A BROADWAY ODYSSEY

                                          NORMAN  V.  KELLY

 

As a Peoria Historian I have written a lot of stories about famous and Infamous Peorians from our past and then I let them slip back into obscurity.  So, it gives me great pleasure to tell you about a young man that is very much alive and is still following his dream.   His name is Bart Shatto, and I am proud to say that he is my nephew. I have watched his career from his childhood to this very moment in time. I can tell you he is still pursuing the dream he has had as far back as he can possibly remember.  Bart is still living that dream as he follows his heart on his Broadway Odyssey and beyond.

 

Bart is the son of Sara and Player Shatto, and although he has lost his father there is not a day goes by that Bart does not feel his presence because both his mom and his dad supported him from day one. His mom said, ‘At two we thought something was wrong with him because he never wanted to go outside.  All he wanted to do was stay in the house and listen to music and rock in his rocking chair.” Bart will tell you that it was around that time that he already knew what he wanted to be when he grew up.  That was the beginning of his dream and Broadway was his destination. Although Born in Peoria Bart lived in Bradford, Illinois during his early childhood, where he lived with his brother Brett, and sisters, Beth and Carey. The family then moved to Peoria, Illinois where his odyssey really began.

 

I remember the first time I saw Bart in “Peter Pan” out in Bartonville and I  thought he was sensational.  Of course, I am his uncle so please expect some bias from me.  But in every local show he just seemed to blossom and I knew I was watching a kid that knew exactly where he wanted to go and what he wanted to accomplish.

 

Bart Shatto graduated from Bergan High School where he was very active in school plays as well as Community Theatre in Peoria and Bartonville. The actor had many roles in Corn Stock and Peoria Players before he headed to college at Western and then to Southern where he continued his acting life. From college he went to Saint Louis, happily working with the Theater Project Company and roles in “Baby” and “The Twelfth Night.”

 

Shatto found time to marry and his son Connor is already an accomplished singer with some serious designs on following his father’s dream. Once Bart began to land more substantial roles the traveling became a part of his life.  “I lived like a Gypsy,” he said, “and when I was on Broadway I thought to myself, ‘Is this all there is?’”   He confides that playing Broadway was “A lot like playing at Peoria Players only it paid more money.” When our families got together I always thought of Bart as being a bit shy and to me going in front of an audience must have been painful for him, but he knew how to handle it.  “I guess it’s because I’m not myself…I am just playing a character.” Truth is ‘Tink’, Bart’s father was a musician and I can remember so many wonderful times at their house where music was the center of most of our activities.

 

Bart’s career picked up as he became more and more proficient at his art by spending hours and hours preparing for the many upcoming auditions.  My wife and I saw him in Carnegie Hall when he got us in to a closed rehearsal with Rosemary Clooney by telling her we were his parents.  That was a glorious couple of hours and Bart was part of a quartet in the cast.  Playing Carnegie Hall! Wow not bad for a shy kid from Peoria.

 

He was back here in town doing a solo act he called “From Peoria To Broadway.”  Personally I think that was my favorite time with my nephew Bart there at the old Apollo Theater. He returned another time with a show called “Songs For A New World,” again at the Apollo.   He told a reporter that “It’s cool to be back.” I wish I could tell you about all the shows Bart has been in, maybe I’ll save that until I write his biography.

 

Bart is a versatile actor and singer and has done plays on Broadway, off Broadway and so many cities across the United States. On Broadway he played the part of Private Hotchkiss in “The Civil War.” He thrilled his family when he came to Peoria and played the lead role, Jean Valjean in “Les Miserable.” and a great role here with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.  Truth is we felt the same way when he played two parts in CATS in his hometown. Bart played Quincy Morris in “DRACULA,” and was part of the cast in one of the Emmy Award presentations. In March Bart Shatto will play four parts in the Broadway Musical, “Hands On A Hard Body.”  Shatto has done numerous commercials, Soap Operas and character voices for Disney.  In 2012 Bart had a role in the movie “The Whisperer” starring Cuba Gooding Jr. It will soon be in a theater near you.

 

You would think by the way I am carrying on that I get paid by the word, but the truth is Bart Shatto’s life is so jammed packed with exciting roles and personal accomplishments that a short piece like this cannot do him justice. In April Bart will revise his role of D.H. Lawrence in London, a role he played originally in New Orleans.   You can Google Bart Shatto and follow this brilliant actor and singer as he follows his dream and continues his Broadway Odyssey.  He would be happy to have you tag along. Tell him his Uncle Norm sent you.

Editor’s Note:  Norm is a Peoria Historian, true-crime writer and author of twelve books.   He welcomes your comments at norman.kelly@sbcglobal.net