“Titanic: The Musical” Sets Sail in Leawood

The Leawood Stage Company, in cooperation with Leawood Parks and Recreation, is pleased to present a concert style production of the Broadway musical Titanic: The Musical in the Lodge at Ironwoods Park, 14701 Mission Road, Leawood, KS 66224.  Friday and Saturday, April 13^th and 14^th, performances will begin at 8:00 p.m.  On Sunday, April 15^th the matinee performance will beginning at 2:00 pm.

This opportunity comes along only once every 100 years. This production of Titanic: The Musical will honor the 100 anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The musical is based on the true story of the maiden voyage from the launching in Southampton, England to the sinking in the Atlantic by an iceberg, played out against the background of the rigid class-distinctions of the Edwardian Age.

The show examines the lives of the actual passengers aboard the great ship focusing on their hopes and dreams and vulnerability in the face catastrophe. The Third Class immigrants dream of a better life in America, the newly-enfranchised Second Class dream of achieving the lifestyles of the rich and famous and the millionaire-Barons of the First Class dream of their supremacy lasting forever.

The ship itself, a dream deemed unsinkable by the ship’s Architect, journeys into legend in the hands of its Captain, and Crew, who reveal their perspectives on why the ship was going too fast, saw the iceberg too late and could not summon help to arrive in time.

Titanic: The Musical opened on Broadway in 1997 and played for 804 performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre and won 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical. Titanic’s expressive lyrics by uplifting score by Maury Yetson, and brilliant book by Peter Stone, create a moving and memorable experience for the audiences.

Directed by Shelly Stewart, with music direction by Kevin Hershberger, this Leawood Stage Company production will be presented concert style. The stellar cast of 42 members and full orchestra are comprised of volunteers with amazing talent. Together they will create a theatrical experience that audiences will be talking about for years to come.

Ticket for all performances will be bargain priced at only $5.00 per person (cash or checks only, no credit cards please).  Due to the limited number of seats inside the Lodge, advance tickets are now available for purchase at the Parks and Recreation desk on the lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS 66211.

For more information contact the Cultural Art Coordinator at the City of Leawood, 913-339-6700 x157.

The Leawood Stage Company, in cooperation with Leawood Parks and Recreation, is pleased to present a concert style production of the Broadway musical Titanic: The Musical in the Lodge at Ironwoods Park, 14701 Mission Road, Leawood, KS 66224.  Friday and Saturday, April 13^th and 14^th, performances will begin at 8:00 p.m.  On Sunday, April 15^th the matinee performance will beginning at 2:00 pm.

This production of Titanic: The Musical will honor the 100 anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The musical is based on the true story of the maiden voyage from Southampton, England to the sinking in the Atlantic by an iceberg. The show examines the lives of the passengers and crew dealing with class issues, immigration and vulnerability in the face catastrophe. It opened on Broadway in 1997 and won 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical.

Titanic’s expressive lyrics by uplifting score by Maury Yetson, and brilliant book by Peter Stone, create a moving and memorable experience for the cast and audiences.

Directed by Shelly Stewart, with music direction by Kevin Hershberger, this Leawood Stage Company production will be presented concert style. Ticket for all performances will be bargain priced at only $5.00 per person (cash or checks only, no credit cards please).  Due to the limited number of seats inside the Lodge, advance tickets are now available for purchase at the Parks and Recreation desk on the lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS 66211.

For more information contact the Cultural Art Coordinator at the City of Leawood, 913-339-6700 x157 or go to www.leawoodstageco.org.

This production of Titanic: The Musical will honor the 100 anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The musical is based on the true story of the maiden voyage from Southampton, England to the sinking in the Atlantic by an iceberg. The show examines the lives of the passengers and crew dealing with class issues, immigration and vulnerability in the face catastrophe. It opened on Broadway in 1997 and won 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical.

“Titanic’s” expressive lyrics by uplifting score by Maury Yeston, and brilliant book by Peter Stone, create a moving and memorable experience for the cast and audiences.

Directed by Shelly Stewart, with music direction by Kevin Hershberger, this Leawood Stage Company production will be presented concert style. Performances will run, Friday, April 13 thru Sunday, April 15, 2012 at the Lodge in Ironwoods Park at 147^th & Mission Road.  Admission is $5.

Rate This Show on KC Stage

The Leawood Stage Company is proud to announce the casting of the Broadway musical Titanic.

