Cygnet Theatre Announces Season 17
Cygnet Theatre’s Season 17 takes you UP CLOSE: close to the heart, close to the action, close to the edge. It’s also FAR REACHING: travel across oceans, across time, and across the tracks. New subscription sales will be available at the beginning of March 2019. For more information regarding subscriptions packages please contact the box office at 619-337-1525 or visit www.cygnettheatre.com.
Hit Musical Comedy
ROCK OF AGES
By Chris D’Arienzo
Directed by Sean Murray
Music Direction by Patrick Marion
Choreography by Katie Banville
Jul. 2 – Aug. 25, 2019, Opening Jul. 6, 2019
Journey back to the sexy 1980s era of big: big bands, big egos, big guitar solos and big hair! Aqua Net, Lycra and liquor flow freely on the legendary Sunset Strip rock music scene. Amidst the madness, aspiring rock star Drew longs to become the next big thing in music, and longs for fresh-off-the-bus newcomer Sherrie, a Kansas kid with stars in her eyes. This musical comedy lovingly nudges the fashion of the 1980s and features some of the best rock hits from the time with music from Styx, Journey, Bon Jovi, Whitesnake and many more.
“Rock of Ages is the power-ballad decade in all its glory, tricked out with big perms, bigger dreams, and the kind of operatic ecstasy you read about only in bathroom stalls.” – Entertainment Weekly
Racy Political Thriller
THE VIRGIN TRIAL
By Kate Hennig
Directed by Rob Lutfy
Sept. 11 – Oct. 6, 2019, Opening Night Sept. 14, 2019
In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, the young princess Elizabeth navigates a labyrinth of political and sexual intrigue in the Tudor court that threatens her freedom – and even her life. After the death of both her parents, 15-year-old Elizabeth I must defend herself against cutting accusations of plotting to kill her brother, the king, and having an illicit affair with her stepfather. Don’t miss this eagerly awaited companion piece to the runaway hit The Last Wife.
“The Virgin Trialweaves complex tale of innocence and guilt.” – The Calgary Herald
Ingenious Modern Musical
THE LAST FIVE YEARS
Book, Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Directed by Rob Lutfy
Music Direction by Patrick Marion
Oct. 23 – Nov. 17, 2019, Opening Night Oct. 26, 2019
Written by Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown (Parade),The Last Five Years is an emotionally powerful and intimate musical about two New Yorkers in their twenties who fall in and out of love over half a decade. Made up mostly of solo turns, with beautiful music and alternately humorous and heartfelt lyrics, it is only in the middle of the show that Jamie and Cathy come together as Jamie proposes and the two are wed.
“Bittersweet and nearly perfect.” – Variety
Favorite Holiday Musical
A CHRISTMAS CAROL
Adaptation & Lyrics by Sean Murray
Original Score by Billy Thompson
Directed by Sean Murray
Music Direction by Patrick Marion
Nov. 27 – Dec. 29, 2019, Opening Night Nov. 30, 2019
Cygnet’s holiday smash hit is back for its sixth season! Bring the family back to enjoy the holiday classic adapted from Charles Dickens’ timeless tale of hope and redemption. This imaginative production features original music, creative stagecraft and puppetry, and live sound effects. Step into a Victorian Christmas card for a unique storytelling experience that is sure to delight the entire family!
“It’s not Christmas without A Christmas Caroland this is the best one around.’ – SDGLN.com
Sharp-witted New Drama
Southern California Premiere
THE GREAT LEAP
By Lauren Yee
Directed by Rob Lutfy
Jan. 22 – Feb. 16, 2020, Opening Night Jan. 25, 2020
When an American basketball team travels to Beijing for an exhibition game in 1989, the drama goes deeper than the strain between countries. For two men with a past and one teen with a future, the game is a chance to claim personal victories on and off the court. Tensions rise right up to the final buzzer as a pivotal moment in history collides with the action in the arena. Driven by rapid-fire dialogue, this perceptive new play explores the cultural and political risks of raising your voice and standing your ground.
