The Wheezer Society

Michael Murnin Stars In "Doubt"

Fellow Wheezer Michael Murnin and is starring in the play "Doubt" beginning Friday evening. Good luck, Mike! Don't run into the coke machine!

Found Fotos - 'Our Town' Circa 1972

Jan Hoyt as Mrs Gibbs & Scott Leverenz as George Gibbs

Mike Murnin as Stage Manager & Paul Justice as Professor Willard

Scott Leverenz (George Gibbs), Jan Hoyt (Mrs Gibbs), Gregg Simon (Dr Gibbs) & Kacie Combs (Samantha Craig)
See the program for this Our Town production

Wild Space A Go Go - A Musical Space Adventure

Longtime personal friend and friend of The Wheezers, Kurt Misar (40+ years) has been up to something of note (yes, pun intended). Kurt is a talented composer and musician. He's been buried knee-deep in writing a new musical theatre project the past few years. He's just announced that the World Premiere of his latest creation, will be Friday, April 23rd, 2010 at The Embers Avenue, 110 NW Broadway in Portland, OR

Best described as a parody of 60s Franco-Italian sci-fi films, WILD SPACE A GO GO! embodies 60's Playboy Sex-In-Cinema and the swinging 60's sexual revolution in a delightfully provocative sexual identity farce and musical play. Tickets go on sale March 1st at Brown Paper Tickets.

Featuring a cast of ten, with seven wild and sexy space women and three mixed-up Earth men, they're joined by a live, five member rock band, multi-media video and animation, stunning lighting, fog and laser effects and a full bar - serving pub food and a huge assortment of drinks - this fully costumed, choreographed, two act musical is certainly going to be unlike any musical you have ever seen or heard.

Brush Up Your Shakespeare

Longtime friend Jan Powell of the Wheezer Society (and even No-Jive Comix!) is seeking 12 participants for a focused workshop series on techniques that theatre practitioners can use to understand and utilize Shakespeare's texts as actors and directors. This is a very different Shakespeare than the one you may have met in literature class - each line is packed with juicy clues that can be used to create character and inspire imaginative staging.



Each class participant will work on a Shakespeare audition monologue that will be performance-ready by the end of the series--just in time for PATA auditions!

This is a rare opportunity for actors, singers or directors who are new to Shakespeare, or those who would like to sharpen up their technique. The workshop series will be held at Vanport Square Studio in Portland, Oregon
LINK

Ah, 'Twas NOT Katisha! (The Maid of Whom I HAD Told You)

Okay. Okay. They say the first thing to go is your memory. Well, that may be true... thank God some of my old classmates have better memories than me. It was Jan Powell (not pictured) who was duo- cast as Yum Yum with Sally Wheeler. Jennifer Nesheim played the role Katisha. Ed Fitz as Ko-Ko The Tailor. Scott Leverenz a Pooh-Bah. Mike Murnin as The Mikado (also directed his Freshman year!!) David Frye was Pish-Tush, Mark Campbell as Nanki-Poo, Harriet Burkholder was Peep-Bo and the late Ann Brownell was PItti-Sing.

Ah, 'Tis Katisha! (The Maid of Whom I Told You)

An old high school friend found The Wheezer Society whilst surfing around the tangle web we weave. Jan Powell was not only in "The Baby Blues" our sophomore year at Grant High, but she was in the cast of The Mikado our freshman year (1969-70), double cast as Katisha Yum Yum with Sally Wheeler (who I also recently heard from). Jennifer Nesheim Moellenkamp played the role Katisha.

It's worthy to note that this was one of the first times that some of The Wheezer Society members started working together, including Mike Murnin, who directed and also starred as "The Mikado", Scott Leverenz as Pooh-Bah, Tom O'Brien, Steve Lindstedt and Doug Byers among "The Townspeople of Titipu".

Several years ago, I digitized the only known recording of our fine work from an old crumbling cassette tape. I've been meaning to make it available. Here's a snippet of "The Lord High Executioner" with Ed Fitz as KoKo the Tailor.

Updated

Ann Brownell Dies At 54

Grant High classmate Ann Brownell has passed away after a recent fight with breast cancer. Ann was in our cast of The Mikado at Grant High in 1970. One of the "Three Little Maids" along with Sally Wheeler (Yum-Yum) Harriet Burkholder (Pitti-Sing). Ann is first on the left in the front row. Oregon Live has an obit

Star Trek Meets Monty Python

A wheezer of a video on You Tube = offering a Star Trek/Monty Python mashup. LINK

"Karloff's Koffin" Guest George Carlin

Motherfucker cocksucker! Cunt-tit! Piss-Shit! Fuck! - George Carlin is dead.

It's Steve Smith!

The Portland Parks Bureau's old Theatre Workshop was an important part of the Wheezer's early years. Most of the Wheezer's anyway. From starting out in the chorus of "Oliver!" in 1969 to Mike Murnin's directing of "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" several years later, our various levels of involvement, especially during our high school years, was a great learning ground for acting, dancing, singing and life in general.

One influential person that directed many of Theatre Workshop's productions was Steve Smith. Steve was also involved with many other local theatre groups at the time, including the old Portland Civic Theatre, where us Wheezer's were also involved with dozen's of productions.

Imagine our surprise when, after 30 years of not seeing a glimpse of theatre guru Steve Smith, he turns up in this local production of The Giver.