ONLINE PROGRAM
HONK THE MUSICAL
based on the book by HANS
CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN
book and lyrics by Anthony Drewe and George Stiles
music by Anthony Drewe and George Stiles
HONK! A MUSICAL TALE OF THE UGLY DUCKLING is presented through a special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are supplied by MTI. www.mtishows.com
The videotaping or making of electronic or other audio and/or visual recordings of this production or distributing recordings on any medium, including the Internet, is strictly prohibited, a violation of the author’s rights and actionable under copyright law.
October 13th-November 4th, 2023
Tuesdays - Saturdays at 7pm
Sundays at 2pm
running time:
Two act musical, approx. 120 mins
SHOW SUMMARY
HONK, based on Hans Christian Andersen's adored story of "The Ugly Duckling" tells the tale of a different looking duck named Ugly, Pursued by the ever-hungry Cat, Ugly finds himself lost, and embarks on an journey through the countryside, meeting many different animals, finding himself, and love, along the way.
“George Stiles and Anthony Drewe's musical version of The Ugly Duckling getting me where it hurts. In part, it's because the talented duo have never fulfilled the wondrous promise of this early piece, and in part because like all good family shows it's multi-layered and open to many meanings."
– The Guardian
RATING: G | 3+
Read more about show ratings and recommendations >
Video courtesy of Honk! The Musical Youtube
Production Inclusion Statics
65.38% FEMALE/NON-BINARY
REPRESENTATION
42.31% MARGINALIZED REPRESENTATION
19.23% BIPOC
REPRESENTATION
23.08% LGBTQIA2S+
REPRESENTATION
75% ON STAGE
57.14% OFFSTAGE
41.67% ON STAGE
42.86% OFFSTAGE
16.67% ON STAGE
21.43% OFFSTAGE
16.67% ON STAGE
23.08% OFFSTAGE
ABOUT THE CREATORS
HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN
HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN (born April 2, 1805, Odense, near Copenhagen, Denmark—died August 4, 1875, Copenhagen), Danish master of the literary fairy tale whose stories achieved wide renown. He is also the author of plays, novels, poems, travel books, and several autobiographies. While many of those works are almost unknown outside Denmark, his fairy tales are among the most frequently translated works in all of literary history.
Andersen's work first gained recognition in 1829, with the publication of a short story entitled "A Journey on Foot from Holmen's Canal to the East Point of Amager." He followed this with the publication of a play, a book of poetry and a travelogue. The promising young author won a grant from the king, allowing him to travel across Europe and further develop his body of work. A novel based on his time in Italy, The Improvisatore, was published in 1835. The same year, Andersen began producing fairy tales.
Despite his success as a writer up to this point, Andersen did not initially attract attention for his writing for children. His next novels, O.T. and Only a Fiddler, remained critical favorites. Over the following decades, he continued to write for both children and adults, penning several autobiographies, travel narratives and poetry extolling the virtues of the Scandinavian people. Meanwhile, critics and consumers overlooked volumes including the now-classic stories The Little Mermaid and The Emperor's New Clothes.
ANTHONY DREWE
During his 23-year writing collaboration with composer George Stiles, Anthony has written the book and lyrics for Tutankhamun, Just So, Soho Cinders, the multi award-winning Honk! and the lyrics for Peter Pan - A Musical Adventure (book by Willis Hall). With composer Tony Hatch, he wrote lyrics for The Card and, with Singaporean composer Dick Lee, the lyrics for A Twist of Fate.
Anthony Drewe’s work apart from Stiles has involved him in writing lyrics for the 1992 revival of The Card, the musical which had a score by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent when it played the West End in 1973, and for The Canterville Ghost (with James McConnell, co-winner of the Vivian Ellis Awards in 1987). He has also appeared in Rogues To Riches, a musical version of The Beau Stratagem, written and starred in the murder mystery musical, A Twist Of Fate (Singapore Repertory Theatre, Raffles Hotel, 1997 and 1998), and directed revivals of Snoopy (Watermill) and Cowardy Custard (Royal Academy of Music). Stiles and Drewe took their own show to the Edinburgh Fringe in 1987, and have since appeared on many television and radio programmes. They also created and starred in two revues, Navel Fluff And Other Trivial Pursuits and Warts And All, and contributed a good deal of material to the RSC’s Shakespeare Revue.
Courtesy of Playbill and All Music
GEORGE STILES
Stiles and Drewe’s musical Honk! won London’s Olivier Award for Best New Musical (2000) and has since been seen in more than 2,000 productions worldwide. Their other shows include Just So (North Shore Music Theatre), Peter Pan, Tutankhamun and Soho Cinders. George’s new musical The Three Musketeers, with lyrics by Paul Leigh and book by Peter Raby, played at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Other work includes the scores for Sam Mendes’ Twelfth Night and Uncle Vanya (BAM), musical adaptations of Tom Jones and Moll Flanders, songs for the RSC’s Shakespeare Revue and a blissful spell as Dame Edna’s pink pianist and resident composer. Mary Poppins marks his Broadway debut. He is also a co-producer of Six the Musical.
