2005 Year in Review

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THE HUNCHBACK RINGS ONTO TLP

Timber Lake Playhouse has received a prestigious, one-time award of $10,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts to mount the new musical The Hunchback of Notre Dame. The theatre competed in a national process and was awarded this grant in the category of “Artistic Excellence” to aid in staging the epic, adapted from the novel by Victor Hugo, author of Les Miserables. TLP is the only theatre in the world to hold the exclusive rights to this new show, which will play for only 12 performances, from July 28th through August 7th.

The enduring story tells of the deformed hunchback, Quasimodo, and his love for the beautiful gypsy, Esmeralda. “I fell in love with this powerful musical when I saw a concert version of it several years ago,” states Artistic Director Brad Lyons, who will head the project. “After years of pursuing the rights, we not only get to produce the show, but have the writers coming here to work with the cast! It is truly a special, once-in-a-lifetime event and I hope everyone comes to share in its magic.”

Composer Tom Sivak and writers David Bell (book) and Cheri Coons (lyrics) are excited about Mr. Lyons’ passion for the piece and are eager to work on the production. Collectively, the nationally recognized authors have worked everywhere from Broadway, the Lincoln Center and Las Vegas, to London, Berlin and Paris before coming to Mt. Carroll.

Another exciting element to the production will be the live, professional orchestra conducted by Dr. Eric Johnson, who returns after conducting last year’s Cats. From the Northern Illinois University Department of Music, Dr. Johnson will conduct an orchestra that includes reeds, viola, cello, guitars, horns, keyboards, percussion ... and even the cathedral bells, rang by the most famous of all bell-ringers, The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

The large, ensemble cast will be lead by Jeffrey Binney, of TLP’s recent Ragtime, who portrays the deformed “Hunchback,” Quasimodo. Emily Firth (Mrs. Robinson from The Graduate) is the hypnotic gypsy, Esmeralda. Also starring are Adam Henry (Jerry from the smash-hit, The Full Monty) and Christopher Russell (Harry Houdini from Ragtime).

Also, tickets are going fast for TLP’s final show of the season. The long-awaited sequel Late Nite Catechism 2, or “Sometimes We Feel Guilty Because We Are Guilty” is making its way to the theatre August 11 through the 20th.

Tickets are $17, and students with valid ID are only $8. New special Sunday night performances begin at 6:30 p.m. with tickets at a reduced rate of only $15! Ask about special discounted rates for groups of 12 or more. To reserve tickets for any of the performances, call the Timber Lake Playhouse Box Office between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. daily at (815) 244-2035. Don’t forget to visit our website online at www.timberlakeplayhouse.org

Visit TC1 Cafe for Barb Benson's Reviews of Timber Lake.

by Editor, theCity1.com
July 29, 2005