OFFICERS

Eric Magnus                 Thomas Andrews – Designer/Builder

Reed Uthe                      J. Bruce Ismay – Owner

Bob Allen                      Captain E. J. Smith

Gary Stang                    William Murdoch – 1^st Officer

Miles Wirth                   Lightoller – 2^nd Officer

Kevin Rehner                Harold Bride – Radioman

Graham Fairleigh         Fredrick Barrett – Stoker

Ray Zarr                          Henry Etches – 1^st Class Steward

FIRST CLASS PASSENGERS

Bill Ellwood                   Isidor Strauss

Vicky Delaughder      Ida Strauss

Greg Toplikar               John J. Astor

Sarah Montoya            Madeline Astor

Ken Kasten                      Benjamin Guggenheim

Debbie Blinn                 Mme. Aubert

John Van de Voort       John B. Thayer

Diane Garrett                Marion Thayer

Andrew Stout               Jack Thayer

Rob Halifax                    George Widener

Sonja Coombes           Eleanor Widener

Erica Baruth                 Charlotte Cardoza

SECOND CLASS PASSENGERS

Trudy Hurley               Alice Beane

Bill Bergman                 Edgar Beane

Jeff Williams                 Charles Clark

Sara Blakesley              Caroline Neville

THIRD CLASS PASSENGERS

Corey Schooler             Jim Farrell

Rachel Adcock              Kate McGowen

Alisha Garnier              Kate Mullins

Courtney Koval            Kate Murphey

ENSEMBLE

          Michael Abernathy

          JoAnna Bledsoe

          Erin Coleman     

          Jonathan Garnier

          Paula Harms

          Patti Howell

          MB Hurst

          Bianca Jordan

          Julia Kasten

          Rosemary Kasten

          Zach Lofland

          Meghan Newman

          Lexi Pudvan

This production of Titanic: The Musical will honor the 100 anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The musical is based on the true story of the maiden voyage from Southampton, England to the sinking in the Atlantic by an iceberg. The show examines the lives of the passengers and crew dealing with class issues, immigration and vulnerability in the face catastrophe. It opened on Broadway in 1997 and won 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical.

“Titanic’s” expressive lyrics by uplifting score by Maury Yetson, and brilliant book by Peter Stone, create a moving and memorable experience for the cast and audiences.

Directed by Shelly Stewart, with music direction by Kevin Hershberger, this Leawood Stage Company production will be presented concert style. Performances will run, Friday, April 13 thru Sunday, April 15, 2012 at the Lodge in Ironwoods Park at 147^th & Mission Road.

Leawood Stage Company Presents Play Development Workshop

The Leawood Stage Company is pleased to present a free workshop on the Process of New Play Development in the Oak Room on the lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive beginning at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, October 29^th.

You’ve seen new plays – but how do they get to the stage?  The American theatre is begging for new models of play development and there is widespread agreement in the field that the choices of new work nationwide are becoming homogenized.

The workshop will be presented by New York City based staff members Morgan Allen and Erin Detrick of New Dramatists, the nation’s premier laboratory for playwrights.  They will take participants through a crash-course in the old models, why they don’t work, and how New Dramatists is working to improve the quality of life for playwrights.

Morgan Allen is in his sixth season as General Manager of New Dramatists, where he oversees and manages bookkeeping/financial accounting, benefits administration and participates in budgeting and financial reporting, as well as coordinating the annual Spring Luncheon, among other responsibilities.  As a playwright, he is the co-author with Mitch Montgomery of Triumph of the Underdog, which was produced during the 2008 New York International Fringe Festival.  His short play, Leap, was featured as part of Prospect Theater Company’s Dark Nights Series in 2006 and can be seen as part of the LSC production of Six One Act Plays.

Erin Detrick is in her fourth season as the Artistic Programs Administrator at New Dramatists, and first had the pleasure of working with the organization as an intern in 2003.  Previously, she was the Publications Director for Playscripts, Inc.  With Playscripts, she co-edited Funny, Strange, Provocative: Seven Plays from Clubbed Thumb and three monologue collections.  As a dramaturge, Erin’s freelance credits include work with Actors Theatre of Louisville, Cleveland Public Theatre, the 24Seven Lab, Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, and a variety of workshop productions.

