FOOTLOOSE Opens Tonight at The New London Barn Playhouse

The New London Barn Playhouse takes you down to the town of Bomont with Footloose running August 17th-August 21st!

Tickets and information available at www.nlbarn.org or 603-526-6710

Cut loose and join in at the New London Barn Playhouse for the 80's hit of the summer, Footloose! This high energy show will take you through the heart of Bomont, Texas, where you may find love knocking and a small town becoming a family. Footloose runs August 17th through August 21st at 7:30PM with a Wednesday matinee performance at 2:00PM, Sunday performance at 5:00PM, and a bonus matinee Friday, August 19th at 2:00PM.

Based on the 1980's screen sensation that still keeps the world dancing, Footloose follows the new kid in town Ren who finds himself at odds with an overbearing church minister who has convinced the city council to outlaw dancing and rock n'roll. Ren will stop at nothing to help the people of Bomont kick off their Sunday shoes and shake up the town in this musical studded with 80's pop favorites!

Guest artists new and familiar join us for Footloose! One familiar face is Jesse Swimm*, who recently made his Barn Playhouse debut as Sam Carmichael in Mamma Mia! and previously appeared in the original cast of School of Rock the Musical on Broadway and in the My Fair Lady tour as a swing and dance captain. Jesse plays Reverend Shaw Moore, local minister and strict authority figure in the small town of Bomont. Playing Vi Moore is Emma Rose Brooks*, who returns to the Barn Playhouse after appearing as Petra in A Little Night Music and Annelle in Steel Magnolias. Other regional credits include Kate McGowan in Titanic The Musical, Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls and Antonia in Man of La Mancha at Milwaukee Rep; and she directed Big Fish with NCCT which received an NHTA nomination for Best Production. Reverend and Mrs. Moore's daughter Ariel, played by Kate Fahey, is a recent graduate of Penn State Musical Theatre and is so excited to put on her red cowgirl boots and make her Barn Playhouse debut! Recent credits include Mae in Lippa's The Wild Party, Kyle in the premiere of Nostalgia Night, and Anne Egerman in A Little Night Music. Penn State graduate and acting intern Daniel Tracht plays alongside Fahey as the new kid in town, Ren McCormack. Returning to us after playing Ladislav Sipos in She Loves Me, Scott Sweatt is back as Coach Dunbar/Cowboy Bob. Previous New London Barn Playhouse credits include Anything Goes, The Odd Couple, Peter and the Starcatcher, Newsies, 42nd Street, On Golden Pond, and Fiddler on the Roof. Playing Wes Warnicker/Principal Harry Clark is another Barn Playhouse favorite Adam Zeph, who is returning to us after playing Bernard in Boeing Boeing and currently Father Alexandrios in Mamma Mia! Some other past Barn Playhouse credits include Catch Me If You Can, Shrek, 42nd Street, Crazy For You and West Side Story. Margaret Hunton is joining us for her Barn Playhouse debut as Ethel McCormack. Some of her favorite stage credits include Our Town with Northern Stage, Fiddler on the Roof with Artistree and Big Fish with NCCT. Debra Buckley joins us back at the Barn Playhouse for her twelfth season as Betty Blast/Eleanor. Favorite roles at the Barn Playhouse include Madame Thenardier in Les Miserables, Mrs. Paroo in The Music Man (2004 and 2013), Sister Margaretta in The Sound of Music and Ruth in Pirates of Penzance (NHTA Best Supporting Actress). Lydia Frew joins us back after A Chorus Line as a member of the ensemble and understudying the roles of Wendy Jo and Lulu. Shane Boucher and Carly Mazer also return to the stage with Boucher playing the role of Jeter as well as understudying Coach Dunbar, Cowboy Bob and the Cop, while Mazer joins the ensemble as well as understudying Ethel, Eleanor and Betty.

