Randy Harrison sings The Who's "Tommy" in new Berkshire Theatre Festival production

As the season announcement of the newly merged Colonial Theatre-Berkshire Theatre Festival began, the schedule of events was handed out to reporters, most of whom were seeing it for the first time. When Kate Maguire opened the floor to questions, the first show to draw questions was the complex and wildly popular rock opera Tommy by Peter Townshend and The Who. Undertaking a rock opera in the Berkshires is rare, especially this one. The Who’s Tommy was first released as a concept album in 1969, and then given the full Broadway treatment in 1993. It toured the country for a decade afterwards.

In 2011 the Berkshires will be one of the few places in the world where it can be seen in a fully staged production from the Berkshire Theatre Festival on the stage of the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA. Previews begin July 7, with the opening set for July 9 and the final performance on July 16.

There is more about the Berkshire Theatre Festival 2011 season, plus news, previews and interviews at our main site, Berkshire on Stage. You can also find Berkshire on Stage at Facebook, or our Twitter name is BerkshireStages.


Actor James Barry seen here in "Bloody, Bloody, Andrew Jackson."
Tommy is a powerful totem from an earlier age, its music and message still able to reduce an audience to tears, or make them cringe during its unfolding, and then raise the crowd to their feet with cheers as it ends.But the cheers and tears do not come automatically. Eric Hill who will direct the Berkshire Theatre Festival production has signed on for what could be his greatest challenge ever. Even with a long history of complex undertakings behind him, Hill has his work cut out for him. Tommy is as much about the music as it is the story. And it never stops moving. This is one musical that has to be done “right” to work, with split second timing, relentless energy…so difficult in fact that few theatre companies have undertaken it in recent years. It’s real risky.

Tommy not only requires perfection in its musical elements (to gloss over them is to risk disaster), but the acting can not take a back seat for even one moment. For that, much of the weight falls on the person who plays the title role, and the actors who play his younger self. Finally the production itself is Dickensonian in its scope, for this is one sweeping, epic tale. Those who were born after its earlier incarnations have quite a theatrical tsunami to look forward to.

The casting is exciting. It includes both Randy Harrison who will play Tommy, and James Barry as Captain Walker. James Barry is fresh from the cast of Bloody, Bloody, Andrew Jackson, and has been seen in The Caretaker and The Einstein Project at the Berkshire Theatre Festival.

About Randy Harrison

When the casting was announced,, perhaps the most excited person was the irrepressible Randy Harrison, who said: “I’m very excited to finally sing on a Berkshire stage, and thrilled and honored to be a part of the first Berkshire Theatre Festival production in the gorgeous Colonial Theater.” And being the consummate professional he is, we have no doubt that he is already committing the music and book to memory.


Randy Harrison
While Berkshire audiences know Harrison for his acting abilities in BTF shows like Equus, Waiting for Godot and One Flew Over the Cukoos Nest, he has earned his stripes in musicals as well. He played in Wicked on Broadway, and has extensive musical theatre experience in regional theatre, most notably playing Andy Warhol in Pop! at Yale Rep in 2009.

“Since I’ve started working in the Berkshires and in western Massachusetts, I feel re-connected to the New England area. It’s always felt like home to me. I still have some family there. My aunt is there. But now I think of it like a summer home, which is kind of nice.” – Randy Harrison

Harrison played the youngest member of the cast in the Showtime series Queer as Folk which is still in syndication worldwide. It brought him to the attention of millions of television viewers and could have typecast him as a heartthrob, but after the series finished, he returned to his first love, the stage, and continued to perfect his craft. On the sunny side of 30, Harrison still can play young, and that combined with his deep experience means that we could be in for a Tommy that will sear its music and characters on our memories. You have to see and feel his character for the show to work.

At the moment, Harrison is preparing to open in a new play off Broadway. The Red Bull Theater’s “In the Raw” workshop of Margaret, A Tyger’s Heart, which explores the role of the French Queen throughout Shakespeare’s history plays, begins tomorrow, Feb. 25. Michael Sexton directs the work, which is adapted from Shakespeare’s Richard III and Henry VI. Performances are just this weekend at the Theatre at St. Clement’s.


Jenn Harris (l) and Randy Harrison in Jack Ferver's "Swan".
From March 10-12, the actor and his friends will have a little fun at PS 122 as they undertake their spoof of the film Black Swan, complete with unhinged ballerinas, lurid hallucinations, tons of makeup and stage blood with Harrison playing the mad mother, with Jack Ferver as Lily, the hot new bad ballet girl in town. The cast will also include Christian Coulson and Matthew Wilkas. It promises to be catnip for lovers of camp and spoofery. It is a production of the infamous dancer Jack Ferver and his QWAN (Quality Without a Name) Company. “It is going to be insane,” Ferver said modestly.

Harrison maintains a busy schedule in his home base of New York, but uses the Berkshires as his summer retreat, thanks to the Berkshire Theatre Festival.

”I want to do Shakespeare. I want to do Chekov. I want to do Beckett. I did Waiting for Godot in the Berkshires. I think it was just a really, really good production. It was a wonderful director, and a wonderful company and people really responded to what we did. I love the play. I love Beckett. I like what I do now.

But I’ll also do a musical every three or four years. I miss singing after a while, so I’m always happy when the time comes and I’m like, ”I think I want to do a musical.” And also, there are more jobs in musicals and they pay better. [Laughs.] So it’s good when you want to do one.” – Randy Harrison

About Tommy’s Creation


Tommy becomes a Pinball Wizard.
In 1968, Pete Townshend told Rolling Stone he was working on a rock opera about a deaf, dumb, and blind boy. Townshend had rejected psychedelic drugs and discovered mysticism, and wanted to represent different states of consciousness through the story and music. It was only after rock journalist Nic Cohn gave an early version a cool reception that Townshend, knowing Cohn to be a pinball fan, made Tommy a Pinball Wizard. But the plot is much darker than anything you can experience at the local arcade, and varies among the many incarnations of The Who’s eponymous 1969 album. It was played live at Woodstock, and appeared as a ballet, a symphonic recording, a movie, an all-star stage performance, and, in 1993, a Broadway musical.

