red barn News
HILARIOUS “HURRICANE DIANE” BLOWING INTO THE RED BARN THEATRE
What if the Greek God Dionysus, deity of wine and ecstasy, suddenly walked into your kitchen and announced that it was time mankind shaped up and started taking care of “his” planet and that you and your girlfriends were going to be the first acolytes in his quest to bring the Earth back to its natural, unsullied state? What could go wrong, right?
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
The hilarious HURRICANE DIANE stars Lauren Thompson, Susannah Wells, Erin McKenna, Jessica Miano Kruel, and Caroline Taylor.
What if the Greek God Dionysus, deity of wine and ecstasy, suddenly walked into your kitchen and announced that it was time mankind shaped up and started taking care of “his” planet and that you and your girlfriends were going to be the first acolytes in his quest to bring the Earth back to its natural, unsullied state? What could go wrong, right?
This is the reality-bending set-up for the hilarious new play, “Hurricane Diane”, set to open at the Red Barn Theatre in Key West on March 22 for a four-week run. Written by Pulitzer Prize finalist Madeleine George, the play will feature a who’s who of Key West women, including Erin McKenna, Caroline Taylor, Susannah Wells, Jessica Miano Kruel, and Lauren Thompson. It will be directed by Red Barn artistic director, Joy Hawkins.
George launches her play right from “Lights Up”. We meet Dionysus immediately, though not as we might expect. He has morphed into a rabble-rousing lesbian gardener from Vermont named Diane, and she’s chosen four suburban New Jersey housewives – think a sophisticated, socially-conscious version of a “Real Housewives” show and you won’t be far off – to join his efforts at reclaiming the natural beauty of the planet.
The four women all live on a cul-de-sac in flood-prone Red Bank, New Jersey in identical cookie-cutter houses. They regularly gather over wine and coffee to gossip about anything but the latest portents for the climate. There’s control freak Carol, who just wants a well-manicured lawn; and Renee, a top editor at HGTV Magazine; and Pam, an Italian dragon in animal prints; and weepy Beth, who’s just been left by her husband.
Into this coffee klatch comes lesbian landscape gardener Diane, livid at humanity for “despoiling the green earth that gave you life.” She has great plans – not the least of which involve indulging her Dionysian proclivities – and she’s going to begin right here, right now.
Will Diane be able to enlist them all? Will this diverse band of suburban women be inspired by the appetites of their divine visitor to unleash their wildness to help the battered planet? Maybe. Maybe not. You’ll have to see.
To say the play is outrageously funny is a given. But it also carries a subtextual message that has profound relevance in this day and age. Called “incisively smart and boisterously funny” by the Boston Globe, “clever and timely” by New York Theater, and “An astonishing new play” by the NY Times, “Hurricane Diane” lives up to its fantastical premise.
Tickets are available at redbarntheatre.com or by calling 305-296-9911. The play is sponsored in part by The Dogwood Foundation, Design Group Key West, and the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.
The Red Barn continues to monitor and adhere to the CDC guidelines concerning Covid protocols for small spaces. Patrons may direct any questions as to the current suggested practices to the box office at 305-296-9911.
“QUARANTINE FOR TWO” TO PREMIERE AT RED BARN
God knows there hasn’t been much to laugh about the last couple of years. Pandemics tend to lean that way.
But thanks to Hy Conrad – the writer/producer of the very funny “Monk” series – we’ll get a chance to shake off a little of the downside of things when his new play, “Quarantine For Two”, opens a four week run February 15th at Key West’s Red Barn Theatre. The production marks the play’s American premiere.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
God knows there hasn’t been much to laugh about the last couple of years. Pandemics tend to lean that way.
But thanks to Hy Conrad – the writer/producer of the very funny “Monk” series – we’ll get a chance to shake off a little of the downside of things when his new play, “Quarantine For Two”, opens a four week run February 15th at Key West’s Red Barn Theatre. The production marks the play’s American premiere.
“Hy and I were chatting one day,” said artistic director Joy Hawkins, “and we thought a funny play about this might be good for people, to lighten things up a bit. And who better to do that than Hy Conrad?”
