Category Archives: Press Releases

October 15, 2018 · 12:42 pm

Rising Star Resort and Casino to Present A CHRISTMAS STORY: The Musical

GL_A Christmas Story logo

NEW DINNER THEATRE OFFERING FEATURES PROFESSIONAL CAST

Ghostlight Theatricals in association with Rising Star Resort & Casino in Rising Sun, Indiana will present A CHRISTMAS STORY: The Musical, a professional dinner theatre production at the Grand Theatre at Rising Star Resort & Casino. Performances will be Thursday through Sunday beginning November 15 and continuing through December 28. Show times are as follows: Thursday through Saturday buffet dinner starts at 5:45 with the performance at 7:00; Saturday and Sunday matinee buffet starts at 11:45 with the performances at 1:00. Tickets are $50 per person and include a holiday-themed buffet meal and the show. Group rates are available. Tickets may be purchased by calling 1-800-472-6311 or visiting www.ticketmaster.com. More information about the show is available at www.risingstarcasino.com or www.gltheatricals.com.

A CHRISTMAS STORY: The Musical is a musical version of the film A Christmas Story. The musical has music and lyrics written by Ben Pasek & Justin Paul and the book by Joseph Robinette. The musical takes place in the 1940s in Indiana and focuses on a child named Ralphie, who wants a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas. This musical, which received rave reviews on its Broadway run, is based on the movie classic that runs round-the-clock on television every Christmas. Set in the 1940s in the fictional town of Hohman, Indiana, the musical follows 9-year-old Ralphie Parker and his quest for the Holy Grail of Christmas gifts—an Official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot Range Model air rifle. Rebuffed at every turn with a similar echoing response, Ralphie plots numerous schemes to achieve his desperate desire for the coveted BB gun. All the iconic scenes from the movie are here: Ralphie’s friend, Flick, getting his tongue stuck to the flagpole; his brother, Randy, getting dressed in his snowsuit; the bullies, Farkus and Dill; the leg lamp award; the bunny suit; the Chinese restaurant; Christmas dinner; and many others. The delightfully versatile score ranges from gentle ballads to show-stopping full-ensemble numbers such as “Ralphie to the Rescue!”, “A Major Award,” “Sticky Situation,” “Up on Santa’s Lap,” “Somewhere Hovering Over Indiana” and the inevitable “You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out!” A Christmas Story, The Musical will bring an exciting new dimension to those who have seen the movie and will certainly stand on its own for those who haven’t.

This production marks the first dinner theatre project at the Rising Star Resort & Casino and features a themed buffet-style dinner including entrees, sides, salads, desserts, coffee, tea and soft drinks. A cash bar will also be available.

The production features a professional cast and production team from Ghostlight Theatricals who have recruited top talent from across the country. The role of “The Old Man” is played by John Vessels, a regular on regional stages including Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre in Indianapolis and Derby Dinner Playhouse near Louisville. Another Indianapolis performer is Carrie Neal who plays “Mother.” “Ralphie” is played by Finn O’Hara of Youngstown, Ohio. The cast is filled out by Randa Meierhenry, Sarah Willis, Lauren Bass, Crystal Nichols, Hope Pauly, Wendell Hester, Todd Tucker, Jake Smith, Gray Lynn and Gerard Pauwels. The show is directed by Darrin Murrell with music direction by Cincinnati-based Griff Bludworth and choreography by Cincinnati-based Heather Hale. Costumes are by Natalie Cagle with scenic design by Shane Cinal.

More information about the project can be found at www.risingstarcasino.com/entertainment and www.gltheatricals.com.

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October 12, 2018 · 11:42 am

The Carnegie Theatre Season Continues With IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT

TC_In Love and Warcraft promo

Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

Playing Weekends November 3 – 18, 2018

(COVINGTON, KY) – Pair college romance with a healthy dose of video games and the result is IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT, playing weekends November 3-18, 2018 at The Carnegie. A rom-com for the digital generation, the play is a new take on society and romance in the age of the internet with plenty of fantasy, adventure, and humor.

IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT tells the story of Evie Malone, college senior and gamer girl who has it all figured out. She commands a top-ranked guild in World of Warcraft with her virtual boyfriend and makes money on the side writing love letters for people having relationship problems. She makes game plans, employs strategies, and doesn’t take stupid risks…until she falls in love in real life. No amount of gaming expertise will help her out when she finds herself with a non-virtual, totally real, and incredibly cute boyfriend.

“This play is a fast-paced, romantic jaunt for those who like a little computer nerd in their love stories,” says Maggie Perrino, Theatre Director at The Carnegie. “It begins on campus, but in the second act enters The World of Warcraft where paladins, princesses, and monsters cross paths to bring our lovers back together again. Witty and sharp, IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT fuses the fun of cosplay and video games with the dirty humor and outrageous scenarios of a Judd Apatow film. Bring your sense of humor, but leave the kids at home.”

