Category Archives: Press Releases

April 24, 2013 · 8:49 am

Barebones Staged-Reading Theatre Series Begins May 6

Barebones Staged-Reading Theatre Series:
MY BOOT and THE AMERICAN CENTURY

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MY BOOT is the world premiere of pulitzer prize nominee Ron Jones’ 10 minute play offering a perspective on the life of a Nazi soldier, and a Jewish man during the holocaust. Both characters poetically justify their family’s condition upon the eve of WWII.

Cast includes:

  • Matt Dentino… Man 1
  • Jared Joplin… Man 2 

THE AMERICAN CENTURY by Murphy Guyer is a blithely hilarious play starting off as a romantic wartime reunion that turns into the ultimate baby boomer’s nightmare. A young couples’ reunion is interrupted by a mysterious stranger who provides an astonishing window to their future; a scathing indictment of post WWII America.

Cast includes:

  • John Scheller… Man
  • Lauren Le Roux… Woman
  • Mike Dennis… Stranger 

Monday May 6th 7:30pm @
Cincinnati Shakespeare Company
719 Race St Cincinnati, OH 45202

MY BOOT by Ron Jones (10 minute world premiere)
THE AMERICAN CENTURY by Murphy Guyer

Barebones Staged-Reading Series is a brand new artistic iniative with the mission to give its audience and its artists a considerable amount of exposure to contemporary plays without the baggage of a large budget or excess production hours. In keeping with a conventional “staged-reading” the actors will read directly from the script— where Barebones differs is in its accompaniment with multimedia, and/or music (live & otherwise), to enrich, and enliven the “theatrical” experience of the read— thus enhancing its impact on the audience— without being a full-blown production. Overall, the Barebones approach is meant as an effort to have local audiences and artists exposed to more plays— and to afford busy, local, starving-artists a minimum of prep time, so that the maximum of works can be read. It is the hope of this approach to have two to three plays read a month, to be performed on theater off-nights, such as Mondays and Tuesdays— and to attract the finest local artists to impart the most amount of contemporary plays possible to local audiences, free of charge— plays for gratis.

The Barebones Staged-Reading Theatre Series was awarded with a Jackson Street Market Artist Supper Club grant through the generous support of the Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr./U.S. Bank Foundation and The Know Theatre of Cincinnati. The Jackson Street Market Artist Supper Club was an evening full of great food and wonderful community.

Other upcoming readings:

Monday May 20th 7:30pm @
The Carnegie Theatre
1028 Scott Blvd Covington, KY 41011
LOBBY HERO by Kennith Lonergan

Founded by Billy Chace and Jon Kovach

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April 22, 2013 · 2:05 pm

SBP Present SPRING AWAKENING Opening May 31

SHOWBIZ PLAYERS PRESENT
“SPRING AWAKENING”

Show Opens 5/31 – Tickets On Sale Now

Steffen Whorton as Melchior & Emily Rowekamp as Wendla.

Steffen Whorton as Melchior & Emily Rowekamp as Wendla. Photo by Showbiz Players.

Showbiz Players, Inc. proudly announces that tickets are now on sale for SPRING AWAKENING, which plays May 31st – June 8th at the Carnegie, 1028 Scott Blvd., Covington, Ky. 41011.

Tickets are $20.50 Adults/$18.50 Seniors & Students and can be purchased online at www.thecarnegie.com or by calling 859-957-1940. For more information, go to www.showbizplayers.com.

SPRING AWAKENING takes its inspiration from Frank Wedekind’s play of the same name; one of literature’s most controversial masterpieces – a work so daring in its depiction of teenage self-discovery, it was banned from the stage and not performed in its complete form in English for nearly 100 years.

It’s Germany, 1891. A world where the grown-ups hold all the cards. The beautiful young Wendla explores the mysteries of her body, and wonders aloud where babies come from. Elsewhere, the brilliant and fearless young Melchior interrupts a mind-numbing Latin drill to defend his buddy Moritz – a boy so traumatized by puberty he can’t concentrate on anything.

Spring Awakening’s tragic love story between innocent Wendla and bookish Melchior is a hard-hitting commentary on social repression that resounds plenty in the modern day, but with intense alternative rock music by Duncan Sheik, it’s also potent, electrifying theater.

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Showbiz Players, Inc. is one of the premiere community theatre companies in Cincinnati. Spanning a history of 26 years, Showbiz Players, Inc. has won a multitude of national, state and local awards for their productions.

