Oscar - A Gangster Comedy!

The last leg of the Big Bang Performing Arts festival would be the stage adaptation of the 1991 movie starring Sylvester Stallone called ‘Oscar’. Set in the 1930’s, this comedy of errors revolves around a mafia boss, who tries to mend his gangster ways after a promise made to his dying father yet is forced to deal with a swindling accountant, a pregnant daughter, two tailors, his maid’s bag of lingerie, a linguistics professor, spying cops, rival gangsters and three bankers.

The play would be directed by Yohan Chacko and Denver Anthony Nicholas and would be staged at Chinmaya Heritage Centre, Harrington Road on March 10^th, at 2pm and 7pm.

Proceeds from the festival would be donated to a cancer NGO. Passes are priced at 150/-, 300/- and 500/-.

Online passes are available by clicking the link below and for bookings, call 99626 14196.

Click below for Passes!

http://www.indianstage.in/EventDetails.do?eventId=2605

The Big Bang Festival presents RETRO - The Concert

The second leg of The Big Bang Performing Arts Festival opens with a concert night called 'RETRO' - featuring an ensemble of your favorite and most-loved numbers from the 40's, 60's and 80's. We have mashed up few of the top-notch musicians and extremely talented vocalists from the city to belt out some fine music for the city! The concert will also feature a tribute number to the legend - Whitney Houston.

The concert with feature a live orchestra under the helm of Shaun Roberts with Nadisha Thomas as vocal conductor and would feature not only renowned singers but also fresh talent from the city on stage. The concert would be held at YWCA Grounds (not to be confused with YMCA), Purusawalkam on February 25^th from 7pm onwards.

Passes are priced at 150/-, 300/- and 500/- and to buy your online passes, click the link below!

For details, call 90941 34945.

                   Click to Buy Passes to RETRO

Reviews of the first leg of The Big Bang Festival!

In the midst of preparations for the upcoming productions as part of The Big Bang Festival, we did find time to feel absolutely elated with some of the reviews that have come out in the papers and from the audiences!

Courtesy: Indian Express

http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/metroplus/article2872354.ece

The Big Bang Festival...!

Nicholas Productions is opening the year 2012 with a bang indeed - A month long performing arts festival called 'The Big Bang Festival' that will witness various theatre groups from the city come together under one banner and will showcase 5 shows at the Museum Theatre and 5 shows at Chinmaya Heritage Center that would include a collaborated theatre show by three other theatre groups in the city, a full-fledged live musical (the way it should be done.. all live!), the reputed Loyola Theatre Society’s musical production and a full-length comedy.

The festival presented in association with Rotary Club of Madras – Temple City would open with the Collaborated Theatre Show put together by The Boardwalkers Theatre Foundation by Michael Muthu, ASAP Productions by Amit Singh, Nicholas Productions by Denver Anthony Nicholas and Strayfactory Entd by Mathivanan Rajendran. The show would feature an act of 30 minutes duration by each group – comprising of mimes, short sketches and even one-act musicals – a format of entertainment very new to the city. The shows would be staged on January 27th, 7pm and January 28th, 2pm at the Museum Theatre.

The second performance at the festival would be the Archie the Musical based on the all loved comics! After a gap of 12 years, Archie and gang get back to Riverdale High for a high school reunion and what ensues is a kindling of the old romances, the rivalry between Betty and Veronica, Jughead dealing with fatherhood, Mr.Lodge’s attempts to keep Archie away from Veronica, the fight to save Pop Tates Chocolit Shoppe and more. The musical fused with cult numbers by Aerosmith, Billy Joel, Mr.Biggs and other artists would be supported by a live on-stage orchestra under the music direction of Shaun Roberts, with Nadisha Thomas as vocal conductor, choreography by Raj and directed by Denver Anthony Nicholas. It will be staged at the Museum Theatre on January 28th, 7pm and January 29th, 2pm and 7pm.

We are not going to reveal too much about the next shows in line, just so that you may stay glued to us in the days to come! Block your Calendars peoples!

Passes are priced at Rs.200, Rs.300 and Rs.500 and can either be picked up at Landmark Outlets or can be purchased online by clicking the below links!

So please get off your asses and pick up your passes...!

                 Click Image for Passes                                

Click Image for Passes  

 

Previews, Reviews, a Concert and more....

