William B. Travis High School
1111 Harlem Road, Richmond Texas 77469
Phone 281-634-7138

TRAVIS THEATRICAL CO.
Travis High School Department of Fine Arts
Theatre Arts Program

Present

BYE BYE BIRDIE

Brennan Blankenship as Kim MacAfee at the Travis High School Theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Photo by Mark Towell.

January 30, 31 & February 6 and 7, 2009

Book by Michael Stewart

Music by Charles Strouse

Lyrics by Lee Adams

Originally produced by Edward Padula

Produced by special arrangement with Tams Witmark Music Library , Inc.

The cast of Bye Bye Birdie at the Travis High School 2009 theatre production.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Travis High School Theatre Arts Program will present the musical Bye Bye Birdie

A rock singer travels to a small Ohio town to make his farewell television performance and kiss his biggest fan before he is drafted.   Travis High School Theatre Arts Program will present the 2009 musical Bye Bye Birdie on January 30, 31 and February 6 and 7, 2009.  All shows begin at 7 p.m.  Bye Bye Birdie was winner of the Tony Award for best musical in 1961 when it made it's debut on Broadway starring Dick van Dyke and Chita Rivera. 

The story is about Conrad Birdie, an "Elvis-like" rock star who has been drafted into the army, much to the dismay of all his screaming obsessive female fans.  One such fan, Kim Macafee is chosen by Conrad's agents, Albert and Rosie to receive "One Last Kiss" from Birdie as part of a plan to make enough money so that they can get married and get out of the music business.  When they arrive in Kim's hometown of Sweet Apple, Ohio they are met by the town's Conrad Birdie faithful, as well as some skeptical parents and teenage boys.  From there trouble mounts as jealous boyfriends and protective parents clash with Birdie's freewheeling attitudes and poor influence over their kids. 

Bye Bye Birdie is full of memorable songs such as "Kids", "A Lot of Livin' to Do" and "Put on a Happy Face."  All performances are in the Travis High School Auditorium located at 11111 Harlem Rd. , Richmond , TX 77406 .  Tickets are $7 if purchased in advance and $10 at the door.  For reservations call 281-634-7138.

The cast of Bye Bye Birdie at the Travis High School 2009 theatre production.  Photo by Mark Towell.

 Travis High School Theatre Director KYLE MARTIN

 Kyle Martin - Director, Travis Theatrical Company.  Travis High School, FBISD

 -0-0-0-0-0-

Interview with Kyle Martin, Director for Bye Bye Birdie

By Theresa Pisula
theresa@houstontheatre.com
January 2009 - Houston, Texas

Kyle Martin is the director of Travis Theatrical Company and he also directed their 2009 musical Bye Bye Birdie.  I interviewed him last year for Travis High School's production of Godspell.  He comes from Sterling High School in Baytown where he served as Technical Director and Thespian Sponsor for the last 3 years.  Before that, Mr. Martin was the assistant director at Channelview High School.  He has been involved in theatre his entire life including the UIL One Act Play competition for 2 years in high school.  Mr. Martin went on to Abilene Christian University where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre.  After college, he tried his hand in the professional world, working with theatres in Dallas before becoming a certified teacher and moving to the Houston area.  He currently serves on the Board of Directors at the Baytown Little Theater.  Mr. Martin lives with his wife Amanda, who teaches second grade and two cats.

The cast of Bye Bye Birdie at the Travis High School 2009 theatre production directed by Kyle Martin.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  Why did you choose to do the musical Bye Bye Birdie this year?

Kyle:  It’s a show I did in high school and I had a lot of fun with it.  It’s got fun music.

Theresa:  What part did you play?

Kyle:  I was in the chorus.  Actually my dad directed it at a community theatre and I wasn’t going to be in it.  I wanted to take the summer off because I’ve been so busy during the school year but my dad bribed me to be in it because he needed more guys (laughs).  It’s a really fun play there are lots of people that can be in it.  I wanted to do something that was really inclusive to bring in some new people, fresh faces.

Theresa:  Have you seen the movie?

Kyle:  I’ve never seen the one they did with Jason Alexander.  I never saw that but I heard it was more like the stage version than the Dick Van Dyke movie.  The first movie was very different than the play.

Theresa:  How does this play relate to today’s society?  It’s been 40 years since the original movie.

