4.13.11 Adam News & Info

During his time at MET2, Adam played the title role in “Peter Pan,” Huck Finn in “Big River,” Linus in “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown” and the stratosphere-reaching Russian Tenor in “Fiddler on the Roof.” In “The Secret Garden,” he played both the magical young Dickon and the hunchbacked, tormented uncle, Archie. In fact, founding artistic director Alex Urban added the show to the company’s repertoire because of Adam; he knew that the mega-talented 16-year-old could sing that difficult, vocally demanding role.

Read more: www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2009-05-11/things-to-do/adam-lambert-returns-to-musical-theater-roots#ixzz1JOHfhyrP

“He did six shows with me at Mt. Carmel,” Smith recalls, “and he was absolutely fantastic. He had light hair then, but he always liked to dress up and be flamboyant.”

It might surprise the “Glamberts,” Adam’s diehard fans, but not all the shows he did in high school were musicals. He appeared in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” in his sophomore year.

“He played a small but memorable part – the marshal, Willard,” says Smith. “He was very convincing.”

In his junior year, in Thornton Wilder’s “The Matchmaker,” the non-musical inspiration for “Hello, Dolly!” he was Horace Vandergelder. And in his senior year, Adam played the hilarious, ass-headed Bottom in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

“Oh my god, he was funny,” Smith recalls with a laugh. “He has great comedic talent, which you haven’t really gotten to see on ‘American Idol.’”

Of course, Adam also displayed his musical talent in high school, in “The Pirates of Penzance,” and as anguished Uncle Archibald in “The Secret Garden.”

“When he sang ‘Lily’s Eyes,’” Smith says of the show’s beautiful memory ballad, “he got a standing ovation every night. I always felt he’d go on to big things. He was a consummate entertainer, even then. He really knows how to bring a character forth in a song. There’s a power and force to his interpretations. That’s one of the reasons he’s so successful at so many different types of songs.

Doug Smith (Adam's MCHS Drama Teacher)

www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2009-05-18/things-to-do/adam-lamberts-theater-days-are-fondly-remembered#ixzz1IvPqCwTV

While in high school, Lambert also did several youth- and adult-cast shows at the Moonlight Amphitheatre in Vista, including playing Captain Hook in a youth-cast "Peter Pan" and playing Doody in Moonlight's 2000 adult-cast production of "Grease." Joshua Carr, his director for both productions, remembers Lambert's laserlike attention to detail.

"You could see the focus in his eyes and the drive to be the best he could be," said Carr, the new theater manager/producer at Welk Resort Theatre in Escondido. "He started with me in the youth theater program and immediately displayed commitment and drive even at that young age, and he quickly moved into the leading roles."
www.nctimes.com/entertainment/music/article_c554fdeb-3b1e-5973-a9bc-f8f4fb416311.html

Kathy Brombacher, Moonlight's producing artistic director, remembers Lambert's upbeat personality and exceptional voice.

"He is bright, friendly, funny, down to earth and grounded," Brombacher said. "Despite his talent, he doesn't have an inflated head, and he's so articulate and professional in the way he conducts himself."

Brombacher said Lambert's flamboyant stage personality was already developing in his teens, particularly in the role of, what else, the flamboyant pirate Captain Hook.

"He was an adventuresome performer as Captain Hook," she said. "He was always out there for the journey. He wanted to be different and put his own stamp on it -- and he did."

www.nctimes.com/entertainment/music/article_c554fdeb-3b1e-5973-a9bc-f8f4fb416311.html

Director/choreography Ray Limon, co-founder of LimonCarr Productions in Tustin, also directed Adam, and never quite forgot him from his days performing at Moonlight Stage Productions.

“He was a great kid when he did ‘Grease,’” recalls Limon. “He always had that voice. One year, when we were doing our annual fundraiser, ‘Broadway at the Moonlight,’ spotlighting all the former Moonlight performers who’d gone on to Equity and Broadway, we added him into the mix. He was the youngest performer we’d ever had in the production. He was just in high school then. And ‘Chess’ was another very adult show he appeared in. It was very impressive for him to be cast. He had the lead song, ‘Pity the Child.’ I’d love to hear him sing that now.”

Limon is about to direct “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” at the Welk Theatre in Escondido, for which he recently auditioned 300 actor/singers.

“As talented as they were,” says Limon, “Adam’s talent is way beyond that. He’s like the little cartoon character, Vavoom, the little tiny guy who goes up to the mountains and hits a note and the mountains crumble."

Ray Limon (Director/Choreography )

Read more: www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2009-05-18/things-to-do/adam-lamberts-theater-days-are-fondly-remembered#ixzz1G0bFYpBU

Lambert joined the national tour of "Wicked" in 2005 and was the understudy for Fiyero (the male lead) in the L.A. production from February 2007 until it closed last fall.

In an interview last week with the Associated Press, "Wicked" casting agent Bernard Telsey said of Lambert's audition: "He came in and had that amazing voice -- or as I like to say, 'instrument,' because he has this incredible range. I literally remember saying, 'Oh my God, this guy has the highest range.' "

www.nctimes.com/entertainment/music/article_c554fdeb-3b1e-5973-a9bc-f8f4fb416311.html