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Third Avenue Playhouse presents:
August 8 at 7:30 PM
STURGEON BAY, WI -
Back in the late '80s a group of students from the University of New Mexico felt the need to bring some much needed
humor back to post-Reagan America, so they created a 21st century vaudeville troupe that came to be known as Skümbáàg.
Performing in any and all venues that presented themselves, the response has been random, wild and unpredictable,
but most often lauded as cutting-edge musical innovators. They have persisted developing a unique blend of humor
and music that has been described by one critic as tossing, "the Village People, Metallica, Monty Python,
Kermit the Frog, and the Bonzo Dog Band into a blender and turn on high for three sets."
The band describes themselves as "heavy-metal vaudeville," a description that bassist Keg McNabb says
is both accurate and misleading. "It is not heavy-metal in the usual sense, but it does feature aggressive
guitar-based music. Stylistically the show can go anywhere, from hard-rock riffing, to country, to free jazz, and
even into the kind of sonic landscapes more frequently associated with such experimental composers as John Cage."
The "vaudeville" tag arises from the band's use of theatrics, skits, poetry and humor - some sophisticated
and some significantly less so - they have been know to throw underwear at their audiences.
"Our work is highly representative of high art and pop culture - iluuminating the good and bad of both,"
says McNabb.
The band's unusual take on culture and art has led to some interesting collaborations, including one with Digby
Wolfe, one of the creators of TV's Laugh-In, which produced a twenty-minute history of the United States done in
rap, with original music composed by drummer DUG.
Given Skümbáàg's willingness to dabble in "gutter" humor, it is interesting to note
that their performance collaborations include one with.Joel Gelpe, director of the Albuquerque Philharmonic Orchestra.
He was so taken with a Skümbáàg concert performance that he invited the band to do a show with
the orchestra in March of 2002.
The band has found allies in contemporary composers of "serious" music as well. In 1996 they were asked
to provide the featured vocals in the United States premier of Dutch composer Konrad Boehmer's Apocalipsis cum
figuris. They work with many such composers, presenting the world premiers of Christopher Schultis' Decline of
the West and Stuart Saunders Smith's From One to Another, both dedicated to the band.
Skümbáàg is also involved in Albuquerque's theatre scene with members working as actors and
musicians in everything from from small original productions to composing and performing music for shows including
the University of New Mexico's production of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure.
Skümbáàg recently produced their own full-length rock opera, The Lubbock Lights.
"It's a difficult show," says McNabb. "The characters and situations are very dark and uncomfortable,
and yet we sold out every show during its two week run at Albuquerque's Vortex Theatre."
| The members of the band all have busy personal and artistic lives outside
of the band as well, but they agree that "The Skümbáàg Show" grants them the greatest
amount of artistic range and freedom. |
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- Hovey Dean Corbin,
Jr. (Hovey Cheeze Lamptapper) teaches band and guitar at the
prestigious Albuquerque Academy, performs frequently with Musical Theater Southwest and Musica Antiqua De Albuquerque.
- John Bartlit (Cap'n
Me'Po) is a freelance instrumentalist working in film, studio, and live performance. His credits include recordings
with Robbie Robertson of The Band fame and live performances with the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra.
- Dr. Douglas Nottingham (DUG Toothhausend) recently received his DMA from Arizona State University and
teaches electronic music at Glendale Community College in Phoenix, AZ.
- Wm. Craig McClelland
(Keg McNabb) is a musician, composer, playwright, and award-winning songwriter. He has been a regular the past
couple of seasons at Door Off Broadway Dinner Theatre and is currently involved with their summer production of
Always
Patsy Cline.
- Andrew Fietek (Tiberious Knobbs) is a well-known recording engineer and is currently teaching
music at a private school in the Boston area.
"The Skümbáàg Show" takes place Friday, August 8 at 7:30 PM.
For Tickets and Information contact Third Avenue Playhouse 920.743.1760. Click to hear some of their music.
Sponsored by
Starr ERA, Door Off Broadway Dinner Theatre, and Sonic Absurdities Music Publishing.
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