The play centers on a typical, middle-aged, suburban couple – played by David Black and Mimi McDonald – who have been quarantining at home for more than a year. But it hasn’t gone well. In fact, they’ve driven each other crazy, to the point that each has come to the conclusion that for their own sanity, they need to kill the other. How they go about that – with the involvement of a somewhat dim and double-dealing poolboy-turned-hitman played by Rhett Kalman – leads to a very hilarious escalation of complications.
“I tend to write toward comedy and crime,” Conrad said. “The idea of two people in lockdown who desperately want to kill each other seemed to make comic sense, if we want to make light of our fears in the moment. Balancing the truth in the Covid situation with finding the humanity in the characters and making it funny was the challenge.”
But Conrad makes it work exceptionally well. In a private reading of the play last summer, it was hard for cast and crew to get through the script without breaking into laughter.
“The last two years have been so surreal and ludicrous and crazy,” Hawkins said. “So let’s just jump in and laugh at the predicament we’ve all been in. Because somewhere in all of this, we really do need to find a laugh.”
And as she said, who better than Hy Conrad to give that to us?
Tickets for “Quarantine For Two”, the second of the Red Barn’s season of “Bright and Brilliant Comedies”, are available now at redbarntheatre.com or by calling 305-296-9911. Ticket holders for the February 15th performance will also be treated to an Opening Night After-Party, sponsored by Jeff Johnson and Hy Conrad, catered by Teresa Wright, where patrons can meet and chat with the cast and crew.
The Red Barn is a Covid Compliant Theatre and asks that all patrons follow Covid protocols. If they prefer, they can voluntarily offer their vaccination card. Masks will be required inside the theater, and seating is limited more than normal due to a social distancing seating plan.
The play is sponsored in part by Jane Gardner Interiors, the Florida Department of State Division of Cultural Affairs, and the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.
BASSIST FOR THE STARS: VAIL JOHNSON TELLS ALL IN RED BARN LIMITED ENGAGEMENT
Vail Johnson is his name, and he’s a bassist. Not just any bassist, mind you, but THE bassist when it comes to studio work, recordings, and live performance. He’s been doing it for over 40 years with some of the top names in music, and he’s bringing a career-ful of behind-the-scenes stories and almost every note of the great music he’s had a hand in to the Red Barn Theatre in Key West.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
You might not recognize him on the street nor know his name, but you’ve probably seen him onstage and you’ve most certainly have heard him…probably many times.
Vail Johnson is his name, and he’s a bassist. Not just any bassist, mind you, but THE bassist when it comes to studio work, recordings, and live performance. He’s been doing it for over 40 years with some of the top names in music, and he’s bringing a career-ful of behind-the-scenes stories and almost every note of the great music he’s had a hand in to the Red Barn Theatre in Key West.
His one-man show, “Bassically Incorrect: Around the World in 40 Years” will have a limited engagement at the Barn Sunday and Monday, March 6 and 7 only. Tickets are available now at redbarntheatre.com or by calling 305-296-9911.
Want some names he’s put the bottom under? How about Kenny G, Whitney Houston, Herbie Hancock, Stevie Nicks, Keb’ Mo’, George Benson, Michael Bolton, James Ingram, Gil Scott Heron, Paula Abdul, MC Hammer, T. Graham Brown, David Cassidy, Steve Perry, Patti Austen, Peabo Bryson, Edgar Winter, and Christopher Cross, just to name a very few.
“It just sort of happened,” Johnson said recently. “I was playing in a lounge band back in the late 70’s, and Kenny G’s percussionist sees me, brings Kenny to the gig, and the next thing I know, I’m playing in Kenny G’s band. We go to LA, and Stevie Nicks sees me at a gig, and asks me to do her record. It just snowballed from there.”
It wasn’t all luck, however. Johnson was ready when the door opened. The youngest of seven brothers (one of his older siblings is Key West’s Jeff Johnson), Vail was immersed in all kinds of music through his family – classical, choral, gospel, bluegrass, Dixieland, Top 40. He absorbed it all, mixing in whatever he came across, including jazz, hip-hop, metal rock, and pure improvisation. His virtuosity, passion, and humor were his calling card, and his ability to play virtually any style extremely well sealed the deal.
And all of it is on display in his one-man show – from Kenny G’s, George Benson’s, and Herbie Hancock’s jazz to Steve Perry’s and Stevie Nicks’s rock, to Peabo Bryson’s soul and Keb’Mo’s blues.
