Delray Beach Playhouse Announces 2019-20 Subscription Series

The Delray Beach Playhouse announces their 2019-20 Season Subscriptions for the Main Stage Series plays, Musical Memories and Nostalgic Concert Series.

Subscription renewals end June 14, 2019. New subscription sales open June 17, 2019. Subscribers receive priority seating and can save up to $55 off regular ticket prices. To subscribe, call the Playhouse at 561-272-1281.

The Delray Beach Playhouse is located on beautiful Lake Ida at 950 Lake Shore Drive, Delray Beach 33444. Single tickets start at $35 and go on sale to the public September 3, 2019 at 10 a.m. Tickets will be available at DelrayBeachPlayhouse.com or by calling the Box Office at 561-272-1281, ext. 5.

2019-20 MAIN STAGE, MUSICAL MEMORIES and NOSTALGIC CONCERT SERIES:

October 4-20, 2019 - Gary Barlow and Tim Firth's CALENDAR GIRLS THE MUSICAL

Main Stage Series

Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m.; Wednesday (10/9 only), 8 p.m.; Thursday, 8 p.m.

This deeply moving and often hilarious true story takes a conservative Women's Club of middle-class British wives and moms, adds the need for a fundraising effort to buy a sorely needed, new couch for the local hospital waiting room, and mixes in the principle that "sex sells" and voila! the Club produces a calendar with pictures (not of the beefcake or cheesecake variety) but nude portraits of the Club's actual members! To everyone's surprise, the calendar raises over 550,000 pounds in nine months for the hospital and for cutting-edge research into leukemia at the University of Leeds. "YOU'LL CRY WITH LAUGHTER." - Daily Mail.

October 14-23, 2019 - From a Funny Lady to "Funny Girl" - The Birth of a Classic American Musical

Musical Memories Series

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

Bringing a team of uniquely talented people together to write a musical is always a challenge, but sometimes it

becomes a truly harrowing ordeal. So it was when Ray Stark tried to recruit a creative team to write a musical about his mother-in-law, Fanny Brice, the legendary Vaudeville star who introduced songs like "My Man" and "Second-Hand Rose." No musical has ever seen such a dizzying revolving door of talent. The opening was postponed five times! But when FUNNY GIRL finally did open, it was a smash hit and turned Barbra Streisand into a star overnight! Its score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill remains a classic, with songs like "Don't Rain on My Parade," "I'm the Greatest Star," "You Are Woman (I Am Man)," "The Music that Makes Me Dance" and the stand-out hit of the show, "People."

November 29-December 15, 2019 - SEE HOW THEY RUN

Main Stage Series

Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m.; Wednesday (12/4 only), 8 p.m.; Thursday, 8 p.m.

This hilarious British farce by Philip King is one of the most popular ever written. Set in a quiet English village immediately after World War II. Penelope Toop (an American) is a former actress now married to the local Vicar. When she receives a visit from Clive, a fellow American with whom she used to act, raises the suspicions of the village gossip, a nosey spinster named Miss Skillon. When Clive dons one of the Vicar's vestments to attend a local production of Noel Coward's PRIVATE LIVES, Miss Skillon overhears them re-enacting the famous fight-scene from the play and assumes that the Vicar and his wife are breaking up and proceeds to get potted on a bottle of sherry. Meanwhile, an escaping Russian spy has donned yet another of the Vicar's vestments, so when the local Constable arrives in pursuit of the spy, he finds three Vicars, a Bishop, a Cockney maid and a pixilated old gossip embroiled in a hilarious state of confusion.

December 4, 2019 - Feelin'Groovy: The Life and Sounds of Simon and Garfunkel

Nostalgic Concert Series: Feelin' Groovy

Wednesday, 2 p.m.

Simon and Garfunkel quickly became the most popular folk-rock duo of the 1960's and this unique and memorable program traces the arc of their success. You'll hear many of their beloved songs performed amid stimulating commentary on their career as a duo and on their personal lives - performed by Joan Friedenberg and Bill Bowen, who sing professionally as the PinkSlip Duo. Lyrics to the songs will be projected for audience sing-along.

