Lamb's Players Theatre Announces Their 2010 Season

Producing Artistic Director Robert Smyth has announced Lamb's Players Theatre's 2010 Coronado Season. The lineup will begin in February with AN INSPECTOR CALLS, J.B. Priestley's compelling tale of human connection and moral responsibility. It will continue with Norman Corwin's riveting look at the Lincoln-Douglas debates, THE RIVALRY, Mary Chase's endearing classic comedy HARVEY, Jon Lorenz and Colleen Kollar Smith's musical journey through the 80s, MIX TAPE, and will conclude with the world premiere of Dennis Hassell's THE GLORY MAN, about Clarence Jordan and the founding of Koinonia Farm, a racially-integrated religious community in the deep South of the 1940s, 50s and 60s.

"Our 2010 Season in Coronado is a menu with a variety of theatrical flavors," says Producing Artistic Director Robert Smyth. "We start with an intriguing mystery in J.B. Priestley's AN INSPECTOR CALLS. Next up is THE RIVALRY, a witty, compelling look at the Lincoln-Douglas debates. We're excited to bring Mary Chase's classic comedy HARVEY to our stage. Then, resident ensemble members Jon Lorenz and Colleen Kollar Smith give us a musical ride through the 80s with the world premiere of miXtape. And we finish up with a world premiere about Clarence Jordan by one of our favorite writers, Dennis Hassell, called THE GLORY MAN. It's a season full of fun surprises, and it wouldn't be possible without the adventurousness and loyalty of our season ticket holders."

An Inspector Calls
February 5 - March 21, 2010 (Opening February 12)

The Birling family is having a quiet celebration of their daughter's engagement, when a Police Inspector appears with questions about the death of a young woman. At first it appears that the event was entirely random, but as the evening progresses, facts unfold that reveal a connection between the deceased and each member of the family - and before the night is over, more than one of them may have some explaining to do. J.B. Priestley's compelling tale of human connection and moral responsibility is a modern classic that will delight and intrigue.

"We've always loved AN INSPECTOR CALLS," says Robert Smyth. "We've produced the piece once before, in 1989 at our old theatre in National City. It's a play that unfolds with delicious intrigue, with some really interesting characters - a great challenge for an ensemble theatre. And it's always fun for our designers to take on a period play, though we may set it in a slightly different time period from the script's original 1912. It's a delightful evening of theatre."

An Inspector Calls will play February 5 - March 21, 2010, with a media opening on February 12.

 

The Rivalry
April 2 - May 16, 2010 (Opening April 9)

150 years before another Illinois Senator became the political phenomenon of our time, the Lincoln-Douglas debates electrified crowds with a series of groundbreaking confrontations that still have no equal in American statesmanship. Norman Corwin's riveting play electrifies the stage with a close-up portrait of the two larger-than-life personalities, as well as the behind-the-scenes drama between the men and Stephen Douglas's perceptive wife Adele. THE RIVALRY is a theatrical marvel featuring large sections of the 1858 debates themselves, revealing the astounding fact that some of the greatest American theatre ever performed came from two men who were not actors - named Lincoln and Douglas.

"We love American history," says Robert Smyth, "and audiences do too. One of our biggest hits in the last few years was 1776. With books like Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals topping bestseller lists, interest in Lincoln runs high. The Rivalry is a piece that's getting a lot of attention right now nationwide, with revivals Off-Broadway and around the country. Norman Corwin wrote the play 50 years ago, but much of the text was written 150 years ago - sections from the debates themselves. It's powerful, but it's also an incredibly witty and delightful look not just at Lincoln, but at two other remarkable individuals, Stephen and Adele Douglas."

The Rivalry will play April 2 - May 16, 2010, with a media opening on April 9.

Harvey
June 4 - July 18, 2010 (Opening June 11)

Before it became the classic movie starring Jimmy Stewart, Mary Chase's hilarious and endearing comedy HARVEY was a Broadway hit, going on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Elwood P. Dowd is the nicest guy in town. Can he help it if his best friend happens to be a 6-foot-tall invisible white rabbit? His long-suffering sister and embarrassed niece have had enough, and hilarity is about to ensue as they try to check Elwood into the local sanitarium. A brilliant send-up of conformity, psychoanalysis, and the frantic pace of modern life, HARVEY is a comedy that just might make you a believer!

"Harvey has been on our short list of plays we'd like to do for a few years now," says Robert Smyth, "so it's exciting for us to finally see it on a real season lineup. Most people may only know it from the Jimmy Stewart movie, but the play is an absolute delight. It's a rare comedy that's both fall-out-of-your seat funny, yet with a heart and something to say as well."

Harvey plays June 4 - July 18, 2010, with a media opening on June 11.

miX tape
a musical journey through the 80s
August 6 - September 19, 2010 (Opening August 13)

Take a seriously wild musical ride back to the most awesome of decades. Reagan was in the White House, Michael Jackson was at the top of the charts, lycra and legwarmers were the accessories du jour, and a "mix tape" of favorite tunes was the ultimate in self-expression. The lousy economy was about to bounce back like we'd never seen, set to the synthesized beat of 80s Rock. The Cold War was heating up, and with fingers on the nuclear button, the world was sure to end any moment. But for Generation X, life was just beginning. Put on your suspenders, pull out the Members Only jacket, do your hair up with a scrunchy, and "everybody cut footloose" with us in this totally rad musical world premiere.

