This is a new twist of an ancient staging idea (I believe the Greeks thought of it first though it was probably earlier than that). Second Stage has been billed as flexible theatre, theatre in the round or to coin a phrase…Theatre 3D. There are no bad seats to be had as you are looking down on the set from above. The intimacy allows for the audience to experience theatre as it was designed to be, that is you are able to see close up the body language and facial expressions of the actors as they move to entertain and enlighten you.
With the production of Ten Chimneys, the entire theatre becomes part of the set, with a sleeping alcove (used later in the play) and collector edition dinner plates lining the walls just as they do at the real Ten Chimneys in Genesee Depot, Wisconsin. The audience is simply a witness to the drama unfolding under them like blithe spirits haunting the reality of the play.
I found the entire play delightful, especially the sharp witted dialog between members of the cast pitted against each other as advisories. Of special delight was Emmy® award-winning actress Mariette Hartley who played the irascible Hattie Sederholm, mother to the play’s Alfred Lunt (expertly played by Donald Carrier). Her cutting dialog cut to the quick and left no survivors.
Also of note was the role of Sydney Greenstreet (played by Michael McCarty) who brought a very human element to the part. His ability to go from glib wisecracking to deep melancholy was a wonder to behold. Jordan Baker performed in the role of Lynn Fontanne. It was an actor playing an actor who felt she was always on stage. The portrayal was flawless. One delightful scene is when Alfred and Lynn are practicing a scene from Chekhov’s The Sea Gull with Sydney running them through their lines. At each flub they race through the scene faster and faster to get to where they had left off until their words are a blur of speech. It was true comedy theater at its best.
Rounding out the cast was Jeremy Kendall playing Carl Sederholm (Alfred Lunt’s half brother, who carried the perfect balance of independent shyster who is all too unwilling to stray too far from the money purse. Cast as Carl’s long suffering sister and Alfred’s half sister, Louise Greene, is Gail Rastorfer who brought a raw edginess to the play. Last but by far not least was Kelli Ruttle in the role of Uta Hagen who played the ingénue and temptress in the love triangle of her, Alfred and Lynn. The role of Uta was most demanding having to do a play within a play and shift from lover to innocent to actress to cast offed woman all within the framework of the production.
Supporting the remarkable cast was a remarkable production crew which included: Carolyn Voss; Assistant Lighting Director, Lisa Parrish-Thompson; Production Assistant, Diana Spring Sidley; Draper, Kristine Davies; First Hand, Rebekah Solt; Sticher, Catie Martin; Dresser, Lee Savage; Scenic Designer, David Kay Mickelsen; Costume Designer, Michael Lincoln; Lighting Designer, Lindsay Jones; Sound Designer, John Godbout; Stage Manager, Elissa Myers casting/Paul Fouquet, CSA and Simon Casting/Claire Simon, CSA: Casting, Managing Director was Kevin Moore.
The entire production was expertly directed by Michael Bloom.
“I can’t think of a better way to open our fantastic Second Stage than with a play about two American theatre legends, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne,” states Michael Bloom, CPH Artistic Director. “We will be celebrating their artistic home, Ten Chimneys, in our new artistic home, the Second Stage in the Allen Theatre Complex at PlayhouseSquare.”
ABOUT THE PLAY
“Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne were universally regarded as the greatest acting team in the history of the English speaking theatre. They were married for 55 years and were inseparable both on and off the stage.” So reads the epitaph on the Milwaukee graves of Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne, the couple whose stage performances delighted generations of theatre-goers in the early and middle 20th century. While the Lunts are considered theatre royalty, because they were determined to make their career in theatre rather than film, their legacy is preserved not on celluloid, but in the minds of those fortunate enough to have seen them perform live.
The Lunts in Cleveland
During their time as America’s premier acting couple, the Lunt’s made multiple appearances in Cleveland, beginning in the 1920s and continuing until their farewell tour with The Visit in 1959. By far, the Lunt’s most anticipated visit to Cleveland occurred in January 1933, when the couple acted with Noël Coward in the world premiere of his controversial comedy Design for Living.
About Ten Chimneys
For much of the 20th century, Ten Chimneys (in Genesee Depot, Wisconsin) was considered the center of the theatrical world – an important place for artistic creation, discussion, mentorship and inspiration. Every summer, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne returned home to their beloved Ten Chimneys. And, every summer, they reveled in welcoming close friends. The Lunt’s idyllic retreat beguiled and inspired the country’s finest actors, writers and artists: Noël Coward, Helen Hayes, Laurence Olivier, Vivien Leigh, Julie Harris, John Gielgud, Katharine Hepburn, and Alexander Woollcott. Carol Channing was fond of saying, “What the Vatican is to Catholics, Ten Chimneys is to actors.” In 2003 (after nearly being lost to development), Ten Chimneys opened to the public as a world-class house museum and a national resource for theater, the arts and the art of living. For more information, go to www.tenchimneys.org.
