ALL SHOWS NOW SOLD OUT – Come see us in August for A Chorus Line!
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Director and Choreographer Todd Underwood and Set Designer Daniel Nischan discuss Underwood’s unique vision for one of the biggest musicals of all time, now playing at Ivoryton Playhouse.
Did you hear? Grease is the word and it’s taking over the stage at Ivoryton Playhouse. Thanks to the famous film starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, most people know the classic story. It’s a story of teenage love, heartbreak, friendship and everything in between, complete with toe-tapping tunes, impressive dance moves and fun 50’s costumes. “We were fortunate enough to be able to take some of the songs from the movie and put them in our production so there’s some familiarity but I will say it’s our own version,” Underwood says. With a more subdued set, the story is kept front and center with a focus on the characters, costumes and lighting. “We wanted it to feel like a pop art party from the moment the audience walked through the door, to feel like they were part of a vibrant experience,” Nischan says.
Experience the musical magic now through July 29th at Ivoryton Playhouse.
Our thanks for Overabove for producing video clips for us!
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Dust off your leather jackets, pull on your bobby-socks and take a trip to a simpler time as Danny and Sandy fall in love all over again.
It’s the original high-school musical, featuring all the unforgettable songs from the hit movie including “You’re The One That I Want”, “Grease Is The Word”, “Summer Nights”, “Hopelessly Devoted To You”, “Greased Lightnin’” and many more.
Here is Rydell High’s senior class of 1959: duck-tailed, hot-rodding “Burger Palace Boys” and their gum-snapping, hip-shaking “Pink Ladies” in bobby sox and pedal pushers, evoking the look and sound of the 1950s in this rollicking musical. Head “greaser” Danny Zuko and new (good) girl Sandy Dumbrowski try to relive the high romance of their “Summer Nights” as the rest of the gang sings and dances its way through such songs as “Greased Lightnin’,” “It’s Raining on Prom Night,” “Alone at the Drive-In Movie” recalling the music of Buddy Holly, Little Richard, and Elvis Presley that became the soundtrack of a generation.
So throw your mittens around your kittens and hand jive the night away with the show that’ll make you want to stand up and shout, ‘A-wop-bop-a-loo-bop, a-wop-bam-boom!
“A lively and funny musical-as well as the dancingest one in town. It’s a winner […] the songs are dandies [that portray] the early rockers with zip and charm. The sheer energy of Grease carries all before it.” – New York Daily News
Executive Producers: Michael A. Dattilo and Frank Perrotti
Photos by Jonathan Steele
Katelyn Bowman (Frenchy) National Tour: Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Live! (Miss Elaina/Teacher Harriet), International Tour: Legally Blonde (Pilar). Regional: The Color Purple (Squeak), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Charlaine), Hairspray (Lil’ Inez). BFA Lindenwood University. Special thanks to Todd Underwood! Special regards for Lisa, Richard and Apex Talent Group. All my love to my family! Glory to God! @katelyncatalina
Andee Buccheri (Ensemble) is excited to return to Ivoryton Playhouse! Her favorite theater credits include: Ivoryton Playhouse: Biloxi Blues (Daisy) and Playhouse on Park: A Chorus Line (Val). Andee is a standup comedian who has appeared at Broadway Comedy Club, the Stand, and West Side Comedy Club. Her half-hour tv comedy pilot, In Development, will be making its festival premiere in 2019. Love to Mom, Dad, and the boys.