The original rock opera, The Who’s Tommy is at once a show-stopping rock concert and a cautionary tale of the power and perils of celebrity. We witness Tommy Walker from his birth, through the shocking episodes of his childhood that render him deaf, mute and blind, as he conquers the world with his stardom, and finally after the crowds have turned on him. Featuring legendary songs by the Who, including “Pinball Wizard,” “See Me, Feel Me” and “Tommy, Can You Hear Me?” this promises to be the event of the summer in the Berkshires.

Schedule and Ticketing

Previews are July 7 and 8 with opening night July 9. It plays until July 16 with tickets priced at $49, 40 and 20. Performances are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday-Saturday at 8pm, Wednesday at 7pm, Thursday and Saturday at 2pm. Subscriptions now, otherwise single tickets for all events go on sale March 14 to the general public. For BTF productions (including Tommy) contact the BTF Box Office at (413) 298-5576 or visit www.berkshiretheatre.org to purchase.

Arts America has moved to Berkshire on Stage

As Berkshire on Stage has grown in size and scope, it is also claiming more of my available time. Please visit me there, and if you wish to see articles, interviews and stories with a LGBT focus, just select that category. We also continue to cover selected regional theatres.

http://berkshireonstage.com/

Thanks for your readership and support.

Larry

"Nicholas Nickleby" finally gets its N.E. Premiere at Lyric Stage

(l to r) Jason Powers as Smike, Jack Cutmore-Scott as Nicholas Nickleby and Nigel Gore as Mr. Squeers. Photo by Mark Howard.

It's only taken thirty years and one of Boston's bravest theatres to undertake a full scale production - running over two nights - of the legendary Nicholas Nickleby. It premiered in London in 1980, created a sensation in New York where it opened in 1981 and then mostly sunk from sight. This is a play that requires huge resources.

So we take our hat off to the Lyric Stage Company of Boston as they debut the New England premiere of the Olivier and Tony Award winning theatrical epic, The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby Parts I & II October 21 through December 19, 2010 Called “the theatrical event of a lifetime,” by American Theatre Magazine, "love, sex and money, poverty and exploitation, hope and despair: Dickens' world is vividly brought to life in David Edgar's adaptation of his 1838 novel." The Times, London.

According to Producing Artistic Director Spiro Veloudos, “this extraordinary piece has never been produced in New England and we are pulling out all the stops for this remarkable two-part play with music featuring over 150 characters.” He adds, “the new, shorter adaptation streamlines the narrative, and captures Dickens' genius for combining exuberant characters, theatrical spectacle, and genuine emotion.”

The Lyric’s production of …Nicholas Nickleby includes 25 of the Boston area’s best actors, most of them playing multiple roles. Featuring: Will Lyman (Ralph Nickleby), Jack Cutmore-Scott (Nicholas Nickleby), Peter A. Carey (Newman Noggs), Maureen Keiller (Mrs. Nickleby), Larry Coen (Vincent Crummles), Nigel Gore (Wackford Squeers), Leigh Barrett (Miss LaCreevy) Kerry Dowling (Mrs. Squeers/Mrs. Crummles), and Jason Powers (Smike), John Davin (Arthur Gride), and Neil A. Casey (Mr. Mantalini) .

The …Nicholas Nickleby creative team, led by director Spiro Veloudos and Associate Director Courtney O’Connor, includes Janie E. Howland (scenic designer), Rafael Jaen (costume designer), Scott Clyve (lighting designer), and local composer Kevin O’Shaughnessy (original music). The production manager is Nerys Powell and the assistant stage manager is Katie Ailinger.



(Shown here is the wonderful actor Jack Cutmore-Scott who plays the title role. Photo by Sara Joe Wolansky, Harvard Crimson.)

Left penniless by the death of his father and young Nicholas Nickleby assumes responsibility for his mother and sister and seeks help from his Scrooge-like Uncle Ralph. Instantly disliking Nicholas, Ralph sends him to teach in a school run by the sadistic Wackford Squeers. Nicholas decides to escape, taking with him the orphan Smike, one of Squeers’s most abused young charges, and the two embark on a series of adventurous encounters with an array of humanity’s worst and best—greedy fools, corrupt lechers, cheery innocents, and selfless benefactors.

Lyric Stage Company of Boston is located at 140 Clarendon Street, Boston. Performances are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings at 7:30 pm, select Wednesday matinees, 2 pm (Part I: November 3, December 1; Part II: November 10, December 8), Saturdays at 3pm and 8 pm and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3:00 pm. Performances of both parts will be in rotating repertory, with five “marathon days” (November 13, 28, December 1, 4 and 18) where Part I and Part II will be performed with a 2 hour dinner break. Tickets range from $29 to $56 and are available by calling the box office at 617.585.5678 and online at www.lyricstage.com.

Waiting for Godot - An Opera by Pierre Boulez? It might happen.

The Berkshire Theatre Festival's 2008 production of Waiting for Godot had an almost-operatic set. Kevin Sprague photo.
Normally you don't find insider gossip here, but this rumor has a fine provenance, and is being printed by some mainstream UK sites, so it is worth passing along.

It is being reported that Pierre Boulez, the French composer and conductor, is planning to make an opera from Samuel Beckett's most famous play, Waiting for Godot. According to Charles T. Downey at Ion Arts, Beckett is not only planning to write a Godot opera, it is going to be presented by La Scala in Milan in 2015. Peter Gelb (General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera), where are you in this? It's going to be the hottest opera of the 21st Century!

"… the sound thus obtained had a 'spatialised' richness, which, without requiring any electronic aid, could be of interest to Pierre Boulez for the opera that, according to our sources, he will adapt from Beckett's Waiting for Godot, planned for La Scala in Milan in 2015. - Ion Arts"

His source is, in turn a review in the June 15 Le Monde.

Pierre Boulez, composer and conductor.
It's certainly true that Boulez has wanted to write an opera for a while. Talking to the U.K.'s Telegraph in 1996, he confirmed that he corresponded with the playwright Jean Genet about working together in the 1960s, as well as the German writer Heiner Müller in 1995, and that a year later he was thinking about adapting Edward Bond's plays for the opera house. None of these plans ever came to fruition.

Whether the legendary composer and historic opera house have bothered to check in with the notoriously sniffy Godot estate, I have no idea. Based on the rigid and dust-preserving tendencies of the estate, (read this tale of Endgame in the current Berkshire On Stage) I seriously doubt it. It would be news if they allowed an adaptation. They fight fiercely to preserve every word, every pause and gesture of Beckett's infamous and inscrutable play.

