That's a-nice! "Rosemary Clooney's Baby" has been born!!

Full honesty here.  I am a HUGE Scooty and JoJo fan.  Their musical parody combos, “Carpenter’s Halloween” and “Alien Queen” were hysterically funny.  However, when I heard about their new show, “Rosemary Clooney’s Baby”, about 95% of me said, “YES!!! A NEW S&JJ SHOW!!!”  But about 5% of me said “Wait a minute, something's wrong…a blending of Rosemary Clooney and the movie “Rosemary’s Baby???  Umm…..I’m not sure.  Rosemary Clooney sang all those lovely ballads.” 

Well, that’s because I’m not Scooty or JoJo.  Oh me of little faith, of course it works!  If the music of the Carpenters can merge with the movie “Halloween”, then anything is possible.  And it’s very, very funny. 

A concert reading took place in Chicago on Sunday, March 4, at Hamburger Mary’s in the upstairs bar/performance area - Mary’s Attic.  This was the original space of Scooty and JoJo’s earlier productions, so it was sort of a coming home.   The performance sold out, so another has been added -  Thursday, March 8, also at Mary’s Attic.  It may still be possible to get tickets, and I urge you to do so.  Here is the link:  http://bigtopjojo.com/scooty/

Photos by Timmy Samuel - Starbelly Studio

Written and produced by Scooty and JoJo, it stars Ryan Lanning as Rosemary, with John Francisco, Jaclyn Keough, Libby Lane, Michael Reyes, Sara Sevigny, and the über fabulous Scott Bradley (Scooty) as Minnie Castevet.  Music was provided by Jonny Stax ( JoJo) on keyboard, and Eric Engelson on drums, as well as the very busy John Francisco on guitar, standup bass and ukulele.   Be honest, when was the last time you saw someone play the ukulele?

All the performers were terrific.  Ryan Lanning (Ripley from “Alien Queen”) had the hilarious Mia Farrow shtick down cold – the little girl mannerisms and the clueless vulnerability.  And as for my misplaced concern about the Clooney love songs, Lanning performs them with emotional depth and a great voice.  He gets huge props for his beautiful rendition of “You’ll Never Know”. 

Photos by Timmy Samuel - Starbelly Studio

Ruth Gordon may have been the definitive cinematic Minnie Castevet, the loony Satan worshiper from next door.  But Scott Bradley’s ever evil and annoying Minnie was comic gold.  I had tears from laughing. 

Photos by Timmy Samuel - Starbelly Studio

Many of Rosemary Clooney’s greatest hits were included:  “Hey There”, “Come On-a My House”, “Botch-A-Me”, “This Ole House”, “Tenderly”.  The show opened with Rosemary and Guy apartment hunting to “Come On-A My House", and “Mambo Italiano” became “Mambo Sataniano” for the final scene of Rosemary and her newborn Antichrist.  All of the songs fit surprisingly well.  But I have to tell you, I will never again be able to listen to “I Want to Get You on a Slow Boat to China” without thinking about Satanic sex rituals.  And I’m perfectly ok with that. 

Photos by Timmy Samuel - Starbelly Studio

The cast performed with scripts in hand, so some gestures were a bit awkward and page turning in the middle of a line happened.  But all that just added to the charm of the evening.  Everyone felt the electric vibe of being present at a very special premier.  And as for it being just a reading – it seemed fully costumed and the props and puppets we look forward to seeing were there.  Most, if not all of the props were familiar from past productions and got laughs of recognition.  When the show is fully formed and staged I’m sure it will look a bit different, but Sunday night the familiar bits made everyone feel like we were all part of the same club.  Which I guess we are.

Photos by Timmy Samuel - Starbelly Studio

So whatever you do, if you are in Chicago or can get here, try to get to Hamburger Mary’s this Thursday to see the show.  It will be your last chance to see the work in progress.  Then you can join me in saying, “Rosemary Clooney’s Baby”?  Oh yes, I was there at the beginning….

