WISHING ALL OF OUR VALUED CUSTOMERS
A HAPPY AND HEALTHY PASSOVER!!!
Craig Morgan poses in front of the ship — mid-construction — he designed
for Titanic the Musical.
Lance Luce
Dream Boat
Local engineer designs and helps build
Titanic replica for stage musical.
Suzanne Chessler
Contributing Writer
C
raig Morgan thought he was
giving up full-time work when
he retired from Humanetics
Innovative Solutions in Plymouth,
athough he remains co-owner of the
firm that makes crash-test dummies.
Instead, he is again working full time,
only without pay, as he designs and
builds sets and props for Stagecrafters
in Royal Oak.
Morgan, who lives in Bloomfield
Township, is putting the finishing touch-
es on one of his largest projects, a replica
of the Titanic, which will be seen April
13-May 6 in Titanic the Musical.
"I've been a theater patron forever,
and this is a ton of fun',' says Morgan,
55, who has not been associated with
other community theater groups.
"Four of us work every day with others
coming in as helpers. The ship will be 20
feet long, 7 feet wide and 12 feet tall."
The Tony Award-winning musical,
with music and lyrics by Maury Yeston
and book by Peter Stone, gives voice to
passengers aboard the ship with the
tragic ending. Rodel Salazar is directing.
In addition to 14 scheduled per-
formances, there will be a fundraiser
Thursday evening, April 12, with tickets
available for a presentation by Titanic
historian Ron Bartsch of Dearborn,
a silent auction and the final dress
rehearsal of the musical.
Morgan, 55, a graduate of Henry Ford
High School before earning a degree in
mechanical engineering from Wayne
State University, enjoys the challenge of
designing and building sets.
He was encouraged to participate
with Stagecrafters by his wife, Shari,
who has played oboe, English horn and
saxophone for musicals at Stagecrafters.
The design of the Titanic proj-
ect began last November with the
final draft completed in January.
Components were built until the mid-
dle of February, with the final construc-
tion at the theater.
"I did the helicopter for the
Stagecrafters' production of Miss
Saigon," Morgan says of another major
project in his 15 years behind the
scenes at Stagecrafters. "I've also been
the master carpenter for The Bad Seed
and Legally Blonde."
One major difference between
responsibilities working in the real
world and volunteering in the world of
theater is deadlines.
"There's the pressure of being on
time for the opening of a show:' says
Morgan, who enjoys the creative pro-
cess. "At work, there usually was not a
problem in pushing something back."
Morgan, raised in the sphere of secu-
lar Judaism, has no interest in perform-
ing. He's happy with the behind-the-
scenes tasks that relate to his lifelong
interest.
As a teenager, he liked working on
cars and still has an interest in motor-
cycles. Around the house, he is the
repairman with rarely any need for
assistance from the outside.
After the run of Titanic the Musical,
there will be a search for other theater
companies that might want to use the
ship made in Royal Oak. If there is no
response to the search, the ship will
be dismantled and the pieces used for
other projects.
"At Stagecrafters, we all feel the pres-
sure of opening night because there are
no second chances:' says Morgan, who
has assisted backstage when necessary
and even done some ushering. "What
makes it all great is that everybody
loves what they're doing."
❑
Titanic the Musical runs April 13-May 6 at the Baldwin Theatre, 415 S.
Lafayette, Royal Oak. Performances are at 8 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays,
2 p.m. Sundays and 8 p.m. Thursdays, April 19 and 26. $18-$22. $30
for fundraiser: 7:15 p.m. Thursday, April 12. (248) 541-6430; www.
stagecrafters.org .
BIG ROCK
c410P111011,Sr
big rockchophouse.com
GOT
A DIAMOND CROWN CIGAR LOUNGE
gotrockscigarlounge.com
-----
•
t I
W
s
4 *,ti,
I'
)<E a _
0-L1
(
(WY' (re re/f/i/Pr•
• If
7
_,
/1 ■
747 0 • r -5( Cre .el/t /e// 7-,
thereservebirmingham.com
THREE OF THE AREA'S MOST CELEBRATED ESTABLISHMENTS,
ONE PREMIUM LOCATION.
245 S. ETON STREET, BIRMINGHAM I 248.647.7774
April 5 • 2012
•
61
•