Summit Playhouse Hosts THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST, 5/5-6/5

New York City's Ground UP Productions and The Summit Playhouse of Summit, NJ announce a thrilling, first-time-ever endeavor this Spring in The Garden State! After much planning, Summit Playhouse is graciously welcoming Ground UP and will host Ground UP's production of The Importance of Being Earnest, from May 20 to June 5, 2011.(Opening night: Saturday, May 21 at 8pm)

Ground UP Productions is a six year-old non-profit theater company, based out of New York City, with very strong ties to the Summit area and its community. Over the last few years, Dan Wheeless (Ground UP's Technical Director and Educational Outreach Committee Head) and his wife Kate Middleton (Ground UP's Artistic Director and Founder) originally from Summit, had wanted to return to New Jersey, and once again become involved with The Playhouse and the Summit community.

Ms. Middleton explains, "In 2010, the two theater companies created a partnership that allowed both parties to expand in various ways. In addition to creating a "second stage" for Ground UP, we have also helped The Playhouse by expanding our educational outreach program, The UnderGround Project, joining the Playhouse Board, and producing and designing the set for their most recent musical production, Closer Than Ever ("A surprisingly rewarding night out," says The Examiner), currently running. Through this new-found relationship, we hope to help each other expand both our programs, our communities, our production possibilities, and our artistic passion."

Broadway veteran Amelia White will lead the cast as the formidable Lady Bracknell. The cast will also include Kate Middleton (Gwendolen Fairfax), Mark Thornton (Algernon Moncreiff), Josh Evans (Jack Worthing), Sarah Berk (Cecily Cardew), Christine Mottram (Miss Prism), Jerry Sipp (Rev. Chausable), Raymond James Hill (Lane) and Phillip Ruvelas (Merriman). The production will be directed by Lon Bumgarner.

Amelia White is thrilled to be with Ground UP Productions again, since appearing in last year's production of Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park. Her Broadway credits include Crazy For You and The Heiress with Philip Bosco and Cherry Jones; and off-Broadway in The Butter and Egg Man at Atlantic Theater Company and The Accrington Pals at Hudson Guild Theatre. She has performed in regional theater across the county such as Weston Playhouse, The Cleveland Playhouse, The Old Globe, Hartford Stage Company, The Guthrie Theatre, Denver Center Theatre Company and is frequent guest artist at South Coast Rep where she played Miss Prism in a 2008 production of The Importance of Being Earnest.

Performances of The Importance of Being Earnest produced by Ground UP Productions at The Summit Playhouse run Thursday through Sunday at 8pm with Sunday matinee at 2pm from May 20 to June 5, 2011.The Summit Playhouse is located at 10 New England Avenue in Summit. (http://summitplayhouse.org/maps.html)

Tickets are $20 for general admission, $12 for students. Tickets can be purchased at www.TicketLeap.com or by calling TicketLeap at 1-877-849-5327. Ticket can also be ordered at www.GroundUPproductions.org.

For Group Sales or for more information about Ground UP Productions as well as information on the company's education outreach program email: Info@GroundUPproductions.org or call (212) 358-3921.

Ground UP Productions produced the New York premiere of the smash hit musical The People vs. Mona by Jim Wann and Patricia Miller. The production was hailed as "Good natured, down home fun!" by The New York Times, "Consistently inventive!" by The New York Post, and "A hootin' good time!" by Variety. The company has also produced three other new works, including Jason Chimonides' The Optimist ("Deliriously entertaining" raves The New Yorker), Hot Damn Holiday! by Ground UP and Guy Olivieri, and most recently, Letter from Algeria by Michael Walker. Ground UP prides itself on its acclaimed revivals of Barefoot in the Park, Proof, Burn This, Pump Boys and Dinettes, The Shape of Thing, as well as many, many others.

Ground UP Productions continues to break ground with "The New Classics", reviving well-known theater in unique ways and producing new works destined for greatness.

 

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