“[This] imaginative vault over the decades . . . asserts a quiet, beautifully unexpected power”– Denver Post
Flamboyant Musical Fun
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES
Book by Harvey Fierstein, Lyrics and Music by Jerry Herman
Directed by Sean Murray
Music Direction by Terry O’Donnell
Choreography by Luke Harvey Jacobs
Mar. 11 – May 3, 2020, Opening Night Mar. 14, 2020
After twenty years of un-wedded bliss Georges and Albin, two men partnered for better-or-worse get a bit of both when Georges’ son (fathered during a one-night fling) announces his impending marriage to the daughter of a bigoted, right-wing politician. Further complicating the situation is the ‘family business’: Albin and Georges run a drag nightclub in St. Tropez, where Albin is the “star” performer Zaza. Georges reluctantly agrees to masquerade as “normal” when he meets the family of the bride-to-be. But Albin has other plans, with hilarious results. Featuring David McBean as Albin and Lance Arthur Smith as Georges.
“A glittering, fast stepping extravaganza.”– New York Daily News
Powerfully Resonant Drama
TWO TRAINS RUNNING
By August Wilson
Directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg
May 20 – Jun. 14, 2020, Opening Night May 23, 2020
It’s 1969 and the Civil Rights Movement is sending tremors through Pittsburgh’s Hill District. At the center of the community is Memphis Lee’s diner, slated to be demolished — a casualty of the city’s renovation project. Confronted with a rapidly changing world, Memphis and his regular customers struggle to maintain their solidarity and sense of pride. From Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson comes this masterpiece about everyday lives in the shadow of great events, and of unsung citizens who are anything but ordinary. This will bring Cygnet to a total of six of the ten Century Cycle plays produced.
“Wilson’s most adventurous and honest attempt to reveal the intimate heart of history.” – The New York Times
Director’s Notes: Marie and Rosetta
My friend George Brant posted that he was working on a play about Sister Rosetta Tharpe on facebook and I immediately started researching her. I started by reading her biography. I stayed up late watching and listening to everything I could find about her. I keep asking myself, “how did I not know that rock was invented by a black gospel singing woman from Arkansas? Does the world know this?”
The big problem when dealing with the history of rock ’n’ roll is the way it is dominated by men. The story that is told is one of men crowding out women and white men crowding out black men and finally rich white men crowding out poorer white men. What we know as rock ’n’ roll did not exist before Sister Rosetta Tharpe. She came before Elvis and Johnny Cash. She preceded Chuck Berry and Little Richard. Every single one of those men, including Jimi Hendrix, has credited her signature style–a blend of blues, jazz, gospel, and a new sound with more grit and edge than anything that had been heard before—for the sway it had on their own creations. We can also thank her for bringing the electric guitar front and center.
Holiday Q&A with the Cast of A Christmas Carol
Cygnet’s holiday smash hit is back for its fifth season! Bring the family back to enjoy the holiday classic adapted from Charles Dickens’ timeless tale of hope and redemption. Step into a Victorian Christmas card for a unique storytelling experience that is sure to delight the entire family! Read on to find out what A Christmas Carol cast answered to our Holiday Q&A.
Melinda Gilb
What are the best and worst holiday gifts you’ve ever received? I really appreciate when I receive gifts. I guess it was the best because it was completely not expected but when I was about 6 or 7, Santa surprised my brother and I with new bikes. Big bikes! After we had opened all of our gifts, my parents asked my brother and I to gather up all the paper and take it into the garage. When we opened the door…there they were. Bright shiny new bikes! The worst if I have to pick was my brother once gave me a $.79 bottle of clear nail polish. I don’t remember what I got him but I spent at least $2.50 on his gift. Mind we were very young but come on, clear nail polish? At least he could have bought color nail polish!
What is your least favorite holiday food? Eggnog. I used to love it, now not so much.
What is your favorite way to serve others during the holidays (and beyond)? I know this is going to sound so corny but I honestly love telling the story of A Christmas Carol. Its message is timeless and just as relevant today as the day it was written.
You’re walking down the street, feeling great – what holiday song would be playing in the background? What is your most cringe-worthy holiday song? Anything from A Charlie Brown Christmas puts me in the best mood. I listen to it year round. The cringe-worthy holiday song, and I don’t care who is singing it has got to be “Santa Baby”. Yuck!
Finish this thought, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without _____.” Baby Jesus!
Megan Carmitchel
What are the best and worst holiday gifts you’ve ever received? Honestly nothing stands out as my worst holiday gift! The best holiday gift I ever received was a handmade wooden music stand that my dad made for me in 5th grade when I was learning to play the violin.
What is your least favorite holiday food? My least favorite holiday food is fruitcake!
