On With The Shows

Social Security closed on Sunday, June 14. The audience numbers are in and we are so pleased that so many people were there to enjoy the presentations. We are very proud of our cast which included vetrans and newcomers alike. Janet Starn reminded us all that, in the words of Sophie Greengrass, we are still alive. In so many ways.

Special thanks to Director Frith Harwood for bringing Social Security back to the stage. It still resonates when you have great direction and fabulous talent on stage. Jim Weinzettle received the most stars and we were so thrilled that he stepped out of his normal every day "mild mannered man" role. Susan Hathorn was Barbara, what more can we say. And she did an amazing job gathering the props and pieces that are so vital to the successful production. Allen Rowlen and Paula Antee as Martin and Trudy, put aside their own personalities to become the Heymans. Jim Leggett did a great job assuming the role of Maurice Koenig, "a hundred year old jew." He looked terrific! We must not forget to thank Mark Gilette, for so much help backstage and for the portrait of Sophie. Newcomer Greg Conner manned the light and sound board quite well. Lighting designer, Ron Rachal, was, as usual, just the best. There are countless others who helped to make the show a success and we thank them all.

And the audiences made each performance so much fun.

Now we are on to the next production, Flyin' West by Pearl Cleage, a drama, set in the late 1800's. The characters face problems ranging from the inevitability of long, cold winters, to the possibility of domestic violence, to the continuing spectra of racial conflict. Director, Dianne Falcone, has announced the cast:

Sophie Washington............Karen Riley Simmons
Miss Leah............................Rosa Metoyer
Fannie Dove.......................Natalie C. F. Phillips
Will Parish..........................Doogie Golatt
Minnie Dove Charles...........Margreek Dorsey
Frank Charles......................Jerry Havens

We have begun rehearsals and will open this production in August. Check back here for updates and additional information. We look forward to seeing you at the theatre.

Last Weekend to See Social Security

Don't miss seeing Jim Weinzettle and Susan Hathorn as David and Barbara Kahn, the sophisticated New York couple whose lives are complicated by Barb's sister Trudy and her husband Martin Heyman, (portrayed by Paula Antee and Allen Rowlen) when they suddenly bring the sisters' controlling mother, Sophie Greengrass (portrayed by Janet Starn), to stay in Manhattan indefinitely. The laughs never stop as Frith Harwood directs this 1980's adult comedy which also features Jim Leggett as the 98 year old artist, Maurice Koenig.

Evening performances this week resume on Thursday, June 11, at 7:30pm and continue on Friday and Saturday. The show closes with a matinee on Sunday, June 14, at 2:30 in the afternoon. Tickets are $12 for general seating. Seniors over 65 pay only $10 and students, just $5. Your donations help City Park Players continue to present productions year after year. Reservations are urged. Call 318-442-1800 or send an email to cityparkplayers@gmail.com

Auditions This Week for Flyin'West

Audition for Flyin' West by Pearl Cleage (www.pearlcleage.net), presented by City Park Players August 6-16. The auditions are set for Monday & Tuesday, June 8 & 9 at the Hearn Stage downtown. Flyin' West is a powerful play about a family of sisters who abandon the oppressive racism of the post-Reconstruction South to take advantage of the Homestead Act and own their own land in Nicodemus, Kansas (www.nicodemuskansas.com). The play has 4 female and 2 male characters. Please, if you know others who might be interested, pass this notice on to them. A brief synopsis of the play follows. See you at the auditions!

Flyin' West by Pearl Cleage - Synopsis

In the late 19th century, more than 60,000 African Americans gathered in Nashville, Tennessee to embark on a new life in the Western frontier. In an unprecedented movement that came to be known as “The Great Migration,” former slaves and free Blacks began an exodus out of the south and staked their futures on the promise of a piece of land in the free state of Kansas. One of the communities that would form as a result of this great journey was Nicodemus, Kansas.

Set in the all-black town of Nicodemus, Kansas in 1898, Flyin’ West tell the story of courageous, Black pioneers who have come west to build a new life for themselves, free from the racism and oppression of the South. Each of the characters in the play brings a different experience to the story. Miss Leah (age 73), was born into slavery and came west with the first settlers of the Great Migration. Sophie, Fannie and Minniehave been thrown together by circumstance, and have become like sisters to each other. They have homesteaded a piece of property in Kansas together.

Born into slavery, Sophie (age 36) is determined to make Nicodemus a model community, where blacks can enjoy all the benefits of a free life. Fannie (age 32 and born free), wants to be a writer. She has struck up a relationship with a local black man, Wil Parrish (age 40), who was born into slavery, lived among the Seminole Indians, and has come to Kansas by way of Mexico.

Trouble begins when Minnie (age 21 and born free) returns from Europe where she has been living with her husband, Frank (age 36 and born into slavery), a successful poet in London. Frank, the son of a white slave-owner, is waiting to hear if he will receive the inheritance his father promised him before he died. A very light-skinned Black, Frank “passes” for white, and subsequently loses all his money in a card game with white speculators. When a telegram arrives announcing that his white half-brothers have denounced him and his right to his inheritance, Frank suddenly sees the value in Minnie’s share of the homestead.