I intended to post this information to a news site where I occasionally post Little Rock theatre stuff. But that site kept crashing and I have this darn blog and, by god, I ought to do some dadgum bloggin' on it.
In any case, what follows is the news release for what sounds like a promising new theatre in Hot Springs, my hometown. If you read all the way to the end, you will see the directors of this theatre have substantial credits at the Goodman Theatre and at Yale. Also, the first season The Central Theatre has selected looks quite intriguing.
Lord knows, running a theatre is hard and starting a new one is a daunting task. We wish The Central Theatre all the best.
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Following several months of planning, a 2011 season of professional theatre productions at The Central Theatre has been announced by Sheldon Kleinman, Managing Director of Arkansas TheatreWorks. The season will consist of five productions, each running for 10 performances over a two week period beginning in May, 2011 and continuing through November.
A special offer is currently available for charter subscribers to the 2011 season. By subscription, all five productions can be purchased for the price of three, a savings of 40%. Through this offer, the entire season can be purchased for as little as $13.50 per ticket, depending on the series selected. All seats are reserved, and subscribers can choose their seats which they will retain not only for the entire season, but for years to come. When the remaining single tickets go on sale in April, they will range in price from $22.50 - $32.50 for each show.
Detailed information about the upcoming season can be found on the TheatreWorks website at http://www.arktwks.org. Subscriptions may be purchased online through the website, or by calling 501-922-6899. Resumes can be submitted by Email to info@arktwks.org, or my mail to Arkansas TheatreWorks, PO Box 1964, Hot Springs, AR 71902.
The 2011 season includes:
Mack The Knife; the Life and Music of Bobby Darin (two photos attached) will open on May 4 and run through May 15 as part of a nationwide tour. Written by and starring Chaz Esposito as Darin and backed by a nine-piece orchestra, this interactive Las Vegas-style production has garnered rave reviews and played to sold out houses across the country. Esposito’s impression of Darin is so uncanny the show has the endorsement of the Bobby Darin estate, the first time it has given such permission.
Moonlight and Magnolias, by Ron Hutchinson is the 2nd production, playing from June 22 through July 3. A wonderful comedy based on historical events, legendary producer David O. Selznick has shut down production of his new epic, Gone with the Wind, feeling that the screenplay doesn’t work. Summoning famed screenwriter Ben Hecht and director Victor Fleming to his office, he locks the doors, closes the shades, and on a diet of bananas and peanuts, the three men labor over five days to fashion a screenplay that will become the blueprint for one of the most successful and beloved films of all time.
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, in production from August 3 – 14, established Edward Albee as a major American playwright. Provocative and hilarious, this remains one of the theatre’s most honest, affecting trips down the corpse-strewn path of marital dysfunction. George is an alcoholic college professor; Martha is his virago of a wife and they know just how to push each other’s buttons. On this particular night, a good-looking young biology professor and his wife arrive for a nightcap and soon become blood sport during a booze-drenched evening. The NY Times acclaimed this work as the Best American Play of the Decade.
Stage Struck by Simon Gray will run from September 21 – October 2. The play is a fascinating psychological thriller written for Alan Bates and first presented in London’s West End. Stage Struck will have audiences on the edges of their seats as they try to unravel the twists and turns of this amusing thriller which is less a “who-dunnit” and more a “who’s-going-to-do-what-to-whom”.
The musical Ain’t Misbehavin’ will cap off this charter season, running from November 5 - 20. Based on the music of the inimitable Thomas “Fats” Waller, Ain’t Misbehavin’ is generally considered to be one of the best musical reviews ever produced for Broadway. The show brings to life the outrageously comic and musical soul of 1930’s Harlem and the Golden age of the Cotton Club, honky-tonk dives and that jumpin’ new beat, Swing.
The historic Central Theatre, unoccupied for over a decade, is under new ownership and has been extensively remodeled in preparation for these productions, including installation of state-of-the-art theatrical lighting and sound systems. The auditorium is spacious but intimate, with 282 comfortable, upholstered seats, all with a perfect view of a large, practical stage. Principal auditions for both Equity and non-Equity actors will be held later this year, and resumes are being solicited from interested individuals in all aspects of production.
Directors Sheldon Kleinman and Jerry Davis have put together an eclectic season, chosen for its broad appeal to a wide range of audiences. Kleinman has more than 20 years of administrative and audience development background in professional theatre companies, having served as Managing Director of the prestigious Goodman Theatre in Chicago, as well as the Yale Repertory Theatre and the California Actors Theatre in the San Francisco Bay Area. Davis has directed and acted in theatre productions for more than thirty years throughout Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and was also the Charter President of the Arkansas Community Theater Association.
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