2016 April PASO Magazine

PASO PEOPLE
American Idol vintners open winery for Theater Group
Villa San-Juliette is opening
its barrel room for Wine
Country Theatre’s April 8-26
production of the musical
The Last Five Years. Secluded
in eastern outskirts of San
Miguel, the winery’s Mediterranean
villa and surrounding vistas
look like a film location in the Tuscan
countryside. The theatricality may be
no accident because Villa San-Juliette is
the creation of Nigel Lythgoe and Ken
Warwick, TV producers for such highly
successful enterprises as American’s
Got Talent and American Idol.
At the intersection between the
Villa San-Juliette and Wine Country
Theatre is Melanie Portney who
plays the female lead in The Last Five
Years. Portney works at the winery
and acts for the Paso Robles based
theater group. After performing in
Wine Country Theatre’s November
2015 production of Last of the Red Hot
Lovers, the petite red head pitched the
idea of showing The Last Five Years at
Villa San-Juliette to Cynthia Anthony,
Wine County Theatre’s Director.
“We were all sitting around after the
show and talking about our favorite
musicals,” said Portney, who graduated
from the UCLA theater department.
“The first show that I thought of was
The Last Five Years. The next
thing I thought was, why not?
It has huge appeal within our
local theater community and
Wine Country had already
done a successful show at a
winery, so I put the question
to Cynthia.”
“Although Park Ballroom in Paso
is our home,” reflected Anthony, who
founded Wine Country Theatre in
2014, “we are always looking for interesting
venues to keep our productions
engaging and fresh – and for locations
that further the telling of a play’s story.
We thought that Villa San-Juliette’s intimate
cellar and romantic surroundings
would do nothing but enhance our audience’s
experience.”
The Last Five Years is Tony-Award
winner Jason Robert Brown’s poignant
and smart contemporary musical about
five years in the relationship of an ambitious
young writer, Jamie, and his
struggling actress wife, Cathy. Since
its Off-Broadway premiere in 2002,
Brown’s devastatingly honest two-person
production has enraptured audiences
around the world with its spellbinding
score and libretto.
The funny and uplifting story is told
in a unique non-linear form. Cathy tells
the story from the end of their marriage;
Melanie Portney and Cody Petit perform
The Last Five Years in April.
Photo by Brittany Weinstein
Jamie begins from when they first meet.
As the musical unfolds, Cathy moves
backward in time to the beginning of
the relationship as Jamie moves toward
the end; they meet only once, in
EXPO from page 31
The Wednesday, April 20 event will
be promoted throughout San Luis
Obispo county. Participating businesses
will be featured in Chamber
email communications and in local
media prior to the event. Don’t miss
the middle, at their wedding. From the
beginning to end, and in between, the
show captures universally felt moments
of modern romance.
The play shows April 8, 9, 15, 16,
22, and 24 at 7:30 p.m. and April 10,
17 and 24 at 2 p.m. Villa San-Juliette
wines will be showcased and
are available for purchase along with
gourmet snacks. The kitchen opens
at 6 p.m. for evening performances
and 11 a.m. for matinees. General
admission is $25, and student is
$15 with ID. For tickets and information,
go to www.winecountry
theatre.com or call 1-800-838-3006.
Wine Country Theatre is a non-profit
community theater of Project Theatre
Foundation. They have produced eight
shows since 2014 and are committed
to bringing the community together
through the participation in, and the
enjoyment of, professional-caliber community
theater.
this opportunity to gain exposure for
your company and grow your local
business connections.
Register today! The deadline is
Wednesday April 6.
For more information, contact the
Chamber, 1225 Park Street, Paso Robles
238-0506 www.pasorobleschamber.com
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Paso Robles Magazine, April 2016