| Decade | 1970s |
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| Year(s) | 1971 |
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| Chapter / Subheading | Acting Musical |
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| Medium / Genre | Theater |
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| Production / Project / Activity | Grave Diggers of 1971 |
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| Name of Theatre / Venue / Vehicle | La MaMa E.T.C. |
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| City | New York, NY |
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| Function / Type of Job | Actor/co-author |
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| Role | Brenda Farrell, star reporter |
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| Awards / Distinctions | Producer: Ellen Stewart. Star: Butterfly McQueen |
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| Important People | |
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| Important People | Ellen Stewart, producer and Butterfly McQueen, star |
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| Playwright | Ray Hagen and Barbara Kahn |
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| Director | Randy Barcelo |
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| Composer | Jean Campbell and Norman Peterson |
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| Notes / Anecdotes | The Amazing Butterfly McQueen starred in this production--my first play.
Every night Ellen Stewart would ring her bell and announce,
"Welcome to La MaMa E.T.C., dedicated to the playwright and all aspects of the theater."
GAF company gave me a free camera and rolls of film so my character, a reporter, could take actual photographs , and they developed them for me. The color snaps were taken during performances.
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| Details / Credits | | Title / Description |
Credits |
Additional Notes (Medium, Location, etc) |
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| Sets |
Daffi and Bill Sullivan |
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| Costumes |
Randy Barcelo |
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| Musicians |
Accompanists |
Jean Campbell, Norman Peterson, Paul Shnug, Barry Sigel |
| Stage manager |
Rene Savich |
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Cast |
Reigh Hagen, Barbara Kahn, Roberta Rickett, Marilyn Roberts, Joe Regalbuto, Owen Campbell, Ella Luxembourg, William Herter and Miss Butterfly McQueen. |
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| Additional Notes | I played Brenda Farrell, girl reporter in this spoof. GAF, a now defunct camera manufacturer, gave me a free camera, rolls of film and free developing. There are color photos attached that are taken onstage during performances as well as some offstage photos of Miss McQueen.
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| Reflections / Significant Moments | No matter how much we resisted, Butterfly McQueen insisted on addressing us as Miss Barbara, Mister Ray and Mister Randy. We always addressed her as Miss McQueen, showing her the respect she earned from a long and sometimes difficult career. Years later, I cast a young woman named Adrienne Powell in one of my plays. She reminded me a bit of Butterfly McQueen. I asked her if she would be interested in playing Miss McQueen if I wrote a play about her. The result was "Women of the Wind" my play about three women involved in the making of the movie "Gone With the Wind." Adrienne was a wonderful Butterfly cast as Prissy. She later went on to graduate school.
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| Highlight Link | |
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| Tags / Keywords | - Spoof, Butterfly McQueen, La MaMa, Ellen Stewart, horror movie spoof, movie musical spoof
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| Permission and Waiver | Yes |
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