Kyle:  Yeah, but I think the play really discusses, talks about and hits on the theme of celebrity culture and the way we kind of put celebrities on a pedestal.  It’s really gotten worse over time.  We now have this entire TV channels that are dedicated to celebrity gossip.  It’s gotten even more ridiculous.  It also helps you see that times don’t change as much as people think they do.  I mean they do change but people talk about the good old days when kids didn’t act up.  But still had problems with their kids back then, it was just different.  So I think it has a lot of timeless aspects like parent-child conflict and parents who don’t understand their kids.  Kids who look up to celebrities and if they’re able to get close to them they notice they’re not necessarily anything to look up to. 

(L-R) Abbey Crane as Ruby MacAfee, Wesley Hodges as Mr. MacAfee and Reade Burke as Mrs. MacAfee in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  What are the challenges in putting this play together?

Kyle:  The technical challenges are probably the biggest.  The beginning of the play is set in New York.  Then they go to Sweet Apple, Ohio and while they’re in Sweet Apple, Ohio there are lots of different locations so we had to build several different locations.  One of the most difficult was of the house, the MacAfee home.  So we had to figure out a way to get it on and off the stage and still be able to have a house onstage.  That was a challenge.  We have a lot of things flying in from the fly loft, from the area above.  So there are a lot of technical challenges and a number of locations for the play are set.  That’s the biggest challenges.  Also, it’s a big cast, lots of kids.  The more people that are there, it is more difficult.

Theresa:  Do you think you’ll be ready (laughs)?

Kyle:  Yeah, we’ll be ready.  Something’s going up onstage.  I know it will be entertaining.  And the kids are really talented so they’ll pull it off.

Theresa:  Now I'm changing the subject totally and would like to get into something completely different.  I'm just curious as to society's opinion of a current event that is of historical proportions.  Since we have a new year, and a new presidential administration.  What are your thoughts about our new president?

Kyle:  Teachers aren’t really supposed to talk about our political preferences to the kids.  But me personally, I’ve been a huge Barack Obama fan from the moment I heard him speak at the 2004 Democratic National Convention four years ago.  That’s when he first started coming to be well known to people.  Before that, nobody knew who he was.  Four years ago people started to take notice of him and they invited him to speak at the DNC.  Everything that I’ve ever heard him say just really makes sense to me.  So I’ve been supporting him.

The cast of Bye Bye Birdie at the Travis High School 2009 theatre production directed by Kyle Martin.  Photo by Mark Towell.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Interview with the Cast of Bye Bye Birdie

Travis High School Theatre Arts Program 2009 Musical Production

 By Theresa Pisula
theresa@houstontheatre.com
January 2009 - Houston, Texas

Jessica Reis……………………Rosie Alvarez

Aaron Hlavaty…………………Albert Peterson

Richard Gomez………………...Conrad Birdie

Senior student Aaron Hlavaty has recently been in The Diary of Anne Frank as Mr. Van Dann.  He is the current president of the Travis Theatrical Company 2009 Officers.  Aaron did an excellent job as Albert Peterson, and I would go as far as to say that it's as good as Dick Van Dyke's performance in the 1963 movie Bye Bye Birdie.  Aaron enjoys seeing plays, watching movies, playing video games and listening to music.  Aaron is a member of Mu Alpha Theta, NHS and the YES program here at Travis High School.

Jessica Reis, also a senior was recently seen in The Diary of Anne Frank as Mrs. Frank.  In her spare time she enjoys dancing, singing, knitting, watching movies and water sports.  She is a member of PYCC, the Sign Language Club at Travis High School, Forever Dance Studios and her church's youth group.  Richard Chaz Gomez has been in The Hunchback of Notre Dame as Captain Phoebus and Little Shop of Horrors as Seymour.  In his spare time Richard enjoys singing, hanging out with friends and worshiping.  Richard is a Choir officer at Travis High School and is also a member of Link Crew and Best Buddies.  Outside of school Richard sings in his church's youth band, Crossfire, and acts / directs in his church's drama ministry, iMPACT!

(L-R) Rosie Alvarez played by Jessica Reis and Aaron Hlavaty who plays Albert Peterson in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  Tell us about the part that you’re playing in Bye Bye Birdie

Jessica:  I play Rosie and she is Albert’s secretary.  She’s been her secretary for 8 years and they’re in love.  He’s putting off everything, all the plans because his mother doesn’t like me very much.  He’s trying to make her happy by staying in the music business.  But he’d rather be an English teacher.  So when Conrad Birdie ends up going into the army, I come up with this grand idea that Conrad Birdie can get one last kiss.  And we’ll make him all the money we need to get him out of the business to send him back to college to be an English teacher so we can get married.

