"Tuesdays With Morrie" at Timber Lake Playhouse in Mt Carroll is a tour de force for actors Robert Maher and Courtney Crouse. Tonight's performance was riveting and enlightening. It was enlightening in that it should be seen by anyone who has been through the death of a loved one (which is all of us) so we can learn the same life lessons. Or, to realize, without death, there is no life (it should be embraced and not ignored or pushed aside). More to my review is coming to Examiner (Chicago)...Chuck Smith, a Chicago theater legend, directs this play. He has a remarkable ability to bring out the best from performers in his productions. He has done it again....full review...Riveting performances drive 'Tuesdays With Morrie' at TLP
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TIMBER LAKE PLAYHOUSE PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release June 14, 2013 ‘Tuesdays With Morrie’ Comes Alive at TLP Mount Carroll, IL-- Timber Lake Playhouse (TLP) follows up its hit season opener, A Chorus Line, with the stage adaptation of Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays With Morrie opening Thursday, June 20. Acclaimed Chicago director Chuck Smith returns to direct the show that stars longtime TLP favorites Robert Maher and Courtney Crouse in the story of an accomplished journalist who visits an old college professor and gets one final lesson on the meaning of life. Mitch Albom’s book has sold over 15 million copies worldwide since its release in 1997 and became a cultural touchstone. A TV movie starring Jack Lemmon was filmed in 1999. The stage adaptation was praised as “Unforgettable! No matter how well you tell the story, the play makes it more vivid, more humorous, more shattering.” To celebrate the life-affirming themes of the play, Timber Lake Playhouse is looking for people to share their own stories of their mentors. Maybe it was a grandparent, or a teacher, or a colleague. Someone older, patient and wise, who understood you when you were young and searching, helped you see the world as a more profound place, gave you sound advice to help you make your way through it. For Mitch Albom, that person was Morrie Schwartz, but most people have heroes in their lives they never thank. TLP will give away two tickets to each performance of Tuesdays With Morrie to people who have served as mentors to others. To nominate your mentor, email info@timberlakeplayhouse.org with your name, your mentor’s name and contact information and a short explanation of how this person inspired you. TLP will pick 11 mentors to receive free tickets to the production. Tuesdays With Morrie runs June 20-29 for 11 performances only. TLP is located at 8215 Black Oak Rd. in rural Mount Carroll, IL. Tickets are $15-23 and are available at the box office, by calling 815-244-2035 or visiting www.timberlakeplayhouse.org. Following Tuesdays With Morrie, TLP will present The Music Man July 5-14, Unnecessary Farce July 18-27, Monty Python’s Spamalot August 1-11. Seussical, based on the books of Dr. Seuss, will be presented for children and families July 9, 11, 12 and 13 and August 6, 8, 9 and 10. All tickets to Seussical are only $6. Full Production Credits: TIMBER LAKE PLAYHOUSE presents Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays With Morrie by JEFFREY HATCHER AND MITCH ALBOM BASED ON THE BOOK BY MITCH ALBOM Directed by CHUCK SMITH Original New York production produced by David S. Singer, Elizabeth Ireland McCann, Joey Parnes, Amy & Scott Nederlander, Harold Thau, Moira Wilson, Shadowcatcher Entertainment Originally presented by New York Stage and Film Company and the Powerhouse Theatre at Vassar College, 2002. Tuesdays With Morrie was supported by a playwright’s residency and public staged readings at the 2001 O’Neill National Playwrights Conference of the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, Waterford, CT. Tuesdays With Morrie is presented through special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc. TLP Production Partner Sponsors: Compliance Signs Kunes Country Auto Group Suit Supply Chicago Timber Lake Resort Anonymous This program is partially sponsored by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency. Chuck Smith (Director) has served twelve consecutive seasons at TLP. A twenty-one year Goodman Theatre artistic staff member and an associate producer of Legacy Productions, a Chicago-based touring company, he recently received the 2012 Goodman Theatre August Wilson Award and the 2011 Lloyd Richards Directing Award with his production of Knock Me a Kiss at the National Black Theater Festival (winner of 11 New York Audelco awards, including Director of a Dramatic production and Dramatic Production of the Year). Smith’s Goodman credits include the Chicago premieres of By the way Meet Vera Stark, Race, The Good Negro, Proof and The Story; the world premieres of By the Music of the Spheres andThe Gift Horse; James Baldwin’s The Amen Corner, which transferred to Boston’s Huntington Theatre Company where it won the Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Award for Best Direction; Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun; Pearl Cleage’s Blues for an Alabama Sky; August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; the