A Dark Day for Cabaret
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Boombala’s closing was a particularly strong jolt to Mary Ann Johnson, who with son Phil opened the club with a $77,000 investment of their own money. “We constructed it ourselves in six months,” notes Johnson, who’s lost most of her savings and now is living in borrowed housing. She says the closing was prompted in large part by her inability to collect approximately $20,000 of a $60,000 fee she says was due the club for a lavish party she organized for an outside client. “We had to do private parties,” says Johnson, “to make ends meet.” Johnson would not discuss the particulars of the deadbeat party, but she indicated her attorney is not optimistic about obtaining the remaining money. “It was just too big an amount for us to swallow,” she says. “We had no choice but to close.” Last week, to add insult to injury, Johnson heard from city licensing officials that someone–they wouldn’t say who–has applied for a new liquor license for a club to be called Boombala at her old address.
Who Will Lead the Body Politic?
A none-too-subtle tussle for audience share has broken out between Marriott’s Lincolnshire Theatre and the producing trio of Michael Cullen, Sheila Henaghan, and Howard Platt. In the April 29 Tribune Arts section, Marriott’s Lincolnshire ran an ad encouraging patrons wishing to see Pump Boys and Dinettes to avoid the “freeze-dried” version–a reference to CH&P’s current remounting of their long-running hit at the Forum in south-suburban Summit–and wait instead for the “freshly-brewed” production set to open at Marriott’s Lincolnshire on June 27. CH&P have been running ads featuring a quote from critic Albert Williams, who calls their revival “a sparkling new” production. Behind the scenes, Cullen clearly was not charmed by Marriott’s marketing chutzpah. He called the ad “cheesy” and declined further comment. Marriott marketing honcho Peter Grigsby said the ad was a one-time salvo aimed primarily at North Shore theatergoers who might have been unaware of the upcoming production.
Priced to Stay: Joe Martin’s Oil Cartoons