ABOUT SECOND STAGE
As one of only three venues in the country, the Second Stage has a system for flying scenery, a floor with a trap, premium seating and the flexibility of a black box space. Custom-designed, rolling seating carriages allow Second Stage to change into multiple audience configurations (i.e. arena-style seating, runway-style seating, thrust-style seating, and more) in a matter of hours. It affords CPH the opportunity to fit the venue to the play rather than adapt the play to the venue. With only seven rows of seats, the Second Stage continues a CPH trademark for enhancing the quality of the entire theatre experience – including intimate settings that facilitate interaction between spectators and performers.
TEN CHIMNEYS cast:
Anchoring the cast is Emmy® award-winning actress Mariette Hartley, who will play the role of Hattie Sederholm, mother of Alfred Lunt. Hartley has performed in Cabaret on Broadway; Ancestral Voices, Lincoln Center; Sylvia, Manhattan Theatre Company; Enchanted April, Pasadena Playhouse; and national tours of the The Sisters Rosenzweig andCopenhagen (Helen Hayes Award and League of American Theatres and Producers National Touring Broadway Award). Hartley has over 300 film and television appearances includingLaw & Order: SVU, Dirt, Grey’s Anatomy, Big Love, Star Trek and M*A*S*H. Hartley is a three-time Clio Award-winner for her Polaroid commercials with James Garner. The role of the legendary stage actor Alfred Lunt will be performed by actor Donald Carrier , who previously appeared at CPH in Noises Off (2008) and Lincolnesque (2007). Regional credits include The Old Globe, Maltz Jupiter Theatre, The Wilma Theater, Huntington and Intiman Theatres, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, and Stratford Shakespeare Festival. Making her CPH debut, Jordan Baker will perform the role of Lynn Fontanne, wife to Alfred. Baker created the role of C in Edward Albee’s 1994 Pulitzer Prize-winning play Three Tall Women and received a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in Tennessee Williams’ Suddenly, Last Summer. Also making his CPH debut, Michael McCarty will perform the role of Sydney Greenstreet, based on the real character actor. McCarty appeared on Broadway in Mary Poppins, To Be or Not to Be, Oklahoma! (2002 revival), 42nd Street (2001 revival), Amadeus, King of Hearts, Teddy & Alice, Sweeney Todd (1989 revival), Big River, Oliver! (1984 revival), and Dirty Linen. Actor Jeremy Kendall will perform the role of Carl Sederholm. Kendall was at CPH this season playing the role of A Little Monk in The Life of Galileo. The role of Uta Hagen, also based on the real stage and film actress and educator, will be performed by Kelli Ruttle, who has been seen in Case Western Reserve University/CPH MFA Acting Program productions of Present Laughter, An Orchard and Cloud 9. Making her CPH debut, Gail Rastorfer will perform the role of Louise Greene. Her regional credits include Northlight Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Goodman Theatre, and Indiana Repertory Theatre.
TEN CHIMNEYS Creative Team:
Jeffrey Hatcher: (Playwright) adapted Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for the stage and wrote Ella (produced by CPH in 2007). He co-wrote Work Song: Three Views of Frank Lloyd Wright, and Tuesdays with Morrie (produced by CPH in 2005). He also authored the book for the Broadway musical Never Gonna Dance. Hatcher plays produced off-Broadway include Three Viewings and A Picasso at Manhattan Theatre Club, Scotland Road and The Turn of the Screw at Primary Stages, Tuesdays with Morrie (with Mitch Albom) at Minetta Lane Theatre , Murder by Poe and The Turn of the Screw with The Acting Company, Neddy at The American Place Theatre, and Fellow Travelers at Manhattan Punchline. His plays – among them Compleat Female Stage Beauty,Mrs. Mannerly,Murderers,Mercy of a Storm,Smash,Armadale,Korczak's Children,To Fool the Eye,The Falls, A Piece of the Rope, All the Way with LBJ, The Government Inspector, and Work Song (with Eric Simonson) – have been seen at Arizona Theatre Company, Yale Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe, South Coast Repertory, Seattle Rep, Intiman Theatre, Florida Stage, The Empty Space, California Theatre Center, Madison Repertory Theatre, Illusion Theater, Denver Center Theatre Company, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Milwaukee Rep, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Coconut Grove Playhouse, Asolo Rep, City Theatre, Studio Arena Theatre and dozens more in the United States and abroad. Hatcher wrote the screenplays for Stage Beauty,The Duchess, and Casanova, as well as episodes of the Peter Falk series Columbo. He is a member and/or alumnus of The Playwrights’ Center, The Dramatists Guild of America, Writers Guild of America and New Dramatists.