December 9-19, 2019 - Fascinating Rhythms - The Songs of George Gershwin

Musical Memories Series

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

At 15, he was plugging songs on Tin Pan Alley. By 17 he was writing for Broadway. Then at 21, he wrote a song called "Swanee"... and the rest is history! Today, George Gershwin is revered as one of America's greatest composers. The songs he wrote for Broadway shows like LADY, BE GOOD, FUNNY FACE, STRIKE UP THE BAND, STRIKE UP THE BAND, GIRL CRAZY and PORGY AND BESS and films like SHALL WE DANCE? and DAMSEL IN DISTRESS fill a large portion of what we now call our Great American Songbook: songs like "'S Wonderful!," "But Not For Me," "Love Walkin In," "A Foggy Day," "The Man I Love," "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Summertime," "Embraceable You" and "How Long Has This Been Going On?" Join us for a celebration of the music of the "One and Only" George Gershwin!

January 31-February 16, 2020 - SOME ENCHANTED EVENING - The Songs of Rodgers and Hammerstein

Main Stage Series

Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m.; Wednesday (2/5 only), 8 p.m.; Thursday, 8 p.m.

By the time Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein first worked together in 1943, both had already made legendary contributions to the American Musical Theatre. But when they teamed up to create a show called OKLAHOMA, musical alchemy turned into pure magic as one success led to another: SOUTH PACIFIC, CAROUSEL, STATE FAIR, THE KING AND I, CINDERELLA and THE SOUND OF MUSIC. Their songs have helped to swell The Great American Songbook more generously than any composers since Irving Berlin and George Gershwin. Join us in celebrating the unique partnership that gave us such songs as "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!," "People Will Say We're in Love," "Some Enchanted Evening," "Younger than Springtime," "Bali Hai," "There is Nothing Like a Dame," "Getting to Know You," "Shall We Dance?," "No Other Love," "If I Loved You," "You'll Never Walk Alone," "It Might as Well Be Spring," "Edelweiss" and "Climb Every Mountain."

February 5, 2020 - Chai Fidelity: Our Favorite Jewish Songs and the Stories Behind Them

Nostalgic Concert Series: Feelin' Groovy

Wednesday, 2 p.m.

The PinkSlip Duo sings their favorite Jewish songs, from biblical to modern times (from Isaiah to Arlo!), in English, Yiddish, Hebrew, and Ladino. Accompanying the songs are fascinating stories and slides that include carefully researched facts, as well as heartfelt revelations about Joan's long search for lost family in Europe and her personal connections to the songs - all accompanied by stimulating commentary, slides, live music, and lyrics for sing-along.

February 10-20, 2020 - The Best of All Possible Worlds - Leonard Bernstein on Broadway

Musical Memories Series

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

Leonard Bernstein stands alone as a towering figure in the world of classical music, on Broadway and in the early days of live television.Universally acknowledged as one of the greatest classical and operatic conductors of the 20th Century, he also composed some of Broadway's most popular musicals, including the ON THE TOWN ("New York, New York," "Lucky to Be Me," "I Can Cook Too" and "Some Other Time"), WONDERFUL TOWN ("It's Love!," "One Hundred Ways to Lose a Man" and "Ohio"), CANDIDE ("Glitter and Be Gay," "Make My Garden Grow" and "The Best of All Possible Worlds") and WEST SIDE STORY ("Maria," "Something's Coming," "America," "I Feel Pretty," "Tonight," "A Boy Like That" and "Somewhere"). He also wrote songs for PETER PAN ("Dream With Me") and the exquisite "A Simple Song" with Steven Schwartz.

March 20-April 5, 2020 - STAGE STRUCK - A Play by Simon Gray

Main Stage Series

Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m.; Wednesday (3/25 only), 8 p.m.; Thursday, 8 p.m.

The Financial Times called it, "a comedy-thriller that is both comic and thrilling." When Anne O'Neill and Robert Simon married seven years ago, she was a promising actress and he had given up a failing career on the stage to become a Stage Manager in a provincial theatre. But since their marriage, Anne has become a major star on the London stage; while Robert's career has peaked...leading to fallow periods of unemployment and occasional appearances on television as a murder victim. Adapting to their new circumstances, Robert now functions as Anne's personal assistant and soothes his ego by indulging in brief affairs with young actresses. In a desperate attempt to save her marriage, Anne consults a psychiatrist. But when he advises her to leave her husband, Robert realizes that he only has two alternatives: to be thrown abruptly onto the street...or to become a wealthy widower. But the question is, does he have the skill to play the role of real-life murderer? Enjoy the play London critics praised as "A witty and ingenious thriller!"