Yet if the composer used the play's script as its libretto, word for word, and followed the prescribed action to the letter, I don't see how they could object. And it might be easier in French than English, since Beckett wrote it first in French before doing his own translation back into English. Odd man that Beckett.

This one is worth watching.

MOMIX does insects, too

After seeing the incredible OvO from Cirque du Soleil (reviewed in previous post) I went in search of other dancers that celebrate the world of insects and found a Momix video excerpt from their Joyce appearance in May 2009. It is apparent that the world of Entomology still offers plenty of ideas for choreographers and dancers. The one thing missing from the Cirque show was a flying act on bungees with silk wings fluttering which judging from this video would not be that difficult to stage.

Cirque du Soleil brings Ovo to New England: Hartford now, Boston next

Ovo immerses you in a colorful ecosystem teeming with life.

First a little background before the OvO review. Hartford is the seventh city on the worldwide tour of OvO, which began in Montreal in April 2009. It's arrival in Hartford follows the successful runs of Dralion there in 2003, Varekai in 2005 and Kooza in 2008. It plays until July 11 and then packs up and heads to Boston where it plays from July 22 to August 15. So now, the question is, how does OvO measure up compared to the earlier shows?

OvO is simply the best show Cirque du Soleil has ever sent on the road. Written and directed by Deborah Colker, it has moments of sheer spectacle, held together with dance, movement and pure theatrical wizardry. During a performance you may notice subtle references to artists such as Gaudi, Dali and Piazzolla while enjoying performers dressed as butterflies, spiders and even a Ladybug looking for a mate.

OvO (which means egg in Portuguese) is the 25th quirky show from Cirque, created for the company's 25th Anniversary. Currently playing in Hartford, next month it moves on to Boston, then to Washington, DC in September.

Spiders are more artistic than scary.
Even for those who have seen Cirque du Soleil, it is difficult to describe the experience. Those flat two-dimensional televised snippets of their performances don't do it justice, and even in print, how can words describe a basically wordless show?

You don't just see a Cirque show, you experience it. On the way in you may hear some first time ticket buyers complain about the ticket prices (they're not cheap) but you never hear that on the way out. You get a lot for your money. There's more imagination and entertainment compressed into 2.5 glorious hours than you will get in a month on commercial television.

The fun begins the moment you spot their blue and gold Grand Chapiteau (big top) at the Intersection of I-84 and I-91 In Hartford. It seats 2200.

As you push the canvas flaps aside to enter, you notice the subtle smell of grass and hear a cacophony of insects all around you. Scientists in beekeeper-style helmets with nets and specimen boxes patrol the audience, on the trail of insects. A few unfortunate latecomers are examined, magnifying glasses are employed, and Grotowski-esque mutterings and grunts fill the air. The show has no script, but uses a wide variety of the Polish theatre director Jerzy Grotowski's techniques to communicate their surprise, happiness etc. Once in a while you can even make out the word "ovo" or "no" but Cirque's shows are created for multi-lingual audiences. They travel the world.

The scarabs operate at the top of the tent.
As this is happening, insects are slowly hopping, crawling, slithering and otherwise finding their way on stage. Someone is lugging a human sized egg through the audience. On stage is a gigantic egg, perhaps 60 feet wide, dominating everything. In the background is an organic structure reaching from floor to ceiling. Two pods of four musicians each begin playing a samba with tango overtones. All this, and then the show actually begins.

The audience becomes aware that they have shrunk in size and importance and entered a different world. OvO offers a headlong rush into the insects colorful ecosystem. On stage we watch as the creepy-crawlies work, eat, flutter, play, fight and look for love in a non-stop dance of endless energy. Giant flowers open and their scent fills the air. The insects’ home is a world of biodiversity and beauty alternately filled with noisy action and moments of quiet emotion.

The contortionist made the audience gasp at her impossible combinations.
But all this is simply the lavish frosting to introduce the circus acts, albeit using every dance and theatre trick imaginable. Just as Julie Taymor created a special world for the animals of The Lion King so do Deborah Colker and Chantel Tremblay create an imaginary world for the insects. OvO's costumes are not precise depictions of what a cricket or ant looks like, but an interpretation. None of the proceedings will upset someone who might get squeamish at the site of a spider, ant or cockroach. Instead it's like being twelve years old again, looking to see what's hiding under the rocks in the back yard.

With 54 performers from 16 countries, there are a lot of insects. For example, five yellow and-red fleas fling themselves through the air and come together in graceful, perfectly balanced sculptural formations. A Dragonfly performs a graceful balancing act. A spider defies gravity and physics on the slack wire earning gasps and applause from the onlookers.

Perhaps the most stunning performance was that of the "scarabs" who operate from perches high above the audience . It is an act that combines several traditional circus skills like banquine, Russian swing and swinging chair. These fly boys leap from the edges of two platforms in the rafters to the catchers positioned on a third. Their physical setup is the largest ever created under a big tent, and requires some 16 people just to set up. They do it in minutes as other action was taking place on the stage.

The fleas cling to each other as they jump about.
The penultimate act was the 25' high Cricket Wall, which has 20 artists running, jumping and walking across its jagged face. Using trampolines and power tracks - plus pure physical strength and teamwork - they leap, jump and spring to the top. The effect is so stunning that the audience can not believe what it is seeing. But there are no hidden wires, nothing but the artists and the setup. A similar effect is used at the close of La Nouba, a permanent Cirque show in Orlando. It is an acrobatic achievement like no other.

Cirque's productions have become so elaborate and intricate that they are becoming more grandiose than Grand Opera. Like that art form, they combine spectacle, theatre and music into a whole new experience. The gold and crystal of the venerable Metropolitan Opera House is even challenged by the KA theatre Cirque created at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Instead of monied gilt, that theatre's interior resembles the heart of a giant space ship with a hydraulic stage that arises from the deep.

Everything about this show is amazing, scenery, costumes and makeup included. The costumes for OvO are not only intricate, they are sufficiently detailed to allow close-up scrutiny. (They offered, I accepted.) But what makes them special is they are also truly durable. They are able to take the punishment these circus acts inflict on them. Liz Vandal, who created them, is known for her futuristic superhero costumes, and for recreating suits of armor from all eras. There is little doubt that is why they have such beauty and durability.

