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From Under the Sea to the top of Notre Dame, it's a Whole New World

Theatre Collingwood's next production is an original work honouring the life and music of Alan Menken, a Disney renaissance man

The next show at Collingwood’s Gayety Theatre promises 'A Whole New World' for audiences. With characters such as a hunchback, a mermaid, a beast and a street rat, it’s a little 'Out There', but they’re all 'Part of That World'.

Adrian Marchuk is back, and this time he’s created a tribute to one of the men responsible for Disney’s animation renaissance: Alan Menken.

Menken and Harold Ashman caught their big break with Little Shop of Horrors – the highest grossing off-broadway show of all time. When it became a movie, they were “in” with Hollywood and picked up by Disney. At the time, Disney hadn’t made a hit in 20 years. Their latest film, The Black Cauldron, sent children running and screaming from the theatre. Menken and Ashman wrote the music and lyrics for The Little Mermaid.

“They brought broadway to Disney,” said Marchuk, who has researched Menken’s life and created the show to celebrate his work. “The animated musical really didn’t exist until Menken did it with The Little Mermaid, and then went on to do Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas, Hercules, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.”

Marchuk is a fan. He grew up watching and loving Aladdin, which was the first film he saw in theatres.

“It’s the soundtrack of our childhoods,” said Marchuk. “It’s a look into the life of a man who really brought a phenomenal gift and a phenomenal musical versatility to Disney.”

Menken had Broadway roots and he stayed true to them in his work. It was he and Ashman who adapted Beauty and the Beast for Broadway, even though nobody thought it would work. Beauty and the Beast is the most expensive and most successful Broadway musical of all time.

“I loved creating this show, and looking into the history of it all – the good parts and the bad parts. Hello, Pocahontas?” said Marchuk. “I am so excited to be working on this show. It is such great music to sing, it is so much fun. These songs move us. I can’t get through some of this music without crying. I can’t get through some of this music without grinning ear to ear.”

Marchuk became an actor, singer, teacher, and producer in Toronto. He performed as Frankie Valli in the Toronto and Las Vegas production of Jersey Boys for three years.

Marchuk has created shows for Theatre Collingwood in the past, bringing Any Dream Will Do, the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber; and Over The Rainbow, the Harold Arlen Story.

“It’s the music you love, but it’s the stories you don’t know,” said Marchuk.

The show features four actors including Marchuk, Stewart Adam McKensy, Dana Jean Phoenix, and Camila Diaz-Varela. They are backed by a three-piece band. Menken’s story will be part of the performance.

“It’s intertwined as the narrative of his life is mirrored in the shows that he’s doing,” said Marchuk. “You’re going to get all those great songs you want to hear. You’re also going to get the stories you never knew.”

The show, called A Whole New World, the Musical Magic of Alan Menken, runs Oct. 11-13 with one show each night at 8 p.m. and a 3 p.m. matinee on Saturday, Oct. 13. Typically Marchuk’s shows run for six performances, so get tickets early. They are available online here. The performance is family-friendly.


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Erika Engel

About the Author: Erika Engel

Erika regularly covers all things news in Collingwood as a reporter and editor. She has 15 years of experience as a local journalist
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