Act II Playhouse In Ambler Presents Lerner And Loewe's CAMELOT

Romance and magic are in the air as Act II Playhouse closes its 19th season with the classic Lerner and Loewe musical Camelot, on stage in Ambler from May 15-June 17.

Camelot tells the legendary tale of King Arthur, Queen Guenevere, Lancelot, and The Knights of the Round Table. It's from the same team - lyricist and librettist Alan Jay Lerner and composer Frederick Loewe - behind My Fair Lady.

"In 2012, My Fair Lady was a runaway hit for us, running 10 weeks," Act II Artistic Director Tony Braithwaite said. "At that point I started to think of what other classic musicals would work well on our stage and Camelotimmediately came to mind. It has some of the best songs ever written for the stage - 'If Ever I Could Leave You,' 'How to Handle a Woman,' 'Take Me to the Fair' - and is considered the last of the great American musicals from the 'Golden Era.'"

This new production is helmed by one of Philadelphia's top directors, Matt Pfeiffer. Camelot "attempts to wrestle with idealism that often falls short. And it wrestles with the deepest matters of the heart," Pfeiffer said.

Renowned Philadelphia actor Jeffrey Coon leads the company as Arthur, the king who hopes to create an idealized society where might is used for right. Managing Director Eileen Cella - who wowed Act II audiences as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady - plays Arthur's partner, Queen Guenevere. Kevin Toniazzo-Naughton plays the French knight Lancelot, whose attraction to the queen imperils the mythical kingdom.

The company also includes Iman Aaliyah, Joey Abramowicz, Rajeer Alford, Luke Bradt, Jordan Dobson, Scott Langdon, and Patrick Romano.

When it premiered in 1960, Camelot had the highest ticket presale of any show on Broadway to that point. The same is true in Ambler, where Camelothas sold more tickets prior to opening than any previous show in the Playhouse's history. In fact, Camelot has already been extended by a week. Many performances are already sold out, and audiences are encouraged to purchase tickets early. A full schedule of performances is available online here. (Opening night for press is Friday, May 19 at 8 p.m.)

Tickets for Camelot at Act II Playhouse are $35-$47. Discounts are available for subscribers, students, group of 10 or more, and seniors 65 and older. Tickets are available online at http://www.act2.org, by calling the Act II box office at (215) 654-0200, or in person at 56 E. Butler Ave. in Ambler.

"The question of how to make and sustain a peaceful and representative society is one that's challenged human kind through all of existence," Pfeiffer said. "This musical was written at the beginning of the Kennedy administration and the dawn of the sixties. With Kennedy's assassination and the tumult of the Vietnam War, Camelot took on an eerie resonance. And while our own times are not quite as tumultuous, it's not lost on me that we're producing the piece in an age of great divide on the heels of such great promise."

"At a time when politics has never more divided or upset us, a glorious aspirational tale might be just what we all need!" Braithwaite added.

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