What is your favorite way to serve others during the holidays (and beyond)? We like to have the kids pick out toys to donate to other children in need. We also participate in a family serve day.
What is your most cringe-worthy holiday song? “I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus” it has always made me cringe!
Finish this thought, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without _____.” My family and the traditions we have created together over the years really make the Christmas season for me.
Tom Stephenson
What are the best and worst holiday gifts you’ve ever received? Too many to chose from. For the sake of this exercise let’s say the best one was a French horn. The worst would be playing one of those swapping gift games and ending up with a can of tomato soup.
What is your least favorite holiday food? Eggnog. Hands down.
What is your favorite way to serve others during the holidays (and beyond)? Performing.
You’re walking down the street, feeling great – what holiday song would be playing in the background? What is your most cringe-worthy holiday song? Winter Wonderland is my Christmas soundtrack. “Fum, Fum, Fum” is a little cringe-worthy.
Finish this thought, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without _____.” Candles.
David McBean
What are the best and worst holiday gifts you’ve ever received? The best gift I have received is being welcomed into another family’s Christmas celebrations. The worst was a laminated map of the world.
What is your least favorite holiday food? Anything with meat.
What is your favorite way to serve others during the holidays (and beyond)? Doing A Christmas Carol and serving as a music director for the church where I work.
Finish this thought, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without _____.” My “A Christmas Carol” family.
Charles Evans Jr.
What are the best and worst holiday gifts you’ve ever received? I think I can answer both of those! Best: Day 1 – The whole family home for the holidays. Worst: Day 6 – The whole family home for the holidays.
What is your least favorite holiday food? Eggnog! I swear it tastes like liquefied bubble gum.
What is your favorite way to serve others during the holidays (and beyond)? There is a great quote from Patton Oswalt as he is describing our world… “It’s Chaos, be kind”. The holidays are my annual reminder to practice kindness to all those that I meet.
Finish this thought, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without _____.” A Christmas Carol! There is a reason this story has been retold countless times since its creation. The message is a powerful one and it is a pleasure getting to share it every year.
Patrick McBride
What are the best and worst holiday gifts you’ve ever received? I can’t recall but the best gift I’ve ever given to someone was Paisley (rest her soul) an adorable miniature Labradoodle.
What is your least favorite holiday food? Fruitcake.
What is your favorite way to serve others during the holidays (and beyond)? Performing in A Christmas Carol.
Finish this thought, “It wouldn’t be Christmas without _____.” Asking my daughter if she’s been good or bad according to Santa.
Catch A Christmas Carol through December 30th.
Director’s Notes: HIR
Taylor Mac is an artist who has forever changed the way I view the world. Much like other plays in the genre of absurd realism have—Albee’s The Goat and Shepard’s Buried Child, to name a couple. “Hir” is a seldom used third gender pronoun pronounced “here,” for the double meaning of what’s happening here, in homes across the country. Mac looks at the American family and the traditional roles we are asked to play in a world whose rules keep changing. So many things we once took for facts have turned out to be nothing more than ideological rules that helped perpetuate the patriarchy. So what happens when our ideals are rendered impotent?
Taylor Mac, whose gender pronoun is “judy” (yes it is hard, and thats the point) asks us to take a look at what’s happening around us and decide whether we will be part of this new world in transition. Perhaps you can’t build a clearer future without making a mess of the past. Mac knows full well judy’s audience, the white cisgendered majority. Mac also knows what a regional theatre audience loves to watch—old forms; the family kitchen sink narrative.
This is a play about a revolution and how we deal with the repercussions. If we explode the patriarchy, how do we care for the pieces left behind? Where do the straight white men go? It’s clear that the world needs more estrogen in leadership, but perhaps that’s not enough— perhaps queering the world up will save us.
HIR runs though Oct. 28 at Cygnet Theatre. Buy tickets here.
Director’s Notes: Every Brilliant Thing
If we do our job, you will leave the theatre with a better sense of community and a new perspective on mental illness. I hope you will start conversations about these subjects, as they are still very taboo.
The variable hard wired into the show is you. You entered the theatre as an individual and leave as a member of a community. Some of you will act, some of you added to the list. It is our intention to have a conversation with the lights on, to meet the audience with a hug and hold their hand along the way.
