Category Archives: Press Releases

September 13, 2018 · 10:00 am

Cincinnati Music Theatre Announces Its 2018-2019 Season at the Aronoff Center for the Arts

cmt_logoCINCINNATI, OH – Cincinnati Music Theatre (CMT), a resident company of the Aronoff Center for the Arts, is pleased to announce its 2018-19 Season, including two full-scale musical productions in the intimate Jarson-Kaplan Theater, two cabaret-style studio shows in the Fifth Third Bank Theater, and a master class with a Drama Desk Award-nominated Cincinnati native.

Season tickets and single tickets are on sale now for the mainstage productions and the master class at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (513) 621-ARTS [2787], and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office.  On sale dates for the Studio Cabaret Series will be announced.

After wrapping a successful mainstage season of Sister Act and Camelot, and two sold-out runs of its premiere Studio Cabaret Series, including Love is Love and Nothing Like a Dame, CMT continues to build on its achievements at the Aronoff Center. From two large-scale musicals based on hit movies to a musical parody about musicals to an original work of musical theatre created by a local Cincinnatian, CMT continues to excite audiences with popular musical theatre and fabulous local talent, and to delight them with new and original works. 

2018-19 MAINSTAGE SEASON

MY FAVORITE YEAR
Book by Joseph Dougherty, music by Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by Lynn Aherns
November 9-17, 2018
Aronoff Center – Jarson-Kaplan Theater    

A classic musical comedy with a heart of gold, My Favorite Year features a tuneful score by the incomparable Tony-winning songwriters, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, and is based on the hit Peter O’Toole film of the same name. It’s 1954, and Benjy Stone, writers’ assistant on TV’s ‘King Kaiser Comedy Cavalcade’, is assigned the daunting task of babysitting the veteran Hollywood swashbuckler, Alan Swann. The reckless Swann is in town to do a live guest appearance on the show and his antics and alcoholism nearly get Benjy fired. When Benjy is given an unexpected glimpse into Swann’s broken heart, though, he begins to discover a thing or two about life and love. Directed by Douglas Berlon.

THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME
Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, Book by Peter Parnell
May 10-18, 2019
Aronoff Center – Jarson-Kaplan Theater

From the Academy Award-winning team of Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz comes a lushly scored retelling of Victor Hugo’s epic story. Set in 15th century Paris, this powerful musical focuses on Quasimodo, the misshapen but gentle-souled bell ringer of Notre Dame, who is held captive in the bell tower by his devious caretaker. On the day of the Feast of Fools, Quasimodo manages to escape and join the boisterous crowd of revelers. He is treated cruelly by all except the beautiful and free-spirited gypsy, Esmeralda. During his one day “Out There,” Quasimodo must strive to find love, acceptance, and what it means to be a hero. Directed by Skip Fenker.

2019 STUDIO CABARET SERIES

THE MUSICAL OF MUSICALS (THE MUSICAL!)
By Joanne Bogart and Eric Rockwell
February 8, 9, 15 & 16, 2019
Aronoff Center – Fifth Third Bank Theater  

THE MUSICAL OF MUSICALS (THE MUSICAL!) is a musical about musicals! In this hilarious satire of musical theatre, one story becomes five delightful musicals, each written in the distinctive style of a different master of the form, from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Stephen Sondheim. The basic plot: June is an ingénue who can’t pay the rent and is threatened by her evil landlord. Will the handsome leading man come to the rescue? The variations are: a Rodgers & Hammerstein version, set in Kansas in August, complete with a dream ballet; a Sondheim version, featuring the landlord as a tortured artistic genius who slashes the throats of his tenants in revenge for not appreciating his work; a Jerry Herman version, as a splashy star vehicle; an Andrew Lloyd Webber version, a rock musical with themes borrowed from Puccini; and a Kander & Ebb version, set in a speakeasy in Chicago. Directed by Dennis Murphy.

HOME
Conceived and written by CMT board member Mark D. Motz
June 7, 8, 14 & 15, 2019
Aronoff Center – Fifth Third Bank Theater 

Home explores many facets of the title location through song. Featuring 20-plus tunes from Broadway, movies, pop culture, and more, we welcome audiences into our home at the Fifth Third Bank Theatre for an evening of music. Home is more than just four walls and a street number, it’s a place imprinted on hearts and minds. We will look at home at different times in our lives and what home can mean. How it’s both welcoming and a place to which many want to escape. Home is sweet nostalgia. Home is painful. Home is a goal. Home is traditional. Home is unconventional. Home is a launching point. Home is an anchor. Home is what you make it, where you make it, when you make it. We’ll go from the places we grew up to the places we still seek. Directed by Michele Mascari.