In OvO, it is the lighting and sound people who create the magical environment that surrounds the audience. There are four enormous lighting toweres and the same number of giant subwoofers strategically placed under the seating. 100 surround speakers are placed around the arena to immerse the audience in a wall of sound. The effect is stunning. You can feel the action at several points in the evening. And subtle. The chirping and chattering never stops, yet becomes a soundstage on which everything else is overlaid.

OvO, like most Cirque shows, is designed to please all ages and all levels of sophistication. As someone who has seen ten of their 25 shows, the question is when they will begin repeating themselves. Yes,, there are certain elements that appear in all their shows, which might be dismissed as just a bunch of dressed up circus acts.
But like a good meal, where we use the same ingredients over and over, Cirque always creates totally new and different menus to excite our taste buds. This is a company that totally reinvents themselves again and again. Any Cirque du Soleil show makes for a great way to spend an evening. But this is one you should see early. And often.

This is only two-thirds of Ovo's huge cast!

Dates, Performance and Ticket Information

Cirque du Soleil's OvO opens in Hartford June 17 and runs through July 11. It then moves on to Boston from July 22 to August 15 and Washington, DC from September 9 to October 3.

The performances are Tuesdays thru Thursdays at 8:00 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays at 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. No performances on Mondays. Tickets are available via www.cirquedusoleil.com/ovo or at 1-800-450-1480. A VIP Tapis Rouge™ package is also available.

A slightly different version of this review appeared earlier in Berkshire Fine Arts.

Karen Zacarias saved by Arena Stage Playwriting Program

There was a moment not long ago when Karen Zacarias became sure that her blossoming playwriting career would be lost among sippy cups, baby dolls and field trip forms. Arena Stage made the difference.


Can you have it all? Playwright Karen Zacarias certainly seems to have found the secret. With three young children at home and a blinking computer awaiting, the 2009 Playwright in Residence for Washington, D.C.'s Arena stage is a prolific writer. She finished five plays the year her youngest was born, and the ideas just keep on coming. She has had four of her plays staged in the past year or so. Legacy of Light is one that Arena Stage produced. But the double duties of mother and writer takes its toll. "I haven't slept in years," she says. Thanks to Arena's program, she has found a way to live two lives.

Today news came that the path that Zacarias has blazed will soon be joined by two additional women playwrights Lisa Kron and Amy Freed, who will each start their three-year residencies in July 2010, and then Katori Hall and Charles Randolph-Wright, who will begin in January 2011. It's all part of The American Voices New Play Institute. The Institute—integral to Arena’s mission as a leading center for the production, presentation, development and study of American theater—isdesigned as a center for research and development of effective practices, programs and processes for new play development in the American Theater.

In addition to the first round of Resident Playwrights, the Institute will also host Project Residents Lynn Nottage and David Henry Hwang, who will be commissioned through the Institute to write a play that Arena Stage will produce.

In addition to the residencies, the American Voices New Play Institute operates with a suite of interrelated programs, including the New Play Producing Fellowships, Theater 101 Audience Enrichment Seminar, administration of Round One of the NEA New Play Development Program and major convenings of American artists and arts administrators around issues facing the new play sector.

Under the leadership of Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith, the Institute is guided by Arena Stage Associate Artistic Director David Dower and works in partnership with Georgetown University’s Theater Department, led by Dr. Derek Goldman. The American Voices New Play Institute is made possible through the keystone gift of $1.1 million in support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

"With the launching of the residencies for the American Voices New Play Institute under the visionary funding of the Mellon Foundation, we at Arena Stage are eager to support and help transform play development around the country,“ said Smith. “These writers are so different; my mouth is literally watering at the thought of what each may write. From major dramas to musicals, comedies, one-person plays and interview-based stories, the range is exhilarating. Now the writers will have the time, support and finances to be able to do their best work. Each writer is splendid and has the talent and insight to surprise us all.”

The primary purpose of the residency is to write plays and to advance professional outcomes for the participating writers, as well as to help Arena Stage test and develop best practices for such residencies in theaters around the country. The playwrights will determine their individual involvement in the life of the theater company. Ultimately, Arena Stage hopes the Institute will make the case for the power, practicality and impact of resident playwrights in regional theaters nationwide.

"This first cohort of playwrights is going to really advance the inquiry here at Arena Stage,” shared Dower. “They come at it from so many different perspectives on form, process and story, and they have all grabbed hold of the opportunity to help develop the role of the playwright in the institutions of the regional theater. So I expect we'll not only see work they write popping up on stages around the country, but I hope through their leadership we'll see increased opportunities for playwrights' residencies around the field."

This is one of the most exciting initiatives by any American theatre company. The nurturing of playwrights is essential for the theatre's future.

For more information regarding all of the American Voices New Play Institute programs please visit www.arenastage.org/institute.

"Carnival" at Goodspeed Musicals has Acrobats, Jugglers, Puppets and Magicians

The original cast album design for Carnival.
Carnival is one of those classic book musicals that tells a heartbreaking love story surrounded by the color and vibrancy of a traveling troupe of artists. With a gorgeous score by the almost forgotten Bob Merrill, it is a musical I actually saw on Broadway with Anna Maria Alberghetti in the lead role of Lili, a young innocent.

Scheduled to run from July 9 – Sept 18 at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Conn. This production will officially open on August 4, 2010. The last time I saw this musical was at the Berkshire Theatre Festival in 1979 or so. It's been a long time waiting for a top notch production, which the Goodspeed name always promises.

Lauren WorshamThe magical and heart-warming tale of a naïve young woman who eagerly joins a traveling circus. Surrounded by a riot of acrobats and jugglers, music makers and clowns, she is dazzled at first by the troupe’s manipulative magician. In the end she finds happiness with a disillusioned puppeteer who can only express himself through his delightful puppets. Based on the film Lili and with songs like “Love Makes the World Go Round” and "Her Face," Carnival! casts a romantic spell over the entire audience.

In addition to the Music and Lyrics by Bob Merrill Carnival's book is by Michael Stewart, based on Material by Helen Deutsch with Revisions by Francine Pascal.

