Category Archives: Press Releases

THE GREAT GATSBY Coming Soon at Cincinnati Shakespeare!

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company Presents their Highly Anticipated Production of
THE GREAT GATSBY!

Cincinnati’s stage for the classics, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, is thrilled to bring this American masterpiece to the stage in this Regional Premiere production.

 Jared Joplin as Gatsby and Sara Clark as Daisy. By J. Sheldon Photo.

Jared Joplin as Gatsby and Sara Clark as Daisy. By J. Sheldon Photo.

CINCINNATI,— August 13, 2014— Cincinnati Shakespeare Company officially opens their 2014-2015 season with the highly anticipated production of the Regional Premiere of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” adapted for the stage by Simon Levy.  This production is directed by Cincinnati Shakespeare’s Producing Artistic Director, Brian Isaac Phillips and features Cincinnati Shakespeare’s Resident Ensemble of actors including Jared Joplin, Justin McCombs, Sara Clark and Kelly Mengelkoch.  The Ensemble is generously sponsored by BKD and Taft and the Design is sponsored by Legg Mason.

It is the height of prohibition and young Nick Carraway (Justin McCombs) has taken up residence in Long Island’s “West Egg”, home to the nouveau riche near his cousin Daisy Buchannan (Sara Clark). He is soon befriended by his neighbor, the mysterious Jay Gatsby (Jared Joplin), and is drawn into his glitzy, if garish, world of lavish parties and secret speakeasies. But as Gatsby’s secretive past is uncovered and his intentions revealed, Nick finds himself a pawn in a love triangle so scandalous, it threatens to destroy all those around him.  This American classic is a poignant examination of America in the early twentieth century, exploring the notions of love, morality, identity and the corruption of the American Dream.  F. Scott Fitzgerald’s best known and most beloved work, “The Great Gatsby” finally comes to the stage in this exclusive new adaption by Simon Levy.

“The Great Gatsby” is a 1925 novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald and is widely considered to be a literary classic and a contender for the title of the Great American Novel.  The story has been told in many art forms including opera, radio, and ballet as well as in film including the 1974 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow, and the most recent 2013 version directed by Baz Luhrmann staring Leonardo DeCaprio.  This new adaptation of “The Great Gatsby” by Simon Levy for the stage is the only one authorized and granted exclusive rights by the Fitzgerald Estate and is the only version permitted to be produced in the US and Canada.  The play had its world premiere at The Guthrie Theater and was subsequently produced by Seattle Repertory Theatre. In 2012 a revised/reworked version was produced at Arizona Theatre Company and Grand Theatre in London, Ontario, Canada. In September, it is receiving its regional premiere in Cincinnati by Cincinnati Shakespeare Company!

For additional information or for interviews with any member of the cast or company contact Jeanna Vella, Director of Education and Communications as jeanna.vella@cincyshakes.com or 513.381.2273 ext. 3202. 

Performances of “The Great Gatsby” are scheduled from September 5- October 4, 2014 on Thursday, Friday & Saturday evenings at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2pm with an additional Saturday matinee on Oct. 4.  Preview performances are on Wednesday Sep. 3 and Thursday Sep. 4 at 7:30pm and tickets are $21.  The theater is located at 719 Race Street, downtown Cincinnati, two blocks west of the Aronoff Center.  Single ticket prices range from $22-$32 on Thursdays and Sundays and from $26-$36 on Fridays and Saturdays.  This show is a part of the 2014-2015 subscription season.  If available, $14 student rush tickets may be purchased 30 minutes before a show with a valid student ID.  Visa, Discover, MasterCard, and American Express are accepted.  Ticketing fees may apply.  Discounts are available for students, seniors and groups as well as AAA members.  To purchase tickets or for more information, call the CSC Box Office at 513.381.BARD (2273) ext. 1, or go online at www.cincyshakes.com. 