Aaron:  I play Albert Peterson, Conrad Birdie’s manager and Rosie’s love interest.  So basically when Conrad goes to the army it’s my job to make sure he goes out with a bang and we’ve maximized his profits.  The character is a really heavy momma’s boy, always dependent on his mom.  I’m kind of the same way, not nearly as bad as the character is but I can see where he’s coming from.  If I wanted to I could just sit back and my mom would take care of everything for me but I try to have some sort of independence. 

Richard:  My character is Conrad Birdie.  He’s the rock star.  The story tells of someone like Elvis, kind of, because Conrad Birdie gets drafted to go to the army.  His agents are Rosie Alvarez and Albert Peterson played by Jessica Reis and Aaron Hlavaty.  They decide that basically he’s going on national television on the Ed Sullivan show.  My character Conrad Birdie will sing a song that Albert’s going to write for him to one girl.  One girl that they choose (Kim MacAfee played by Brennan Blankenship) and Conrad will give her a kiss symbolizing him as kissing all the girls and saying goodbye.  He’s a rock star, he’s rebellious.  He wants to do his own thing.  And sometimes he doesn’t agree with his agent. 

Theresa:  Do you sing?
Richard:  I have 3 songs that I sing:  one song is Honestly Sincere which is me singing to all these girls and then they swoon over.  The other one I sing on the Ed Sullivan show which is One Last Kiss.
Theresa:  Do you play the guitar?
Richard:  No, I actually have a guitar player.  He plays guitar behind me.  And then I have another song called A Lot of Livin’ To Do which is a big dance number.  All the teens go out and want to have fun.  And Conrad’s kind of like influencing them badly.
Theresa:  (Laughs) the groupies, you mean?  You can say it….
Richard:  But back in the day they weren’t as bad as they are now. 
Theresa:  You don’t know that (laughs). 
Richard:  Maybe, maybe (laughs).  I wasn’t there.

Jessica Reis as Rosie Alvarez in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  Have you seen the movie?

Aaron:  No, actually I haven’t.  I didn’t really want to watch it because I didn’t want to try to imitate the actor onstage.

Theresa:  Right.  They made the movie back in 1963 where Dick Van Dyke played the Albert Peterson character.  And they made another movie in 1995 where Jason Alexander, the guy from Seinfeld plays your character.

Aaron:  I heard about that.  I haven’t seen that one yet. 

Theresa:  Wow.  Why not?

Aaron:  Yeah, I wanna keep all that stuff out of my head.  Whenever you watch the movie and they do certain little quirks.  I don’t want to feel like I need to steal that.  Everything that I have I want to come up with on my own.  That way I can get more comfortable instead of just imitating the character.

Richard:  I’ve seen both movies.  I’ve seen the one dated back in the day with Dick Van Dyke and Ann Margret, which I love.  And I’ve seen the one they did a while back for television with Vanessa Williams and Jason Alexander.  I have both of those on DVD. 

Theresa:  How do both of them compare?

Richard:  Well the first movie, they changed the story.  Albert Peterson doesn’t want to be an English teacher he wants to be a Chemistry teacher.  This is the one with Dick Van Dyke.  And they never really show the Ed Sullivan show until the end.  Act I is in the end of the movie.  It is so confusing.  When I watched it, I asked my director, “How are we going to do this one scene that they did in the movie?”  And he said, “What are you talking about?”  And I said, “They sped up really fast and they did this chemical thing.  How are we going to do that?” and he said “What are you talking about?”  So it’s completely different from the stage play. 

Theresa:  Is it more based on the 1995 movie?

Richard:  The stage play?  No, no, no.  The stage play was done before they made the movie.  It was the Broadway Musical with Dick Van Dyke and Chita Rivera.  And then afterwards they made a movie with Dick Van Dyke and Ann Margret playing Kim MacAfee.

(Center) Richard Gomez as Conrad Birdie in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  So how does the 1995 movie compare?

Richard:  That one is a lot like the stage play.  The music is strictly the same.  In the other 1963 movie with Dick Van Dyke, Rosie doesn’t sing at all.  In the 1995 movie is the same as the stage play but the only thing different is they added 3 songs.  They added Bye Bye Birdie, one that Vanessa Williams sings and one that the mother sings.  That’s the only difference.  Everything else is strictly like the stage version. 

