Category Archives: Press Releases

ANNIE Comes to The Children’s Theatre of Mason Stage November 4-6

75 talented local performers bring this story to the Mason High School Auditorium for four performances 

ctm_annie-logoThe Children’s Theatre of Mason is proud to present ANNIE, November 4-6 in Mason. Annie is a timeless musical classic plucked from the comic book pages. Set in 1930s New York City, Annie is a true rags-to-riches story.

The show will run for four performances – Friday, November 4th at 7:00pm; Saturday, November 5th at 2:00pm and 7:00pm; and Sunday, November 6th at 2:00pm. VIP reserved seating tickets can be purchased for the Friday and Saturday evening shows as well as the Sunday matinee for $25 each.  General admission tickets for any show are $12 each.  All tickets can be purchased online at www.CTM-kids through November 3rd at 5pm and at the door starting one hour before each show.

Based on the popular comic strip Little Orphan Annie by Harold Gray, Annie first came to the Broadway stage in 1977 where it ran for nearly 6 years.  It has since had two Broadway revivals and several national tours.  The original Broadway production was nominated for 11 Tony Awards winning 7 Tony’s including Best Musical and Best Score.  In 1982, the Broadway Musical Annie was adapted into a screen version which earned Aileen Quinn, who played Annie, and Carol Burnett, who played Miss Hannigan, each a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress.

Left at an orphanage too young to remember her parents, Annie has been living under the abusive thumb of Miss Hannigan while hoping her parents will one day return. Growing impatient, she plots an escape and finds herself alone in the middle of depression-era New York City where she is eventually found by police and returned. When she least expects it, Annie is invited to spend Christmas with billionaire, Oliver Warbucks, by his caring assistant, Grace Farrell, as one of his charitable causes. One thing leads to another and Oliver discovers the daughter he never knew he wanted. When Annie shares that she wants to find her real parents, Oliver pushes aside his feelings to help. Enlisting the aid of a national radio host, the FBI and even President Roosevelt, Oliver stops at nothing to help Annie on her quest. Despite the efforts of hundreds of gold diggers and even the nefarious Rooster Hannigan and Lilly St. Regis, nothing seems to be able to stand in the way of Annie finding the home and the love she so desperately needs and deserves.  “ ‘Annie is at the heart a musical comedy’….. big, warmhearted, funny, and overflowing with Spirit, and if there is such a thing as a kiddie show for adults, Annie has to be it,” says Karen Kilgore, President of The Children’s Theatre of Mason.

The Children’s Theatre of Mason will be accepting contributions, as well as donating a portion of the proceeds from our shows, to Circle Tail, Inc.  Circle Tail’s mission is to provide service and hearing dogs for people with disabilities at no cost to the individual.  They also provide dogs for adoption, as well as offer dog obedience training, behavior management, educational programs, and boarding services

Fans can follow The Children’s Theatre of Mason on Facebook (Children’s Theatre of Mason, Inc. – CTM), Twitter (@CTMkids) and Instagram (CTMKIDS). 

About The Children’s Theatre of Mason
CTM produces two large-scale productions each season, from “Shrek the Musical” and “The Wizard of Oz” to “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” and “Les Miserables” as well as many other popular favorites. CTM offers children from ages 7-18 from all over the Cincinnati area the opportunity to take part onstage as performers as well as off stage as crew members, make-up assistants and many other behind-the-scenes roles. To volunteer, donate or learn more, visit www.CTM-kids.com or call 513.398.0116. 

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Cincinnati Music Theatre Stages BILLY ELLIOT The Musical, Nov. 4-12

cmt_billy-elliot-logoCINCINNATI, OH – Downtown’s community theatre, Cincinnati Music Theatre (CMT), invites you to join them as they proudly present BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL, November 4th-12th at the Aronoff Center for the Arts’ intimate Jarson-Kaplan Theater (see full performance schedule below).

Set in a northern mining town during the miners’ strike of 1984-85, BILLY ELLIOT is the inspirational story of a young boy’s fight to make his dream come true. Follow Billy’s journey from boxing ring to ballet class where he discovers a passion for dance that unites his family, inspires his community and changes his life forever.

Featuring iconic music by Elton John, phenomenal dance and a powerful story, experience this uplifting and spectacular theatrical event that has won the hearts of millions since it opened in London and has gone on to captivate audiences around the world.