Courtesy of Playbill
SONG LIST
ACT ONE
A Poultry Tale - Drake, Ida, Turkey, Henrietta, Maureen, Cat, Grace
The Joy of Motherhood - Ida, Maureen
Different (Pre-Reprise) - Ida
Hold Your Head Up High - Ida, Ugly, Fish, Water
Look At Him - Company
Different - Ugly
Play With Your Food - Cat, Ugly
Lost - Ugly
The Elegy - Company
Every Tear A Mother Cries - Ida
The Wild Goose Chase - Greylag, Dot, Snowy, Barnacles, Pinkfoot, Ugly, Cat
Act One Finale: Hold Your Head Up High (Reprise) -
Ida, Ugly
ACT TWO
It Takes All Sorts – Queenie, Lowbutt
Together – Cat, Queenie, Lowbutt
The Collage - Drake, Ida, Company
Now I’ve Seen You – Ugly
Warts and All – Company
The Blizzard – Company
Transformation - Ugly, Ida, Penny
Melting Moggy – Cat
Act Two Finale: Look At Him (Reprise) – Company
FROM THE DIRECTOR
I really like Flamenco music from Spain, and I like Opera. I also like all sorts of drumming from around the world and Jazz. I like tacos, perogies, butter chicken and sushi. I like Musical Theatre, movies, and Shakespeare. My family comes from Asia, Europe, and Canada. My friends are from Canada, Africa, the Caribbean, the US, Europe, Asia and Australia. I love how different all these people and things are and how much joy they bring to me. Can you imagine only mac and cheese for the rest of your life? Sounds good in the moment, but what about hamburgers? What about chocolate and ice cream? What about that special something someone who loves you makes for you when you aren’t feeling well? Everyone and everything you like, and love, was once brand new and you had never experienced it before. Did you have to trust your adult who introduced you to something that might not have looked particularly good but tasted so yummy? Were you maybe a wee bit scared the first time they let go of you in the water? Were you nervous the first time you met your favorite teacher? There are so many wonderful surprises in new things, and in people. Or ducks. Or geese. Or... Well, that’s a surprise. Different is good. Different is exciting. Different is beautiful. Just like you!
Elizabeth Stepkowski Tarhan
Director
THE COMPANY
THE CAST
Ugly Alex Bergen
Ida Joanna Murphy
Beaky/Bullfrog Hayoung Chun
Billy/Barnacles/Bewick Promona Swati
Cat Ethan Vasquez Taylor
Downey/Pinkfoot/Lowbutt Lindsay Holt
Drake/Farmer Kirk Schmidt
Fluffy/Snowy Ceilidh MacDonald
Grace/Dot/Jay Bird/Old Woman Jacqueline Gibney
Henrietta/Penny/Maggie Pie/Queenie Annika Keatly
Maureen/Mother Swan Paige Belisle
Turkey/Greylag/Camera Op/Father Swan David Kampel
THE CREW
Director Elizabeth Stepkowski Tarhan
Musical Director Réjean Campbell
Choreographer Greg Pember
Stage Manager Charlotte Braid
Assistant Stage Manager Maya Lakhu
Assistant Stage Manager Brady Hillman
Production Manager Skylar Desjardins
Set Designer DeNeane Osmond
Master Set Builder Joshua Bailey
Props Master Cassie Holmes
Costume Designer Darcie Howe
Wardrobe Assistant Tammy Vanderbeek
Sound Designer and Programmer Ross Wilson
Sound Operator Paul Davies
Sound Operator Aretha Smith
Lighting Designer Skye Grinde
Artistic Producer JP Thibodeau
Marketing Director & Graphic Design Jennifer Merio
Show Photography Tim Nguyen
SUPPORTERS, DONORS & CONTRIBUTORS
GOVERNMENT SUPPORTERS
PRIVATE SECTOR SUPPORTERS
MEDIA SUPPORTERS
DONORS, SUPPORTERS & CONTRIBUTORS
Occasional Notes Productions
Calgary Arts Development
Paul Davies
Teresa O’Regan
Gregory Smith
Clarice Siebens
Lane Olafson
Hesson Persaud
Corinne Spence
Janine Labossiere
Frank Fowler
The Wawanesa Mutual Life Insurance Co.
M.E.G Energy/Kenneth Wilson
Maria Shaw
Blue Spruce Investments Ltd.
Ann Farebrother
Maureen Morris
Ella Quinn
Kirk Schmidt
Melissa Smith
THANK YOU TO...
THANK YOU TO...
Jessica Roney
Rhonda Mottle
Michelle Leblanc
Cathy Handford
Elayne Fisher
Brad Laberge
Jolene Anderson