Wilmington Drama League Opens Season With Sondheim's 'Assassins'

The Wilmington Drama League will open its 2008-2009 season with a production of Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's thrilling musical Assassins. The show runs September 5 -20 at the Wilmington Drama League, 10 West Lea Blvd. Tickets cost $9-$18 and are available at www.wdl.org or by calling 302-764-1172

Assassins is a taught, funny, and dark look at success, failure, and the American Dream. It shows a biting look at the drive for celebrity and power in our society. At the center of this wickedly funny musical are successful presidential assassins Leon Czolgosz, Charles Guiteau, John Wilkes Booth, and Lee Harvey Oswald and their unsuccessful compatriots John Hinckley, Giuseppe Zangara, Samuel Byck, Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme, and Sara Jane Moore.

This gaggle of presidential assassins spans a century and the music in the show showcases it. The show was originally staged as a carnival where each assassin participated in a presidential shooting gallery. WDL director Chris Turner has decided to modernize the scenery and stage the show as a reality television game show.

"I've lived in Los Angeles for 3 years, and during my time there I've seen the obsession with celebrity taken to the hilt," said Turner. "I freely admit, I get caught up in it, or else I wouldn't be in LA. I wanted something different, which is really the greatest aspect of theater: the ability to try something new. I took all of that and came up with the idea of setting it as a reality TV game show, like Deal or No Deal or The Moment of Truth. Here are these people wanting the American Dream, wanting what they think they deserve, and what better place to get it than a game show where you have to kill someone." 

"So with that in mind, I've put in multi-media, the balladeer wields a camera instead of a guitar, and a turntable to help turn the attention on those that matter most: the assassins."

Turner, a native Delawarean, has performed and directed at Wilmington Drama League before. He returns to Delaware after spending the last three years in Los Angeles pursuing acting and writing. Turner was featured in Clint Eastwood's critically acclaimed Letters from Iwo Jima and has had principal roles in the short films It's Not Just You, Tommy Chu (Tommy Chu) and By My Side Tonight (Tae Sub). On stage, Turner appeared in a critically acclaimed production of Jesus Christ Superstar (Annas) for the Attic Theater Company in LA and the New York premieres of The Boy Who Was Born With A Tail (Boy) and New Words (Alan/Khava Gutog).

"One of the many things I took away with me when I saw the revival and after countless readings of the script and listening to the soundtrack is that these people could be any of us," said Turner about casting the show. "I didn't want exact replicas of these historic figures. I can open up a book to see that. I wanted a talented cast that could embody and personify what they were going through, what they were feeling and who they were. The look was second to the character they brought to the table."

The cast includes several Wilmington Drama League regulars including: Jonathan Dalecki (Leon Czolgosz); Edward Emmi (Charles Guiteau); Miriam Pultro (Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme); Tina M. Sheing (Sarah Jane Moore); Mike Renn (Giuseppe Zangara); Brian Harrington (Davey Herold); Karen Moore (Emma Goldman/Housewife); Carol Casarino (Ensemble); Brian Turner (John Hinckley); Genevieve Van-Catledge (Ensemble); and Mike Ware (Samuel Byck). Other members of the cast include: Michael Medvidik (Balladeer); Trevor Sheehan (Ensemble/President Garfield); Brendan Sheehan (John Wilkes Booth); Nick D'Argenio (President Ford/Ensemble); Dawn Sheppard (Ensemble); Justin Walsh (The Proprietor/Oswald); Jameson May (Billy); and Karen Moore (Emma Goldman/Housewife)

The creative team for the show includes music director Steven Weatherman, choreographer Georgiana Staley, set designer Kurt Kohl, and costume designer Katherine Leonard Turner. Steve Robinson is the technical director and Max Beaver is handling weapons training.