“I tell stories about the artists I’ve played and toured with, and then play and sing along with the tracks I’ve done with them or played on tour. I do some of my own stuff too. And what I do is not just ‘play bass’…people are surprised what I can do on a bass in terms of playing music. Look…it’s a guitar. It just happens to be a bass. I can make it sound like a Spanish guitar, or bluesy finger-picking, or monster slapping.”
Ask Johnson who was the most fun he’s had with any artist, and the answer might surprise you. “Edgar Winter,” he said. “For me to play ‘Frankenstein’ with Edgar Winter? Man, that was freakin’ fun!”
It doesn’t matter what style of music or what particular artist you like personally – there’s a very good chance Vail Johnson will tell you a story about touring with them, or play something you’ve heard by them in his show. And odds are you’ll say, “Oh, yeah! I know that one! He played bass on that?”
Tickets for “Bassically Incorrect” are two-tiered. For the Sunday, March 6 show, all tickets are $60. For Monday night’s show, they’re $75, but that gets you an invite to the catered after-party in the Red Barn courtyard, where you can meet and talk music with Vail Johnson and enjoy some delish foods.
You’ll also be able to purchase some of Vail’s own CDs both evenings, the proceeds from which will be going directly to the Florida Keys SPCA.
The Red Barn is a Covid Compliant Theatre and asks that all patrons follow Covid protocols. If they prefer, they can voluntarily offer their vaccination card. Masks will be required inside the theater.
This show is sponsored in part by Design Group Key West, and the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.
RED BARN PRESENTS SPECIAL ENGAGEMENT “WALKING HAPPY” FEBRUARY 3-5
There are very few married couples who have reached the rare air of the entertainment world’s pinnacle of success. George Burns and Gracie Allen come to mind, and Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.
But one couple stands above them all in the music sphere: Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
RED BARN PRESENTS SPECIAL ENGAGEMENT “WALKING HAPPY” FEBRUARY 3-5
A Tribute to Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme
There are very few married couples who have reached the rare air of the entertainment world’s pinnacle of success. George Burns and Gracie Allen come to mind, and Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.
But one couple stands above them all in the music sphere: Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme.
And February 3-5, you would not be blamed for thinking that dynamic duo is somehow standing on the outdoor stage of Key West’s Red Barn Theatre when singers Jim Rice and Valerie Roy bring Steve and Eydie back to life in their celebrated tribute, “Walking Happy”. All three shows will be presented under the stars on the courtyard stage in front of the theater.
The special engagement features Rice, a pianist, singer, and arranger who has worked closely with many top acts, including Key West’s Randy Roberts. Joining him will be Valerie Roy, a lauded singer on her own, and one of Rice’s closest friends.
“We’ve known each other 25 years,” Rice said recently. “I’ve done a lot of her arranging work, and we’re so attuned to one another now – on stage and off – that it’s like we’re married. Like Steve and Eydie, we’re on the same page every moment, and it’s very obvious on stage.”
That tight friendship and musicality serve Rice and Roy well as they re-animate Steve and Eydie in their Vegas-style show. Hit songs like “This Could Be The Start Of Something Big”, “Make Someone Happy”, “A Lot Of Living”, “What Did I Have”, and “A Room Without Windows” complement the easy and entertaining banter Steve and Eydie had on their many network specials and appearances on “The Tonight Show”.
Steve Allen’s version of that show is where Lawrence and Gorme met, in fact, when she was hired as a solo performer and ran into the show’s staff singer and co-star. “I fell in love,” Gorme has said. “I fell madly in love with him instantly.”
They were inseparable after that night, married soon after, and began their remarkable run of Grammy and Emmy awards, hit Broadway shows, and tours with their mentor and close friend, Frank Sinatra.
“Steve Lawrence was a really fine singer,” Rice said. “In fact, Sinatra said many times that Steve Lawrence was a much better singer than he was. And Eydie was a perfect match for him.”
Tickets for the limited engagement of “Walking Happy” at the Red Barn are available now at redbarntheatre.com or 305-296-9911. Seating will be limited, so early reservations are suggested.
The Red Barn Theatre is a Covid Compliant Theatre and adheres to those protocols. Proof of a negative Covid test taken no less than 48 hours in advance of any performance is required, or if patrons prefer, they can voluntarily offer their Proof of Vaccination.