The playwright allowed us to stretch the fabric of this play around the performer and his life. In the improvisations with audiences early on we found that we had to practice, “radical inclusion.” How do we always make a positive choice in our interactions? How do we always make the audience feel loved and safe and heard? For example: If Ro wants an audience member to be louder in his interactions, he needs to set the example with his own voice. In the process of answering these questions I realized just how much this play marries form and content. The message that we learned as a rehearsal technique is also the core message of the play.
How do we make others feel? Set the example. Call that person you fear suffering from depression. Be kind and gentle one another. Stop and listen. As our playwright writes, “We’re all subconsciously affected by the behavior of our peers.”
There is brilliance all around us. We are in this together.
For my Uncle Bobby.
Every Brilliant Thing runs through Sept. 16 at Cygnet Theatre.
Director’s Notes: Monty Python’s Spamalot
Sean Murray directs and stars in Monty Python’s Spamalot this summer at Cygnet.
Spam. Killer rabbits. Penguins on tellies. The Minister of Silly Walks. The Spanish Inquisition. Lumberjacks in suspenders and a bra.
Like many teenagers in the 70s, me and my friends were obsessed with Monty Python. We knew all the lines from their inspired and loony sketches on their BBC show, The Flying Circus. Then in 1975 their first film came out: Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Stop. Just stop. We couldn’t breathe! King Arthur and his Knights clomping around Britain accompanied by clacking coconuts! They encountered mud flats, the plague, surly French taunters, Knights of Ni in scene after scene of hiliarious insanity.
Then in 2005 Pythoner Eric Idle had the even more lunatic idea of adapting this comic classic film into a Broadway musical. Reshaping it and molding it into an entirely new thing, he brought on Broadway heavy-weights to bring it in a smash. Mike Nichols to direct. San Diego local-done-well Cacey Nicholaw to choreograph. Comedians Tim Curry, Hank Azzaria, David Hyde-Pierce, Chris Sieber and Christian Borle took the famous roles.
The show received 14 Tony nominations and won Best Musical. I think they did okay.
So enjoy. If you don’t I will say “Ni” again to you.
Monty Python’s Spamalot runs through August 12. Buy your tickets now!
Cygnet Theatre Announces a New Look!
If the old adage “what you see is what you get” really is true, we want to make sure you, as an audience member, know exactly what you can expect from Cygnet. We worked with brand design agency MiresBall to create a fresh new look and feel for the next phase in our company’s growth. After revisiting our organization’s mission and values, gathering feedback from key stakeholders, and a series of brainstorming meetings, our new brand identity emerged. We are very excited about the new direction and hope you are too!
Our graphics: Over the past 15 seasons big things have happened on the Cygnet stage. As we begin the next phase of our company, kicking off our sixteenth season, we have updated our branding and graphics to be more in line with the artistic choices we make on that stage. Bold, sophisticated, curious.
Our logo: The swan has been part of our DNA since we took flight. It’s in our name. It’s got momentum, personality, and strength…Just like Cygnet Theatre. Learn more about our history and name.
Our tagline: Up close. Far reaching. It’s what we do in four words. Up close is what patrons love about coming to a Cygnet show. With 246 seats, there isn’t a bad seat in the house and each performance is an intimate experience. But the work we do here covers ground. Emotionally, artistically, and in the community. It’s Far Reaching.
About MiresBall
For category leaders—and those who aspire to lead—MiresBall provides trusted creative expertise drawn from 30+ years of work with global brands. With a balance of passion and pragmatism, we give organizations the confidence to aim higher and achieve more.
Open Your Hearts to the Characters of The Wind and the Breeze
Meet the strong characters of The Wind and the Breeze; Sam, Tea, Ronda, Nia, Ana and Shantell.
Moving the crowd as legendary emcee Sam is Terrell Donnell Sledge. His faithful group of protégées include Cortez L. Johnson as Tea, Chaz Shermil as Nia, Nadia Guevara as Ana, and Demetrius Clayton as Shantell. Rounding out the cast is Monique Gaffney as the no-nonsense police officer, Ronda.
SAM: An old soul. A stubborn root. The best emcee around and it isn’t close.
“Failure is a beautiful, beautiful sword. Separates hearts from heads.
So you can think.
So you can strategize.
So you can put yourself back together the way you want to.”
TEA: A class clown without trying to be. Too lovable for his own good. What he lacks in talent, he makes up for in optimism.
“Damn.
Atlanta ain’t got no Beef-a-Roos?
…
Shit.”
RONDA: A no-nonsense police officer A knower of things unseen.