Amy Buckley (Miss Lynch) is thrilled to return to the Ivoryton Playhouse this season with the talented cast and crew of Grease! Recently Amy performed the role of Marian Paroo in The Music Man with Artful Living. Playhouse credits include The Hundred Dresses (Cecile), Man of La Mancha (Antonia), I’ll Be Home for Christmas (Sandy) and The Bully (Coach/Ms. Roosevelt). Notable roles include Mrs. Banks (Mary Poppins), Despina (Così fan Tutte), La Fée (Cendrillon) and Adele (Die Fledermaus). A native of CT, Amy received her Bachelor of Music from Uconn, where her study afforded her the opportunity to train at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. She then went on to receive a Master of Music from The Juilliard School. When not performing Amy serves as Music Director of the theater program at Walsh Intermediate School in Branford, Vocal Music Leader of Shoreline Unitarian Universalist Society in Madison and is on the faculty of the Community Music School in Centerbrook. A member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), Amy resides in Westbrook where she has a private voice studio and plays her favorite role of Mom to daughter Viviana. Gratitude and thanks to Jacqui, Dan and Todd. Love to my ‘understudies’ at home; Guia, Dad and Cristian.
Cory Candelet (Eugene) is so excited to be back at Ivoryton this summer. You may remember him as The Mute in Ivoryton’s production of The Fantasticks earlier this season, and surprise, he can talk! He was recently awarded “Best Featured Actor in a Musical” at the CT Critics Circle Awards for his work in The Fantasticks, which critics called “fascinating” and “captivating” (Shoreline Times). Cory also recently toured as Orville Wright in The Wright Brothers Musical traveling throughout the USA teaching kids about determination and perseverance. He has also traveled the world with Up With People (Cast A15) preforming and doing community service in Germany, Switzerland, Mexico, and more. Cory would like to thank his parents for their endless support, his oldest brother Kyle for being there for him, his best friend Jaron and mentor Erin Stanley for all their guidance, and of course, Todd, Jacqui, Mike and the amazing cast and crew for all their hard work and dedication to this show! @Ccandelet
Jonny Cortes (Johnny Casino) is a New England native and is thrilled to be returning to Ivoryton Playhouse having last appeared as Angel Dumott Schunard in 2016. Most recently seen as Pedro in New York Theatre Barn’s production of Coyote: A New Musical. Other recent credits include: Grease (Doody), Seussical (Wickersham Brother), and RENT (Angel Dumott Schunard) at Clear Space Theatre. Jonny is a graduate of The Hartt School’s BFA Musical Theatre Program. He would like to thank the cast and crew for their incredible work and his family for their endless love and support!
Lawrence Cummings* (Vince Fontaine/Teen Angel) is delighted to be making his debut with Ivoryton playhouse. Broadway credits include: Pippin, Carl Anderson Tribute and the Broadway Revival Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar performing the role of Jesus. He appeared with Lou Diamond Phillips in the National Tour of Camelot and the Spain Tour of Porgy and Bess. Favorite musical theatre roles include: Sebastian (The Little Mermaid), John (Miss Saigon), Victor (Smokey Joe’s Cafe), and Simon (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat), and Angel (Rent). Film and television credits: Pirates of the Caribbean 3, Dress to Impress and Live from the Blue Palm. Instagram: @lawrencecummings
Jamaal Fields-Green (Ensemble) Regional: Hartford Stage: Book Of Esther (Hipster) A Christmas Carol (Ghost Apparition, Fezziwig Party Guest), Comedy of Errors (Ensemble), Goodspeed Musical Festival: Passing Through (Ensemble), Peterborough Players: The Producers (Ensemble). Connecticut Repertory Theatre: Newsies (Newsie, Spot Conlon), 1776 (Courier) Education: 9 to 5 (Joe), Evita (Ensemble), All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go (Dez), 42nd Street (Ensemble), The Glorious Ones (Pantalone), The Incident in San Bajo (Dallas Doral).
