From the number of new additions to an already busy season, it is becoming clear that Barrington Stage Company is going to keep its two stages lit nonstop all summer and into the fall. With the company’s latest additions of cabaret stars Lucie Arnaz (shown above in lead photo) and Amanda McBroom, two staged readings about fascinating historical figures, plus the annual Labor Day celebration of new music with Bill Finn (Songs by…) it is going to be a summer to remember, and those in Pittsfield will not have to travel far to find an amazing array of entertaining evenings.
The new events are in addition to three musicals the company has in the works: Guys and Dolls and The Game on the Main Stage (Season Preview Here), and Mormons, Mothers and Monsters on Stage 2.
Jeff McCarthy will take part in a staged reading of Kunstler.
Also on the Main Stage is Mark St. Germain’s The Best of Enemies. The announcement was made by Artistic Director Julianne Boyd and Managing Director Tristan Wilson.
The staged readings are of new plays by Mark St. Germaine and Jeffrey Sweet, and even this does not complete the events the company has in store for 2011. Watch for our interview with Julie Boyd for some surprising additions beyond even these.
Jeff McCarthy – who wowed audiences in last year’s Sweeney Todd at BSC – will return to bring controversial attorney William Kunstler to life in a staged reading of a new play by Jeffrey Sweet. Mark St. Germain who has a new play, The Best of Enemies, about the KKK on the Main Stage this summer, will give BSC audience a first glimpse of his Mrs. Lincoln’s Séance.
The staged readings are popular events because it gives audiences both a sneak peek into potential new productions, plus and opportunity to talk with and ask questions of the playwrights and actors. They are so popular in fact, that they often sell out without too much promotion.
Lucie Arnaz
Monday, June 20 at 7:00pm on the Mainstage
Lucie Arnaz: Latin Roots! is a sizzling and romantic musical journey inspired by the songs she heard her father Desi Arnaz sing.
It includes both standards and hidden gems by the likes of Irving Berlin, Johnny Mercer and Cole Porter, often seasoned with the heat of a Caribbean beat.
The rhythms of Latin music are imbedded in her soul, and Lucie has never sounded more authentic than when singing these songs from deep in her heart.
Tickets: $45 (Section A); $35 (Section B); $25 (Section C); VIP tickets: $75 (includes premium seating and reception with Lucie Arnaz).
Mrs.Lincoln's Saence
Monday, August 15 at 7:00pm on the Mainstage
A new play by Freud’s Last Session and The Best of Enemies playwright Mark St. Germain.
Driven by disturbing, prophetic dreams of her husband and the death of their four year old son, Mary Lincoln seeks the help of the psychic Treblaine sisters, whose celebrated séances have been carefully orchestrated frauds – until suddenly they’re not.
More than history, it is a look into times long past in which people believed in a spirit world that could be contacted.
Mrs. Lincoln’s Séance is a thriller set in the seven days between the end of the bloody Civil War and the assassination of our country’s most beloved President. Tickets: $15 (reserved seating).
Presented in partnership with the 2011 Word X Word Festival.
The indefatigable Bill Finn has ubiquitous influence over new musicals.
September 2 & 3 at 8:00pm on the Mainstage
Songs By… is hilarious, toe-tapping and informative. By now it is also a Labor Day institution in the Berkshires, as much as the last backyard bar-b-que of the summer.
You will hear great singers sing great songs. You will hear new collaborations and new additions to the great American songbook.
Two-time Tony Award-winner William Finn not only chooses the songs but also discusses how writing lyrics is like making turducken and why some songs are great and some not-so-great. It’s the perfect way to end to a glorious summer.
Tickets: $35 (Section A); $30 (Section B); $25 (Section C). Songs by…, is a productions of the Musical Theatre Lab which is sponsored in part by Elayne Bernstein & Sol Schwartz and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Staged Reading: KUNSTLER
September 3 at 4:00pm and September 4 at 7:30pm at Stage 2
By Jeffrey Sweet
Featuring Jeff McCarthy
Directed by Julianne Boyd
In this theatrical treatment by playwright Jeffrey Sweet, radical lawyer William Kunstler (played by BSC and Broadway veteran Jeff McCarthy) comes to a seminar to talk about how he has used the law to disrupt America.
What he hasn’t counted on is the presence of a young woman with her own plans to disrupt.
Kunstler described himself as a radical lawyer and his controversial clients led him to be widely loathed and perhaps the most famous lawyer in America. This look into the man and those he inflamed is the ultimate lesson in democracy and the right of every American to a fair trial.
Tickets: $15 (reserved seating).
Amanda McBroom returns with an all-new show.
with Michele Brourman
September 23 & 24 at 8:00pm at Stage 2
Amanda McBroom has been called “the greatest cabaret performer of her generation, an urban poet who writes like an angel and has a voice to match.”
Composer of the power ballad “The Rose” which became a number one hit the world over, Amanda is a knock out performer and extraordinary songwriter. Join us for a rare evening of songs that will lift you out of your seat: they will entertain you, move you and touch your soul.
There are perhaps a dozen videos of Amanda McBroom available on the web, and while The Rose is a timeless classic, I happen to like the video embedded below – a tribute to her father – even more.
Tickets: $35 (reserved seating); VIP tickets: $45 (includes reception with Amanda McBroom).
Ticket information
Single tickets for the above performances ($15-$75) are on sale now. Mainstage FlexPasses are available for $105-$138. Stage 2 Passes are available for $81-$124. A Musical Theatre Lovers Pass to all three musicals on the Mainstage and Stage 2 is available for $130.
Tickets may be ordered by calling the Box Office at 413-236-8888, online at barringtonstageco.org and at the Box Office, 30 Union Street in downtown Pittsfield . Special rates, benefits and packages are available for groups of 15 or more on the Mainstage and groups of 10 or more on Stage 2. For more information contact Kate Ivey, Box Office & Group Services Manager, at 413-236-8888 or visit barringtonstageco.org/tickets/groups.php.
Thank you for this resource. We will add it to our blog, our website links, and our newsletter.