Directed by Perrino, the cast of IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT will be led by Katie Mitchell as Evie and Rhys Boatwright as Raul.

Performances of IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT run weekends November 3-18, 2018, Friday & Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $26, $23 for Carnegie Members and ArtsPass Members, $19 for students. Tickets can be purchased through The Carnegie Box Office, open Tuesday-Friday 12 p.m. – 5 p.m., in person or by phone at (859) 957-1940, or online at www.thecarnegie.com. Patrons seeking group or student tickets should call to make arrangements. 

CONTENT ADVISORY:  Adult Themes, Explicit Language 

IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. 

The 2018-19 Carnegie Theatre Series is presented by the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Additional support comes from the Kentucky Department of Tourism. The Performer Sponsor for IN LOVE AND WARCRAFT is Baird. 

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October 11, 2018 · 12:40 pm

Expect the Weird and Unusual with MARISOL at NKU

NKU_Marisol logoHIGHLAND HEIGHTS, KY – Northern Kentucky University’s School of the Arts continues its 2018-2019 Theatre + Dance season with MARISOL, which runs Oct. 23-28 in NKU’s Stauss Theatre. Please be advised that MARISOL contains mature language and subject matter.

Winner of the 1993 Obie Playwriting Award, MARISOL follows a young, book-smart woman named Marisol Perez, who works in Manhattan as a copy editor. After narrowly escaping a vicious attack, she is visited by her guardian angel who informs her that she can no longer serve as Marisol’s protector. The angel has been called to lead an angelic campaign – a struggle which throws the human world into complete chaos. MARISOL is a poetry-infused dark fantasia that grapples with a combination of surreal situations, spiritual and social issues, and political consciousness – a fascinating mix of the gritty and the sublime.

From its 1992 debut at the Humana Festival of New American Plays, Louisville, Kentucky, through its 1993 opening at the Joseph Papp Public Theatre in New York City, to multiple more recent venues around the country since its inception, critics and scholars have classified José Rivera’s Obie-award winning MARISOL variously as Magical Realism, Theatre of the Absurd, and Sociospatial Theatre. This production explores all of those facets of this complex script, and perhaps, just a bit more.

The NKU cast features Kearston Hawkins-Johnson (Marisol), Je ‘Shaun Jackson (Angel), Ashley Martin (June/2nd Voice), Calvin Taylor (Lenny), Charles Adams (Man with Golf Club/Subway Announcer), Jarod Higgins (Man with Scar Tissue/Radio Voice), Christian Silva (Man with Ice Cream/3rd Voice), Brenda Moran (Woman with Furs/1st Voice), and Emma Moss (Angel of Chaos/Dance Captain); Angels of Chaos: Arianna Catalano, Heather Handrich, & Grace Vetter.

The show is directed by Daryl Harris. Other creative team members include Farley Norman (Directing Consultant), Brian Robertson (Fight Choreographer), Katie Tierney (Fight Captain), and Tracey Bonner (Dance Consultant). Anna Catton (Scenic Designer) is supported by an award from the Tom and Christine Neyer Family Visiting Artist. The Stage Manager is Holden Wiggins and Assistant Stage Manager is Emily Coffey.

For more information, call the NKU School of the Arts Box Office at (859) 572-5464 or visit nku.edu/sotatickets.

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October 11, 2018 · 11:55 am

Xavier University Theatre Presents URINETOWN the Musical Oct. 19-21

XU_Urinetown logo(CINCINNATI, Oct. 11, 2018) — Xavier University Theatre continues its 2018-19 season with Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis’ musical satire Urinetown: The Musical. The show runs Oct. 19 through 21 in Xavier’s Gallagher Student Center Theatre.

Urinetown tells the story of a city in turmoil over a water crisis that has left all public amenities in the hands of a private company. There is a sharp division between the haves and the have-nots, those who can pay the fee and those who can’t afford it. When a young custodian, Bobby Strong, decides to take a stand against the capitalists in power, he inspires a revolution. Along the way, he discovers love, purpose and the truth about his own society. Inspired by the plays of Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, this hilarious political satire looks with care and nuance at the extremes of our world and begs the question of what it means to be free.

For its cast members, most of whom are first- and second-year students, Urinetown has proved to be a timely fable. “When you sit back and let the material really soak in … you realize that the world in the show is not very far off from the one we live in today,” says sophomore Kelsey Schwarber. “Everyone wants to be right, but there is danger in the lengths that some people go in order to be correct.”

