Anyone for some Candy?

Listen to the buzz around town lately and you will hear local arts lovers and Bloomington Playwrights Project patrons proclaiming "We Want Candy!" Not the savory treat one would find in a candy store, but Candace Decker, the company manager of the Bloomington Playwrights Project. Under her direction, the project has created a new series so popular that it has been able to sell out each of its previous performances.\nDecker got the idea for her Cabaret Nouveau series through her love of cabaret performance.\n"Cabaret is a show that is very intimate and personal," she said. "It allows you to connect with the audience."\nDecker began the series with a show called "Candy for the Heart." The show was such a success that Decker was asked to perform two more shows for the series, a Valentine cabaret entitled "Love Candy" and a show about her life entitled "Pieces of Candy." Surprised by the overwhelming response, she raised $1,000 to bring other performers to the Bloomington area. She received many responses from actors and actresses eager to perform, and the Cabaret Nouveau series was born. \nThe series will include eight shows, to be announced in the future.\nDecker's assistant manger Richard Perez, a performer himself, shares her love for cabaret and is excited to introduce the unique art form to the Bloomington area.\n"There is really nothing else like it in town, which is another great thing with all the arts that are here," he said. "This kind of genre hasn't really been explored, and our program gives the Bloomington community a chance to explore it."\nPerez will also perform in the series. His show will debut in February and will be an autobiography of his life growing up from approximately age 9 to the present. He is a native of California and has worked with many theater companies as an actor in New York.\nThe next installment of the series, entitled "Vintage Blonde," will feature another Chicago native and friend of Decker -- Jennifer Bradley. The two have worked together as actresses in Chicago. Bradley has a degree in musical theater from Illinois Wesleyan University and has performed in many famous places, including the Skylight Comic Opera, the Metropole Theatre and Milwaukee's Summerfest. She has studied a wide curriculum of classic, modern, contemporary and musical theater, but big band music is what she said she loves most.\n"Vintage Blonde" will feature stories from Bradley's life, or as she would explain it, "the things that people who know me would attribute to the fact that I am a blonde."\nBradley will include her love of big band music and an excerpt from her current project about the life of Betty Hutton, a popular actress of the 1940s. Bradley is drawn to Hutton's intriguing story and has actually spoken with the actress on several occasions in preparation for her latest show, called "Discovering Huttontot."\nBradley has made a point to do more cabaret.\n"I have had experiences with many elements of theater," she said. "I like cabaret because you can speak to your audience, you can tell them anecdotes, you can tell them stories, you can bring up something topical that just happened and simply let the people have a good time."\n\"Vintage Blonde\" will be performed at the Bloomington Playwrights Project, located at 312 S. Washington St., April 18 to 20 at 8 p.m. and April 21 at 5 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and senior citizens, and reservations are strongly encouraged. For tickets or more information contact Candace Decker at 334-1188.