We have been quite occupied with winding up a massive musical such as 'I Wanna be MJ' and at the same time handling production and promotion work for the music concert SWING IT, staged in October 2011 at a welcome change of a venue - St.Michael's Academy!

The ambience was a refreshing welcome by all who came for our shows, and we must say that it was a well-received and quiet music concert - a tribute to the legends of Swing era featuring numbers by Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Paul Anka and more. Our cast as usual was at their rocking best!! And the review below speaks for itself.. in the Indian Express!

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/swing-memories-from-yesterday/191929-60-120.html

There were several preview and reviews for the earlier musical staged and keeping track of them has been quite a task! But we have managed to link some for your pleasure! Read on...

Below is a link to the preview for our musical 'I Wanna be MJ' staged in September 2011.

Open publication - Free publishing - More lifestyle


Review for the musical on SCORE magazine -

http://www.highonscore.com/an-mj-ost-to-a-simple-story

The team is now busy chalking out plans for early 2012 that would include a month long production featuring plays, musicals, short plays and .. yeah thats about it! So keep checking this page to get a sneak into what's up at Nicholas Productions!

8 Funnies on the 8th of July!

Welcome to an Evening of Funny Ones... As the more perceptive of you would have noticed ... this is Hell!!!

And you could expect something on those lines for the opening of our first non-musical production! And this is to add to the gamut of productions that we have staged so far - musicals, music concerts and now voila as promised a play!! Keeping up with the times, we settled in for a series of comedy sketches spread over 90 minutes. Yes, we decided to keep it Short and Stupid!

The evening would feature sketches by Rowan Atkinson - Yes, Mr.Bean!! Which is why our poster also has his caricature to answer all those eyebrows that have been raised once they laid eyes on it! We would also perform 3 vignettes namely, Dogs in the Park, Orient Experience and What Happens Behind the Bar and the sketches would be directed by Denver Anthony Nicholas and Yohan Chacko (MDS).

We would also be belting out some numbers from our upcoming production - "I Wanna be MJ" instead of having awkward silences during scene changes. And the sketches would be staged in the warm and cozy Sivagami Pethachi, Mylapore with the passes being priced at a modest Rs.100 and Rs.200!

We really can't divulge anymore of the evening and considering we were generous enough to reveal the opening lines for the play we hope you do feel kind enough to give us 90 minutes of your time! Oh and we did a bit of experimentation with our poster design so do let us know ur musings...

To block ur passes, call 90941 34945 or 98840 93510.

What's a-Happenin!

It is a colossal sin to not update our blog for the last 3 months ever since our previous production RENT. To all those who made it to the show, thank you so very much for your time and we sincerely hope that you enjoyed the shows! It was a herculean task staging a production of that proportion in namma Chennai’s Museum Theatre and we’re glad that people took notice of the effort that went into the shows!

Reviewed by Sonali Shenoy, thank you!!http://epaper.expressbuzz.com/NE/NE/2011/02/22/ArticleHtmls/22_02_2011_355_010.shtml?Mode=1


Having said that, the team has been on a much-deserved break after having staged 7 productions in the span of over a year! The team has also been busy planning and prepping up for the next year in terms of budgets (if any!) and future productions. So now that we’ve staged concerts and musicals, we’ve decided to venture into staging plays. In terms of the scale of production, they are way easier than musicals which as you all know, involve tremendous amounts of rehearsals both vocal and acting, and also are quite a dent on the monies! And it is common knowledge how ‘plenty’ we humble theatre groups have of that!! So yes, coming up next from the house of Nicholas Productions is a series of short plays! Not only do short plays allow us to accommodate variety of genres within the limited time frame but also keep the audiences gripped with shorter crisper performances. Watch out this space for more dope on the plays which would be staged towards the end of June at Sivagami Petachi Auditorium!

Concurrently the team has also been quite fascinated with the sudden inspiration of our creative director who has been quite literally caught up in a writing frenzy! Later during the year, we would also be staging a musical inspired by the Legend and Experience – Michael Jackson! The final draft of the script, post several iterations has finally emerged from the far-from-sober wits of our director and would feature some of MJ’s most memorable numbers! And yet again, this would involved live singing and orchestra and the works!! Considering the scale of the musical, we are in the inexhaustible process of hunting sponsors for both the short plays and musical called “I Wanna Be MJ”!! Brace yourself Chennai, for there is some fantabulous theatre coming your way!

