David Conaway* and Holly Holcomb* star in "The Seven Year Itch"
A fabulously funny farce from the fifties!
Come to the Playhouse and experience one of those plays that are part of our common cultural heritage but which are rarely given professional productions. Most people remember the Billy Wilder movie with Tom Ewell and Marilyn Monroe, and even if they haven’t seen the movie, who could forget the iconic photograph of Marilyn in the white dress over the subway grate?
The play, remarkably fresh and funny, and a lot edgier than the film, takes a humorous look at the problems of a typical married man whose wife and son have gone to the beach for the summer. Alone in the apartment, he is unprepared for the arrival of a stunning new upstairs neighbor. The scenes in his head combine with actual events as his fantasies and his fears merge into a hilarious comedy.
Generously sponsored by: Essex Meadows
Purchase tickets on line now, please follow this link. Tickets can also be purchased by calling our box office on 860.767.7318.
David Conaway* (Richard Sherman) is excited to return to the Ivoryton Playhouse, having performed here previously as the Pharaoh in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Willy Wonka in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland, Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, Moonface in Anything Goes, Sam in A Few Good Men, Thoreau in The Night Thoreau Went to Jail, the Father in The Best Christmas Pageant Ever as well as directing Death of a Salesman. David also toured nationally as Mozart in Amadeus, was the lead in Best Friends Off-Broadway, and has played leading roles in 13 Shakespeare productions.
Emma O’Donnell* (Helen Sherman) Ivoryton Playhouse Debut! Off Broadway: The Shaughraun, Prisoner of the Crown, and The Hairy Ape @ Irish Repertory Theater, Court Martial at Fort Devins a Federal and Castillo Theater Production (Audelco Award: Best Ensemble), Freed @ 59 E. 59th St. (Audelco Nom.). Regional: Shakespeare Theater of NJ, The Guthrie, Walnut Street Theater, Mountain Playhouse, Act II Playhouse, Florida Studio Theater, Public Theater, Me., Off-World Theater Co., The Village Theater, Noises Off @ The Polka Dot Playhouse in Bridgeport, Ct, and a full season with the Children’s Theater Co. in Minneapolis. Training: Circle in the Square, New York and British American Drama Academy, London. Emma is a member of the Actor’s Center Workshop Company in NYC.
Carson Waldron (Ricky) is thrilled to be back for his fourth appearance at the Ivoryton playhouse. He appeared in Oliver as a member of Fagan’s gang as well as rolls in Home for the Holidays and A Childs Christmas in Wales. Carson lives in Westbrook, where he attends Westbrook Middle School. When he is not on stage he enjoys soccer and skiing.
Elizabeth Talbot (Elaine) is pleased to return to the Ivoryton Playhouse, after last being seen this summer in I’m Connecticut and in the 2009 musical production of Jerry’s Girls. A few other favorite productions and credits include The Last Five Years (Cathy), Proof (Catherine),Violet (Violet), Othello (Desdemona), and A Doll’s House (Nora). Elizabeth has worked at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, has taught voice and acting privately and through various studios, and holds an M.A. in Dramatic Literature as well as an M.F.A. in Performing Arts from The Savannah College of Art and Design.
Carolyn Cumming (Miss Morris) Ivoryton debut but no stranger since her mother, Celeste, has played the cello in numerous productions here! Connecticut Repertory Theater: Hair, Threepenny Opera, Cabaret. Playhouse on Park: Brighton Beach Memoirs, Chicago, Dreamhouse (World Premiere with Stephen Hope), stop/time dance theatre. Philipstown Depot Theatre, NY: Heartbreak Like Hemingway (World Premiere). Training: Stella Adler Studio of Acting, NY, BA Theater UConn, Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts. www.carolyncumming.com
Caitlin McInerney (Marie Whatever-Was-Her-Name) is a New York based actor. This is her first production with Ivoryton Playhouse. She graduated with honors from NYU Tisch’s Experimental Theater Wing with a BFA in acting in 2010. New York theater credits include Carnival Des Corbeaux (McKittrick Hotel), Hotel Project (Popup Theatrics) I Don’t Want to Hurt Your Feelings (Dir. Emma Koenig), Dance Dance Revolution (Ohio Theater Dir. Alex Timbers). Other theater credits Riding The Turnpike (Hartbeat Ensemble) Film: Straight Outta Tompkins; The Pill Girls Trailer, Bloody Mary; Born to a Good World. Many thanks to her family for their unending support! www.caitlinmcinerney.com
Holly Holcomb* (The Girl) is thrilled to be returning to the Ivoryton stage so soon, after just completing an amazingly fun run of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. She made her debut here ten years ago in the new musical – A Woman of a Certain Age. Since then she has traveled the country and the world performing. New York Credits: Of Thee I Sing-Encores! – New York City Center, A Man With A Load of Mischief – York Theatre Co., Idaho!- New York Music Theatre Festival; Other Selected Credits: Grease– National Tour, Jekyll and Hyde– Trump Plaza Atlantic City, Carousel – Surflight Theatre, The King and I, Man of La Mancha and My Fair Lady– Monomoy Theatre and Why do Fools Fall in Love– Greenbrier Theatre. Last year she took a break from land and decided to cruise the world performing on the Regent Voyager. She is a proud member of AEA and SAG-AFTRA. She holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from The Hartt School, University of Hartford.