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About Cincinnati Shakespeare Company:

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is a professional theatre company dedicated to bringing Shakespeare and the classics to life for audiences of all ages.  Located in the heart of downtown Cincinnati, CSC produces a dozen mainstage productions each season.  The repertoire is made up of the works of William Shakespeare, literary adaptations and contemporary classics. CSC performs on a Small Professional Theatre contract with Actors’ Equity Association. Cincinnati Shakespeare is a member of the Theater Communications Group and the Shakespeare Theater Association.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s Education and Outreach Programs reached nearly 30,000 young people and underserved community members last season by taking Shakespeare into schools, parks, community centers and by hosting educational matinees of mainstage productions at its home on Race Street.  Last season, CSC was proud to become one of the first five theaters in the United States to “Complete the Canon” by producing all 38 plays by William Shakespeare. CSC is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization and all donations are tax deductible.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is proud to be Cincinnati’s stage for the classics! 

About the 2014-2015 Season:

This season is generously sponsored by The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company receives operating support from The Ohio Arts Council, the Shubert Foundation and is supported, in part, by the generosity of thousands of individuals and businesses that give annually to ArtsWave.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s production of “Henry V” is part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.  The season design sponsor is Mark & Sue Ann Painter.  The Ohio Arts Council helped fund this program/organization with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Production dates and information on the season are available online at www.cincyshakes.com.

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BTP’s First Season Nears End, Few Chances Remain for OUT TOWN and MIDSUMMER

Batavia Theatre Project’s First Season Nears Its End
Few Chances Left To See “Our Town” and “Midsummer”

BTP_logoThe Batavia Theatre Project offers several ways to see Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town” on a budget, such as Pay What You Can nights and half-price Rush Tickets. Thursday performances on Aug. 14 and 21 are Pay What You Can performances. Patrons can see this critically acclaimed play for a donation.

The theater is also offering half-priced Rush Tickets at the door 15 minutes before any performance. Rush Tickets must be paid for in cash. As always, patrons may chose to purchase tickets in a Flex Package for group discount. In addition, any patron may bring in a can or box of nonperishable food to donate to the Christian Help Center and receive an additional $1 off per item, up to $5.

“We offer these deals because we never want finances to come between potential patrons and live theatre,” said theatre President Adam Haskell. “At the same time, ‘Our Town’ is the only show that isn’t free this season. Supporting this show is the best way to support the Batavia Theatre Project and help us continue to offer free Shakespeare in Sycamore Park and other services.”

Performances of “Our Town” will be Aug 14, 15, 21, 22, and 23 at 7 p.m. and Aug 24 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online at http://www.bataviatheatreproject.com, at the door, or purchased at the theater Box Office, located in the old water treatment plant at 61 Lou Darbro Place

There are only two free performances of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” left on Aug. 16 at 7 p.m. and Aug. 17 at 2 p.m. Please bring a lawn chair or blanket to enjoy the show.

Batavia Theatre Project strives to work with the community to bring high-quality live theatre to Clermont County and enrich our local arts culture while enhancing tourism and patronage of existing local businesses.

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PIP Launches 55th Season with SHERLOCK HOLMES… Sept. 6-Oct. 4

CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE LAUNCHES 55TH SEASON WITH SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB, SEPT. 6-OCT. 4, 2014

PIP_Sherlock Holmes(CINCINNATI) – The world’s most famous fictional sleuth adds a novel chapter to his repertoire with playwright Jeffrey Hatcher’s electrifying new whodunit SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB, which opens the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s 55th season. The play is an inventive mash-up of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic characters and the Robert Louis Stevenson short story “The Suicide Club,” providing a clever, intricately woven new mystery for Holmes to deduce. SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB runs Sept. 6 through Oct. 4 in the Robert S. Marx Theatre.

Sherlock Holmes has never shied away from danger, but his latest adventure may be his most treacherous ever. The members of London’s Suicide Club play a harrowing game of Russian roulette to determine their role as victim or executioner. When the brilliant sleuth finds himself entangled in their secretive web, his own life hangs in the balance … and it’s not clear whether he wants to be saved.

