Tag Archives: Mariemont Players

AIN’T MISBEHAVIN’ Runs July 13-30

MPI_Aint MisbehavinAIN’T MISBEHAVIN’
Mariemont Players Inc.
July 13-30
[Walton Creek]

Directed by Elizabeth Leigh Taylor

Cast: Muyumba Kalubi, Ariel Underwood, Juls Marie Lawrence, Phillip Latham & Charles McClinon

The musical is a tribute to the black musicians of the 1920s and 1930s who were part of the Harlem Renaissance, an era of growing creativity, cultural awareness, and ethnic pride, and takes its title from the 1929 Waller song “Ain’t Misbehavin.'” It was a time when Manhattan nightclubs like the Cotton Club and the Savoy Ballroom were the playgrounds of high society and Lenox Avenue dives were filled with piano players banging out the new beat known as swing. Five performers present an evening of rowdy, raunchy, and humorous songs that encapsulate the various moods of the era and reflect Waller’s view of life as a journey meant for pleasure and play.

  • Thu-Sat, July 13-15 at 7:30pm
  • Sun, July 16 at 2pm
  • Thu-Fri, July 20-21 at 7:30pm
  • Sat, July 22 at 2pm & 7:30pm
  • Sun, July 23 at 2pm
  • Thu-Sat, July 27-29 at 7:30pm
  • Sun, July 30 at 2pm

Official page |

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Mariemont Players Inc. Now Accepting Director Submissions for 2024-2025 Season

MPI_logo 2020Interested directors must submit an application, theatrical resume and scripts for proposed shows by July 23, 2023.

Complete the online application here: https://forms.gle/ngzDKQ8jQApp5uE98 — resumes and scripts can be uploaded at the end of the online application. Email Natasha (contact information below) if you need to arrange alternative file sharing.

Please reach out to Artistic Committee Chair, Natasha Boeckmann, at MPIArtisticChair@gmail.com with questions.

By early August, applicants will be contacted to schedule an interview with the Artistic Committee. Interviews will take place in mid-August.

Our goal is to present an exciting, well-rounded season of plays that will bring in and entertain audiences, featuring comedic, timeless shows with wide-ranged and diverse casts (race, age, gender, etc.). The Board of Directors has established the above priorities for the upcoming season. We encourage directors to submit shows they are passionate about, and offer the above criteria to keep in mind as you make your selections.

We encourage directors from diverse backgrounds to apply as we actively seek to represent and promote the many insights, opinions and talents of our diverse artistic community.

Each production runs for three weeks, consisting of 13 performances. The rehearsal process is roughly six weeks prior to opening. Our season slots are September, November, January, March, May, and July.

Again, the deadline for applications is July 23, 2023. Please reach out to Artistic Committee Chair, Natasha Boeckmann, at MPIArtisticChair@gmail.com with questions.

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Auditions Announced for RUMORS at Mariemont Players

MPI_logo 2020Mariemont Players, Inc. is pleased to announce auditions for our January (2024) production, Rumors by Neil Simon, directed by Ed Cohen.

Audition dates/times:

  • Saturday, July 15 at 2:00 p.m.
  • Sunday, July 16 at 6:30 p.m. 

Performance Dates: January 11 – 28, 2024 

Location: Mariemont Players, 4101 Walton Creek Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45227 

Audition Requirements:

  • Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script.
  • Please bring a resume and headshot.

The production team encourages actors of all races, ethnicities, identities, abilities, experience levels, etc. to audition – all are welcome!

Please contact the director at ed3557@gmail.com with questions.

Synopsis: At a large, tastefully-appointed Sneden’s Landing townhouse, the Deputy Mayor of New York has just shot himself. Though it’s only a flesh wound, Charlie Brock’s self-inflicted injury sets off a series of events causing four couples to experience a severe attack of farce.

As their tenth wedding anniversary commences, Charlie lies bleeding in another room, and his wife Myra is nowhere in sight. The first guests, lawyer Ken Gorman and his wife Chris, scramble to get “the story” straight before the other guests arrive. As the confusions and miscommunications mount, the evening spins off into classic farcical hilarity.