The shows are sponsored in part by the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.
NEW OPENING NIGHT FOR RED BARN’S FUNNY AND POIGNANT CATS TALK BACK
Key West’s Red Barn Theatre has announced the new Opening Night for the pandemic-delayed first show of its 42nd season.
Cats Talk Back, the critically-acclaimed mock-docu-comedy by New York’s celebrated young playwright, Bess Wohl, will open a three-week run Monday, January 18, 2022. Tickets are now available for all performances through January 29.
Key West’s Red Barn Theatre has announced the new Opening Night for the pandemic-delayed first show of its 42nd season.
Cats Talk Back, the critically-acclaimed mock-docu-comedy by New York’s celebrated young playwright, Bess Wohl, will open a three-week run Monday, January 10, 2022. Tickets are now available for all performances through January 29. The play will be presented outdoors under the stars in the Red Barn’s expansive courtyard. All curtains are at 8 pm.
The health and safety of cast, crew, and audience have been foremost on artistic director Joy Hawkins’ mind the last month, as events forced the postponement of the original opening.
“You can’t imagine how very much we want to bring you our production of Cats Talk Back,” said Hawkins. “We regret that our original opening had to be postponed, but this virus is unpredictable, to say the least. But every precaution is being taken to keep everyone safe and healthy.”
Critics call Cats Talk Back “a winner…funny, poignant, and observant…” (Backstage) and “…a bubbly, easy-going treat of theatre…” (Time Out). You’ll call it wonderful
The magic of the play’s unique concept – an interview session with several former cast members of Cats, one of the most successful musicals in Broadway history – lies in its realism. That realism is effected through the panel discussion’s moderator, a respected member of the theatrical community…in this case, Murphy Davis, one of Key West’s best known theater directors. The use of Davis as the facilitator of the on-stage discussion blurs the lines of fiction and reality. Are these really Cats actors, or actors playing those actors?
The panelists are ostensibly all former members of the Cats production, which ran for 18 years and 7845 performances. But during the play, we learn that the musical’s success was not always these actors’ success. There’s Monique, who survived the full 18 years, but had her dancing career stalled because of it. There’s Bonnie, whose hunger for approval was squashed when the show closed right after she joined the cast. There’s Steven, an actor’s actor, and Hector, the quintessential egocentric, boastful actor who still manages to be charismatic.
Cats Talk Back never lets the audience know for sure what they’re watching. As the evening progresses, there are moments of human connection and expressed friendship, but also moments that indicate cast in-fighting and tensions. And then suddenly one or more of the “cats” will break into acapella renditions of Cats songs, trying once again to find their inner jellicle cat.
Cats Talk Back stars Michael Mulligan, Marjorie Paul Shook, Nicole Nurenburg, Rhett Kalman, and Davis. It is directed by Hawkins. The show is sponsored by the Smith Law Firm, the Florida Department of State Division of Arts and Culture, and the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.
Tickets are available at redbarntheatre.com or at the theater’s box office, 305-296-9911.
NOTE: The Red Barn has been certified as a Covid Compliant Theater, and all COVID protocols will be observed for everyone’s safety. Proof of a negative test within the past 48 hours will be required for entry, or if you prefer, a proof of vaccination will suffice. There will be a COVID-compliant adequate distance between the stage and seating.
A SAFE AND ENTHRALLING NEW SEASON!
If you're anything like us, we know you've been champing at the bit to get back into our theatre for some top-notch professional performances of some really intriguing new shows. Well, we have a great new season all set for you!
If you're anything like us, we know you've been champing at the bit to get back into our theatre for some top-notch professional performances of some really intriguing new shows. Well, we have a great new season all set for you!
We'll kick it off December 28, 2021 through January 29, 2022 with the engrossing mock-docu-comedy Cats Talk Back, by award-winning New York playwright Bess Wohl, in which several actors who supposedly spent a good part of their lives performing in one of Broadway's longest-running musicals reminisce about their experiences as felines on stage. There are a few surprises, however, so be ready!
Next, February 15 through March 12, we'll bring you the South Florida premiere of Hy Conrad's wickedly funny new play, Quarantine for Two. Hy, the well-known Key West resident who wrote a good many of the Monk episodes, as well as White Collar, and the recent hit, The Good Cop, has taken the trials and tribulations of our pandemic quarantine and turned them hilariously on their heads. The play mixes comedy, intrigue, (and of course) murder, and a neck-bending twist that you won't see coming.
