Cumberland Theatre Presents THIS SIDE OF THE DIRT By Tito Beveridge

The Cumberland Theatre will present the comedy This Side of the Dirt by Tito Beveridge - of Tito's Vodka fame - for a limited run of four performances. The show will play March 13th - 16th.

The show has been described as "a South Texas family drama steeped in satire and humor." The story takes place days after the death of the family patriarch, Papo. We find his daughter, Jean Ann, alone and weeping as she comes to terms with her loss. As each new character enters her home, the layers of her pain and paranoia unfold. Tito pieced together a story based on characters in his own life and others that he simply dreamed up. Writing about the subjects that interested him most -- family, friends, land and philosophy - he tinged this all together with a little South Texas flair to create This Side of the Dirt. Tito's love of these characters drives his narrative through the ups and down of life and family - touching upon those hard-hitting moments when people are their weakest then building back up to their best and often times funniest.

This Side of the Dirt is about love and family and the importance of telling it like it is and knowing that in the end it will all work out like it should. According to Tito, himself, "it's a story of how one strong minded willful person lives on, after death, in spirit, through his family and friends."

The Cumberland Theatre will become only the second theatre in the country to produce
in 2017.

"We are thrilled to be granted permission to perform this hilarious play, "said CT Board President BettyJo Gehauf. "We are honored that Tito has trusted us with his work and hope the community will come out and support this project!"

The show is being directed by Kimberli Rowley and features a blend of local actors and
out-of-town guest artists.

Appearing as a special guest star in this production will be professional actress Rebeca Arthur. A Cumberland native, Arthur left home for the University of Maryland at College Park, but finished her education at New York University.

Along with theater appearances in various off off-Broadway theatre productions, she started appearing sporadically on soap operas in New York. She then relocated to Los Angeles where she continued to work in television before landing the role of Mary Anne in the hit sitcom Perfect Strangers. She remained with the television series -- a staple of ABC's TGIF line up for the 1980s, for eight years. Other notable film credits include, About Last Night, Scrooged, A Dangerous Woman, Get Shorty, Men Seeking Women, and Every Breathe. Arthur will play the role of Sally in This Side of the Dirt.

Making CT debut in the role of the family matriarch Jean Ann, will be NY based actor Carrie Baker. A graduate of Portland State University, Baker has appeared regional theatres throughout the country including the Roxy Regional, Eugune Cabaret Theatre and the Hanger Theatre.

Returning to the Cumberland Theatre in the role of Juan the gardener will be Juan Calix, who has previously been seen on the CT stage as Bobby in Company and, most recently, Player 2 in Nevermore the Musical.

Local actors joining the cast will be Emily Snyder, Andy Duncan and Andrew Watkins. Snyder was last seen in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. Duncan and Watkins both last appeared in It's a Wonderful Life.

The design team for the show is comprised of Brendon McCabe (lighting and costume design) and Kimberli Rowley and Anika Jones (props coordinators). Jones will also serve as the show's stage manager.

A happy hour featuring Tito's cocktails will begin an hour before each performance.