SUN CITY – All the world’s a stage for the Theatre Company of Sun City, but the auditorium of Drendel Ballroom is where they call home.
To celebrate a decade of drama and comedy, the company has big plans for 2013. Kicking off its special performance season this spring, the company brings to the stage a reprise of “Guys and Dolls.”
Dick Storer (far right, standing), playing Benny Southstreet, and Tom VanTilburg (far right, “throwing dice”), playing Big Jule,
run through a scene from Guys and Dolls at a recent rehearsal. (Chris La Pelusa|Sun Day Photo)
The ‘Dolls’ practice a dance routine on stage at Drendel Ballroom.
(Photo Provided)
The company chose “Guys and Dolls” to recognize 10 years of Del Webb theater. This is significant because eight of the cast members from the original Sun City performance, which took place in 2004, are back to revive this year’s version. Some members will play the exact same roles.
Bob Hernandez and Sara Tustin are Sun City residents who performed the roles of Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown, respectively, nine years ago. They earned the same roles once again this spring.
Hernandez, whose vast Theatre Company of Sun City credits include “Bye Bye Birdie’s” Al Peterson and “The Sound of Music’s” Captain Von Trapp, is especially excited to replay the leading man in “Guys and Dolls” this spring.
“I personally like this show because it’s a fun one to do, and the script never tells you what age you have to be,” he said.
Theatre Company of Sun City members (seated) sell tickets to eager future audience members. (Photo Provided)
Myron Shellist, the theater’s president and “Guys and Dolls’” Nicely-Nicely Johnson, is also eager for the reprise.
“This is going to be an entirely different show than the one people saw way back when,” he said. “People have grown in their performances and we have a different director. It will be an even better show because the more experience you have, the better you get.”
Those 10 years of experience have taken the company a long way since its inception in 2003 as a charter organization. According to Shellist, the company now boasts over 100 members, including actors and crew members who work on 16 different committees.
The company’s growth will be highlighted in several ways this year, including surprises during each show, a distinctive holiday play in the fall, and special mentions at the theater’s annual springtime “Sunny” awards that are patterned after the Oscars.
But besides the razzle-dazzle of the stage, the Theatre Company also operates as a support system for its members. Peter Davis, the company’s resident musical director, likens the theater to a family and believes there are several benefits to belonging.
“The greatest pleasure I have is watching people who started years ago and seeing what it has meant to them, such as the enjoyment and mental stimulation. It’s really done wonders for the people involved,” he said.
The Theatre Company’s welcome extends beyond its membership. Shellist said that the theater’s fundraising projects have provided theater camp scholarships for grandchildren of Sun City residents. Also, the company’s audiences have helped raise more than $1,300 for the Grafton Food pantry in Huntley.