2018-19 SEASON EXTRA

Master Class with Richard Oberacker
October 12, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Aronoff Center – Fifth Third Bank Theater  

Join us for an intimate master class with Broadway’s Richard Oberacker, composer and co-lyricist/librettist of the Tony Award-winning musical Bandstand, and the musical conductor Cirque Du Soleil’s KA at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. This unique experience is open to the public and will offer a rare view inside the process of performing, dissecting, analyzing, and directing a musical theater song at the professional level. In traditional master class format, individual singers will present a song and work one-on-one with Cincinnati-native Richard Oberacker. All proceeds from the master class will benefit the Cincinnati Music Theatre Scholarship Fund. The master class will be accompanied by Steve Goers. 

TICKETS & INFORMATION – Mainstage Series and Master Class on sale now.  Studio Cabaret Series on sale dates to be announced.

  • www.CincinnatiArts.org
  • (513) 621-ARTS [2787]
  • Aronoff Center Ticket Office
  • Group Discount Tickets (15 or more):  (513) 977-4157
    *Additional ticketing fees may apply.  Ticket prices and fees subject to change.

Aronoff Center Ticket Office Hours

  • Monday-Friday:  9:00 AM – 5:30 PM
  • Saturday:  10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
  • Through intermission of the last show on performance days

Cincinnati Music Theatre
One of Cincinnati’s oldest and most successful community theaters, CMT is proud of its long history of presenting popular, large scale, award-winning musicals to enthusiastic audiences from across the Greater Cincinnati area. For more information, visit www.cincinnatimusictheatre.org, LIKE us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cincinnatimusictheatre, and follow us on Instagram @cincinnatimusictheatre.

My Favorite Year and The Hunchback of Notre Dame are presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. 421 West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019 www.MTIShows.com.

The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!) is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.

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September 13, 2018 · 9:19 am

The Drama Workshop to present THE PHILADELPHIA STORY

TDW_The Philadelphia Story promo

A moonlight swim leads to complications for Tracy Lord’s wedding. Lon Nease as Mike and Elizabeth Malloy as Tracy. Photo by Tammy Cassesa.

The Drama Workshop will present THE PHILADELPHIA STORY October 5-22. Performances will be held on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m., with a special Thursday evening performance on October 19 at 7:30 p.m. Performances will take place at The Glenmore Playhouse, 3716 Glenmore Ave., Cheviot, OH 45211. Tickets may be purchased by calling the TDW ticket line at 513-598-8303 or ordering online at www.thedramaworkshop.org.

THE PHILADELPHIA STORY follows the turn of events as a wealthy Philadelphia family prepares for the second nuptials of their daughter, Tracy Lord.  Whether the wedding will go off without a hitch depends on many things, not the least of which is keeping up appearances for the tabloid reporter and photographer and the bride’s own ill-timed journey of self-discovery. The play was written by Philip Barry in 1939 and starred Katherine Hepburn in both the stage and movie versions. Jimmy Stewart won an Academy Award for his role in the movie version.

Elizabeth Malloy will portray Tracy.  Tracy’s beaus are played by Lon Nease as Mike, the reporter, and Ivory Mazur plays Dexter, Tracy’s former husband.   Tracy’s family will be played by Amy Eyers and Fred Murrell as her parents, Margaret and Seth Lord, and Mitchell Worden and Claudia Covarrubias as her brother and sister, Sandy and Dinah.  Jeff Spadafore appears as Uncle Willie.  Rusty Lacey plays the wisecracking photographer, Liz, and Clint Bramkamp plays Thomas.

The Drama Workshop production will be a dream come true for the show’s director, Dennis Murphy. “I have wanted to direct a production of THE PHILADELPHIA STORY for a very long time, having been a big fan of the movie for many years.  I love that it is a romantic comedy with beautifully phrased dialogue and multi-dimensional characters that are both charming and true to life.  And there’s a lovely twist at the end of the play that is as surprising as it is satisfying.” Murphy encourages those who may have busy weekends planned in October to attend the Thursday, October 19 performance. “The new Thursday evening performance starts at 7:30, so we can get our audiences home earlier.”

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September 11, 2018 · 11:36 am

HELLO SUNSHINE X TOGETHER LIVE | Fri., November 9 | Aronoff Center

CAA_Hello Sunshine x Together Live

Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine and WME Partner to Bring Together Live, an All-Female Live Storytelling Event, to Cincinnati’s Aronoff Center on November 9 

HELLO SUNSHINE X TOGETHER LIVE to Feature Diverse Female-Led Stories and Conversations with High-Profile Women 

Confirmed Participants Include: Abby Wambach, Nicole Byer, Glennon Doyle, Priya Parker, MILCK, Cleo Wade, and Maysoon Zayid

Hello Sunshine to Produce Digital Content Drawn from Events’ Speakers and Performers for YouTube, Facebook, and Original Podcast Series

(Cincinnati, OH) – Hello Sunshine and Together Live are partnering to bring a touring live event experience to the Aronoff Center’s Procter & Gamble Hall on Friday, November 9 at 7:30 PM.  The event features authentic storytelling and inspiring conversations for and by intersectional, intergenerational women.  Confirmed participants include: Abby Wambach, Nicole Byer, Glennon Doyle, Priya Parker, MILCK, Cleo Wade, and Maysoon Zayid.

