STATE COLLEGE — FUSE Productions presents the classic 1960 musical ‘Camelot,’ Thursday, June 22, through Sunday, June 25, at Penn State’s Schwab Auditorium.
The Thursday, Friday and Saturday performances will be at 7:30 p.m., and the Sunday performance will be a 2 p.m. matinee.
With a libretto and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, this production stars Steve Snyder as King Arthur, Kayla Marie Berghoff as Guenevere and Michael Pilato as Lancelot in a tragic love triangle based on timeless Arthurian tales.
In medieval England, young King Arthur hopes to create an idyllic kingdom guided by honor and righteousness, embodied by his Knights of the Round Table. Arthur’s dream is inspired by his vivacious Queen Guenevere. Together, they create Camelot, where might works at the service of right and the king serves at a round table with no head — a symbol of collaboration and unity.
When Guenevere begins a romance with Arthur’s most celebrated and loyal knight, Lancelot, the utopia begins to fall apart. Their troubles are compounded when Arthur’s illegitimate son, Mordred, arrives on the scene. Ultimately, Arthur is left with only the hope of inspiring the next generation with his vision of a just society.
‘Camelot’ was adapted by Lerner from T.H. White’s 1958 Arthurian fantasy novel ‘The Once and Future King,’ itself based on Sir Thomas Malory’s 15th-century ‘Le Morte d’Arthur’ and even earlier Arthurian legends.
The original Broadway production, directed by Moss Hart and starring Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, Robert Goulet and Roddy McDowall, opened at the Majestic Theatre on Dec. 3, 1960, and ran for 873 performances. It won four Tony awards and led to several revivals, foreign productions and a 1967 movie version. The original cast album topped Billboard’s mono album chart for six weeks in the summer of 1961 and was the biggest-selling record of 1961.
“’Camelot’ is a show that I’ve always admired,” said director and producer Rich Biever, in a press release. “It feels well-written, solid. And, we’re continuing our tradition of producing a ‘Golden Age’ Broadway show in June — especially after ‘My Fair Lady,’ which also starred Steve Snyder, was such a hit last year.”
Biever said that ‘Camelot’ fits in with the company’s current season-long theme of “political power plays.”
“Although this is a violent and epic tragedy, it ultimately provides a more idealistic and inspirational message than some of our earlier shows. There’s the gleam of hope that Arthur’s vision will live on.
‘As Alan Jay Lerner himself said, Arthur’s tale ‘contains the aspirations of all humankind.’”
Penn State theater professor Snyder looks forward to portraying King Arthur.
“One of the things I love most about him,” he said, “is that he has a real ache to do something that matters, something great, that will make a real difference in the quality of people’s lives. At such a time as this, that kind of ache really resonates.”
Snyder also appreciates the “talented and generous-spirited team” involved with the production.
“The script and score are so strong, and Rich (Biever) knows them inside and out. I’m very happy to be working with him and choreographer Jill Brighton again. Finally, this production has further special meaning to me, as I’ll get to share the stage again with my wife, Libby Snyder, my sons, Elijah and Luca, and a few of my students.”
As Guenevere, New York City actress Berghoff is playing a dream role in a show that has been a family favorite since she was little.
“I used to sit 5 feet away from our TV screen, watching it over and over and singing along while wearing a fake crown,” she said. “It’s been a joy to work on ‘Camelot’ so far, and I’m enjoying my first visit to State College, as well.”
Berghoff holds a master’s of fine arts in acting from the New School for Drama and has held leading roles in many stage, film and TV productions.
Starring as Lancelot is New York-based actor Pilato, who recently appeared in a national tour of Green Day’s ‘American Idiot.’ He is enjoying a return to the Centre Region, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in music theatre performance from Penn State in 2013 and acted under Biever’s direction in ‘Sunday in the Park with George.’
“Lancelot is a character with a very substantial and consistent story arc, so I need to draw heavily on my Penn State training to meet the challenge of portraying him,” Pilato said.
Local favorite James McCready will be appearing in his 20th FUSE production. This time, he is enjoying the role of Arthur’s illegitimate son, Mordred, the show’s villain.
“In my personal life, I’m a bit of a contrarian,” he said, “and I’ve enjoyed reading about Mordred in the T.H. White novel.
‘My character is very smart, but not a knight, so he knows that he might have fared better if the Round Table had not come into being. And, finally, if King Arthur fails and falls, who gets the throne?”
Tickets are $25 for adults, $30 for premium seating and $15 for students, and can be purchased at www.fuseproductions.thundertix.com.
