Upcoming Plays for June 2010

This month we note the beginning of the summer theatre season in New England. Go, and enjoy.

At the Arundel Barn Playhouse in Kennebunkport, Maine: The New England premiere of “Nunset Boulevard: Nunsense at the Hollywood Bowl” June 8th-26th.

More unholy hijinks from the Little Sisters of Hoboken as they bring us their 7th heavenly gig – this time in Tinseltown. The Little Hobos raise comic mayhem and tons of ‘Nun fun’ in this perfect 300 game! Nunsense is habit-forming, and it would be a sin to miss the latest Nunsense nonsense!

At the Barrington Stage Company, Pittsfield, Mass. from June 17, 2010 - July 17, 2010: “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”, music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by Hugh Wheeler from an adaptation by Christopher Bond. Musical Direction by Darren Cohen, directed by Julianne Boyd.


At the Cape Playhouse, Dennis, Massachusetts:

“Tea at Five” starring Stephanie Zimbalist as Katharine Hepburn, running June 7th through June 19th.

At the Gloucester Stage Company, Gloucester, Massachusetts: “Table Manners” by Alan Ayckbourn runs from June 17th through July 3rd. Directed by Eric C. Engel, the cast includes Steven Barkhimer, Lindsay Crouse, Paula Plum, and Richard Snee.


Hackmatack Playhouse in Berwick, Maine presents Rogers & Hammerstein’s musical “Cinderella” runs from June 24th through July 10th.

At the Ivoryton Playhouse, Ivoryton, Connecticut, the perennial favorite, “Arsenic and Old Lace” by Joseph Kesselring, from June 9th through June 27th.

A delightful evening of murder and mayhem with eccentric aunts, crazy nephews and bodies in the basement!

At the Mt. Washington Valley Theatre Company in North Conway, New Hampshire: Meredith Wilson’s delightful “The Music Man” from June 30th through July 10th.

New Century Theatre in Northampton, Massachusetts: “Noises Off” by Michael Frayn, directed by Sam Rush, runs June 17th through 26th.

NOISES OFF peeks backstage at the ridiculous antics of the cast and crew of NOTHING ON. We follow the English company from dress rehearsal to the end of the ten week run, each act revealing more hilarious cast drama, missed cues, and slamming doors, while the show is constantly upstaged by the noises off in the wings. The 1982 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy winner, this is the ultimate backstage farce. Join some of the original cast as we kick off our 20th year with a sidesplitting comedy that must be seen to be believed.

At The Newport Playhouse in Newport, Rhode Island: “Suitehearts” runs June 24th through August 1st.

A young couple checks into a New York hotel for a romantic weekend. An older couple has inadvertently booked the same honeymoon suite! After they scuffle over the accommodations, no one is where or with whom they should be. With plenty of sight gags and one liners, this play will have you laughing all the way through!


The Peterborough Players in Peterborough, New Hampshire presents:
“Once in a Lifetime” by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman runs June 9th through 13th.

Ascending Stars Project - Some of the area’s best high school actors will work alongside professional actors and be directed by Artistic Director Gus Kaikkonen. Once in a Lifetime is a rollicking tale of three down and out troupers who decide to head for Hollywood and try their luck with the newly invented talkies.


The Summer Theatre of New Canaan in New Canaan, Connecticut presents Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew” in a “modern day highly charged adaptation in our new intimate outdoor protected theater.” Preview June 18, 7:30 pm, show runs from June 19th through July 11th.

At The Bushnell in Hartford, Connecticut, George Gershwin’s classic “Porgy and Bess.”

The drama of love, murder, and hope on Catfish Row springs to teeming life in a dazzling 75th anniversary tour of George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess coming to The Bushnell June 8-13 in a brand new production with riveting choreography and glamorous costumes. Approved by the Gershwin Estate, produced by veteran opera impresario Michael Capasso, General Manager of New York’s Dicapo Opera Theatre, and in association with noted producer Willette Murphy Klausner, (Three Mo’ Tenors). Porgy is directed by the brilliant African American Charles Randolph-Wright (Mama I Want To Sing). Don’t miss this celebration of America’s most beloved opera, with a stellar all African American cast of sensational performers.