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April 22, 2013 · 12:35 pm

CCM Senior Lauren Roesner Wins Third Prize in Lotte Lenya Competition

The soprano was awarded third prize in the prestigious international theatre singing contest during the final round of the competition on April 13.

Lauren Roesner. Photo courtesy of the Kurt Weill Foundation.

Lauren Roesner. Photo courtesy of the Kurt Weill Foundation.

CINCINNATI, OH — CCM graduating senior Lauren Roesner (BFA Musical Theatre, 2013) has been named a winner of the 2013 Lotte Lenya Competition. Originally from Chicago, Roesner was awarded third prize in the prestigious international theatre singing contest during the final round of the competition on Saturday, April 13, in Rochester, New York. The competition finals were held just one day before Roesner’s CCM Musical Theatre Senior Showcase debut in New York.

CCM Professor and Distinguished Chair of Musical Theatre Aubrey Berg explains that, at 21 years old, “Lauren must be one of the youngest performers, if not the youngest, to ever become a finalist in this prestigious event.”

CCM Associate Professor and Distinguished Chair of Opera Robin Guarino attended this year’s competition and notes, “Lauren was competing against and won over singers already performing major roles on Broadway and at the Metropolitan Opera!”

The Kurt Weill Foundation for Music, which sponsors the competition, distributed a record $61,500 in prizes this year. Roesner received a third prize of $7500. CCM alumna Heather Phillips, soprano, was also a finalist in the competition and received an award of $1000.

Several other current and former CCM students were awarded special prizes during this year’s competition. Learn more about those awards here.

About Lauren Roesner
A graduating senior from CCM’s acclaimed Musical Theatre program, Lauren Roesner has been seen regionally at Wagon Wheel Theatre as Velma Von Tussle in Hairspray, Maria Mirelli in Lend Me A Tenor, Mrs. Darling/Indian Dancer in Peter Pan and in various roles in Big River, State Fair and Legally Blonde. At CCM, she has been seen as Polly Peachum in The Threepenny Opera, Sarah in The Civil War, Rapunzel in Into the Woods, Mrs. Nordstrom in A Little Night Music, Bess in The Human Comedy, Ensemble in Oklahoma! and in Out of This World, Evita and Anything Goes.

About the Lotte Lenya Competition
Founded in 1998 to celebrate the centenary of Lenya’s birth, the Lotte Lenya Competition recognizes talented young singer/actors, ages 19-32, who are dramatically and musically convincing in a wide range of repertoire.

This year’s panel of judges included acclaimed soprano and 2010 Opera News Award winner Patricia Racette, British opera and musical theatre conductor James Holmes, and Theodore S. Chapin, President of Rodgers & Hammerstein and Vice-Chairman of the American Theater Wing.

Chapin, who has judged the Competition eight times, said, “The Lenya Competition was founded to address a need for performers who can both sing and act. In the spirit of Kurt Weill, it bridges the gap between musical theater and a more serious kind of sung-through theater. It’s the perfect way to do it, and it’s been a wonderfully successful program.”

Each contestant presented a diverse program that included an aria from the opera or operetta repertoire; two songs from the American musical theatre repertoire (one from the pre-1968 “Golden Age” and one from 1968 or later); and a theatrical selection by Kurt Weill. After a preliminary round of auditions, 24 semi-finalists from five continents auditioned in New York for adjudicator/coaches Jeanine Tesori and Rebecca Luker, who then selected the 12 finalists.

About the Lotte Lenya Competition
The Lenya Competition celebrated its 15th Anniversary this year. Since its inception, the Kurt Weill Foundation has awarded more than $500,000 to exceptionally talented young singer-actors, many of whom are enjoying prominent careers in musical theater, opera, and sometimes both. In the past year alone, previous winners’ credits include performances on Broadway (Kyle Barisich, Morgan James); in national and international tours (Richard Todd Adams, Maria Failla, Zachary James, Ariela Morgenstern); at regional theaters such as Baltimore Centerstage, Westport Country Playhouse, and Portland Center Stage (Erik Liberman), The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park (Cooper Grodin), and Classic Stage Company (Amy Justman); and on major opera stages including the Metropolitan Opera (Paul Corona, Ginger Costa-Jackson), Los Angeles Opera (Rodell Rosel, Liam Bonner), Lyric Opera of Chicago (Rodell Rosel, Lucas Meachem), Florida Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and Oper Leipzig (Jonathan Michie), Houston Grand Opera (Liam Bonner), New York City Opera (Lauren Worsham, Jennifer Goode Cooper), Glimmerglass Festival (Noah Stewart, Ginger Costa-Jackson), English National Opera and Teatro Real Madrid (Zachary James), Hamburg Staatsoper and Festival d’Aix-en-Provence (Rebecca Jo Loeb), and Oper Frankfurt (Elizabeth Reiter).

