ANNIE GET YOUR GUN Opens at Lakewood Theatre Company, 9/9-10/16

Lakewood Theatre Company's 59th season is right on target as it continues with the classic American musical, Annie Get Your Gun. The production, directed by Ron Daum, presents the story of rough and tumble Annie Oakley and her rise to fame and romance with headliner Frank Butler. Irving Berlin's memorable songs make this a bull's-eye hit for everyone.

Annie Get Your Gun opens September 9 with performances running through October 16 with the following schedule: Thursdays - Saturdays at 7:30 PM; Sundays at 7:00 PM (September 11, 18 & 25) and Sunday matinees at 2:00 PM (September 18, 25 and October 2, 9 & 16).

The theatre is located at Lakewood Center for the Arts, 368 S. State Street in Lake Oswego. Ticket prices are $32/adults and $29/seniors. Other discounts are available for students and groups. Patrons can still purchase season tickets for a five-show package which provide discounted admission and preferred seating. For additional information and tickets, call the Lakewood Box Office at (503) 635-3901 or order online at www.lakewood-center.org.

The Story: Feisty and skilled shooter Annie Oakley (Sara Catherine Wheatley) aims to be the star of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. There's one catch: She'll need to outshine its main attraction, Frank Butler (Logan Benedict) - and it doesn't help matters when she falls in love with him! But "There's No Business Like Show Business," and she proves to Frank: "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better." When he signs up with a rival show, Annie must decide what she wants to win: their final shootout, or his heart. She already knows: "You Can't Get A Man With A Gun."

Loosely based on the true story of sharpshooter Annie Oakley (born Phoebe Ann Mosey) and Frank Butler, Annie Get Your Gun features music and lyrics by the American musical icon Irving Berlin. Lakewood's production stars Sara Catherine Wheatley as the irrepressible Annie Oakley - a role played by such famous stars as Bernadette Peters (Tony Award for Best Actress in a revival of the show), Reba McIntire (Drama Desk and Theatre World awards), Doris Day, Mary Martin, Dolores Gray, Betty Hutton and the incomparable original: Ethel Merman.

Lakewood's production of Annie Get Your Gun follows the 1999 Peter Stone revision of the 1946 script. This version solves some of the racial insensitivities concerning Native Americans. The original book is by Herbert and Dorothy Fields. The score includes "There's No Business Like Show Business," "Anything You Can Do," "I Got the Sun in the Morning" and "You Can't Get a Man With a Gun."

Featured in the cast with Sara Catherine Wheatley are Logan Benedict as Frank Butler, Ron Harman as Buffalo Bill, Stephanie Heuston as Dolly Tate, Joel Walker, as Tommy Keeler, Ellie Simnitt as Winnie Tate, Norman Wilson as Charlie Davenport and David Loftus as the infamous Chief Sitting Bull.

The Oakley kids are played by Kori Schagunn, Jadyn LaRiviere, Brooke Gatto and Winthrop Jeanfreau. Making up the ensemble are veteran Portland area musical performers: Elizabeth Erickson, TIM JOhnson, Jason Glick, Terra Hill, Kirsten Kyllingstad, Krissy Rector, Seth Renne, Chris Rust, Satheara Sin, Tommy Stefanek, Louise Stinson and Brandon Weaver.

The creative team includes stage director Ron Daum, assistant director Alan Anderson, musical director Alan D. Lytle, choreographer Joel Walker, scenic and lighting designer Chris Whitten, costume designer Allison Dawe, stage manager Stephen Gardner, assistant stage manager Robert Calkins, prop master Deb Dahling, sound designer Dan Hallberg and producer Kay Vega.

 

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