At The Huntington Theatre, Boston University, “Prelude to a Kiss” by Craig Lucas, directed by Peter DuBois running currently through June 13th.

A whirlwind romance. A storybook wedding. A kiss for the bride that suddenly changes everything. Craig Lucas (The Light in the Piazza, Longtime Companion) explores the enduring power of love and the nature of commitment in this breathtaking and life-affirming comedy directed by Artistic Director Peter DuBois.


At The Ogunquit Playhouse in Ogunquit, Maine “The Drowsy Chaperone” runs from June 9th through June 26th.

Be transported to a magical, wonderful world in this new musical comedy that was the darling of the Tony Awards, winning the most statues in 2006, including Best Sets and Costumes, which will be featured in the Ogunquit Production!

It stars Bravo’s top-rated celebrity, Carson Kressley along with Georgia Engel reprising her Broadway role! Georgia is best known as Georgette from the smash TV hit “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.”

The hilarious show-within-a-show begins when a die-hard musical fan plays his favorite cast album, a 1928 smash hit called “The Drowsy Chaperone” and the show magically bursts to life. Audiences are instantly immersed in the glamorous, hilarious tale of a celebrity bride and her uproarious wedding day, complete with thrills and surprises that take both the cast and the audience soaring into the rafters. Don’t miss the show critics announced as “delightful and sparkling entertainment!” You’ll be over the moon!

Emmy-winning television star, celebrity stylist, author and fashion designer, Carson Kressley is about to make his theatrical debut at the Ogunquit Playhouse, alongside twice-Emmy nominated actress Georgia Engel, in the multi-Tony Award winning musical, “The Drowsy Chaperone”. Kressley is cast as the “Man in Chair,” an obsessive fan of old musicals who imagines performers coming to life in his shabby apartment whenever he plays one of his favorite cast recordings. Throughout the show the musical bursts to life as the Man in Chair continuously brings the audience in and out of the fantasy.


At The Ridgefield Theater Barn in Ridgefield, Connecticut, “The Memory of Water”, written by Shelagh Stephenson, directed by Sherry Asch runs June 4th through June 26th.

After years of separation, three sisters come together for the funeral of their mother, finding that each of their memories of events in their lives are very different. These different recollections force them to confront their perceptions with introspection and humor. The play asks searching questions, such as who are we without our memories. While it remains firmly in the genre of family comedy, what makes this play so captivating, is the way it reveals emotional pain and complexity beneath the outward facade.


At The Westport Country Playhouse in Westport, Connecticut - “Dinner With Friends”
runs June 1st to June 19th.

Karen & Gabe and Beth & Tom, couples who have been friends for years, participate in all the familiar and comfortable rituals of shared vacations, good conversation and great food—so when Tom abruptly walks out on Beth, it threatens more than just their marriage alone. A Pulitzer Prize-winning play that explores the difficulties of divorce, even when it isn’t your own.

At the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Williamstown, Massachusetts: “It’s Judy’s Show:
My Life as a Sitcom” runs from June 23rd through July 4th. Written by Judy Gold and Kate Moira Ryan, with original music by Judy Gold, lyric by Kate Moira Ryan and Judy Gold, additional material by Eric Kornfeld and Bob Smith. Directed by Amanda Charlton.

Building on the success of her show 25 Questions for a Jewish Mother, funny-woman Judy Gold returns to the stage in this hilarious look at her amazing life through the lens of the classic sitcoms of her youth. With multimedia, original music, laughter, and love, Judy shows us how she balances family and ambition in a world where she sometimes does not fit.

At The Winnepesaukee Playhouse at Weirs Beach, New Hampshire - “Educating Rita” by Willy Russell runs June 23rd through July 3rd.

Tutor becomes student in this endearing comedy. Professor Frank Bryant withdraws from his students and passes his days in his stuffy office clutching a bottle of whiskey. That is, until the arrival of spunky hairdresser Rita whose thirst for knowledge turns his world upside down.


Theatre by the Sea in Matanuck, Rhode Island presents “A Chorus Line” June 4th through June 20th. Music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, book by James Kirkwood & Nicholas Dante, conceived by Michael Bennett.