The Leawood Stage Company will host this unique opportunity for audiences to learn more about the process of developing a script.  As part of our mission, LSC will present this workshop free of charge for the education of the community.  This New Play Development Workshop will be held in association with the Leawood Stage Company’s production of Six One Act Plays.

See a free staged dramatic reading of Six One Act Plays by four playwrights in the Oak Room on the lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive. Friday and Saturday performances will begin at 8:00 p.m. with a Sunday matinee at 2:00 p.m. Following each performance the audience will interact with the playwrights in a question and answer period.  Discover how they were inspired to write their plays and about their process.

For more information contact the Cultural Arts Coordinator at the City of Leawood, 913-339-6700 x157.

Leawood Stage Company Presents Four One Act Plays

EVENT:               Theatrical Production of Six One Act Plays

DATE:                 October 28, 29 & 30, 2011

TIME:                Friday and Saturday 8:00 p.m.
Sunday 2:00 p.m.

LOCATION:    Oak Room, lower level of Leawood City Hall
4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS 66211

ENTRY FEE:       Free Admission

The Leawood Stage Company is pleased to present a script-in-hand dramatic reading of Six One Act Plays by playwrights Morgan Allen, Catherine Filloux, David Hanson, and Richard Pauli in the Oak Room on the lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive. Three free performances will be held on Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and a Sunday matinee will begin at 2:00 pm.

The production includes two plays written by Richard Pauli “Jack Makes a Deal”, a humorous twist on the Jack and the Beanstalk tale, and “Hanging Offense” a conflict between backyard neighbors discussing homeowner regulations. Also two works by David Hanson will be presented, “Buffer Violation” where businessmen make a deal in the men’s room and “The Boy Who Sang on Busses” a peek at the schoolboy’s quest to complete a homework assignment co-written by Hanson and his son Henry.

The lighter side of the production is balanced with 2 plays with a serious message; “Leap” based on a true story of a North Korean couple leaping to freedom and political asylum written by Morgan Allen, and “White Trash” a look at an environmental problem through the eyes of shorebirds by Catherine Filloux.

LSC will host a unique opportunity for audiences to meet the playwrights following each performance. The audience will interact with the playwrights in a question and answer period. Discover how they were inspired to write their plays and about the writing process.

Don’t miss this multiple works production and a chance to interact with the playwrights. For more information contact the Cultural Art Coordinator at the City of Leawood, 913-339-6700 x157.

Leawood Stage Company Holds Auditions for the musical “Titanic”

EVENT:               Auditions for a Concert Style Production of “Titanic”

DATE:                 November 5 & 6, 2011

TIME:                  Saturday, November 5   1:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 6     1:00 – 5:00 p.m.

LOCATION:        Leawood City Hall, Oak Room
4800 Town Center Drive
Leawood, KS 66211

The Leawood Stage Company will hold auditions for “Titanic” on Saturday, November 5^th and Sunday, November 6^th from 1:00 to 5:00 pm in the Oak Room of the Community Center, on the lower level of Leawood City Hall (enter the building through the north doors). Call backs will be held Sunday November 13^th by appointment.

This production of “Titanic: The Musical” will honor the 100 anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The musical is based on the true story of the maiden voyage from Southampton, England to the sinking in the Atlantic by an iceberg. The show examines the lives of the passengers and crew dealing with class issues, immigration and vulnerability in the face catastrophe. It opened on Broadway in 1997 and won 5 Tony Awards including Best Musical.

“Titanic’s” expressive lyrics by uplifting score by Maury Yeston, and brilliant book by Peter Stone, create a moving and memorable experience for the cast and audiences.

Directed by Shelly Stewart, with music direction by Kevin Hershberger, this Leawood Stage Company production will be presented concert style. Be prepared to sing 32 measures from any musical with live accompaniment. There will be an accompanist provided so all those who audition are requested to bring sheet music in your key. Bring a photo and resume if available. No appointment time is necessary.

Performances will run, Friday, April 13 thru Sunday, April 15, 2012. Be a part of this unique community theater experience as the Leawood Stage Company begins their 14^th season of presenting high quality entertainment.

For more information contact the Cultural Art Coordinator at the City of Leawood, 913-339-6700 x157.

Playwriting Workshop
by playwright Kirby Fields

April 2, 2011

Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Oak Room, lower level of Leawood City Hall
4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS 66211

Free Admission!

