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Livermore is among the next stops for the cast of the international “Animaniacs in Concert” tour, with one of the beloved animated show’s main voice actors and its composer stepping out from behind the scenes to take to the stage at the Bankhead Theater.
Rob Paulsen – voice of the “Animaniacs” characters Yakko and Pinky – and the show’s composer Randy Rogel are set to give Tri-Valley audiences a chance to look behind the curtain of the show and others in their extensive repertoires with their upcoming stop in Livermore on Friday (April 5).
“I notice wherever we go there’s always tribute bands, but we’re not that,” Rogel told Embarcadero Media Foundation. “We’re the guys who actually did it.”
What they did goes beyond their roles in the production of the hit 1990s cartoon “Animaniacs” and reprising those positions in the 2020 reboot of the show, with extensive careers that include working on “Batman: The Animated Series” on Rogel’s part and the original “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” cartoon on Paulsen’s part.
“I started working with Warner Brothers on ‘Batman,'” Rogel said. “I was the first writer on that staff for their new series and it grew quite rapidly. So I was working on that and then I saw the guys across the hall – they were developing a new show called ‘Animaniacs’ and I said I should work on that.”
The two Emmy winners got their start in animation during the height of the resurgence of childens’ animation in the late 1980s and early 1990s, a period in the genre widely regarded, Paulsen noted, as essentially serving as a series of 30-minute toy commercials, with major titles such as “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, “Batman” and “Animaniacs” generating a majority of their revenue from associated merchandise, he emphasized that the value of the shows were far more than commercial to many who grew up with them.
“It’s quite remarkable to see men and women get tearful when they hear these characters, and it’s a pure expression of joy that has nothing to do with ratings or merchandise,” Paulsen said. “It’s really cool to see it.”
“Irrespective of venue or how many people are there or aren’t there, we will inevitably meet someone who will – through tears, or sometimes a little shaky or a little wistful, will tell us highly personal stories,” he continued.
Examples of these stories include the popular shows and characters servings as a source of stability, comfort and hope for children during periods where other sources of those feelings might be missing, such as in the foster system or in tumultuous family systems.
“This person would say ‘as long as there was a television, this show gave me joy that I was able to share with my family,’ and they know that it means way more than a T-shirt,” Paulsen said. “How on earth can we quantify that kind of a compliment?”
Paulsen and Rogel said that a large portion of the tour’s attendees consist of people who grew up during the early 1990s when the original “Animaniacs” was airing – many of whom are now in their 40s. The other major demographic at their live shows and focus of their work continues to be children though, who are familiar with “Animaniacs” after being introduced to the original series by their parents, watching the 2020 reprise, or both.
“It’s really hip, and so that genius was absolutely brought to bear on a whole bunch of kids who now are 40 and they get to see the same love of this goofy humor and really brilliant script writing through their children’s eyes,” Paulsen said. “But they get it in a different context now.”
Tri-Valley audiences can see Paulsen on vocals and Rogel on piano for the upcoming Livermore stop on “Animaniacs in Concert” at 8 p.m. on Friday (April 5) in the Bankhead Theater at 2400 First St. in Livermore. Tickets and more information are available at livermorearts.org.
