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New York Post
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
‘Full House' child star in a ‘constant process of recovery' after finding fame at young age
Everywhere Blake McIver Ewing looks, he's reminded of his time on 'Full House.' The actor, 40, got candid about playing Michelle Tanner's (Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen) friend, Derek Boyd, on the sitcom, which ran for eight seasons from 1987 to 1995. While on Jodie Sweetin and Andrea Barber's 'Full House' rewatch podcast, 'How Rude, Tanneritos,' on June 26, Ewing said he is most remembered for his 'Yankee Doodle Boy' performance from season six, episode eight, titled 'The Play's The Thing.' Advertisement 9 Blake McIver Ewing on 'Full House.' Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images Ewing revealed that fans still 'absolutely' ask him about the song, adding, 'I get requests for it.' 'This is the time of year where I start to hunker down like a Cold War bunker,' he joked. 'Tis the season. The memes start coming.' Advertisement 9 Yankee Doddle Boy performance. All kidding aside, Ewing said, 'It is an honor, and I'm glad that it still brings people joy.' Reflecting on playing Derek, the star noted he had 'a lot of similarities' to his character. 'I was very, very precocious and very able to speak my mind,' he confessed, expressing that they were both 'bossy.' Although the Hollywood vet has fond memories from his time on 'Full House,' being a child star has left him a 'Recovering Child Actor,' as noted in his Instagram bio. Advertisement 9 Blake McIver Ewing's Yankee Doddle Boy dance. Ewing starred in a slew of projects after his stint on 'Full House,' including playing Waldo in the 1994 classic 'The Little Rascals' and voicing Eugene in 2002's 'Hey Arnold! The Movie,' as well as starring in TV shows like 2001's 'Adventures in Odyssey.' 'I feel like we're all in recovery always,' Ewing shared with his former co-stars. 'It's an annoying process. People ask me about it all the time, and I'm like, 'No. It's not a negative thing. It's just like there's a constant process of recovery.'' Ewing also considered himself 'lucky' that his parents, actress Susan McIver and director Bill Ewing, didn't push him to be an actor, adding that he 'wanted to do it.' Advertisement 9 Blake McIver Ewing and Mary Kate/Ashley Olsen on 'Full House.' Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images 'Since both my parents were in show business, they didn't care at all,' he confessed. 'They were like, 'Well, if you're gonna do it, just don't embarrass us. At least be good at it.'' 'But it's so funny because you become a teenager, you become an adolescent, and it doesn't matter. There is still a life learning curve,' said Ewing. 'And it's really more about that. It's like we recover in our own way.' Sweetin, who played Stephanie Tanner, echoed her former co-star's sentiments, sharing that 'there's a whole extra layer of getting through that thing of being known as something [as] a child.' 9 Blake McIver Ewing performs on stage. Getty Images for Family Equality Council 'Most people don't have to shake off a career at 13 and be like, 'Who am I now?'' Sweetin continued while noting that as a teen, you're 'really trying to figure out who you are anyway,' but being a child star adds extra 'layers.' 'Absolutely,' Ewing agreed. 'It is an identity crisis of a sort. And I always try to explain to people… you have your mid-career crisis at 18.' From Barber's perspective, child actors from the '90s have their 'own language' and are 'like one big fraternity.' Advertisement 9 Blake McIver Ewing attends Family Equality Council's Impact Awards. Getty Images for Family Equality Ewing said while doing 'a lot of episodic work' on other series as a kid, it showed him just how 'lucky' the cast of 'Full House' was. Ewing reprised his role as Derek on 'Fuller House,' which ran from 2016 to 2020. He starred in the series finale, Season 5 episode 18, titled 'Our Very Last Show, Again.' 'When we were doing 'Fuller House,' I was always thinking about, 'Where is Derek?'' he said. 'I hope he's teaching high school theater in San Francisco.' Advertisement Along with the Olsen twins, 39, Sweetin and Barber, 'Full House' also starred Candace Cameron Bure, Dave Coulier, John Stamos, Lori Loughlin and the late Bob Saget, who died at age 65 in 2022. 9 John Stamos, Lori Loughlin, Dave Coulier; Candace Cameron, Andrea Barber, Jodie Sweetin, Bob Saget, Mary-Kate Olsen / Ashley Olsen in 1991. Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images For the sequel series, everyone returned except Mary-Kate and Ashley. In November, Sweetin admitted she would love to get the gang back together once more. Advertisement 'I've learned in this business never say never,' she told The Post. 'I'm totally down for it. I've been saying we need to do the 'Golden Girls Fullest House.'' Sweetin teased, 'Give it a few years and we'll be like appropriate old lady age. I think we could do it.' 9 Bob Saget (Danny), Dave Coulier (Joey), Mary Kate Olsen (Michelle), and John Stamos (Uncle Jesse). Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images But 'The Jane Mysteries' actress knows things won't be how they were without Saget, who played the beloved Danny Tanner. Advertisement 'He is the heart of the family in so many ways,' she explained. 'But I think the rest of us would definitely love to do it.' Bure also shared that she has kept one very important piece of wisdom from the late comic in mind. 9 'Fuller House.' ©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection 'I try to remember to tell all the people I love that I love them every time I see them,' the Great American Family CCO exclusively told The Post. 'Tell the people that you love that you love them. Don't leave the room without it.' Bure said she tries 'to laugh a lot,' adding, 'I miss Bob every day.'