Playhouse Associate Artist KJ Sanchez, who is directing SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB, is excited that Hatcher’s play offers a fresh view. “First, this is Sherlock in 1914, which means he’s 60,” she explains. “This is a very different Sherlock from any of the movies or television shows. Because of his age and experiences, he’s smarter, quirkier, suffers fools less and is hitting that familiar wall of ‘is this all there is?’ He’s solved all there is to solve, and if he doesn’t get a great case soon, he might find good use for the suicide club. Needless to say, he does find a great case and that’s our play.”

More than a century after his creation, Sherlock Holmes’ popular appeal remains overwhelmingly contemporary, as evidenced by current movie and television adaptations starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., Jonny Lee Miller and Ian McKellen

The world premiere of Jeffrey Hatcher’s SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB was commissioned and produced by the Arizona Theatre Company in 2011. The Playhouse production marks the eighth time a Hatcher play has been performed here. The well-respected and prolific Steubenville, Ohio, native was the fifth winner of the Playhouse’s Lois and Richard Rosenthal New Play Prize for Scotland Road, which premiered in 1993. Other Hatcher shows at the Playhouse include Ella (2008, with Rob Ruggiero, Dyke Garrison and Danny Holgate), Murderers (2007) and The Turn of the Screw (1997).

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB is sponsored by The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Barbara and Bill Weyand are the show’s design sponsors, and Huntington Bank is the artist sponsor for Sherlock Holmes.

Steven Hauck makes his Playhouse debut as Sherlock Holmes. Additional cast members include Douglas Rees as Dr. John H. Watson, Joel Reuben Ganz as Mr. Williams/Mr. Roundy, Tonya Beckman as Club Secretary, Cary Donaldson as Prince Nikita Starloff, John Feltch as Mr. Richards/Mycroft Holmes, Aaron Christensen as Mr. George/Inspector Micklewhite, Jonathan Gillard Daly as Mr. Henry/A.C. Crosse, Dale Hodges as Mrs. Hudson/Lucy O’Malley and Jenny Mercein as Christiane de LaBegassier. The creative team includes set designer Wilson Chin, costume designer Matthew J. LeFebvre, lighting designer Thomas C. Hase, sound designer/composer Matthew M. Nielson and projection designer Alex Koch. Jenifer Morrow is the production stage manager; Andrea L. Shell is the second stage manager.

Ticket prices for SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB start at $30. Prices are subject to change, and patrons are encouraged to buy early for the best seats at the best prices. Teen and student tickets are $30 each. The show is recommended for ages 12 and up.

New for the 2014-15 season is Sunday College Night, with tickets to all 7 p.m. Sunday performances (not including A Christmas Carol) priced at just $10 with a valid student ID. Student tickets are just $15 on the day of the show for all other performances.

Previews are at 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6; 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 7; 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9; and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10. The official opening night is Thursday, Sept. 11, at 8 p.m. Performances take place at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturdays, and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sundays.

Free post-show Meet the Artists programs that allow audiences to interact with cast members and others associated with the production will be offered at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 14; 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 17; 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28; and 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2.

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB will be audio described for those with visual impairments at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, and signed for persons with hearing impairments at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28. The Playhouse is fully accessible. Audio enhancement receivers, large print programs and complete wheelchair access are available.

Tickets to SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB are on sale now. For more information, call the Playhouse Box Office at 513-421-3888 (toll-free in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana at 800-582-3208) or visit http://www.cincyplay.com. Call 513-345-2248 for Telecommunications Device for the Deaf accessibility.

The 2014-15 Robert S. Marx Theatre season is sponsored by The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation, and Macy’s is the Robert S. Marx Theatre season design sponsor. The season sponsor of new work is The Lois and Richard Rosenthal Foundation.

The Playhouse is supported by the generosity of the community contributors to the ArtsWave campaign.

The Ohio Arts Council helps fund the Playhouse with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.

