Sierra Rep ‘Music Man’ at Fallon House

It’s been 17 years since Sierra Repertory Theatre last staged “The Music Man,” then in its East Sonora Theatre.

Boasting a 37-member cast, the largest in SRT history, said director Scott Viets, the show will be offered at the company’s Fallon House Theatre in Columbia this time around, running from June 26 through Aug. 16.

The large cast includes Ralph Krumins as Harold Hill, Lauren Roesner as Marian Paroo, Roland Carbajal as Winthrop, as well as AJ Foggiano and Chassey Bennet.

Viets and actors Carbajal and Roesner talked in email interviews about the show and their roles:

Scott Viets

While Viets has not directed “The Music Man” before now, he was choreographer of a San Diego production of the musical in 1998. He will handle both duties for the SRT show.

“This will be totally different,” he said of the upcoming production. “I will now be directing the show and choreographing most group numbers while (a) guest choreographer will be taking on a few dance numbers, like ‘Shipoopi’ and ‘Marian the Librarian’ as choreographer.”

Viets promised the SRT production will run true to the original piece of theater first staged in 1957.

“It’s pretty darn perfect the way it was written 60 years ago,” he said. “Our job is to keep it fresh, alive and pertinent to today’s audience without changing a word.”

“While the time is set 100 years ago, I don’t feel it’s nostalgic. In fact, the timeless message of love, human error, redemption, human emotion is universal, even today,” Viets said. “I, as director, love to try to bring the integrity of the time period while still making it pertinent to today’s audience.”

Viets is proud of the works SRT presents: “Every show that we do is not a reproduction of any show; we are not a touring group, we create everything from scratch: direction, choreography, set design, costumes, props, etc. ... We are not a carbon copy of a touring show from Broadway. We take great pride in our building every show from the ground up in a way that you’ll never find anywhere else.”

Roland Carbajal

Eight-year-old Modesto resident Roland Carbajal plays Winthrop, the younger brother of librarian Marian Paroo in “The Music Man.” The character “is very shy on account of his lisp” Carbajal said. “All of that starts to change when he meets Harold Hill and gets his cornet. He gains confidence in himself and he starts to speak up and stand up for himself.”

Despite his young age, Carbajal has performed in “South Pacific” for Modesto Performing Arts and in “The Nutcracker” for Central West Ballet.

The Hart-Ransom Charter School student said he can relate to Winthrop. “I used to be shy myself. The performing arts have helped me gain the courage to come (out) of my shell and do something that I love doing. I will use that experience to help me prepare for the role of Winthrop.”

Carbajal said he recently saw “The Music Man” for the first time “and I fell in love with it. It is currently my favorite musical.”

“I am really excited to be playing Winthrop,” he said. “I am thankful to be given this opportunity to perform with so many talented people. ... Singing, dancing and acting is what I love to do.”

Lauren Roesner

This is the first time Chicago resident Lauren Roesner will play the role of Marian Paroo, but she has appeared with SRT – recently, in fact, as Winifred Banks in “Mary Poppins.”

“On the surface, Marian is a stuck-up librarian and music teacher ... fairly disconnected from the rest of the town because she has intellectual interests that span beyond just finding a man to marry,” said the actress, who appears in regional theater across the country. “I think that there is a lot of backstory to discover about why Marian is so resistant to the idea of marriage that is much deeper than mere pickiness. I look forward to discovering those secrets to my character as rehearsals continue.”

Among her credits are Maria Von Trapp in “The Sound of Music,” Judy Bernly in “9 to 5: The Musical,” Velma Von Tussle in “Hairspray,” Eliza in “My Fair Lady,” Irene Molloy in “Hello, Dolly!” and others.

Roesner believes “Music Man” is among the greatest works in the musical theater canon. “The music is brilliant and incredibly well-known, the show won five Tony Awards when it premièred on Broadway in 1957, and there have been revivals and television adaptations since then.”

Shirley Jones played Marian in the film, and Roesner admits that can get into an actress’s head.

“To be honest, it is difficult NOT to want to copy Shirley Jones from the movie, since I love her so much and think she was a perfect Marian,” she said. “But with the way that Scott directs and the talent that he has assembled for this show, I think that audiences will be delighted to see new discoveries and different character interpretations than they are anticipating, which is so fun for both the actors and the audience.”

This story was originally published June 17, 2015 at 4:26 PM with the headline "Sierra Rep ‘Music Man’ at Fallon House."