American Classic THE MUSIC MAN to Open This Week at Center for the Arts

The Center for the Arts, a division of the Wilmette Park District, steps into spring with Meredith Willson's THE MUSIC MAN. The iconic Americana musical opens on March 4th in the Theatre of the Wilmette Park District's Community Recreation Center, 3000 Glenview Road, Wilmette, IL. Performances run through March 13th.

Set in the summer of 1912, THE MUSIC MAN tells the story of Professor Harold Hill, a con man who decides to try his luck on the town of River City, Iowa. As Professor Hill's undertaking unfolds, the audience is introduced to a delightful myriad of characters, such as the gossipy Pick-A-Little Ladies, the prudish librarian and her shy, lisp-stricken younger brother, or the ornery and bitter members of the school board, who Hill turns into an angelic Barbershop Quartet.

Different to this production however, is director Aaron Henrickson's approach that embraces the styling of the Vaudeville era. Besides keeping scenic elements simple and using unique lighting techniques, Henrickson chose to incorporate the vaudeville placards on the sides of the set. "Besides it being a tool within the style and approach of the show, it also allows the audience to experience Harold Hill in a way that the citizens of River City do not get to see him. It allows Hill to be a complete con with them, while the audience will get to see a more personal journey, like when he begins to struggle with who he is and what he is doing," states Henrickson. Henrickson is joined by Paul Scavone as Music Director and Bryan J. Wlas as Choreographer, who are back after working together on the fall's production of OLIVER.

Cast includes RJ Bruce, Mark Bjorkquist, Theresa Egan, Jack Elias, David R. Feiler, Robert Gosser, Lydia Hartman, Naomi Hershman, Grace Hiatt, Eisele Hirschel, Jen Houghton, Leah Johnson, Lewis R. Jones, Matt Kenney, Melissa Lau, Owen May, Kathleen Monson, Sarah Prouty, Justine Raczy, Asher Ramalym Maggie Reagan, Scott Skiple, Taylor Snooks, Joanna Starr Poulos, Lily Schwartz, Morgan Thoem, Jessie Thorpe, Caesar Vitale, and Matt Winters, with Sarah R. Sapperstein as Marian and Matt Hallstein as Harold Hill.

In addition to Aaron Henrickson (Director), Paul Scavone (Music Director), and Bryan J. Wlas (Choreographer), the production team is made up of Diane D. Fairchild (Lighting), Jeanine Fry (Costumes), Kaitlyn Grissom (Scenic), Leah Hummel (Props) and Dominic Zeier (Sound).

THE MUSIC MAN runs March 4-13, with performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2 p.m. Performances take place in the Theatre of the Community Recreation Center, 3000 Glenview Rd, Wilmette, IL 60091. Tickets are $14.00 - 16.00 and are now on sale. Tickets can be purchased online at www.wilmettepark.org. For more information call 847-256-9686.

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