The cast features Peanut Edmonson as Billy Elliot, a boy who stumbles upon a ballet class and develops a passion for dance; Jen Drake as Mrs. Wilkinson, a hardened and mouthy dance teacher who recognizes Billy’s exceptional potential; Bryan Greaves as Billy’s dad Jacky, a widowed miner struggling with maintaining a household in the face of a work strike; Luka Ashley Carter as Billy’s brother, Tony, a hotheaded and scrappy miner; Marcie Brooks as Billy’s eccentric and forgetful Grandma; Jackson Higgason as Michael, Billy’s best friend who believes in creatively expressing himself; Sara Reynolds as Debbie Wilkinson, an argumentative ballet student with a crush on Billy; Sarah Flerlage as Billy’s late Mum; Mark Culp as Mr. Braithwaite, a large, lumbering pianist, who is also a surprisingly good dancer; and Bill Geraghty and Thomas Cavano as George and Big Davey, a pair of local Union leaders. The cast also includes an ensemble featuring Chelsea Carnder, Emma Dalton, Chloe Esmeier, Olivia Loeffler, Rebecca Mactaggart, Natalie Meyer, Eve Roth, Eva Sias, Audrey Stith, Max Ackermann, Brian Anderson, Karl Bolinger, Zoe Brooks-Jeffiers, Rob Bucher, Martin Collins, Laurel Ellis, Sarah Hack, Deborah Hunter, Liz Koch, Ken Macke, Jacob Miller, Isaac Owens, Laura Petracco, Andrea Rachelle, Richelle Roth, Matt Santeler, Kristen Schisler, Justin Stallkamp, Andrew Weidner, Logan Weinfurtner, Adria Whitfill, Aubrey Wilson and Mimi Witsken.

BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL is directed by Skip Fenker, who has previously guided a dozen CMT productions including “Chicago” “Drowsy Chaperone” “Peter Pan” and “Sunset Boulevard.” It is produced by Kathy Beiting, the award-winning producer of over twenty CMT musicals and Julie DeMatteis. The extensive choreography that encompasses jazz, ballet and tap is being created by a team of distinguished choreographers – Kevin Bell, Elaine Eckstein, Karen Galliers, and Brian Anderson. Musical director Todd Florin and vocal director Kendra Struthers are in charge of bringing Elton John’s electrifying score to life. BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI).

Tickets are $24.00 for adults and $20.00 for students, seniors, and military, and groups of 15 or more, and may be purchased online at www.Cincinnatimusictheatre.org or www.CincinnatiArts.org, the Aronoff Center Ticket Office, or (513) 621-ARTS [2787].

For more information about Cincinnati Music Theatre, visit www.cincinnatimusictheatre.org,
LIKE us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cincinnatimusictheatre,
and follow us on Twitter @CinMusicTheatre.

BILLY ELLIOT Performance Schedule
Friday, November 4th, 2016 – 7:30pm
Saturday, November 5th, 2016 – 7:30pm
Sunday, November 6th, 2016 – 2:00pm
Wednesday, November 9th, 2016 – 7:30pm
Thursday, November 10th, 2016 – 7:30pm
Friday, November 11th, 2016 – 7:30pm
Saturday, November 12th, 2016 – 7:30pm
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Exhale Dance Tribe Resurrects DEAD CAN DANCE Using Aerial Silks in Collaboration with Physical Productions

edt_dead-can-dance(CINCINNATI) =DEAD CAN DANCE, Exhale Dance Tribe’s popular annual Halloween-themed show, returns to haunt the 2016-17 season with brand-new choreography by Founding Artistic Directors Missy Lay Zimmer and Andrew Hubbard. Performances will take place at the Aronoff Center for the Arts’ Jarson-Kaplan Theater on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Zimmer and Hubbard (who are joined this season by resident choreographers Katie Farry and Jennifer Porteous-Rutherford) deliver eclectic, exciting choreography, melding elements of contemporary dance with their own idiosyncratic style. Aerial silks acrobatics performed while suspended from fabric hanging from the ceiling will play a role in the production, as aerialist Holly Price performs alongside the all-female Tribe to take DEAD CAN DANCE up to the rafters.

Conjuring the spirit of longing, the show begins with Price falling from the land of the living into land of the dead, a purgatory populated by mesmerizing ghosts who dance through their days. We follow her as she experiences the movement of the underworld, a place forever trapped in the stages of grief.