Alyssa V Gomez* (Rizzo) is pumped to return to Ivoryton with Grease! A New York Native and Emerson College grad, Alyssa can next be seen in a 3-city tour of, In The Heights! National Tour: Motown the Musical. Regional: In The Heights (Nina Rosario), Rent (Mimi), American Idiot (Whatsername). All my love to Mami, Ryan and KOTU @alyssavgomez, www.alyssavgomez.com
Kimberly Immanuel* (Sandy) is overjoyed to be returning to Ivoryton after having played Luisa in The Fantasticks this season! Some of her favorite credits include 42nd Street (Drury Lane Theatre), Pacific Overtures (CSC), The Fantasticks (The Jerry Orbach Theatre), Evita (KC Rep), and Waterfall (Pasadena Playhouse and The 5th Avenue). Big thanks to her family, Josh, SW Aritists, and the entire cast and team for everything! BFA, New York University. www.kimberlyimmanuel.com
Luke Linsteadt* (Doody) is thrilled to be making his Ivoryton Playhouse debut! Selected credits include: Million Dollar Quartet (Elvis), Merry Go Round Playhouse, Palace Theatre, and Rivertown Theatre, American Idiot (Johnny), One Man, Two Guvnors (The Craze Lead Vocalist/Rhythm Guitar) Peter and the Starcatcher (Prentiss), RENT (Ensemble/Roger US) A Christmas Carol (Ensemble). Follow his music project, The Steadfast Sound, on Soundcloud and his podcast, Behind the Desk, on iTunes! Luke would like to thank his family for their never-ending support. @lukelinsteadt
Taylor Lloyd (Marty) is incredibly excited to return to Ivoryton this summer as a Pink Lady. Previous credits include West Side Story (Minnie), The Wolves (#14), Peter Pan (Tiger Lily), Evita (Descamisado Ensemble), Godspell (“Learn Your Lessons Well”). She is going into her senior year at The Hartt School of Music to receive her BFA in Music Theatre in May 2019. As always, many thanks and love to the family, Kayley, and everyone at the playhouse. IG: taylorlloyd74
Amanda Lupacchino (Ensemble) is thrilled to be returning to The Ivoryton Playhouse this summer in Grease and A Chorus Line! Some of her favorite theater credits include West Side Story, Memphis, Annie (tour), Angelina Ballerina Holiday (NYC and tour) and South Pacific. Unconditional gratitude and admiration to Jacqui, Todd, Mike and the Ivoryton Playhouse team. Shout outs to all of her family, friends and mentors for their continued support! www.amandaleighlupacchino.com Insta: @amanduh_leigh
Taylor Morrow (Roger) is overjoyed to be returning to Rydell High for the summer. Taylor was most recently seen in Grease at The Palace Theatre in Manchester NH, where he played Eugene. Other credits include Jimmy in Reefer Madness (Seacoast Repertory Theatre) and Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast (Encore at the Point). This is Taylor’s Ivoryton Playhouse debut. Taylor holds a BA in Musical Theatre from the University of New Hampshire. Taylor would like to thank his family and friends for their love and encouragement. Special shoutout to Mom, Dad, and Collin. Insta: @tmo94.
Johnny Newcomb* (Danny) – Broadway: The Last Ship. Off-Broadway: The Low Road, Into The Woods (The Public Theater); Ride The Cyclone (MCC Theatre). National Tour: American Idiot. International: Rent (Edinburgh Fringe). Regional: Rent (Ivoryton Playhouse); Next To Normal, Spring Awakening (ZACH Theatre). TV: NBC’S Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, The 37th Annual Kennedy Center Honors. Love and Thanks to Mom & Dad, Ashely & Paige, Gotham Talent, and the entire company at Ivoryton Playhouse.
www.vincentalain.com
Natale Pirrotta* (Kenickie) is ecstatic to be making his Ivoryton debut in Grease! A University of Tampa alum, some of his favorite credits include – Tarzan (Tarzan), Ragtime (Younger Brother), Xanadu (Sonny Malone), Aida (Radames), Rocky Horror (Riff Raff), Hairspray (Link Larkin), Next to Normal (Henry), Bare (Peter), Into the Woods (Jack). Many thanks to his family and friends for their unconditional love and support. KyleAshe – ELEPHANT SHOES!
