Spotlight Theatre to Stage THE FRONT PAGE, 2/23-3/30

Spotlight Theatre presents The Front Page by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, directed by Carol Petitmaire, running February 23 through March 30, 2013.

Ace reporter Hildebrand "Hildy" Johnson wants to break away from journalism, finally get to go on his honeymoon and get a "respectable" job. But on his way out of town, there is a jailbreak, and into Hildy's hands falls the escapee. Excited by the prospect of one final scoop, he conceals his prize in a roll top desk. Over the next few hours, Hildy must prevent a bevy of hungry reporters, trigger-happy policemen, furniture movers, a troupe of boy scouts, and even the cleaning lady from finding the biggest story to hit the newspaper in years!

Spotlight Theatre presents "The Front Page" opening February 23 and running through March 30. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 2:00 p.m. at The John Hand Theater, 7653 E. 1st Place, Denver. Tickets are $20 for adults and $18 for students and seniors and are available by calling 720-880-8727 or online at www.thisisspotlight.org. Group rates available.

The cast includes Ken Street (Walter Burns), Eric Galatas (Hildy Johnson), Wade Wood (The Mayor), Jesse Pearlman (The Sheriff), Bob Byrnes (Diamond Louie), Gracen Porreca (Earl Williams), John Greene (Pincus), Bernie Cardell (Benzinger), LeighAnn Gould (Mollie Malloy), Anna Elisabeth Hershey (Peggy Grant) and Deborah Curtis (Mrs. Grant). Rounding out the cast are Andy Anderson (Endicott), Wade Livingston (Wilson), Luke Terry (Murphy), Charlie Wingerter (McCue), Mike Kienker (Schwartz) and David Cervera (Kruger) as the Newsmen and Tanner Heck as the Policeman.

The authors' expert plotting and rapid-fire, streetwise dialogue delighted audiences and made their play an instant classic when it opened at the Times Square Theatre in August, 1928. Hecht and MacArthur strongly influenced many other American comic writers, especially in Hollywood.

The newspapers are modeled on the City News Bureau of Chicago (where MacArthur had worked) Chicago Daily News (where Hecht was a reporter) and Chicago's American. The character Earl Williams is loosely based on "Terrible" Tommy O'Connor and Walter Burns is a thinly disguised caricature of Hearst editor Walter Howey.

"The Front Page" was adapted to the 1940 film "His Girl Friday" starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell as well as the 1974 film "The Front Page" starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau.

Pictured: Eric Galatas as Hildy Johnson. Photo by DenverMind Media.

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