On a bare stage, casting for a new Broadway musical is almost complete.
It’s what they’ve worked for — with every drop of sweat, every hour of training, every day of their lives, it’s the one opportunity to do what they’ve always dreamed of - Not to be the star, but to get a job on the line. From funny to heartbreaking, these 17 dancers share the stories of their lives and when they’re done, so is the audition, and the final chorus line is chosen. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Musical.


If you happen to see any of these shows, come back and give us your review.

Summer Stock and Upcoming Plays

We begin the summer season with another round of upcoming plays in New England. Some of these represent summer stock, an aspect of the New England theatre that is a particular favorite of mine.

Back when modern American theatre was flourishing, in the late 1800s and early 1900s, the theaters would close in summer. There was no air conditioning then, and the wealthier patrons left the city in summertime anyway. Summer stock arose out of the two new features of modern life: the automobile, and summer vacationers. Summer stock gave young performers cutting their teeth in “stock” companies a chance to perform with major stars who went on the circuit after their engagements were concluded after the regular season ended. It allowed vacationers in remote Cape Cod, Maine, Vermont, the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, and along the Connecticut shore, to enjoy legitimate theater without heading for the big cities, and without the top hat and tails. Summer whites were all that was required, and straw boaters.

More on the history of summer theatre in New England as the summer progresses, along with a few current plays.

Here are what’s playing for the final shows of the regular season for some theaters, and the first shows of this season’s summer stock:

At the Ridgefield Theater Barn, Ridgefield, Connecticut we have the musical “Camelot” by Lerner and Lowe, from May 29th through June 27th, directed by Craig David Rosen.

The Berkshire Theater Festival of Stockbridge, Mass. presents “Faith Healer” written by Brian Friel and directed by Eric Hill, with David Adkins, Colin Lane, and Keira Naughton from May 21st through July 4th.

The Goodspeed Opera House of Haddam, Connecticut is running “Lucky Guy,” a new musical until June 14th. Their production of “42 Street” runs until June 28th.

The Lakewood Theater of Lakewood, Maine, which bills itself as America’s Oldest Summer Theater, is presenting “Rumors” by Neil Simon, directed by Jeff Quinn. The cast features Bart Shattuck, Jeralyn Shattuck, Cheryl Seamans, Cory King, MJ Clifford, Jeff Quinn, Gary Dorman, Christine Demchak and Jason Hilton. The show runs May 21, 22, 23, 28, 29, 30 8:00 p.m.; May 24th 4:00 p.m.; and May 27th 2:00 p.m . The Lakewood Theater is in Madison Maine, just north of Skowhegan.

The New Century Theatre of Northampton, Mass. opens its summer season with “Last of The Red Hot Lovers” by Neil Simon June 18-27th. The show is directed by Jack Neary.

The Peterborough Players, of Peterborough, New Hampshire present “I Remember Mama”, the classic by John van Druten on June 3, 5, and 6 at 8 p.m., and June 7th at 2 p.m. Some of the area’s best high school actors will work alongside professional actors Kathy Manfre, Ken Sheldon, and Michael Dell’Orto. Artistic Director Gus Kaikkonen directs.

Hartford, Connecticut’s The Bushnell presents the musical “The Color Purple” June 9th through 14th.

The Huntington in Boston presents “Pirates! (Or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder'd)” by Gilbert and Sullivan, directed by Gordon Greenberg in the Boston University Theater - main stage through June 14th.

The New London Barn Playhouse in New London, Connecticut opens its summer season with their “52nd Annual Straw Hat Revue” directed by Charles Massey June 11th through 14th. “Join the 2009 Intern Company as they introduce themselves and their formidable talent to our audiences. This barn tradition is free to the public but fills quickly so get your tickets early!”

The famed Ogunquit Playhouse begins its summer season in Ogunquit, Maine with the musical “A Chorus Line” featuring Lorenzo Lamas, through June 13th.

Westport, Connecticut’s Westport Country Playhouse presents “Children” by A. R. Gurney, directed by John Tillinger, through June 13th.

The heyday of summer stock in New England occurred in the 1940s through the 1960s, sometimes called the “straw hat circuit.” I hope you’ll just us in the weeks ahead for a look back, and a peek at what’s happening now, and share with us your memories of attending summer stock plays.