[NEohioPAL] Mercury's Li'l Abner hosts Sadie Hawkins Day (Tonight) and other events!

[Mercury Summer Stock]

LI'L ABNER, Mercury Summer Stock's current musical offering is  
hosting several wild events in addition to the musical comedy playing  
now through July 24th:

Tonight (Thursday July 15th) - The MSS Teen Board presents Sadie  
Hawkins Day for young theatre lovers ages 13-19 and their families!  
Sadie Hawkins Day is the Dogpatch traditional foot race in which the  
unmarried gals pursued the town's bachelors, with matrimony as the  
consequence. Please come and wear you favorite hoedown attire! Boys  
wear your running shoes! Pizza and Pop will be served. and  
festivities begin at 6:30 PM. The show is at 7:30 PM Tickets are only  
$7.00 per teen ($10 for accompanying adults/siblings)!

Friday July 26th and Saturday July 17th - show at 7:30 PM

Wednesday July 21st - Mercury's Don't Break The Bank Night returns  
(All seats $10). Tickets are going fast for the Discount Days- get  
yours today!
		

Thursday July 22nd - show at 7:30 PM

Friday July 23rd - North Coast Men's Chorus Night/ Talk Back - show  
at 7:30 PM

Saturday July 24th - Closing Night performance!

Call to make your reservation today! 216.771.5862.
www.mercurysummerstock.com

At A Glance:

What: Mercury Summer Stock’s Li’l Abner

When: July 9-10, 14-17, & 21-24.  All performances at 7:30PM

Where: The Brooks Theatre in The Cleveland Play House. 8500 Euclid  
Ave. Cleveland. 44106

Cost: $15.00 for Adults and $12.00 for Students (college and under) / 
Seniors (60 and up). See above for special events and discount nights!

For reservations and more information please call 216.771.5862, or  
order online at www.mercurysummerstock.com.

- - - -- - - -
Check out the first review!!!

Home > Parma Sun Post > Community
Mercury Theatre review: 'Li'l' Abner balances one-note comedy and satire

Published: Wednesday, July 14, 2010, 11:21 AM

Ted Larsen, Sun News

Scheduling “Li’l Abner,” a 54-year-old show based on a depression-era  
comic strip, seems an odd choice. Al Capp’s classic strip was, in its  
day, deeply topical — and more than a bit subversive.

Can satire firmly rooted in The ’50s still resonate and entertain us  
today? In Mercury Summer Stock’s production, running at The Brooks  
Theatre at The Cleveland Play House through July 24, the answer is  
mostly yes.
Under its veneer of hillbilly corn and cardboard characters, “Li’l  
Abner” lampoons an incompetent U.S. government, corrupt politicians,  
science gone amok, and the general absurdity of human nature itself.

Filled with characters bearing monikers like Sen. Jack S. Phogbound  
and Appassionata Von Climax, the show cleverly walks the tightrope  
between inch-deep comedy and thoughtful satire.

The plot twists and turns around the effort to save Dogpatch (“the  
most unnecessary town in America”) from becoming a nuclear test site.  
Can the mystical powers of Yokumberry tonic save the town from  
destruction (and more to the point, save the townsfolk from having to  
get — gasp! — jobs)?

The cast brings unfettered joy to the production. In a star turn, Dan  
DiCello as Marryin’ Sam ignites his every moment on stage, and the  
ever-hopeful Daisy Mae is wonderfully funny as played by Annie Hickey.

Director Pierre-Jacque Brault has wisely seen that it’s impossible to  
overplay these characters, and his large cast has embraced the broad,  
cartoonish world. The odd exception to this is Abner himself, who is  
played more tepid Midwestern suburbanite than simple-minded  
hillbilly. But the affection between Daisy Mae and Abner, played by  
Jason Leupold, is sweet and effective, and Leupold’s strong clear  
voice carries the music with aplomb.

One of the hallmarks of Mercury Summer Stock is high-energy  
creativity, and on opening weekend, that creativity was displayed in  
spades. The cast and crew had to deal with a power outage, so they  
moved the show outside and performed under the fading sunlight (and  
eventually under car headlights). To see them adjust on the fly while  
not missing a beat was nothing short of amazing.

“Li’l Abner” stands as a highly entertaining example of musical  
theater that manages to breathe humor into the underlying satire.

“Li’l Abner” runs through July 24. Call (216) 771-5862 or go to  
mercurysummerstock.com.
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