box office, 509-246-2611.