"In miX tape," says Smyth, "ensemble members Jon Lorenz and Colleen Kollar Smith take us on a ride through the 1980s and show us the generations that lived through it, and the generation coming of age. It's funny how interest in certain decades peaks at just the right time - now is the perfect time for a retrospective of the 1980s. And knowing something about the vision and musical virtuosity that Jon and Colleen bring to this piece, audiences of all generations are in for a treat."

miX tape plays August 6 - September 19, 2010, with a media opening on August 13.

The Glory Man
October 1 - November 14, 2010 (Opening October 8)

Clarence Jordan, author of "The Cotton Patch Gospel," was a preacher and Greek scholar who left academia to found Koinonia Farm, an unconventional racially-integrated community in the deep South of the 1940s. He soon found that he was not just up against the Klan, but religious bigots and the entire culture that surrounded him. THE GLORY MAN brings to life not only his story, but the sights and sounds of an entirely authentic rural Southern world. A play with music reminiscent of films like O Brother, Where Art Thou, steeped in the infectious sounds of Appalachian Roots music and Gospel, this world premiere from associate artist Dennis Hassell (A Divine Comedy) will inspire audiences with the true-life story of an American original, and his legacy, which included the start of Habitat for Humanity.

"Dennis Hassell was a staff member at Lamb's Players in the 70s and early 80s," remembers Robert Smyth. "We consider him an invaluable Associate Artist. We commissioned his play A Divine Comedy, which was one of our biggest hits in 2003, but this is a very different piece. THE GLORY MAN is the story of Clarence Jordan. Our audiences may know Clarence Jordan from "The Cotton Patch Gospel," which Tom Key adapted into the musical we've performed a few times. Clarence Jordan was a preacher who gave up a comfortable life to found a racially-integrated community in the South before the Civil Rights movement - an incredibly gutsy and influential person. It's an arresting story, and what Dennis has created goes beyond a simple biography - it spans decades, and creates a whole other world in an imaginative way that only actors and live theatre can embody."

The Glory Man will play October 1 - November 14, 2010, with a media opening on October 8.

All plays and dates are subject to change.

The company will conclude 2010 at its Coronado theatre with the next installment in its unique play cycle FESTIVAL OF CHRISTMAS. Two blocks away at the Hotel del Coronado, the interactive turn-of-the-century feast and celebration AN AMERICAN CHRISTMAS will spread yuletide cheer. 2010 subscribers receive advance purchase privileges and discounts for both Christmas productions. They also receive discounts for productions at the Horton Grand Theatre, discounts on LPT's popular LAST SUNDAY CABARET series, as well as advance purchase privileges for LPT's SUNDAY NIGHT AT LAMB'S concert series.

In addition to the Coronado season, Lamb's Players Theatre presents longer-running productions at its downtown space, the Horton Grand Theatre on 4th Avenue in the Gaslamp Quarter. Currently playing is GODSPELL. Before he wrote the music and lyrics for Wicked, Working, or Pippin, Stephen Schwartz wrote Godspell. Go back another 1,971 years, and you'll find a guy from Galilee who changed the world. Now Lamb's Players returns to one of its most memorable shows of all time with a knockout cast and a killer band, in a stirring production that incorporates Schwartz's recent musical additions to his now-classic score.

Packed with infectious songs like "Bless the Lord," "It's All for the Best," and the beloved anthem "Day by Day," Godspell tells the Greatest Story ever told - in a style that blends commedia, vaudeville, even Saturday Night Live-esque shtick - with music that ranges from pop to reggae to rock to show-stopping musical theatre. Joyous, funny, and inspiring, GODSPELL is a great time at the theatre and perfect for the whole family.

Season tickets will go on sale to the general public on October 13th, 2009, after current subscribers are given the chance to renew their seats. Subscribers save up to 50% off the single ticket price for all five productions. Other benefits include discounts at Coronado and downtown restaurants, discounts when purchasing additional tickets for family and friends, easy ticket exchange privileges, free replacement of lost tickets, and the option to keep the same seat for Season 2011.

Performances are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 4:00 and 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

All season packages will be available by calling the Lamb's Players Theatre Box Office at (619) 437-0600 or by visiting the Lamb's Players website at www.lambsplayers.org. 

Lamb's Players Theatre is one of San Diego's leading professional theatres. The company produces in two of the region's premier locations: San Diego's vibrant downtown Gaslamp Quarter, and the beautiful island community of Coronado. In the Gaslamp Quarter, Lamb's Players produces longer-running productions at the Horton Grand Theatre, a beautifully intimate 250-seat proscenium theatre located steps away from dozens of restaurants and nightspots, the San Diego Convention Center, and Petco Park. In Coronado, the theatre presents a full subscription season in its beautiful 350-seat theatre, just a short drive over the Bay Bridge from downtown San Diego. The company's Coronado theatre is within walking distance of numerous shops and restaurants, the Coronado beach, and the historic Hotel del Coronado.

San Diego's third largest theatre company, Lamb's Players Theatre is one of only a handful of artist-directed Ensemble theatres in the nation. The theatre is committed to the tradition of "repertory" theatre, maintaining both a long-term ensemble of resident actors and a body of work to which they frequently return. In addition to producing classics and lesser-known gems of the theatre, Lamb's Players is committed to the development of new work. The theatre also has a special interest in exploring spiritual issues for a diverse mainstream audience.

 

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