Theresa:  So the 1995 movie is a lot like the Broadway show.  And that’s what you have here.  So I’m guessing that’s probably easier to interpret than the movie.

Richard:  Oh yeah.

Theresa:  How does this play compare in today’s society.  I mean, you saw the 1995 movie and I’m sure it was more updated.  Was that movie more like today’s music, more hip?

Richard:  Oh yeah.  It was definitely more rocker-ish.  Definitely more hip.

Theresa:  So how are you portraying your character?

Richard:  My character, basically I get onstage and throw my hips around.  I have girls that cling to my arms and my legs.  It’s really awkward.  But that’s what you do (laughs).

Theresa:  You’re the rock star (laughs).

Richard:  My costumes are very Elvis-like with lots of sequins, definitely that time period.  So we’re staying very true to that time period.

(Center) Richard Gomez as Conrad Birdie in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Jessica:  The 1963 movie changes the story line a lot.  In that movie actually, Rosie doesn’t have much of a character.  Albert’s not as big of a part of it.  It’s a completely different story line.  For the most part the songs are the same.  There are some extra songs added into the play.

Theresa:  I’m just curious if those songs that were added were in the 1995 movie.  And even at 1995, that’s more than 10 years ago.  Now that we’re in 2009, how does this play relate to what’s going on in today’s society?  I mean would you compare Conrad Birdie to one of the Jonas Brothers (laughs)?

Jessica:  (Laughs) I would definitely say he’s as big as a Jonas brother.  Kind of a Brad Pitt-Jonas Brother……

Theresa: (laughs) or Justin Timberlake

Jessica:  Justin Timberlake is perfect!  That’s definitely it.  All the girls are driving mad over him.  But there’s also the other side of everyone going off to the army and we have the war going on now.

Aaron:  It’s a little bit different than today.  It's set in a different time where they still draft for the war.  But Conrad Birdie is a big pop sensation and we see that all over the place today like Hannah Montana and Jonas Brothers, all those people that my sister is in love with.  It’s a show about fame and love and all the stuff that still pertains today.  I mean, we have all these celebrities and they all have managers who have girlfriends and boyfriends.

(Center) Richard Gomez as Conrad Birdie in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie.  Conrad Birdie's guitarist is Said Jalajal.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  Since you are all seniors now, what are your plans for the future after high school?

Jessica:  That’s actually a really hard question.  I haven’t completely decided yet.  I applied to Sam Houston State this year.  I haven’t gotten my acceptance letter yet but its coming.  I know I can get in.

Theresa:  Do you want to stay in Houston or would you prefer to go outside of Houston?

Jessica:  Well that’s the thing.  I kind of have options.  Sam Houston is my backup plan.  What I really want to do is go to the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts and study there for 2 years.  And they have programs where I can stay in New York or go to London for 2 years, get my degree.  But they only take 180 students so I have to prepare for that audition and try to get in there.  The audition has been scheduled for  February 28^th, 2009.

Theresa:  Oh how exciting for you….

Jessica:  (laughs) it’s really crazy.  I just learned about it a week and a half ago. 

Theresa:  You did?  What was that like?

Jessica:  Mind blowing.  I was planning to stay near Houston.  You know, come back, visit the school or maybe get into a smaller school but…..

Theresa:  Did you get it in the mail?

Jessica:  I got a call.  They called me and said they wanted me to audition.

Theresa:  Did you answer the phone?

Jessica:  (smiles) my dad answered.  I actually had to call them back later.  But…my goodness…that was nerve-racking. 

Theresa:  Are they coming out to different cities?

Jessica:  They have a tour of auditions so they’ll go to Austin, Houston, California…all these big cities like Nashville.  But the one I’m going to will be held in downtown Houston. 

Theresa:  Do you know how many people are going to be at the audition?

Jessica:  A lot, probably hundreds. 

Theresa:  Wow, how exciting.  But those are just the people that applied.

Jessica:  Uh-huh.  There are about 4,000 that apply every year.

Theresa:  Good luck to you!

Jessica: (smiles) thanks.

(L)  Rosie Alvarez played by Jessica Reis and the cast of Bye Bye Birdie in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  What do your parents think of this opportunity?

Jessica:  They’re actually more excited about it than me.  My dad said he would sell the house if he had to, to pay for it.  He basically told me I couldn’t give up this opportunity.  He’s willing to move up north with me and he hates up north.  He grew up, up there, it snows and he hates the cold.  But he will be willing to do it if it meant getting me into this place.

