A conversation with David Simmons, director of PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES at the Palms Theatre

by Gil Benbrook

David Simmons is a multi-faceted individual.

He's a musician, actor, director and arts educator.
Most recently seen on The Palms Theatre stage in Mesa as Buffalo Bill in Annie Get Your Gun, David is also an Arizona Governor's Arts Award nominee for arts education and AriZoni nominated musical director.  He's directed several productions in the Valley, including the current production of Pump Boys and Dinettes that just opened at the Palms, where it runs through May 16th.

David has performed across the country in all 50 states, 14 countries and three continents, both as an actor and musician, even performing with the USO. He was previously seen in the Valley as Daddy Warbucks in Annie at Arizona Broadway Theatre, where he also served as the Education Director. He is now serving as the Education Director at the Palms, having also just directed their Children's Theatre production of Charlotte's Web.  Valley audiences can also catch him on stage at the end of May when he'll be playing Mr. Bumble in The Phoenix Theatre/Phoenix Symphony concert production of Oliver!

Appreciation for music and the arts is something that was instilled in him and his siblings from their parents from as far back as he can remember. David took a few minutes in his incredibly busy schedule to sit down and answer our questions about his career, Pump Boys and Dinettes, The Palms' new education program as well as his Oscar winning brother, actor J.K. Simmons.

Pump Boys and Dinettes isn't exactly a household name when it comes to classic musicals, though it did have a successful Off Broadway and Broadway run back in the 1980's and was nominated for the Best Musical Tony Award. What can you tell us about this show and why do you think it's a good fit for the Palms? 

Being a guitarist, singer and actor myself, Pump Boys and Dinettes has been a favorite of mine since I first saw it in Minneapolis in the mid-1980's. When the opportunity presented itself for me to direct and choreograph this production I jumped at the chance. It's a high-energy, feel-good, family-friendly small-cast show filled with down home storytelling and good-natured humor. It also has a wonderful score featuring heartfelt, country-rock music. Imagine a stylistic hybrid of The Eagles, Loggins & Messina, Rascal Flatts, Dolly Parton and Jimmy Buffett all rolled intro one, toe-tappin', hand-clappin' show. It fits The Palms perfectly as we continue our quest to be the valley's destination for fun.

Simmons as Buffalo Bill
in Annie Get Your Gun - The Palms Theatre 2015
(photo: Mike Benedetto)

What do you think theatregoers in the Valley will take away from it?

This show is the perfect way to escape the coming heat and enjoy some of the finest performers and performances the area has to offer this Spring. Pump Boys and Dinettes is also perfect for multi-generational family outings. There's something for the kids, parents and grandparents as well.

The musical is set in a small town in North Carolina, and I believe you grew up living in a few small towns yourself. Did you try to incorporate any of your small town experiences into the production?

I love small-town America and have drawn upon many experiences of my own and of my family as well to help craft the realities and characters in the show. As the story goes in our family, my father was born on the kitchen table in Berwick, Illinois, a town of about 75 people in the rural, west-central part of the state. We incorporated into this production a few choice phrases, ad-libs and even a brand new character, Delbert Hazen Kiester, our drummer, gets his name from my two families of origin. For those who see the show I truly am descended from "the Virginia Kiesters." Although the rest of us in the family were born in larger cities  - my brother and I in Detroit and our sister and mother both in Chicago - we all look to Missoula, Montana as our "hometown." This is where our mom and dad lived, worked, retired and eventually passed on. It's also where I went to high school and my brother, sister and I all went to college. In fact, my brother and I began our music and theatre careers in the small towns of Western Montana.

The Pump Boys
Pump Boys and Dinettes- The Palms Theatre - 2015
(photo: Mike Benedetto)

Well, since you brought him up, I should point out that you're not the only "working actor" in the Simmons Family. It's been an exciting year for your now, Academy Award winning brother, J.K. Simmons, who gave an incredibly moving Oscar acceptance speech about the importance of parents. I know that music and theatre have meant a great deal to both you and your brother, tell me about where this love for the arts and arts education stems from? 