P.S.  On a personal note, the friend I was with that evening told me that her father had lived next door to Rosemary Clooney at one time, and he admitted to doing a little pervy window peeping.  Talk about six degrees of separation, holy cow! 

Alien Queen in Concert!! Last Chance !! (really!!)

Your last chance this summer to see the wildly, deliciously entertaining "Alien Queen" in a concert setting (not fully staged) at Metro in Chicago.
You can see my review of the show if you scroll down a ways. Keep going....keep going....almost there....hit 'Older Posts'....little further...there it is!! you got it!!!!

Don't miss this show!

Tickets here:

http://bigtopjojo.com/scooty/shows/alien-queen/

Here is info from the site:

ALIEN QUEEN RETURNS TO METRO FOR HER MIDNIGHT SNACK!

Witness Alien Queen: The Concert at Chicago’s ultimate rock destination – METRO, 3730 N. Clark St. Chicago

Midnight Show: FRIDAY, JULY 15TH, 2011. 18-and-over event! Doors open at 10pm. Show at 10pm with CHANCES DANCES and THE GAME SHOW SHOW…AND STUFF!

* RECOMMENDED – TimeOut Chicago

* EDITOR’S PICK: “Ridiculously entertaining” – Stephen Gossett, Flavorpill

TICKETS ON SALE: $16 advance general admission; $20 day of, $30 VIP seating.

Alien Queen Performers: Angela Johnson, Kieran Kredell, Jaclyn Keough, Ryan Lanning, Anne Litchfield, Tom McGunn, Meghan Murphy, Matt Porter, Monica Szaflik, Vallea Woodbury, & Scooty

Alien Queen Band: Nick Davio – Keyboard, Guitar, Vocals; Eric Engelson – Drums; Charlie Malave – Bass; Dave Saenger – Lead Guitar

Alien Queen: The Concert combines the legendary music of Queen with an outrageous parody of the “Alien” films. For the “Concert” we’ve added songs, dancing, and even more absurdity to create a top-notch Queen tribute band featuring those fantastical aliens, cross-gendered humans, and some of Chicago’s best singers and rock musicians. Featuring classic Queen hits as well as deep cuts from the early Queen catalog, Alien Queen’s transformation into concert form puts the epic music and absurd pageantry front and center.

The incredible CHANCES DANCES deejays The Lady Speedstick and Erik Roldan will spin before and after the party into the morning hours!

Kicking off the night is special guest The Game Show Show…and Stuff! Two years in a row, they were named “BEST LATE NIGHT” by Chicago Magazine, which described the show as “the best (and worst) of ‘The Price Is Right,’ ‘Jackass” and ‘Soul Train.” The Game Show Show…and Stuff! is a live interactive game show in which willing audience members are pitted against each other as contestants to play hilarious games of trivia, physical challenges and good old-fashioned guessing games. The “…and Stuff!” portion of the show includes live music, comedy, dancing and more.

HISTORY: The Scooty & JoJo Show premiered Alien Queen: A Sci-fi Rock ParOdyssey in December 2010 and January 2011 at Chicago’s Circuit Nightclub, garnering incredible critical praise and packed houses. The original show, created and staged by Scott Bradley, is a farcical fusion of the Alien film franchise with the iconic sound of British rock band Queen.

Critical praise for Alien Queen:

* 3 stars “Bradley is a genuine creative talent.” - Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune/CBS-TV

* “A royally fun evening out” – Misha Davenport, Chicago Sun-Times

* RECOMMENDED – TimeOut Chicago

* EDITOR’S PICK: “Ridiculously entertaining” – Stephen Gossett, Flavorpill

* RECOMMENDED: “enGROSSing”, “delightfully captivating” - NewCity Chicago

* “Smart, polished, gender-bending fun” - Chicago Theater Blog

* “Outstanding cast”, “Your jaw will drop” - Deep Dish

* 4 stars ”a total musical experience!” – The Examiner

* Metromix Critic’s Pick & Best Bet

* “If you love the classic film Alien and the rock music from Queen then you’re going to love Alien Queen.” – Chicago Now: What’s a Boy to Do

* “Alien Queen will definitely rock you!” - ChateauGrrr

Creative Team

Created & Directed by Scott Bradley; Musical Direction by Nicholas Davio; Choreography by Jyl Fehrenkamp; Aliens Designed by Jabberwocky Marionettes*; Costume Design by Anna Glowacki; Graphic Artistry by Michael S. Miller; Stage Manager Ellen Willett; Scenic/Property Artistry by Frances Ahn, T.L. Noble, and Josh Rosenthal. * alien soldiers by Anna Glowacki.

