Pump Boys & Dinettes?

totallyfrozen · #1 03-18-2011, 02:31 AM

As some of you may know from my profile, in addition to playing bass, I'm an amature actor. Well, I recently landed the role of the bassist in a musical called Pump Boys & Dinettes.

I've listened to the soundtrack and to be honest, I think the music sucks. It's a cross between 70's Country and Showtunes. Imagine Alabama on Broadway...not my thing. Anyway, it's a chance to push myself a bit since I'll have to act as well as play bass (and possibly sing) in this show.

This play was written circa 1982...just FYI.

Is anyone around here familiar with this show?
Have any of you been in this show before?

Opinons? Anecdotes? Horror stories?

hrodbert696 · #2 03-18-2011, 04:26 AM

Never heard of it. Do you actually play on stage? Maybe they wrote it particularly dull and horrible on the assumption that a non-bassist actor would have to be able to pull it off with only four weeks' rehearsal.

jackson62 · #3 03-18-2011, 04:46 AM

Yep, I played Pump Boys and Dinettes. It was a time when I needed a gig so I did it. I played it 15 weeks... 8 shows a week. It was an ok experience but was glad when it was over!

dave_p · #4 03-18-2011, 07:01 AM

i remember the tv ads running for it on greater metro NYC television back in the 80's. The show has been around a long time. i say cool, do it!

BassChuck · #5 03-18-2011, 08:39 AM

I've played it. Not horrible, but more country than I would choose. If you have good players and the vocal stuff on stage is together it's reasonably pleasant. We played on stage and there were a few bits between the band and actors, but not a lot. What I remember the most is the notation was a little sketchy, but that was 10 years ago, maybe they've cleaned that up. Have a good time.

totallyfrozen · #6 03-19-2011, 12:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hrodbert696

Never heard of it. Do you actually play on stage? Maybe they wrote it particularly dull and horrible on the assumption that a non-bassist actor would have to be able to pull it off with only four weeks' rehearsal.

Yes, we'll be playing on stage.
Well, the play was actually written by a band so it wasn't written for non-musicians. There are 14 songs in the show. They are actual songs. My only problem with the music is that I don't like that style of music. I took the role because I want the challenge of blending acting and playing in a show. Other actors in town have been giving me congratulations left and right for being cast in the show. One guy who's in the show that I'm acting in now says that he loves Pump Boys & Dinettes and can't wait to see it. Said he's seen it before. I guess it's supposed to be pretty hilarious and fun.
Overall, I expect it to be a good learning experience for both my acting and my bass playing.

totallyfrozen · #7 03-19-2011, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackson62

Yep, I played Pump Boys and Dinettes. It was a time when I needed a gig so I did it. I played it 15 weeks... 8 shows a week. It was an ok experience but was glad when it was over!

8 SHOWS A WEEK?! That's insane! Was that 7 days a week or just 2 shows for 4 days?
I guess you've had your fill of it (no pun intended) then.

totallyfrozen · #8 03-20-2011, 01:13 PM

Yup!
My origninal fears were confirmed. I looked into this show a little more (it's on YouTube too) and the music certainly sucks...A LOT!!
This is what I get for agreeing to play in a show before I knew what the show was. Not to mention I've never met ANY of the cast members before let alone played with any of them.

Aw...YUK!

Somebody shoot me...please.

MichaelVee · #9 03-20-2011, 08:51 PM

TF, I played it for three nights around New Year's this year. Some of the songs are sappy, sure. It's not all that bad, though. It's not as much acting as you are thinking. Basically, this is all it is. Eddie the bass player brings out the raffle board for the air fresheners at the beginning of the show and shows it to the audience. For Taking it Slow, he counts off the song, then plays a short bass solo later during that song. He also brings over the raffle board at the beginning of Act II and draws the ticket, announcing the winner. The waitresses also call Eddie by name a few times, but you just react, you don't have lines there unless you want to throw something in. In our production, everyone was encouraged to ham it up, so we did some extra talking here and there that wasn't in the script book. Yours may not be as loose as ours. Give it a try, it's fun. I didn't like the soundtrack either, but the show is more fun live than you think, especially if you have good musicians with you. Good luck with it!

SR505bassman · #10 03-20-2011, 09:26 PM

Saw this show last summer with Pam Tillis in it (daughter of country music star Mel). Aside from the genre it was a fun show to watch. The bass player really did not have to do much, and if I remember correctly the bass parts were mostly country two-notes and basic 1-4-5 bluesish stuff. Have fun and ham up the acting - stretch yourself

totallyfrozen · #11 03-20-2011, 10:46 PM

Thanks, Mike...That's encouraging. I've done enough theater to know that usually if you just read the script, the shows don't sound very fun or creative. Once it's all put together it usually ends up being better than the script alone would imply. This show does have some of the better actors/actresses in town in it so I assume it will probably end up being decent and--hopefully--funny. I've agreed to be "Eddie" so I'm just going to jump in and roll with it. Sounds like the character will be all too easy to pull off. I've played some rather "unique" characters with LOTS of dialog in the past so saying a few lines here and there doesn't sound like much of a feat.

SR505, thanks. Yeah, stretching myself is exactly why I took this role. I plan to use it as an opportunity to challenge myself--especially if I can take songs that aren't particularly catchy or interesting and make them 1/2 way decent. I guess how much freedom I'll be given will be up to the music director, but I'm hoping that they won't run this show too strictly. IMO...just my opinion, mind you...the songs aren't so great the way they're written and there is some room to make them better. I'm hoping we get the flexibility to do that.

totallyfrozen · #12 03-27-2011, 01:26 PM

Well, I had to back out of this show afterall. My car took the dirt nap. Cylinder head is cracked so without extensive repair, it's out of service for good. Kind of ironic that I lost the Pump Boys gig do to a car problem. Too bad, really. The music was mediocre but I was looking forward to playing the show anyway.

okcrum · #13 04-01-2011, 04:36 PM

It would have been a good opportunity to play professionally material you weren't particularly a fan of.

totallyfrozen · #14 04-03-2011, 01:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by okcrum

It would have been a good opportunity to play professionally material you weren't particularly a fan of.

Yes. That's exactly why I accepted the role/gig to begin with. When I was a radio DJ years ago, I learned the lesson that I don't always have to LIKE what I play in order to do it and do it well. "Show business" is called SHOW biz and not FUN biz for a reason. You don't always have to BE having fun...you just have to SHOW the audience that you're having fun.

It would have been a personal challenge to play some songs that I wasn't really into and have to MAKE myself get into them to pull it off. You know, after listening to the soundtrack and working on learning the songs, I began to like the songs more. I think that's another thing that some guys might forget about: Once you put your fingers into some music, you will begin to FIND the beauty of it and the music will grow on you even if it wasn't your thing to begin with.

It's part of being pro. We don't have to be getting paid to be professional. We can be professional about it in any case.