Author: Renee

Fall Musical “Lucky Stiff”

Rehearsals are in full swing and the show is coming along well. It’s already a lot of fun. So be sure to make plans to see this amazing production in the fall.

Lucky Stiff
Book and Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, Music by Stephen Flaherty

October 19, 20, 21, 2018

Directed by Judy Felsenthal and Lisa Swanson
Produced by Angela Walter

Harry Witherspoon is a rather unsuccessful shoe salesman in London. He receives a telegram that his American uncle has died and left him $6 million, if he can comply with the terms of the will. He must take his “taxidermied” uncle on a swinging vacation to Monte Carlo. If he doesn’t, the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn gets the money. Thus Annabel Glick enters the scene to save the dogs. Meanwhile, Uncle’s girlfriend Rita and her brother, the optometrist, are trying to get their hands on the money! It seems that Rita and Uncle embezzled the money from her husband, and now she needs it back. Mayhem ensues and we should have the audience holding their sides with tears running down their cheeks. There is a surprise ending, of course!

Auditions for “Lucky Stiff”

Lisa and I are planning on holding auditions for Lucky Stiff on June 26th and 27th at City Hall. We plan on starting at 6:30 and would love to have everyone come out. (We might be in the Senior Citizens Room or we might be on the third floor… it’s anyone’s guess.) If you can’t make it, just contact one of us and we’ll be glad to figure something out.
The show is a musical, with many parts big and small, so there’s something for anyone who is interested. If you’re not confident of your singing ability, we’ll put you in the chorus. If you want to strut your amazing stuff, we have those parts, too. Either way, we would so love to have you join us in this endeavor! Please, tell your friends… including those who talk about joining the group, but haven’t had a chance. Some of the parts are great for first-timers!

Production dates are:  October 19, 20, 21.

Here’s the synopsis:
Harry Witherspoon is a rather unsuccessful shoe salesman in London. He receives a telegram that his American uncle has died and left him $6 million if he can comply with the terms of the will.  He must take his “taxidermied” uncle on a swinging vacation to Monte Carlo. If he doesn’t, the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn gets the money. Thus Annabel Glick enters the scene to save the dogs. Meanwhile, Uncle’s girlfriend Rita and her brother, the optometrist, are trying to get their hands on the money! It seems that Rita and Uncle embezzled the money from her husband, and now she needs it back. Mayhem ensues and we should have the audience holding their sides with tears running down their cheeks. There is a surprise ending, of course!

We hope to see you soon.-Judy and Lisa

Fall Musical Announced “Lucky Stiff”

Dear Theater Lovers and Lovers of Theater,
We are going to kick up our heels and have some fun with a musical this fall! Lucky Stiff is the name of our farcical adventure. If you want to get a taste, there are several productions and the music available to peruse on YouTube.

Judy and I are excited to put a cast together and jump in! The show dates are October 19, 20 and 21. We would like to hold auditions at the end of June and get started the first week of August. This will give people plenty of opportunities to go on vacations, miss some rehearsals, and still feel confident in a polished production. Judy and I like to be as efficient as we can be with your time and ours, so we can accommodate most schedules in the rehearsal process – don’t let “being busy” stand in your way of joining this escapade 🙂

So here’s the synopsis:
Harry Witherspoon is a rather unsuccessful shoe salesman in London. He receives a telegram that his American uncle has died and left him $6 million, if he can comply with the terms of the will. He must take his “taxidermied” uncle on a swinging vacation to Monte Carlo. If he doesn’t, the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn gets the money. Thus Annabel Glick enters the scene to save the dogs. Meanwhile, Uncle’s girlfriend Rita and her brother, the optometrist, are trying to get their hands on the money! It seems that Rita and Uncle embezzled the money from her husband, and now she needs it back. Mayhem ensues and we should have the audience holding their sides with tears running down their cheeks. There is a surprise ending, of course!

There are bigger roles and smaller roles – plenty of room for everyone!  Please consider spending a little time with us to bring this farce to life!!

Judy and Lisa

LCP presents “Buying the Moose”

The Lancaster Community Players will be staging Michael Wilmot’s comic masterpiece, Buying the Moose at the Grantland Theater in Lancaster, Wisconsin on March 16-18.

LCP veterans Deanna Seippel, Lisa Nicolai, and Kurt Meyer will be joined onstage by a relative newcomer, Bob McKelvey to tell the comic story of marital differences. The age-old story of husbands trying to understand their wives will play out in two entertaining acts. Director Eileen Dushek-Manthe will present a show with fast-paced dialogue and split-stage action as the two couples engage in a battle of the sexes.

Reserved tickets can be purchased for $10 by contacting Angela Walter at 608-778-7726. Balcony seating is $9 and can be purchased at the door before performances.

Please make plans to enjoy Lancaster Community Theater’s performance of Buying the Moose by Michael Wilmot. Special note: No actual moose will be injured in the performance of this play!