Alien Queen - only 3 more chances to be rocked!!!!!!!

How in the world did Scott Bradley get the idea for this show?  I attended  the second night performance of the latest from The Scooty and JoJo Show. The world premier of “Alien Queen” is playing through Dec.18 at Circuit Nightclub, 3641 N. Halsted.  Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios It’s described as a “genre-blurring, gender-bending rock parodyssey”, and “a synergy of suspense satire and soaring harmonies”.  I couldn’t agree more.  The music of the rock band Queen has been added to a parody of the first two “Alien” movies and the finished product is brilliant.  It’s very, very funny and the music couldn’t fit better if it had actually been written for the show.   Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios “Alien Queen” is in two acts with one intermission.  The first act covers the action of “Alien” and act two continues the story of “Aliens”.  Besides the great use of music, it’s amazing how much of the plot and iconic movie dialogue they managed to squeeze into approximately 90 minutes.  As well as covering the first two Alien movies there is also what seems to be a brief nod to “Alien Resurrection” in the first glimpse we have of Ripley.    Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios As I’m writing this review I’m watching “Aliens” again for about the millionth time.  Full disclosure – it happens to be my most favorite movie of all time:  it’s the ultimate chick flick.  And I loved the last Scooty and JoJo show, “Carpenter’s Halloween”.  So I was predisposed to like this show even though I was trying to stay as objective as I could.   Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios Most of the cast are playing two different roles, as well as singing and dancing.   Also, most of the roles are reverse gendered with male actors playing female characters and vice versa.  The cat Jonesy and Newt are portrayed by clever puppets and each has a personality and attitude.   Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios Everyone was fabulous, but of particular note:  Ryan Lanning makes a luscious Ripley.  The famous stripping down to her underwear scene from the first movie was greeted with appreciation by the audience.  In addition to being very talented he has great gams and a very cute little tush.   Jon Pernisek almost out-Freddie-Mercurys Freddie Mercury.  Anne Litchfield plays Paxton (Hudson in Aliens – “Game over, man!!”) with just the right hilarious mix of Hudson’s crazy-ass phoney baloney machismo and cowardice.   Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios Scott Bradley who created and directed the show makes not one but two stunning entrances as the magnificent Alien Queen.  The fight scene he has with Ripley was hysterical!  And how the heck did he manage to walk on those stilts?   Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios Alien Queen is not only genuinely hilarious but is an even more ambitious show than “Carpenter’s Halloween”.  The choreography, props and costumes are more elaborate, with the outfits for the first alien and for the Queen being particularly impressive.   The chestbuster alien is very imaginative and the most darling little deadly puppet creature I’ve ever seen.   Photos by Timmy Samuels, Starbelly Studios I have only two small quibbles with this production.  The first is that the music, supplied by a terrific four piece rock band, covers up the dialogue at times.  However that may be worked out in future performances.  Second, the show felt a little slow getting started.  There seemed to be a lot of dialogue in the first couple of scenes, funny and perhaps unavoidable but a bit draggy (no pun intended).  However the pace picked up quickly and never lagged. For only the second public performance ever the show felt tight and the performances were all on target.  In case you can’t tell, I am completely sold on the show and look forward to seeing it again.  It bears a couple of visits because I don’t think anyone will catch all the funny stuff going on at the same time. What were my favorite bits?  Too many to count, but the face hugger/singing vaginas were a real hoot (“We are the champions!...”).  C’mon, what are you waiting for, get off your duff and go see this show!