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The play about Siamese twins who become theater stars was a flop on Broadway, but producers say this production in a smaller space is more moving.
By JOHN FLEMING
© St. Petersburg Times, published October 25, 2001
The Siamese twins Violet and Daisy Hilton are an odd but compelling footnote in American cultural history. They make an appearance in Freaks, the 1932 cult film by horror auteur Todd Browning, and they have been a persistent source of metaphorical theorizing by academics, as in Leslie Fiedler's 1978 book, Freaks: Myths and Images of the Secret Self.
Now musical theater discovers the sisters in Side Show, which is about Siamese twins who rise from being carnival freaks to vaudeville and theater stars during the Depression. The show with music by Henry Krieger (Dreamgirls) and book and lyrics by Bill Russell receives its Tampa Bay premiere in a production at Gorilla Theatre.
Susan Hussey, Gorilla's co-producer, thinks the musical has special appeal in the Tampa Bay area, with its tradition as a winter home for circus and carnival people in the Hillsborough County town of Gibsonton.
"One of the things that helps us is that we have a lot of show people in this area," Hussey said. "Some of them will have even known the Hilton sisters."
Hussey herself has a carnival background, having been married to a magician and worked as his assistant. In fact, the marriage ceremony was held at the Gibsonton house of Ward Hall, a well-known side show impresario. Hussey's current husband and co-producer of Gorilla, Aubrey Hampton, also once worked as a ventriloquist in side shows.
"We're always on the lookout for interesting musical projects, but this one appealed because both of us have backgrounds in show business," Hussey said. "Also because we just love the show."
Despite some great notices, Side Show was a flop on Broadway in 1997-98, no doubt because its potentially squeamish scenario would seem to be an unlikely vehicle for a musical. It is a challenge for the actors who plays the sisters: Violet, who wants to find a husband and settle down, and Daisy, who seeks fame and "frenzied acclaim." The conflict between such disparate aims, not to mention the problem of being joined to each other at the hip, spawns a surprisingly wide range of songs, from the bravura We Share Everything, with the sisters as queens of ancient Egypt, to songs about identity and self.
"The theme of the show is the search for love, the search for acceptance," Hussey said. "These are universal themes. One of the most moving songs is when the twins sing Who Will Love Me as I Am? The fact that the people who ask the question happen to be Siamese twins adds appeal and curiosity, but it doesn't change the universality of the question. Everybody has asked that question at some point in their lives."
The Gorilla production, directed by Brett Smock, stars Gaelen Gilliland as Daisy and Maria Couch as Violet. With a cast of 14 and a four-piece band, it is the largest show the company has ever done, at a cost of close to $100,000, Hussey said. Lino Toyos designed the set, which transforms the 80-seat venue into a multilevel, in-the-round space.
Hussey liked the Broadway production but thinks Side Show will benefit from being staged in a smaller space.
"Our theater is so poised to give our audience a very intense experience," she said. "You can see the performers. We have maximized that exposure and that ability to reach out and touch them. It's going to be a very emotionally intense experience to see this show."
Side Show, a musical by Henry Krieger and Bill Russell, opens tonight at Gorilla Theatre and runs through Nov. 18. Show times: 7 p.m Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 3 and 8 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: $20 and $25. (813) 879-2914.