How do you fit “Saturday's Warrior” and its sequel into the same evening? “With a lot of imaginative writing, a great director, and wonderful actors,” says Doug Stewart, producer and author of the upcoming 35 th Anniversary production of “Saturday's Warrior” and “The White Star.”
“This will be one of the most unique theatrical experiences in a long time,” says the shows Director, Matt Neves. “We follow the character of Jimmy Flinders from his iconic teenage role in ‘Warrior' to manhood in ‘The White Star,' where he deals with the struggles of raising his own family. And watching over him from beyond is his twin sister Pam.”
As a BYU college student, Neves performed in “Saturday's Warrior,” and had affection for it. But “The White Star” is what got his attention. “I wept the first time I read it,” he says. “Its message was so powerful, and I knew I had to do it.”
Why a sequel now? Stewart explains that “Saturday's Warrior” was a musical for another generation. Today's issues are different. “I wanted to write something with relevance for families today — a musical for our time.”
Stewart turned to LDS music icon, Janice Kapp Perry, to write the music for “The White Star,” which premiered to rave reviews at last year's BYU Education Week. One reviewer said it was “deeper than ‘Saturday's Warrior' … sent shivers down my spine.” Another one hit the nail on the head, according to Stewart, in describing the show's theme: “A story of love and caring on opposite sides of the veil.”
It was Neves' idea to have the “Saturday's Warrior” “review” up front, with the sequel “The White Star” following. He thought it would make for an incredible evening. “But audiences will want to hear all the music and experience the story,” says Neves, “and that's what we're giving them. The “Saturday's Warrior” portion of the evening will be narrated by Pam Flinders, as she moves in and out of the play, from heaven.
To make the two shows work together seamlessly, Stewart and Neves knew they needed to find the best talent out there. “We found sixteen wonderful professional actors to fill every role except that of Jimmy Flinders,” says Neves. “Finding Jimmy was a challenge, because the actor had to believably portray a young man, then skip ahead 35 years. He also had to have a fabulous voice.”
Finally, the talents of Casey Elliott, from Ogden, came to the rescue (a film actor, and recently starring in a national tour of Disney's Aida). “He had all the qualities we were looking for,” says Stewart.
The show begins its eight-city tour June 7 & 9 in Logan, opening at the Kent Concert Hall. Six performances are scheduled for Cottonwood Auditorium in Murray: June 13, 14, 16, 20, 21 & 23. For Davis County and Ogden, two shows are scheduled at Roy High School, on June 28 & 30. From there the show will travel to Idaho Falls (July 11, 12 & 14), Twin Falls (July 18 &19), Las Vegas (Aug 2 &4), St. George (Aug 7, 8, 9 &11) and Phoenix (Aug 14, 15, 16 & 18).
For Tickets call 1-888-35-Years, or visit LDSmusical.com.
