Typical solo acts consist of performers utilizing their own talents: singers sing their own songs, comedians tell their own jokes, and magicians perform their own magic tricks. One person would never attempt to impersonate 100 people in just one show, right? Well, Rick Miller does, and he will break every preconceived notion of solo shows as he does it.
Miller will be coming to Victoria to perform his solo show BOOM. BOOM, which he is the writer and director of, tells a story about the baby boom generation with emphasis on the culture, politics, and music in the years 1945 to 1969.
“It was a period where there was a lot of political upheaval and culture had a huge impact at the time, way more than it does now and I think way more than it might ever have. So I wanted to explore how those two things were tied together, how song really could change a political time,” says Miller.
Miller is a man of many voices; he will be utilizing his vocals to impersonate political figures such as John F. Kennedy Jr. and Martin Luther King as well as rock and roll icons like John Lennon and Janis Joplin. However, out of all the voices that he impersonates during the show, he favours some of the lesser-known ones.
“I have my personal favourites that aren’t necessarily the most popular,” he says. “There’s a song called ‘Eve of Destruction’ by Barry McGuire, which is, in 1965, the first protest song that made its way to the top of the charts. People who lived through that era probably know it. It’s not as big as the Beatles, for instance, so I just love doing that song because I get to sing it and play guitar and harmonica and it’s something people are often discovering for the first time.”
To some of the audience, this show may be a history lesson; to others, it may be a reminder of what they lived through. Regardless, it will have something that everyone can relate to or take away from it.
“I knew I wanted to sing in the show but what I didn’t know was that it would also be partly a documentary about three very different lives that are more or less based on my parents,” says Miller. “Whether you’re a young person, a teenager, or a baby boomer who lived through it, or even if you’re a pre-boomer who was born before World War II, there is something universal in all of our stories.”
BOOM may even be able to connect loved ones together by sparking conversations that have never been had, leading to stories that may have never been heard.
“We sometimes don’t talk to our parents or grandparents; this is the kind of play that does bring people together and connects them through stories,” says Miller. “I get feedback where people have said, ‘You know what? I’ve been thinking about your show for three days and I called my mom and asked her a few questions and we’ve never connected like that, ever.’ That’s really rewarding to me.”
Miller doesn’t only want to inspire deep conversations; he also wants to promote creativity. It can be a struggle for some; even those who consider themselves to be creative people have moments where they feel uninspired. But everyone can be creative and Miller believes that we could all benefit from it.
“Creativity isn’t reserved for freaks and geniuses,” he says. “I think it’s out there for everyone and we could all benefit as a society if we were all creative and engaged in society in active ways and not just passively consuming entertainment.”
BOOM
Until August 23
$33 and up, Belfry Theatre
belfry.bc.ca