Broadway star, Vermilion native returns for benefit

VERMILION — It's a full circle, coming from the bright lights of Broadway to the stage of your former high school. It's a journey acclaimed New York singer and performer John Riddle is willing to make in hopes of helping others in his hometown see their way to a future in the arts someday, too. Riddle will return Aug. 28 for a one-night performance of his one-man show, "Blue Lady," a musical tribute to the women who inspired him growing up in Vermilion. Riddle's fame was made playing Hans in the original cast of "Frozen" on Broadway and Raoul in "The Phantom of the Opera," among many other roles, but this performance was years in the making and is close to Riddle's heart in many ways. For one, it is a benefit for the restoration of the Harbourtown Fine Arts Center, which is housed in the historic Vermilion Town Hall at 736 Main St. Built in 1883, the soaring red-brick structure with the unique stained glass window was built to serve the town's residents with a courtroom and city hall and jail downstairs and upstairs an elegant Opera House brought in minstrel shows, plays and even wedding receptions. The original stage and seats are still in place upstairs, and the HFAC want to restore them to bring it back to life as a usable theater. The benefit itself is titled "Back to Where It All Began" for a very personal reason: Because the HFAC stage is not usable now, the event will be be held in the Vermilion High School auditorium, where Riddle performed in numerous productions before graduating from Vermilion High in 2008. "I remember being on that stage, being in 'The Music Man.' It really was my start. If I could have looked back 20 years and seen (what) would transpire … it was my training ground. We had the most incredible teacher, Ted Williams. He just sort of let us have this playground. We designed sets and choreographed shows. He created this place to make theater and I credit him so much. It was such a special place in my life," Riddle said. His show, "Blue Lady," began a decade ago, when he was asked to do a solo show at 54 Below, a supper club in the basement of the legendary Studio 54 in New York City that brought Broadway performers to intimate cabaret-style settings. Riddle had just come from doing a Broadway show, and "had no idea what (I) was doing," so he started by compiling a playlist. He started with the song "Blue Lady" by singer/songwriter Labi Siffre "about a woman, you know when you go into a restaurant and you see this lady and it's like the dinner party game where you go, 'Huh, what is her story?'" he said. "And the imagery in that song reminds me of my dad's mother, sort of eccentric, sort of wild women. Both of my grandmothers were amazing hosts, they threw great parties. My mom, who is included in there, is a very successful, could be a professional sailor who's sailed all over the world and is still sailing. And I thought, what if I built this show on all the women in my life who sort of shaped this journey that I'm on?" The cabaret-styled show is filled with music and stories that touch on the roadmap of his life, including his unique childhood growing up in Vermilion — including growing up sailing — but always knowing he would one day leave, with an eye on bigger stages. "So much of who I am is because of growing up on the lake. I had a distinct childhood growing up in Vermilion. Part of the show is describing Vermilion and growing up in the town. So many people, when they hear my stories, they say 'What a cool place, I want to go there.'" Riddle's storytelling laces together a playlist of many genres, including pop, jazz, soul and disco. "It's a love letter to music. It's really fun, hopefully touching too. I wanted to create something that, if you didn't know who I was, you'd know who I was after seeing my show," he said. "I've been very, very lucky. Hard work helped a little bit. I've been very, very fortunate." "This town gave me everything," said Riddle. "I'm thrilled to bring this show home and support the vision of turning our old Town Hall into a vibrant arts center for future generations." "Back to Where It All Began" will be at 6 p.m. Aug. 28 at Vermilion High School, 1250 Sanford St., Vermilion. Tickets are available at harbourtownfineartscenter.org. Contact Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com.