Feature: Kevin Johnson Talks Arizona OnStage, Audience Development, Return of HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH

If indeed we're approaching the climax of a drawn-out pandemic, expect to see better days ahead for a convalescent theater community.

A cloud of uncertainty weighed heavy on the creative business. Dark houses became our new normal once Broadway, the so-called mothership, bade the public goodbye with no sign of imminent return.

Not to get maudlin, but it's the cadence of a new dawn; the crossfade to a sunrise on a dark cyclorama. Closures and vaccinations aside, an artist's resilience is the underrated virtue we ought to acknowledge.

So if you come across the canard of Arizona OnStage becoming an artifact of its glory years, artistic director Kevin Johnson wants to convey a succinct message: The company is not going anywhere.

To a prolific artist, a two-year intermission from his prized dharma can be insufferable. But hindsight shows Johnson the unexpected corollary of a necessary shutdown - an abundance of time for self-reflection and to "rethink my priorities."

If you're among those familiar with Johnson's body of work, you may recall the halcyon days of bold, captivating productions that defined his intrepid pursuit: FALSETTOLAND, ASSASSINS, A NEW BRAIN, THE STORY OF MY LIFE, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, just to name a few.

The founding director of Tucson's flagship musical theater company is back with a rosy vengeance, raring to treat local audiences to the quality of programming they deserve. He returns with HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, which suffered an abrupt end after opening night two years ago as Covid-19 began to ravage the country.

That said, Johnson's excitement bears the attendant sense of misgiving. He points to a markedly changed behavior among today's audiences with regard to viewing choices, a curious trend that began long before the pandemic made its way.

Since 2003, Arizona Onstage has clocked in 46 musicals and 27 non-musicals. Going forward, Johnson is aware that he's navigating a terrain that looks nothing like his first few years as a producer-director.

"In the last 10 to 15 years there's been a lot of change in audiences as far as what they're wanting to see and what they're willing to pay for," says Johnson. "When I first started, people were willing to take a risk on seeing a show that they had never heard of. Then gradually - and I think this had to do with a lot of governmental and economic changes - I noticed, even in the last ten years, that whenever Arizona Onstage would stage a musical that hadn't been seen 15 times already, we had a hard time selling tickets. We had a hard time convincing people to come in.

"And the first few years, we never did. Like A NEW BRAIN - no one had ever heard of that show...It was a great show, with Ben Crawford, who is now [the lead] in PHANTOM OF THE OPERA on Broadway. And people were like, 'you know what, let's try something new.' And we just don't have that in them anymore. They don't want to take the risk."

For the record, I share Johnson's lament about the surprising Broadway revival of MUSIC MAN, with Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, and WICKED's umpteenth drive-by at UA Centennial Hall. The former opened to mixed reviews, some downright ruthless, but why should they matter if tickets are sold out for the next couple of years? And WICKED - well, everyone came out of hiding to fill the house.

More on Johnson's observations: "These new musicals that are coming up, very few and far between - people say, 'I've never heard of it, why would I go see it?' WICKED just got through its fourth time through Tucson, and literally almost every seat is sold out. But then, a show like HADESTOWN - we were one of the first cities to get the tour - and I hear, 'Why should I see it? I've never heard of it,' despite the fact that it's won all of these Tony Awards. They don't want to take the risk. It's not just Tucson. Even in New York [with all the brilliant new shows], people are going to see what they already know."

Johnson doesn't mean to quibble over a lost cultural discipline as much as he seeks to direct our focus to a fundamental discourse around audience retention. His words are a call to action, to inspire support for the works of a new breed of artists. I echo the sentiment: We need to take the risk if we are to remain a relevant artistic community of the 21st Century.

Moreover, it's not about spurning classic material. There will always be revivals and we have much to learn from them, especially when they're rendered with an eye toward a modern zeitgeist. But when caught between a new challenge and a rehash of dated motifs, the choice should be a no-brainer.

Beyond our appetite for pure entertainment, Johnson advocates for raising the standard of our theater consumption: theater that elevates our intelligence and compassion, especially in light of our divisive politics and the insidious disinformation campaign that confronts the public psyche.

Judging from our recent interview, Johnson is mindful that good theater is the counterpoint to our social ills, even as he recalls the few times he felt compromised to produce certain shows below his aesthetic standards - just to keep the lights on, so to speak. While it's a small and tidy concession, his commitment to raising audience standards remains unassailable.

With HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, Johnson will remind audiences of his theatrical pedigree and style: edgy, innovative, controversial, and proud. The show is a shrewd piece to punctuate his timely return. A rock musical memoir by John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask (directed by Shana Nunez), HEDWIG is the sort of primal scream we need to take us out of a global nightmare. Ready or not, the electrifying musical will jolt people out of their Covid-induced stupor, courtesy of the rapturous genderqueer singer of a fictional rock and roll band. It's brave, funny, and heartbreaking.

Arizona OnStage takes great pride in featuring Jordon Ross Seibert in the titular role, who won The Baltimore Sun's Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Hedwig. Ross is joined by MAC AWARD winner Liz Cracchiolo as Yitzhak, a whirlwind turnaround for the singer-actress after a successful one-woman cabaret performance in New York City.

HEDWIG opened Off-Broadway in 1998 and won the Obie Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Musical. HEDWIG finally made it to Broadway in 2014 and won the Tony Award for Best Musical Revival. It has received high praise for its dauntless examination of queer identity and for the story's heroic take on individualism and for the character's valiant journey to find love "by looking within."

To say the least, Kevin Johnson hopes to bedazzle audiences at the Cabaret Space of the Temple of Music and Art. He plans to take HEDWIG on tour, but until such an announcement is made, Tucson folks would do well to book their tickets to this limited run.

And what is next on Arizona Onstage's calendar? More will be revealed, but we already know he's obtained the rights to another Tony Award-winning musical: FUN HOME by Lisa Kron. While he is accustomed to staging up to seven shows a year, Johnson finds wisdom in focusing on two shows, at least for now.

Without the responsibility of a full season, don't be surprised to see him sooner than later on the stage. If you think he's not one to multi-task, think again. He has managed to build a reputable professional company while teaching full-time at Basis Tucson, where he has taught all grade levels for 23 years.

Ironically, it was at Basis Tucson where Johnson produced the show he is most proud of: BRUNDIBAR - HEAR MY VOICE, a children's opera by Krass and Hoffmeister about a group of concentration camp youth who perform a musical to deceive Red Cross officials in the Theresienstadt concentration camp. He sold out six shows on the main stage of the Temple of Music and Art. Part of that crowning achievement was getting to work with Ela Stein-Weissberger, a holocaust survivor from the same camp who flew in to Tucson to provide first-hand dramaturgy.

Johnson says, "THIS is the kind of theater I want to push. To educate. To rethink. To learn. I think maybe I learn more than anyone. Shows like this make me feel like what I do has a lasting effect."

In Collaboration with SPARK, Arizona OnStage presents HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH on March 18-27. Friday shows are 3/18 and 3/25; Saturdays on 3/19 and 3/26 at 8 PM; Sundays on 3/20 and 3/27 at 5 PM. General admission is $25; $20 for teachers, students, military, seniors 65 and older. Cast and crew have been vaccinated and boosted. Audiences are required to show proof of double vaccination and wear a mask.

Photo Credit: Patrick McArdle

The Cabaret Space, Temple of Music and Art 330 S. Scott Avenue

For tickets, visit: www.arizonaonstage.org or Kevin Johnson at Kjohnson.stage or 520-834-1824

To post a comment, you must register and login.