Learn more about this year’s competition winners here.

The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is recognized both nationally and internationally as one of the leading conservatories for the performing and electronic media arts, composition, scholarship and pedagogy.

CCM is the largest single source of performing arts events in Ohio with an annual calendar of nearly 1,000 performances and presentations, ranging from solo recitals to full-scale opera and musical theatre performances.

All event dates and programs are subject to change.

For a complete calendar of events visit our website at http://ccm.uc.edu.

UC’s College-Conservatory of Music – The Sound of Synergy

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April 22, 2013 · 10:56 am

NET’s PROOF Earns LCT Nomination

Rebecca Whatley & David Roth. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

Rebecca Whatley & David Roth. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

Panelists for the League of Cincinnati Theatres (LCT) have recognized New Edgecliff Theatre’s production of Proof with an LCT nomination for lead actress, Rebecca Whatley.

On the eve of her twenty-fifth birthday, Catherine, a troubled young woman, has spent years caring for her brilliant but unstable father, a famous mathematician. Now, following his death, she must deal with her own volatile emotions; the arrival of her estranged sister, Claire; and the attentions of Hal, a former student of her father’s who hopes to find valuable work in the 103 notebooks that her father left behind. Over the long weekend that follows, a burgeoning romance and the discovery of a mysterious notebook draw Catherine into the most difficult problem of all: How much of her father’s madness — or genius — will she inherit?

Panelists praised Rebecca Whatley’s portrayal of Catherine as “natural and unforced”; “a touching mixture of bewilderment, bravado, and brokenness that commanded my attention and did not let up.”

Proof continues through April 27th. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.cincinnatiarts.org.

Final LCT awards will be determined at the end of the season and announced at the LCT gala in the spring.

The League of Cincinnati Theatres was founded in 1999 to strengthen, nurture and promote Cincinnati’s theatre community. LCT provides its member companies and individual members with education, resources and services to enhance the quality and exposure of the theatre community in Cincinnati and increase community awareness, attendance and involvement. More information about the League can be found at www.leagueofcincytheatres.com.

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April 17, 2013 · 2:09 pm

ETC Presents Regional Premiere of MARVELOUS WONDERETTES: CAPS AND GOWNS, May 1-19,2013

Denise Devlin as Cindy Lou, Sara Mackie as Betty Jean, Leslie Goddard as Missy & Brooke Rucidlo Steele as Suzy.

Denise Devlin as Cindy Lou, Sara Mackie as Betty Jean, Leslie Goddard as Missy & Brooke Rucidlo Steele as Suzy.

JOURNEY THROUGH THE AGES:
ENSEMBLE THEATRE CINCINNATI PRESENTS THE REGIONAL PREMIERE OF THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES: CAPS AND GOWNS, MAY 1–19, 2013

(Cincinnati, OH) Crisp colors, hefty hairspray, and puffy petticoats galore! The Wonderettes return in the regional premiere of The Marvelous Wonderettes: Caps and Gowns, the highly anticipated sequel to Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati’s best selling show of all time. Written by Roger Bean, the play continues the story of these four girls, first introduced to Cincinnati during ETC’s 2009-2010 season and again with Winter Wonderettes. Caps and Gowns plays May 1-19, 2013 and is directed by D. Lynn Meyers.

John Goering is the Premiere Sponsor, and Judith Postler is the Design Sponsor.

Spanning the decade between 1958 and 1968, Cindy Lou, Betty Jean, Missy, and Suzy are high school seniors who begin the play on their graduation day. The girls recap their years spent at Springfield High by leading the school in some favorite tunes such as “Rockin’ Robin” and “Dedicated to the One I Love.” Act two finds the group reunited ten years later, more mature but still the best of friends. The singing continues as the girls share in the joys and difficulties they have faced since high school. Featuring over thirty classic ‘50s and ‘60s songs, this upbeat comedy follows the Wonderettes’ captivating journey into adulthood.

“The idea of The Marvelous Wonderettes: Caps & Gowns is about a celebration of a time and a celebration of the music,” says ETC Producing Artistic Director D. Lynn Meyers. “The Wonderettes are four very different American girls embracing a dream that brings them together. When you see an old picture, you never get to know what the subjects are thinking,” she continues. “The show is like living a photograph out loud.”