Now to the cast. Lili will be played by Lauren Worsham whose gorgeous voice I heard up at the Weston, VT Playhouse two summers ago in Adam Guettel's Light in the Piazza. She broke my heart with her acting.

Adam MonleyPaul will be played by Adam Monley who appeared on Broadway in Mamma Mia! . Mr. Monley played Dominque in The Norma Terris production of The Baker’s Wife.

Marco will be played by Mike McGowan whose Broadway credits include Ragtime, Grease, The Apple Tree and The Producers. Mr. McGowan previously performed in Goodspeed’s 2001 production of They All Laughed.

Rosalie will be played by Michelle Blakely who performed the Broadway revivals of Annie Get Your Gun and Grease. Jacquot will be played by Nathan Klau. Schlegel will be played by Laurent Giroux whose Broadway credits include The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Dancin’ and Pippin. Mr. Giroux returns to Goodspeed where previously he played M. le Marquis in The Baker’s Wife.

Joshua DeanThe ensemble will include Joshua Dean and Ben Franklin, co-founders for New York based aerial theatre company Suspended Cirque. Mr. Dean has performed around the world as a ballet, modern, and musical theater dancer. Mr. Franklin has performed all over the world as an actor/singer/dancer. He has worked in numerous regional theatres, national tours, world cruises, Off-Broadway, and Lincoln Center.

Price Waldman from Broadway’s The Little Mermaid and Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! joins the ensemble. Mr. Waldman returns to Goodspeed where he previously performed in Sweeney Todd and Amour.

Other members of the ensemble include Timothy Hughes, Kara Kimmer (Goodspeed’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum), Robin Masella, Clifton Samuels, Amy Shure, Justin Urso and Dana Winkle (Goodspeed’s Pippin and Mack & Mabel). The swings will be Miguel Edson and Melissa Steadman.

Carnival! will be directed by Darko Tresnjak, who directed Goodspeed Musicals’ Amour and A Little Night Music. Carnival! will be choreographed by Peggy Hickey, whose previous Goodspeed Musicals credits include Brigadoon, King of Hearts, Amour, On The Twentieth Century, and A Little Night Music.

Scenic designs will be by David P. Gordon whose New York Credits include String Fever, Cheat, and Princess Turandot. Mr. Gordon also designed the Goodspeed production of A Little Night Music.

Costume Design will be by Fabio Toblini. Mr. Toblini has served as Assistant Costume Designer for Broadway’s Triumph of Love and assisted Costume Designer Ann Hould-Ward with her Broadway sensation Beauty and the Beast . Mr. Toblini served as Assistant Costume designer for Goodspeed’s revival of Man of LaMancha in 2000.

Lighting design will be by John Lasiter whose designs for Goodspeed Musicals include Annie Get Your Gun, Camelot, Big River and 1776. His off-Broadway credits include The Seagull, Common Vision, and Make Me A Song.

Puppet designer for Carnival! will be Robert Smythe. Mr. Smythe is considered one of the foremost puppet artists in the United States. As the founder and Artistic Director of Mum Puppettheatre, the only regional theater in the United States devoted to puppetry, he wrote, directed and performed over 20 original productions using puppets, masks and human actors.

The Music Director for Carnival! will be Michael O’Flaherty. He is in his 19th season as Goodspeed’s Resident Music Director. F. Wade Russo will be Assistant Music Director. Orchestrations will be provided by Dan DeLange, who provided the orchestrations for Goodspeed Musicals’ Annie Get Your Gun, Camelot, 42nd Street, Half a Sixpence, High Button Shoes, Singin’ in the Rain, The Boy Friend, Red Hot and Blue, Call Me Madam, and Babes in Arms. Carnival! is produced for Goodspeed Musicals by Michael P. Price.

Performances and Tickets

Carnival! will run July 9 through September 18, 2010. Curtain times are Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Thursday at 7:30 p.m. (with select performances at 2:00 p.m.), Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. (with select performances at 6:30 p.m.). Tickets are available through the Box Office (860.873.8668), open seven days a week, or on-line at www.goodspeed.org.

Dennis Hopper. actor and art collector

"I started acting at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego, from the time I was thirteen years old to when I was seventeen. I was doing Shakespeare and plays at the Old Globe in Balboa Park." Dennis Hopper

Dennis Hopper (1946-2010) and some of his beloved paintings.
If you read the celebrity columns and blogs, Dennis Hopper is often treated as an oddball, an eccentric actor. Much of it is true. Once spurned by Hollywood and nearly destroyed by drugs, he bounced back as so many of us do. And over a long career he worked hard to redeem his reputation.

In later years, his feet were solidly planted on the ground. For one thing he collected art. Not as an investment (though he seems to have quite an eye for emerging artists) but as a tool, perhaps even an obsession that enriched his acting. For another, he voted Republican, something most people are surprised to learn. He was a wonderfully complex person, a living contradiction.

"My whole written history is one big lie! [laughs] I mean, I can't even believe my history. But I did have the first Campbell's Soup painting. It was in the office at Virginia Dwan's, and I bought it for $75. This is '62 or '63. "Dennis Hopper

We will miss him, Perhaps the best memory we could take away of him is that of someone who was as curious about the visual arts as about life.

Broadway has another Billion Dollar Year

Actually, only a couple of theatres are on Broadway itself.

The Broadway League released end-of-season statistics for the 2009 – 2010 season, which began May 25, 2009 and ended May 23, 2010. For the 2009 – 2010 season, Broadway shows yielded $1.02 billion in grosses, and total attendances reached 11.89 million.

Grosses are up 1.5% from last season's absolute numbers (which do not include Young Frankenstein*). Attendance is down 3.0% from the 2008 – 2009 season, also using absolute numbers.

Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of The Broadway League, said, “Using the numbers we know, grosses were up 1.5% over last season. However, if we factor in estimated figures for Young Frankenstein which ran 32 weeks in 2008 – 2009, it could be down slightly this season – perhaps as much as 1.0% in grosses. In any case, it seems that even in this current economic climate, the numbers are strong thanks to the vibrancy of this season's offerings.“

The League recently studied the demographics of theatre-goers and found that, for Broadway, international visitors accounted for one in five admissions. Tourists in general accounted for a whopping 63% of Broadway admissions, though that could be a misleading statistic since under their parameters I would be considered a tourist, not the Broadway regular I consider myself.

