The Dogwood Boy
1995 · Triopia High School, Concord, Illinois
The Dogwood Boy - 1995
The Dogwood Boy was an original musical that Ken Bradbury wrote, composed, and directed for Triopia High School in 1995 — he wrote the music himself, noting in his director's journal that he "wrote the music to the show without any help from Shaffer." Set high in the Appalachian Mountains on Mossy Mountain and told through a group of narrators, the show follows the title Dogwood Boy as he is menaced by Tallyroo (also spelled Talleyroo), the "monster-of-the-woods," whose Nightshades and Specters descend on the mountain folk before the climax. Troy Kirbach played the Dogwood Boy and Andy Surratt the fearsome Tallyroo.
Cast
- The Dogwood Boy (title role) — Troy Kirbach
- Nelsie — Nelsie Smith
- Tallyroo (Talleyroo), the monster-of-the-woods — Andy Surratt
- Hornbeam — Travis Deaver
- Chickweed (a narrator) — Amy Kircher
- Flaxy — Stacy Walker
- Leman, a Hackberry Boy — Luke Crawford
- J.D. — Scott Kinsell
- Laben, a Hackberry Boy — Jeremy Beard
- Cuff, a Hackberry Boy — Keith Ervin
- Rip, a Hackberry Boy — Curt Stinson
- A Hackberry Boy — Brett Clark
- Jimpson (a narrator) — Katie Phelps
- Bo-Hop (the first voice in the show) — Stephanie Rolf
- Candlebrush — Sara Privia
- Cornlily — Amy H.
- Sawheal (a narrator) — Robyn Jones
- Taproot (a narrator) — Jackie Knorr
- Aspen — Martha Burrus
- Redbud (a possessed young girl) — Jenny Homer
- Chicken Mary — Laura Dorsey
- Nightshade — Lindsay Lefebvre
- Nightshade — Hannah Kirbach
- Nightshade — Jill Slavens
- Nightshade — Amanda McCoy
- Nightshade — Jessica Meyer
- Mossy Mountain folk — Tina Hart
- Mossy Mountain folk — Bethany Whewell
- Mossy Mountain crew — Carrie Boehs
- Citizen of Mossy Mountain — Julie Stock
- Narrator — Andy Dober
- Frosh cast members — Luke Crawford, Jacob Stock, Adam Ehlert, Scott Kinsell
Production staff
- Vocal director — Christine Smith (her first show as vocal director)
- Costumes — Mrs. (Connie) Charlesworth
- Costumes — Judy Armstrong
Production Notes
The Dogwood Boy was an original musical written and composed by Ken Bradbury — he scored the music himself ("Wrote the music to the show without any help from Shaffer"). The show was produced in 1995, with auditions held March 17–18, 1995: Friday, March 17 at 4 p.m. for freshmen and sophomores, and Saturday, March 18 at noon for juniors and seniors, with callbacks Saturday afternoon. Auditioners sang a solo and danced in large groups; for the solo they could choose from "The Big Five" — My Country 'Tis of Thee, This Land is Your Land, She'll Be Comin' 'Round the Mountain, Swing Low Sweet Chariot, and Down by the Riverside — though these were tryout songs, not numbers in the show. General rehearsals ran 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
In performance, Act 1 ran about an hour and twenty minutes and Act 2 about an hour. Ken placed the band out front, which he called "a great idea." Special-effects scenes leaned on lights, fog, and Tallyroo's costume. Comic characters included Granny, Boolie, the Hackberry boys, and Cara — Granny's number was a simple three-chord blues.
Christine Smith made her debut as vocal director on this show; Connie Charlesworth returned to the costume team and Judy Armstrong joined the costume crew that year. Andy Surratt's Tallyroo "caused many young nightmares in the community for weeks," and Nelsie Smith's performance was remembered as "one of the most remarkable performances the school had ever seen."
No discrete song titles survive in the archive record, so the musical numbers are not listed here.