\nDoney, a Palm Springs resident since 1998 with a career spanning Broadway, TV and dance, said he joined the cast \u201calmost by accident.\u201d He bumped into another cast member while shopping at Jensen\u2019s, who suggested the show to him after a male performer injured his ankle and Markowitz needed a replacement.<\/p>\n\nDoney, then 58, admitted he didn\u2019t enjoy revealing his age \u2014 even to Markowitz during the interview \u2014 but he got the job.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n\u201cI went into the interview with Riff, and he said, \u2018We put this show together in three months because with the older people, it takes longer for them to learn everything.\u2019 (However) That Monday, I went into a rehearsal, and they went into the show on Tuesday,\u201d Doney recalled.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nCharbeneau\u2019s path to the Follies began with his background in theater management and film distribution, working for Columbia Pictures and Universal Pictures before moving to Palm Springs in 1997. He discovered his passion for theater design in high school and loved creating Broadway-style sets. He joined the Follies in 1998 as a stagehand and quickly became indispensable. Over five seasons, his role expanded to prop design, set construction and other backstage duties before leaving in 2001 to relocate to the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n\nAt his Rancho Mirage home, Charbeneau recently showed The Desert Sun a scrapbook filled with photos and a performance report. The report detailed everything that happened on a night he called in sick, listing six employees who filled in for his usual responsibilities.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just hired as stage crew. Basically, move the set pieces in, set them up, take them down and carry them out, and store them,\u201d Charbeneau said. \u201cBut with my experience, Riff took notice, and that\u2019s when he started giving me little jobs because he knew I could do them. I took on props, and I would buy props or make props.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
His added roles included soda jerk, first aid team member and occasional costume repair. Though not old enough to be a cast member, he performed small acting bits during interludes and patriotic finales. His daily schedule often stretched from 9 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Follies was magical, tiring, grueling, back-breaking, and agonizing. But, at the end of the matinee performance, you got your collective fire relief. You got to have your lunch and then you set up for the next show,\u201d Charbeneau recalled.<\/p>\n\nPushing performers to their limits<\/h2>\n
The popularity of the Follies was largely due to the captivating spectacle’s focus on Broadway-style dance numbers, comedy and musical performances. The show took pride in showcasing senior cast members who performed tap, jazz and chorus line numbers rivaling those of younger performers. The show also included comedy sketches, musical solos and vaudeville\u2011style acts.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nHeadliners included “Singin’ in the Rain” singer, actor and dancer Donald O’Connor, actress and comedian Kaye Ballard, Donald Mills of the jazz and pop vocal quartet The Mills Brothers, and many more sharing the stage with featured Follies such as Doney, Hank Brunjes, Jill Owens and Ann Murphy.<\/p>\n\nCharbeneau said he admired the work ethic of older performers, many in their 70s and 80s, who refused to take sick days. For him, the Follies embodied the resilience of a generation.<\/p>\n
“I’m seeing performers in their 80s that are like, ‘I have to perform. I’m physically exhausted, but I want to be here, and I want to do this,” Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n\nAs a veteran of touring and Broadway productions, as well as television and film, Doney shared that he and many of his fellow performers in the Follies came from a time when they had to perform regardless of their physical condition. This was largely because, in the television industry, there were often no replacements available for specific roles. In other productions, if someone called in sick, they would simply be replaced.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n“I worked with a lot of stars, and off stage, they were crippled and could barely walk to the wings. (However) The music would start, and they would walk out like nothing was wrong,” Doney said. “I’ve done shows with sprained ankles and it’s not easy to do that, but there’s nobody to replace you.”<\/p>\n
Doney added that performers often missed family milestones such as their children’s and grandchildren\u2019s graduations or other major life events because \u201cthe show was the show.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRiff set the example. He never missed a show. If he could do it, we had to do it too,” Doney said.<\/p>\n\nSometimes, the stagehands became part of the show too. Charbeneau, who served in the U.S. Navy, was sent to the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms to be fitted for a Marine uniform to appear in the patriotic finale of the show. He played other small roles, and one he remembered specifically was a mobster who appeared in one of the proscenium boxes\u00a0with a prop machine gun aimed down into the crowd.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nOne night, the Follies were told that former President Gerald Ford would be attending a performance. During a production meeting, Charbeneau immediately voiced a concern.<\/p>\n\n\u201cI thought, \u2018Wait a second, Secret Service will be here. Should I be pointing (a prop machine gun) at the crowd?\u2019 I asked, and they said \u2018Absolutely not. Aim it up.\u2019 Good thing I asked, because those guys are excellent marksmen,\u2019\u201d Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n