Character Descriptions: 

KEN GORMAN – A well-to-do lawyer. Wealthy, but by no means pretentious. Takes charge of the situation. Married to Chris. Halfway through the show, a gunshot causes his temporary deafness.

CHRIS GORMAN – Another lawyer, married to Ken. Beautiful, easily flustered. Frantically tries to maintain normalcy at the party. Has recently quit smoking, which drives her to drink a bit more.

LENNY GANZ – A wealthy accountant, distraught over the recent destruction of his new car. Starts the show with an extreme case of whiplash. Intolerant of the gossipy lifestyle that he is often involved in.

CLAIRE GANZ – Lenny’s wife. Very concerned with appearances (hers and others’). Starts the play with a swollen lip. Likes to gossip.

ERNIE CUSACK – A psychiatrist. Affable, smokes a pipe. Loves his wife very much. Tries to be as helpful as possible cooking the evening’s dinner.

COOKIE CUSACK – Has her own cooking show. Suffers from extreme back spasms. Loves her husband very much. A bit absent-minded at times.

GLENN COOPER – A handsome man running for State Senate. Worried about his own reputation. Struggles with placating his wife, who is convinced he is having an affair (which he may or may not be).

CASSIE COOPER – Glenn’s beautiful wife. Obsesses over her husband’s relationships with other women. Quick to anger. Must rub her quartz crystal to calm herself down.

OFFICER WELCH – A city police officer having a rough night. Does not tolerate lying. Sees through the “classy” façade that these high-society types put up.

OFFICER PUDNEY – Welch’s partner, a younger police officer. A strong but silent type.

Production Dates: January 11 – 28, 2024

Thursday, January 11 – 7:30PM
Friday, January 12 – 7:30PM
Saturday, January 13 – 7:30PM
Sunday, January 14 – 2:00PM (matinee)
Thursday, January 18 – 7:30PM
Friday, January 19 – 7:30PM
Saturday, January 20 – 2:00PM (matinee)
Saturday, January 20 – 7:30PM
Sunday, January 21 – 2:00PM (matinee)
Thursday, January 25 – 7:30PM
Friday, January 26 – 7:30PM
Saturday, January 27 – 7:30PM
Sunday, January 28 – 2:00PM (matinee)

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Auditions Announced for THE BOOK OF WILL at Mariemont Players

MPI_logo 2020Mariemont Players, Inc. is pleased to announce auditions for our November production, THE BOOK OF WILL by Lauren Gunderson, directed by jef brown.

Audition dates/times:

  • Monday, June 26 at 7:00 p.m.
  • Tuesday, June 27 at 7:00 p.m. 

Performance Dates: November 2 – 19, 2023 

Please sign up for a time slot here:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050B4CA5AA23A7FC1-auditions1 

Location: Mariemont Players, 4101 Walton Creek Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45227  

Audition Requirements:

  • Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script.
  • Resumes are appreciated.
  • Please bring all known conflicts between September 11 – November 19.

The production team encourages actors of all races, ethnicities, identities, abilities, experience levels, etc. to audition – all are welcome!

Please contact the director at jefwi1f@gmail.com with questions or accommodation needs.

Synopsis: Without William Shakespeare, we wouldn’t have literary masterpieces like Romeo and Juliet. But without Henry Condell and John Heminges, we would have lost half of Shakespeare’s plays forever! After the death of their friend and mentor, the two actors are determined to compile the First Folio and preserve the words that shaped their lives. They’ll just have to borrow, beg, and band together to get it done. Amidst the noise and color of Elizabethan London, The Book of Will finds an unforgettable true story of love, loss, and laughter, and sheds new light on a man you may think you know.

Character Descriptions:

Note: ages listed are stage ages; some roles may be doubled.

