The Pittsburgh Press from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania • Page 278

The Club That Produced A "Pippin" In '67 Is At It Again 3fl2uU Vaa GDom'O MmCx Dtf Voaa cDoaira DO days (with Harvard's Hasty Pudding troupe), but so did Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart (through Columbia's Masque and Bauble). Closer to home, the list of Scotch 'n' Soda alumni who have made good is in itself formidable. A 1953 S'n'S program for "Shoot the Works" lists impressionist Frank Gorshin's name four times. He helped write the music and lyrics, appeared in the singing chorus, did a vocal solo and played the part of a U.S. ambassador.

Actress Barbara Feldon (she was Barbara Hall then) danced in that show. Bill Putch, producer-director of the Totem Pole Playhouse (and husband of TV "dingbat" Jean Stapleton), was the co-author of "Molecule Man," presented by S'n'S in 1949. Other names familiar to those who watch credit lines Saul Swimmer, Bob Finkel, Jerry Adler, Franklin Heller, Herb Gardner, Lawrence Carra also show up in Scotch Soda programs from the past. The real Cinderella story, though, features Stephen Schwartz who wrote "Pippin, Pippin" as a Scotch 'n' Soda show in 1967. After graduation he rewrote it, dropped By Ed Wintermantel Friday, takes a breather today and resumes tomorrow for six more nights.

It continues a tradition that goes back 65 years at Carnegie-Mellon. Not only did Cole Porter begin getting it together in his varsity every year about this time, and the answer is a reassuring "yes." Reassurance is important because half a hundred CMU undergraduates are now up to their collective reputations in the annual student musical. The show opened NEGLECTING classes, losing sleep, writing, rewriting, rehearsing are you sure Cole Porter started like this? Members of the Scotch 'n' Soda Club at Carnegie-Mellon University ask themselves that question 0 h. 4, Belting out the title tune in last year's Scotch Soda musical, "A New Day," is the entire troupe. That show lost money because of the expensive set, but it won first prize in a national varsity show competition.

It was written and directed by Steve Fechtor who received 1 ,000 for his efforts. THE PITTSBURGH PRESS ROTO, APRIL 8. 1973.