Page 36 - 2018AugSept

Celebrating 10 Years of Entertainment

The Spectacular Senior Follies

by Stacy Allen Dominguez
hen the curtain goes up on September 20, The
Spectacular Senior Follies will be presenting its and Wilson, The Gentleman’s Club, The
Wspecial anniversary production, “Encore! Everything Chickenhawks and Dallas Doo Wop.
Old Is New Again.” A tribute to the longevity of the Follies, the
show will highlight its best of the first 10 years by presenting Judy has always had the spirit of an entrepreneur and learned
many of the favorite songs, dances and comedy acts that early that life is full of risks and knew that she had to take chances
entertained the audiences over the years. to succeed. After a long career as a public relations executive
The Follies opened its first show on the stage of the Eisemann with TracyLocke, she spread her wings and tried many avenues
to grow and success followed her many endeavors. As a real
Center for Performing Arts in 2008 and nobody could have estate flipper, Judy and her daughter turned many old buildings
predicted the success the show would have that year and from “ugly ducklings into beautiful swans.” Not satisfied with
nobody dreamed that the Follies would be celebrating a decade that, she decided to change direction and be one of Dallas’ first
of entertaining the Dallas area with a musical revue featuring charity bingo hall proprietors. As success always follows Judy
entertainers over the age of 55. But, here we are, bigger and around, she now owns 3 successful charity bingo halls all over
better than ever imagined. the Dallas area.
In 2005, the late businessman, Ned Startzel and Dallas showman, Claiming that she ‘had no talent’, Judy became a Follies showgirl
Mark Carroll, came up with an idea to stage a Ziegfeld/Las in 2008 when she took her granddaughter to study music with
Vegas type of senior showcase with singers, dancers and a line Mark Carroll, who at the time was planning the first Follies.
of beautiful showgirls to highlight the talents of local seniors Although only 5’2”, Mark insisted that Judy’s beauty would be
who love live theater and wanted to continue to perform. After an asset and convinced her to be the first showgirl he hired. Judy
3 years of planning, the Follies opened and has been a huge took on the challenge and has been in the Follies every year and
draw ever since. Themes have varied over the years and have
presented shows featuring the music of great composers such as
Gershwin, Porter and Berlin, as well as country, rock and well-
known entertainers as Sinatra, Astaire and Marilyn. Tributes
to Broadway, the ‘50s, the ‘60s and other genres, such as the
patriotic finale honoring our military, have shown the scope of
talent the cast has to offer.
Much of the success of the Follies is due to our Celebration
Magazine cover stars, Andy and Judy Michlin. Andy has been
musical director of the Follies from its first days and has directed
his band on stage for all of the years of the shows. His lovely
wife, Judy, has been one of the beautiful showgirls the Follies
features every year. They truly embody the true spirit of the
Follies cast.
Andy and Judy, both Dallas natives, met as adults in Las Vegas
and it was attraction at first sight. Andy, already a professional
musician when he graduated from Highland Park High School,
was part of a Tom Jones tour as pianist when he met Judy, a
single mother raising 2 children, who happened to visit Las Vegas
while on an across the country vacation. They hit it off so well,
that whenever his schedule brought him through the Dallas area
they became very close friends, which led to dating and after a
5-year courtship, they returned to Las Vegas and got married at
The Little White Chapel in the city where their story began.
Andy and Judy were both very busy people, Andy worked with
many great acts and toured the world for 30 years with such
luminaries as Tom Jones, Liza Minnelli, Lou Rawls, Louis
Prima and Lynda Carter and was a member of the New Christie
Minstrels. He appeared on many TV shows, including The
Tonight Show, Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, The Kraft Music
Hall, Don Kirschner’s Rock Concert, The Dinah Shore Show
and many others. In Dallas, Andy performed with Bowley

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