Fats Waller musical Ain’t Misbehavin’; the 1993 to 1995 productions of A Christmas Carol; Crumbs From the Table of Joy; Vivisections from a Blown Mind; and The Meeting. He served as dramaturg for the world-premiere production of August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean at the Goodman. At Columbia College Chicago he was facilitator of the Theodore Ward Prize playwriting contest for 20 years and editor of the contest anthologies Seven Black Plays and Best Black Plays. He won a Chicago Emmy Award as associate producer/theatrical director for the NBC teleplay Crime of Innocence, and was theatrical director for the Emmy Award-winning Fast Break to Glory and the Emmy Award-nominated The Martin Luther King Suite. Mr. Smith is a 2003 inductee into the Chicago State University Gwendolyn Brooks Center’s Literary Hall of Fame and a 2001 Chicago Tribune Chicagoan of the Year. He is the proud recipient of the 1982 Paul Robeson Award and the 1997 Award of Merit presented by the Black Theater Alliance of Chicago. He is currently a board member of the African American Arts Alliance of Chicago. PRODUCTION STAFF Production Stage Manager …................................................................... Rena Waits Stage Manager.............................................................. Mary-Catherine Mikalayunas Scenic Designer........................................................................................... Loren Borja Lighting Designer............................................................................ Tony Luetkenhaus Costume Designer ….......................................................................... Kelcey Matheny Costume Shop Manager ...................................................................... Emma Crafton Technical Director............................................................................... Roger Chapman Properties Master …............................................................................ Tasha Sandage Sound Designer/ Engineer........................................................................ Patrick Bley Master Electrician…………….................……........................…...…… James Kolditz Assistant Technical Director …...........................................................… Carrie Peiffer Scenic Artist ….............................................................................. Catie DelleMonache Carpenter …................................................................................... Matthew Birchmeier Costuming Assistant ……………….............................................……. Hollyann Lillie ### -- James Beaudry, Executive Director Timber Lake Playhouse PO Box 29 Mount Carroll, IL 61053 www.timberlakeplayhouse.org jpbeaudry@timberlakeplayhouse.org Box Office:815-244-2035 Our 2013 Season A Chorus Line Tuesdays With Morrie The Music Man Unnecessary Farce Monty Python's Spamalot 'SWonderful: The New Gershwin Musical Broadway experience plays huge role in TLP's 'A Chorus Line'
Related topics Related Ads Advertisement Using kick and "A Chorus Line" is surely a key when discussing this musical. But, never before in the history of the theater in the woods has "A Chorus Line" been staged, so this should be a treat for sure. To make sure of that Executive Director James Beaudry has enlisted the services of Will Taylor, no stranger to the TLP stage. Taylor also has ties to Broadway with this play. Taylor, who played Bobby in the recent Broadway revival of "A Chorus Line"directs and recreates Michael Bennett’s staging for the musical that tells the stories of performers with big dreams as they fight for a spot "on the line." It features Marvin Hamlisch’s score which includes “What I Did For Love,” “I Can Do That” and “One (Singular Sensation).” Location: Timber Lake Playhouse, Mt Carroll, Illinois 42.050910949707 ; -89.914047241211 TLP is in its 52nd year and it never has produced this play, and Beaudry explains why. “TLP has never attempted to produce 'A Chorus Line' because the level of talent and stamina required for this show is unmatched in any other musical,” Beaudry said. “To do the show right, these performers must be athletes. As one dancer quipped, “It’s like playing Monday Night Football eight times a week.” Beaudry obviously feels confident with the artists he has that it can be pulled off, and adding Taylor, it should do the trick. “After his successes with TLP’s 'Oklahoma!' and 'Guys & Dolls,' I knew Will Taylor had the expertise to do the show right," Beaudry noted. If one has seen Taylor's past work, one knows why Beaudry speaks so highly of Taylor's work. It will become evident from the outset. Not only does Taylor bring that boost of Broadway to the production, that experience runs deeper. Pilar Millhollen, seen as Bebe in the first national tour of "A Chorus Line" and on Broadway in Chicago, stars as Cassie. In the role of Connie Wong, Geena Quintos comes directly to TLP from the most recent national tour. Quintos, who performed on Broadway in "Miss Saigon> She also serves as assistant director. "It’s always an honor to bring Will to TLP, and working with Pilar, Kaolin and Geena has also been a joy and a privilege. Watching rehearsals makes my jaw drop, because these people are