Thanks for asking. Kim (J.K. is his professional name) is a deeply talented actor and musician and we both come by our passion for the arts naturally from both of our parents. What fills my heart more than his winning the Oscar was his acceptance speech. We lost our parents over the last two years and he specifically thought, "I have 1 billion people listening to me right now… What can I say that truly matters?" This is the man that I have known my entire life. I'm so glad the rest of the world is getting to know him as we always have.  Our Dad, Dr. Don Simmons, was a public school music teacher before joining the music faculty at Ohio State University.  He later served as Chairman and Associate Dean of the Music Department at the University of Montana in Missoula. My Mom, the late Pat Simmons, taught French for a short while but spent most of her career as an arts administrator running, among other things, the Artists In The Schools Program for the Montana Arts Council. Our sister, Dr. Elizabeth Simmons-O'Neill, presents the strongest combination of their skills in her position as an English professor at the University of Washington in Seattle. The arts and arts education, well education in general, really, have been a part of our lives since the day we were born. Interesting side note, Liz, Kim and I all three began our experiences in the performing arts as guitarist/singers in the late 60's early 70's folk and rock scenes. They both wised up and moved on while I stuck with the whole rock-n-roll scene in addition to opera, musical theatre and arts education.

It's amazing how your parents instilled the love for music and arts education into you and your siblings and how all three of you took what they taught you and ran with it.  Speaking of music, Pump Boys features a cast that also plays the instruments in the show. How difficult was it to find performers that talented in the Phoenix area?

Most everyone in the show was already a member of "The Palms Theatre family." Rob Watson, who plays Jim and doubles on multiple instruments, also happens to be our set designer and Associate Producer. Danny Karapetian, who plays LM and covers most all of the piano work, is a local favorite having been in numerous shows throughout the Valley. Matt Drui, the aforementioned drummer, Delbert Hazen Kiester, is actually one of our sound designers/technicians here at The Palms and Alex Mack, Eddie, the lead guitarist, has been a Palms pit musician and has toured with Lonely Street Productions as a multi-instrumentalist. Our two female leads, Kira Galindo and Caitlin Newman, are both veterans of numerous productions at The Palms. Kira is originally from Buckeye, AZ and Caitlin happens to be from Western Montana as well so small-town America is well represented here at The Palms. The only member of our cast who is new to The Palms is John Thomas Hays who portrays Jackson and plays bass for the majority of the show. He's a perfect addition and will have the ladies all swooning with his rendition of "Mona" in act two.

Simmons as Daddy Warbucks in Annie
at Arizona Broadway Theatre
(Photo courtesy ABT)

And you are also an an accomplished musician, which I'm sure had to have made this production, where almost everyone in the cast also plays an instrument, a fun experience.  Can you tell me a little about your experience with music?

Well, rock 'n roll has always been my first love in terms of performing. Even my father, a classically trained conductor and teacher, said his favorite thing to watch me do was play in bands because I was having so much fun. I've been blessed with so many opportunities and experiences along the way. In 1981 I toured the Pacific rim and Indian Ocean as part of a USO tour. There were many highlights on that tour, including performing on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier the USS Kitty Hawk. I've played in bar bands, been a contemporary worship leader, I've even released six original Christian rock cds. I've performed with multi platinum selling rock stars and been able to use these musical roots to help teach songwriting to special-needs students in various parts of the country. Another wonderful opportunity I had with my guitar was playing the role of Matthew in multiple national tours of harry Chapin's Bluegrass musical Cottonpatch Gospel. Part of why I chose not to pursue a career in opera, which is the basis of my classical training, is that I have too much fun singing classic rock as well. Oddly enough it's tough to sing Mozart one night and Led Zeppelin the next!

Well, music is something that The Palms Theatre really seems to stress, with their focus on the many concerts they present along with the musicals they produce.  There have been a lot of changes at The Palms over the past year, with new management and what seems to be a renewed presence in the Valley arts scene.  You appeared in Annie Get Your Gun and are now directing Pump Boys at the Palms.  How has your experience been working at the "new" Palms Theatre? 

I couldn't be happier! President/CEO Robert Shaw and Creative Director and Music Supervisor Khris Dodge are two of the finest people and producers I've ever worked with and for. We met last year when I toured with Lonely Street Productions, which is Robert and Khris' tribute concert company, as The Big Bopper in their production of Rave On! I was relatively new to the Valley but we clicked like old friends and have been looking for more opportunities to work together. When they came to their new positions at The Palms I contacted them almost immediately and, well, here we are!