About the Cast
Denise Devlin (Cindy Lou) returns to Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati to reprise her role as Cindy Lou. Ms. Devlin recently finished a two-year contract with Disney Cruise Line sailing the Caribbean, Bahamas, Panama Canal, and the Mexican Riviera. Her favorite roles include Susie in the premiere of Snapshots at Human Race Theatre, Gertrude in the National Tour of Seussical, Aldonza in Man of la Mancha which toured to the Sibiu International Theatre Festival, Maria in the concert version of West Side Story with the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, and Diana Morales (CEA nominee) in A Chorus Line.

Leslie Goddard (Missy) makes her Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati debut with Marvelous Wonderettes: Caps and Gowns. She has been seen on Broadway in Hairspray as Brenda/ Penny Pingleton (u/s), in Las Vegas in Jersey Boys, at The Kennedy Center in Broadway: Three Generations, and across the country in touring and regional theatre shows. Most recently, she performed the role of Deb in Ordinary Days at the Short North Stage Company in Columbus, Ohio. Ms. Goddard earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Drama from New York University.

Sara Mackie (Betty Jean) is a graduate of Wright State University and a member of Actor’s Equity Association. She has performed with the Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati in The Marvelous Wonderettes and Winter Wonderettes, Rabbit Hole (Izzy), Mauritius (Jackie), The Great American Trailer Park Musical (Linoleum) and Alice in Wonderland (Cheshire Cat) among other holiday favorites. Human Race Theatre Company credits include The Trimble Wars, Twelfth Night and Red Blooded All-American Man. She also was seen onstage at the Carnegie Theatre recently in Camelot in Concert, Pump Boys and Dinettes, and the premiere staged reading of The Sandman. In addition to small roles in commercials, short films and web skits, she has toured children’s theatre across the country and performed in New Jersey, Chicago, Pennsylvania and Northern Ohio.

Brooke Rucidlo Steele reprises the role of Suzy at ETC, where in addition to being a Marvelous Wonderette she has also been seen in 25 The Musical and in the title role of Cinderella. Other roles include Leni Riefenstahl in Monstrous Beauty at Northern Kentucky University, June the Ingenue in Musical of Musicals (The Musical!) at the Showboat Majestic, and the title role in Peter Pan at the Covedale Center. Ms. Steele studied theatre at Northern Kentucky University and was honored to receive an Acclaim Rising Star award in 2011.

About the Playwright
Roger Bean is the creator of the long-running off-Broadway smash hit The Marvelous Wonderettes, which has played in hundreds of theaters around the world. Mr. Bean also created two popular sequels for these four delightful song leaders from Springield High: The Marvelous Wonderettes: Caps and Gowns and the holiday celebration Winter Wonderettes. Original cast albums for all three Wonderettes shows are available online at Amazon and iTunes. Additional audience-pleasing jukebox hits from Mr. Bean include Summer of Love, The Andrews Brothers, Why Do Fools Fall in Love?, Route 66 (over 100 productions throughout the coutnry), and the long-running Los Angeles hit Life Could Be A Dream, the ’60s doo-wop musical that received the LA drama Critics Circle Award, the LA Weekly Theatre Award and the Backstage Garland Award for Outsanding Musical of 2010.

Production team includes Brian c. Mehring (Resident Scenic & Lighting Designer), Aaron Clements (Technical Operations Director), Matthew Hollstegge (Production Coordinator & Master Electrician), Shannon Rae Lutz (Properties Master & Design Assistant), Matt Callahan (Sound Designer), Reba Senske (Costume Designer), Patti James (Choreographer), and Scot Woolley (Music Director). Production Stage Manager is Constance Dubinski.

Ticket Prices
Tickets are $38 for Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday performances.
Tickets are $42 for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday performances.

Half-price rush tickets and $15 student rush tickets are available starting two hours prior to show time. Tickets and seating subject to availability.

Other Single Ticket Discount
Military/Educator, Public Radio Perks Card, ArtsWave FunCard, AAA, Senior and Enjoy the Arts discounts available; tickets and seating are subject to availability. ETC accepts all major credit cards and Downtown Cincinnati gift cards. A full list of available discounts and performance calendar is available at http://www.ensemblecincinnati.org.

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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. 

2012-2013 Season Presenting Sponsor is the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Season Sponsor: PNC Bank. Season Fairy Godmother Sponsor: William and Susan Friedlander. Additional support provided by Garfield Suites Hotel, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation, and The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr./U.S. Bank Foundation. 

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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