Stage is set for surfing
Local playwright's musical 'Surf City
USA' makes waves with its Beach Boys
sounds.
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The ad was for open auditions for the new local musical "Surf City USA."
"My mom was watching Channel 3 and I was in the other room working on a science project," Ashleigh Arnone said. "She told me about it and said, 'Hey let's go.'"
Ashleigh, 14, got a part in "Surf City USA," playing Cindy, a surfer girl in love with the beach and the boys.
"She is obsessed with the Beach Boys," Ashleigh said. "Supposedly 'Little Surfer Girl' was written about her, and she writes a letter to Brian Wilson to see if it is true."
You won't find Frankie and Annette anywhere on stage, or one grain of sand for that matter in "Surf City USA," but both would be completely at home in local resident Shirley Orlando's musical.
Loosely based on Orlando's teenage years, the musical takes most of its inspiration from the beach bands of the '60s, including Jan and Dean, the Beach Boys and Dick Dale.
The show opens Friday at the Huntington Beach Playhouse in the Central Park Library. With a cast of 21, ranging from Academy of Performing Arts freshmen to community theater veterans, the musical promises to celebrate a golden era of Huntington Beach.
The
playwright began work on her first
musical during a self-imposed sabbatical
after she shuttered her music store in
2004.
"I was spending a year at home to just
try to collect myself and go onto the
next phase of my life," Orlando said.
"So I just started writing prolifically.
"I had these memories and music in my
head from my life and that's how 'Surf
City USA' came to be."
The story, which Orlando describes as
"Grease" meets the "Music Man," follows
a young girl who falls for the wrong
guy.
"It is a love story," Orlando said. "The
girl is chasing the bad guy, and the
good guy is chasing her but she can't
see it."
With a long history in music, Orlando
drew on her family roots as well as the
sounds of her youth.
"Growing up with pro musicians, my
parents ingrained in me and my siblings
with good music," she said. "All the
composers of the '20s, '30s, '40s."
Orlando cited lyrics from the musical's
title to sum up its plot.
"Huntington Beach is such a real cool
place. They call it Surf City USA.
Doesn't even matter if you call it home,
or if you're just hanging out for the
day. You've got all kinds of people and
all kinds of moods. You got your
seashell ladies and your surfer dudes,"
she said.
The play wraps up what locals have known
for years, but the state has only
recently officially recognized — this is
Surf City USA.
WHAT:
"Surf City USA," the musical
WHERE: The Huntington Beach Central
Library Playhouse, 7111 Talbert Ave.
WHEN: 8 p.m. Thu-Sat 3 p.m. matinee on
Sat; Sundays at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
through Aug. 20
COST: $18 to $21