The Carleton Musical Theatre Society (CMTS) may be a young and budding club, but it turns heads and makes an everlasting impression. Last year, the society did a solid performance of Heathers: The Musical, taking the classic 80s film in all of its big hair glory and presented it here at Carleton. Now, they take on the classic vaudeville satirical Chicago. With its well-known numbers like “Cell Block Tango” and “Roxie,” The Charlatan caught up with director Maxim David to find out what audiences should anticipate and why this is a performance you don’t want to miss.
The Charlatan (TC): So my first question for you is what was the inspiration for your vision of Chicago?
Maxim David (MD): I was really inspired by the Ziegfeld Follies, which was a Broadway revue that started up around the 20s and lasted till the late 40s. Basically, any time you think of those really big MGM movies, like 1920s style with giant staircases and the big feathers, it’s really reminiscent of the Ziegfeld Follies. So, Florenz Ziegfeld, who was a producer at the time, put on these enormous shows that cost millions and millions of dollars. There was something very luscious about it, which I really liked a lot. I feel like Chicago is in a setting, which allowed itself to be very luxurious.
TC: Interesting. So, the next question is was there a particular number or scene that was especially exciting for you to direct?
MD: Yes (laughs). All of it was really exciting, but I was really excited to direct the musical number “We Both Reached for the Gun.” I absolutely adore that number. It was definitely one of the highlights when I saw the movie. It was just as exciting to do, because it’s a very big ensemble number. So, it was interesting to have the whole cast for sure. I didn’t choreograph any of the numbers. A lot of the dance numbers, I had a vision for it, and then the choreography was even better than I imagined because it was a surprise to me. I really love that one. I also really liked “Roxie.”
TC: I was totally gonna guess that number. Were there any challenges with directing this musical?
MD: Mmm, absolutely. I think our first challenge was finding the right cast, making sure that we were prepared. We had over 60 people audition, but we could only cast 19.
TC: Oh man, that’s pretty rough.
MD: So, it was a big cut. Making sure we had the right people was essential. However, I have to say out of all the musicals I’ve worked on, CMTS is really organised. We got into a really nice beat, it was less worrisome than a lot of other shows I’ve done.
TC: That actually leads me to my next question, what was the audition process like?
MD: Yeah, oh my God, it was crazy. Like I said, we auditioned 60 people but we only had two days to do it. So basically, we saw 30 people a day and I never realised how exhausting it could be. You think it’d be more exhausting to audition but it was crazy. Ultimately, it was really good though because we got to see a lot of great talent. The dancers especially. I’m not much of a dancer so I was very impressed.
TC: So you must’ve had a really good production team with you then?
MD: Oh yeah, that was definitely the cast. We had a brilliant choreographer, a musical director, producers. It was a really great core, I was really pleased.
TC: What can audiences expect from the show?
MD: They can expect to be razzle-dazzled (laughs). They will be surprised, they can expect a good satire. That’s the beautiful thing about Chicago, is that it still speaks to us today. It covers gun violence, feminism, the entertainment business, and money corruption. All of it is so real, unfortunately still real. They can expect a good dose of that.
TC: My next question for you is do you have any advice for anyone who wants to get involved with CMTS?
MD: Write to the board. You can tell them what you’re interested in doing, whether it’s with production or behind the scenes stuff. Anything that you’re interested in, they will find a position for you. It’s the easiest and best way. If you want to come and audition, follow the Facebook page because it’s the place to get information and updates. Honestly, we have the best volunteers as well, there’s a position for every kind of personality. That’s what I love about theatre, there’s all types involved.
TC: Any predictions or hopes for next year’s show?
MD: I have an idea of what they might do, but I don’t know if that’s what they’re going to do. It’s gonna be hard to top Chicago (laughs). It’s a really big show and it’s a well-known show, it’s got its place in mainstream culture. For budding companies like CMTS, people will show up because they know it. I hope that next year, they keep going with shows that audiences will know and once it’s well-established, you can do more niche, more musical nerd shows and more people will show up because they’ve got that.
Photo provided
