ENSEMBLE THEATRE CINCINNATI IS FIRING UP SOME MOTOWN
WITH THE REGIONAL PREMIERE OF DETROIT ‘67, MARCH 17-APRIL 5, 2015
(Cincinnati, OH) Dust off your eight-track stereo and join Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati for the hippest after-hours joint in town with the regional premiere of DETROIT ’67! Playwright Dominique Morisseau introduces audiences to a a dynamic brother and sister as they host rockin’ parties and fight to keep their home (and their future) out of the ashes during the 1967 Detroit riots. Records, raids, and riveting drama take the stage for this sizzling production, playing March 17-April 5, 2015. Directed by D. Lynn Meyers.
This production welcomes back to the stage Darnell Pierre Benjamin (Around the World in 80 Days, 2013), Leslie Goddard (The Marvelous Wonderettes: Caps & Gowns), Zina Camblin (String of Pearls), and Burgess Byrd (Around the World in 80 Days, 1999, and Love Child). Ensemble Theatre Cinicinnati is also thrilled to introduce Bryant Bentley in his ETC debut.
It is 1967 in Detroit. When their parents die, Chelle and Lank inherit their childhood home. To make ends meet, the siblings host “basement parties,” spinning the newest records to come out of Motown, a risky business as police crack down on after-hours joints in black neighborhoods. But when a mysterious white woman finds her way into their care and a string of raids increases police brutality around the city, they find themselves much more divided than over just the family business.
“I like plays that have a personal story to tell against the backdrop of a bigger event,” explains Producing Artistic Director D. Lynn Meyers. “Dominique Morisseau has created a world where we can look at our past through the eyes of an individual and how that individual was changed by it. It’s far more powerful than looking at the statistics. I’m thrilled with how our five cast members have come together to share this story of having a haven in the midst of a really deadly storm.”
About the Cast
Darnell Pierre Benjamin (Sly) returns to Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, having first appeared on their stage in Around the World in 80 Days. Having been in Cincinnati for over five years now, Mr. Benjamin has performed in and around the area frequently, including Titus Andronicus and To Kill a Mockingbird with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company; Cock and Angels in America with Know Theatre of Cincinnati; Othello with Human Race Theatre Company; and A Raisin in the Sun and Romeo and Juliet with Hope Summer Repertory Theatre. He is also a member of both Queen City Queer Theatre Collective and Pones Inc.
Bryant Bentley (Lank) makes his Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati debut. A native of Dayton, Ohio, he now resides in Columbus and has traveled throughout the country performing regional theater. Some of his theater credits include: Master Harold and the Boys, Clarence Brown Theater; Most Valuable Player, Indiana Repertory Theater; A Raisin In The Sun, Wright State University; August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean, Human Race Theater; A Soldier’s Story and Topdog/Underdog, Phoenix Theater; as well as Jitney, Two Trains Running, The Exonerated, Five Guys Named Moe, Greater Tuna, Cinderella, Blues for an Alabama Sky, and Plenty Of Time. His next production will be a reprisal role of Simon in Matthew Lopez’s The Whipping Man at the Columbia Festival Of The Arts.
Burgess Byrd (Bunny) returns to Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, having started at the theatre as an intern in 1999 and since appearing in the world premiere of Around The World in 80 Days (1999), as well as Love Child. Raised in Louisville, Kentucky she now calls Cincinnati home and has performed on many local stages. Some of her favorite roles include: the one-person shows Pretty Fire and Neat, Know Theatre; Doubt, Drama Workshop; Avenue Q, Showbiz Players; and Caroline or Change, New Stage Collective. Her recent credits include: Bureau of Missing Persons, Harry and The Thief, and Afghans Womens Writers Project, Know Theatre of Cincinnati; and A Streetcar Named Desire, Covedale Center For Performing Arts. She has worked regionally with Human Race Theatre Company, Kentucky Repertory Theatre, Porthouse Theatre, and Phoenix Theatre Circle.
Zina Camblin (Chelle) also returns to Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, having last appeared in the 2006 production of String of Pearls. Ms. Camblin completed her MFA in acting from UC San Diego and was a recipiant of the Juilliard Playwrighting Fellowship. While at Juilliard, she received the Lecomte du Nouy Prize for playwrighting. Her play And Her Hair Went With Her was selected as part of Lincoln Center’s Directors Lab play reading series. In addition, she has performed in several regional productions of And Her Hair Went With Her, including The Phoenix Theater in Indianapolis, New Jersey Repertory Theater, and Horizon Theater in Atlanta. Past productions and workshops of her other work include: Memoirs to Live, Brooklyn Arts Exchange; Bedroom Stories, Jon Sims Center for the Performing Arts; Life’s a Drag, UC San Diego; and Bunni and Clyde, The Know Theater. As an assistant writer, researcher, and actor for the Tectonic Theater Project she helped devise and perform in two of their productions, The Jonestown Project and I Think I like Girls at The LaJolla Playhouse and Cherry Lane Theater in New York.
Leslie Goddard (Caroline) returns to Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, having performed as Missy in The Marveloous Wonderettes: Caps & Gowns in 2013. She recently moved to Cincinnati from New York City where she had performed on Broadway in Hairspray. She was also seen in Jersey Boys in Las Vegas. Leslie was awarded the League of Cincinnati Theatres award for Best Actress in a Musical for her work as Roxie Hart in Chicago at The Carnegie. She has also been seen locally as Deb in Ordinary Days at Short North Stage, Agnes Gooch in Mame, and Kenni Flood in Becky’s New Car at The Human Race Theatre. Ms. Goddard earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Drama from New York University.
Production team includes Brian c. Mehring (Set & Lighting Designer), Jack Murphy (Technical Director), Matthew Hollstegge (Production Coordinator & Master Electrician), Shannon Rae Lutz (Properties Master & Design Assistant), Matthew Callahan (Sound Designer), and Chad Phillips (Costume Designer). Production Stage Manager is Brandon T. Holmes.
Ticket Prices
Ticket prices range from $28 to $44 for adults; student tickets are $25; and children are $18. For the 2014-2015 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.
Performance Schedule
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 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.
2014-2015 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.
This review has been reposted courtesy of the League of Cincinnati Theatres. For more LCT reviews click here to visit their reviews page.
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