Michael Bloom: (Director) is the eighth artistic director of Cleveland Play House. Recently for CPH he adapted Emma (published by Samuel French) and directedLost in Yonkers,Heaven’s My Destination,The Glass Menagerie,A Streetcar Named Desire,Lincolnesque,Rabbit Hole andWell. He has directed at many of the country’s other major theatres including American Repertory Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Old Globe Theatre, South Coast Rep, Seattle Rep, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Manhattan Theatre Club, Alley Theatre, Alliance Theatre Company, Long Wharf Theatre and the Sundance Playwrights’ Institute. His productions have also been seen throughout Japan and in Tokyo at the Aoyama Theatre and Theatre Cocoon. His off-Broadway production ofSight Unseen garnered three Obie Awards, and he received a Drama Desk nomination for direction. Other productions include the American premiere ofA Young Lady from Rwanda;Gross Indecency, Elliott Norton Award for Best Directing, 1998; the world premiere ofDinner with Friends at Actors Theatre of Louisville; Los Angeles premieres ofThe Cryptogram andThe Old Neighborhood at Geffen Playhouse;Major Barbara andThe Philadelphia Story at Kansas City Rep; and the world premiere of Tennessee Williams’Spring Storm. Among the many playwrights he’s worked with are John Robin Baitz, Anthony Clarvoe, Don DeLillo, John Guare, David Hare, William Hauptman, Arthur Kopit, Neil Labute, David Lodge, Donald Margulies, David Mamet and Wallace Shawn. Bloom has been associate artistic director at Hartman Theatre Company and associate director at American Repertory Theatre. He has taught at New York University , Harvard University , University of Texas and Scripps College . His articles have appeared inAmerican Theatre Magazine andThe New York Times; and his bookThinking Like a Director was published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux in 2001.
The design team for Ten Chimneys includes Lee Savage (Scenic Design), Michael Lincoln (Lighting Design), David Kay Mickelsen (Costume Design), and Lindsay Jones (Sound Design). Also on the team: Stage Manager John Godbout .
Final Performance: Sunday, February 5, 2012
Tuesday Evenings: 7:00 pm
Wednesday - Saturday Evenings: 7:30 pm
Saturday and Sunday Matinees: 2:30 pm
Weekday Matinee: 1:30 pm, Thu 1/26
Special Events
Pre-show Conversations– 45 minutes before every production. Led by CPH actors and staff, these interactive half-hour conversations pull back the curtain early to let you connect with the people, themes, ideas and creative choices that go into each production, in an engaging and relaxed setting.
Post-show Discussions– Sunday, January 22; Tuesday, January 24; Sunday, January 29; Sunday, February 5, 2012 – A chance to interact with the cast, creative team, local experts and fellow playgoers in a lively and wide-ranging discussion of each production and the questions it raises.
Play Date– Sunday, January 15, 2012 - A new program for parents, grandparents, caregivers and their children. While grown-ups are watching the show, children are creating it in a unique "playshop" taught by experienced teaching artists that ties directly into the themes of the play.
nightOUT!Series– Thursday, January 19, 2012 – A new program for the LGBT community and friends. A fun way to spark a conversation and get to know a whole new rainbow of downtown places, friendly faces and CPH, all at a special price.
Student Matinees- 10:30am on Friday, January 20 and Wednesday, February 1, 2012. For details, call (216) 400-7061.
Ticket Information
Single tickets are on sale now; prices range from $49 to $69. Tickets are $15 for all students under the age of 25. For single tickets, please contact the PlayhouseSquare ticket office at 216-241-6000 or online at www.clevelandplayhouse.com. Groups of 10+ save up to 50% off single ticket prices; call 216-400-7027 or email cwheeler@clevelandplayhouse.com.
Founded in 1915, Cleveland Play House is America’s first professional regional theatre. More than 11 million people have attended over 1,100 productions at Cleveland Play House – including more than 100 American and/or World Premieres. Today, under the leadership of Artistic Director Michael Bloom and Managing Director Kevin Moore, Cleveland Play House is an artist-driven theatre that serves the community by holding true to its mission: To inspire, stimulate and entertain diverse audiences in Northeast Ohio by producing plays and theatre education programs of the highest professional standards.
Cleveland Play House is funded through the generosity of Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, and The Ohio Arts Council helps to fund Cleveland Play House with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.
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