so good,” Beaudry concluded. "A Chorus Line" runs June 6-16 for 12 performances only. TLP is located at 8215 Black Oak Road. in rural Mount Carroll, IL. Tickets are $15-23 and are available at the box office, by calling 815-244-2035 or visiting their website here. This Pulitzer Prize winning musical is not recommended for children, as it is based on actual interviews with real people and contains some adult language, humor and content. CAST Starring: Zach - Kaolin Bass Cassie - Pilar Millhollen Larry - Patrick Palmer Don - Alex Johnson Mike - Joe Capstick Greg - Cameron Turner Bobby - Sawyer Smith Richie - Gilbert Domally Al - Zak McMahon Mark - Dylan Passman Paul - Tim Wessel Roy - Henry McGinnis Butch - Elliot Marach Frank - Adam Fane Kristine - Jessica Giachetto Sheila - Alexandra Plath Val - Genna-Paige Kanago Maggie - Erica Stephan Judy - Sarah Larson Bebe - Danielle Davila Diana - Tayloir Pace Vicki - Hannah-Jo Weisberg Lois - Abby Taylor Tricia - Hanah Nardone Connie - Geena Quintos Directed and choreographed by Will Taylor 'Spamalot' featured at Timber Lake
Playhouse as summer season ready 'Spamalot' featured at Timber Lake Playhouse as summer season ready
Advertisement Timber Lake Playhouse in Mt. Carroll is gearing up for another spectacular season staging plays in a place that is special. It is special because of its location, but also the talent that steps on stage year in and year out. It is the combination of local and national, and topping it off with talent from Chicago's renown theater community. After all, traveling from Chicago, west to Mt. Carroll, just could be the perfect getaway for those who want to escape, and for those who love the theater. This summer marks 52 years staging plays. It is the longest-running, professional summer theater in Illinois. One show this summer, which could not legally be advertised until March 2013 is "Spamlot." Executive Directer James Beaudry did know about this, of course, and noted, “Sean Cercone, director of professional licensing for Theatrical Rights Worldwide, contacted us and several other theatre companies in April 2012. We had a four-day window to make a decision and secure the rights, or the show would be unavailable because another national tour was going back out,” Beaudry said. © 2013 Nokia© 2013 Microsoft Corporation Location: Timber Lake Playhouse 42.052791 ; -89.938435 Making it happen needed quick action and Beaudry responded. “So we made it happen. But the only catch was that we couldn’t advertise the show until March 2013. When we announced the rest of season last July, we were as creative as possible about selling the show without saying anything specific about it.” Here is a look at the upcoming productions for Timber Lake Playhouse in Mt. Carroll. "A Chorus Line" - June 6-16. This is the first time that Timber Lake Playhouse will stage this crowd-pleaser. On this stage, the powerful musical about trying to make it in life and love, will be recreated by Will Taylor. He played Bobby in the recent Broadway revival. "Tuesdays With Morie" - June 20-29. Based on the book by Mitch Albom, the story is an autobiographical story of the Albom and Morrie Schwartz, his former college professor. One may discover the meaning of life in this poignant play about a weekly visit with these two, but with a twist. The professor is battling Lou Gehrig's disease. Chicago mainstay Chuck Smith will direct. This also marks his usual return to the theater in the woods. "The Music Man" - July 5-14. This musical is well-known and if timing is they key, it starts up with Independence Day fresh on the mind. Another aspect of having this one play in Mt. Carroll, is the setting for the play - River City, Iowa. Timber Lake Playhouse is nestled nicely near the mighty Mississippi River and the Iowa border. James Beaudry directs and choreographs the American classic. With Beaudry behind this one, there will be no real "trouble in River City" - - just pure entertainment. "The Unnecessary Farce" - July 18-27. It is billed as Two cops. Three crooks. Eight doors. Go. It is a comedy, a farce and often the perfect concoction in the summer. Just put it this way, this one features a "bagpipe-playing Scottish hitman." "Spamalot" - August 1-11. King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table are on display, Monty Pyhton style, of course. If one loves and know the work of the troupe, a treat is in store. If not, try it out. There will be cows, killer rabbits, and bevy of beautiful show girls. A play that is not always seen at this level and, because of show's rights, not easy to obtain. Credit Timber Lake Playhouse and their reputation for this one. "S'Wonderful" - August 15-25. This is the Midwest premiere of this show. Another reason why the reputation for Timber Lake Playhouse is often unmatched. It features over 42 songs by the George and Ira Gershwin. It takes the theater-goer on a nostalgic trip from he 1920s to present day. It has has been called “a gem for Gershwin lovers, young and old.” For tickets, head here. Timber Lake Playhouse is located at 8215 Black Oak Road, Mount Carroll, Illinois. Call 815-244-2035. |
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September 2014
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