Award winner Shirley Jones, others to perform at T.O.’s Civic Arts Plaza

Shirley Jones

Jones, Berman and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra will carry out separate portions of the presentation

By Michael Picarella

Acorn Staff Writer

Award-winning actress and singer Shirley Jones, comedian Shelley Berman and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra will play in "Command Performance!" at 7:30 p.m. on Wed., March 5 at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. Jones, Berman and the orchestra will carry out separate portions of the presentation, according to Jones. Her portion, she said, will be about 35 to 50 minutes.

Shelley Berman

Shirley Jones

Jones has performed her show for 20 years. Each show is different; some go about two hours, she said. Her concert is made up of much of her work from her career, including songs from both on the stage and in the movies.

"It’s a combination of everything I’ve done," Jones said, "mostly the musical movies because that’s what people want to hear. And I do some Disney stuff and I talk a lot."

In between songs, Jones discusses some of her experiences in the entertainment industry, she said.

At age 18, Jones appeared on stage for the first time as a nurse in the Broadway musical "South Pacific." She later played in "Me and Juliet" followed by the film version of "Oklahoma." Jones was in the movie musicals "Carousel," "The Music Man" and is well known for her role in "The Partridge Family," a four-year hit television series.

In her career, Jones received many awards and award nominations from the Academy Awards, the Emmy Awards and others. She’s accomplished a lot.

Jones more recently has concentrated her efforts on her concert and independent film. She said she enjoys working in films the most, but loves performing in general. She joked about looking forward to retirement when asked what she wanted to do next. But on a more serious note, she said she thinks retirement is out of the question because performing is too much fun.

Jones hopes to one day play a lead role in another big movie, she said. But she still has another few shows in her Southern California city tour, which includes "Command Performance!" in Thousand Oaks. Afterward, she’ll take a little break. She looks forward to some time off.

But then it’s back to work, Jones said. She’s a free agent, so she’ll start looking for future projects.

Shelley Berman

Berman is a comedian and an actor on the stage and has appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show, the Jack Paar Show and other variety shows. He’ll perform comedy.

Berman plays four shows yearly at Harrah’s in Las Vegas and just returned from a sold-out three-week engagement at Donald Trump’s Taj Mahal in Atlantic City.

Berman starred in the musical "A Family Affair" and his one-man show "Inside Outside And All Around Shelley Berman." He has three Gold Records, is an author of three books, teaches comedy writing at USC and has appeared on some recent TV shows, including "Friends" and "Arliss."

The Nelson Riddle Orchestra

Christopher Riddle will lead the Nelson Riddle Orchestra. He’s the third of Nelson Riddle’s six children and the only one to become a professional musician. Riddle’s father might be best known for his music compositions with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peggy Lee and Bing Crosby, to name a few.

Christopher Riddle has worked with an array of musical talents including Sinatra, Julie Andrews, Harry James, Ella Fitzgerald, Sammy Davis Jr., The Carpenters and many more.

"Command Performance!"

Tickets to the upcoming show, "Command Performance!" starring Jones, Berman and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, range from $24 to $39. For more information, call (805) 449-ARTS (2787).