Simon Finds A Forum For Inspiration
The Age
Tuesday December 22, 1998
It is a pleasant, humid 26 degrees in Brisbane. The first few days of school holidays are emptying the streets of cars, as families leave for the coast. Boats glide up the Brisbane River transporting passengers and cicadas chirp loudly in the trees.
Just across the river from the city centre, nestled among factories, Merivale Street Studios is abuzz with bodies. Fit, lean-looking men and women are arriving with bags slung over their shoulders.
Inside is dark and cool. The floors are painted black and three walls are covered by black curtains, the fourth by large mirrors.
Under the fluorescent lights, dancers and actors - some wearing high heels, others in runners - are stretching on the floor, pulling straight legs to their chests and arching their backs.
Among the chatter is the distinctive gravelly voice of Jon English, who is playing the lead in Simon Gallaher's latest musical, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum. English looks relaxed in shorts, a striped T-shirt and glasses; you wouldn't know he was once a rock star. But according to Gallaher, he still draws a large female audience.
Director Craig Schaefer, who spends half the year in hometown Los Angeles and half working in Brisbane, breezes into the hall and wishes everyone a cheery day. His upbeat attitude sets the tone for the rehearsal and, indeed, the content of the show.
Forum, by Stephen Sondheim, is a clever farce; fun, light and entertaining. That's what attracted Schaefer when he saw a New York production and why Gallaher, who flew to the Big Apple on Schaefer's recommendation, decided to stage it.
Schaefer believes laughter has a ripple effect, creating goodwill among communities that, more and more, are being separated by technology. To bring laughter into someone's life, he says, is a lofty ambition.
So far Gallaher's company, Essgee Entertainment, has achieved some noteworthy runs on the board. His first foray into producing began out of a desire to create work for himself so he could continue to support his young family (he has three children). His theatrical career had taken off after hosting a television show in his 20s and releasing gold award-winning albums, but he was aware how quickly the show business tide can turn.
Pirates of Penzance has been a pivotal show for Gallaher. When he performed in it in the early "80s for three years, he forged many strong working relationships -including those with Schaefer and English, -and most importantly, he met his wife, Lisa. He enjoys working with many of the same cast and crew, including Drew Forsyth and Helen Donaldson.
In 1992, Gallaher's own production of Pirates, in which he starred with Jon English, played to more than 300,000 people and grossed more than $11 million. The Gilbert and Sullivan productions that followed in the updated trilogy, The Mikado and HMS Pinafore, were also successes.
For Gallaher, it is all about keeping productions to a manageable scale. The emphasis is more on intimacy, with the cast front of stage, than on any high technical engineering. Ticket prices are accessible, with an adult seat at Forum costing about $59 and children, $25.
While it appears Gallaher, who is not a gambling man, is picking the right projects, there have been some huge losses (a second Adelaide season of The Merry Widow limped across the line) and there is always the continuing financial risk. Each production's triumph is measured city by city. A show costs at least $2 million before opening night. They are uninsured and not backed by government funding. While a production could do well in one location, if the next city's box office fails, it often wipes out the earlier profits and much more.
Gallaher does not seek private investment for his productions. When he staged Pirates of Penzance only one investor showed interest, supplying him with $200,000 for the Sydney season. Gallaher risked everything he owned, including the family home. Looking back, he seems amazed at his own nerve. He wouldn't dream of doing the same again.
There are no signs of the stresses and strains of entrepreneurial life in Gallaher's tanned fresh face. With his blonde hair, white-toothed smile and a twinkle in his eyes as though he is ready to break into laughter at any time, he hardly looks over 30, although he is closer to 40.
His latest ventures see him as the first independent producer to stage two musicals simultaneously at the Victorian Arts Centre. Forum, Sondheim's first musical in which he wrote the lyrics and the music, begins on New Year's Eve in the State Theatre, starring English and John Bowles.
New York dramatist Terrence McNally's Master Class, directed by SA's state theatre artistic director Rodney Fisher and starring Amanda Muggleton as diva Maria Callas, begins on 4 January at the Playhouse.
Taking on two productions seals Gallaher's move away from performing. Trying to perform and produce leaves him with very little family life. Forum and Masterclass are also another change in direction, highlighting Gallaher's versatility as a producer. He has built a loyal audience and believes they will trust his judgment on providing a hilarious night of entertainment.
Even though MTC's productions of Sondheim's A Little Night Music and Into The Woods were runaway successes, Gallaher says Sondheim songs are not immediately recognisable. The original 1962 Forum with Zero Mostel also had legendary out-of-town problems until the opening number was reworked. Judging by the verve with which the cast sing A Comedy Tonight, audiences will be humming the catchy tune for days. The actors skip across the hall, lifting their arms, smiling towards an imaginary audience.
``Tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight. ... weighty affairs will have to wait ... nothing grim , nothing greek ... comedy toniiiiiiight."
* A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum begins New Year's Eve at the State Theatre. Master Class with Amanda Muggleton opens on 4 January.
© 1998 The Age