09/01/2006

Record-Eagle/Douglas Tesner
The season opener for Old Town Playhouse is “Clue: The Musical.” The cast includes, from left, Susan Cockfield, Daniel Jablonski, NoahDavid Lein, Jamie Moyers and Nan Worthington.

Old Favorites, New Twists

Old Town Playhouse opens season Sept. 15

By
Record-Eagle staff writer

Record-Eagle/
Douglas Tesner
NoahDavid Lein will be playing Mr. Boddy in the upcoming musical “Clue: The Musical” at the Old Town Playhouse.

TRAVERSE CITY — Old Town Playhouse opens its 47th season with a musical comedy based on a board game.

That show will be followed by nine productions selected to make audiences laugh, cry or think — or all of the above.

"Clue: The Musical" based on the classic crime-solving Parker Brothers board game will start the season on the mainstage Sept. 15 with lively audience participation. The season will also feature an original production by local playwright Terry Lawrence on the Studio Theatre stage, as well as a version of "Annie" scripted specially for children and teen actors presented by the Traverse City Children's Theatre.

In March, the playhouse will offer a musical adaptation of the hit 1997 British movie, "The Full Monty." It deals with a group of blue-collar men who are out of work and decide to try stripping to pay the bills.

"You can say it's about men stripping, but what it's really about is guys trying to keep their families together,"said playhouse Executive Director Phil Murphy, though he also warned that many may find it unsuitable for young audiences because of adult language and subject matter.

Rounding out the mainstage productions are a trip back to Louis XIV's France for Moliere's "Tartuffe," to 1960s New York for Neil Simon's "Sweet Charity" and to 1920s England for Noel Coward's "Hay Fever."

The underlying theme for the mainstage lineup was fun, says Murphy. Hence the slogan "Come Play With Us!" and a game board theme for the season brochure.

"The season comes together based on directorial interest balanced with commercial appeal," Murphy said. "It was after the season was selected that I began searching for a hook that might appeal to our audience," Murphy said. "With 'Clue' as a lead-off, 'Games and Play' came to mind enhanced by 'Tartuffe's' con game, and 'Hay Fever's' playful repartee. When I considered 'Sweet Charity' and 'Full Monty,' both child-like and bold came to mind. 'Sweet Charity' also was from the illustrative, mod period of the '60s."

The opening performance, "Clue," has been well-received at similar venues throughout the country, said Murphy.

"This is a show that has not seen Broadway, but has had a very nice life in the regional and community theater circuit," he said.

The show will feature a different ending every time based on cards drawn at the beginning of the show to choose the culprit, the weapon and the room of the mansion, Murphy said.

In December, the children's group will present "Annie Jr.," adapted by a company that tweaks popular scripts for children's theater groups, Murphy said.

"The plays are shorter than the originals, but they keep most of the main songs and the basic story line," he said. "They work with the authors and composers."

The three plays presented on the Studio stage are Lawrence's original with a modern twist, Wendy Wasserstein's Pulitzer Prize-winning look at women and men of the baby-boom generation, and a funny and touching play about AIDS.

Here's the lineup.

Main Stage:

• "Clue: The Musical," Sept. 15-Oct. 7. Keep an eye on Colonel Mustard if you happen to see him in the conservatory with a candlestick. A comical script and witty lyrics propel the investigation from room to familiar room.

• "Sweet Charity," Nov. 3-25. This Neil Simon musical is based on Federico Fellini's film "Nights of Cabiria." Set in 1960s New York, it's the story of young Charity Hope Valentine, who manages to keep her optimism while working as a taxi dancer and getting her heart broken repeatedly. She leads the charge at a time when women are gaining independence.

• "Tartuffe," Jan. 12-27. Moliere's satirical comedy on religious hypocrisy is about a con man who ingratiaties himself with a family, winning the daughter's hand in marriage, while scheming to seduce the girl's mother and get the father jailed to gain title to the man's estate.

• "The Full Monty," March 2-24. David Yazbek's Tony Award-nominated musical adaptation places this humorous tale in Buffalo, rather than Britain, where the movie was based.

• "Hay Fever," May 4-19. This comedy of bad manners and houseguests helped establish Coward's reputation as a playwright.

Studio shows:

• "Last Call," Oct. 13-18. Lawrence's original script explores what you might do if your life depended on a dying cell phone.

• "The Heidi Chronicles," Feb. 2-17. The late Wasserstein, who died in January, wrote this portrayal of Heidi, an intelligent and well-educated woman who uses her ability and wit to make it in a society dominated by men.

• "As Is," April 6-21. William Hoffman's warm and humorous play about a man struggling with AIDS and its impact on him, his friends, lovers, family and the medical community.

Traverse City Children's Theatre:

• "Annie Jr.," Dec. 8-17. The play is based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie" and adapted from the hit Broadway musical "Annie" for child and teen actors. It's the story of a spunky, Depression-era orphan determined to find her parents, who had left her on the doorstep of a New York City orphanage run by the cruel Miss Hannigan.

Tickets are available in season packages or individually. For a brochure or other details, call 947-2210 or visit www.oldtownplayhouse.com.