The report also shows that the use of the Internet for the purchase of tickets has grown by 471% since the 1999-2000 season (from 7% to 40%). Online purchase was the most popular method of ticket buying for a fifth year in row.

During the 2009-2010 season, 39 shows opened (11 new musicals, 14 new plays, 6 musical revivals, and 8 play revivals).

The total for 2009-10 was $1.02 billion vs. $1.00 billion in 2008-9.

The more important figure was the gross attendance and that was 11.89 million in the last year, vs. 12.25 million the year before, representing a decline.

Broadway audience is aging
The average age of the Broadway theatregoer was 42.2 years old, slightly older than last season, while those aged from 25-34accounted for 16% of all tickets sold, higher than it has been since the 1999-2000 season. But younger audiences generally seem to prefer the more edgy (and cheaper) offerings of off-Broadway and off-off Broadway houses.
 
Broadway theatregoers were a very well educated and affluent group. In addition to an annual reported income of $195,700, 73% of theatregoers over the age of 25 had completed college and 36% had earned a graduate degree. 

“Broadway is a national pastime! As there is more of a choice for the theatregoer than ever before, it is exciting to report that we are seeing a wider audience for Broadway. Our shows, and our audience, are more diverse than ever,” continued Charlotte St. Martin. “With our goal to make Broadway a stronger international brand, we do believe that the increased attendance from foreign visitors to New York City reflects that these efforts are working. A stronger international brand will not only be an asset for Broadway’s business, but for the New York City economy as well.”

*Estimates for Young Frankenstein, which played 32 weeks during the 2008-09 season are not included here (previews began 10/11/07, closed 1/4/09 ) The producers refused to cooperate with the Broadway League and insisted on keeping their numbers to themselves.

Goodspeed Musicals "Annie Get Your Gun" Hits a Bullseye

The Company of Annie Get Your Gun at Goodspeed Opera House until July 3. Photos by Diane Sobolewski.
Theatre companies do Broadway musicals all the time, but few productions ever seem to measure up to the originals. The one reliable exception is the little Goodspeed Opera House, hidden away in East Haddam, Connecticut, just southeast of Hartford. This is one company that almost always hits a bullseye.

Jenn Gambatese as Annie Oakley

Since Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun opened this past weekend, we had to revisit this musical tale about Annie Oakley (1860-1926), who was a sharpshooter from Ohio, and her husband, Frank Butler.

The verdict? The audience rewarded it with wildly enthusiastic applause, and so did I. It's fresh, funny and fabulous. The love they lavished on this musical is right up there on stage to hear and see. There's an energetic cast of two dozen singers and dancers who put their hearts into the show. The choreography by Noah Racey was dazzling. The work of the hard working performers was enhanced by the sparkling sound, with eight top notch musicians in the orchestra pit.

This edition of Annie Get Your Gun is not the same as the original, however. Cuts - most significantly of "I'm An Indian Too" - and updates were made to both book and song to bring it into the 21st Century, and to avoid some of the earlier racist cliches that were common in the mid 1940's.

From the opening notes of "There's No Business Like Show Business" to the rip roaring final duet of "Anything You Can Do" the two lead actors, Jenn Gambatese as Annie Oakley and Kevin Earley as Frank Butler filled the hall with glorious singing and acting that made the old fashioned book almost believable. Despite all its puns the audience loved every line, got every joke. I had a grin that went from ear to ear for most of the show. So much so that my jaw is sore today.

Kevin Earley as Frank Butler and the company of Annie Get Your Gun at Goodspeed Opera House.
Success of course has many mothers. Nevertheless, a big portion of the credit has to go the incredibly clever director, Rob Ruggiero who used every inch of stage space available. His cast swarmed and swirled under the big top, through the crowned heads of Europe and into a high society gathering. One dance took place on the top of a railroad car which rolled on and off stage with ease.

David McDonald made Buffalo Bill Cody a gentleman ringmaster in this role. Equally impressive were Bill Nabel as Pawnee Bill and Rebecca Watson as Dolly Tate. Impeccable timing in delivering his lines was Chief Sitting Bull played by the delightful Michael Nichols.

Orville Mendoza - who I first heard at Barrington Stage Company - carried the roles of Running Deer and several others over the course of the evening.

Rounding out the major figures are the two lovers Winnie Tate (Chelsea Morgan Stock and Tommy Keeler (Andrew Cao). Their voices were sweet, if not terribly loud.

As usual, the Goodspeed's production was world class, even with the limited playing space this jewel box of a theatre has to work with. Michael Schweikardt's set was highly creative, billowing posters and curtains doing the work of dividing the locations and scenes with speed and decisiveness. The costumes by Alejo Vietti were just amazing to see, detailed right down to the dirt and grime on Annie's leather and rough hewn clothes.

Anyone who is looking for a top notch musical - of the old fashioned variety - should find their way to East Haddam and see this superb company for themselves. You will quickly discover why Goodspeed is the home of Broadway hits - they have sent more musicals to Broadway than any other regional theatre company.

Annie Get Your Gun. Music and lyrics by Irving Berlin. Original Book by Herbert and Dorothy Fields. Revised by Peter Stone. First performance April 16, 2010. Recently extended to play to July 3. Goodspeed Opera House, East Haddam, Connecticut. About 2 hours, 15 minutes with one intermission. http://www.goodspeed.org/

Roger Rees and Sir Ian McKellan mistaken for bums in Sydney

Sir Ian McKellan mistaken for a bum by a passerby who dropped a dollar in his hat.
If there is anything more dangerous than a "method" actor, it's a "method" costume designer. Put the two together and the public can be easily fooled.

Ian McKellen was taking a break during rehearsals for Waiting for Godot which he and Roger Rees (former Williamstown Theatre Festival Artistic Dirextor) first did in London and are now performing in Australia.

Roger Rees (top) and Ian McKellan take their routine on the road.

As fate would have it, Sir Ian is sitting a short distance from the stage door, Estragon's bowler in hand when a passerby takes one look at the aging, threadbare actor and drops a dollar in the hat.

Of course, that prompted the publicist to set up some photographs which we most happily reprint here.

