Melodrama in Astoria
‘Shanghaied’ returns for a 38th year
BY M.J. CODY
He’s at it again, that dastardly
Max Krooke. How dare he kid-
nap Eric away from his sweetheart
Virginia? Boo and hiss, squeal and
stomp. Audience members throw
popcorn at the villain.
It’s all part of the raucous fun at
the musical melodrama, “Shanghaied
in Astoria,” now showing on three
nights each week through September.
Now in its 38th season, “Shang-
haied” is one of Astoria’s peren-
nial summer events that visitors and
locals alike look forward to. Tal-
ented local actors relish hamming it
up and encouraging audience partic-
ipation. Pre-show olio acts entertain
with short vaudeville bits that vary
between dancers, singers, musicians,
magicians, jugglers and comedians.
The drama then centers around Eric,
who is “shanghaied,” or kidnapped,
away from Astoria and his sweet-
heart, Virginia, and forced into labor
on a ship.
The show, created in 1984 under
the direction of former Clatsop Com-
munity College professor Del Cor-
bett, melds Astoria’s early shipping
history with humorous nods to its
Scandinavian heritage. Astoria was a
bustling seaport in the late 19th cen-
tury, notorious for its rough-and-
tumble character.
Astoria was a town overflowing
with immigrant workers, the major-
ity of whom were men. Bars and
houses of ill repute flourished, and
unscrupulous ship captains, desper-
ate for deckhands, employed the new
enterprise of “shanghaiing” unwit-
ting males.
“I wouldn’t change the origi-
nal concept,” Ashley Mundel said of
the annual show’s direction. Mundel
assumed the Astor Street Opry Com-
pany directing helm in 2018 after
having acted in the production for 15
years.
“As much as I love to act, I really
like the process of being in control
of the whole show and keeping the
product alive for the community,”
she said. “I just love burlesque and
vaudeville and melodrama.”
Audiences seem to love the corn-
ball antics, sometimes raunchy,
exaggerated by the actors with flair
and enthusiasm. Mundel started out
as a makeup artist. Her love of dress-
ing up is apparent, as the production
costumes, created by Patricia Von
See Page 9
‘Shanghaied in Astoria’
Astor Street Opry Company, 129 W. Bond St, Astoria
7 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Sept. 10, plus matinee
performances on July 24, Aug. 21 and Sept. 4
Admission is $15 to $20. Tickets are available online, by phone or at the door
www.asocplay.com
From left, actors Miles Hand, Shaylyn Duffy and Elijah S. Wood walk through downtown Astoria in costumes.
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