The cast of Pump Boys and Dinettes 
The Palms Theatre 2015
(photo: Mike Benedetto)

I understand The Palms is working on a new Youth Entertainment/Arts Education program slated to rollout in the fall of 2015 and that you are connected to this program. Tell us a little about the program and how The Palms plans to make a difference in arts education and outreach in the East Valley?

I have been directly involved in arts education since I was a senior in high school and my choir director put me in charge of the freshman choir. I've been blessed to work with the internationally acclaimed Missoula Children's Theatre, the Tony award winning Children's Theatre Company of Minneapolis, The Stepping Stone Youth Theatre of St. Paul, MN, numerous state arts councils and The Arizona Broadway Theatre here in the Phoenix Valley, where I was nominated for the Arizona Governor's Arts Award in Arts Education.  As Education Director for The Palms Theatre I am working with Robert Shaw, Rob Watson and numerous others on staff to create brand new arts education experiences for students throughout the South East Valley. One of our many goals is to find and create ways to reach out to Title 1 schools and students and other diverse and disadvantaged populations. We will continue the Palms' excellent tradition of live, professional children's theatre on our main stage while adding after-school programs, multiple summer performing arts camps and our brand new Performing Arts in Residence, or P.A.I.R., program. The performing arts camps and after-school programs will be created on the more traditional model of training, rehearsal and performance experiences for students as they work with professional teaching artists to hone their skills in music, movement and acting. The P.A.I.R. program - as in "PAIR up with The Palms" - will bring performing arts integration curriculum into area schools as we seek to support the work of the classroom teachers while also providing an interactive, performing arts experience for the students. Our goal is to more fully empower the STEM model (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) by bringing in the arts and helping local schools create STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math).

I've been teaching performing arts integration for over a decade now in numerous parts of the country and find it to be a powerful addition to not only the sponsoring organization but also the students, teachers, families and communities at large. How it works is that we go into a general-education classroom (English, math, PE, social studies, ESL, etc...) and the students essentially teach the teaching artists what they have been working on.  Previous topics include bio-diversity in the rain forests, tribes of the desert southwest, the pythagorean theorem, the holocaust, large motor skills, current events, almost anything is possible. Then we teach the students basic performing arts skills  -music, movement, acting, writing, performing - and they create an original performance piece based upon their classroom curriculum. It runs along the same multi-sensory learning principle as "School House Rock." I don't know about you but the only reason I know the preamble to the Constitution is that it was set to music for a Saturday morning cartoon. That's what performing arts integration does, provides the students an opportunity to integrate their classroom curriculum into their voices, bodies and minds and allow them to learn by teaching when they perform it.

The cast of Pump Boys and Dinettes 
The Palms Theatre 2015
(photo: Mike Benedetto)

It all sounds amazing David and it's nice to see how you're incorporating what you've learned throughout your career as well as the arts and music building blocks that your parents taught you to help teach young people how important the arts are.  I should also add that your brother and Debra Monk, who was one of the original stars and co-writers of Pump Boys, have appeared together at least one time, in an episode of Closer.  Not that it has anything to do with this production, but it definitely adds a bit of a "six degrees of" feeling to the show and your connection to it.

The world of theatre, music, film and television are indeed, quite small. Caitlin Neman, who plays Prudie Cupp in our production, actually met and worked with Debra Monk in New York recently and excitedly told her, "I'm going to Mesa, AZ to play you!" I have countless stories of two and three degrees of separation throughout my career. A dear friend here in the valley happens to work with classic rockers REO Speedwagon. On one of their recent tours they played some of the same venues that I played while on various national tours myself. It's one of the joys of the business, meeting and working with old friends and new friends you've just met.

I just wanted to also ask you a little about what you've got coming up next, you'll be appearing in the concert version of Oliver! at the Phoenix Symphony.

I'm really excited about the opportunity to play Mr. Bumble, as the film version of Oliver! was my "gateway drug" into theatre and my very first show was playing Mr. Sowerberry in a community production of Oliver! back in Missoula Montana.

I'm looking forward to hearing your booming voice on some of Bumble's classic songs. Thanks for taking your time to speak to PHX Stages about everything you've got going on.

I'd like to add how grateful I am to be working with such a talented, engaged, energetic and cooperative team of professionals here at The Palms. Thanks for your time, Gil. Much appreciated.

For more information on Pump Boys and Dinettes as The Palms Theatre trough May 16th, click here.