Alexa Racioppi (Patty Simcox) is elated to be returning to the Ivoryton Playhouse this season! Alexa is a recent graduate of Montclair State University having earned a BFA in Dance and a BFA in Musical Theatre. Some of her favorite credits include: Anything Goes (Reno), West Side Story (Velma/ Ivoryton Playhouse), The Full Monty (Vikki), and Company (Kathy). www.alexaracioppi.com
Nathan Russo (Ensemble) is excited to return to the Playhouse! Nathan is an Essex native and is currently part of the Musical Theatre program at Columbia College Chicago. Last seen here as The Artful Dodger in Oliver!, his recent credits include The Secret Garden (Colin), Band Geeks! (Spitz), The Addams Family (Gomez), and Aida (Mereb) at Valley Regional High School, as well as Sweet Charity as a part of Columbia’s Mainstage series.”
Jared Starkey (Ensemble) is thrilled to be making his Ivoryton debut. New York: Two by Two (Japheth) directed by Martin Charnin, starring Chip Zien and Christine Pedi. Regional: A Chorus Line (Mark), Sweeney Todd (Tobias), Spring Awakening, The Doctor’s Dilemma, Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol. Thanks to Julio Agustin and to Neil Semer. Love to Mom, Dad, Brianna, and family. Carson-Adler Agency. @Jaredstarkey (www.JaredStarkey.com)
Shalani Taylor (Cha Cha/Ensemble) is a recent college graduate from Reno, Nevada. She grew up at a local studio, Reno Dance Company, where she learned everything she knows about dance. Shalani has studied in ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, and pointe. She has performed lead roles in her studio’s The Reno’s Hometown Nutcracker, Coppelia and Cinderella. Shalani is currently working towards having a professional dance career and this is her first debut!
Audrey Wilson (Jan) is an upcoming junior MT at The Hartt School and originally from Baldwin, Net York. Previous credits include A Little Night Music, 110 In The Shade and Once In A Lifetime (Monomoy Theater) and A My Name Is Alice (Hartt School). Special thanks to Dad, Henry, Max, and Ethan.
Clementine Wurzbach (Ensemble) recently graduated from Haddam-Killingworth High School and ECA the Educational Center for the Arts. She just finished he freshman year of college at Carnegie Mellon University in the School of Drama as an acting major. She is very excited to be doing her first show with Ivoryton this summer. She would like to thank her parents and her sister for their support.
Max Weinstein (Sonny) is thrilled to return to the Ivoryton Playhouse after appearing in last summer’s productions of West Side Story (A-Rab) and Saturday Night Fever. Max is a 2018 BFA graduate from the NYU Tisch Drama program where he recently appeared as Claude in Hair. Other select credits include Swing! (featured dancer/soloist) at Tisch and A Chorus Line (Greg) at Playhouse on Park. He’ll be appearing as Larry, u/s Bobby in Ivoryton’s upcoming production of A Chorus Line. Many thanks to Todd, Jacqui, and his family + friends. Maxjweinstein.com @maxjweinstein
Director and Choreographer: Todd Underwood
Musical Director: Michael Morris
Stage Manager: Theresa Stark*
Assistant Stage Manager: Nicole Wiegert*
Scenic Designer: Daniel Nischan
Lighting Designer: Marcus Abbott
Sound Designer: Tate Burmeister
Costume Designer: Elizabeth Saylor Cippolina
* member of Actors Equity
Join us for an opening night reception following the 8:00pm performance on Friday, July 6th. Light refreshments will be served.
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Support these great organizations by seeing GREASE as part of their fundraiser!
BRAYCE Wednesday, July 11, 2018
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Lyme Youth Service Bureau Thursday, July 12, 2018
https://lysb.org/about/support-lysb/evening-at-the-theater/
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Shoreline Arts Alliance Wednesday, July 18 2018
https://www.shorelinearts.org/summer-nights-sock-hop
Check back here for more photos and video clips!
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Press Release
Tell me more! Tell me more! GREASE at the Ivoryton Playhouse
Dust off your leather jackets, pull on your bobby-socks and take a trip to a simpler time as Danny and Sandy fall in love all over again at the Ivoryton Playhouse. Opening on July 5th and running through July 29th, GREASE, by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, features all the unforgettable songs from the hit movie including “You’re The One That I Want”, “Grease Is The Word”, “Summer Nights”, “Hopelessly Devoted To You”, “Greased Lightnin’” and many more.
