First Folio Theater Presents JEEVES IN BLOOM, Runs 1/27- 2/28

Following the success of 2008's Jeeves Intervenes, playwright Margaret Raether has created another uproarious adaptation of the works of the British humorous P.G. Wodehouse. The latest entry in the Jeeves and Wooster saga makes its Chicago area debut at First Folio Theatre, at their indoor home in Mayslake Hall, on the grounds of the Peabody Estate in Oak Brook.

This time around, the empty-headed upper-crust Bertie Wooster is called to the country by his overbearing Aunt Dahlia. Accompanied by the newt-loving Gussie Fink-Nottle, Bertie is faced with the task of eluding the romantic entanglement of the fairy-adoring Madeline Bassett, evading the sharpened cleaver of Anatole the Chef, all the while eluding his shotgun-toting Uncle Tom Travers. Only the clever advice of the unflappable Jeeves, England's most famous Gentleman's Gentleman, can save the lovably loopy Bertie. However, when Bertie goes one step too far, Jeeves is forced to resign his service, leaving Bertie in the proverbial lurch. Will Bertie survive on his own? Will Jeeves ever return? Such is the basis for the hilarious shenanigans audiences have come to expect from P.G. Wodehouse's most famous characters.

Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse was an English writer whose body of work includes novels, short stories, and musical theatre. Born in 1881, Wodehouse enjoyed enormous popular success during a career of more than seventy years and his prolific writings continue to be widely read. Despite the political and social upheavals that occurred during his life, much of which was spent in France and the United States, Wodehouse's main canvas remained that of pre-war English upper-class society, reflecting his birth, education, and youthful writing career.

Best known today for the Jeeves novels and short stories, Wodehouse was also a playwright and lyricist who was part author and writer of 15 plays and of 250 lyrics for some 30 musical comedies. He worked with Cole Porter on the musical Anything Goes (1934) and frequently collaborated with Jerome Kern and Guy Bolton. He wrote the lyrics for the hit song "Bill" in Kern's Show Boat (1927), wrote lyrics to Sigmund Romberg's music for the Gershwin-Romberg musical Rosalie (1928), and collaborated with Rudolf Friml on a musical version of The Three Musketeers (1928).

Directed by Alison C. Vesely, Jeeves in Bloom marks the return of Christian Gray as the sweet but scatterbrained Bertie and Jim McCance as the incomparable Jeeves, the same roles they played to critical praise in 2008's production of Jeeves Intervenes. The cast will also include the return to First Folio's stage of two of its most popular Artistic Associates, Kevin McKillip (as the amphibian-loving Gussie Fink-Nottle) and Melanie Keller (as Madeline Bassett, the object of Gussie's affections). Rounding out the cast will be Jeannie Affelder as Bertie's Aunt Dahlia and James Leaming in the dual roles of Anatole the Chef and Uncle Tom Travers.

All performances take place on the grounds of the Mayslake Peabody Estate, which is owned and operated by the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County. Indoor shows are presented in Mayslake Hall, a 30-room Tudor Revival style mansion originally built by coAl Baron Francis S. Peabody. Completed in 1922, the mansion is on the National Registry of Historic Places. Located at 31st St. and Rt. 83 in Oak Brook, First Folio is easy to get to from either the East-West Tollway (I-88) or the Stevenson Expressway (I-55).

Folio Shakespeare Festival is supported in part by grants from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and The DuPage Community Foundation.

Performance schedules and ticket prices are included below.

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Jeeves in Bloom Adapted by Margaret Raether from the stories of P.G. Wodehouse

Previews: January 27, 28, 29 @ 8:00

Opening Night: January 30 @ 8:00

Runs: January 27 - February 28

Tickets: $28-30 adults, $23-25 Students/Seniors (Previews $18)

Box Office: 630-986-8067

For more information, visit http://www.firstfolio.org/

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