McKelan hopes the Melbourne critics will be as kind.
After Waiting For Godot finishes its run in Melbourne, it will continue on to Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.
The Samuel Beckett play was a huge success in London's West End, with Sir Ian starring as Estragon opposite Patrick Stewart's and then Roger Rees's Vladimir.

Sir Ian McKellan attracts stares as he continues to wait for Godot in full public view.

You can ead more at: The Daily Mail.

Sir Ian has a wicked sense or irony:

Concert Hall Decorum Loses to PaGAGnini Players

The Pagagnini Quartet.
They begin as any chamber concert does, with a pensive pianissimo passage of a Bach Brandenburg or the Pachebel Canon in d. Their playing is superb. The audience is rapt. Then...cleverly choreographed chaos erupts. The Pagagnini Quartet is off and running and the evening erupts in hilarity. It's about as entertaining as classical music ever gets.

Descended from a squiggly line of classical clowns, from Spike Jones (Carmen Ghia) to Anna Russell to PDQ Bach, the Pagagnini foursome is clearly out to have a good time. Their audiences respond with endless cheering and laughter. The group, from Spain, is about to appear in New York City and we want to be sure you know about them.

Their high voltage show makes quite a racket, and the choreography requires their playing to be almost acrobatic as they pluck, bow and abuse their instruments in the name of art. This video will give you a good idea of what they are up to.



They play the New Victory Theatre in Manhattan from May 7 - 23. Performances are Fridays at 7pm, Saturdays at 2pm and 7pm, and Sundays at 12pm and 5pm.

Regular ticket prices are $35, $25, $12.50. With our code your discount price is only $29.75, $21.25, $10.50.

When you call for tickets, (646-223-3010) be sure to mention code GAG1915.

You can also order on line directly from the New Victory Theatre. Again, when prompted, enter the code GAG1915 for your special pricing. Or bring a copy of this advance story to the box office at 209 West 42nd Street.

Cirque du Soleil's "OvO" Arrives in Hartford June 17

"Families will literally BUG OUT and HAVE A BLAST"
- Time Out Kids
Cirque du Soleil's Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) returns to Market Street in Hartford June 17 for OvO, a show teeming with insects.

OvO is the most jaw dropping spectacle yet from the Cirque du Soleil, and it is creating significant buzz as the best touring show this company has ever put on the road. Currently playing in New York City (Randall's Island Park) to June 6, the company will pack up its tent and move to Hartford June 17 to July 4 and then Boston from July 22 to August 15.

In Hartford it is conveniently located at the intersection of I-84 and I-91 (Northwest corner). In Boston the blue and yellow tent will be found at Fan Pier and Pier 4 instead of Suffolk Downs.

All About OvO

OvO is a headlong rush into a colorful ecosystem teeming with life, where insects work, eat, crawl, flutter, play, fight and look for love in a non-stop riot of energy and movement. The insects’ home is a world of biodiversity and beauty filled with noisy action and moments of quiet emotion.

When a mysterious egg appears in their midst, the insects are awestruck and intensely curious about this iconic object that represents the enigma and cycles of their lives. It’s love at first sight when a gawky, quirky insect arrives in this bustling community and a fabulous ladybug catches his eye – and the feeling is mutual.

Cirque du Soleil's OvO is visually stunning.

As anyone who has seen a Cirque show knows, their sows are overflowing with contrasts. The hidden, secret world at our feet is revealed as tender and torrid, noisy and quiet, peaceful and chaotic. And as the sun rises on a bright new day the vibrant cycle of insect life begins anew.

The cast of OvO comprises 54 performing artists from 16 countries and director Deborah Colker, a renowned choreographer, has integrated dance movements into many of the acts in the show. Colker is the first female Director at Cirque du Soleil.

OvO features many acrobatic acts including a stunning flying trapeze act: Six flyers soar 40 feet in the air, making this act the biggest of its kind ever presented under a big top by Cirque du Soleil. It combines many circus disciplines: banquine, Russian swing and swinging chair. The finale features 20 artists running, jumping and leaping up a 24-foot vertical wall.

The playing space envelops and involves the audience.
The Creative Team behind the world of OvO is: Artistic Guides Guy Laliberté and Gilles Ste-Croix; Writer, Director and Choreographer Deborah Colker; Director of Creation Chantal Tremblay; Set and props Designer Gringo Cardia; Costume Designer Liz Vandal; Composer and Musical Director Berna Ceppas; Lighting Designer Éric Champoux; Sound Designer Jonathan Deans; Acrobatic Equipment and Rigging Designer Fred Gérard; Acrobatic Performance Designer Philippe Aubertin; and Makeup Designer Julie Bégin.

iShares is the presenting sponsor of the 2010 U.S. tour of OvO. Sun Life Financial, CGI, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts and American Express are the official sponsors.

Everything about OvO is extravagant: huge cast, live music, incredible costumes, clowns, acrobats, what's not to like?

"WHAT A SHOW! To say audiences are wowed is an understatement."
"It's not just great family fun; it's breathtaking."
- The Huffington Post.com

Ticket Information

The performances are Tuesdays thru Thursdays at 8:00 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays at 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. No performances on Mondays. Tickets will be available as of this Sunday, April 11 at 9 a.m. via www.cirquedusoleil.com/ovo or at 1-800-450-1480. Tickets for adults are from $45 to $125 and tickets for children are from $31.50 to $87.50. A VIP Tapis Rouge™ package is also available. It includes one of the best seats in the house, as well as access to the VIP suite one hour before the show and during intermission. The adult package is available for $250 and the child package for $175 (aged 2 to 12 years old). Prices include taxes.

Fewer Jukebox Musicals and More Plays About Sports, Please

George Merrick and Shannon Lewis
in a publicity photo for Damn Yankees at Boston's North Shore Music Theatre in 2006.

Thank goodness for Damn Yankees. It's probably the best sports musical ever written, and for those of us in the Northeast, we will be able to enjoy it again August 5-21 at the Weston, VT Playhouse.

(For a rundown on the Berkshire's Summer of 2010 Schedules, visit Berkshire on Stage which lists all the major companies.)

I first saw it in its original Broadway outing back in the late fifties, and have never stopped loving it. "You've Gotta Have Heart" and "Whatever Lola Wants" are so eminently hummable while "Steam Heat" can be a great dance number.

