Local Playwright Willie Wood to Stage Original Musical at Carmel Community Playhouse

Willie Wood, an aspiring playwright from Westfield has spent more than a year working diligently on a script for a show inspired by singer June Christy's 1954's landmark jazz vocal, Something Cool. On June 24th, five young actors will bring Wood's script to life on the stage of the Carmel Community Playhouse at Clay Terrace. The proceeds will benefit the Carmel Community Players. The June 24th, opening night performance is already sold out.

Something Cool, set in 1953 Anaheim, California, is centered around two young sisters on their quest for love on the morning of an 18th birthday. They enter a friend's fathers' bar, expecting a little fun. What they find instead is Maggie, a mysterious traveler with a past, who is more than willing to teach the ways of love. They also find a passionate young traveling salesman. One of these two, and maybe both, has something dreadful to hide. Can the girls find love, can Maggie find redemption, and can they all find solutions to the several mysteries that unfold?

Wood explains how the show came to be.

"In 2009 I was fortunate enough to direct Dames At Sea at Guerin Catholic High School in Noblesville, Indiana. We had a week off between performances, and I was listening to some music my dad left me. June Christy's song Something Cool, which I had known for a while, really struck me. The lady in the song really told a story about herself. Then I listened to two more songs, these by Lola Albright: A Man, A Man, A Man, and Aren't You Kinda' Glad We Did?

Well, these songs told me about two more characters... those characters told their stories...those stories helped me choose more songs. And then the actresses appeared.

So I sketched out a story which turned out to be dreadfully depressing and cautionary. So I immersed myself in 1950s radio shows to get a better feel for the time period, and then found a little twist in the plot that moved the show in a different direction."

As for the cast, Wood chose some very accomplished talent from Carmel to portray his characters. Kelly Krauter plays "Maggie". A recent Carmel High School graduate, she has appeared in numerous Theater Productions in and around Indianapolis with her parents and siblings. "Something Cool had to be Kelly Krauter. She's astonishingly beautiful and equally talented. She had to sing this song, and play the role of Maggie. Kelly named her character Maggie, by the way," says Wood.

Ellie McCracken, another recent Carmel High School graduate plays "Phoebe". Wood says that besides being another beautiful young lady, she's engaging, uplifting, and curiously whimsical, and a real natural, which all make her perfect for the role of Phoebe, the Sinatra-obsessed younger sister in the musical. "Ellie is a real gem... and she keeps us all guessing what crazy thing she's going to do to/with us next: kickboxing, pushups... and her stories are frequent, and often startling."

"A Man, A Man, A Man could only be tackled by one actress I knew: Lauren Elaine Bowers, a recent graduate of Guerin Catholic High School. Lauren, peculiarly and immensely talented, was one of the brave souls who took a chance on a first-time director (me) and starred in Dames At Sea. She was my "Ruby". Lauren named her character "June", after June Christy," says Wood.

Other cast members are Chris Wood, as the world's youngest bartender, and love interest to the mysterious Maggie, and John McLean as the travelling salesman with a secret in his suitcase.

Something Cool will open June 24th at the Carmel Community Playhouse at Clay Terrace. Showtimes are June 24th at 8:00pm (Sold Out), June 25th at 2:30 & 8:00pm, June 26th at 2:30 & 8:00pm, and June 27th at 2:30pm. Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for seniors/students. Tickets are $10 each for groups of ten or more. To purchase tickets, visit www.carmelplayers.org or call 317.815.9387. For more information about the production, visit www.somethingcoolmusical.com or www.carmelplayhouse.com.

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