[NEohioPAL] Assassins at Cassidy Theatre

[Cassidy Theatre]

Cassidy Theatre News Release
Contact:   Christine Hnat, Artistic Director
	  Cassidy Theatre, 6200 Pearl Road, Parma Heights, OH  44130
 		      (440) 842-4600

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2, 2008 
BEREA GRINDSTONE PLAYERS AND CASSIDY THEATRE PARTNER 
TO STAGE MUSICAL ASSASSINS DURING POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 

Berea –  In this Presidential election year, the Berea Grindstone Players and The Cassidy Theatre in Parma Heights have formed a new partnership to present the Stephen Sondheim musical Assassins, which examines the historical figures who assassinated, or attempted to assassinate, an American President.   The show will run at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays  Oct. 9 through Oct. 18, 8 p.m. Thursday Oct. 16 and 3 p.m. Sunday Oct. 11 at Cassidy Theatre, 6200 Pearl Rd. Parma Hts.  Tickets are $15 and can be purchased by calling The Berea Grindstone Players at (440) 954-4105 or the Cassidy Theatre at (440) 842-4600.  Assassins is for mature audiences.  More information can be found online at www.assassinsshow.8k.com.  Assassins is Directed by Geoffrey Short, with Musical Direction by Heidi Herczeg.

>From John Wilkes Booth to Lee Harvey Oswald, Stephen Sondheim and Book Writer John Weidman have bent the rules of time and space, taking audiences on a nightmarish rollercoaster ride in which assassins and would-be assassins from different historical periods meet, interact and in an intense final scene inspire each other to harrowing acts in the name of the American Dream. The original production premiered in late 1990 at Playwrights Horizons in New York City for a completely sold-out limited run and instantly became one of the most talked-about shows in years.  The B.G.P./Cassidy production stars Michael Snider as John Wilkes Booth, Kevin Joseph Kelly as Charles Guiteau, Jacob Wadenpfuhl as The Balldeer/Oswald, Kim Bush as Sarah Jane Moore, Chris Bizub as Sam Byck, Holly Facer as Squeaky Fromme, Trey Gilpin as Giuseppe Zangara, Joshua Brown as John Hinckley, Rob Starek as Leon Czolgosz and features Jennifer Nageotte, Lissa Pavluk,  David Turner, David Williams, Michael Strama and Joey Stefanko.  

Assassins is a Berea Grindstone Players production, but will be staged at Cassidy Theatre.  The Assassins project partnership between the theatre companies began when Short was approached to direct at the Grindstone Players, a theatre group started by the late Bill Allman, after Berea Summer Theatre, also founded by Allman, closed.  Short suggested Assassins, a surreal and provocative one-act musical that explores the dark side of the American experience by examining the lives of nine individuals who assassinated or tried to assassinate the President of the United States.  The timing of producing the show one month before the current presidential election was important, but producing a show with mature themes was not possible at the normal home of B.G.P. shows – St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Olmsted Falls.  Short, who serves as President of the board of Cassidy Theatre, Inc., then approached that group about hosting the production.  He proposed a revenue sharing plan between the groups and when both groups approved the plan, work began on casting.   “Assassins has always been a show I’ve been very passionate about” says Short.  “Sometimes it’s uncomfortable to look at the underbelly of American society like Assassins does through the amazing music of Stephen Sondheim. But the themes explored in the show are so important to think about – especially in this election year when we have the important job of deciding who will lead our country for the next four years.  I’m grateful to both the Grindstone Players and The Cassidy Theatre for having the guts and foresight to partner on this exciting project.”