Posts Tagged Daniel Petzold

KEEPING UP WITH THE HOLMESES

KEEPING UP WITH THE HOLMESES

Park Square’s summer mystery will keep audiences guessing ‘who is the real Sherlock?’

Saint Paul, MN. June 9, 2022: Park Square Theatre’s summer tradition of cozy suspense returns to the Proscenium stage with the regional premiere of Jeffrey Hatcher’s HOLMES AND WATSON (July 12 – August 21, 2022), directed by Michael Evan Haney. Set in a tumultuous period when Holmes is presumed dead, pushed over a waterfall by his archnemesis, the play begins when Dr. Watson receives a telegram from a mental asylum: three patients are all claiming to be the famous detective. Who’s the real detective and who are the imposters? This time it’s up to Watson to unravel the case.

The three patients will be played by Pearce Bunting*, Paul de Cordova*, and Peter Simmons* with Bruce Roach* as Watson and a company of fantastic local talent including Kirby Bennett, Peter Christian Hansen*, and Daniel Petzold*, with understudies William Edson, Jeffrey Goodman, and Anna Olson

“Is one a Holmes or a Watson?” ponders Playwright Jeffrey Hatcher. “This is the question that came to mind a few years ago when casting another play based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s immortal characters. Their height, weight, voice, features, manner, persona. Many fit the profile, but only one can be the real thing.” The production follows in the footsteps of other popular Holmes adaptations by Hatcher at Park Square, most recently SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ICE PALACE MURDERS (2015) lauded as “peppered with witty ripostes and humorous allusions” (Star Tribune). If Hatcher’s mastery of characterizing the famous resident of 221B Baker Street was ever in question, his catalog also includes the screenplay of “Mr. Holmes.”

How to cast not one but three Holmeses was a thoughtful decision for Director Michael Evan Haney**, who deliberately chose actors who have not played Sherlock before in order to avoid giving the audience any tip offs. (Steve Hendrickson, who has played the sleuth in many Park Square productions, is set to return to the role in 2023 in HOLMES/POIROT, which he co-wrote with Hatcher). ”I’m really looking forward to seeing how audiences respond to this carefully wrought tale,” says Haney. “It reads like part of the Conan Doyle canon and is such a fun ride!” A relative newcomer to Twin Cities stages, Haney brings over 50 years of professional theatre experience to the production, including 15 years as associate artistic director with The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. His 2016 production of Beckett’s HAPPY DAYS at Open Eye Theatre was acclaimed as offering “hope in the face of absurdity” (Star Tribune

“We are eager to welcome back to the theatre our many summer mystery aficionados, and some new fans, for this exciting new work rooted in a long tradition at Park Square.” says Executive Director Mark Ferraro-Hauck. After being delayed a full two years from its spot in Park Square’s 2020 season, HOLMES AND WATSON promises to be the perfect evening out for mystery buffs, literature lovers, and anyone looking for a cool plot twist on a hot summer night.

The production team for HOLMES AND WATSON includes Erik Paulson (Set Designer), Matthew LeFebvreᐩ (Costume Designer), Montana Johnson (Sound Designer), Mary Shabatura (Lighting Designer), Sadie Ward (Properties Designer),  Andrea Moriarity (Wig Artisan), Annie Enneking (Fight Director), Keely Wolter (Dialect Coach), Laura Topham* (Stage Manager), and Austin Schoenfelder (Assistant Stage Manager).

* Member, Actors’ Equity Association, ** Member, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, ᐩ Member, USA Union 829

CALENDAR INFORMATION:

HOLMES AND WATSON

Park Square’s Proscenium Stage

Previews: July 12, 13, 14
Opening Night: July 15
Regular Run: July 15 – August 21
Audio Description: July 22
Pay-As-You’re-Able: July 24
ASL: July 24
Open Captioning: August 5, 6, 7
Conversation with Jeffrey Hatcher: July 17
Post-Show Discussion: July 24

TICKET PRICES: Previews: $27-$37. Regular Run: $40-$55. Discounts are available for students and educators, seniors, military personnel, those under age 30, and groups. Tickets are on sale by phone at 651.291.7005, (12 noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday), or online at parksquaretheatre.org.   #pstHolmes