Pre-sale information and access begins September 10 by signing up at TogetherLive.com. Presale tickets will only be available for purchase to those with the special password, as well as Cincinnati Arts Association Members and ENEWS subscribers, starting September 18.  Tickets for the general public go on sale September 28 at 10:00 AM at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (513) 621-ARTS [2787], and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office. Group discount tickets for ten or more are available by calling (513) 977-4157.

Hello Sunshine x Together Live will feature beloved authors, thought leaders, musicians, comedians, celebrities, and ordinary people alike who will share raw, real stories from their own lives. The evening events will feature storytelling, music, laughter, and a big dose of heart and soul. The Hello Sunshine x Together Live Tour will visit ten cities across the United States and Canada in an effort to cultivate a growing community of women whose experiences are as diverse as their backgrounds.

Together Live was founded in 2016 by Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, WME’s Head of Worldwide Literary, Lectures, and Conference Divisions, who will continue to emcee the events. According to Walsh, “Hello Sunshine x Together Live forms the perfect partnership for our touring pilgrimage. We are traveling to local communities to share intersectional, intergenerational, open-hearted stories, songs, and laughter (often through tears) to remind us that we are in this together. Especially during these divided times, authentic storytelling is our magic cure for finding connection and meaning.”   

To promote female authorship around the world and build communities amongst women who are unable to attend the events in-person, Hello Sunshine and Together Live will collaborate to develop premium digital series based on the content of the live events that will be distributed via YouTube, Facebook, and several other platforms. The first two digital series will be “Powered By” and “Story Scouts.”

  • “Powered By” is a six-part series where celebrities and thought leaders share candid, untold stories that remind the world of the true power of women through conversation.
  • “Story Scouts” centers on our Hello Sunshine x Together speakers for a funny and optimistic conversation with a very special guest. Each episode features an extraordinary woman accompanied by someone they know personally who has mentored or inspired them. Throughout these intergenerational conversations, our speakers will draw out their companion’s real-life story and also bravely share their own.

Led by Hello Sunshine’s all-female podcast producing team, the partnership also includes an original podcast, Hello Sunshine x Together Podcast. The podcast will be an episodic companion series containing an edited narrative drawn from the events’ keynote speakers, comedians, and family meetings, each assembled into compelling, stand-alone, themed episodes with a dynamic host threading the narrative together.

About WME
WME is a leading global entertainment agency. Named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, WME represents artists and content creators across books, digital media, film, food, music, television, and theater. WME is part of the Endeavor (formerly WME | IMG) network.

About Hello Sunshine
Hello Sunshine is a media brand and content company dedicated to female authorship and storytelling across all platforms. Hello Sunshine is producing feature films, scripted and unscripted television, audio storytelling, podcasts, and social series under the Hello Sunshine brand, all anchored by a singular mission: to change the narrative for women. Hello Sunshine is also the home for Reese’s Book Club, fast-growing in reach and influence.  Some of the film and TV projects that have already been announced include the limited series from Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington, based on Celeste Ng’s 2017 bestseller Little Fires Everywhere, as a Hulu Original Series; a 10-episode comedy series for Apple that was created by Colleen McGuinness (30 Rock) and inspired by Curtis Sittenfeld’s short-story collection You Think It, I’ll Say It; Are You Sleeping, executive produced by and starring Octavia Spencer, based on the true-crime novel by Kathleen Barber, created and written by Nichelle Tramble Spellman (The Good Wife,Justified) for Apple; a limited series adaptation of the novel Daisy Jones & The Six for Amazon; and an Untitled Morning Show Project produced by and starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, which was given a two-season, straight-to-series order by Apple with Kerry Ehrin (Bates Motel) serving as showrunner. Alongside AT&T, Hello Sunshine also recently launched the Hello Sunshine Video On Demand (VOD) channel featuring engaging and distinctive narratives with women at the center.

About Innovation Arts & Entertainment
Innovation Arts & Entertainment is a 17-year-old boutique, live entertainment producer based in Chicago, IL. IAE prides itself in producing events within the domain of Intelligent Entertainment, producing unique live experiences that result in expanding the knowledge and worldview of audiences that participate.  In the last five years alone, IAE has produced tours for Hillary Clinton, Anthony Bourdain, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, David Sedaris, and Chris and Martin Kratt from PBS.  In addition to Together Live 2018, other current touring projects include the North American Tour of Harry Potter In Concert, National Geographic’s Symphony for Our World, David Sedaris’ 2018 and 2019 tours, and five new projects in development.  At IAE, we relish the opportunity to use the power of art, entertainment, information, and education in such a way that our audiences are changed for the better.

