MY FAIR LADY Begins 6/4 at Light Opera Works

Lerner and Loewe's Broadway classic MY FAIR LADY, with 28-piece orchestra, will be staged by Light Opera Works at Cahn Auditorium in Evanston, June 4 through 12.

Based on George Bernard Shaw's play and Gabriel Pascal's motion picture "Pygmalion," MY FAIR LADY includes the songs "I Could Have Danced All Night," "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face," "With a Little Bit of Luck" and "On the Street Where You Live."

The Light Opera Works cast includes Nick Sandys (Professor Henry Higgins), Elizabeth Telford (Eliza Doolittle), Kirk Swenk (Colonel Hugh Pickering), Cary Lovett (Alfred P. Doolittle), Anne Marie Lewis (Mrs. Pearce), William Dwyer (Freddy Eynsford-Hill), and Joan McGrath (Mrs. Higgins).

The design/production team is Adam Veness (scenic and technical director), Theresa Ham (costume), Andrew H. Meyers (lighting), Aaron Quick (sound), Jenny Pinson (props), Tom Campbell (stage manager), Susan Gosdick (dialect coach) and Katie Beeks (production manager).

The opening night reception for MY FAIR LADY is sponsored by Whole Foods Market Green Bay Road.

MY FAIR LADY is Light Opera Works' first production of 2016. The season will continue with MAME (August 20-28), the concert performance LET ME ENTERTAIN YOU: JULE STYNE'S GREATEST HITS (October 7-16) and DIE FLEDERMAUS (December 26-January 1, 2017).

Discounted season ticket packages are still available.

Ticket prices for MY FAIR LADY begin at $34. Ages 25 and younger are half price. To order tickets, or for more information, call the Light Opera Works box office at (847) 920-5360 or order online 24 hours a day at www.LightOperaWorks.com

Director/Choreographer/Music Director Biographies

RUDY HOGENMILLER (Director), artistic director of Light Opera Works, directs MY FAIR LADY. He has directed and choreographed many productions for the company including GUYS AND DOLLS, SOUTH PACIFIC, THE FANTASTICKS, THE MERRY WIDOW, COLE PORTER'S GREATEST HITS, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, ANNIE GET YOUR GUN, H.M.S. PINAFORE, OLIVER!, MAN OF LA MANCHA, CAMELOT, BRIGADOON, HELLO, DOLLY!, THE YEOMEN OF THE GUARD, MY FAIR LADY, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, KISS ME, KATE, SOUTH PACIFIC, THE MIKADO and THE SOUND OF MUSIC. Hogenmiller was seen on stage in 2014 as Mr. Applegate in DAMN YANKEES, and as the Emcee in CABARET in 2013. He has been recognized with six Joseph Jefferson Awards and 17 nominations for best direction and choreography in Chicago, and has been a member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers for more than 35 years.

ROGER L. BINGAMAN (Music Director and Conductor) conducts the 28-piece orchestra. Bingaman made his first appearance on the Light Opera Works podium in 1997, conducting THE MERRY WIDOW. Since then he has conducted many productions, including SOUTH PACIFIC, THE FANTASTICKS, CABARET, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, ANNIE GET YOUR GUN, H.M.S. PINAFORE, OLIVER!, CAMELOT, THE STUDENT PRINCE, BRIGADOON, HELLO, DOLLY! CAROUSEL, and THE YEOMEN OF THE GUARD, as well as THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, MY FAIR LADY, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, THE MUSIC MAN, IOLANTHE, GIGI, OKLAHOMA!, BITTER SWEET, KISS ME, KATE, 110 IN THE SHADE, NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY and BEAUTIFUL HELEN OF TROY. Bingaman has been director of the apprentice program and chorus master for the Sarasota Opera since 1998.

CLAYTON CROSS (Choreographer) choreographed GUYS AND DOLLS last season at Light Opera Works, played the Mute in THE FANTASTICKS and was a featured dancer in DAMN YANKEES. Recently, he was a Cagelle in Marriott Theatre's LA CAGE AUX FOLLES. Cross served for five years as artistic advisor, board member and choreographer for Renegade Dance Architects, and continues to consult and contribute choreography to the Capitol One Bowl's ALL AMERICAN HALFTIME SHOW. He is a master teacher for M.A. Dance, a Texas-based traveling convention circuit, where he has worked and judged for the past 17 years. Throughout his 20-year career as a dancer, Cross has worked with Robert Battle, Fernando Bujones, Frank Chaves, Paul Taylor and Ann Reinking. He was featured in EVERY DANCER HAS A STORY, a PBS special about the River North Chicago Dance Company, where he was a company member for nine seasons and toured nationally and internationally. Originally from Midland, Texas, Cross received his early training from La Petite Dance Company, Coleman Academy, and the Midland Community Theatre. He holds a BFA in ballet and modern dance from Texas Christian University.

Photo by Rich Foreman

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