A CLOSER WALK WITH PATSY CLINE to Open Bristol Riverside Theatre's 30th Season

Bristol Riverside Theatre opens its 30th Anniversary Season with A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline by Dean Regan on September 27-October 16.

Directed by Susan D. Atkinson, A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline stars Jessica Wagner who wowed audiences as Patsy Cline in BRT's hit production Always Patsy Cline. The production also features BRT favorite Danny Vaccaro and a quartet of Jared Calhoun, Nate Golden, Christopher J. Perugini, and Sean C. White as the Jordannaires.

Patsy Cline defined the term "crossover hit" by dominating the country, blues, pop and gospel charts of the 1950s and early 602. Featuring over 20 of Patsy's unforgettable hits, this to-tapping, foot stomping tribute traces her career from the early days of singing in honky tonks through her rise to fame at the Grand Ole Opry, to her triumph at Carnegie Hall. This closer walk follows the trajectory of a down-home girl who became a country music legend.

Previews begin Tuesday, September 27 with opening night on Thursday, September 29. Performances run Tuesday through Sunday until October 16. Tickets start at $33, with discounts for students, groups and military personnel. Tickets are available by visiting brtstage.org or calling the BRT Box Office at 215-785-0100. Bristol Riverside Theatre is located at 120 Radcliffe Street in Bristol, PA.

SPECIAL EVENTS:

Friday Festival on Friday, September 30 at 7 PM. Complimentary wine, hors d'oeuvres, and dessert, with a guest speaker to discuss the show

Wine Down Wednesday on October 5 at 6:30 PM

Thirsty Thursday on October 13, 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM

Theatre Theology on Sunday, October 16

Susan D. Atkinson (Director) theatrical career spans 40 years of directing and producing on both the east and west coasts. She has directed well over 150 plays and musicals in her career, including world and area premieres from such playwrights and composers as Doug Katsoras, Mark St. Germain, Jon Marans, Alan Knee and Larry Gatlin. For BRT, Atkinson directed the smash hit Always...Patsy Cline, as well as Bus Stop, Rumors, Enemy of the People, Tuesdays with Morrie, Little Shop of Horrors, What A Glorious Feeling, Inherit The Wind, The Good Earth, Wintertime, Irma La Douce, Alive and Well, The Price, 110 in the Shade, A Sunbeam, Inspecting Carol, A Moon for the Misbegotten, Arsenic and Old Lace, A Little Night Music, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill, Holiday, Talley's Folly, Proof, Little Women, A Raw Space and Steel Magnolias. In 1998, Atkinson directed Larry Gatlin's Texas Flyer both here at BRT and at Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, Texas.

Jessica Wagner (Patsy Cline) returns to BRT where she has been featured last season in Bus Stop and Rumors and starred in the title role of Always...Patsy Cline. She has starred in numerous productions at Forestburgh Playhouse including The Sound of Music, Spamalot and Avenue Q, and in My Fair Lady at Ocean State Theatre Company. She has been featured in cabaret performances at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Town Hall and Joe's Pub at The Public Theatre.

Danny Vaccaro (Little Big Man) has been seen at BRT in Man of La Mancha, Rumors, Lost in Yonkers, Tuesdays with Morrie and Little Shop of Horrors. He appeared on Broadway in La Cage Aux Folles and starred in the national tour of The Diary of Anne Frank. Regional credits include several productions at Barter Theatre including leading roles in Sweeney Todd, Singin' in the Rain, and The Last Five Years, as well as productions at Goodman Theatre, Fulton Opera House and the Walnut Street Theatre.

BRT's 30th anniversary season continues with Working: a Musical adapted from the book by Studs Terkel and featuring new music by Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) on November 1-20, Driving Miss Daisy by Alfred Urhy on January 24-February 12, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's Jesus Christ Superstar on March 21-April 16 and Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution on May 9-28.

Since 1986, BRT has brought consistently acclaimed professional theatre to Bucks County and maintains a long-term commitment to finding and developing new plays. The theatre is the recipient of over 68 Barrymore Award nominations for Excellence in Theatre, given annually by Theatre Philadelphia. In addition to its mainstage productions, the theatre serves as a cultural hub for the community, with such programs as children's theatre, community concerts and exhibitions of local visual arts. Currently under the direction of Artistic Director Keith Baker, Founding Director Susan D. Atkinson, and Managing Director Anne Kohn, BRT begins its 30th anniversary season. For information, visit www.brtstage.org.

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