Circle Theatre Presents THE GREAT AMERICAN TRAILER PARK MUSICAL 4/29, 4/30, 5/1

Circle Theatre proudly presents the Fort Worth premiere of The Great American Trailer Park Musical, music and lyrics by David Nehls and book by Betsy Kelso. Preview performances for the show are Thursday, April 29; Friday, April 30; and Saturday, May 1 (matinee). The production will officially open Saturday evening, May 1 at 8:00pm, followed by a post-show party with the cast & crew.

Under the direction of Chris Robinson, The Great American Trailer Park Musical features Andy Baldwin*, Kayla Carlyle**, Mary Gilbreath Grim, Jim Johnson*, Sara Shelby-Martin, Grace Neeley, & Heatherton Hardy Wilson. Hans Grim will serve as Musical Director for the production.

Production team members for The Great American Trailer Park Musical are: Sara Harris*, Stage Manager; Clare Floyd DeVries, Set Designer; Drenda Lewis, Costume Designer; David H. M. Lambert, Sound Designer; John Leach, Lighting Designer; and Cathy O'Neal, Props Designer.

"The Honeymooners meets The Best Little Whorehouse in Urinetown"; "More fun than a chair-throwing episode of Jerry Springer"; "The theatrical equivalent of a bag of Doritos." ... These quotes all describe The Great American Trailer Park Musical. This "saucy" musical is peppered with murderous ex-boyfriends, Costco, the Ice Capades, AND ... a stripper on the run who comes between a Dr. Phil-loving agoraphobic housewife and her tollbooth collector husband.

The Great American Trailer Park Musical received its New York premiere at Dodger Stages on September 27, 2005. It was directed by Betsy Kelso and featured Kaitlin Hopkins as Jeannie; Shuler Hensley as Norbert; Orfeh as Pippi; Wayne Wilcox as Duke; Linda Hart as Betty; Marya Grandy as Lin and Leslie Kritzer as Pickles.

In Dallas, it was staged at WaterTower Theatre's Out of the Loop Festival, March 2007. Word of mouth and great reviews soon elevated it to the status of "hit show". The production was then extended to WaterTower's main stage season in September of the same year. Both of those productions featured Fort Worth-based talent, Andy Baldwin and Jim Johnson who, along with Sara Shelby-Martin, will reprise their original roles in Circle Theatre's upcoming production.

* Member of Actors' Equity Association **Equity Membership Candidate

Music Director, Hans Grim, another Tarrant County resident who worked on WaterTower's production, has produced an original Circle Theatre cast recording of selections from The Great American Trailer Park Musical. This original recording includes several previously unreleased songs from earlier versions of the show. These CDs will be available for sale at Circle Theatre.

Producer, Rose Pearson, says - "We are looking forward to merging metroplex talent in our Fort Worth debut of TGATPM. Audiences coming to the show will enter Armadillo Acres Trailer Park - colorfully recreated down to the last flamingo! The show's "picturesque" Florida community is worlds apart from the one of Beethoven and chamber string quartets we recently experienced in Opus."

Circle Theatre is partially supported by the City of Fort Worth, the Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County, the Texas Commission on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Writers

David Nehls (music & lyrics) has supplied music and lyrics for It's a Wonderful Life (1993 National tour and regional performances 1989 - 2000), The Watercoolers, and Fishwrap. He was Musical Director, Off-Broadway, for The Watercoolers, Euan Morton in Concert at the Zipper Theatre, The Great American Trailer Park Musical (New York Musical Theatre Festival). Regional work includes, The Full Monty, Das Barbecu, Honky Tonk Angels, Smokey Joe's Café (Arvada Center, Denver), Hedwig and the Angry Inch, (ICA/Club Axis, Boston), No Way to Treat a Lady (Hartford Theatre Works), Fishwrap (Adirondack Theatre Festival), Forbidden Broadway, S'Wonderful Gershwin (Carousel Dinner Theater, Ohio). Recordings - All Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Carols For a Cure Christmas CDs 1998 - 2004, with such notables as Antonio Banderas, Idina Menzel, and many Broadway casts (Rock-It-Science Records), Broadway Romances Manhattan (Rock-It Science Records), Kevin Cahoon and Ghetto Cowboy (founding member) and White Trash Soul (Rock-It Science Records).

Betsy Kelso (book) is a founding member of the all-female sketch-comedy group, Shirley Chickenpants, that has won praise from Playboy, Stuff, Bust, Paper, Talk, and other publications. She has written for Behind the Music that Sucks, an animated series on FUSE Network, in which she can be heard as the voices of Courtney Love, Jennifer Lopez, Cher, and all three Dixie Chicks. And she is published alongside Cynthia Heimel, Craig Bierko, and others in 101 Damnations: A Humorist's Tour of Personal Hells, a collection of comedic essays. As a performer, Betsy has appeared in numerous shows, including the U.S. Tour of Just for Laughs, a Day with Gates and Mills, starring Tim Conway and Tom Poston. In Europe, she appeared in The Rocky Horror Show. Betsy directed the original Off-Broadway production of The Great American Trailer Park Musical.

Director

Chris Robinson is excited to be back at Circle Theatre, having previously directed their production of A Lone Star Christmas Carol. Most recently, Chris directed OnStage's production of Sunday in the Park with George. Prior to that, he directed Ruthless! for Flower Mound Performing Arts Theatre, and OnStage's hit, and award-winning production of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Other directing credits include: Greater Lewisville Community Theatre, Guys & Dolls; Sage & Silo, The Rocky Horror Show & Cotton Patch Gospel; & OnStage, La Cage Aux Folles. Chris has performed in the DFW theater community for over 19 years, as well as several regional theaters across the country. A Rabin and multiple Column Award winner, Chris serves on the board of directors for The Column Awards and produces the multi-media for the ceremony each year.
Music Director

Hans Grim has served as music director for productions at Texas Christian University, WaterTower Theatre, Theatre Arlington, Granbury Opera House, and Casa Mañana. He also produced five musicals for Aledo Musicals and was the original music director for the national tour of Three Redneck Tenors. As a pianist, he played for the national tour of Mamma Mia!, as well as appearing with the Dallas Wind Symphony and Irving Symphony Orchestra. Hans is also Betty Buckley's rehearsal pianist, a vocalist with Paris Rutherford's The New Collection - a vocal jazz ensemble, and the pianist for the TCU vocal Jazz Ensemble. He appeared on stage at Bass Performance Hall with Casa Mañana and in Addison with WaterTower Theatre as a member of the quartet in The Music Man. Hans recently completed his third year at All Saints' Episcopal School, as a Fine Arts Faculty member. On Sunday mornings Hans can be found playing piano for the Ridglea United Methodist Church and Sunday afternoons you can find him lounging at home with his beautiful wife, Mary, and 3 children, - Max, Rose, and Madeleine. More on the web at www.HansGrim.com.

Circle Theatre

Circle Theatre presents a year-round season of five main stage productions. The Theatre is located in the historic Sanger Building in Sundance Square's Entertainment District, Fort Worth, TX. Circle Theatre's mission is to present contemporary and innovative productions in its intimate 125-seat setting. As a producing member of the Equity Membership Candidacy Program, Circle provides qualifying performance weeks to actors and stage managers. The Theatre also offers internships and apprenticeships in arts administration and production.

For more information, please visit www.circletheatre.com, our fan page on Facebook, or Twitter at CIRCLE_THEATRE.

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