Australia’s own multi-talented Melinda Schneider, after Dancing With The Stars, steps into the shoes of a great musical icon, American chanteuse Doris Day.
DORIS is a heart-felt homage, co-written by Melinda and musical theatre scribe, David Mitchell (of Dusty and Shout! fame). Melinda traces her love at first sight of Doris Day back to the 1953 movie musical Calamity Jane.
The clock turns back as Melinda lovingly tells the story of Ms. Day’s life through such popular standards as “Sentimental Journey”, “Que Sera, Sera”, “Everybody Loves a Lover”, “Secret Love” and a whole slew of hits from the smash movies “Calamity Jane”, “The Pajama Game” and “Love Me or Leave Me”.
DORIS is so much more than a re-imagining of truly great songs. Doris Day’s real life story is equally rich and fascinating. Melinda and David have unearthed amazing little-known facts about Doris’ journey from small-town Ohio, to the heights of Hollywood. Her four turbulent marriages, rife with abuse and finally catastrophic financial ruin, are also revealed. But throughout, the strength and sunny disposition of everyone’s favourite film star shone through.
“The more I’ve found out about Doris, the more I’ve discovered that our lives have run a parallel course”, says Melinda. “We’re both born into German Catholic families, we are both madly in love with our doggies and we’ve both been through messy relationships and divorce.”
Doris Day is a figure that still connects today. Melinda shares some of her own stories in the show as well as those of her idol. “Women are survivors, so this show is really the universal story of women set to music of the forties, fifties and sixties.”
Not only wonderfully musical, DORIS is visually stunning as Melinda’s on-stage wardrobe is a virtual runway of some high fashion trends Doris showcased in her thirty nine Hollywood movies.
It’s a big production, about a big personality, performed by a big talent – Melinda Schneider, as she once again struts her stuff alongside two top male singer dancers and the swinging eight piece Doris Big Band.