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Nearly 40 free Shakespeare performances coming to Milwaukee and state parks this summer
Milwaukee audiences and Wisconsin state park visitors can see dozens of free outdoor Shakespeare performances this summer, thanks to Optimist Theatre, also known as Shakespeare in the Park, and Summit Players Theatre. Both groups stage productions tailored to newbies and younger audiences, with small casts of actors (or puppets) performing shortened versions of the Bard's plays. Both groups also present related educational and entertainment activities with their performances. Summit Players Theatre will perform the comedy "Love's Labour's Lost" in a number of Wisconsin state parks. Optimist Theatre will stage a day of Shakespeare activities at Milwaukee-area parks and similar locations. Each day will include performances of "Much Ado About Nothing" and "The Taming of the Shrew." Optimist will present the same schedule at each performing location, highlighted by a 45-minute puppet version of "Much Ado About Nothing" and an 80-minute distillation of "Taming of the Shrew." Both productions are directed by Milwaukee Repertory Theater regular Kelley Faulkner and feature actors Libby Amato, George Lorimer and Brielle Richmond. Optimist promises that both productions are "reimagined with a blast of 1980s beach party flair." The schedule at each site: 1 p.m.:seating opens, "The Play's The Thing" tent with drop-in workshop, activities and games; 2 p.m. "Much Ado About Nothing"; 2:45 p.m. "The Play's The Thing" tent reopens; 4:10 p.m. Early Music Now performance of Renaissance-era music; 5 p.m. "The Taming of the Shrew." Locations: July 12, Wisconsin Lutheran College, 8800 W. Blue Mound Road, Wauwatosa; July 13, Washington Park, 1859 N. 40th St. ; July 19, Humboldt Park, 3000 S. Howell Ave.; July 20, Sherman Park, 3000 N. Sherman Blvd.; July 26, Mitchell Park, 524 S. Layton Blvd.; July 27, Grant Park, 100 Hawthorne Ave, South Milwaukee; Aug. 2, Lake Park, 2975 N. Lake Park Road; Aug. 3, Forest Home Cemetery & Arboretum, 2405 W. Forest Home Ave.; Aug. 9, Kern Park, 3614 N. Humboldt Blvd.; Aug. 10, Lincoln Park, 1301 W. Hampton Ave.; Aug. 17, Wisconsin Avenue Park, 10300 W Wisconsin Ave., Wauwatosa. Aug. 16 is being held open in case an earlier scheduled performance is rained out. Bring a blanket or portable chair; no seating is provided. Optimist says these shows are for all ages. If you register for a show at the Optimist website, you will get email updates in case of weather issues or other changes. Also, while the shows are free to attend, if you donate $75 per person, Optimist will reserve a prime 3-feet-by-3-feet space for you. For information, visit A cast of six actors will perform director Maureen Kilmurry's adaptation of this early Shakespeare comedy at 17 state parks and forests, plus an outdoor preview performance on the Marquette University campus. Prior to each performance, Summit presents a 45-minute workshop on the play and its artistry; workshops start about 90 minutes before performance time. In the past Summit has suggested its shows work best for people 8 and older; younger audience members are welcome, but some of the program may over their heads. Bring your own chair or blanket. Here is the performance schedule. Unless a different time is listed, workshop begins at 5:30 p.m. and the performance at 7 p.m. June 12: Marquette University preview on the lawn (pre-show party, 6 p.m., performance, 7 p.m.) June 13: Richard Bong State Recreation Area, 26313 Burlington Road, Kansasville June 14: High Cliff State Park, N7630 State Park Road, Sherwood June 15: Havenwoods State Forest, 6141 N. Hopkins St., Milwaukee (1 p.m. workshop, 2:30 p.m. performance) June 20: Lake Kegonsa State Park, 2405 Door Creek Road, Stoughton June 21: Wyalusing State Park, 13081 State Park Lane, Bagley June 22: Blue Mound State Park, 4350 Mounds Park Road, Blue Mounds (1 p.m workshop, 2:30 p.m. performance) June 27: Amnicon Falls State Park, 4279 County Rd U, South Range June 28: Copper Falls State Park, 36664 Copper Falls Rd, Mellen July 11: Wildcat Mountain State Park, E13660 WI-33, Ontario July 12: Perrot State Park, 26247 Sullivan Road, Trempealeau July 13: Roche-A-Cri State Park, 1767 WI-13 Trunk, Friendship (1 p.m. workshop, 2:30 p.m. performance) July 18: Rib Mountain State Park, 4200 Park Road, Wausau July 19: Interstate State Park, WI-35, St. Croix Falls, July 21: Kohler-Andrae State Park, 1020 Beach Park Lane, Sheboygan July 25: Kettle Moraine State Forest-Pike Lake Unit, 3544 Kettle Moraine Road, Hartford July 26: Mirror Lake State Park, E10320 Fern Dell Road, Baraboo July 27: Hartman Creek State Park, N2480 Hartman Creek Road, Waupaca (1 p.m. workshop, 2:30 p.m. performance) For more info, including links to directions to each park, visit This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Free Shakespeare in Milwaukee, Wisconsin state parks in summer 2025
