Musical Theater

P.O. Box 327, Port Angeles, WA 98362 - (360) 457-5630

PALOA Musical Theater - (formerly The Port Angeles Light Opera Association)

In the following history all  of the show titles are links to pages describing the production, cast and show, with pictures whenever possible. Please follow the links to find out more.

When the curtain fell in the final performance of H.M.S. Pinafore on July 31, 1983, a dream was fulfilled for Dr. Geri Muser and his wife Evelyn, founders of the Port Angeles Light Opera Association. And what a dream it was! After retiring to Port Angeles in 1981 and meeting many other talented people who had also chosen to live here for the lifestyle, the Musers proposed a Gilbert and Sullivan summer music festival as a way to involve the community and draw tourists to Port Angeles.

A year in the making, H.M.S. Pinafore attracted dozens of workers, onstage and off, who were inspired by the Musers' leadership and personal involvement. The show became the hottest ticket in town when a feature article in a Seattle daily newspaper suggested that a "drab mill town" was perhaps an unlikely place for such a venture to succeed. Four sold-out performances and four standing ovations later, Pinafore wowed its audiences with knock-your-socks-off music, dance, sets and costumes. A bright new chapter in the cultural life of Port Angeles had opened. 

Work began immediately on the 1984 production, The Mikado. Noted for its stunning costumes, the show also featured a donkey, the first time a live animal ever was used in a PALOA production . This may be because the donkey, a reluctant thespian, bucked off the lead tenor during one performance - luckily, backstage.

At the end of the 1984 season, the Musers retired from an active role in PALOA. New leadership, chose Carousel for 1985 and, in 1986, Little Mary Sunshine, the first show with a completely local cast. PALOA's fifth anniversary was celebrated in 1987 with an enormously popular production of the Music Man. In 1988 PALOA confidently returned to Gilbert and Sullivan with The Pirates of Penzance. Singers love to do "G & S", and extra care was taken to make the witty lyrics accessible to the audience.

The largest cast ever, 61 performers, presented Oklahoma in 1989. The centerpiece of this show was a rousing barn dance, footage from which was later included in a Chamber of Commerce promotional video.

In 1990 came Fiddler on the Roof, which is always high on the list of audience favorites. Five sold-out shows were performed during a sweltering heat wave that is also frequently mentioned. Another popular production, South Pacific, followed in 1991. Ironically, the weather turned cold and the women of the cast, costumed in shorts and halter tops, shivered backstage in bathrobes.

The 1992 tenth anniversary production, The Sound of Music, was remarkable in ways befitting a musical that as a movie, set attendance records. For the PALOA production over 100 hopefuls auditioned for the seven von Trapp children roles. The music reached a new level of excellence, and the set was so beautiful that many cast members wanted to live in it, receiving applause as soon as the curtain went up.

Brigadoon, with all its wistful charm was chosen for 1993, followed by the jazzy Guys and Dolls in 1994. In 1995 a lush production of My Fair Lady was performed, with a memorable black-and-white rendition of the scene at the Ascot races.

Camelot was featured in 1996, and then suddenly it was 1997, and another anniversary had arrived. With many companies unable to sustain past five years, Hello, Dolly! with a message of "never give up", seemed the perfect way to celebrate the 15th year.

The fun continued with The King and I in 1998, and Cinderella in 1999. The fun quirky Anything Goes followed in 2000, with a stage full of tap dancers, and the wonderful songs of Cole Porter.

PALOA's history  continued with Annie. in 2001. With a cast of 45 or so, this group of wonderful actors and actresses included 12 orphans from age 6 to 14, and a wonderful Golden Retriever named Maggie playing Sandy.

Our 2002 show was The Wizard of OZ. With over 130 wonderful costumes designed by a PALOA veteran Bonnie Almaden this may have been our most extravagant show to date.  

In 2003 we presented "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" A show with a more adult theme, "Forum" is a fast paced, witty, funny,  bawdy (without being vulgar) show with music by Steven Sondheim, and script by Bert Shevelove and Larry Gelbart (M*A*S*H). With great sets and costumes as well as acting cast, this show was a hit.

In 2004 we are presenting "Annie Get Your Gun" with trick shootin', knife throwin', Cowboys, European royalty, Buffalo Bills Wild Wild West Show, and a love story to boot.  Ya gotta see this one. Ya hear.

Our 23rd show Once Upon A Mattress featured a 20 foot turntable (designed and built by Jim Doell) rotating to become the inside and the outside of the castle of Carcasonne, playground for our cast to retell the fairy tale "The Princess and the Pea". One of our fullest productions, Mattress used the whole stage top to bottom and side to side to give a huge and full sensory experience for our audience. 

2006 brought a bunch of grizzly miners to Rumson Town with our production of Lerner and Loewe's Paint Your Wagon.

2007 brought us to Victorian England with a fabulous production of Oliver!.

Summer 2008 took us Into The Woods with well, Into The Woods, the story of what happened after "happily ever after".

Literally thousands of people have been involved in the PALOA story: onstage, backstage and offstage. Many are well-known names in the Port Angeles arts scene; just as many are stage-struck newcomers  who think it looks like fun and want to give it a try.

Watching the local bank teller, dentist or supermarket checker-our neighbors- become performers for the night continues to be a large part of the charm if each production. The joy and fun that are created onstage have been reflected tenfold from the community. That's become the real story of PALOA.

PALOA's impressive list of productions is as follows:

        These productions have showcased the musical and theatrical talents of hundreds of local performers. Backed by dedicated crews and community support, PALOA shows have entertained thousands of people who have delighted in seeing their friends and neighbors transformed by Broadway magic.