Cleveland Play House Announces 2012-13 Season
Posted March 12, 2012 in Press Releases
CLEVELAND, OH (March 11, 2012) - Artistic Director Michael Bloom announces the lineup for the 97th consecutive season of Cleveland Play House, its second at PlayhouseSquare in downtown Cleveland. Two world premieres and contemporary work contribute to the variety of entertainment Bloom has designed for the 2012-13 Season.
“Cleveland Play House has experienced an extraordinary transformation in our first season downtown,” reflects Bloom on the institution’s three new state-of-the-art venues. “And we’ve seen record-breaking single ticket sales.” Building on that success, Bloom remarks, “With five contemporary plays, including two world premieres, next season affirms the company’s commitment to its vision of being a top-tier contemporary theatre. Our exciting second season at PlayhouseSquare will bring even more variety, breadth and quality to our audiences and keep CPH in the national theatre conversation about new work.”
The 2012-13 Season includes two world premieres. The first, A Carol for Cleveland, is a family-friendly fable for the holidays adapted by Eric Coble from a story by Cleveland’s master mystery novelist, Les Roberts. The second world premiere is Rich Girl by Victoria Stewart that Bloom describes as “a clever and hip comedy about love and money in the age of CNBC,” to be produced in the Second Stage. It is also the anchor production for the New Ground Theatre Festival in May of 2013. Northeast Ohio is known for being the cradle of professional football, so the city of Cleveland is the perfect place for a production of last year’s Broadway hit Lombardi, which Bloom notes is “not just a sports play but a family drama about integrity, teamwork and second chances.” Also in the new season, CPH rediscovers a lost classic in Bell, Book and Candle, “one of the wittiest romantic comedies written by an American playwright,” remarks Bloom. The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith will turn the Allen Theatre into a jazz club when performer Miche Braden captures the soulful singing style and the feisty essence of the “Empress of the Blues.” Two acclaimed dramas complete the season lineup. The Whipping Man, to be produced in the Second Stage, “is an utterly surprising and suspenseful period piece set just after the Civil War,” says Bloom. “And the Tony Award nominee Good People is in my opinion the best play written so far in this century."
Subscriptions for all seven (7) plays are available now at prices ranging from $105 (for currently enrolled students under age 25 with valid ID) to $357, with extra discounts for educators. Additional pricing will be available for a number of flexible partial season packages. To purchase subscriptions or receive more information, call 216-400-7096 or go to www.clevelandplayhouse.com. Group tickets (10 or more) are available now at savings up to 50% for orders received before April 30th. Tickets for individual performances will range from $15 (for currently enrolled students under age 25 with valid ID) to $69 and will go on sale August 19th.
Cleveland Play House 2012-2013
SUBSCRIPTION Mainstage Season
Lombardi
Sept. 14 - Oct. 7, 2012 ~ Allen Theatre
Adapted by Eric Simonson, based on the biography When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi by Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Maraniss Co-produced with Arizona Theatre Company
Sport produces great human drama and there is no greater sports icon to bring to theatrical life than Hall of Fame football coach Vince Lombardi, unquestionably one of the most inspirational and quotable personalities of all time. More than a play about football,Lombardi is an inspiring tale of dedication, loyalty, sacrifice and second chances. Told through the eyes of a young reporter, we get a behind-the-scenes look at the greatest coach of all time, the players who would do anything for him and the woman who supports them all.
The Whipping Man
Nov. 2 - 25, 2012 ~ Second Stage
Written by Matthew Lopez
Directed by Giovanna Sardelli
It is April 1865. The Civil War is over and throughout the South slaves are being freed, soldiers are returning home and Jewish families are celebrating Passover. In this gripping new play, a severely wounded young Confederate soldier and two men who used to be his slaves navigate their shifting relationship, wrestle over the past, and struggle to carve out new lives in a chaotic war-torn world. The Whipping Man is a profoundly compelling and moving story about race, religion, responsibility and freedom which sheds new light on this chapter in American history.
A Carol for Cleveland - WORLD PREMIERE
Nov. 30 - Dec. 23, 2012 ~ Allen Theatre
Adapted by Eric Coble, based on a novella by Les Roberts
Directed by Laura Kepley, Associate Artistic Director of CPH
This world premiere play commissioned by CPH is a moving holiday story about family, second chances, and the kindness of strangers. In the midst of one of America’s worst recessions, Ed Podolak, an unemployed worker from western Pennsylvania, winds up in Cleveland looking for a job. It’s Christmas Eve, and all he has to his name is forty-eight bucks—and that isn’t nearly enough to buy Christmas presents for his wife and his kids back home. Pushed to the brink, he commits a desperate act which changes his life in ways he never imagined. Hope, forgiveness, and humor fill this holiday tale of redemption.
Bell, Book and Candle
Jan. 11 – Feb. 3, 2013 ~ Allen Theatre
Written by John van Druten
Directed by Michael Bloom, Artistic Director of CPH
It’s the 1950s and Gillian Holroyd is living the life of a restless witch in the hip Murray Hill district of New York City. Her handsome upstairs neighbor Shep Henderson has caught her eye. Gillian longs for love but fiercely guards her independence and her secret career as a high-powered witch. Can this romance work?
The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith Feb. 15 - March 10, 2013 ~ Allen Theatre
Written by Angelo Parra
Musical Direction and Performance by Miche Braden
Conceived and directed by Joe Brancato
This soulful and stunning musical gives you a glimpse into the life, loves and career of the Empress of the Blues. Sexy and racy, Blues singer Bessie Smith was the definition of a Red Hot Mamma and the most successful entertainer of her time. On the eve of her tragic death in 1937, Bessie takes center stage in a Memphis “buffet flat.” Now, among friends, she tells the story of her amazing life, career, her loves and losses. Bessie Smith comes to life and sings the songs that made her so unforgettable, St. Louis Blues, Need a Little Sugar in my Bowl and Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out and much more
Good People
Mar. 22 - Apr. 14, 2013 ~ Allen Theatre
Written by David Lindsay-Abaire
Directed by Laura Kepley, Associate Artistic Director of CPH
Co-produced with Syracuse Stage
Margie Walsh can’t catch a break. Laid off from her job at the dollar store, Margie is faced with the reality that South Boston is providing her the same level of opportunity it always has: none. Wry, rough around the edges and ready to make a change, she seeks out the one who got away – both from South Boston and from her. Nominated for a 2011 Tony Award for Best Play, Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire's Good People takes on class, morality, and the American Dream.
Rich Girl - WORLD PREMIERE
Anchor production of New Ground Theatre Festival
Apr. 12 - May 5, 2013 ~ Second Stage
Written by Victoria Stewart
Directed by Michael Bloom, Artistic Director of CPH
When 26-year-old Claudine meets Henry, a starving artist, she falls head over heels. Her mother, a financial guru, has her doubts. Is Henry everything her daughter has been looking for? Or is he after only one thing? A modern day adaptation of Henry James'Washington Square, this comedy by up-and-coming playwright Victoria Stewart is about how women relate to men, mothers and money - in that order. Rich Girl will be a world premiere and the anchor of New Ground Theatre Festival for 2013.
