Umbrellas Under the Stars

Okay, we don't mean to jinx the season, but we all know it sometimes rains in Vancouver. Theatre Under the Stars has begun its 2013 season, with, as usual, two shows running back to back: this year, "Legally Blonde" and "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying."

The first TUTS performances were staged in Stanley Park in 1940, and they were "As You Like It," "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and "The Geisha." The what? "The Geisha"--a musical comedy that was the hit of 1896.

Among the performers we remember on stage at Malkin Bowl are Fran Gregory, then Mrs. Jack Wasserman, who sang "Take Back Your Mink" in "Guys and Dolls," and Brad Keene, the hip sportscaster, who played Big Julie in the same show.

An early lead at TUTS, before he broke through in "Camelot," was Robert Goulet. His career followed the classic show biz path, from "Who's Robert Goulet?" to "Get me a Robert Goulet type" to "Who was Robert Goulet?"

Have fun at Theatre Under the Stars. Take a cushion. And a Thermos.