BIOGRAPHIES:

Jeffrey Hatcher’s Broadway credits include: NEVER GONNA DANCE (book). Off-Broadway credits include: THREE VIEWINGS and A PICASSO at Manhattan Theatre Club; THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR at Red Bull Theater; SCOTLAND ROAD and THE TURN OF THE SCREW at Primary Stages; LUCKY DUCK (book w/ Bill Russell) at the New Victory Theater; TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE (w/ Mitch Albom) at the Minetta Lane Theatre; MURDER BY POE, THE TURN OF THE SCREW, and A CONNECTICUT YANKEE AT KING ARTHUR’S COURT at the Acting Company; TEN CHIMNEYS at Peccadillo Theater Company; NEDDY at American Place; and FELLOW TRAVELERS at Manhattan Punchline. 

Other theatre credits include: COMPLEAT FEMALE STAGE BEAUTY, MRS. MANNERLY, MURDERERS, MERCY OF A STORM, SMASH, ARMADALE, KORCZAK’S CHILDREN, WORK SONG (w/ Eric Simonson), TO FOOL THE EYE, SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SUICIDE CLUB, JEFFREY HATCHER’S HAMLET, THE SCARECROW AND HIS SERVANT, DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE, THE CRITIC, HOLMES AND WATSON, and others at the Guthrie, the Old Globe, Yale Rep, the Geffen, Seattle Rep, Huntington Theatre Company, the Shakespeare Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse, Cleveland Playhouse, South Coast Rep, Arizona Theatre Company, San Jose Rep, the Empty Space, Indiana Rep, Children’s Theatre Company, History Theatre, Madison Rep, Intiman Theatre, Illusion Theater, Denver Center, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Milwaukee Rep, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Asolo Repertory Theatre, City Theater, Studio Arena, and dozens more in the US and abroad.

FILM/TV: “Stage Beauty,” “Casanova,” “The Duchess,” “Mr. Holmes,” “The Good Liar,” “Columbo,” “Murder at the Cannes Film Festival,” and “The Mentalist.” GRANTS/AWARDS: NEA, TCG, Lila Wallace Fund, Rosenthal New Play Prize, Frankel Award, Charles MacArthur Fellowship Award, McKnight Foundation, Jerome Foundation, Barrymore Award (Best New Play), and the 2013 Ivey Lifetime Achievement Award. He is a member and/or alumnus of the Playwrights’ Center, the Dramatists Guild, the Writers Guild, and New Dramatists.

Michael Evan Haney is celebrating his 51st year in the professional theatre. He has directed plays off-Broadway (AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS), internationally in Vienna and Frankfurt (THE SYRINGA TREE) and in regional theatres including Actors Theatre of Louisville, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Open Eye Theatre (Beckett’s HAPPY DAYS), Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, and Cincinnati’s Ensemble Theatre. He was the Associate Artistic Director for the Cincinnati Playhouse for fourteen years directing among many others BLACKBIRD, CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, THE CLEAN HOUSE, and A CHRISTMAS CAROL (for 25 years).

He has acted in over 100 plays including on  Broadway in Elie Wiesel’s Zalman, at the Moscow Art Theatre in OUR TOWN, in the U.S. premier of Charles Dickens’ NICHOLAS NICKELBY, and in seasons at The Arena Stage, Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival, The Missouri Repertory Theatre and others. On screen with his wife, Amy Warner he has appeared with Cate Blanchette in “Carol” and with Mark Ruffalo in “Dark Waters.”

Awards: Best Directing Acclaim Awards in Cincinnati for THE HISTORY OF INVULNERABILITY (a play about Superman and the Holocaust), LOVE SONG and 80 DAYS, an L.A Dramalogue Award for Jeffery Hatcher’s SCOTLAND ROAD, a Kevin Kline Award for SOUVENIR, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the League of Cincinnati Theatres. Member, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

PARK SQUARE THEATRE. 20 W. Seventh Place, Saint Paul
Ticket Office: 651.291.7005. www.parksquaretheatre.org

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AIRNESS BRINGS ROCK GLORY TO SAINT PAUL

Air guitar crosses into theatre with an epic feel-good comedy at Park Square

Three people all doing air guitar moves.