Peace & Love!



To Commemorate the King of Pop, a tribute to his musical genius!



RENT! Tickets are Out!

The gates are open to RENT! the musical... And we've officially sold our first ticket in less than 2 hours!!!! You can alternatively call us at 98840 93510 or 90941 34945 or visit www.indianstage.in directly.
Donor Passes are priced at 150, 300 and 500 for all days of the show - Feb 19th, 7pm and Feb 20th, 2.30pm and 7pm!

So buy away and we'll see you all soon!!!!

Click here to get your passes to RENT!

RENT! Cast at Prathyasha

So what is RENT! ...

For the uninitiated, RENT is a Tony and Pulitzer award winning Rock Opera, based on the lives of 8 artists affected by HIV and their struggle in coping with death, drugs, stigma from the society and a normal life. It is one of the longest running Broadway musicals which opened in the year 1996 and anyone who has watched the musical can reason why!

So we decided to bring it to Chennai. Why? Because everyone around us told us - 'Dont, it wont work in Chennai', 'Its too bold for our city', 'Its very tough to get such good talent'!. Now, we have roped in some really fresh talent, with a majority of the cast being first timers on stage. The shows would be staged on February 19th and 20th at Museum Theatre, Egmore at 2.30 pm and 7.00pm. We'll be putting up info soon on where you can buy the tickets! 

For our choir direction, Nadisha Thomas has very graciously agreed to don the role and as usual, music direction is under the purview of Shaun Roberts. The musical would be an adaptation, with both movie and play version merged to form Nicholas Productions' RENT! The rehearsals have been on full swing since the month of October and since the message is "Act Up. Fight AIDS", we decided to go a step further, and actually make a difference not just on-stage but otherwise as well.

And then came in Prathyasha - which is a home run by the Mellow Circle of Chennai. They house children affected and infected by HIV and it was an honor when they invited us to spend sometime with their kids. And we decided to do it the patriotic way - On the 62nd Republic Day!

Located around 25kms from Chennai, the home is really spic and span, colorfully decorated for the children with its own playground, dormitory, a cozy dinner hall and a toy room! The youngest tot was just 2 years old and the kids were so full of life despite being looked upon as 'different'! We had a whale of a time, sharing snacks, gifts, playing games, and being part of their joy and laughter for atleast that moment. We winded up the day singing the National Anthem and waved our goodbyes to those very special children....

There's only us... There's only this

Forget Regret... Or life is yours to miss

No other way... No other road...

No Day but Today!!!

One Year Up!

The tone of this article is going to more or less stoic. Why? I think it is because we’ve had way too much fun over the last one year. :) There has been tremendous learning for each and everyone involved in this journey of one year. We’ve been privileged to work with not only the very vivacious and prominent artists in the theatre and music fraternity but also with the budding and amateur youngsters, both talented and essential in our journey to take performing arts to a completely new dimension!

So to list down what it is that we have learnt over the last one year –

1. High Spirits!
Crucial element of any production is the how high your spirits are  :))… unless you are kicked and passionately drunk about what you are doing … well then don’t do it!

2. Audience is God.. Almost!
It is common knowledge that money can never be the driving force in theatre. And at the end of the day, after all the madness and work that goes into putting up a show, its outcome is determined not by your father in law or mother patting your back! Yes, press reviews about the show are great, but that is only if you can coax them into watching your show in the first place!
However when someone whom you’ve never seen in your life before, walks up to you with complete sense of respect and awe in their eyes, and tells you what a good job you’ve done, you are happy that you’re work has managed to touch someone! Never take your audience for granted! … It is also a different subject altogether that no matter what the outcome we have a blast at the cast party!

3. Pamper your team ..
Your team is your strength – pamper them all you can. I mean they are working their backsides off for OUR production, where at the end of the day OUR team gets most, if not all the credit for pulling it off… you can be firm with your team, but at the end of the day, you have to learn to love them and let them be. (If any of our team members are reading this, go practice your lines!!!!!)

