Millie Bratsch, left, Christina Bourne and Lynette Gardner dazzle on stage during WNMTC’s production “Mamma Mia” in 2018.
Courtesy
Bringing “The Phantom of the Opera” to the Carson City Community Center in 2011 was the Western Nevada Musical Theatre Co.’s most challenging and expensive production ever.
It also attracted its largest crowd, Western Nevada College faculty member and director of the company Stephanie Arrigotti recalled. Yet, the show provided a “stunning success” to Carson’s arts-loving community.
The company is hosting a revue “Celebrate the Magic” to be performed Feb. 21, 22 and 23 at the Carson City Community Center to recognize its theatrical achievements in the past 35 years. The show will unify the talents from performers across the decades from its musicals, featuring favorite characters Jean Valjean from “Les Misérables,” the Phantom from “The Phantom of the Opera,” the Prince from “Cinderella,” Elle Woods from “Legally Blonde” and others.
“What is close to my heart is the bond that is created within this group,” Arrigotti said. “In our upcoming revue, we are showing in one number how long each has been in our company — some more than 30 years, some 25 years, reaching all the way to those who just joined us in November,” she said.
One of the most difficult and rewarding productions in its 35-year tenure, Arrigotti recalls, remains “The Phantom of the Opera” in 2011. Team members worked in the office 12 hours a day for more than a month handling phone-in ticket sales, then turned around straight to rehearsal in the evenings, she said.
“It took me a year to develop effective set designs that would fit the stage, measuring backstage space down to an inch between stored sets and it took about that same amount of time to build the set,” she said. “We had to bring in structural engineers to handle bashing a hole in the ceiling for the flying chandelier. It was the most expensive show we've created, costing $170,000 to produce. It also drew our largest audience, bringing in 7,200 people from 20 states and Canada.”
Still, it’s nearly impossible to pick a favorite among WNMTC’s repertoire with “West Side Story,” “Mary Poppins,” “Newsies” and more, she said. Every cast member or technical team contributing is invaluable.
“We are grateful to the remarkably talented people in this area who come to our auditions,” she said. “Many of them have already completed degrees in the performing arts, some have performed professionally. These talented people work alongside less experienced people who are gaining experience in this field while on our stage.”
Mark Twain Elementary School music teacher Christina Bourne is one of the program’s faithful who have appeared in shows frequently for 33 years for the love of performing. Bourne said it helped inspire her to enter music as a profession. Bourne connected with Arrigotti’s daughter Maria who also has been invested with the WNMTC. They became college roommates and have remained close.
“I fell in love with the theater and what music had to offer in so many ways,” Bourne said. “Working with Stephanie and the others or just you know, I mean, the lifelong friendships are one of the things I'm most proud of within this company.”
Bourne said she also was proud of the 2011 “Phantom of the Opera” production for its complexities and the talents cast and crew brought.
“Opera’s very close to my heart, and that’s what I’ve been trained in since middle school,” Bourne said. “The program really is the stepping stone to so much of what is happening in Carson City in general.”
The WNMTC enabled Carson High School to incorporate its own musical theater curriculum into student activities, and it funneled into the middle schools. It inspired local children’s theater companies such as Youth Theatre Carson City through musical director Briana Valley and Andie Wilkerson. Both have been involved with the programs at Carson City’s secondary schools.
Arrigotti said “Celebrate the Magic” will feature 50 people in the production, which is a tight fit for the community center’s stage but the event will host many more who have been a part of WNMTC for many years.
“We really can't wait to share this with everyone,” she said. “We have had thousands in our company in the last 35 years. We just couldn't fit them all in this revue.”
A spring package for the revue is available on www.wnmtc.com for discount tickets. The package includes tickets to the company’s upcoming show “The Sound of Music” by Rodgers and Hammerstein in May at the Carson City Community Center.