THE GREAT GATSBY Opens Tonight at Hilberry Theatre

The Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance continues its 2015-16 season tonight, October 30 at the Hilberry Theatre with the opening of THE GREAT GATSBY. Wayne State University is delighted to present the only authorized stage interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel, adapted by Simon Levy, featuring the memorable characters of the story interacting in its famous Gilded Age setting.

Patrons are especially invited to join the Opening Night audience on Friday, October 30, with a pre-show costume party starting at 7:00 p.m. Guests are invited to attend dressed in "roaring 20s" attire and the best dressed will win a special walk-on role in a party scene of the performance.

THE GREAT GATSBY is directed by longtime Wayne State faculty member Blair Anderson. Describing the production, Anderson comments, "Bringing to life what has been called 'the defining novel of the Twenties' is a delightful challenge. Fitzgerald wrote that "it was an age of miracles, it was an age of art, it was an age of excess...' Following World War I, the story is less about a time and more about money and the possibilities of buying a new future, of recapturing the innocent love before the horrors of the war, and of replacing disillusionment through hedonistic excess." Audiences are invited to draw their own conclusions while being transported to a more decadent era.

In the cast are: Santino Craven (Jay Gatsby), Michael Manocchio (Nick Carraway), Devri Chism (Daisy Buchanan), Breayre Tender (Jordan Baker), Michael Phillip Thomas (Tom Buchanan), Tiffany Michelle Thompson of Detroit (Myrtle Wilson), Ernest Bentley of Detroit (George Wilson), Brandon A. Wright (Meyer Wolfsheim), Mary Sansone (Lucille McKee), Kyle Mitchell Johnson (Chester McKee), Wesley Cady (Mrs. Michaells), and Cody Robison (Policeman).

The production team includes Blair Anderson (Director), Allison Baker (Stage Manager), Ryan P. Jones (Assistant Stage Manager), Sarah Pearline (Scenic and Projection Designer), John Woodland (Costume Designer), Thomas Schraeder (Lighting Designer), Brian Dambacher (Technical Director & Sound Designer), Mario Raymond (Assistant Sound Designer), Emily Willemse of Dearborn Heights (Properties Master), Thomas Libertiny (Master Electrician), Jill Dion (Choreographer), Wayne David Parker (Fight Choreographer), Michael J. Barnes (Dialect Coach) and JP Hitesman (Publicist).

Performance dates and times are as follows:

Wednesday 2 p.m. (November 4)

Thursday 8 p.m. (November 5, January 7)

Friday 8 p.m. (October 30, November 6, January 8)

Saturday 2 p.m. (October 31, January 9)

Saturday 8 p.m. (October 31, November 7, January 9)

To purchase tickets or for more information about the Hilberry, Bonstelle, Studio, or Allesee Dance theatres, call (313) 577-2972 or visit www.theatreanddance.wayne.edu.

Photo Credit: Chuk Nowak Photography

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