Event

Vaud Rats

Cecil B. DeUkulele was Big Time. He played the Palace, the Hippodrome and every ritzy Vaudeville house on the Keith-Albee circuit. From the time he was a kid hoofing a song-and-dance, to the comedic headlining patter-man he became, Cecil was born to trod the boards and always knocked 'em bowlegged.

But then one bad business move puts him on the blacklist. His agent has no option but to sign him to a small, small time nine-act of washed up deadbeats touring Odd Fellows halls and community auditoriums in midwest stix U.S.A.

The silver lining: our hero falls head over heels for a brunette midget sidekick in a strong man routine.

The tragedy: the strong man is the husband.

Cecil finds himself singing to the rats in an abandoned warehouse in an unknown whistlestop in the middle of... without a circuit, without an agent, without a cent. He's just rearing up for his wow finish!

VAUD RATS consists of original music and libretto by Neel, peppered with lively dance numbers, tickling comedic banter, and thrilling pantomime. Originally work-shopped at Theater Babylon in 2004, selections have been performed for Intrepid Theater in Victoria, Canada, on national tour with the Seattle Mime Theatre, and in cabarets around Seattle. The consummate production premiered at the Capital Fringe Festival in Washington, D.C., Summer of 2006. The full production was also selected for the 2007 Bumbershoot Arts Festival in Seattle, and most recently played the 2008 Piccolo Spoleto Festival in Charleston, S.C., presented by Pure Theatre.