We are just over three weeks away from opening night, and I can't tell you how excited I am!  I can honestly say that after 30-plus years of being in theatre, I have never been more fired up about performing a show.  Growing up a huge Monty Python fan, The Holy Grail has always been my favorite of their films.  It is an absolute honor to be playing the role of King Arthur!

This show gives a performer several different challenges.  The characters and the comic genius in this show are not something easy to reproduce.  It is the attitude of every cast member to give the audience the best show that they have seen in Gadsden, and at the same time hold true to the tradition of classic Monty Python.  Rehearsals are extremely fun and very demanding.  I am learning that I am not as young as I used to be!  This is my first musical performance in almost 6 years, and to jump into a challenging show such as this leaves little time to complain about "stage rust."  There is, however, nothing more satisfying for a theatre junkie than getting back on the stage, memorizing lines, and working with the best talent in this area.

Away from the show, I get to spend days with my beautiful wife Tabitha and three of the best kids on the planet (Lakeland, Addie, and Sylvia).  As an English teacher at Gadsden City High, summers provide the perfect time for ventures such as this.  I want to thank Cody and all of the CharACTers for giving me this opportunity.

July 5, 2013

Jason Bozeman

My name is Brian Boozer, and I am very privileged to be playing Sir Lancelot in this wonderful production of Spamalot. I am also very pleased to be making my CharACTers début. I want to thank Cody for casting me in my first musical since 1999. I didn’t realize I had only been in dramas and comedies for the past fourteen years until the first dance rehearsal . . . then it was obvious to everyone. I have been very impressed with the process of Spamalot, from the biggest of the issues to the smallest of the details. Cody and his entire team are professional and extremely talented.         

            I guess now would be a good time to tell you a bit about myself. I began acting at the age of four, and have been acting consistently since the seventh grade. After high school, I earned a drama scholarship and decided to take acting to the next level. After performing in several shows for Theatre of Gadsden in the mid-to-late 90s, and receiving a degree in drama from JSU, I left Gadsden and spent several years as a professional actor and director in Atlanta. My professional credits include film, television, print, and stage. I have more than twenty-five years of experience, and have been involved with over 125 productions. Some of my favorite roles include, Henry in The Skin of Our Teeth, Prince Dauntless in Once Upon a Mattress,  Albert Einstein in Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Himself in The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged, Peter in The Diary of Anne Frank, Cally Eichmann and AMA singer in Wilhelm Reich in Hell, Jeff Barry in Leader of the Pack, and Hal in Proof.

            Apart from acting, I teach 10th grade English at Jacksonville High School. I have been married to the beautiful and talented Jen Boozer for eleven years, and we have a one-year-old daughter named Stella. This show is an important part of what has been a wonderful summer. I get to spend the day with my daughter, and the night performing Monty Python. I will admit one thing, the rehearsal process for this show has been exhausting, but so worth it. Cody and Santana have been very patient while I knock the dust off of my musical-boots. With that being said, I am very glad to see some straight plays on the schedule for next year. I am really enjoying this show, and it is sure to be something the people of Gadsden will talk about for some time. I can honestly say, I am both proud and humbled to be working with such a talented group. 

Greetings from the stage!

Hello everyone! My name is Jacob Dowdy and I am very excited to be playing the role of Patsy in CharACTers Entertainment’s summer performance of Monty Python’s SPAMalot!

First off I suppose I should tell you a little bit about myself. I am 15 years old and attend Gadsden City High School. I love to sing and act and have been involved in the theatre since I was 8 and partook in my first show, The Jungle Book KIDS, under the direction of Cody Carlton. I’ve been in many other performances since then, some among them being Oliver!, Ragtime, Titanic: The Musical, and most recently Annie.

Theatre to most people is just a hobby, but to me and others like me, it a lifestyle. If you were to ask me what my favorite part about it was, I honestly couldn’t answer you. The answer you would probably get would be something along the lines of, “What isn’t there to like?!” You fall in love with all of it. The people you meet become family, the stage and the theatre itself becomes like a home, and the singing, dancing, and acting is like the food and drink put on your table for dinner. It is best feeling in the world to be able to come to practice and walk in to warm smiles and greetings and all the laughter you could ask for. For me you could say the theatre is what I’m addicted to, because whenever I take a break from the stage I go through what I call “theatre withdrawals” and find myself dying to get back to what I love! Whether it be back stage, out in the lobby, or on the stage performing.

Throughout my almost 8years of doing productions I’ve met friends – or rather “family” – that I hope keep throughout my whole life. People like my director, Cody Carlton, whom I have looked up to as an inspiration for many years. Being involved in an environment like this, one which inspires and is uplifting in every way, has allowed me to blossom not just socially but academically as well. I honestly believe that I would not be the person I am today without my time in the theatre and the people that I have come across along the way. They mold you; build character in you that you never knew you had before, and overall, bring out your inner “thespian” (which is without a doubt any person’s best side).

Being a part of this production is specifically special to me in the regards that I am an avid Python fan. I was first introduced to these talented men in Monty Python’s the Holy Grail when I was 11 years old and have been hooked ever since. Since that point I have become the owner of all three Python films, every aired episode of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, as well as special DVDs like un-aired recordings of the German productions, private and public interviews with the troupe, and Monty Python: LIVE at the Hollywood Bowl. These six men’s witty and hilarious, yet outrageous senses of humor have sent audiences to their knees crying from laughter for decades and from personal experience I can honestly say that they still do today.

This is sure to be an excited, extravagant, and entertaining show to say the least and I can’t wait for opening night! I’ll see you there! Until then, remember: “Always look on the bright side of life!”

Sincerely Yours,

Jacob Dowdy

CharACTers and Gadsden State are THRILLED to be bringing SPAMALOT to the local stage this summer!

Lovingly ripped off from the classic film comedy 
MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL, SPAMALOT retells the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, and features a bevy of beautiful show girls, not to mention cows, killer rabbits, and French people. Did we mention the bevy of beautiful show girls?

Monty Python's Spamalot is the winner of three 2005 Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Director (Mike Nichols), as well as the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for Best Musical.  The original cast recording of Monty Python’s Spamalot won the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.

Keep your summer open and plan on being a part of the Northeast Alabama Community Theatre premiere of SPAMALOT!  This show promises to be one of the biggest shows to ever come to Etowah County.

Auditions will be held in May!  Sign up for our email list - CLICK HERE! - to be informed about all of our upcoming events and productions.