Leawood Stage Company Presents a Playwriting Workshop

The Leawood Stage Company is pleased to present a free workshop on Playwriting in the Oak Room of the Community Center, lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive beginning at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, April 2nd.

The workshop will be presented by New York City based playwright, Kirby Fields. He will take participants through a discussion of a play’s structure and apply it to a number of examples. Writers should leave with an idea for a short play of their own.

Kirby Fields received his MFA in Playwriting from Carnegie Mellon University. His plays were developed as part of the Kettle of Inspiration Reading Series, the Michigan Theater Festival, the F.A.C.T. Words & Wine Series and Beginnings at Happy Ending. Fields’ play Flood was featured in the 2010 Samuel French Off Broadway Short Play Festival and another play was accepted at the upcoming NY 15-Minute Play Festival. He is a founding member of the 61A writers group and a regular contributor to PopMatters.com.

After growing up in Joplin, MO, Fields arrived at the University of Kansas for graduate school. While at KU, Kirby fell in with Paul Lim and English Alternative Theater (EAT), a theater company housed within an English department. Inspired by EAT’s commitment to produce student works, Fields decided to put down on paper an idea that had been brewing for a number of years. He wrote his first play over spring break and by fall it was in front of an audience. That was the turning point; playwriting took over Fields’ focus.

The workshop will be held in association with the stage production of Down on Memminger presented by Leawood Stage Company the same weekend. Down on Memminger is an exploration of a young man’s interaction with his family and former girlfriend as he deals with uncontrollable pain resulting from a lifelong physical aliment.

The Leawood Stage Company will host this unique opportunity audiences to learn more about the process of creating a script. As part of our mission, LSC will present this workshop free of charge the education of the community. Space is limited so reservations requested.

See a free staged dramatic reading of Down on Memminger by playwright Kirby Fields in the Oak Room of the Community Cetner, lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive. Friday and Saturday performances will begin at 8:00 p.m. with a Sunday matinee at 2:00 p.m. Following each performance the audience will interact with the playwright in a question and answer period. Discover how Fields was inspired to write the play and about his process.

For more information or to make reservations, contact the Cultural Arts Coordinator at the City of Leawood, April Bishop 913-339-6700 x157.

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE THROUGH April 3, 2011

April Bishop
Cultural Arts Coordinator
(913) 339-6700 ext. 157

Theatrical Production of “Down on Memminger”

April 1, 2 & 3, 2011
Friday and Saturday 8:00 p.m.
Sunday 2:00 p.m.
Oak Room, lower level of Leawood City Hall
4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS 66211

Leawood Stage Company Presents “Down on Memminger”

The Leawood Stage Company is pleased to present a script-in-hand dramatic reading of Down on Memminger by playwright Kirby Fields in the Oak Room on the lower level of Leawood City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive. Three free performances will be held on Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and a Sunday matinee will begin at 2:00 pm.

Down on Memminger is the story of a young man’s interaction with his family and former girlfriend as he deals with uncontrollable pain resulting from a lifelong physical aliment. Directed by Petra Allen, Down on Memminger features actors Paul Anderson, Whitney Beiler, Irene Blend and Michael Bunn.

LSC will host a unique opportunity for audiences to meet playwright, Kirby Fields. Following each performance the audience will interact with the playwright in a question and answer period. Discover how Fields was inspired to write the play and about his process.

Kirby Fields received his MFA in Playwriting from Carnegie Mellon University. His plays were developed as part of the Kettle of Inspiration Reading Series, the Michigan Theater Festival, the F.A.C.T. Words & Wine Series and Beginnings at Happy Ending. Fields’ play Flood was featured in the 2010 Samuel French Off Broadway Short Play Festival and another play was accepted at the upcoming NY 15-Minute Play Festival. He is a founding member of the 61A writers group and a regular contributor to PopMatters.com.

After growing up in Joplin, MO, Fields arrived at the University of Kansas for graduate school. While at KU, Kirby fell in with Paul Lim and English Alternative Theater (EAT), a theater company housed within an English department. Inspired by EAT’s commitment to produce student works, Fields decided to put down on paper an idea that had been brewing for a number of years. He wrote his first play over spring break and by fall it was in front of an audience. That was the turning point; playwriting took over Fields’ focus.

Don’t miss this moving dramatic production and a chance to interact with the playwright. For more information contact the Cultural Art Coordinator at the City of Leawood, 913-339-6700 x157.