Thank you, Crystal!

©Santa Maria Sun
April 17-24, 2003


'Comparable to Broadway'
Acclaimed actor Michael Gruber raves about PCPA
by Abraham Hyatt

It would take up this entire story to list all of Michael Gruber's biography.

On Broadway, he's been Mike Costa in the final company of
"A Chorus Line", Munkustrap in "Cats", the Tinman opposite Roseanne
Barr in "The Wizard Of Oz", and Hortensio in "Kiss Me, Kate",
plus he's been a part of the original companies of "Miss Saigon,"
"Swing!," And "My Favorite Year." He was one of the three Americans
asked to reprise their role for the "Cats" movie. He's played
leading roles in everything from "Singin' in the Rain" to "Oklahoma"
at regional theatres across the country. He's played Riff in both the
national and European touring companies of "West Side Story".
The list goes on and on, but by this point, local theatre buffs have
gotten the point: Michael Gruber has a little experience with some
of the best theatres in the world. It's no surprise that he's a part
of PCPA's latest production of "Crazy For You." However, it is
quite a compliment when he says that while PCPA's plays are smaller,
their quality is "comparable to Broadway."

"I had dinner with [PCPA Actor] David Studwell and his wife last night,
and we were talking about what a gold mine [Santa Marians] have here,"
he said, "I hope the community realizes that seeing live theatre at
PCPA - there's nothing like it between San Francisco and Los Angeles."

Gruber said that he was in Florida finishing a production when PCPA
asked him to take on the role of Bobby Child, and, having never
even heard of Santa Maria, he asked PCPA actor Melinda Parrett what
the production value was like. In the course of the three weeks that
he'd been learning his marks and polishing his dance steps, he
said he'd been "amazed" not only with the quality of the production,
but with how the director Eric Hoit is putting it together.

"Whether it's the sets, the sound, or the acting," he said, "Hoit has
done a perfect job of keeping true to the musical's core elements.
Sometimes on Broadway," he continued, "productions actually get too
big for their own good.

"They've got people rising out of the floor and cars driving around on
stage," he said "And that's not what it's about - it's about the music."


Over the course of the interview, Gruber talked about preparing for
"Crazy," the work he's done on and off Broadway, and why he's thrilled
to be playing the part of Childs, but the idea he came back to again
and again was how highly he thought of PCPA.

"Santa Marians have got this treasure in their backyard. These are
top-notch professionals who are putting together these productions,"
he said. "This is a really special place."


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