Longtime Theatre Professor Directs Senior Citizens in A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD

Gettysburg Community Theatre (GCT) the not-for-profit 501c3 community theatre located at 49 York Street in historic downtown Gettysburg, will present a musical perfect for the whole family, A Year With Frog And Toad, based on the children's books by Arnold Lobel. The performances will be 8pm Fridays and Saturdays and 2pm Sundays August 10-26, 2018 and tickets are available online at www.GettysburgCommunityTheatre.org or by calling 717-334-2692. Tickets can be purchased at the door if there are seats available. A Year With Frog And Toad is GCT's All-Senior Citizen Cast production for 2018. Each actor is retired or semi-retired ages 55+ and enjoys rehearsing during the day, which then allows the theatre to be available for other rehearsals in the evening of working adults and school children. Past Senior Citizen productions at GCT have been Fiddler On The Roof, Once Upon A Mattress, A Charlie Brown Christmas, and Nunsense. This production is made possible in part by grants from the Cultural Alliance of York County, The Robert C. Hoffman Trust held by the Adams County Community Foundation, and the Adams County Arts Council's Star Grant.

A Year With Frog And Toad follows the story of best friends Frog and Toad as they wake up from hibernation in Spring, enjoy Summer activities, and nice cups of hot tea before Christmas. The adventures of frog and toad and all their friends from the children's books come to life on stage under the direction of longtime local theatre professor, George Muschamp. Beginning with church pageants as a child in his native Philadelphia, George has performed leading and supporting roles and directed for scores of major productions with theatres such as the New York Shakespeare Festival, the Tyrone Guthrie Theater, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, Inc., California Theatre Center (Sunnyvale), the Gettysburg Theatre Festival, and Gettysburg College's Majestic Theater. George has worked with dozens of celebrated directors, as diverse as, Edward Payson Call, Morris Carnovsky, Sir Tyrone Guthrie, Steve Herek, Maxine Kline, James MacArthur, John Madden, Ronald Maxwell, Joseph Papp, George Seaton, Adam Shankman, and Mel Shapiro. Similarly, over the years, a list of George's fellow performers, cast members of shows he has directed, and students he has taught, reads like an award- and star-studded who's who of radio, television, film, and live theatre "greats". For three years, George was Artistic Director of the Honolulu Theatre for Youth, Hawaii's largest professional theatre organization. He then enjoyed twelve years as principal actor and staff Associate Director of the Minneapolis Children's Theatre Company, which received the 1981 national Margo Jones Award for creative originality and excellence and the 2003 Tony Award as "the nation's leading theatre for young people and families". George has participated as writer, director, producer or featured actor in numerous national radio and television programs, including the PBS-TV series Gardens of the World, co-starring Audrey Hepburn and Michael York; continuing roles on Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion; and, a dozen television specials and videos for Universal, CBS, HBO, and Disney. George is featured in Hollywood supporting and cameo roles in scenes with Jeff Daniels and Mira Sorvino (Gods and Generals), Timothy Bottoms, Scott Valentine, and Cynthia Brooks (California Roll) and many others. As actor, George currently tours two shows: An Evening with Thaddeus and Lydia, a dramedy two-hander focusing on Civil War era legislator Thaddeus Stevens and Stevens' long-term housekeeper, Lydia Hamilton Smith; and, Attorney for the Damned, a one-man play inspired by the life and times of trial lawyer, Clarence Darrow. George has been a Professor of Theatre for both Gettysburg College and Harrisburg Area Community College all campuses and has previously directed 1776 and Civil War Voices at GCT and played the role of Otto Frank in the GCT production of The Diary Of Anne Frank, which he will reprise this fall.

The cast of A Year With Frog And Toad includes: David Clapsaddle of East Berlin, Steve Huete of Orrtanna, David Hurlbert and Pamela Hurlbert of Fayetteville, Sue McCleaf Nespeca of Cashtown, Ed Gobrecht, Sharon Kaya, Joan MacLean, Jim O'Dell, and Buff Wills of Gettysburg, all who were under the musical direction of Vanessa Rice of Gettysburg.

As the theatre only seats 80, advanced purchase is highly recommended for these popular shows. Also on sale now, are performances held at GCT including: Annie -September 7-23, 2018, The Diary Of Anne Frank -October 5-21, 2018. Performances of The Wizard Of Oz (Penguin Project 2018) -November 16-18, 2018 will held at the Eichelberger Performing Arts Center in Hanover and tickets for that production are being sold through The Eich. Tickets are also on sale for GCT's Annual Christmas Concert Home For The Holidays November 23-December 2, 2018 at GCT as well as A Broadway Wine Cabaret benefitting the GCT Scholarship Fund to be held at GCT at 8pm on September 29, and GCT Improv Comedy Nights at GCT at 8pm on August 3 and December 7. Audition, ticket, educational, donation, volunteer opportunities and more can be found online at www.GettysburgCommunityTheatre.org

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