Here is Rydell High’s senior class of 1959: duck-tailed, hot-rodding “Burger Palace Boys” and their gum-snapping, hip-shaking “Pink Ladies” in bobby sox and pedal pushers, evoking the look and sound of the 1950s in this rollicking musical. Head “greaser” Danny Zuko and new (good) girl Sandy Dumbrowski try to relive the high romance of their “Summer Nights” as the rest of the gang sings and dances its way through such songs as “Greased Lightnin’,” “It’s Raining on Prom Night,” “Alone at the Drive-In Movie” recalling the music of Buddy Holly, Little Richard, and Elvis Presley that became the soundtrack of a generation.
GREASE opened Off-Broadway at the Eden Theatre on February 14, 1972 but was deemed eligible for the 1972 Tony Awards, and received seven Tony Award nominations The 1994 revival also garnered Tony nominations and the show went on to a successful national tour, featuring our own Micky Dolenz as Vince Fontaine.
The movie that we all know and love opened 40 years ago and it is a testament to the music and the iconic characters that GREASE is still the word today. The best part of this quintessentially American high school story (aside from the music, of course) is what Danny, Sandy, Rizzo, Kenickie, Frenchy and the rest of the Rydell High gang taught us – that the people who really care about you will stay by your side no matter how different you are from one another, and support you just the same whether you’re a pom-pom-wielding goody-two-shoes, a leather-touting T-Bird or a starry-eyed, pink-haired aspiring beautician who drops out of school months before graduation.
So throw your mittens around your kittens and hand jive the night away with the show that’ll make you want to stand up and shout, ‘A-wop-bop-a-loo-bop, a-wop-bam-boom!
This production stars Johnny Newcomb* as Danny Zuko and Kimberley Immanuel* as Sandy. Johnny made his Broadway debut in THE LAST SHIP and was part of the national tour of AMERICAN IDIOT. He was last seen in Ivoryton as Roger in RENT. This season’s audience may remember Kimberley for her luminous performance as Luisa in THE FANTASTICKS. Other cast members that may be familiar to Ivoryton audiences are Alyssa V. Gomez* (Rizzo), Amy Buckley (Miss Lynch), Cory Candelet (Eugene), Jonny Cortes (Johnny Casino), Taylor Lloyd (Marty), Alexa Racioppi (Patty Simcox) Max Weinstein (Sonny) and Amanda Lupacchino, Andee Buccheri, and Nathan Russo. Making their Ivoryton debut are Katelyn Bowman (Frenchy) Lawrence Cummings* (Vince Fontaine/Teen Angel), Luke Linsteadt* (Doody), Taylor Morrow (Roger), Natale Pirrotta* (Kenickie), Shalani Taylor (Cha-Cha), Audrey Wilson (Jan), Jamaal Fields-Green, Jared Starkey and Clementine Wurzbach
The production is directed and choreographed by Todd L. Underwood and musical directed by Michael Morris, with set design by Daniel Nischan, lighting design by Marcus Abbott and costume design by Elizabeth Saylor Cippolina.
Executive Producers: Michael A. Dattilo and Frank Perrotti
GREASE opens at the Ivoryton Playhouse on July 5 and runs through July 29, 2018. Performance times are Wednesday and Sunday matinees at 2pm. Evening performances are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm.
Additional matinee performances are on Saturday, July 7, 14 and 28 at 2pm.
Tickets are $55 for adults; $50 for seniors; $25 for students and $20 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.
Members of the press are welcome at any performance after July 5, 2018
*denotes member of Actors Equity
Photos by Jonathan Steele
Looking for something to do? Ivoryton Playhouse has been voted best place to see live theatre by readers of The Shoreline Times for three years in a row. Come to Essex and visit our historic, professional theatre – a Connecticut treasure!