east valley
Volume 1 Issue 39 Mesa, AZ
May 12, 2019
Mesa duo �inds gold in tribute performers BY SRIANTHI PERERA Tribune Contributor
J
IN THE BIZ
erry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and John Denver may be departed, but they keep “reappearing” on local stages. Then, there are the impersonators of the living, like the big-voiced Dolly Parton and the effusive Elton John. Thanks to an ever-increasing coterie of loyal baby boomer fans, tribute shows are selling out houses across the Valley. Just ask JR McAlexander, a 25-year theater veteran who founded Mesa-based Showtune Productions in 2011. The former musical director of the now defunct Broadway Palm Dinner Theater in Mesa presented 26 different productions with more than 140 performances during the just-concluded, �ive-month long season. From January to March next year, he has booked at least 90 performances. He’s also expanding to other Arizona cities, such as Tucson, Oro Valley and Yuma, and to many states, from California to Maine. “It’s been working really well for us,” said McAlexander, who snagged M. Seth Reines, his former co-worker at Broadway Palm, to help him in the role of artistic director. “I can’t be happier in the way it’s all blossomed in the last few years.” When Broadway Palm showed signs of closing, McAlexander was alerted to the tribute concert business by his mom, who lives in a retirement community in Mesa, which puts on high-priced concerts that didn’t offer the talent to match. “I decided I could do that,” McAlexander recalled. He contacted Monica Heuser, who travels the country for Patsy Cline shows that are sanctioned by the star’s estate, “Always, Patsy Cline” and “Just a Closer Walk with Patsy Cline,” and invited her to perform in the Valley. He put together the band, rehearsed and produced the show at Arizona Broadway Theater in Peoria in fall 2011. “It was one of their best-selling shows since Public Notices ........... page 2 © Copyright, 2019 East Valley Tribune
they opened. And it sold out the whole week,” McAlexander said. It was the same with the Johnny Cash show. A friend of his was doing the role for large touring companies, but was willing to create a tribute show just by himself in the Valley. Some of the acts, such as John Denver, come ready to perform and only needs an orchestra, but McAlexander has created about 80 percent of the concerts he presents. Besides the tributes, Showtune Productions also presented the opening show for Broadway at the Orpheum Theatre: The Music Man in Concert in 2017 and Singin’ in the Rain in Concert in 2018. The company also lays claim to the “Out to Lunch Concert Series” at Mesa Arts Center; “Groovin’ Thru the 60s,” featuring folk rock hits such as The Mamas & The Papas, Peter, Paul & Mary, Simon & Garfunkel; “Let the Good Times Roll,” a show from Nashville that features music and comedy; and Karen Hester, one of the most sought after Dolly Parton tribute singers, as “Dolly.” In the past, Showtune has presented shows in the East Valley at Chandler Center for the Arts, Queen Creek Performing Arts Center and Apache Junction Performing Arts Center, while retirement communities book its shows over and over again. Among the upcoming shows, “Walking the Line, Johnny Cash Tribute” play at Sun Lakes in May; “Johnny Cash/Jerry Lee Lewis Tribute,” “Elvis, The Early Years!,” “Buddy, Ritchie and The Big Bopper” and “Rocket Man, The Elton John Early Days” perform in July and August at Hale Centre Theatre in Gilbert. Hale sold out its three performances last summer, and plans to add more performances to this year’s offerings if expectations of the shows selling out again come true. This is signi�icant because summertime programming at the Hale gets historically low attendance numbers, Dave Dietlein noted. The tribute artists from last year were “really good,” Dietlein said. As for the audience members, “they were dancing in the aisles. It was crazy; it was fun.” Barb Aldrich of Mesa is one such fan who’s (USPS 004-616) is published weekly
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tapping into the music of yesteryear. She used to be an activity director for a retirement community in Mesa and hired the company’s shows. “His shows are a lot more theatrical than some of the others, it’s not just singing, there’s choreography, comedy, a little bit of everything,” she said. “They put together shows that are very, very entertaining.” Aldrich, now gets to see the concerts at her church, which offers them from time to time. Now they go to same church, which offers concert series. Baby Boomer 66. Most of the shows are geared towards my age group or to my parents’ age group,” she said. “The shows that are out now have really gained in popularity because of us Baby Boomers, because we like the music that take us back to that time.” “Everything is tribute,” McAlexander said, referring to the high pro�ile shows of the day, such as “The Cher Show,” “Mamma Mia!” and the “Jersey Boys.” “That’s what’s selling right now. They want to hear the music that they like.” As much as the demand exists, McAlexander knows that he can’t expand beyond the 26 productions without hiring more staff. “At this point, I’m not ready for that. I’m 54 years old,” he said. Reines, who was the artistic producer at Broadway Palm, helps McAlexander cast his productions and directs the company’s original revues. He also collaborates with the costume and lighting designers to help give the shows a professional look. “I have had the pleasure of watching JR’s dream come to fruition as he creates new and exciting productions for venues in both Arizona and across the country,” Reines said. Perhaps the best indication of the duo’s success lies in the fact that two of their competitors, large booking companies based in the Valley, are coming to them to book their shows. “That’s a compliment to my talent and to the performers that are working for me,” McAlexander said. Details: showtuneproductions.com Subscriptions are $26 for 2 years, $14 for one year. Periodicals postage paid at Phoenix, AZ 85026.
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