Cast, musicians shine at Bus Barn
By Megan Ma, Town Crier Staff Writer
 courtesy of Vicki Reeder The cast of the 13th annual Los Altos Follies, held last weekend at the Bus Barn Theater, took jabs at local and national politics. The production raised money for Bus Barn Stage Company. |
The Los Altos Follies went off without a foible last weekend.
A benefit for Bus Barn Stage Company, the annual musical takes jabs at local and national politics. Vicki Reeder, board president of Bus Barn, helmed the 13th annual production - titled “A Salute to Sixteen Scandals” - Thursday through Saturday at Bus Barn Theater.
The enthusiastic and talented amateur cast poked fun at a smattering of topics, from Dick Cheney’s hunting gaffe to the school redistricting debate in Los Altos Hills.
Accompanied by talented jazz musicians - including John Sylvester on saxophone, Jim Thurber Jr. on piano and Bill Hockett on bass - the group pulled off some cleverly orchestrated moments, smoothly mixing cabaret and musical theater.
NBC11 traffic reporter Mike Inouye, a Mountain View High School graduate, hosted Saturday night’s black-tie gala.
The musical numbers included “Boy from Crawford,” featuring longtime Follies cast member Alan Lambert, who parodied President Bush, along with Katharine Lang, Damon Weitz and Reeder.
Tina Kyriakis was a standout with her belting soprano of “Oil I Ask of You,” a hilarious and clever spoof of a “Phantom of the Opera” song. In perfect sincerity, Kyriakis, chorus director at Egan Junior High, and longtime Follies performer John Reed lampooned the nation’s lust for foreign oil.
The “Take a Pill” number was less successful. While satirizing the phenomenon of having a pill for every ailment, from depression to heartburn, the piece came off a bit trite in an otherwise more inventive repertoire of songs.
Kathryn Holleb gave her all in the funk and blues inspired “I Feel the Earth Warm” number, a groovy wake-up call to global warming.
One crowd favorite included “Hang Down Your Head” - a tune inspired by the popular folk song. Instead of ‘Tom Dooley,” the cast shamed former Republican leader Tom DeLay, who stepped down last year after campaign finance conspiracy charges.
Quickly turning the corner, the crew then reprimanded the Los Altos City Council’s decision to ban city proclamations based on sexual orientation.
Applause and guffaws were also heard when the company teased the current board at Westwind Barn in Los Altos Hills about the ongoing controversy over its management practices.
This year’s Follies may not have been a fine-tuned or even an especially revelatory parody of political screw-ups,. However, it was certainly entertaining and made up for its rough moments with unabashedly energetic performers - a few of whom you may have seen around town at their respective businesses.
More importantly, the Los Altos Follies raised funds for Bus Barn, drew a group of Los Altos luminaries and community leaders and invited us all - at least for a few nights - to put aside daily politicking and laugh at ourselves a little bit.
