Bringing the "Rain" to Phoenix: a conversation with M. Seth Reines, director of SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, IN CONCERT at Broadway at the Orpheum Theatre

by Haddi Meyer

Even if you haven’t seen the movie, any time you hear someone talk about singing or dancing during bad weather, your brain probably goes right to Singin’ in the Rain. The catchy, titular song from the beloved 1952 classic film is iconic, and Showtunes Productions, in coordination with American Theatre Guild, is bringing all of the fun, pizzaz, and music of Singin’ in the Rain to the Orpheum theatre, which opens tomorrow night.

The show only runs for one weekend, but it is sure to pack a punch with a live orchestra, and an large, talented cast. The show isn’t quite a full musical, but also isn’t a concert version with the cast standing on stage and singing into microphones either, and patrons who saw this producing duo's previous production of Music Man in Concert last season will be familiar with the show's formatting.

M. Seth Reines, who is the director of Singin’ in the Rain told me he is grateful for an “audience who continues to support theatre” and took some time to let me in on some of the secrets the show is hiding. From spectacular music to dancing and a show that's given joy for generations, if you’re looking to see this classic show in a whole new way, Singin’ in the Rain in Concert is certainly a great opportunity.

Singin' in the Rain is a classic movie musical but for anyone who hasn't seen the film or this musical adaptation before, what can you tell them it's about?

"It’s about a few things. It’s about technology's effect on an industry because we went from silent to sounds, but then it’s a just a good, fun old timey movie musical, which critics say is maybe the best movie musical ever made. We’re in 1927, The Jazz Singer has just brought sound to moving pictures, and the studio has to kind of react to that. Unfortunately, a lot of their stars did not have good voices because they were silent movies stars, so that’s where a lot of the comedy comes from."

While I know this is being billed as a show "in concert" I believe it's more than just a concert version. Can you elaborate on what this production will entail?

"Last year our company did Music Man in Concert, at the Orpheum for the Theatre League, which is now called the American Theatre Guild, and it was very successful and they had a survey that went out to their subscribers asking what musical in concert they wanted to see and Singin’ in the Rain oddly enough was number one. It’s a hard one to do in concert, it has a lot of challenges but basically everything that was in the film is on stage in our version of it. What we’ve done is we’ve kind of created a studio surround so the whole play takes place in Monumental Studios and our version is kind of the making of the making of Singin’ in the Rain. We have the film sequences which actually now we do with video instead of film. It’s been edited down slightly but it’ll give the idea of what those black and white silent and early sound movies we’re like. All of the dances were in the original movie except for the ballet. In our production the ballet was replaced by a 42nd Street style Broadway production style (number). The ballet is not available in the materials the licensing company sends you. Pretty much it will feel like, what it would be like to come into Monumental Studios in the 1920’s.  The only thing we can’t do on stage is we can’t make it rain. One of the reasons is we have four days to practice and then we open and there’s just no way. It’s such a technological thing that we just can’t do, so we’re doing it with lights and sound effects and the audience's imagination. "

Will Broyles

What can you tell us about the cast and the casting of this show?

"The process started last spring. We had a local audition and a majority of the cast came from that or from local actors that the creative team had worked with in other productions. 10 of the 16 have worked for Showtunes in productions at some point, so we have six new people. (The role of) Don Lockwood, we just couldn’t find locally. It’s hard to find somebody who sings, dances, acts, and is non-union, because this is a non-union production. We did some ads online and got some video submissions from a lot of people and oddly enough one of them had actually worked with our musical director about 10 years ago and that’s our Don Lockwood, Will (Broyles) who is terrific. "

What else does Showtunes Productions have planned for this season?

"Showtunes productions does a lot of things. The company does trivia shows small musical revues. We just opened a Christmas show that was out in the Wisconsin Dells. Next summer we have a Johnny Cash show that will be done in Maine. So we’re kind of expanding. There’s News Years Eve and our Elvis will be in Albuquerque for a few shows. The company has been around for 8 years, we use a lot of local people and use a lot of headliners we just bring in. Our Elvis has been doing "Elvis Live" in Australia for a few years and is touring the UK this summer. That’s the kind of thing that Showtunes Productions does. "

Sounds like you guys have a lot going on, and not just in Phoenix. Getting back to Singin' in the Rain, why do you think this musical is so beloved?

"I think it’s kind of been passed from generation to generation because it’s odd that a lot of the millennial audience is excited about seeing it. They remember watching it with their parents sitting in front of a TV. A generation beyond that saw it when it first came out in the 50’s. It’s just a feel good production and there were some really classic performances in it. Now, we have MTV and with music videos all that kind of stuff, younger audiences are coming back to musical theatre and with some of these incredible things like Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen and that kind of thing. It’s exciting to see a younger audience excited about seeing musicals again. "

What do you hope audiences will take away from seeing Singin' in the Rain in Concert?

"I hope they’ll come away from it having had a unique experience where they use their imagination to create the things that aren’t on stage and to enjoy the things that are on stage. I think in concert productions challenge the viewers imagination. I hope they have a good time. It’s selling like crazy, and it’s gotta just be the name."

CLICK HERE for more information on Singin' in the Rain, in Concert at the Orpheum Theatre, which runs November 30 to December 2