The Playhouse also receives funding from the Shubert Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

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CPT Announces 2014-2015 Season

CPT_seasonThe storefront Clifton Performance Theatre is quickly becoming known as a small theatre with BIG talent.  The intimate evolving stage at the CPT is home to the critically acclaimed Clifton Players and Untethered Theater. It has been a big year for CPT. Last season alone the CPT performances garnered 7 League of Cincinnati Theater Nominations and 3 honorable mentions.  Actor/writer Kevin Crowley’s play Sarge was the Critics Pick of the Fringe and the Cincinnati Fringe Festival.  A short written by Crowley and starring actors Carol Brammer and John Lawson won best film for the 48 Hour Disability Film Challenge Film Festival and has been selected for other film festivals. Clifton Players are currently in New York City performing Crowley’s original play, The Monkey’s Paw at the New York City Fringe Festival.

The 2014-2015 season opens with “The Riverside.”  It is a play by Kevin Crowley with a talented ensemble cast.

CPT MAIN STAGE SEASON

“The Riverside” written and directed by Kevin Crowley Thurs. Sept. 11  – Sat. Sept. 27, 2014

The play is set in Cincinnati in 1989.  It was a seminal year, Tiananmen Square, the fall of the Berlin Wall and in Cincinnati, icon Pete Rose was permanently banned from the game of baseball. As the denizens of the Riverside bar in Cincinnati closely follow the Rose saga, other big changes are afoot and decisions regarding the future of this family owned bar will irrevocably change the family and it’s patrons.

  • TH      11 – 8pm
  • F       12- 8pm
  • Sa     13 – 8pm
  • Su     14 – 7pm
  • TH      18 – 8pm
  • F       19 – 8pm
  • Sa     20 – 8pm
  • Su     21 – 3pm
  • M      22 – 8pm
  • TH     25 – 8pm
  • F      26 – 8pm
  • S      27 – 8pm

“All New People” by Zach Braff, directed by Jared Doren Fri. Nov. 7- Sun. Nov. 30

Charlie’s birthday first goes wrong when Emma stumbles in, disrupting his suicide attempt. Taking this as divine intervention, Emma demands that she, Milton — a firefighter with some interesting extra-curriculars — and the bubbly Kim throw Charlie a party to convince him to keep living. Throughout the course of the night, aided by flashbacks, the group learns that everyone is running from something, but in the end, life is what you make it.

  • F      7 – 8pm
  • Sa.   8 – 8pm
  • Su    9 – 7pm
  • TH   13 – 8pm
  • F      14 – 8pm
  • Sa    15 – 8pm
  • Su    16 – 3pm
  • M     17 – 8pm
  • TH   20 – 8pm
  • F      21 – 8pm
  • Sa    22 – 8pm
  • Su    23 – 3pm
  • F      28 – 8pm
  • Sa    29 – 8pm
  • Su    30 – 7pm

“August: Osage County” by Tracy Letts, directed by Buz Davis Winter 2015 dates TBA

The funeral of patriarch Beverly brings the large Weston family back to their   Oklahoman homestead. But what’s being buried is nothing compared to what’s dug up. Incendiary family secrets, generational conflict and repressed truths explode in this portrait one of the most dysfunctional families the stage has ever seen. Hilarious, taut and truthful.

“Three Days of Rain” by Richard Greenberg, directed by Leah Strasser    Fri. May 1 – Sun. May 24, 2015

How well can we ever know those around us? Even our mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers, are they who we think they are?

Walker, Nan and their childhood friend Pip meet for reading of their father’s will, where an unexpected bequeathment triggers a rift in their friendship. THREE DAYS OF RAIN takes us from the lives of these friends to the formative years of their parents, exposing secrets that would come to be buried under decades of expectation, estrangement, mental illness. A heartbreaking, unexpectedly romantic family story.

