CTC’s ‘Just Another Cabaret’ promises to be anything but ordinary
Christine Cauchon and Sophia Pearson lead dou-ble lives. By day, they are young women. By night, they turn into the reminis-cent Broadway stars Anges Malone and Ruby Man. In their original production, “Just Another Cabaret,” the lights are bright, the laugh-ter is loud, and the wigs are as fabulous as their person-alities.
Contemporary Theater Company’s artistic direc-tor Tammy Brown saw the natural stage connec-tion between Cauchon and Pearson and offered them the opportunity to create a show together. When they had the idea to play two ag-ing Broadway stars stuck in the fading light of their glory days, something just clicked.
“When we get on stage together, we just play so well,” Cauchon said.
Audiences will have a chance to see it for them-selves tonight as Cauchon and Pearson bring their “Just Another Cabaret” showcase to CTC at 7 p.m.
The show is an improv set, so in comparison to a traditional show, there is no script. To Pearson, this aspect of the show makes it even more special.
“The audience is a participant,” Pearson said. “Nothing is planned, so when you come and see the show you are never going to see that same show again. It is this beautiful little moment in time that is ephemeral.”
Cauchon’s character, Anges Malone, is loosely based off her great-grandmothers name. Something she laughingly refers to as, “we all have an Anges Malone out there.” Pearson’s character, Ruby May, interacts on stage with Malone in the space of a natural conversation, “their back stories shift and change as we come up with it. They have lots of stories to tell about their relationships, fall outs, long running disputes and grudges. Words of wisdom we like to share with audience.”
Sitting in the theater, the viewer is given the opportunity to witness, and learn from, the beauty of a timeless relationship.
Both Cauchon and Pearson have been at the theater for at least a decade. Cauchon feels lucky that, “we can go to the artistic director, tell [them] our idea, and [they] say ‘great, tell us the day.’ I don’t think a lot of people have this opportunity. It is the coolest thing I have done in my adult life.”
When Cauchon was younger she spent a semester of college in Florida, but came back because of, what she defines as the “classic Rhode Island story, you leave because you have to get out but immediately come back.” When she started taking a theater workshop she realized she preferred spending all her time in the studio, that she was endlessly fascinated with every aspect of production and never wanted to leave.
Pearson has a kismet introduction to her career in theater; in 2013 the director of a college show happened to be her professor, and asked for someone to step into a chorus role. Pearson reflects, “I had a really fun time and met some really great people, but then was just sort of doing random things for a while. I bumped into him years later at Dave’s Coffee Shop, he asked me to audition for a Shakespeare show, and I fell in love with it.”
Even though they are both acting, the fictional characters of Malone and May mirror the effortless relationship of their creators. Cauchon mentions that her favorite moment is when “we read each other’s mind. Improv is really scary, it feels like you’re up there alone, but with Sophia I’m not alone. I can do anything and Sophia will have my back to make it make sense.”
Pearson loves when they get suggestions for the audience for the titles of songs. She laughs as she remembers one suggestion, “hit me gently with a bat.” Pearson knows it’s going well when she hears laughter in the audience: even if what they’re doing on stage is ridiculous it is a sign they are enjoying it.
Both Cauchon and Pearson are pregnant, so this is a special show for them. Cauchon urges, “come with your best unsolicited bad mom advice.”
“Just Another Cabaret” takes place tonight at the Contemporary Theater Company, located at 327 Main Street in Wakefield. Tickets, which range from $10-$40, can be purchased online at contemporarytheatercompany.com.