Thursday, January 30, 2014

Two Uptown Actors Star In Local Theater Productions

Two entertainers from an entertainment district.  Besides the wonderful productions we have in Uptown, please consider seeing these two local talents when planning an evening out:

(L-R) Robin DaSilva, Donterrio Johnson, Sharriese Hamilton
Uptown resident Sharriese Hamilton will star in Porchlight Music Theatre’s special Black History Month production of Ain’t Misbehavin’, a Tony-Award winning celebration of music by Thomas “Fats” Waller. The production begins performances starting February 1st.  Sharriese joins the rest of the cast and live band in performing 30 of Waller’s best hits, including "Ain't Misbehavin’," "Honeysuckle Rose," and "This Joint is Jumpin'." It provides a peek into the golden age when the Cotton Club reigned during the height of the Harlem Renaissance and take the audience on a musical journey that reflects the emotions and experiences of African-Americans in the early twentieth century.

Previews are Saturday, February 1, at 8pm, Sunday, February 2, at 2pm and 6pm, and Monday, February 3 at 7:30pm, with reduced ticket prices.  Opening/Press Night is Tuesday, February 4at 7:30pm.  The show runs through March 9th.  For information and tickets, go to porchlightmusictheatre.org.



Gail Rastorfer and Christian Gray (as film stars
Natasha Navratilova and Ivor Fish) (credit: D. Rice)
Uptown resident Christian Gray stars as "Ivor Fish" in Tom Stoppard's farce, Rough Crossing, playing at the First Folio Theatre (at the Mayslake Peabody Estate, in Oak Brook).  It's a Jazz Age musical set in the early 1930s aboard the S.S. Italian Castle on its way to New York, where two playwrights struggle to finish their latest musical hit as they maneuver around a jealous composer, the screen star he loves, and her lothario co-star.  Aided by the most inept steward ever to tread the deck of a cruise ship, the trio must save both their show and their stars from disaster.

Christian resides in Uptown with his wife, Lydia Berger Gray, who is also a First Folio Theatre Artistic Associate.

Rough Crossing opens Saturday, February 1 at 8pm, and runs through March 2. You can find out more about it and buy tickets at http://www.firstfolio.org/.

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