Is it your wedding day? Do you hear music starting to play? Because love is going to find you! Love of musical theatre that is! It’s a retro-toss-back to the 80’s, baby! Silhouette Stages is putting on a big ol’ wedding— well— they’re putting on a big ol’ production of a wedding with the musical The Wedding Singer. Something old? That’s the 80’s. Something new? Jeremy Goldman…who is new to directing. Something borrowed? The stage at Slayton House totally counts. Sort of. Something blue? Hopefully not anyone’s feelings once they see this comedy! Plus there’s bound to be a powder-blue something in this show, it is the 80’s. Sitting down with first-time direct Jeremy Goldman, we get a sneak-peek about what to expect with this fun-loving show that’s coming your way over St. Paddy’s day weekend.

Thanks for taking some time to sit down with us, really looking forward to hearing what you have to say. Why don’t you take a minute and introduce yourself to our readers!

Jeremy Goldman: I’m Jeremy Goldman and I’m the President of Silhouette Stages and now I’m Directing The Wedding Singer. This is actually my first time directing anything. Any show, any musical, ever. This is my first.

Wow! What made you decide you wanted to try your hand at directing?

Jeremy: There was an opening in our winter-March slot. We didn’t have a show; we didn’t have a director. We actually picked this show first. Silhouette Stages decided we were going to do Wedding Singer and then we went out to solicit directors. And for some reason, I just felt like this show fell into my wheelhouse of big, musical comedy. So I read the script, watched some YouTube videos, and I thought, “Yeah. This is it.” I’ve actually wanted to direct for a long time but I’ve been waiting for the right project and this seemed like it was the right thing.

We know that movie-musicals tend to have certain expectations that accompany them; lots of people might go into a show that they’ve seen or known to be a movie with preconceived notions. How is this production going to be different from the Adam Sandler movie since we know you’re not trying to put the movie on stage?

Jeremy: I would say first of all it’s the characters. Some of the characters in the movie get more fully fleshed out in the stage show, which I love. In the movie, Robbie Hart’s best friend, Sammy, is a pretty small role. In the stage show, he has two full songs, he has a whole story arc and relationship. There are a lot of fun things like that. In the movie, there’s a grandma and it’s not Robbie’s grandma, she’s just an old lady. But in the stage show, she’s Robbie’s grandma. You get more connections and relationships with these characters in the show.

We’re also working on not doing impersonations of the movie. I want the actors to be making these roles their own in a way that speaks to them. I think it will be a unique take on it.

That’s excellent. You said the show is a big, splashy musical comedy. Who are your Music Director and Choreographer?

Jeremy: Oh I’m so excited about this! Our music director is Emily Sergo, who just played the lead in Bright Star (Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre, summer 2022.) She is so incredibly talented both on stage and off stage, she’s just so great. She doesn’t want to just make the music sound pretty, she adds a fun, energetic infusion to the process. And she works with the characters. It isn’t just her teaching the music. She does a lot of character involvement, “How would this character sing this note or feel about that lyric?” She does a lot of that type of work. She’ll adjust harmonies for voice parts, if it says “men and women” she’s adjusting it so it’s “high voices and low voices” so it’s a more inclusive mix.

Here’s what I love about our production team— myself, Emily, and the choreographer, who I will talk about in a second— we’re all really actually performers. Our choreographer, also a Jeremy, is a dancer and a dance teacher. Emily is a performer. My background is performing and I think that’s very unique, having the production team come from a place of performing. We all bring the perspective of the performer to what we’re doing.

Jeremy McShan is our choreography. He is a former WATCH (Washington Area Theatre Community Honors) award-winning choreographer from Northern Virginia. It’s his first time doing anything with Silhouette and possibly within this area. If I had to sell the show on anything, I would say come see this choreography. It is literally mind-blowing. From the moment the curtain opens, people are just going to be blown away. It’s some of the hardest choreography I have ever seen in community theatre. It’s incredible. It’s definitely big-80’s flare. You will recognize so many moves in the mix of the dance numbers. We’ve got the running man, the electric slide, thriller moves, you’ll recognize a lot.

As a first-time director, knowing that this show comes from an iconic movie, what have been some of the challenges that you’ve faced thus far?

Jeremy: While we’re trying to make it unique, at the same time, some of the lines are very iconic and have to be paid their due. For example, when Julia realizes that her married name will be Julia Gulia, that whole scene— you have to nail that the way they did in the movie. Certain things— like that moment— that we know people are going to want to see from the movie, we’re trying to bring out like they do in the movie. But I think people really do want more of a fresh take. They love the characters. They love the story. It’s an insanely predictable story and we’re not trying to hide that. We all know it’s a “rom-com” on stage so we know they’re going to end up together. It becomes more about the journey and the story of how they get there.

Since you’re directing The Wedding Singer, can I ask, how long have you been married?

Jeremy: Oh yeah. This July it will be 20 years. We got married in 2003.

That’s amazing. Tell me a little bit about your wedding.