Working around limits of then-aging Plaza Theatre<\/h2>\n
The Plaza Theatre, with its historical charm and elegance, was a fitting venue for productions like the Follies. However, it faced several challenges during its early years, especially before sets were replaced with video screens and digital production. Charbeneau noted that the theater lacked wings, fly space and a sufficient backstage area to store large props. As a result, every set change had to be built and deconstructed in real time.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nCharbeneau said the Christmas productions were especially challenging because the trees were too tall to store backstage, were driven around to the front door, pushed past ticket holders and through the lobby before being placed on stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere wasn\u2019t enough space to hide a staircase or a Christmas tree backstage. You had to wheel it through the lobby or around the corner, bolt it together and make it look seamless. The audience never saw the chaos, but it was there,\u201d Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n
During his five seasons, the shows centered around themes such as World War I, World War II, the Great Depression, the St. Louis World’s Fair and much more. Large sets included a battleship that could lower guns and shoot confetti, a B-29 bomber, a PT boat, a theater marquee with opening doors and full light bulbs, and a giant polystyrene elephant that would raise up on its hind legs and shoot confetti from its trunk.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nMoving these set pieces between scenes was a challenge that required safety, precision and silence.<\/p>\n\n“Everything larger than life was heavier than s—, and the sets were huge. You wore a back brace because if you didn’t, you felt it when you went to bed. I don’t care if you were 30 or 90,” Charbeneau said. “There were plenty of smashed fingers and bruised toes, because pieces dropped. You stuck your foot under it so that it wouldn’t go clunk, but you had to, so the audience didn’t hear it.”<\/p>\n\nMarkowitz, who was also the emcee, would stall with jokes to cover the noise of screwdrivers and hammering while Charbeneau and other stagehands would assemble each set in between scenes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s how Riff learned to talk to the audience. He had to fill the time while they built or tore down a set. Eventually, he became a comic emcee because the sets demanded it,\u201d Doney said. \u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The dancers also faced their own logistical hurdles with giant feathered backpacks strapped on, and Doney remembered the women being lined up “nose to butt” to squeeze onto the stage without colliding. Stagehands often guided them onto the stage like air traffic controllers.<\/p>\n
Looking back on it all, Doney said “It’s amazing how it all worked” and Charbeneau remembered the thrill of pulling off the impossible over the many nights as a stagehand.<\/p>\n\n“You’re sweating, hauling, bolting things together, but out front it looks effortless. That was the beauty of it. The audience saw glamour. We saw nuts, bolts and duct tape holding it all together,” Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n
Focusing on humor that ‘wasn\u2019t cruel, it was affectionate’<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n
As the emcee, Markowitz often worked the crowd with humor that included politically incorrect jokes reflective of the eras showcased in the production. Doney noted that \u201cbeing a comedy emcee was not his forte,\u201d recalling one performance in which he told a Japanese couple, \u201cOh, by the way, we won the war.\u201d<\/p>\n\nHe also leaned into self\u2011deprecating humor, particularly about his Jewish background. Charbeneau remembered being asked to don a \u201cJewish eagle\u201d costume for a bit alongside another cast member dressed as an American eagle, with Riff orchestrating the skit.<\/p>\n
\u201cRiff asked, \u2018What do you think of my Jewish eagle?\u2019 Then he would ask the audience, \u2018Oh, you can\u2019t tell it\u2019s a Jewish eagle?\u2019 The audience would say, \u2018No!\u2019 I took my cue. My wing went to my beak, the audience would get the joke, and Riff then would say, \u2018No Jewish jokes, I do the jokes!\u2019\u201d Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nLooking back, Charbeneau compared the style to the humor of comedians like Jack Benny and Bob Hope, adding, \u201cYou can\u2019t do the show that we did (now), times have changed.\u201d<\/p>\n
In later years, Doney said, Markowitz grew more comfortable as an emcee, finding an easier rhythm with the audience. Doney emphasized that Markowitz\u2019s intention was always to lighten the mood and uplift, never to demean.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe would tease the seniors in the audience, make jokes about walkers or hearing aids. They laughed because they recognized themselves. It wasn\u2019t cruel, it was affectionate,\u201d Doney said.<\/p>\n
