The Story of a Rock ‘n’ Roll Pioneer:
Buddy Holly comes alive at Thalian Hall
R
ock ‘n’ roll has defined decades of youth and culture, history and society, rebellion and revolt. Having gone through movements and evolutions of sound, somewhere in the early ‘50s, the guitar mastermind of Chuck Berry, piano virtuosity of Little Richard and the hip gyrations of Elvis captivated audiences unlike any had done before. On that list of pioneers to transform radio airplay into passionate grit and soul was Charles Hardin Holly, otherwise known as “Buddy.” His story began in Lubbock, Texas, where Buddy learned the ins and outs of playing the guitar, four-string banjo and lap-steel guitar at a very young age. By 13, he had already used a wire recorder to capture his version of Hank Snow’s “My Two Timin’ Woman.” In junior high school, Holly started a bluegrass band with pal Bob Montgomery and received local air time on AM radio station KDAV. It wasn’t until 1955, after seeing Elvis Presley perform live, that Holly gave his sound rockabillly swagger, featuring strong rhythms and slap bass cadences, as he played with the Crickets and eventually opened for Presley himself. The rest, as some say, is history. The short time span of Buddy Holly’s rise to fame—before his tragic death in 1959 in a plane crash also carrying the Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens—finds celebration and homage in Thalian Association’s premiere production, “Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story.” encore interviewed director Tom Briggs about the upcoming buzzed-about show, which will feature amazing musical talent, as well as first-time thespians to Thaliah Hall’s grand stage. encore: Why did you decide to bring Buddy to Wilmington? What compelled you to the show? Tom Briggs: I wanted to do an entire season of Wilmington premieres because it’s always exhilarating to introduce a show that our audience hasn’t had the opportunity to enjoy before, and that our local artists haven’t had the opportunity to work on. “Buddy” tells the quintessential American story of a young artist who refuses to compromise his vision in exchange for a quick buck and changes the trajectory of popular music in the process. It’s good to be reminded of that kind of integrity in this day and age. e: The show follows Holly through two years of his short life and his rise to fame, correct? TB: Exactly. Buddy’s career only lasted eighteen months and the show begins in his hometown of Lubbock, TX, when he’s on the brink of getting his first record deal and takes us through the Winter Dance Party in Clear Lake, Ohio—his last concert on the night of the fatal plane crash that claimed not only his life but those of Ritchie Valens, J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson and the pilot, Roger Peterson.
by: Shea Carver
Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story Thalian Association Thalian Hall • 310 Chestnut St. Sept. 23rd-26th and 30th-Oct. 3rd, 8 p.m. or Sun. matinees, 3 p.m. Tickets: $22 -- $25 (910) 632-2285 e: Who will be playing the iconic rock ‘n’ roller, and how is his transformation coming along? TB: Justin Fox is a renowned local musician—a fierce guitar player and a great singer. Justin hasn’t really done theater before, but has jumped in with both feet and is going to be absolutely terrific. He has the same sort of drive and sly sense of humor that Buddy had and he’s just a natural actor—no bad habits. The transformation will be complete later in the week when he goes in for the Buddy haircut. e: Who else makes up the cast, and what are you witnessing during rehearsal that you find most impressive? TB: The three guys who play Buddy’s band, the Crickets, are also wonderful local musicians—Benjamin Baldwin, Benji Smith and Gary Steele, all of whom play with various bands in the region. They hadn’t done theater before either so it has really been a leap of faith for them to take this on. This is a lot different than playing a couple sets on a Friday night at the beach. But they’ve really thrown themselves into the rehearsal process and are incredibly dedicated and professional. It’s an absolute joy to work with them and to bring them into the exacting world of live theater. They’ve been working like Clydesdales. e: Obviously, music plays a very big role in the production. Tell me about the music direction, and how you went about your search to find the musicians? What have they added to the show that you didn’t expect? TB: Music director Jonathan Barber and I began looking for Buddy and The Crickets about six weeks before the formal auditions for the show. I put out calls for musicians on Craig’s list, went to various venues to check out different bands, talked with a lot of people who are involved in the local music scene. The show is really all about the music and this particular band so the production’s success really hung on finding the right guys. They play two dozen songs in the show. That’s a lot of music and lyrics to memorize, to say nothing of the dialogue and staging. What’s really been fun is having the band
THAT’LL BE THE DAY: (clockwise from center) Justin Fox, Benji Smith, Gary Steele and Benjamin Baldwin star as Buddy Holly and the Crickets in ‘Buddy,’ opening this Thursday night. Photo by Chris Ochs.
at rehearsals. Usually we don’t get the band in until three nights before we open. But these four guys have really bonded and sound like they’ve been playing together for years. I told them at the first rehearsal that they’d come out of this experience with a great Buddy Holly cover band. e: What about rock ‘n’ roll and Buddy Holly’s story do you find makes for good theatre? TB: Good theater relies on a central character who is in hot pursuit of something, in this case Buddy’s determination to get the music
he hears in his head out there to people, despite the overwhelming obstacles in his way. The kind of music Buddy wanted to play was largely considered “colored music” in the late ‘50s, and in fact he was inadvertently booked into the Apollo Theater because the manager thought it was a black act. His story is extremely compelling and the visceral energy of rock ‘n’ roll is innately theatrical—it goes straight to the soul. e: What can audiences expect of this show that they may be surprised to learn? TB: Buddy only knew his wife, Maria Elena, for five hours before he proposed to her. They were both quoted as saying that it was truly love at first sight, and so it was. ... We have a killer finale that wraps everything up, and that’s as much as I’m saying!
encore | september 22-28 , 2010 | www.encorepub.com 17