Jeremy: Sure! Our wedding, kind of a funny story. Allison and I got married in 2003 and I surprised her by singing at our wedding. I sang “Now and Forever”. I’ve mentioned this to the cast and we’ve had some conversations about it because there are some real Wedding Singer-y connections here. We also talk about relationships, me and the cast. Because there are so many relationships in this show, some that are working, some that aren’t working, and I think what’s at the root of the relationship that really works is a friendship. They (Robbie and Julia) just start out as such good friends, giggling, smacking each other on the shoulder, and that lays the foundation for their whole relationship. And that’s what I always say about my wife and I, in the end we’re just good friends who love each other and got married.

Now is this a big cast? Small cast? Somewhere-in-between— I think that’s called medium— medium cast?

Jeremy: For Silhouette, this is a pretty big cast. It’s 21 people, which is huge. And most of the ensemble are playing multiple roles. There is a lot happening in this show. In the ensemble, most of them are playing at least four or five different roles. The costumes are going to be mind-blowing as well. And they’re being done by Deana Cruz; she’s making a name for herself and she’s great. When she heard “weddings” and “80’s” she said “count me in!” She’s featuring lots of big neon flashy colors for 21 people. That is really pre-pandemic size casting for us.

Now who is playing Robbie Hart and Julia-not-Gulia?

Jeremy: They are played by Xander Conte and Maddie Bohrer. They are so great. They bring such great, genuine personality with them. It just feels so genuine when they’re on the stage.

That’s wonderful. Now. Question of the hour. Is there anybody in your cast who actually grew up in the 80’s… aside from you?

Jeremy: Let me tell you what I had to do. I created a spreadsheet to explain all of the 80’s references. Because a large number of them were born in the 90’s. For example— there’s a line about Jessie’s girl. And I had to explain that song. At one point one of the characters comes in, they clap, and the lights come on. So I had to explain about the light-clapper. That’s actually been really funny. Growing up in the 80’s it’s really funny to have to explain these things that I just know to the younger generations.

We actually have three current high school kids in the ensemble, one of whom is my own son, who is going on 17. He’s not only in the ensemble but he’s also the Dance Captain. We have two featured dancers, Brandon (Brandon Goldman) is one and— now, don’t get confused, but her name is Julia. So we have character Julia and human-actor Julia Williams, who was recently in Lighting Thief (Silhouette Stages’ The Lighting Thief ) and Zanna, Don’t! (Spotlighters Theatre’s Zanna, Don’t!) The two of them are just bonkers when it comes to dancing. They’ve got a bunch of dance solos and its real fun stuff.

Is there is a moment or song in the show that really defines what The Wedding Singer means to you personally?

Jeremy: There is and I don’t think it’s going to be a very traditional answer. There’s a song called “Come Out of the Dumpster” and it’s one of my favorite songs in the show. Aside from it being just a beautiful song, the song is really about life. Everybody gets stuck in a dumpster once in a while. Julia sings about how sometimes you have to use the garbage to climb out of it. It’s a cute song. People will laugh because it’s funny but if you step back and look at it, you’ll see that it’s a really beautiful metaphor for life. It’s a “life gives you lemons; make lemonade” type situation. I think the feeling of that song just sums up the whole point of the show. Make the best of what you have and feel good about it.

If you weren’t directing the show and you could be anyone in the show, who would you be and why?

Jeremy: What’s really funny is through rehearsals, various people have had conflicts so I’ve actually been able to step into almost all of the roles, male and female, and that has been really, really fun. But that is a great question. I don’t know if at my age I could play any of the roles realistically, but if that wasn’t a factor I think I’d probably play Robbie. He goes on such a crazy journey. He goes from the top of the world— I mean he is the ‘it’ wedding signer in New Jersey and then he’s literally in a dumpster and it doesn’t get much worse than that. He falls in love with a girl and then he realizes that he lost her. He goes on such a wild journey and he’s got great songs, both up-tempo and ballads. He’s got some very funny moment and some very heartwarming moments. He’s a great character with lots of variety and emotions to explore.

What is it that you are hoping people are going to take away by coming out to see The Wedding Singer?

Jeremy: I really just hope that people come and are able to take a break from life and just enjoy a really fun show. We don’t have any deep message we’re trying to convey or any social-political agenda we’re trying to get across. This is just a chance for people to come out to the theatre, see a really fun, high-energy musical, laugh a little bit, maybe shed a tear— if we do our job right— and just have a really good night out at the theatre.

What would you say, as your first time as a director, with a show that you didn’t necessarily choose but have found that you’ve fallen in love with, has taught you about yourself as a person, as a director, a father, as a married man, etc.?

Jeremy: Directing is a lot. We’re sitting in rehearsal and people are asking me what shoes they’re wearing in the number or somebody comes over and asks about their wig and then the lighting person emails me and asks me questions. And it’s a lot to juggle. But I’m drawing experiences from my over 30+ years of theatre, I’m thinking about all the directors who I’ve worked with that I really liked and respected, and trying to bring all of those things together.

