Synopsis
Polly and the Penthouse: A Spirited Cabaret is evolving. It no longer wishes to be a big musical. The Cabaret follows Polly, a time-traveling ‘everywoman’ who arrives in Vancouver’s notorious Penthouse Nightclub. There she takes on a variety of roles and, along the way, makes discoveries which trigger change in herself, her colleagues, and the culture of the Penthouse. The finished script will consist of up to nine cabaret numbers highlighting selected elements of the club’s remarkable history inspired by truth, myth, and a focus on diverse women’s Penthouse stories. There is much to choose from: boxing; vaudeville; family, celebrities; exotic dancers; cops; rounders; sex workers; comedians; politicians, and murder.
Premiere
Polly and the Penthouse will live on, but there’s a lot of work to do. Covid 19 brought Polly to a halt. Prior to that, Polly was on a roll thanks to: Laura Di Cicco, AD Fugue Theatre (now defunct); Touchstone Theatre ADs, Katrina Dunn then Roy Surette; The Penthouse Nightclub; my writing partner Britt MacLeod (composition and lyrics); the many talented artists who brought skill, pizazz, and some fabulous pole dancing to the work; and our packed ‘In Tune’ audiences. The joint was jumping! Onward Polly…
On Another Note…
Polly and the Penthouse, in its unfinished state, was submitted to the National Centre for New Musicals and selected from 260 submissions to move onto Round 2 of their Development Stream. Very encouraging!
Audio Samples
A taste of each of the numbers below
Track 1: Noli Me Tangeré (Don’t Touch Me)
A gospel-inspired show number sung by character Raven and ensemble.
Book and lyrics: Sally Stubbs
Composer: Diane Lines
Arrangement of original composition: Jenny Anderson, Britt Macleod
Singers: Luisa Jojic, Sara Vickruck, Laura Di Cicco, Britt MacLeod, Tom Pickett, Kazz Leskard.
Musical Direction/Piano on all archival tracks: Christopher King
Track 2: Hip Hip!
In vaudevillian style, Joe, host and emcee, sums up Penthouse instructions relating to raids and other tricky situations.
By Sally Stubbs & Britt MacLeod
Singers: Kazz Leskard as Joe interacts in patter with Tom Pickett as ‘Bud’
Track 3: Knockout
a boxing duet between young Polly and Raylene.
By Sally Stubbs & Britt MacLeod
Singers: Sara Vickruck and Luisa Jojic