John Little* (Dr. Brubaker) is delighted to return to Ivoryton, where he appeared in The Tale Of The Allergists Wife and An Inspector Calls in seasons past. He recently played George Eliot’s publisher in the premiere of A Most Dangerous Woman, directed by Richard Maltby, Jr., at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. Earlier this year he was in Ancestral Voices at the Music Theatre of Connecticut, and three plays at the Mountain Playhouse. Last year John was in Henry IV and Oliver Twist at the Shakespeare Theatre and in Poetic License at 59E59 Theatre in New York. Regional credits include Glimmerglass at Goodspeed, Major Barbara at Yale Rep, Annie at Pioneer Theatre and Pygmalion at Syracuse Stage. He has also worked at Portland Stage, Barter Theatre, Paper Mill Playhouse, and many other regional theatres. Last season he appeared in Boardwalk Empire as Bishop Norman, opposite Steve Buscemi. John lives in New York with his wife, Amy, and children, Eleonora and Joel. John is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama.
Jason Naylor (Tom MacKenzie) is excited to be performing again at the Ivoryton Playhouse. His most recent performances for the theater were roles in The Buddy Holly Story and Home For The Holidays. Jason has performed in various theaters in Connecticut, New York and Rhode Island. Productions included 12 Angry Men, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Metamorphosis, and Goodbye Charlie. Lately he has concentrated on film and TV appearing on a number of programs for the Travel and Bio Channels and most recently, on a TV special, Mysteries of the Museum about the Smithsonian Museum. He has performed in TV pilots, short films and three feature length films, Herman And Shelly, The Volunteer, and Half Way Home. He grew up in Chester and currently lives on his boat in Norwalk, CT.
Directed by: Larry Thelen
Stage Manager: T. Rick Jones*
Scenic Design: Dan Nischan
Lighting Design: Marcus Abbott
Costume Design: Kari Crowther
Hair Design: Joel Silvestro
* member of Actors Equity
Purchase tickets on line now, please follow this link. Tickets can also be purchased by calling our box office on 860.767.7318.
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT
THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH
Larry Thelen - Director of "The Seven Year Itch"
The Seven Year Itch is a classic comedy that defines 1950s America: robust, sexy, ambitious and optimistic. It’s the story of Richard Sherman, a man in the midst of a midlife crisis at a time when social conventions are changing. But those changes come with strings attached – strings the size of ropes with just enough length for Richard to hang himself. It’s a wildly comic portrait of one man’s bumbling descent into idiocy. Ironically, the theme of the play – the desire to find self-worth when youthful arrogance wanes – is as timely today as it was then.
What attracted me to the show was the fact that the American male, for all the strides we’ve made in the 60 years since the play premiered, hasn’t changed all that much. From time to time, we still get ourselves into compromising situations and yet, rather than retreat when we see the potential disaster that awaits us, we choose instead to blindly and boldly go forth with vigor until we’ve turned that disaster into a complete catastrophe. We really are a wonderful sex!
– Larry Thelen
Press Release – 10/14/13
The Seven Year Itch at The Ivoryton Playhouse
A fabulously funny farce from the fifties!
"The Seven Year Itch" opens on Wednesday, October 30th
Ivoryton: Looking for something a little different this fall? Then head to the Ivoryton Playhouse to experience one of those plays that are part of our common cultural heritage but which are rarely given professional productions. The Seven Year Itch opens in Ivoryton on October 30th and runs through November 17th. Most people remember the Billy Wilder movie with Tom Ewell and Marilyn Monroe, and even if they haven’t seen the movie, who could forget the iconic photograph of Marilyn in the white dress over the subway grate?
But the play proves itself remarkably fresh and funny, and a lot edgier than the film. With his wife and child off to the shore for the summer, but a job that keeps him in their downtown apartment during the work week, a husband of seven years fantasizes about having a fling with a young woman who is apartment sitting in the unit above. The scenes in his head combine with actual events as his fantasies and his fears merge into a hilarious comedy.
David Conaway* and Holly Holcomb*
When Axelrod wrote The Seven Year Itch in 1952, he was already a veteran of 400 radio and film scripts. His one desire was to do a Broadway hit play, which put him at odds with most of his fellow playwrights who wanted write Hollywood movies. The Seven Year Itch played for 1141 shows on Broadway, before being adapted to the Billy Wilder film with Tom Ewell and Marilyn Monroe.
Larry Thelen will be directing this production and the cast includes Holly Holcomb* who was just seen here in I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE; David Conaway*, who has appeared many times in Ivoryton; John Little*, Jason Naylor, Elizabeth Talbot, Carson Waldron, and making their Ivoryton debuts Emma O’Donnell*, Carolyn Cumming and Caitlyn McInerney.
Costumes are by Kari Crowther, set design by Dan Nischan and lights by Marcus Abbott.
The Seven Year Itch opens in Ivoryton on October 30th and runs through November 17th Performance times are Wednesday and Sunday matinees at 2pm. Evening performances are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm. Tickets are $40 for adults, $35 for seniors, $20 for students and $15 for children and are available by calling the Playhouse box office at 860-767-7318 or by visiting our website at www.ivorytonplayhouse.org (Group rates are available by calling the box office for information.) The Playhouse is located at 103 Main Street in Ivoryton.
Generously sponsored by: Essex Meadows.
Members of the press are welcome at any performance.
*member of Actors Equity
Purchase tickets on line now, please follow this link. Tickets can also be purchased by calling our box office on 860.767.7318.
Looking for something to do? The Ivoryton Playhouse was voted Best Place to See Live Theatre by readers of the Shoreline Times.