Florida Theatre & Theatre Jacksonville Present MAME: THE BROADWAY MUSICAL IN CONCERT Starring Linda Purl

The Florida Theatre and Theatre Jacksonville, in a joint venture, are producing an "in concert" production of the Broadway musical Mame for two performances at the newly restored Florida Theatre on Saturday, August 24 that 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, August 25th, 2024 at 2:00 p.m.

With a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman, Mame is based on the bestselling novel Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis.

Set in mid-20th century New York City, Mame Dennis is an eccentric bohemian with wealthy friends whose fabulous life is interrupted by the arrival of the young son of her late brother. The plot covers their adventures from the beginning of the Depression through WWII with a score that boasts Need a Little Christmas, Bosom Buddies, If He Walked Into My Life, and Mame, one of the best-known title songs of the American Musical Theatre. The original production opened on Broadway in 1966 starring Angela Lansbury and Bea Arthur, winning multiple Tony awards and running for a phenomenal 1,508 performances.

This "in concert" production will feature a full orchestra with 25 musicians on stage, with the 30 chorus members standing behind the orchestra and the 16 principal cast members downstage in front of the orchestra. The principal cast members will be in concert dress, with props and costume touches.

Two Jacksonville natives are two of the three featured guest performers in this production:

• Linda Purl is Mame. Linda is an award-winning star of Broadway, film and television. She is best known for her screen roles as Fonzie's girlfriend, Ashley Pfister, on Happy Days, Pam Beesly's mother, Helene, on The Office, and Ben Matlock's daughter, Charlene, on Matlock. 
• Jacksonville native Dorothy Bishop is Mame's best friend, Vera Charles. Dorothy is best known in New York City for her long-running cabaret hit The Dozen Divas Show and for appearing in the first Broadway national tour of Terrence McNally's Master Class opposite Faye Dunaway.
• Jacksonville native Joey Chancey is the Music Director and Conductor. His Broadway credits include An American in Paris, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Gigi, Annie, and the Broadway national tours of La CageAux Folles and Chorus Line. 

Auditions for the chorus and the rest of the principal cast will be held on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Theatre Jacksonville. For more info, please go to www.theatrejax/auditions.

According to Numa Saisselin, President of the Florida Theatre, this project is important for Jacksonville and the Northeast Florida cultural community because it expands the schedules of the Florida Theatre and Theatre Jacksonville at a time of year that has historically been under-programmed."It is an opportunity for the Florida Theatre to expand its impact and be more involved with the local acting community," said Saisselin. "In addition, it is a rare opportunity for the best local performers to perform on the historic stage of the Florida Theatre."

According to Sarah Boone, Executive Director of Theatre Jacksonville, it fills a niche in the market; nobody else is producing a "Broadway in Concert" series, and there is no Broadway programming at that time of year."It provides more work for local actors, musicians, and technicians. And performing on stage with a full orchestra, which does not happen very often, will be thrilling for our local actors," said Boone. "Through this partnership with Florida Theatre, Theatre Jacksonville will expand its impact on a larger stage in a bigger venue. It is all very exciting."

Tickets

Tickets are $38.50, $53, and $73; and will go on sale Friday, March 15, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. at www.floridatheatre.com or the Florida Theatre Box Office at (904) 355-2787. A limited number of VIP tickets will also be available at $200 each and will include the closing night party.

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