Members of the Acting Intern Company fill out the rest of the cast, with Ariel's group of friends being played by Katelyn Baughman of Baldwin Wallace as Urleen, Abby Linderman of Pace University as Wendy Jo and Bella Lopez of The Hartt School as Rusty. Bad boy Chuck Cranston is played by Max Smaretsky and the country bumpkin with a big heart Willard Hewitt is played by Keaton Miller. Ren's aunt Lulu is played by Jenessa Altvater and Nick Traficante and Justin Payton Nelson play Ren's friends Bickle and Garvin. Ricky Cardenas and Yoni Haller play Chuck's buddies Travis and Lyle, while the remainder of the ensemble is made up of acting interns Anne-Sophie Hill, Dylan Lugosi, and Bailey Poe.

Executive Artistic Director Keith Coughlin is celebrating his 15th summer at the Barn Playhouse as he steps into the director role for Footloose. Some directing/choreography credits include West Side Story (2017 NH Theatre Award, Best Professional Musical), Crazy For You (2016 Moss Hart Award for Excellence in Professional Theatre), and Kiss Me, Kate (NH Theatre Award nomination, Best Musical, 2014). He also serves as a Lecturer in the Department of Theater at Dartmouth College. Choreographer Bradley Allan Zarr is currently on the Dance and Musical Theatre faculty at AMDA in New York City. He has been in the National Tours of The Drowsy Chaperone, Spamalot, Catch Me If You Can and Anything Goes. Some directing/choreography credits include Anything Goes (WSU), Catch Me If You Can (Associate, New London Barn Playhouse) and Bullets Over Broadway (Associate, Ogunquit Playhouse). Back for his seventh season at the Barn Playhouse and after his recent work in She Loves Me here, Music Director Robbie Cowan returns for Footloose. His many Barn Playhouse productions have earned New Hampshire Theater Awards for Best Production, Best Music Direction, and the prestigious Moss Hart award for Excellence in New England Theater in two consecutive years. He has also performed in 49 states on national tours including Shrek, Damn Yankees, Bullets Over Broadway, and others. Award winning scenographer and Scenic Designer Brad M. Carlson is here for his fifth season at the Barn Playhouse, and has worked at numerous professional theaters including the Glimmerglass Festival in Cooperstown, New York. Dustin Cross^ is pleased to be back for his fourth season as Costume Designer after just designing Mamma Mia! here at the Barn Playhouse and previously designing for Murder for Two and Peter and the Starcatcher among others. Off-Broadway credits include Love Actually (NY/ Chicago), The Office (NY, National Tour), and The Glass Menagerie. Lighting Designer Keith A. Truax is thrilled to be returning to the Barn Playhouse for his fifth season as well. Past credits include Summer Under the Stars, The Marvelous Wonderettes, Catch Me If You Can, Newsies, Godspell and more.

The stage management team includes John "JP" Pollard* as the Stage Manager, who is joining the New London Barn Playhouse directly from the Musical Theater West production of SPAMILTON. Other previous credits include An Act of God, starring Sean Hayes (LA/SF), The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in The Universe starring Lily Tomlin (SF) and Jersey Boys the 2nd National Tour. The Assistant Stage Manager is Molly Raven Hopkins*, with previous credits including Into The Woods in New York at The Ally, Our Town with the Shakespeare Theater Company, and The Nutcracker with the Washington Ballet. Stage management intern Maggie Caradonna is a junior at Ithaca College who is working toward a BFA in Stage Management and has been an Associate Stage Manager for on The Other Shore and We Wear the Sea Like a Coat.

The band for this production includes Michael Lecuyer (guitar), Abby Singer-Miller (bass), Gavin Connolly (drums), and Emily Lombardo (reeds).

Tickets are available at nlbarn.org/tickets, by phone at 603-526-6710 or at the New London Barn Playhouse box office Tuesday-Saturday starting at 11AM and Sundays from 11AM-3PM.

*Appears courtesy of Actors' Equity Association

^Denotes member of United Scenic Artists / Local USA 829

The New London Barn Playhouse

The New London Barn Playhouse is one of the oldest continuously operating summer theaters in the country. Housed in an historic converted barn, the theater features professional Broadway actors alongside emerging young artists in an intimate, air-conditioned setting, and has received countless accolades.

Tickets at www.nlbarn.org or by phone at 603-526-6710.

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