Ghostlight Theatre Club belts out karaoke show tunes to raise money and awareness about its new musical direction

Showtuneapalooza
8 p.m. Friday
Ghostlight Theatre Club
3110 N. Walker
www.ghostlightokc.com
286-9412
Donations accepted

Equal parts fundraiser and party, Ghostlight Theatre Club's "Showtuneapalooza" is a night of show-tune-only karaoke that begins at 8 p.m. Friday.

"Who hasn't, while in the shower or in your car, dreamed of being up onstage singing to adoring fans? What makes this so much fun is we are encouraging people to bring costumes and props for their numbers," said Lance Garrett, Ghostlight's artistic director.

For those with the endurance to still be going strong after three hours of belting out Broadway numbers, there will be a "Karaoke Throwdown" at 11 p.m. The audience-judged contest will award the best performer a grand prize that will include four tickets to the upcoming "[title of show]" production and a pass for the club's third season, which begins in August. Additional door prizes will be given away throughout the night.

Besides raising funds to purchase a new light board for the theater, the event will also raise awareness of Ghostlight's first musical, "[title of show]," which stages next month.

It's a musical about two guys writing a musical about two guys writing a musical; Garrett said it's an insider's look at modern musical theater and the struggles faced by artists in releasing their creation to the world.

Since moving into its current space on the edge of the Paseo about a year ago, Ghostlight has had a number of successful shows, including "Glengarry Glen Ross," "Fat Pig" and "The Real Thing." Among the productions, Garrett was most shocked by the success of the Ghostlight's nontraditional Christmas show, "Screw the Eggnog, Pass the Rum."

"Made up of mainly original pieces, we were all stressed and nervous about the audience's perception of what we thought was funny and touching," he said.

Due to the success of that first show, Garrett and company are developing a sequel, "Screw the Eggnog, Pass the Rum: Eggnog 2 "? Electric Boogaloo."

In January, Ghostlight became the home of Oklahoma's first ongoing improv comedy and theater showcase, OKC Improv.

When asked about the formula for Ghostlight's success, Garrett said they take what they do very seriously.

"Theater is an art form that demands discipline and practice," he said. "Sure, we love what we do and we want to have fun doing it, but to Ghostlight, we feel that the creative process does not end with the final rehearsal, but that the creativity continues to develop and evolve with the addition of the audience. The audience is the most important aspect of a show. They are the reason this art form exists." "?Eric Webb

  • or