1962/3: The Billy Barnes' L.A. Revue, Coronet Theater, L.A.

 

Sylvia with Mayor Sam Yorty & Marlyn Mason as the mayor proclaims "Billy Barnes Day"

 

"These were my happiest years because, beginning with Vintage 60, I spent about four years straight in the theater. That's when I was urged to move to NY and stay in theater work, but decided I couldn't do so because of my daughter... very complicated issues.

Billy Barnes L.A. was in a wonderful intimate (450 seats) house on La Cieniga.  It was charming and very popular with the theater going public at that time.  Perfect for an intimate revue with a six person cast."

 

 

 

Photo on original cast album

(l-r) Joyce Jameson, Ken Berry, Marlyn Mason, Steve Franken, Tom Hatten, Sylvia

From the album photo shoot

1964:  Billy Barnes' Hollywood Preview, American Cancer Fund Benefit, Beverly Hills Hotel Ballroom

Click the Play Arrow to hear Sylvia's duet with Ken Berry: "Where Did the Magic Go?"

"A cast of six quickly got together, learned the material, and presented the show as a preview.  We staged it concert style, no sets etc., just elegant evening clothes and lined up on the stage in chairs, with one song blending into another without much fuss.  We were Carol Cook, Jackie Joseph, Ken Berry, Tom Hatten, Bob Rogers (the sketch writer and partner of BB) and yours truly.  About the only thing I remember from that evening was we had an audience of major celebrities... not the least of whom was Gregory Peck, who sat at the front table, directly in front of me.  Since we were seated on stage during the entire show, I had no place to retreat. I  nearly came unhinged that evening.  His presence was powerful and it made me more nervous than I had ever been on stage."

 

Late 1970s:  Hollywood Inside Out Musical Revue, Oregon

1995: The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, Plaza Theatre, Palm Springs

"I had been living a quiet life in Cambria (a tiny sea coast town mid-way up to San Francisco), teaching and coming in to Hollywood a few times a year to choreograph some TV shows such as 'Who's the Boss?', 'Living Dolls', 'The Jeffersons', 'Married With Children,' etc.  An old friend, Jerry Antes, was appearing in "The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies".  He mentioned that they were looking for a new choreographer  and a dear, divine friend of mine, Carl Jablonski, who is a fabulous choreographer, was also being considered for the job.  Carl suggested to the producer Riff Markowitz that he might hire both Carl and me to choreograph, and I could stay on and appear in the show as well as be 'choreographer in residence'.  That appealed to me. I hadn't performed on stage in years, but I knew I'd probably have a ball doing this one. So away I went...to Palm Springs for nearly a year. Riff revisits the old Zeigfeld Follies, showgirls and all; it's quite lavish, loud and rambunctious and the audiences adore it. "

 

"Sophisticated Lady"

 

 

 

"The show was wonderful....for a bunch of old pros, that is. It was a killer job. I don't remember ever working so hard in theater, not even when I was very young. By the height of the season (winter) there are 12, count 'em , twelve performances a week. Not even on Broadway does one do more than eight shows a week.  A matinee and an evening performance every day, six days a week."

 

 

 

"Show Girl"

 

 

 

 

"Even though our and my work was very well received, by the end of the year I was very tired, and became acutely aware of how diminished my ability to perform at a level acceptable to me had become. No matter how in shape one is, no 64 year old is going to be able to dance at a past level, and as a neurotically demanding performer (on myself as well as on others), that frustration could not be overlooked.  So I decided then that 60 years had been enough.  I had given it my best effort, and aside from the possibility of getting a job sitting on a bar stool singing in a piano bar, I probably would not do "showbiz" again..."

In the dressing room