What would a European tour be without seeing some plays? Saw my first London theatre with Tim Curry opening Spamalot (a very funny show) and Tony winner Edina Menzel (she’s truly amazing) opening Wicked. But you can read reviews of those shows all over the web. So here, instead, is a review of the shows I saw on my transatlantic cruise back to the States. A review that will include musical revues, violinists, pianists, banjo players, and yours truly as an award-winning yodeler!

The Grand Princess cruise ship left Barcelona on November 1, 2006 and landed in Galveston, Texas on November 18. Several stops were made along the way in France, Italy, and Portugal, and there are links to photo albums below if you’re interested. But each night was spent on the ship, and there was always something to do. Which meant theatre mostly won out over working on the sequel to my novel. But only because that theatre was so very entertaining. 

The ship featured some acts they hire who go from ship to ship and get off at the next port. The Beatle Maniacs offered some good renditions of the classic Beatles songs. Former Broadway performer Michelle Murlin put on a strong one-woman act that included many standards from the 40s and 50s, some soothing jazz, and belting out some Cabaret. Dynamic English violinist Claire Gobin did everything from Vivaldi to Alexander’s Ragtime Band to Broadway to American fiddle playing. And former San Diego star Fred “Mickey” Finn and Cathy Reilly are sensational as a piano and banjo duo, both with their lively stage presence and their remarkable talents and repertoire. 

Most of the other shows were performed by a group put together by Princess Cruises who live on the ship for several months. They’re a fun and intriguing group of actors from a variety of different countries who get to perform while seeing the world. Not a bad gig, as San Diego-based actress Rebecca Greenwood can probably tell you as she just headed off to perform on another cruise ship. 

The first of the Princess ensemble shows was Curtain Up, a Broadway revue led by soloists Curt Skinner, Wade Foster, Stephanie Hodgdon, and Regina Levert (who had been in Performance Riverside’s Once On This Island). These four and most of the ensemble were finishing up a seven-month tour of duty on the ship with this show. They performed tunes from 42^nd Street, Gershwin, Phantom of the Opera, Evita, Oscar and Hammerstein, and Cabaret with polish and flair. 

And then it was on to the new cast who just began rehearsing together a few days before. Their first show, named Cinematastic, features a variety of songs made popular in film. It Had to be You, Singin’ in the Rain, Summertime, Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head. Solo numbers include Richard Parks Brown delivering some Old Time Rock ‘n’ Roll, Carla Jane McCallum knocking out some Irene Cara with Flashdance’s What a Feeling and Fame, and vocalist Wendy Sporter performing a spellbinding (but slightly ominous due to the venue) rendition of My Heart Will Go On from the movie about that other cruise ship, Titanic. The ensemble adds much energy to the Irene Cara and Footloose numbers, led by a leftover from the former cast – a dancer named Lynn whose enthusiasm and genuinely enthusiastic expressions grabs your attention. They also help drive one of show’s best scenes as they perform some Cirque de Soleil action as Wendy Sporter hauntingly sings The Windmills of Your Mind from The Thomas Crown Affair. 

But they saved their best for last with Motor City, their salute to Motown filled with great dancing, singing, and costumes. It performed on two consecutive nights, and many people on the ship went twice – including my sister and I. The show includes a talented trio featuring Wendy Sporter as Diana Ross singing (and fighting) with Supremes co-stars Carla Jane McCallum and Rebecca for a medley of hits. Carla also teams up with Richard Parks Brown in a beautiful rendition of Endless Love, and Wendy leads the dancers in a lively I’m Coming Out. Then there are some great Stevie Wonder numbers including Carla and Todd Honeycutt singing For Once in My Life, Richard serenading an anxious and amusingly blushing female ensemble with Isn’t She Lovely, a rousing Sir Duke, and especially a colorful Superstition featuring black lighting, a groovy Stevie, and an assortment of dancing masks, skeletons, and ghosts. Other hits include doing the Jackson Five’s ABC with one guy in the middle of four attached puppet Jacksons, Wendy and Carla rolling with Tina Turner’s Proud Mary, getting the crowd going with Dancing in the Streets, and a hilarious film noir version of I Heard It Through the Grapevine with Richard leading the men dressed as gangsters from the 1940s. And, finally, there was my sister Roshelle being pulled up on stage by Todd during the singing of My Girl as he ditches a pouty Carla and Wendy for Roshelle. 

Oh yes, and in conclusion, there were my fifteen seconds of fame on the Princess stage. The most unlikely moment of my life. I never expected to win a singing contest! When no one else would volunteer as the fourth person they needed, I bravely walked up there and found myself in a yodeling contest. Fortunately I had just spent a day in the Alps before the cruise, so I felt sort of prepared. After entertainment crewmember Jo improvised a quick demonstration yodeling along with musical accompaniment, Emcee Emma started making her way down the line. I went next to last, and yodeled my heart out along with a bizarre but enthusiastic mixture of folk dance, Riverdance, and clogging, leaving Jo and Emma in awe (or something vaguely like it), and somehow earning me a bottle of champagne as the Grand Princess Transatlantic Cruise Champion Yodeler of 2006! 

(Production photos and cast info to follow – it hasn’t been done for the new cast yet!)

Rob Hopper
San Diego Playbill

Princess Cruise Photo Album 

(below) Emma considers changing her career as Rob shakes his groove thing.

(below) My sister Roshelle with cast members Henry and Hassim.