March 22 through April 16, we present Hurricane Diane, the unconventional new comedy from Pulitzer Prize finalist Madeleine George, where the Greek god Dionysus returns to the modern world disguised as the butch gardener Diane, whose secret mission is to seduce mortal followers and restore the earth to its natural state. Where better to begin than with four real housewives from New Jersey? It's a very funny show, but don't let that fool you -- there are some very significant ideas buried within the laughs.
And we end our new season April 29-May 1 with the adorable How To Eat Like a Child and Other Lessons in Not Being Grown Up, starring a host of Key West's finest young and playful actors. The show is based on a book by Nora Ephron, who also wrote the play, along with music and lyrics by John Forster. It's a hilarious romp through the joys and sorrows of being a child, and will touch the child inside everyone in the theater. Our wonderful child actors give 23 lessons in subjects like how to beg for a dog, how to torture your sister, how to act after being sent to your room and how to laugh hysterically. But it's a limited run, so make sure you get your tickets early.
And if you're still uneasy about attending the theater, let us assure you -- we are taking every precaution. The Red Barn has been certified as a Covid Compliant Theater. Our staff has attended the classes at Arts and Science LLC, and we will follow all safety protocols outlined there. The theater will be cleaned and disinfected before each performance, and we'll be asking all our patrons to follow the basic Covid safety protocols...it's the only way we can keep everyone safe so we can once again enjoy our theater.
Tickets for our new season will be available soon. Watch this website and our FaceBook page for more information.
RED BARN SETS ONLINE STREAM FOR “SEZ SHE”
Key West’s Red Barn Theatre will present the fourth online offering of its 41st season with a streaming production of Jane Martin’s funny and provocative “Sez She”, starring a stellar cast of 16 of Key West’s top female actors, directed by the Barn’s artistic director, Joy Hawkins.
The show will run March 8-20 and can be accessed through the theater’s website at redbarntheatre.com. Tickets are only $10, with viewing available 24/7 on any platform with an internet connection, be it TV, phone, or tablet.
“Sez She” offers humorous and outspoken takes on everything from the fun of regressing to our childhood to the grownup "wheeee" of sex, from celebrating Damn Fools Day to the virtues of being green (yes…the color green). They touch chords of hilarity, surprise, homespun philosophy, frustration, and even political commentary. Each and every one of them has you hanging on every word.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
Key West’s Red Barn Theatre will present the fourth online offering of its 41st season with a streaming production of Jane Martin’s funny and provocative “Sez She”, starring a stellar cast of 16 of Key West’s top female actors, directed by the Barn’s artistic director, Joy Hawkins.
The show will run March 8-20 and can be accessed through the theater’s website at redbarntheatre.com. Tickets are only $10, with viewing available 24/7 on any platform with an internet connection, be it TV, phone, or tablet.
The Barn has had great success with its previous three streaming offerings online, “The Big Bang” and “Love, Loss and What I Wore” last Fall, and the hilarious Christmas and New Year’s hit, “With Bells On.” The quality of the shows and the performances shine through in the streamers, and response has been positive.
“Sez She” is the late Martin’s final play in a series that has featured the broad perspectives on life of modern-day women, told in a series of intimate and revealing monologues. Two previous plays, “Talking With” and “Vital Signs”, have won numerous awards, including the American Theatre Critics Best Play Award. Martin, herself, has been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for another of her plays, “Keely and Du”.
“Sez She” offers humorous and outspoken takes on everything from the fun of regressing to our childhood to the grownup "wheeee" of sex, from celebrating Damn Fools Day to the virtues of being green (yes…the color green). They touch chords of hilarity, surprise, homespun philosophy, frustration, and even political commentary. Each and every one of them has you hanging on every word.
The actors in the play are: Susannah Wells, George DiBraud, Caroline Taylor, Carolyn Cooper, Erin McKenna, Marjorie Paul Shook, Jessica Miano Kruel, Amber McDonald Good, Gerri Louise Gates, Melody G. Moore, Nicole Nurenberg, Zoe Hawkins-Wells, Vanessa McCaffrey, and Mimi McDonald.