March 25, 2020 - Voices of Women of the 60s: Joan, Joni, Judy, Janis, Carly and Carole

Nostalgic Concert Series: Feelin' Groovy

Wednesday, 2 p.m.

In a live, music-spiced examination of this cultural phenomenon, singing duo Bill Bowen and Joan Friedenberg retrace the steps of six female music legends and bring you with them. Slides illustrate as the inspiring presentation wends its way through the lives of Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Janis Ian, Carly Simon and Carole King with commentary that recalls both their challenges and stunning achievements. Their most popular songs are sung in harmony-rich arrangements with lyrics projected for audience sing-along for an educational and nostalgic journey.

March 30-April 9, 2020 - Put on a Happy Face! Gower Champion on Broadway

Musical Memories Series

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

Gower Champion first rose to stardom as half of the most celebrated dancing team since Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Marge and Gower Champion appeared in a popular series of MGM musicals and eventually became household names when they were given their own television show. But when Gower began directing on Broadway, he quickly became one of the most respected choreographers in New York. After directing Dick Van Dyke in BYE-BYE BIRDIE, he went on to direct Anna Maria Albergetti in CARNIVAL, Mary Martin and Robert Preston in DO! I DO!, Debbie Reynolds in IRENE and Carol Channing in HELLO DOLLY! His career culminated in the Broadway mega-hit, FORTY-SECOND STREET. The songs he helped to introduce are legion, including "Put on a Happy Face," "Love Makes the World Go 'Round," "My Cup Runneth Over" and the title song from HELLO, DOLLY!

May 15-31, 2020 - STEEL MAGNOLIAS

Main Stage Series

Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 & 8 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m.; Wednesday (5/20 only), 8 p.m.; Thursday, 8 p.m.

Robert Harling's play about his mother and his sister, and their intimate friendships with the ladies who frequent Truvy Jones's beauty parlor in Chinquapin, Louisiana, has become one of the most popular and frequently preformed plays in the history of American Regional Theatre. Since every woman who is "anybody" in Chinquapin comes to Truvy's, we meet the town's most colorful and important ladies. Ouiser is the town's loveable curmudgeon ("I'm not crazy! I've just been in a bad mood for forty years!"). Miss Clairee is a millionaire who owns the local radio station. M'Lynn is a very modern career woman and Shelby (her daughter) is (by general consensus) the prettiest girl in town. The ways in which these women encourage and support each other through difficult and often challenging times truly define what it means to be - not simply a neighbor - but a friend. STEEL MAGNOLIAS is a heart-warming reminder that our friends are the family we choose.

May 25-June 3, 2020 - Swinging on a Star! The Songs of Jimmy Van Heusen

Musical Memories Series

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

One of the most popular and successful songwriters of the 20th Century, Jimmy Van Heusen, had the good luck to find himself teamed up with two of the best lyricists in show business: Johnny Burke and Sammy Cahn. With these (and other wordsmiths) he composed five Broadway shows and countless successful film scores, winning a total of four Academy Awards along the way. Of course, it didn't hurt that singers like Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin were among his biggest fans! His songs include Crosby classics like "Swinging on a Star," Dean Martin's "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?" and Sinatra best-sellers like "High Hopes," "Love and Marriage," "Come Fly With Me," "All the Way" and "My Kind of Town." He also penned such popular favorites as "Imagination," "Call Me Irresponsible" and "Thoroughly Modern Millie."

ABOUT DELRAY BEACH PLAYHOUSE

The Delray Beach Playhouse is one of Delray's most treasured hidden gems. With a prime location on Lake Ida and a history spanning more than 70 years, the success of the Playhouse has been due to the dedication of many who, through their contribution of time, talent and generosity, have brought the fun and culture of live theatre to Delray Beach. At its core, the Playhouse is known for exceptional community theater. More recently, the Playhouse has expanded its programming to include Artists Lounge Live and The Cabaret, featuring vocalists and musical theater stars from South Florida, to Chicago, to Broadway; nationally touring theater and comedy performances; and innovative new programs, such as Songwriter Sessions and Playwrights' Project. For information on programs and services, call 561-272-1281 or visit www.delraybeachplayhouse.com/.

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