By Angela Peavey
It’s like “Modern Family” meets wedding party drama when Saugatuck Center for the Arts’ Mason Street Warehouse (MSW) theatre company presents “It Shoulda Been You,” a musical comedy about an unforgettable wedding day with a game-changing plot twist. The final production of MSW’s 15th season runs from Aug. 18 – Sept. 3. Tickets are available online at sc4a.org, by phone at 269-857-2399, or at the box office.
“It Shoulda Been You” invites you to a wedding day you’ll never forget, where anything that can go wrong does, and love pops up in mysterious places. The bride is Jewish. The groom is Catholic. Her mother is a force of nature; his mother is a tempest in a cocktail shaker. And when the bride’s ex-boyfriend shows up, the perfect wedding starts to unravel faster than you can whistle “Here Comes the Bride.” Plots are hatched, pacts are made, secrets are exposed – and the sister of the bride is left to turn a tangled mess into happily ever after.
“This new musical, this Broadway season’s freshest and funniest to date, defies skepticism, both in its wacky humor and its big, buoyant heart,” said USA Today of ‘It Shoulda Been You.’ The Dallas News called the musical comedy a “frothy escape into a world of unexpected happy endings.”
Directed and choreographed by Saugatuck Center for the Arts (SCA) Artistic Director Kurt Stamm, “It Shoulda Been You” welcomes back several MSW alumni actors, including David R. Gordon who starred as Huey Calhoun in the SCA’s first production of the summer, “Memphis: the Musical.”
“I’m very excited about our upcoming production of ‘It Shoulda Been You’ because we have so many MSW alumni coming back to work with us,” said Stamm. “Of the 13 cast members, seven of them have worked at Mason Street before, so it will be like a family reunion… a good family reunion! I also really love this show. It’s incredibly charming and funny, and has one of the best plot twists you’ll find in a musical.”
In addition to his lead role as Huey Calhoun in “Memphis: the Musical,” David R. Gordon has also performed in the international tour of Grease and the first national tour of “Flashdance the Musical.” “It Shoulda Been You” also features Beth Glover, who performed in MSW’s very first season in “Dirty Blonde,” and most recently in “Death Trap,” as well as the Broadway national tour of “Cinderella,” as the Wicked Step Mother and in the film “The Awakening.”
Also returning from “Memphis: the Musical” is David Spencer, who won a Wilde Award for Best Supporting Actor in MSW’s 2011 production of The 39 Steps. “It Shoulda Been You” also features Michael Iannucci, who last appeared at MSW in “Chicago the Musical” and has performed in the national tours of “Annie” and “Fiddler on the Roof.”
Returning actress Ellie Francis performed in last summer’s production of “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” and before that in “Evita.” Also returning is Natalie Renee who was last seen at MSW in “Avenue Q.” Casey Prins, who was originally a backstage intern for “Xanadu” in 2013 and has since gone on to perform in the national tour of “Annie” and the regional tour of “Mary Poppins,” will be playing the role of Rebecca.
“It Shoulda Been You” also features Broadway talent Susan Cella, who has performed in “The Babylon Line” at Lincoln Center and in the national tours of “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Hairspray.” Cella has been featured on “The Sopranos” and “All My Children.” “It Shoulda Been You” also features Mark Epperson, whose theatre credits include the international tour of “Mamma Mia!” and “Chicago the Musical,” as well as the national tour of “Elf the Musical.”
Rounding out the rest of the cast are Katie Finan, David Duiven, Michael Glavan, and Jeff Meyer. Get ready to make a toast to the funniest wedding you’ve ever attended!