“These are women who are caught in some way,” Hawkins said, “and I guess we’re all caught in our own particular moment – our background, our station in life, and what we do with it. They take you through all kinds of reactions – warm, enthusiastic, flabbergasting, humorous, outspoken. They tell it like it is, with deep truths that any woman – or man – can relate to.”
Hawkins comment is an interesting one, given that there has always been a controversy over exactly who Jane Martin really was. The prevailing theory is that “she” was actually a man named John Jory, who founded and produced the prestigious Humana Festival of New American Plays in Louisville, KY, where many of Jane Martin’s plays had their world premieres. Martin never gave an interview, and never appeared at any awards ceremony where her plays were honored. Jory, himself a playwright, was asked point-blank if he was “Jane Martin”, but he refused to answer the question, saying only “I’m not going to talk about that.”
Whether written by a man or woman, Jane Martin’s “Sez She” is a powerful, engaging, provocative play perfectly tuned to the times we are living through right now. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune called it
“…enormously entertaining, more like a Disney World ride aimed at adults. Lean back, take a deep breath, and grasp the handrail firmly.”
Sounds like it’s well-worth the $10 ticket. Patrons will also have the opportunity to add a supporting donation when they check out – a quick and easy way to help support the Red Barn’s efforts to keep theater alive while we fight through these difficult times.
For more information, visit redbarntheatre.com or call 305-296-9911.
RED BARN POSTPONES SEASON DUE TO COVID CONCERNS
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
“The best laid schemes o' mice an' men
Gang aft a-gley.”
Those iconic lines from Robert Burns’ famous poem “To A Mouse” seem to be quoted a great deal these days, as the pandemic continues to force more and more well-laid plans to be postponed, if not cancelled altogether.
Such is the case with Key West’s Red Barn Theatre, which recently announced it’s carefully-planned 41st Season, which was to take place outdoors under the stars in the venerable theater’s spacious Zabar Courtyard. They called their season theme “Outside the Box” – taking their live productions to their outdoor stage, where social distancing and open spacing would greatly reduce the anxiety of possible COVID infection.
“We had a beautiful stage designed and ready to go,” said Managing Director Mimi McDonald, “which would have kept the audience back about twelve feet. And we’d worked out several protocols regarding spaced out seating by pods, bar service, and were even looking into designing digital programs that could be accessed by your mobile phone.”
It might have worked, but it became apparent that city guidelines regarding entertainers – where they must either be separated from their audience by a Plexiglas partition, or wear masks during their performance – were not going to be feasible for a live theater performance, even outdoors. And concern for the well-being of their patrons as the virus cases were increasing and expecting to continue to do so was put foremost in management’s mind. For the safety of all, the decision was made to postpone until conditions improve.
So until the pandemic abates, or vaccines are more widely available and effective, the Red Barn will hold off on proceeding with their season. This includes the World Premiere of Hy Conrad’s new play, “Quarantine for 2”, planned for January, as well as the planned live performances of Bess Wohl’s “Cats Talk Back” in February, and Jane Martin’s “Sez She” in March.
The Red Barn is going to continue with their streaming offerings however, following the enthusiastic reception of their first online streaming production of Nora and Delia Ephron’s “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” which completes it’s run Saturday.
“We’ll be making an announcement soon on what will be available in the New Year,” said McDonald, “but fans of theater and supporters of the Red Barn should make plans to catch the free streaming of Darrin Hagen’s hilarious ‘With Bells On’, which will run from December 16th through the 20th on our website, redbarntheatre.com.”
“With Bells On” was a smash hit for the Red Barn last Christmas season, directed and costumed by Christopher Peterson and starring Trey Gerrard and Don Bearden. It’s a very funny play about a meek and mild accountant trapped in an elevator with a flamboyant drag queen on Christmas Eve. To view the play, just go to redbarntheatre.com and click on the link for the play.
For now, the Red Barn will continue to monitor developments and the city’s guidelines, and as soon as it is deemed safe, will resume their season of live performances. But for now, it’s a wait-and-see game, as it is with most everyone else.
“We’ll be back,” said McDonald. “But for now, let’s all stay safe and do what we can, which for us, is to offer our online streaming theatrical events. We’ll see you soon.”
For more information on the Red Barn, visit redbarntheatre.com.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
“The best laid schemes o' mice an' men
Gang aft a-gley.”