“We ain’t from here.
We from God.”
NIA: “Nia” means purpose. Self-aware without being self-absorbed.
“Heroes is heroes. They will always wanna be like you”
ANA: A beautiful, talented singer. A generous heart. Ready for a new beginning.
“…every place is the same…
I mean like in terms of things that actually matter”
SHANTELL: Acerbic. Driven. Talented emcee.
“But see I don’t get hustled, cause I got game.
Please try to play me, cause I’ma flip that real estate”
The Wind and the Breeze closes June 10th. Don’t miss it!
Playwright & Director Notes: The Wind and the Breeze
The director and playwright of The Wind and the Breeze talk about this lyrical drama. Catch it May 16 – June 10 during its world premiere at Cygnet Theatre!
Rob Lutfy: Director
From the Selection Committee of the Whiting Award:
“Nathan Alan Davis is a genuine poet of the theatre, charting new territory for lyrical drama. Play after play showcases his uncanny gift for allegory and language, boiling down the large narratives of the African-American past to the scale of individuals wrestling to express themselves. He exhibits unwavering command of styles and textures, from vaulted diction to teen slang. His verve, emotional intelligence, and ambition are outstanding.”
I love this play for its people; they are family to me. I have lived with and fought for this play for six years now. Nathan Alan Davis has become one of my dear friends and his plays continue to captivate me. The things I have grown to love about Nathan’s writing are all here even if this is perhaps his most realistic and subtle play. Anyone close to Nathan knows that he sees signs in life due to his deep awareness of God in all things– even in how his children were born. I love that about Nathan and I love that about the people that inhabit his plays. Nathan has written a meditation on change, acceptance and dreams. Every word matters in Nathan’s plays, just as every word left unspoken.
What really matters in life are the people around us. So often we put all our energy and focus into chasing our dreams that we lose ourselves in the process. We place expectations on ourselves and others and at times sacrifice too much to get ahead. Sam is learning the patience it takes to let go and accept his station in life. And this lesson isn’t one you can work at. It comes when you least expect it and most of the time it’s been under your nose all along.
This is also what Nathan is asking of his audience: patience.
Patience to see the metaphors in the play
Patience to know that Nathan has given you just enough to connect the dots
Patience to see something as simple as saying I love you by offering an ice cream sandwich.
Nathan makes the seemingly mundane magical and poetic. Open your hearts to Sam the Bermuda triangle, Sam the State Street bridge troll, Sam the Living Rock City Legend, Sam the Prophet, Sam the hero, Sam the enigma.
For Owiso Odera, who loved this play with all his heart. And for every director, literary manger, actor, stage manager, dramaturg, designer, and audience this play has seen in its journey to this world premier.
Nathan Alan Davis: Playwright
This is the second play I ever wrote. The first draft, which I wrote somewhere around 2010, only had four of the characters (SAM, TEA, NIA and ANA). In 2012 I did a workshop at the Kennedy Center, which was the impetus for fleshing out the play more and adding the additional characters (RONDA and SHANTELL). That’s also where Rob Lutfy first saw the play and he and I connected shortly after. In 2013 this play won the Lorraine Hansberry Award. Then in 2015 I did a workshop at the New Harmony Project, which is where I think the play fully found itself. The initial impulse was to write a very conversational, slice of life play and thankfully I’ve been able to maintain a connection to that. The play is set in my hometown (Rockford, IL) and it is in many ways about the conflicted feelings we have about where we came from. What it means to leave. What it means to stay. Who you leave behind. How you change and whether or not the people you love most change along with you.
In 2016 this play won the Blue Ink Playwriting Award and received a staged reading at American Blues Theatre, Rob Lutfy became attached to the play during the workshops in LA at The Theatre @ Boston Court, at Cygnet, and for our final workshop with the world premier cast you see here at The Milwaukee Repertory Theater.
The reading we did as part of the Bill and Judy Garrett Finish Line Commission in 2016 went very well and the audience was very connected and very engaged. So that was encouraging. A lot of times with plays that come from Black writers and feature Black characters – or characters from other marginalized groups – there is an expectation (sometimes spoken, sometimes unspoken) that there will be a social issue or historical trauma at the center of the story. I’ve written those plays before and I will again – but this is not that play. To find a professional theatre that is willing and excited to embrace The Wind and the Breeze on its own terms was not at all a sure thing. Cygnet stepped up to the plate and I’m thrilled to bring it to life here.
