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Photograph by Chad Pilster
Sunnyvale director James DuBeq's 'imagine it' plays in the Gaslighter Theatre on Campbell Avenue in downtown Campbell.
Now That's Entertainment
'imagine it' is the Bay Area's first and only Vegas-style production
BY Suzanne Barnecut
Born and raised in Sunnyvale, director James DuBeq understood how difficult it was for Silicon Valleyites to extract themselves from the hectic, fast-paced lifestyle of the Valley. Therefore, he founded his own company, Spectacles Productions, in July of 1998 to localize such entertainment for busy Siliconites. Based in Milpitas, Spectacles Productions was officially incorporated in May of 1999 and "imagine it!" --the first and only Las Vegas style production to appear in the Bay Area--is its first production.
I'm holding my breath before the first performance of the show. Not because the paint fumes are getting to me at the Gaslighter Theater in downtown Campbell--but because it's the evening before opening night, and there are still bugs to be hammered out.
While touch-up work is being done to the theater, cast and crew scuttle about setting up lights, perfecting sound and practicing dance moves on-stage. Three people join efforts to position a large speaker downstage left, while from the balcony someone shouts, "Where are the glue sticks?"
From my vantage point, it seems as though I'm witnessing frenetic chaos, yet everyone is busily intent on a task. Even a tired male dancer focuses when someone asks about an apparent change in costuming: "You guys lose the rhinestone belts?" He answers without skipping a beat--literally: "No. They're upstairs."
The clamor dies down when DuBeq claps his hands, and the theater goes hushed and dark. Ready or not, it's showtime.
"It's way beyond what I expected it to be," DuBeq gushes with mixed awe and relief. "After our dress rehearsal I just burst into tears because I'd had the concept for the show over a year. One of my fears was that the general public would not accept this kind of show in the Bay Area because the concept we've been advertising is that it's Las Vegas style, and people immediately think there's nudity or that it's topless, but based on opening night alone, I thought people really loved the show." (The show is clean, but, as advertised, may not be suitable for children under the age of 12.)
After 14 years of performing and subcontracting at such entertainment venues as Paramount's Great America, Disneyworld (he played Aladdin), at large casinos in Reno and Las Vegas, on cruise ships and as part of a touring company doing "Evita" in New York, DuBeq thought that he might bring the fun home.
DuBeq's conception of "imagine it!" was to include numbers from the best shows he's both performed in and seen, and to orchestrate the music to appeal to several generations and cultures. The show, originally entitled "Razzle Dazzle," is truly a spectacle of special lighting effects, vibrant costuming and an abundance of feathers.
"'Razzle Dazzle' sounded very plastic," DuBeq explained, "but 'imagine it!' brings up a question: 'Wow, what is this about?' The imagination is so vast, there's no limit."
Indeed, if the audience is meant to stretch its imagination, certainly the production staff suspended its disbelief as well. Spectacles Productions is a five-person operation and the road from five people to a six-week show is not one that's easily traveled. Once DuBeq had a vision of the music, choreography and visual effects, he had to consider the logistics.
"At first I was skeptical [about the Gaslighter Theater] because of its size and location," he admitted, "but I thought it would help that it's a historical landmark." Space limitations, however, were not the biggest of DuBeq's problems. It took seven long months of pitching the show to businesses and private investors before he was able to secure funding and set the production in motion.
Again, DuBeq hit a pothole. No one showed up for the auditions in April. Or in May. He turned to the Internet to search profiles and posted resumes of local performers and began making phone calls to solicit auditions. Eventually he filled out his cast, which includes four males and seven females. One lucky break was the referral of his lead vocalist Pamela Serrano, an up-and-coming pop singer, by a friend.
"I knew she was good and very popular in the Filipino community," DuBeq commented. "I doubted I would be able to get her, but she loved the idea and wanted to be part of something different."
The cast rehearsed about nine hours a week for 10 weeks prior to opening night on September 3.
"The cast really pulled it together for their amount of practice," DuBeq commended. "It's hard to find people who are able to adapt to last minute changes. They are a young, professional group of people."
The work behind the show now done, it's time to sit back and relax as the cast performs a varied 25 numbers, including "Puttin' on the Ritz," "Hot! Hot! Hot!" "When Doves Cry," "Adagio," "Mission Impossible" and "Circle of Life." Each grouping of songs give the show a new feel, layering decades of popular show tunes into one production that is likely to make the audience want to get up and dance as well. All the numbers are sandwiched between an opening and reprisal of Disney's theme to "Fantasmic"--the musical medley of dream sequences put on at amusement parks.
"The whole concept of 'Fantasmic' is that this is Mickey's dream and I want the audience to feel that this is their visual imagination," DuBeq explained.
What DuBeq imagines next is take "imagine it!" to a larger venue in a bigger city, such as San Jose or San Francisco for an open-ended run. Also, he hopes to open a new show in Aug. 2000 with a concept tailormade for the Silicon Valley--including lots of high-tech special effects.
'imagine it!' runs through Oct. 10, on Friday and Saturday nights at 7 and 9:30 p.m. and Sunday at 6 p.m. Tickets are $35 and are available at the Gaslighter Theater at (408) 866-1408.
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Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