Even though every season brought a new show, one tradition remained: the show always included a patriotic finale. Performers sang the \u201cStar-Spangled Banner\u201d and service songs of each branch of the U.S. armed forces, including the U.S. Coast Guard. Veterans in the audience stood and saluted.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nCharbeneau and Doney described how many of the older veterans who served across each branch would stand and shout battle cries such as the Army\u2019s \u201cHooah,\u201d the Marines\u2019 “Oorah” and the Navy\u2019s \u201cHooyah\u201d and salute the cast.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was thrilling. My father served in World War I, my brother in World War II. That finale meant something. It was beautiful,\u201d Doney said.<\/p>\n
Before the end of Charbeneau\u2019s final season and move to the United Kingdom in 2001, the Follies were invited to participate in a 9\/11 memorial concert at the McCallum Theatre. Doney performed as part of the cast and remembered the emotional weight while performing during that show.<\/p>\n
“People understood what happened and related all this sorrow that we had for 9\/11, and it was a big deal that they let (Riff) do that and asked him to be a part of it, because they knew how we did our finale,” Doney said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nPreserving the legacy of the Follies<\/h2>\n
Both Doney and Charbeneau have returned to the Plaza Theatre since it reopened, and they said the building felt transformed. Doney pointed out the new air\u2011conditioning system \u2014 a stark contrast to the aging infrastructure that once struggled to keep Follies performers cool.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was nice to see it all restored. The windows, ceiling paintings \u2026 all of it looks beautiful. It\u2019s good to see the theater working again, and it deserves to shine,\u201d Doney said.<\/p>\n
The upgrades also include backstage space that would have solved many of the technical challenges the Follies faced.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack then, we didn\u2019t have wings, we didn\u2019t have fly space, and we didn\u2019t have storage. Everything was muscle and timing. Today with the upgrades, you could do things we never could,\u201d Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n\nMany would love to see the Follies return. So, could someone revive the production today?<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Follies wasn\u2019t just about sets, it was about the people. Those performers came from a different world \u2014 Broadway, nightclubs, and early television. They had that \u2018show must go on\u2019 mentality. That\u2019s hard to find now,\u201d Charbeneau said.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould you do a show like that today? Maybe, but you\u2019d have to promote it as a blast from the past,\u201d Doney said. \u201cYou\u2019d have to tell people exactly what they\u2019re coming to see. The humor, music, the style \u2014 it all came from the era we grew up in. You can\u2019t recreate that unless the audience understands the context.\u201d<\/p>\n
(This story was updated to add a link.)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.desertsun.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"“Fabulous Palm Springs Follies” performer Randy Doney and stagehand Kevin Charbeneau reflect on their beloved show upon the Plaza Theatre’s reopening. See the restored Palm Springs Plaza Theatre before Cynthia Erivo show After two years of construction and restoration, the Palm Springs Plaza Theatre is ready to welcome audiences inside. More than a decade after […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2169660,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[31785,396721,39915,22220,344468,358177,344920,21751,239390,6297,21741,428309,428310,21739,298114,346106,21738,239343,239347,73685,347498,23759,357436,24047,239344],"class_list":["post-2216005","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-acting","tag-acting-u0026-theater","tag-affiliate","tag-arts","tag-broadway","tag-broadway-u0026-musical-theater","tag-buildings","tag-celebrities","tag-celebrities-u0026-entertainment-news","tag-eamotion","tag-entertainment","tag-historic","tag-historic-buildings","tag-local","tag-local-affiliate-arts-u0026-entertainment","tag-musical","tag-news","tag-overall","tag-overall-positive","tag-palm","tag-palm-springs","tag-positive","tag-springs","tag-theater","tag-u0026"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Palm-Springs-Plaza-Theatre-opens-doors-ahead-of-Cynthia-Erivo-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2216005","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2216005"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2216005\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2216006,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2216005\/revisions\/2216006"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2169660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2216005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2216005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2216005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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