“Buying the Moose” cancellation

Lancaster Community Players regrettably announces the cancellation of “Buying the Moose,” set for production Oct. 27-29 at the Grantland Theatre, Lancaster, Wis. Patrons who have purchased advance tickets will be refunded their ticket price. We thank the community for your support of our creative endeavors. Please join us in 2018 as we celebrate 40 years of bringing live theatre to our area.

LCP’s Fall Production “Buying the Moose”

Betty and Rob have a pretty solid marriage until the day Betty comes home early from a conference and discovers Rob in a very unusual (but ultimately explainable) situation!

This is the opening scene of the Lancaster Community Players fall production of  Buying the Moose by Michael Wilmot to be performed on Oct. 27, 28, and 29 at the Grantland Theatre in Lancaster Wisconsin.

As Betty and Rob are trying to reconcile some pretty hilarious marital differences, other family members attempt to come to the rescue but Rob’s brother and sister in-law get sucked into the vortex of miscommunication between the sexes too!

Director Eileen Dushek-Manthe is very excited to present this comedy in two acts.  She is delighted to work with LCP veterans Deanna Seippel and Lisa Nicolai as the women trying to make sense of their husbands and Bob McKelvey and Bill Mahaney, two relative new comers to the Lancaster stage, playing the men trying to make sense of their wives.

Audiences will enjoy the fast paced dialogue and split stage action as these two couples engage in the age old battle of the sexes.

Reserve tickets can be purchased for $10.00 by contacting Angela Walter at 608-778-7726.  Balcony seating is $9.00 and can be purchased at the door before performances.

Please plan to come and enjoy LCP’s fall production of Buying the Moose by Michael Wilmot.

Auditions for fall play

Lancaster Community Players (LCP) will hold play auditions 6:30-8:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, Aug. 28 and 29, in the Lancaster City Hall Council Chambers. Director Eileen Dushek-Manthe is casting “Things my Mother Taught Me” by Katherine DiSavino. The play centers around a younger couple who are moving into their first place together, halfway across the country. Their moving day doesn’t go exactly as planned, and things get complicated when both sets of parents show up to help. Roles are available for a younger man and woman (the couple) as well as two more women and men (their parents). An additional role of the apartment building superintendent can be cast as either male or female. Production dates are Oct. 27-29 at the historic Grantland Theatre, Lancaster. Scripts are available for checkout at Schreiner Memorial Library, Lancaster, until audition time. “Things My Mother Taught Me” is produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.

LCP welcomes people interested in being involved both on and off stage. Be part of one of the tristate’s quality live theatre experiences! Contact Dushek-Manthe at bemanthe@tds.net or (608) 723-4913 for information.

“Unnecessary Farce” a big success

What took months of hard work and preparation is now just a memory, and what a memory it will be. Unnecessary Farce was a huge hit amongst the community this past weekend. A BIG Thank you to all who came out to see this great show and had some great laughs. I can not say enough about the cast, director and crew, you all were great to work with and I look forward to working with you all again. Ann Dolan, Tom and Lisa Nicolai, Eileen Dushek-Manthe, Shawn Steinhoff, Bill Mahaney, Bob McKelvey, Judy Felsenthal, Mike Steffel,Kristin Holman-Steffel, Bill Haskins, Mike and Angela Walters, Kim Martens, Gretta McKelvey. Thank You all again, I will never forget this great experience!!

Carson Smith –  Officer Eric Sheridan

LCP presents “Unnecessary Farce”

Unnecessary Farce is that rarest of theatrical birds: a farce that is actually funny. Sure, it’s silly to the max, but it makes the audience laugh, the primary responsibility of a farce (and a goal rarely achieved.) Like the great comedies of old, Farce’s unbearably funny plot is not contrived but rather derives from character development. And what a bunch of characters!

The play opens as patently under-qualified cops Eric and Billie set up a sting operation in a pair of adjoining motel rooms “in a big town . . . somewhere in America.” Alerted to certain discrepancies in the municipal budget – a mere $16 million – they’re hoping that city accountant Karen Brown will, by calling the mayor on the carpet, prompt him to offer her an incriminatory bribe. Simple? Not on your life, as Murphy’s law takes effect and the sting goes south in a hurry when Scottish hit man Todd, security head Frank, and the mayor’s wife Mary arrive on the scene.

Directed by Ann Dolan, the cast is terrific, with a mix of favorite LCP veterans and some new faces, too! Cops Eric and Billie are played by Carson Smith and Lisa Nicolai; accountant Karen Brown is Eileen Dushek-Manthe; Scottish hit man Todd is played by Bill Mahaney, security head Frank is Shawn Steinhoff; and the mayor and his wife are played by Bob McKelvey and Judy Felsenthal.

Unnecessary Farce runs March 17 and 18 at 8 pm, and March 19 at 2 pm at the fabulous Grantland Theater in downtown Lancaster. Reserved ($10) and general admission ($9) tickets are available now by calling box office manager Angela Walter at 608-778-7726.