I hope that people see themselves, their families and their friends in the play. In fact, I’m pretty confident they will. But if the play works as it’s intended to there won’t be one single takeaway or one simple meaning. If anything, I hope that people will emerge feeling more whole. More connected to their past and to their present.
A Little Night Music: Q&A with the Actors
Remember, darling? A Little Night Music was staged exactly 10 years ago as our first production in our Old Town home. It is so great to have this delightful musical on our stage again.
We asked some of the very talented cast about their favorite Sondheim productions, the songs that have an affect on them, and their favorite “Night-Music-Moment”.
KAROLE FOREMAN (Desirée Armfeldt)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
Sweeney Todd!
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
One Song Glory from RENT. I lost a lot of friends during the AIDS epidemic in the 80’s and 90’s.
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
A Weekend in the Country.
DEBRA WANGER (Mrs. Nordstrom)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
I saw the original first national tour of Sweeney Todd with Angela Landsbury & George Hearn. I was just a little kid (probably too young to see it at that age.) It scared the crap out of me but I remember the whistle going through my bones. Amazing.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
Mama, A Rainbow from Minnie’s boys and You are Your Daddy’s Son from Ragtime.
KATIE SAPPER (Anne Egerman)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
I love this one – A Little Night Music! The story is so rich and the music is full of hidden gems that reveal character motives and feelings. Sondheim leaves so many Easter eggs that are so exciting to find! I also love the review Sondheim on Sondheim as well because I love the witty footage.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
I always cry when I listen to the musical Come From Away in its entirety. I also get teary listening to Mother Nature’s Son by The Beatles.
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
Too many to count!! I dig the opening sequence we do. I loved the rehearsal process, making discoveries and watching the entire company make brilliant choices.
SANDY CAMPBELL (Charlotte)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
So many. Top five would be: A Little Night Music (of course), Follies, Merrily We Roll Along, Passion, Sweeney Todd.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
I have a lot of these too, in several genres. Musical theatre: Not A Day Goes By, Let Them Hear You and ‘Til We Reach That Day from Ragtime. Pop: The Promise by Tracy Chapman. Movie: Gabriel’s Oboe from The Mission and Love Theme from Sophie’s Choice.
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
I have several of these too! I love the end of Act One – A Weekend in the Country; brilliance in storytelling and musicality. Every Day A Little Death; hauntingly beautiful song. I also love the “wooden ring” monologue that Madame Armfeldt has in the Second Act.
JOSEPH GRIENENBERGER (Mr. Lindquist)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
My favorite work overall is probably “Sweeney Todd,” but “A Little Night Music” is the most delightful and refined work.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
A Simple Song by Leonard Bernstein, Children and Art by Stephen Sondheim, and If I Ever Say I’m Over You by John Bucchino.
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
So many to choose from, but I think the dining room scene is outstanding writing.
CHRISTINE HEWITT (Mrs. Anderson)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
Into The Woods and Company.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
Losing My Mind (Follies – Sondheim), Not A Day Goes By (Merrily We Roll Along – Sondheim), No One is Alone (Into The Woods – Sondheim). Can you tell I’m a fan?
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
Soon.Now.Later – song trio and the dinner scene.
CATIE MARRON (Mrs. Segstrom)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
Into the Woods – The storytelling is seamless and the music is gorgeous.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
Being Alive (Company), You’re My Home (Billy Joel), Rhiannon (Fleetwood Mac), and You’ll Never Walk Alone (Carousel).
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
I am not sure it has happened yet. There are so many wonderful moments throughout the show, but many of the most fun moments happen offstage!
MEGAN CARMITCHEL (Charlotte)
What is your favorite Sondheim production?
Into the Woods has always been my favorite. It is remarkable because as I have gone through life my perspective has changed and I am still able to identify with a different theme or character.
Send in the Clowns gets people emotional. What other song affects you like that (musical theatre or other)?
Everything Changes from Waitress. The first time I heard it I was pregnant with my daughter and had just lost my mom. I felt like it was speaking directly to what I was feeling- immense grief but so much new hope. I still feel that every time I listen to it.
What is your favorite Night-Music-Moment?
I love Weekend in the County when everyone is singing their respective lines, overlapping each other. I also love Soon.Now.Later! And it has been amazing getting to know everyone during the rehearsal process.
Catch A Little Night Music through April 22nd!