  • F       1 – 8pm
  • Sa     2 – 8pm
  • Su     3 – 7pm
  • TH     7 – 8pm
  • F        8 – 8pm
  • Sa      9 – 8pm
  • Su     10 – 3pm
  • M      11 – 8pm
  • TH     14 – 8pm
  • F        15 – 8pm
  • Sa      16 – 8pm
  • Su      17 – 3pm
  • TH      21 – 8pm
  • F         22 – 8pm
  • Sa       23 – 8pm
  • Su       24 – 7pm

Special Productions (not included with main stage season passes)

October

“Sarge & The Monkey’s Paw” written by Kevin Crowley Fri. Oct 10 – Sun. Oct. 19

  • F.      10 – 8pm
  • Sa     11- 8pm
  • Su     12 – 7pm
  • TH     16 – 8pm
  • F        17 – 8pm
  • Sa      18 – 8pm
  • Su      19 – 3pm

Sarge–This one-woman show was the critic’s pick in the 2014 Cincinnati Fringe Festival. David Lyman of the Cincinnati Enquirer described Christine Dye’s performance as “a solid, unflinching portrayal of a woman in a state of crisis, yet trying to hold her life together.” adding that after it’s sold out run in the festival, “I suspect that “Sarge” will be the show that people (will) still (be) talking about. It is that good.” CPT is proud to bring back this remarkable show for a very limited run.

The Monkey’s Paw is a hilarious, surreal look at parenting and marriage. Mike and Tish’s son Tommy is missing. Tish can’t leave their home until he returns and Mike can’t ever get the house clean enough. This short play has been produced in London and NY and returns to Cincinnati for a limited run, in rep, with Sarge.

January

“She’s Crazy” (Mental Health and Other Myths)” written by Sherry McCamley and Cathy Springfield original music by Sherry McCamley

Thurs. Jan. 22 – Sun. Jan. 25

  • TH       22 – 8pm
  • F          23 – 8pm
  • Sa        24 – 8pm
  • Su        25 – 3pm

A cabaret-style program exploring how our society treats the subject of mental illness, with the goal of reducing the stigma surrounding mental health issues.  Using our own stories, music, and interactive media, we hope to entertain as well as inform!

Made possible by a generous grant from the Cincinnati Recreation Commission.

March

“The Irish Curse” Gala fundraiser Weekend

The Boys are back and funnier than ever in this play about a support group for men with “body” issues.  The Irish Curse is funny, and endearing.

Fri., Mar 20 and Sat 21 at 8:00pm

  • F      20 – 8pm show
  • Sa.   21 – 8pm show, band and catered party to follow

Tickets may be purchased for the entire season or individually.  You can find out more at

www.cpt.tixato.com/buy/passes

www.cliftonperformancetheatre.com

www.untetheredtheater.com

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BTP’s First Season Nears Its End

Batavia Theatre Project’s First Season Nears Its End
Few Chances Left To See “Our Town” and “Midsummer”

BTP_logoThe Batavia Theatre Project offers several ways to see Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town” on a budget, such as Pay What You Can nights and half-price Rush Tickets. Thursday performances on Aug. 14 and 21 are Pay What You Can performances. Patrons can see this critically acclaimed play for a donation.

The theater is also offering half-priced Rush Tickets at the door 15 minutes before any performance. Rush Tickets must be paid for in cash. As always, patrons may chose to purchase tickets in a Flex Package for group discount. In addition, any patron may bring in a can or box of nonperishable food to donate to the Christian Help Center and receive an additional $1 off per item, up to $5.

“We offer these deals because we never want finances to come between potential patrons and live theatre,” said theatre President Adam Haskell. “At the same time, ‘Our Town’ is the only show that isn’t free this season. Supporting this show is the best way to support the Batavia Theatre Project and help us continue to offer free Shakespeare in Sycamore Park and other services.”

Performances of “Our Town” will be Aug 14, 15, 21, 22, and 23 at 7 p.m. and Aug 24 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online at www.bataviatheatreproject.com, at the door, or purchased at the theater Box Office, located in the old water treatment plant at 61 Lou Darbro Place

There are only two free performances of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” left on Aug. 16 at 7 p.m. and Aug. 17 at 2 p.m. Please bring a lawn chair or blanket to enjoy the show.

Batavia Theatre Project strives to work with the community to bring high-quality live theatre to Clermont County and enrich our local arts culture while enhancing tourism and patronage of existing local businesses.

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