Jubilations Dinner Theatre's latest puts Elton John front and centre

He’s one of the all-time great rock legends with numerous radio hits and now the story of the Rocketman is getting a new twist with Jubilations Dinner Theatre’s Crocodile Rock: The Legend of Elton John. It’s been 18 years in the making but actress Shelley Cunningham is back on the Jubilations stage after an 18-year hiatus. Cunningham last played Phoebe in the theatre’s Best of Friends in 200. Besides acting, she also worked in the ticket office, as a stage manager, and also even wrote a play. Over her hiatus, she has been teaching high school drama, dance, and English, but this year, she is taking a long-awaited sabbatical from that role to get back on stage and get her ESL teaching certification. We spoke with Cunningham about her hiatus and being back on stage.

Were you a big Elton John fan before this production?

Yes, I saw Elton John at Madison Square Garden on my first night of living in New York City when I was 18 years old and it was a moment that I’ll never forget. I'm a piano player, so I'm hugely into Elton John and Billy Joel.

Do you have any favourites?

I'm very lucky because I get to be George Michael and sing “Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me” with Elton John as a duet. That’s always been my favourite and now that I get to sing it, it's even more my favourite.

I heard it’s your first show in 18 years. What is it like to be back with the Jubilations family?

I took a break to be a teacher, so I've just come back after quite a long retirement and it's really neat. We have four different decades of people in this show. We have 20 year olds, 30 year olds, 40 year olds, and then you know, me. It's really interesting to see who knows what, who loves what, and which songs stick out for all of them. Getting to share this music with the younger people is pretty incredible.

Tell us about your hiatus.

I did eight shows from 1994 until 2004. I was the stage manager, I wrote a show, and I did lots of different things around the company. Then I had children, and for the first five years of my kids’ lives, I would tour and they would come with me. But once my eldest was old enough to go to school, I didn't know how I was going to homeschool, do theatre, and travel around. I went back to university in my 30s and then finished off my teaching degree and then became a teacher until my kids were grown and gone. And now I'm back.

Is being back on stage like riding a bike?

It is in fact. I was thinking the other day that it's actually better than riding a bike because being a teacher and having life experience makes a person a better actor because you know psychology better, you know people better, and you're more confident in yourself. I'm really enjoying how exciting but peaceful it is. I’m loving every second of it.

What can audiences expect from the show?

Everything. It’s so funny. You can expect a few songs that are not Elton John, but for the most part, you can expect a really fun, interesting, different look at Elton John's life with a lot of laughs and a lot of really incredible Elton John songs.