4. Love and let love!
Theatre in Chennai is extremely tight knit, but the kind of talent and performances that are being put up by theatre groups from our city are phenomenal! There is so much to learn from each other, and healthy competition is a great thing; but then let’s face it – none of us really make a lot of money and even if we do, it’s more or less put in for the next production instead of getting a Jacuzzi installed in our private beach houses! So why the green eyes.. love and let love!

5. Infectiously ambitious…
A lot of folks have asked us how on earth did we manage to pull off so many good-quality (as vouched by the audience and press reviews also, and not father in laws or spouses) productions in a span of one year – 3 musicals, 4 concerts, a total of 7 productions! We are an extremely self-critical team and honestly, looking back, we could’ve been so much better at each stage however the failures have helped us grow multifold. At the end of the day, we’ve been insanely ambitious and have successfully managed to infect everyone around us to believe that anything is possible. Like someone said, the bigger the better …. !

Now we do sound like a self-help management book, so its time to wrap up this post. Thank you for supporting us over the last one year, and come watch our shows or even better, be a part of Creating Magic, coz we’ve got so many crazy things lined up! See you all in the coming years….

JUKEBOX - The Concert!!!

We've just about recovered from the exhiliration and excitement of a momentous achievement of being the first production group to stage two musicals back to back over one weekend - and our director Denver decides to have a full fledged two day music concert ONLY 2 months later!!! Well, we said, bring it on! Thus, with pure passion for music and theatre as our energy source, we present to you JUKEBOX! ...


Yes, all you Country song and Rock ballad lovers who are just tired of listening to them play on TV or on your Ipod, watch your favourite numbers being belted out live on stage! And not just that, you will get to see some of the finest musicians on Chennai come together for this unique concert! To be held on November 6th and 7th, @ Museum Theatre - the first day would feature numbers exclusively from New Age Country Music with artists like Alan Jackson,Brad Paisley, Faith Hill, Amy Mcdonald, Merle Haggard and more. and the second day (Nov 7th) would feature Rock Ballad with cult artists like Queen, Heart, Foreigner, Scorpions, Prince & the Revolution.. and no we are not going to give you the entire lot of artists 'coz you are just going to have to come and watch the shows!


So grab your tickets today @ 99401 95883 and rock yourselves to an awesome weekend in November!!


See ya all soon :)

Fairytales never end...!

To put up 4 shows, with 2 completely different musicals, a total of 40 songs, live band, a total cast of 40 people to be managed, over 30 different types of costumes for all the shows, different sets for each show, and less than 3 hours to change the entire stage sets and hall designs.... and on top of that with no electricity and everything run on generators throughout the day ... PHEW!!!

Beauty and the Beast and Cinderella opened full house to one of the most supportive audiences who despite the sultry climate and power cuts stayed on till the end of the shows ... and we are immensely grateful for that. The little ones who showed up for the show clearly loved every element of the fairytales with their adorable cheering and hoots and giggles to give us the sense of satisfaction and achievement. And all this was possible only because of the sheer support and cooperation from everyone in the cast and crew, despite having to fumble around backstage in the dark and have costumes and makeup done on stage in the nick of time! It was a beautiful harmony of effort, hard work and faith of each person who was part of this production.

Chennai loved the fairytale weekend and we had a blast performing... Nicholas Productions is coming to you soon with more entertainment.. a musical ... a concert.. maybe both... but for now RENT it is!!!!

(Pictures will be put up soon.. so do watch this space)

Teaser Poster - Fairytale Weekend

To a weekend of drama, pumpkins, fairy godmothers, a beast, soulful music, a glass shoe... above all... magic!

REWIND - To the age of 60's and 80's music!!!

It is time for Chennai to sway to music they haven't heard in a really long time! When was the last time you watched songs of Engelbert, Bangles, Status Quo or 4 Non-blondes performed? .. Well think no more, coz Nicholas Productions wants to get quirky yet again and we've decided to put up a two day show for you die-hard 60s and 80s music fans. And which is precisely why we've called our show REWIND - to the Golden Age of 60's music and 80's Classic Rock!!!!

Sneak peak of artists we'd be performing - Cliff Richards (obviously!!), Engelbert Humperdinck, Willie Nelson, Dean Martin, Merle Haggard, Bangles, Pussycat, Lynrd Skynrd, Jethro Tull, Dire Straits, CCR, Electric Light Orchestra... phew!!!!! Both shows would be performed at Museum Theatre, Chennai on July 31st and August 1st. The first show July 31st would feature exclusive numbers from the 60's and August 1st would have Classic Rock numbers so audiences can pick their day!

