30 - North Shore News -— Friday, November 10. 2000 unel indy’s Joseph focuses on pop icons Martin Milterchip Arts Editor aumillerchip@usnews.com IT’S hard to always hear what director Richard Berg is saying. We are sitting in the mid- dle of Centennial Theatre on “Tuesday evening as the cast and crew of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat prepare for a tech- al. an of actors step to the front of the stage to get their mic levels checked. This entails then: singing while the volume levels are adjusted. The only accompa- niment: hammer and high-speed drill! Simultaneously, lights : focused, children’s choirs (there are two being alternated in the ran) are being marshalled, and finishing, touches to costumes are being, completed. ¢ matters require decisions trom Berg, who remains remarkably cool and coflect- ed as he approaches the end of his third & a.m. to 1] p.m. day in the theatre. Everything has to be right for opening. Uncle Randy Productions may be a communi- ty-based musical theatre group, but the budget for Joseph is approximately $150,000 — way more than many budgets for professional shows, That amount includes transferring the show to Massey Theetre in New Westminster for five additional shows. The company will need an average of 60 per cent houses for both runs to break even. Large as the budget is by not-fur-protit stan- dards, it is insignificant based on the $12 mii- lion LiveEnt spent on the Donny Osmond v sion of Joseph. That doesn’t faze Berg at all: “Any attempt to recreate what they did is bound to fail with- out the resources. Rather than do that, we went back to the source material and made it ours.” Berg is concentrating his focus on the phe- nomenon of pop icons. His Joseph goes from small town boy to cereal box commodity. “He was to Egypt what the Back Street Boys and Ricky Martin represent to us now.” Berg frames Joseph's rela- tionship with his family in the same CONTENT. "Fhe Brothers are the big group and then Joseph goes tor a solo career. The whole phenomenon of the number of bands being side is really interesting, to me.” Not surprisingly, 2 content, leather, vinvl and denim dominate the costume designs, The Centenni makeover for thi too, Berg and set designer Allan Brodie have created a thrust that will put some of the section right in the lap of the audi- ad increase the intimacy of the action. raldi plays Joseph, the boy with the ability to interpret dreams. Trained both locally and in New York, Gianni has appeared in ¢ Uncle Randy productions of Evita and With musical ambitions himselt, ase preparing for the release of his album. Berg's own future is about to change as he and his wife, Carrie Lehman: Berg, who plays the Narrator in Joseph, are expecting their first child in the spring. He'd dike to continue to direet musicals, but would preter to move away from mainstream botto bos office draws like last Christmas's The Wizard of Oz in favour of smaller, more intimate — and riskier box office re. Whether that’s with Uncle Randy Productions of not remains to be seen. Certainly this North Vancouver company of young talent has already placed performers like Neil Minor and Peter Jorgensen in Arts Club productions. And while Berg modestly describes himself as a “young” director in terms of work- ing with professional actors, there is no doubt he has the ability and the experience to make his mark in the world of prof d sical @ North Vancouver pert P and the Amasing Teclmicolar Dreamcoat at Centennial Theatre run at 8 p.m Nov. 10, 11, 15, 16, 17 and 18 with matinée performances at 2 p.m. on Now. 12, 18 and 19. Call 984- 4484 for tickets or 980-7942 for group sales. NEWS photo Julie Iverson CARRIE Lehman as the Narrator and Gianni Ceraldi as Joseph rehearse a scene from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Centennial Theatre. Recycling Centre NOVEMBER 208° prof | 100,000 pow ww aS G “HG PURCHASE NECESSARY, ash Shanes Roce: Contre attsndant for an ecctry form. - ‘Ltty open to rerdents ct Brtisn Coksntia and Alberta who have » current Savo-On-Worg card. See pasted ues in-store tor rompicte contest detads. Harhemetical aut-tezing question mquved. ‘Odds of winning a Monthly Prize in the contes! ave dependent upon the tolal numdor ol entnes. meeceesd in halkk bowes at al perticinatnn, Cranges Recycte Sentra lorstane before each orthly che dite. Ocdts of wrnng the Grand Prize in thes contest ere dependent upan the tole! number of entries semainnng in balict doves, trom afl participating Changes Recycle Cen‘re kcations. Contest cram dates: * Ock 19h, 2000 tor Sepsencers prize) + Nov, 181, 2000 (ter Octepers pases « Bec. 1st, 2000 per November's prizet + dan, 21d, 2005 sor December's grand pre} Contes: close date: Store clotung on December 31, 2000 Coca Loa’, Toca Coie Cassa’. Cass’, Det Cone’, Sorte’, Sat “Sore’ 7 and he Disarctne Botte 2°e ragstere] vararhs of Coca-Cola tit “Det Catone Free Dar Cora’ ang Set Sorte” are sutsive lor carahy rite cacre reduced tet “Cool tors tease’ $ vada of Coca tole teeste Retest ects Compary “Gays ard Bays ate seeyre ae egicered anemia of Berg's,