Tag Archives: Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park

CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK’S 2014-15 OFF THE HILL SEASON CONTINUES WITH KEN LAZEBNIK’S THEORY OF MIND

(CINCINNATI) – The 2014-15 season of Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s popular Off the Hill series for families continues with THEORY OF MIND by Ken LaZebnik. A sensitive, unsentimental portrait of relationships, it tells the story of Bill, a teenager who happens to live on the autism spectrum. Recommended for ages 11 and up, THEORY OF MIND will tour to community venues throughout the Tristate from Jan. 23 through Feb. 22. It will also be performed at Music Hall on Sunday, March 8, as part of Macy’s Arts Sampler.

THEORY OF MIND follows Bill’s first date with a young woman unsure of her own reasons for romance, exploring the challenges of a young man who wants desperately to love someone but struggles with the social skills needed to achieve a rewarding relationship.

“We’re really thrilled to revisit THEORY OF MIND, winner of the 2008 Macy’s New Play Prize for Young Audiences, which had its premiere at the Playhouse in 2009,” said Mark Lutwak, Playhouse director of education. “The show was enormously successful with students and adults alike, not only because of its sensitive representation of a character on the autism spectrum, but also because of the honest and humorous way in which it deals with adolescent communication and dating relationships.”

The THEORY OF MIND cast includes Christopher Michael Richardson as Bill, Kelsey Torstveit as Hilo and Alex Purcell as Police Officer/Parking Attendant/Box Office Guy. All are members of the Playhouse’s 2014-15 Bruce E. Coyle Acting Intern Company. Bridget Leak, a former Playhouse directing intern, will direct the touring production. Other production team members include Katie Lupica (assistant director), Maggie Dick (costume designer), Trey Tatum (sound designer) and Tracy Hoida (stage manager).

“I’m excited about diving into this story with the acting interns,” said Leak. “This is a true actor’s piece — the characters are rich and the story is so beautifully crafted. It’s a show I am eager to share with Cincinnati audiences.”

In a special collaboration for THEORY OF MIND, the Playhouse is partnering with the Autism Society of Greater Cincinnati. “They’re going to be connecting us with new sectors in our community,” explained Lutwak, “as well as using this opportunity to provide context for the play and extend some of their own educational and advocacy work.”

THEORY OF MIND will tour to more than a dozen community venues (see schedule below). Admission is free or inexpensive and is available at the door. Contact the center near you for ticket information.

For more information about the Playhouse’s education and outreach programs, contact the Education Department at 513-345-2242 or visit www.cincyplay.com.

Off the Hill is supported by the Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation, ArtsWave and the Ohio Arts Council. The Cincinnati Playhouse season is presented by The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation and Heidelberg Distributing Company. 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.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE (as of Jan. 5, 2015)

• Friday, Jan. 23, 7 p.m., Prospect House (Price Hill)
• Saturday, Jan. 24, 2 p.m., Hyde Park Health Center
• Saturday, Jan. 24, 7 p.m., Sunset Players at Dunham Recreation Center (Price Hill)
• Friday, Jan. 30, 7 p.m., Oxford Community Arts Center
• Saturday, Jan. 31, 7 p.m., District A/Pleasant Ridge Nativity School
• Friday, Feb. 6, 7 p.m., Springfield Township’s Grove Banquet Hall and Event Center
• Saturday, Feb. 7, 2 p.m., Mount St. Joseph University Recital Hall (Price Hill)
• Saturday, Feb. 7, 7 p.m., Blue Ash Recreation Center
• Sunday, Feb. 8, 2 p.m., The Lebanon Theatre Company, Inc.
• Friday, Feb. 13, 5 p.m., Marjorie P. Lee (Hyde Park)
• Saturday, Feb. 14, 2 p.m., Kenton County Public Library (Covington Branch)
• Sunday, Feb. 15, 2:30 p.m., Carnegie Center of Columbia Tusculum
• Friday, Feb. 20, 7 p.m., Woman’s Art Club Cultural Center (Mariemont)
• Saturday, Feb. 21, 2 p.m., Campbell County Public Library (Ft. Thomas)
• Saturday, Feb. 21, 7 p.m., Circus Mojo (Ludlow, Ky.) – Pre-show begins at 6:30 p.m.
• Sunday, Feb. 22, 2 p.m., Cincinnati Museum Center Reakirt Auditorium (in partnership with the Autism Society of Greater Cincinnati)

Note: Details vary by location. Contact the individual sites for tickets and prices. Contact information is available on the Playhouse website at www.cincyplay.com.

CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE CELEBRATES THE MAN IN BLACK
WITH RING OF FIRE: THE MUSIC OF JOHNNY CASH, 
JAN. 17-FEB. 15, 2015

(CINCINNATI) – The Man in Black led a colorful life that both reflected and transcended his humble beginnings. RING OF FIRE: THE MUSIC OF JOHNNY CASH, which runs Jan. 17 through Feb. 15 in the Playhouse’s Robert S. Marx Theatre, celebrates the incomparable legacy of J.R. “Johnny” Cash, one of the most popular entertainers of all time.

Created by Richard Maltby Jr. and conceived by William Meade, RING OF FIRE was adapted from the Broadway production by Richard Maltby Jr. and Jason Edwards. Edwards, who starred in RING OF FIRE on Broadway, will both direct and appear in the Playhouse production, which tells Cash’s story through his songs.

More than a musical biography, RING OF FIRE looks at Cash’s life thematically. From his early years picking cotton in hardscrabble fields to superstardom, the show chronicles both the lows and the highs of the man who traversed musical genres from country and rock to folk and gospel.

“The show tries, in a couple of hours, to touch on every aspect of Mr. Cash’s life — not just his troubled years or his drug years — but also his youth, his faith,” explains Edwards. “He was a very patriotic and spiritual guy, on top of running into some rough times. He never really lost the sense of where he came from and who he was.”

RING OF FIRE encompasses more than 30 of Cash’s classic songs, including the title tune, “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Man in Black,” “A Boy Named Sue” and “I Walk the Line,” the ballad that Rolling Stone magazine this year declared number one on its list of 25 Greatest Country Songs of All Time. Even so, it’s but an iconic sampling of the more than 400 songs that Cash, a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member, has to his credit. Cash was also inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Gospel Music Hall of Fame. He placed 48 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart and more than 130 hits on the Billboard country singles chart, more than anyone in history.

In addition to Edwards, the RING OF FIRE cast of actors and musicians includes Trenna Barnes, Allison Briner, Walter Hartman, Brantley Kearns, Derek Keeling, Jeff Lisenby (who also serves as musical director), John Marshall, Brent Moyer and Andrew Platt. The creative team includes assistant director/choreographer Denise Patton, set designer John Iacovelli, costume designer Lou Bird, lighting designer Kenton Yeager and sound designer Joe Payne. Jenifer Morrow is the production stage manager, and Andrea L. Shell and Becky Merold are second stage managers.

RING OF FIRE production co-sponsors are Fifth Third Bank and American Modern Insurance Group. Bahl & Gaynor, Inc., is the artist sponsor/Jason Edwards. This production honors the support of Linda and Gary Greenberg.

Ticket prices for RING OF FIRE: THE MUSIC OF JOHNNY CASH 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 appropriate for adults and teenage audiences.

New for the 2014-15 season is Sunday College Night, with tickets to all 7 p.m. Sunday performances 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, Jan. 17; 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18; 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 20; and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21. The official opening night is Thursday, Jan. 22, 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. There is no 7 p.m. performance on Sunday, Feb. 1, and no 2 p.m. performance on Sunday, Feb. 15.

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, Jan. 25; 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28; 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 8; and 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12.

RING OF FIRE will be audio described for those with visual impairments at 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 7, and signed for persons with hearing impairments at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 8.

The Playhouse is fully accessible. Audio enhancement receivers, large print programs and complete wheelchair access are available.

Tickets to RING OF FIRE 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 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.