“DEAD CAN DANCE trails a lonely soul, an anchor for the audience to follow throughout the production,” says Co-Founding Artistic Director Andrew Hubbard. “She descends through the five stages of grief as she mourns her old life and discovers the complexities of her afterlife. The ghosts she encounters in this purgatory are perpetually searching for acceptance and eternal rest. Hanging from the thread of life and unable to release the red that once flowed through her veins, this lonely soul battles her innate longing to be born again and again and again.”

Discover this mesmerizing new version of a Cincinnati favorite this Halloween. Tickets are $32.25 and can be purchased now at www.cincinnatiarts.org/events/detail/dead-can-dance. Feel free to come in costume!

This production is supported in part by a grant from the Greater CincinnatiFoundation Aronoff Center Rental Subsidy Fund.

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Vivid and Rythmic: Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati Presents the Regional Premiere of BROWNSVILLE SONG (B-SIDE FOR TRAY) by Kimber Lee, October 11-30,2016

etc_brownsville-song-logo(Cincinnati, OH) Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati shines a light on the reality of violence and the beauty of forgiveness with the regional premiere of brownsville song (b-side for tray), a powerful new drama by Kimber Lee. This lyrical play tells a tale of resilience in the face of tragedy when a young man’s life is taken and his family is left without answers. Lee’s brownsville song (b-side for tray) delivers a message of hope that will challenge and move audiences. Playing October 11-30, 2016. Directed by D. Lynn Meyers.

Eighteen-year-old Tray is working on his college essay, boxing at the gym, and holding down a part-time job. When he happens to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, a senseless act ends his life, leaving his family to grapple in the wake of his absence. Pivoting seamlessly between past and present, this shatteringly poetic and compelling drama reveals a family at a powerful crossroads and shines a light on the complex life of a victim lost too young, balancing humor, light, tragedy, and hope with equal weight.

“I felt an obligation and a responsibility as a human being to tell Tray’s story,” explains Producing Artistic Director D. Lynn Meyers. “Kimber Lee’s play takes us between the past and the present, so that we get a chance to know Tray, to meet Tray, to know that he’s not just another statistic of another killing. Think of the generations of people that will not exist because these young men and women are dying. This show challenges audiences to empathize and understand.”

About the Cast

Deborah Brock-Blanks (Lena) has appeared in several ETC productions, including Intimate Apparel, Praying for Rain, A Lesson Before Dying, and The Exonerated. Ms. Brock-Blanks has an extensive background as a dancer, choreographer, actress and writer and has directed several regional productions. Her credits include film, stage, and television. She is an early member of Free Theatre, the oldest incorporated black theatre company in Cincinnati. She is a Youth Work Methods Specialist and a Wellness Consultant.

Kameron Richardson (Tray) is a recent graduate of CCM with a BFA in Musical Theatre and makes his Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati debut as Tray in brownsville song (b-side for tray). Regional credits include: Aida and Seussical,  St. Louis Muny; Legally Blonde and Singin’ in the Rain, Pittsburgh CLO; and BlackTop Sky, Know Theatre of Cincinnati. His CCM credits include: Les Misérables, Peter Pan, Legally Blonde, Singin’ in the Rain, and Parade.
Mr. Richardson continues his training at Michael Howard Studios’ One-Year Acting Conservatory in New York. 

Lissa Urriquia Gapultos (Merrell) is making her debut on ETC’s stage with brownsville song (b-side for tray). Ms. Urriquia Gapultos is a past board president of Know Theatre of Cincinnati and a Stage Insights contributor for the League of Cincinnati Theatres. She has also worked onstage with several local theatres. Some of her favorite productions: Pacific Overtures, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Prelude to a Kiss, The Eight: Reindeer Monologues, and The Afghan Women’s Writing Project, Know Theatre; and A Piece of My Heart, Drama Workshop. She works as the Senior Manager for Institutional Giving at Cincinnati Opera. 

Ari Elizabeth Johnson (Devine) is a third grader from Mason, Ohio making her ETC debut. Two years ago, at the age of six, she signed with Wings Model Management of Cincinnati, where manager Jake Lang asked her to attend a talent expo in Dallas. At that expo was a Vice President from one of the top childrens talent agencies in Los Angeles, the Osbrink Agency. Osbrink signed both Ari and her brother that summer. Since then, the family splits their time between LA and Cincinnati. After performing in A Christmas Carol with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park last year, she realized her heart is in theatre. 