We also have some really neat performers lined up - Freddy Koikaran, Cary Edwards, Anisha Verghese, Mridhula Sekar, Sandeep John, Yohan Chacko... and many more! The shows are produced by Denver Anthony Nicholas, with music arranged and directed by Shaun Roberts from Molotov Cocktail and vocals arranged and directed by Anisha Verghese from Subject to Change. We really have pumped in some awesome talent to this concert so pick up your tickets today!!

Tickets for each show are priced at 350, 250 and 150 so call 98840-93510 to get yours today!

Two Fairytales Over One Weekend!!!

The first question on everyone's mind when Nicholas Productions declared that it would be staging two musicals back to back over one weekend - Are you guys crazy? Well isn't that what they all say when you are attempting something for the first time ever! Yes, this is indeed the first time in the country that two fairytale musicals with an all-live performance with orchestra on stage would be performed over one weekend. "Beauty & the Beast" and "Cinderella" would be staged during the first weekend of September, in Museum Theatre in Chennai. Rehearsals have already begun full-swing for both productions and while "Beauty & the Beast" would be an adaptation of the Broadway musical, "Cinderella" is a brain-child of Denver, with popular music fused into a stage version of the fairytale.

The production team has set the ball rolling for sponsorship for both the shows; yes, this is definitely high ticket but the team is proud of roping in impressive talent from the fields of music and theatre in Chennai.

We will be posting pictures and videos of the rehearsals and how the musicals are coming along, so watch this space!

The show was indeed Spectacular Spectacular!!

Moulin Rouge has finally come to an end! And the journey to the end has been quite eventful to say the least. Since November'09, the production team had quite a task on their hands in putting together a huge cast with actors, dancers, choir, and the band ensuring that the various elements would blend perfectly to produce 'magic' on stage! The team as a whole had faced numerous difficulties in terms of last minute drop outs, falling short of dancers, rehearsal schedules going haywire and the shocking and sudden death of the show's producer.

As cliched as this may sound - come what may, the show must go on! Denver and his team did a marvelous job in keeping the morale up and kudos to the fact that the whole show was managed by just 2 people! The first run of the show obviously did have its share of technical faults but the performances were brilliant nevertheless. The Sunday show performances pretty much sealed it for Denver, with almost no technical glitches, perfectly balanced singing, choir & band, and powerful performances that kept the audiences hooked on till the end. And the smiles and cheering from the audience was proof enough that Moulin Rouge was a 'gargantuan bedazzlement and a sensual rrravvishment!' For a first time director, Denver has indeed made heads turn and piqued the interest of many-a-critic!

So has Chennai seen the last of Moulin Rouge? We don't think so!

Nicholas Productions Arrives!

Nicholas Productions embarks on its maiden musical production - the MOULIN ROUGE! A bold venture attempted for the first time in Chennai, the show promises to be a visual treat and a high energy all-live musical experience, bringing together a fine confluence of live music, great vocals, energetic dance moves and vibrant theatrics!

In addition to an enthralling love story with cult classic songs, the show also boasts of some of the top-notch performers in the city and has roped in the best talent from the field of acting, singing, music and even production!

The show will be directed and choreographed by Denver - the founder of Nicholas Productions. The cast includes Cary - Chennai's own stand-up comedian and ex-Channel V VJ, Renu from Chicago, Gibran Osman - upcoming actor and Denver himself, to mention a few. The show would have its own choir, under the direction of Anisha Varghese and a 7-member band on stage directed by Shaun Roberts ( from Molotov Cocktail ).

Moulin Rouge will premiere at Chinmaya Heritage Center, 13th Avenue, Harrington Road on March 6th and 7th, with a total of 3 shows. Rehearsals for the show began in the month of December'09 and have been going on in full swing. We will be uploading some videos and pictures soon! Until then...

Moulin Rouge is a tribute to the late Roshni Menon - producer of Moulin Rouge. An extremely versatile and beautiful person, Roshni was not only the producer of the show, but also the reason Nicholas Productions was born and Moulin Rouge was Denver and Roshni's dream project. She was a dear friend, and she will always live in our hearts.

Book Your Seats to the Moulin Rouge!