Instead, lately it seems the jukebox musicals are becoming the new form for musicals, from Mamma Mia! and Jersey Boys to Rock of Ages and American Idiot, that last one recycling a Green Day 2004 album. Now, there is no question that the music in question is good, even great, but the underpinnings, the book, the plot, the depth is pretty shallow. In Damn Yankees we have the issue of selling one's soul to the Devil while in Mamma Mia! we have a pastiche.

Here in the Berkshires we have the additional curse of the "tribute" shows, including one which I attended that supposedly saluted ABBA. In the middle of the show they scrapped ABBA and started playing anti-Disco music which clearly showed they hated playing ABBA in the first place. It was insulting to those who paid to enjoy the songs of the Swedish pop group. The venues who book these scandalous second rate shows are shortchanging their audiences and endangering their "brand" by diluting it with pap.

Audiences love these pop music revues, and there is no shortage of ticket buyers, so what is a commercial producer to do?

The lack of substance in musicals has always been a problem. But would you swap Sweet Charity for say, Footloose?

Sucker Punch at London's Royal Court Theatre

Sports musicals are rare, and plays about the subject are few and far between. Here we can count our blessings that Kate Maguire (Artistic Director of the Berkshire Theatre Festival) is a fan, a BIG fan of baseball. WIthout her, we would never have gotten to see the nostalgic and impressive Red Remembers last fall.

But isn't it about time someone did a credible job on Take Me Out, also about baseball players? Roy Williams new play about boxing, Sucker Punch is also intriguing. In the UK there are lots of plays about rugby, cricket and their version of football, but where is the American basketball or football tale to keep audiences riveted to the stage.

Dave Garrison as Red Barber in the Berkshire Theatre Festival play, Red Remembers.
Don't think there aren't sports fans in the audience, and theatre lovers at the stadium cheering on the local team. Audiences cross over all the time. Indeed I contend that a someone at the baseball stadium is more likely to buy a ticket to a stage show than some television viewer watching Survivor.

The world is divided into those who sit at home and those that go out. People who are always out and about will eventually discover local theatre and music. The couch potatoes only leave the nest to scoop up more junk at WalMart.

To expand audiences for the arts, it is possible that sports could be a better magnet to draw new people in than the jukebox.

Annie, Get Your Earplugs! Dueling Musicals in May

Jenn Gambatese is Annie Oakley in Goodspeed Musicals' ANNIE GET YOUR GUN Photo by Diane Sobolewski.

When Irving Berlin wrote Annie Get Your Gun, he wrote a classic. It's the show that introduced "There's No Business Like Show Business" to the world which has become an anthem. In just a matter of weeks we will have two versions of this great musical within striking distance of the Berkshires.

But like the other famous song in the show, "Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better," it will be easy to pick which show you want to see. You see there is the scaled down MacHaydn version in Chatham, NY which runs from May 27 to June 6 or the Goodspeed Opera House full bore production in East Haddam, CT which runs from April 16 to June 27. If you are a WalMart shopper you will love the MacHaydn version where tickets are only $26-28. It's done in the round, with some pretty fine singers, but there are problems. Certainly having to look at the back of an actor's head is no fun, and doing musicals on a stage that is barely larger than a pizza platter doesn't leave room for much for scenery or choreography.


Then there is the matter of the sound. At the Mac it seems limited to a piano and synthesizer to emulate what a band or orchestra should rightly be playing.

The MacHaydn has scores of loyal fans who will no doubt throw their walkers and canes at me for writing such harsh words, but bad music clearly does not seem to bother the geriatric set which predominates, especially at matinees. I apoloigize in advance for the snark attack, but don't you think that when you can't hear very well anyway, it likely doesn't matter much?

I have friends who don't mind. But it is their achilles heel. You can certainly see for yourself and come back and comment here. Tickets and information is available at http://www.machaydntheatre.org/

The Alternative

Jenn Gambatese as Annie Oakley with Jessie, Nellie & Little Jake (Joy Rachel Del Valle, Griffin Birney, Marissa Smoker) Photo by Diane Sobolewski
On the other hand there is the Annie Get Your Gun being staged at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, CT. This is the upscale version with prices to match. Tickets are $27.50 to $71.00 though what you get is a decent sized group of live musicians, great sets and costumes and a cast that is drawn from Broadway. The Goodspeed has sent more musicals to Broadway than any other theatre company.


Kevin Earley (above) will play marksman Frank Butler opposite the sharp-shooting Annie Oakley played by Jenn Gabatese (below).


This Annie Get Your Gun will be directed by Rob Ruggiero whose work has been seen frequently in the Berkshires, as well as in award-winning regional theatres around the country. Mr. Ruggiero returns to Goodspeed where he directed 1776, Big River and last year’s sensation Camelot. His off-Broadway and tour credits include All Under Heaven and the world premieres of Ella and Make Me A Song, all of which he both conceived and directed. His newest production, Looped starring Valerie Harper, is currently running on Broadway.

Annie Get Your Gun was first staged on Broadway at the Imperial Theater on May 16, 1946 and ran for 1,147 performances. It was directed by Joshua Logan; Ethel Merman starred as Annie Oakley, and Ray Middleton played Frank Butler. Mary Martin starred as Annie Oakley in a U.S. national tour that started on October 3, 1947 in Dallas, Texas. Martin also did the television version back in the 1950's about the same time Merman was doing Happy Hunting on Broadway.

The Revival Changed a Lot of Songs.
I saw the most recent Broadway revival in 1999 that starred Tom Wopat and Bernadette Peters, an unlikely combination if ever there was one. It was not a success, and having seen it, I think both leads were miscast.

There is a good reason to see both versions: in the past some of the songs have been cut or revised due to the changing political climate and increasing respect for Native Americans. Musicals, often show their age, and this one does, though for those of us who lived through the period in which the original was written (1946) don't seem to notice the disconnect nearly as much as young people who are surprised by the subtle and overt racism. Still, it is a show that has all the classic ingredients including a wonderful score. Don't miss it.

Performances: April 16- June 27, Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Thursday at 7:30 p.m., (with select performances at 2:00 p.m.), Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. (with select performances at 6:30 p.m.).

Tickets:$27.50 - $71.00, Goodspeed Box Office (860.873.8668) or on-line at goodspeed.org