By producing the international premiere of Beaches The Musical, Theatre Calgary is unofficially off, off, off Broadway
In 2007, Stafford Arima, now the artistic director of Theatre Calgary, was directing, while he was having breakfast with his agent. They were in a New York deli and as Dart was about to order “her usual breakfast” Arima recommended she be more adventurous and order the chocolate chip pancakes, instead. Dart found them delicious..
Maybe it was the trust established by the successful recommendation that made Dart say yes when Arima asked, “Why don’t you doAt the time, Disney owned the movie rights, so to avoid complications and in the spirit of fresh creation, Dart decided to create the show with new original music. Dart began collaborating with an old playwright friend, Thom Thomas. Dart and Thomas wrote the book — the play, part of the musical — and Dart wrote the lyrics to the songs. Later, they joined with composer Mike Stoller for the music. Stoller has written Grammy Award-winning music and is in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. His credits with his writing partner Jerry Leiber include Stand by Me and several hits for Elvis including Jailhouse Rock and Hound Dog.
Dart and Maloney-Prezioso met 15 years ago, but their friendship seems deeper. It’s like the 30-year friendship of Cee Cee and Bertie, the friends in“It’s a reminder of what friendship means, especially after COVID,” says Maloney-Prezioso of why she became involved in the production. “Theatre is the last place where we all live and tell a story, and this is a story about friendship — which we all want.
Dart also notes the universal themes of the story. Women often come up to her, says Dart, and tell her, pointing to their friend, “She is my
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