Those iconic lines from Robert Burns’ famous poem “To A Mouse” seem to be quoted a great deal these days, as the pandemic continues to force more and more well-laid plans to be postponed, if not cancelled altogether.
Such is the case with Key West’s Red Barn Theatre, which recently announced it’s carefully-planned 41st Season, which was to take place outdoors under the stars in the venerable theater’s spacious Zabar Courtyard. They called their season theme “Outside the Box” – taking their live productions to their outdoor stage, where social distancing and open spacing would greatly reduce the anxiety of possible COVID infection.
“We had a beautiful stage designed and ready to go,” said Managing Director Mimi McDonald, “which would have kept the audience back about twelve feet. And we’d worked out several protocols regarding spaced out seating by pods, bar service, and were even looking into designing digital programs that could be accessed by your mobile phone.”
It might have worked, but it became apparent that city guidelines regarding entertainers – where they must either be separated from their audience by a Plexiglas partition, or wear masks during their performance – were not going to be feasible for a live theater performance, even outdoors. And concern for the well-being of their patrons as the virus cases were increasing and expecting to continue to do so was put foremost in management’s mind. For the safety of all, the decision was made to postpone until conditions improve.
So until the pandemic abates, or vaccines are more widely available and effective, the Red Barn will hold off on proceeding with their season. This includes the World Premiere of Hy Conrad’s new play, “Quarantine for 2”, planned for January, as well as the planned live performances of Bess Wohl’s “Cats Talk Back” in February, and Jane Martin’s “Sez She” in March.
The Red Barn is going to continue with their streaming offerings however, following the enthusiastic reception of their first online streaming production of Nora and Delia Ephron’s “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” which completes it’s run Saturday.
“We’ll be making an announcement soon on what will be available in the New Year,” said McDonald, “but fans of theater and supporters of the Red Barn should make plans to catch the free streaming of Darrin Hagen’s hilarious ‘With Bells On’, which will run from December 16th through the 20th on our website, redbarntheatre.com.”
“With Bells On” was a smash hit for the Red Barn last Christmas season, directed and costumed by Christopher Peterson and starring Trey Gerrard and Don Bearden. It’s a very funny play about a meek and mild accountant trapped in an elevator with a flamboyant drag queen on Christmas Eve. To view the play, just go to redbarntheatre.com and click on the link for the play.
For now, the Red Barn will continue to monitor developments and the city’s guidelines, and as soon as it is deemed safe, will resume their season of live performances. But for now, it’s a wait-and-see game, as it is with most everyone else.
“We’ll be back,” said McDonald. “But for now, let’s all stay safe and do what we can, which for us, is to offer our online streaming theatrical events. We’ll see you soon.”
For more information on the Red Barn, visit redbarntheatre.com.
“WITH BELLS ON”: A FREE Gift from the Red Barn Theatre KW for the Holidays - HD Streaming - December 16-20
The pandemic hasn’t left us much to laugh at, but the Red Barn Theatre will have us rolling on our couches for a week and it won’t cost us a dime. As a free holiday gift to all their fans and supporters, the Red Barn will be streaming a film of their 2018 Christmas hit, “With Bells On”, the hilarious play written by Canadian Darrin Hagen. The original production – a sold out smash hit – was directed and (outrageously) costumed by Christopher Peterson and starred Trey Gerrald and Don Bearden.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
The pandemic hasn’t left us much to laugh at, but the Red Barn Theatre will have us rolling on our couches for a week and it won’t cost us a dime. As a free holiday gift to all their fans and supporters, the Red Barn will be streaming a film of their 2018 Christmas hit, “With Bells On”, the hilarious play written by Canadian Darrin Hagen. The original production – a sold out smash hit – was directed and (outrageously) costumed by Christopher Peterson and starred Trey Gerrald and Don Bearden.
The free HD quality streaming will be available 24/7 on the theater’s website, redbarntheatre.com, beginning at midnight, Wednesday, December 16th and running through 11:59 pm, Sunday, December 20th. No tickets or sign-ups are required. Just go to the website and click on the link provided for “With Bells On”.