  • Henry Condell: 40; Feisty and hopeful, Shakespeare’s friend, and actor in the King’s Men.
  • John Heminges: 50; Reasonable and serious, Shakespeare’s friend, and financial manager of the King’s Men. He is a good man, a gentleman, and owner of the Globe Tap House.
  • Richard Burbage: 50s; A seasoned lion of the stage, loud and proud, and famous across England.
  • Elizabeth Condell: Savvy and fun, Elizabeth is Condell’s wife.
  • Alice Heminges: 35; John’s daughter and alewife, knows everyone, and hangs with the boys.
  • Rebecca Heminges: John’s wife, Rebecca is strong, busy with their grocery business, and a woman who has weathered much but loves her husband, her sons, and God. She is a good wife.
  • Ben Jonson: Poet laureate of England and friend/rival of Shakespeare, Ben is an amazing drunk, a bear of a man, and surprisingly weepy.
  • Ed Knight: “Stage manager” for the King’s Men, Ed is self-serious and particular.
  • Ralph Crane: Humble scrivener of the King’s Men, Ralph is quick, sure, and quiet.
  • William Jaggard: Successful if shady publisher of books, plays, and playbills, William is confident in his ability to get what he wants. He is very experienced, very connected, willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done, but an ass.
  • Isaac Jaggard:  William’s son, Isaac will inherit the business. He is sensitive, an artist at heart.
  • Marcus: 20; Printer’s apprentice at the Jaggard print shop, Marcus is nosy but honest.
  • Compositor: Works for Jaggard, young.
  • Emilia Bassano Lanier: 50; A fiery Italian feminist and poet, an independent woman, and a lover of life (and of Shakespeare).
  • Sir Edward Dering: 60; A book and theatre lover.
  • Anne Hathaway Shakespeare: 60; Shakespeare’s now ailing wife, Anne is strong-willed, a classy lady, a survivor.
  • Susannah Shakespeare: 30; A good girl and daughter of Shakespeare.
  • Boy Hamlet: A young actor.
  • Two Barmen: Drunk ruffians.
  • Crier: A newsboy.
  • Bernardo, Francisco, Horatio, Marcellus: Actors playing these roles
  • Fruit Seller

Production Dates:

  • November 2 – 19, 2023
  • November 2 – 7:30PM
  • November 3 – 7:30PM
  • November 4 – 7:30PM
  • November 5 – 2:00PM
  • November 9 – 7:30PM
  • November 10 – 7:30PM
  • November 11 – 2:00PM
  • November 11 – 7:30PM
  • November 12 – 2:00PM
  • November 16 – 7:30PM
  • November 17 – 7:30PM
  • November 18 – 7:30PM
  • November 19 – 2:00PM

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Cast Announced for STEEL MAGNOLIAS at Mariemont Players

MPI_logo 2020Mariemont Players and director Megan Horton are thrilled to announce the cast of our September 2023 production, Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling:

Annelle: Anna Hazard
Truvy: Debbi Berlon
Shelby: Katie Jensen
M’Lynn: Stefanie Adams
Clairee: Cathy Lutts
Ouiser: Tobie Braverman

Steel Magnolias is directed by Megan Horton and produced by Jennifer Day, Eric Day, and Bill Geraghty.

Performance dates: September 7-24, 2023

Synopsis:
The action is set in Truvy’s beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, where all the ladies who are “anybody” come to have their hair done. Helped by her eager new assistant, Annelle (who is not sure whether or not she is still married), the outspoken, wise-cracking Truvy dispenses shampoos and free advice to the town’s rich curmudgeon, Ouiser, (“I’m not crazy, I’ve just been in a bad mood for forty years”); an eccentric millionaire, Miss Clairee, who has a raging sweet tooth; and the local social leader, M’Lynn, whose daughter, Shelby (the prettiest girl in town), is about to marry a “good ole boy.” Filled with hilarious repartee and not a few acerbic but humorously revealing verbal collisions, the play moves toward tragedy when, in the second act, the spunky Shelby (who is a diabetic) risks pregnancy and forfeits her life. The sudden realization of their mortality affects the others, but also draws on the underlying strength—and love—which give the play, and its characters, the special quality to make them truly touching, funny and marvelously amiable company in good times and bad.

Tickets will be available in mid-June. Until then, consider a subscription for our 2023-24 season! This season has something for everyone – comedy, heart, intrigue, nostalgia, and thrills! Contact the Box Office at mpiboxoffice@gmail.com or 513.501.1718 to subscribe (early bird pricing available through June 15).

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