Neal Skoy, Julia Valen and Michael Terrell Brown are ready to rock out in Airness.

Saint Paul, MN. April 11, 2022: For its first full production since March of 2020, Park Square Theatre offers a breath of fresh air with an uplifting story about air guitar enthusiasts. AIRNESS, by Chelsea Marcantel, directed by Angela Timberman will be staged on Park Square’s Proscenium Stage, May 11 – June 5, 2022. (link to photos)

A righteous and smile-inducing comedy, AIRNESS begins as newcomer Nina enters her first air guitar competition. She thinks winning will be easy, but as she befriends a group of charismatic fanatics all committed to becoming the next champion, she discovers that there’s more to the art form than playing pretend; it’s about forging friendships, finding yourself in your favorite songs, and performing with raw joy. 

“Have you ever tried to find something you really want and then you accidentally find what you really need instead?” ask director Angela Timberman. “That’s what this play is about.” With samples of favorite rock anthems threaded throughout, including hits by Queen, the Ramones, Pat Benetar and many more, AIRNESS is an exuberant reminder that everything we need to rock is already inside us.

“An all-out comedy that’s fricking funny, hella heartfelt, and badass brilliant.” — DC Metro

A  group from Park Square fell in love with the play when it premiered at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in Louisville in 2017. The original January 2021 production was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, so it is with a roar of rock catharsis that AIRNESS at last makes its shredding, stage ascension. 

“I love how AIRNESS doesn’t take itself too seriously,” says Park Square Artistic Associate, Ellen Fenster. “It’s even better after the pandemic, it’s the breath of freshness which we all need right now, and yet, it really resonates today in terms of trying to ‘figure out how the skin I’m in connects to others.’ It portrays a place, physically and emotionally, where the characters really feel seen, when they are usually not seen in that way. It celebrates the human capacity for strange and unique passions, things people find to make meaning in their lives, connect with others, and find a place of belonging. Who knew air guitar was such a serious business?”

The play’s title comes from the three judging criteria of competitive air guitar: technical merit, stage presence and airness. “The last criteria is the most difficult to define yet often the most decisive of all,” according to the US Air Guitar Association’s website. “Airness is defined as the extent to which a performance transcends the imitation of a real guitar and becomes an art form in and of itself.” Minneapolis hosted the U.S. Air Guitar Championships in 2012, but anyone looking to get involved in 2022 will have to travel as the nearest competitions (at time of writing) are in Cleveland and Nashville. So put on your coolest power outfit, grab your best friend or a new crush, and head to Park Square to rock out with a play for everyone whose inner rock-god is waiting to break free.

The cast for AIRNESS includes Shae Palic* (Astrid “CANNIBAL QUEEN” Anderson), Daniel Petzold* (Mark “FACEBENDER” Lender), Neal Skoy (Ed “SHREDDY EDDY” Leary), Michael Terrell Brown (Gabe “GOLDEN THUNDER” Partridge), Julia Valen (Nina O’Neal), and understudies Berto Borroto and Maggie Cramer.

The production team for AIRNESS includes Angela Timberman* (Director), Dorian Brooke (Assistant Director), MJ Leffler (Set Designer), Ash M. Kaun (Costume Designer), Eric M. C. Gonzalez (Sound Designer), Alex Clark (Lighting Designer), Christopher Heilman (Props Designer), Jess Rau (Wig Designer), Kathy Maxwell (Projection Designer), Leslie Ritenour (Assistant Projection Designer), Ashley Raper* (Stage Manager), and Jaya Robillard (Assistant Stage Manager).

*Member, Actors Equity Association

TICKET PRICES: Previews: $27-$37. Regular Run: $40-$55. Discounts are available for students and educators, seniors, military personnel, those under age 30, and groups. Tickets are on sale by phone at 651.291.7005, (12 noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday), or online at parksquaretheatre.org.   #pstAirness

COVID-19 vaccinations or negative test results as well as masks are required at all performances. 

PHOTOS by Richard Fleischman Photography on the Park Square website HERE, or in Google Drive HERE.

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