MUSICARNIVAL MEMORIES

1/16/2018

A SPECIAL TMTP MEMBERS EVENT

"Good evening, and welcome to Musicarnival!" If you remember producer Johnny Price greeting you with those words at his summer tent theater in Warrensville Heights in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, you'll want to stroll down memory lane during this lively evening. If Musicarnival is new to you, don't miss this chance to learn more!

Bill Rudman will host the program with Johnny's daughter Diana Price, who will share her Musicarnival recollections. Bill and his team recently completed restoration of the Musicarnival Audio Archives -- full-length, live recordings of more than 100 classic musicals such as Oklahoma!, Show Boat, Gypsy and Guys & Dolls. See you there -- at a beautiful library that's just down the road from the site of Johnny's tent.

RSVP by February 5th
Call (216) 860-1518 or email info@MusicalTheaterProject.org

6 Comments

Bill Hallett

4/15/2019 03:33:30 pm

Musicarnival. I found the entry "MUSICARNIVAL MEMORIES" perhaps over a year late, but I found it.

I worked at Musicarnival as a high school student in 1960-62 starting with Bells are Ringing as a followspot operator and got called back the following spring to be on the crew for West Side Story. That began a few years doing and learning all sorts of things (PR, stage crew, helping on strike nights, etc.

I was uncredited (never did any of this for credit) crew for the premier of Don Driver's version of Cinderella and several other things...even some of the Sunday Afternoon Jazz Concerts.

If you have literature or other historical tidbits I'd be interested as that was the start of my interest in theatre. I live in Texas but do get to Cleveland a couple of times a year.

Bill Rudman

4/16/2019 04:19:13 pm

How do you do? Bill Rudman here - I led the Musicarnival Audio Archives project. I’m so happy to hear of your memories; it’s astonishing how many people across the country still have them. I myself never worked there, but I feel as though I grew up under the tent — just a bit later than you did. For me it was the early and mid-1960s.

Our project digitized all of the full-length, live analog audio recordings that Johnny made (illegally!) from 1954-65. Unfortunately, we can’t give you access to the recordings unless you travel to either Cleveland Public Library or Goodspeed’s Scherer library in CT. This is VERY unfortunate, isn’t it?
But we’re hoping they will be stream-able in five years or so.

In the meantime, I think you’d enjoy the book I wrote annotating all
of the productions. If you’d like to order it, let us know and we will email you directly with the details.

Thanks for writing us! Hearing from you folks has been one of the happiest pieces of this ambitious undertaking.

Best,
Bill

Bill Hallett

1/5/2020 10:46:21 am

I’d love to order the book.

Bett Union-Jakubek

10/27/2019 05:41:02 pm

My aunt worked in Ohio and West Palm Beach for Music Carnival. Her name is Marilyn M. Montgomery and goes by Lynn Montgomery. She graduated from Columbia with a degree in Theater and worked in stage production as a stage manager much of her professional life.
Lynn is now 93 and living withy sister in California. I woul love to gather information to share with her I am not sure what years she worked. She went on to help run Equity Library Theater in NYC and at age 60 moved to Miami to teach stagecraft at the University of Miami..

Bill Hallett

1/5/2020 10:43:46 am

Lynn Montgomery was John’s sec’y. She was the stage manager for Bells are Ringing. And, she is the one who called me the following spring to work on West Side Story.

If she had not done that...I would not have been involved with theatre in college and beyond.

Think of this....
At DePauw Univ. they found out I had done done theatre work at Musicarnival. They roped me into being Business Manager of the Little Theatre. That caused me to sign up for a theatre production class...that led to several other roles such as LD, Stage Manager, Technical Director, etc. for plays, musicals and operas at DePauw.

After college and up to this day I’ve been semi-involved with theatre producers, helping middle school musicals, and a few community productions. Most recently, I designed and built sets for my granddaughter’s ballet company’s production of Peter and the Wolf.

None of this could have happened if it were not for John Price and, especially Lynn Montgomery. I think and thank her often.

Anne Uible Birnbaum

4/2/2020 10:28:11 pm

I worked at Musicarnival for1959-1960. I worked solely in the costume department under Sheila Pearl. Those two seasons were some of the best summers . So many memories.

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