There are numerous iconic roles that actors dream of playing some day, and Tennessee Williams has penned quite a number of these characters in his many treasured American classics. For Gordon Carmadelle, a Louisiana-born actor who now resides in Los Angeles, Brick Pollitt of Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is one such dream character.
"I first read this play about 18 years ago when I started at Louisiana State. It was set in a southern culture, where football heroes ruled the day and the facade of southern grace and manners hid much darker themes of truth," Gordon shared. "Being from the south, I connected in many ways to the characters and the story, and to Tennessee's writing. It was always one of my favorites, and I always wanted to play Brick ... to have a chance to say those words."
More recently, Gordon was working on a scene from the show in an acting class and had it with him while on a trip home to Louisiana to visit his family. "My father is the definition of a ‘blue-collar' worker - someone who has worked with his hands his whole life, almost entirely under the scorching Louisiana sun - so the theater was never something that we really talked about," he explained. "But he saw the play in my hands and asked: ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof - that's the play about mendacity, isn't it?'" That comment lead to the only conversation about a play Gordon and his father have ever shared. "We talked about the play and its characters, Big Daddy and Brick, and of course, Maggie the Cat. That always meant the world to me, and I knew that one day I would have to speak Williams' lines on stage, in honor of that moment and my own roots."
Instead of waiting around, Gordon decided that if he wanted to play this role, it was up to him to make it happen. Thus began the brain-child known as Nola Productions and its inaugural production, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which will play for five performances, July 14-17, at the Center Stage Theater in Santa Barbara.
The out-of-town location came into play when, upon applying for the rights, Gordon found out that permission to do this show was restricted in the Los Angeles area. In scouting locations outside the limited vicinity, he came across the coastal town of Santa Barbara. "I drove up and found this intimate black box theater called Center Stage," he shared. "It's on top of this gorgeous outdoor mall on State Street - a great, central area amidst shops, cafes, museums, etc." Between an ideal location and a beautiful drive up the coast, he knew this was the place to stage the show.
Gordon then approached friend and fellow thespian Carol Becker to direct. The two began the leg work for what would be the July 2011 production and with that, the ball was officially rolling. Early spring auditions then brought together a cast that includes Megan Blakeley as Maggie, Oh Rhyne as Big Daddy, Kenlyn Kanouse as Big Mama, Jeffrey Olin as Gooper, Ariella Fiore as Mae, Perry Sheilds as Rev. Tooker, George Lofland as Doc Baugh, and of course, Gordon Carmadelle as Brick.
Both Gordon and Carol agree that there is a reason Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is as popular today as ever. "The themes that Williams wrote about - family, truth, greed, sexuality, alcoholism, deception - are just as vivid and present in people's everyday lives in one form or another as they were in 1955." Gordon continued to disclose that "most have only seen the film version, which had to edit much of the story Williams wanted to tell due to Motion Picture Association codes in place at the time. We have a chance to show new audiences a play that perhaps they know of, but have never actually seen." And their hope is that many people in both the Los Angeles and Santa Barbara areas take advantage of their staging the play to see that story.
This show may have been inspired by his own family and his roots, but Gordon feels that every audience member can see some part of their own lives or their own families onstage while watching this play. "I decided to produce this show to honor the brilliant work of
Tennessee Williams, and to honor how the written word and theater itself can create moments that truly do bring two people together in unexpected ways."
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, presented by Nola Productions and directed by Carol Becker, plays July 14-17, 2011 at the Center Stage Theater in Santa Barbara. Show dates/times are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $25 for General Admission, $20 for Seniors and Students. Visit
www.catoncenterstage.com for more information, including links to purchase tickets online. Tickets may also be purchased by calling the Center Stage Box Office at (805) 963-0408 (V/TDD).
Photos by Liz Reinhardt
Gordon Carmadelle and Megan Blakeley
Kenlyn Kanouse, Jeffrey Olin, Ariella Fiore, George Lofland, Gordon Carmadelle and Megan Blakeley
Megan Blakeley, Gordon Carmadelle, Kenlyn Kanouse, Oh Rhyne, Ariella Fiore and Jeffrey Olin