The play is centered around an elevator -- the only thing on the stage. And it’s stuck between floors. Ted (Bearden) appears to be a short, quiet, emotionally unassuming, dweeb accountant who has entered the elevator in his not-so luxurious apartment building, where he’s been living since his recent divorce. Standing next to him – or maybe “towering” over him would be more appropriate – is Natasha (Gerrald), a six-foot-seven-inch (in heels) drag queen dressed like a Christmas Tree, who is completely beside herself because this stalled elevator will cause her to miss her chance to be crowned Christmas Queen in the holiday pageant at the Magic Crystal Palace downtown.
If you’re thinking this is a perfect set-up for some hilarity, you’d be correct. You’re going to laugh a lot. The juxtapositioning of two such opposite characters in such a situation is full of comic possibilities, and Hagen takes complete advantage of them all. The puns and comic lines fly fast and furious, as Ted and Natasha try to find a way to extricate themselves from circumstances neither of them is comfortable in.
But the play is about more than that. Because Ted is not the sadsack milquetoast we initially think him to be, nor is he a prig or homophobe. He actually grows curious about the exotic creature he’s met. And this interest begins to work some magic on an initially hostile Natasha.
As all Key West theaters in this tough time, the Red Barn is struggling to make ends meet, and while they’re more than happy to entertain their friends and patrons for free this holiday, they would not be unappreciative for any donation you might want to make. While you’re there for “With Bells On”, you can click on their “Tickets” page and then on “Donation” and make a donation toward helping the Barn keep the lights on. Any donation is tax deductible.
For more information, visit redbarntheatre.com or call 305-296-9911.
RED BARN EXTENDS POPULAR ONLINE “LOVE, LOSS AND WHAT I WORE” FOR ONE EXTRA WEEK
“Loved it! So well produced!”
“Loved every second…the actors superb, the technology and synchronization amazing.”
“Loved this production...it worked so well online…brilliantly directed, and fabulously acted.”
These are just a few of the unsolicited email comments from patrons who have viewed the Red Barn Theatre’s smash hit online production of Nora and Delia Ephron’s “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” originally scheduled for just a five-day streaming availability as the first production of their new 41st season of professional theatre.
PRESS RELEASE
For further information, call: Bob Bowersox at 302-540-6102
For Immediate Release
“Loved it! So well produced!”
“Loved every second…the actors superb, the technology and synchronization amazing.”
“Loved this production...it worked so well online…brilliantly directed, and fabulously acted.”
These are just a few of the unsolicited email comments from patrons who have viewed the Red Barn Theatre’s smash hit online production of Nora and Delia Ephron’s “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” originally scheduled for just a five-day streaming availability as the first production of their new 41st season of professional theatre
But with a response like that, and more demand for extended viewing options, the Red Barn decided that an extra week of online availability for the show was warranted. So the hilarious play – starring five of Key West’s top actresses – has been extended and will remain available online through 11:59 pm on December 5th. Patrons can visit the theater’s ticketing page on their website at redbarntheatre.com. Once the ticket is purchased – at a very reasonable $10 – the patron will receive an email receipt on which is a special “Watch” or “Watch Video” link to the streaming HD video.
The play is a series of monologues and dialogues between a variety of women of various ages, each of whom delivers funny and poignant stories that have been triggered by their individual experiences with clothing throughout their lives. They touch on virtually everything – from their first Brownie dress to their first prom dress, from bathrobes to bras, from shoes to boots to skirts, and the value of anything black. It’s impossible not to relate to their tales, especially if you’re a woman…what they talk about is universal to anyone who has worn just about anything. The stories are personal, intriguing, and ultimately very funny.
Love, Loss and What I Wore stars Amber McDonald Good, Melody G. Moore, Peggy Montgomery, Barbara Mundy, and Susannah Wells. It is directed by Carole MacCartee and produced by Bob Bowersox, who has devised a clever way of using the Zoom interface as the world of the play, while making use of film editing techniques to make the play more visually active.
Artist rendering of the new Red Barn Theatre’s “Outside the Box” outdoor performance space.
The production kicks off a full season at the Red Barn, with all of the mainstage productions staged live in an outdoor space in the theater’s Zabar Courtyard. The Love, Loss streaming production is also the kickoff to the theater’s Membership and Subscription drives – a very important part of their operating capital drive. Memberships are available in a number of levels, each with its own percs. Subscriptions are available for their entire 2020-21 season. Single tickets for the are also available.
More information can be found at redbarntheatre.com or by calling 305-296-9911.