We’ve created a great space where the cast is really getting to play and come up with ideas. A lot of things work and a lot of the great moments you’re going to see are things that the cast have come up with. They get to play. Of course, some things don’t work and I find myself saying, “Yes…and never do that again.” We’re a few weeks away from opening and they’re still developing things, I’m still learning things, and we’re still playing around with it.

Like the character Glen; he’s a jerk. In the script he has very minimal redeeming qualities, which you want that because he’s the bad guy. But he has to have some redeeming quality because Julia is with him. So we’re trying to find when are those moments where you can see those redeeming qualities that made Julia choose him. There must be something that she fell in love with. And Glen is played by Chris Reel, who has not done theatre in a long time and he’s bringing exactly what I talked about with the character to this process. What’s hilarious is when he’s not playing Glen, he’s like the nicest guy you could ever meet. So for him to play this jerk is really hard for him. But he also brings a little bit of sincerity so that we can find those moments too.

The best part of directing, for me, has been working with the actors and playing, finding those moments, and it’s just been really fun.

Now what’s it been like getting to direct your own kid?

Jeremy: It’s fun. The other day, he yelled out “Jeremy!” because apparently I wasn’t responding to ‘Dad.’ He was saying ‘Dad’ and I wasn’t in Dad-mode so I apparently didn’t respond. Very weird to hear my kid call me Jeremy. But it’s been great. I mentioned that the choreographer is form Northern Virginia so he’s not there at every single rehearsal. So Brandon, as dance captain, has actually run several dance rehearsals. He’s just been doing such a good job and I’m trying to let him have his moment. He’s turning into a great performer. I try not to get into his way and let him do his thing. We’ve shared a stage in James (Heritage Players’ James & The Giant Peach) and now we’re in a weird way sharing a performance space again. It’s different roles, he’s older, but it is so much fun.

And you have a daughter, but she does not perform?

Jeremy: She does not. But she should. She should. She does competitive gymnastics so one could argue that she is a type of performer. If this is any indication, she is constantly asking to come along to rehearsals. To which I am constantly asking, “you want to come and just sit there for three or four hours?” And she loves it. The other night we were driving home and she said, “I feel like it’s basically Broadway.” And I said, “I don’t know if we’re quite that level but I really appreciate the compliment.” She’s just turned 14. I’ve got two teenagers on my hands. Yikes!

Now is Brandon driving?

Jeremy: Ooh yeah. The other night, his part of the rehearsal was done, and he said, “Hey, I’m going to head home.” And I said, “But I have another few things that need to be done.” And he was just, “Dad. I have my car here.” I’m just not used to it! It’s weird, not only stepping into the director role, but it’s a whole different phase of life, and not just with my kid in the ensemble. I feel like I’ve become a mentor to the cast. I’m not in the cast, I’m overseeing them; I’m mentoring them. And it’s been a really fun experience.

Why do you want people to come out and see The Wedding Singer?

Jeremy: Number one, I don’t think it is done very often in our area. So that’s one. Number two, the cast is so talented. Our ensemble could all easily have played lead-roles. It is such a talented cast. I know it sounds so boring and cliché but the show is just so much fun. The whole show moves. My biggest pet-peeve with a show is dead space. I hate set changes and blackouts. This show is going to be moving. There is not going to be much stopping. Once that curtain opens it’s basically going to be ongoing. It’s laughing, it’s crying, it’s smiling, it’s being sad, it’s being angry at the mean characters, and I think it’s a whole fun experience at the theatre.

Plus we’re encouraging the audience to dress up— either in 80’s gear or wedding gear… or 80’s wedding gear. So that will be fun. And also, we have for the first time ever at Silhouette Stages, some VIP tables up in the front. Those folks may or may not interact a little bit with some of the cast members and feel more enveloped by the story. They won’t get pulled up on stage or anything. But they are round wedding tables and there will be an immersive feel to it. We’ve never really made use of that space at our theatre before. There’s going to be some dancing and the audience is going to feel like they’ve been transported back to the 80’s and that they’re fully immersed in that experience. I have very, very high hopes.

If you have to sum up your Wedding Singer experience in just one word, what word do you use?

Jeremy: How much time do I have?

To think on it?

Jeremy: Yeah. So my experience directing it?

Sure.

Jeremy: I’m going to go with heart. His name is Robbie Hart. But I think that sums up not only the show but entire cast and production team. Everyone is so excited and passionate. Some of the cast is from Baltimore County, I mentioned the choreographer from Northern Virginia, they’re driving from all over to be a part of this show. Everyone is bringing such a joy and passion and that is what is going to make it great. Heart! Everyone is bringing heart.

The Wedding Singer plays March 17^th 2023 through April 2^nd 2023 with Silhouette Stages currently at Slayton House Theatre in the Village of Wilde Lake Columbia— 10400 Cross Fox Lane in Columbia, MD. For tickets please call the box office at (410) 216-4499 or purchase them in advance online.