Chauncey Ragland (Junior/Brooklyn College Student) makes his theatre debut on ETC’s stage with brownsville song (b-side for tray). Mr. Ragland is a sophomore at the University of Cincinnati and is currently undecided, but wants to be an engineer. Mr. Ragland got his first hint of theatre during his junior year of high school when he met Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati’s Director of Education and Outreach, Ben Raanan, through the theatre’s Prelude Program. Ever since, he has been itching to get on stage again. 

Production team includes Torie Wiggins (Assistant Director), Brian c. Mehring (Resident Scenic & Lighting Designer), Jack Murphy (Technical Director), Matthew Hollstegge (Production Manager & Master Electrician), Shannon Rae Lutz (Properties Master & Design Assistant), Matt Callahan (Sound Designer), Sam Womelsdorf (Video Designer), Darnell Pierre Benjamin (Choreographer), and Reba Senske (Costume Designer). Production Stage Manager is Brandon T. Holmes. Assistant Stage Manager is Elizabeth Freyman. 

Performance Information
Performances run Tuesday through Sunday. Tuesday-Thursday, 7:30 pm; Friday and Saturday, 8:00 pm; Saturday and Sunday, 2:00 pm; and Sunday, 7:00 pm. A complete calendar of performances is available online at www.ensemblecincinnati.org. 

Ticket Prices
Ticket prices range from $28 to $44 for adults; student tickets are $25; and children are $18. For the 2016-2017 Season, ETC continues its popular $15 student and half-price rush tickets for all performances, which are available two hours prior to show time and may be purchased by phone or in person at the box office.

Available Discounts
Military, Educator, ArtsWave FunCard, AAA, and Enjoy the Arts discounts available; tickets and seating are subject to availability.

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Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is supported, in part, by the generosity of community contributions to the ArtsWave Campaign.

The Ohio Arts Council helps fund Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati also receives funding from the Shubert Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

2016-2017 Season Presenting Sponsor is the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Additional support provided by Garfield Suites Hotel, the Shubert Foundation, and PNC. 

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is a professional theatre dedicated to producing world and regional premieres of works that often explore compelling social issues. We fulfill our mission through our stage productions and educational outreach programs that enlighten, enliven, enrich and inspire our audiences.

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25th Anniversary Production of THE SECRET GARDEN Headlines the Fitton Playhouse Inaugural Season

fph_the-secret-garden-logoHamilton, OH, September 28, 2016—With its inaugural production, the Fitton Playhouse presents THE SECRET GARDEN, a musical now celebrating its 25th anniversary of its Broadway debut. This enchanting classic of children’s literature is reimagined in brilliant musical style by composer Lucy Simon and Marsha Norman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright.

THE SECRET GARDEN is produced and directed by Ryan Heinrich–with choreography by Emily Brinkman and instrumental direction by Betsy Horton.

This production has brought together professional actors from throughout the region. Alyssa Hart of Milford leads the cast as Mary Lennox. Hamilton-born and a graduate of Indiana University’s Jacob School of Music, Olivia Yokers returns to her hometown stage as Lily. Wright State theatre graduate Matt Neal is Mary’s reclusive Uncle Archibald. Recent transplant from New York City and theatre teacher at Butler Tech School of the Arts, professional actor Cy Wood will play Dr. Craven. Following a recent stint in Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s production of The Secret Garden, Talia Noelle Zoll plays Mary’s mother, Rose. Professional actress, Allison Edwards from the School for Creative and Performing Arts plays Martha.

Rounding out the highly talented cast are David Manegold (Albert), Colin Shimrock (Dickon), Mark Reuter (Ben), Lyndall Murray (Mrs. Medlock), Sam Harper (Colin), Sami Shaaban (Fakir), Jeff Sams (Major Holmes), Bridget Lorenz (Claire), Scott Christian (Lt. Wright) and Kathryn Zajac-Albertson (Alice).

Performances will be held at the Fitton Center’s Fitton Family Theatre (101 S. Monument Ave, Hamilton, Ohio 45011) October 14-15 at 7:30pm and October 15-16 at 2pm.

Tickets are available online at www.fittoncenter.org and by phone at 513-863-8873, $20 for members, $25 for non-members.

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