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September 10, 2018 · 1:55 pm

BIG FISH Opens NKU Theatre + Dance 2018-2019 Season

NKU_Big Fish promoHIGHLAND HEIGHTS, KY – Northern Kentucky University’s School of the Arts Program of Theatre and Dance will launch its 2018-2019 season with the extraordinary musical BIG FISH, which runs Sept. 27 to Oct. 7 in NKU’s Corbett Theatre.

Based on the celebrated novel by Daniel Wallace and the acclaimed 2003 film directed by Tim Burton, BIG FISH tells the larger-than-life tale of Edward Bloom, a man who leads a full and fantastical life – according to the stories he tells his family. His adult son, Will, who is getting married and expecting a child of his own, is no longer amused by his father’s extravagant tales and is determined to find his father’s “true” life story, once and for all. Overflowing with heart, humor and beautiful music, BIG FISH is a powerful and magical musical about fathers, sons, and the stories that we use to define our identities.

BIG FISH celebrates musical theatre in every way with a gripping family story for all walks of life, heightened in fantasy and beautiful songs. Hidden amidst the dancing choruses, fantasy sequences and grandeur is a rich, heartwarming story about life lessons and new beginnings.

“BIG FISH reminds us of the importance of family,” said director Jamey Strawn. “It is my hope that patrons will leave the theatre, call their parents, tell them they love them, share stories and pass on traditions. Big Fish will make you laugh. It will make you cry. It will not make you uncomfortable, but it will make you want to go hug your parents.”

The NKU cast features Collin Newton (Edward Bloom), Adria Whitfill (Sandra Bloom), Matthew Nassida (Will Bloom), Sara Cox (Josephine Bloom), Charlie Lindeman (Young Will), Chloe Price (Jenny Hill), Alex Slade (Don Price), Trase Milburn (Zacky Price), Sam Johnson (Karl the Giant), Ben Cohen (Amos Calloway), and Ella Rivera (The Witch). The show is directed by Jamey Strawn. Other creative team members include Tracey Bonner (choreography) and Damon Stevens (musical direction). The stage manager is Amy Enzweiler. Assistant stage managers are Natalie Mathis and Kelsie Austin.

Tickets for BIG FISH and all other NKU Theatre + Dance productions are available now. 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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September 10, 2018 · 1:37 pm

Troy Civic Theatre presents NEXT TO NORMAL by Tom Kitt, Brian Yorkey

TROY_Next to Normal logoTroy Civic Theatre is opening the 2018-19 season with the Broadway rock musical. NEXT TO NORMAL. A modern look at mental illness and its effects on the individual and their family, the show was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2010, and the Tony Award for Best Original Score in 2009.

The production follows Diana Goodman, a wife and mother who has been battling bipolar depression for 16 years, and shows how the disorder and treatments affect husband Dan, son Gabe, and daughter Natalie.  As Diana changes doctors to find someone who provides the best treatment plan for her individual needs, Gabe’s 18th birthday passes and Natalie finds first love with Henry. NEXT TO NORMAL tackles modern societal issues such as mental illness, drug abuse, grief, suicide, and medical ethics.

Director Niccole SueAnn Wallace, from Piqua, and music director Derek Dunavent, of Troy, are assisted by stage manager Jennifer Kaufman. NEXT TO NORMAL stars TJ Montgomery (Dayton) as Henry, Alicia Walton (Dayton) as Natalie, Mark Van Luvender (Union) as Dan, Steve Dietrich (Sidney) as Dr Fine/Dr Madden, Doug Gibbons (Columbus) as Gabe, and Jenny Weber (Troy) as Diana.

NEXT TO NORMAL is being presented with permission by Music Theatre International.  Performances run September 21-23, 28-30, 2018 at the Barn in the Park on Adams Street in Troy, at 8 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 pm on Sunday. The show is considered PG-13, due to adult language and situations, and will feature a strobe light during the production.   Tickets are $16 each and are available by calling the theatre box office at 937-339-7700 or online at troycivictheatre.com.  Season tickets for the 2018-19 season are also available through the run of the show.

Troy Civic Theatre is a non-profit community theatre located about 20 minutes north of Dayton.  TCT has been honored with several Dayton-area and Ohio regional and state performance and technical awards over the years, and has continued to bring quality entertainment to Troy for more than 50 years.  For more information, please contact the theatre at 937-339-7700 or visit their website at www.troycivictheatre.com.

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