The cast for Urinetown features Elliot Auch (Officer Lockstock), Kelsey Schwarber (Little Sally), Claire McCreave (Penelope Pennywise), Josh Carandang (Bobby Strong), Julia Olinger (Hope Cladwell), Dylan Van Camp (Cladwell), Ellie Deutsch (Officer Barrell), Danielle Jacobs (Josephine Strong), Dylan O’Leary (Old Man Strong), Matthew Sherman (Hot Blades Harry), Steven Lindner (Tiny Tom), Amara Shroba (Soupy Sue), Gigi Relic (Bobby the Stockfish), Michael Rowlett (Billy Boy Bill), Tina Boffa (Becky Two Shoes), Ryan Whitford (Senator Fipp), Andy Girmann (McQueen), Nick Minion (Dr. Billeaux) and Jo Dearman (Ms. Millennium). Caroline Marino, Peyton Wright, Victoria Forbes, Olivia Hardy, Alyssa Gries, Connie Kavensky, Christine Gallagher and Jackson Frazier make up the ensemble.

The creative team includes Stephen Skiles (director), Scot Buzza (music director), Dee Anne Bryll (choreographer), Joe Leonard (set designer/technical director), Jessica Pitcairn (costume designer), Joe Beumer (lighting designer) and Kevin Semancik (sound designer). The stage manager is Katherine Ivins. The assistant stage managers are Brooke Drinkwater, Ally Knizer, Liz Apollonio and Lauren Davidson.

Performances take place at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19; 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 20; and 2 p.m. on Oct. 21. Tickets for Urinetown are available now through the Xavier University Theatre Box Office. They are $18 each for adults and $13 each for students, as well as Xavier faculty and staff. To purchase tickets, visit http://www.xavier.edu/theatretickets or call 513-745-3939.

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October 11, 2018 · 11:26 am

MEMPHIS the Musical Opens Loveland Stage Company’s 39th Season

LSC_Memphis promo2

Alex Ross, Kyndra Jefferies, Austin Hoard, Roger Dumas, Jr. & Charlie Rader.

Production has has attracted terrific actors from all over the Cincinnati area

MEMPHIS the Musical opens Loveland Stage Company’s 39th season November 2 and it has attracted terrific actors from all over the Cincinnati area!

Alex Ross, playing the male lead of Huey Calhoun, is a Sharonville resident. This is his fourth role with Loveland for which he has received four awards. He performs locally with bands and as soloist and has Memphis experience, performing in the city with a house blues band on Beale Street.

Kyndra Jefferies, portraying Felicia Farrell, lives in College Hill. Although this is her first show with LSC, she has appeared with Cincinnati Music Theatre and Children’s Theater. Kyndra was recently credited in the movie just filmed, “The Old Man and the Gun.”

Roger Dumas Jr. (Delray Farrell), a Mt. Airy resident, has chosen the LSC stage to make his return to the theater after nearly a decade. He says theater is his passion!

Austin Hoard (Gator) is a Sycamore High School Graduate making his debut at LSC and works for the Aves Theater as set designer and technical director.

An Iowa native, Mary Puetz (Gladys Calhoun), now lives in Symmes Township. Very active in community theater, MEMPHIS the Musical is her fifth show this year!

Toledo native Jon Scheiding is the vocal director of the musical. This is Jon’s first time directing with LSC but has performed in and done tech for countless shows across the area. His hobby? He has a pilot license and loves flying!

Director Liz Olekas was born in the Chicago area and now lives in Maineville. This is her debut at directing at LSC but has directed for and performed in numerous community theater shows in the area. Her first show with LSC was “Jekyll and Hyde” and she credits Mark Woods, longtime member of LSC, recently deceased, for getting her on stage for that experience.

Loveland native Jeanne Bilyeu (orchestra director) now lives in Symmes Township. She has directed the music for LSC’s last two shows “9 to 5” and “Little Mermaid” and has done a lot of work with Acting Up.

Choreographer Margie Clegg, a familiar face to LSC patrons, hails from New York. She is sharing choreographer duties with David A. Choate. David is the producing Artistic Director for Revolution Dance Theatre, a non-profit arts service organization in Cincinnati. He trained with the Cincinnati Ballet, Dayton Contemporary Dance company as well as the School of Creative and Performing Arts.

At least 25 other talented actors, dancers and singers comprise the rest of the cast, all from various communities in the Cincinnati area.

MEMPHIS the Musical, rated “R”, opens November 2 , 7:30 p.m. at the theatre located at 111 S. 2nd St. (Rt. 48), 45140.

Evening shows are also scheduled Nov. 3, 9, 10, 16, and 17, all at 7:30. Matinees are Sunday November 4, 11 and 18 at 3 p.m.

Tickets are $20 for all performances. For more information visit http://lovelandstagecompany.org or call 513.443.4572.

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