Theresa:  What about you Aaron, what are your plans for the future?

Aaron:  Next year I’m planning on going to the University of Texas in Austin and studying Mechanical Engineering.  I’ve gotten accepted.  I’ve pretty much nailed it in. 

Theresa:  Are you going to be staying at the dorm?

Aaron:  Yeah but I don’t know which one yet.  I don’t have a specific roommate either.  I think I’m just going to go pot luck. 

Theresa:  Pot Luck?

Aaron:  Yeah, whoever they’re going to assign me with.  My brother Kyle is up there right now and he loves it.  And so I’m stoked to go there. 

Conrad Birdie  played by Richard Gomez and the cast of Bye Bye Birdie in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Richard:  I went to a theater convention in Fort Worth a while back and I auditioned for a bunch of colleges and I got 11 call backs from a lot of good colleges like Oklahoma University, UT in Arlington, Ohio Northern University, Sam Houston State University and TCU.  A lot of people were interested in giving me scholarships to come to their school. 

I sang a song when I went to the convention and I competed in vocal solo.  I sang this song from Jekyll & Hyde.  And I’ve been invited to go sing and compete at Nationals in Nebraska, the National Thespian Convention.  This is not just a Texas convention it’s throughout the nation, which is really cool.  I’ve never done anything like that before.  So that’ll be in the summer. 

So as far as my future, I’m not sure.  The year after I graduate, I’m going to a Christian Academy called the Honor Academy in Tyler, Texas for a year or 2 depending on what God leads me to do.  And then after, I’m still not sure.  I’m pretty dependent on hearing something in those 2 years about what God wants me to go into, but definitely either musical theater or as a youth pastor.  When you go there, you’re considered an intern.  You take biblical studies classes and do a lot of life strengthening classes.  They push you a lot.  And you also have a working environment.  They try to find out at what you’re good at. 

Aaron Hlavaty as  Albert Peterson  in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of  BYE BYE BIRDIE.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Theresa:  And now for my last question.  I just want to get your take on a current political event that is of great historical ground-breaking proportions.  With the New Year we also have a new administration.  What do you think of Barack Obama as our new president? 

Jessica:  I didn’t follow him when he was coming up and going through.  I didn’t even vote for him.  He’s a great guy and he’s really honest about what he says.  I think he’ll do a great job.  Because he’s honest enough to say that he’s gonna mess up but he’s gonna keep trying until he gets it right.  And I think that’s what’s most important is that he’s not gonna stop trying.  He knows he’s not perfect.  He knows that he’s going to do his best not to make mistakes.  I think that’s what makes him special.  That’s what makes him right for the job, that he’s willing to just say that.

Aaron:  I think he’ll do a great job.  This is the first election that I really paid attention to because in previous years, I didn’t really care.  But it’s fascinating to watch it.  I didn’t get to vote so I wasn’t really too concerned with which candidate I was more inclined to picking.  But it was just fascinating watching everything including the debates.  It was a close one, a lot closer than I was expecting.  But I think Obama is going to do a great job.

Richard:  I really don’t pay attention to politics because I don’t like politics.  I think they’re so dirty and people go around hating on each other.  So I don’t pay attention.  I’m still 17 so I can’t vote.  I did some research for some government projects but not enough to know if I agree with McCain or Obama.  Basically, it’s like Obama’s president, nobody can change that.  I don’t hate him, I don’t hate McCain.  I don’t favor one over the other. 

I’m praying for him.  The bible talks about praying for your leaders and that’s exactly what I’m doing.  I’m praying for him because one, that’s a stressful job, two, a lot of people are going to be judging him because he’s the first African-American president and expect a lot more out of him.  But I know that God will do what God wants and hopefully he will use Obama to get some of the good stuff throughout America.  So that’s how I feel.

Rosie Alvarez (Jessica Reis) is serenaded by the bartenders and the cop in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of  BYE BYE BIRDIE.  Photo by Mark Towell.

The cast of Bye Bye Birdie in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production directed by Kyle Martin.  Photo by Mark Towell.

Albert Peterson (Aaron Hlavaty) and Conrad Birdie (Richard Gomez) disguised in a lady's dress at the Sweet  Apple railroad station in the Travis High School 2009 theatre production of Bye Bye Birdie directed by Kyle Martin.  Photo by Mark Towell.

RICHARD GOMEZ