For those of us on Capitol Hill, Theater Schmeater regulars know MJ Sieber as a gory Menelaus, roaring for vengeance in "Trojan Women," or the director of such dramas as the recent trash-talking "God Damn Tom."
But down at the Seattle Children's Theatre, Sieber plays rather different roles, from the hapless Stanley in "Holes" to a child beset by a vampire rabbit in "Bunnicula."
"It's amazing to me that I can keep doing what I do and shifting myself artistically between [SCT] and other projects," said Sieber, who stars as the lead character of "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day." The musical play, based on the popular picture book by Judith Viorst, opens on Friday, April 8 at the Seattle Children's Theatre in the Seattle Center.
The 26-year-old Cornish graduate has been extremely busy in local theater since he finished college, rarely taking any time off between projects. He considers his work at SCT as exciting as any he does for Theater Schmeater.
"Alexander is about 6-years-old," said Sieber, who finds the "aging down" one of the easier aspects of playing Alexander. "The biggest challenge is that everyone has read the book. It's daunting to tackle something that so many people know by heart."
In Viorst's picture book, first published in 1972, Alexander wakes up late with gum in his hair, gets left out of games at school and even has to go to the dentist! "Which leads to my big Australia song," Sieber said, "where Alexander sings about leaving everything behind."
Capitol Hill residents will also recognize "Alexander" director Susan Finque. Although she now lives in the Midwest, Finque was very active in Seattle's fringe theater throughout the 1990s, both as a co-founder of Alice B. Theatre and solo performer at On the Boards. Recently, Finque returned to Seattle to direct the world premiere of "(L)imitations of Life" at The Empty Space.
"Director Susan Finque takes Alexander and his horrible day seriously, honoring the child's perspective, and the theatricality of the show is a wonderful reflection of a child's sense of play," said Linda Hartzell, SCT's artistic director.
For Sieber, the commitment to serious theater combined with a sense of play is what attracted him to work at SCT.
"They treat us so well here," he said, "and there's a real sense of safety zone in rehearsals where you can leave your grown-up lives behind."
Sieber also enjoys the young audiences at SCT: "The kids are the best audiences. If they like it, they laugh and they're right there with you."
In fact, the most difficult thing about being Alexander is the schedule. "We do 11 shows a week," he said. Many of the shows are held during the day for school audiences. Public performances take place on Fridays at 7 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 2 and 5:30 p.m. in SCT's Eve Alvord Theatre, located at 201 Thomas Street at Seattle Center.
Although Sieber is working on a script for Theater Schmeater, he's also thinking about taking some time off after "Alexander" closes in June. He hasn't had a long vacation for some time and, like Alexander, is thinking about going far away for a break.
However, he's the first to admit that if another interesting role or directing job opens up, he'll just keep working and put off that trip for a a future date. Being able to act and direct for a living indeed makes life on Capitol Hill a series of very good days for Sieber.
Tickets for "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" range in price from $14 to $28 and may be purchased by calling the SCT Ticket Office at 441-3322 or by visiting the website at www.sct.org. The show continues through June 12 at SCT.
Rosemary Jones writes about arts and entertainment for the Capitol Hill Times. She can be reached at editor@capitolhilltimes.com.
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