Get ready for the 112^th Season of Lakewood Theater.  We are offering 2 dramedies, 2 farces, 2 comedies, and 2 musicals and 1 mystery/comedy.  It’s a year of old favorites and brand new shows to Lakewood.

SHOW TIMES

Evening Shows:

Thursday through Saturday at 8 pm

Every other Sunday at 4 pm

Matinees:

Every other Wednesday at 2 pm & 7 pm*

*There are no 7 pm matinees during the month of September

 

THE SEASON

Pageant Play May 24 – June 2

Enchanted April June 7 – June 16

9 to 5:The Musical June 21,22,23,24 – June 27,28,29,30

And the Winner Is July 5,6,7,8 – July 11,12,13,14

The Fox on the Fairway July 19,20,21,22 – July 25,26,27,28

The Music Man August 2,3,4,5, – August 8,9,10,11

Murdered to Death August 16,17,18,19, – August 22,23,24,25

The House of Blue Leaves August 30, 31, Sept. 1,2, – September 5,6,7,8

Who Goes Bare September 13,14,15,16 – September 19,20,21,22

 

PAGEANT PLAY

    Glitz, Glamor, Kidnapping, Money  

Sugar and spice and everything nice. That's what little girls are made of. Their pushy, pageant mothers...not so much. A clever peek into the world of spray tans, sequined gowns, and flippers, this hilarious satire is set in the exotic world of pint-sized Texas beauty pageants. We meet Pinky, a pitbull of a stage mother, an all-out monster scheming on her leopard-skin chaise as her worshipful husband massages her feet, and Marge, an innocent newbie whose husband is in jail for spousal abuse. They hire finesse coaches Bob and Bobby, a  duo, to help mold their 4 year old daughters into contenders for Miss Texas Twinkle. In a brilliant staging conceit, these prize offspring -- "Chevrolet" and "Puddle" -- are represented by two empty spangled and tulle-skirted costumes, which the mothers yank hither and yon, or toss aside like toys grown tiresome. Before we toss the heartless Pinky aside, however, we meet her own mother Dupree. Turns out that Pinky has a reason to be obsessed with pushing her little Chevy across the finish line, and that Marge is hardly the perfect parent she first appears to be. Lampooning the strange, smarmy world of child beauty contests is like spearing catfish in a bathtub. But it's a lot more fun. Non-stop laughter!

ENCHANTED APRIL

 

Dark clouds may gather around the human heart and mind and for those who succumb brighter days will never come. Based on the 1922 novel by Elizabeth von Arnim,  Enchanted April spins a gentle comedic tale of four dissimilar English women who leave their damp and rainy environs to go on holiday to a secluded coastal castle in Italy.  Lotty Wilkins, a caged free spirit, and Rose Arnott, pious and judgmental, are struggling to make the best of staid lives and passionless marriages when they discover an advertisement for a medieval villa overlooking the Italian Riviera- for rent during the enchanting month of April, wisteria guaranteed. To share the cost they take along the waspish Mrs. Graves, an elderly, austere dowager, and the stunning but aloof Lady Caroline Bramble, a vampish seductress. They tolerate the attention of Constanza, the Italian speaking maid, and welcome the attentions of Antony, the handsome artist owner of the villa. Unannounced visits from the two husbands provide much needed attention. There are life altering experiences, amusing and surprising, as the four women find rejuvenation in the tranquil beauty of their surroundings, rediscovering hope and love. The four lost and lonely souls bloom amidst the wisteria.

 

9 TO 5...the Musical

  What a way to make a living!

 

There was a time in the not so distant past when a typewriter sat on every desk and telephones had cords. It was a man's world. Secretaries made coffee and hair appointments.9 to 5: The Musical is a hilarious story of friendship and revenge in the Rolodex era. It tells the story of three unlikely friends who conspire to take control of their company and learn there is nothing they can’t do – they can even start a crack in the glass ceiling. Outrageous, thought-provoking, and even a little romantic, 9 to 5 is about teaming up and taking care of business… it’s about getting credit and getting even. The popular movie comedy has been transformed into a musical with a rollicking score by Dolly Parton and stars Violet, the super-efficient office manager, Judy, the frazzled divorcee, and sexy Doralee who turn the tables on their sexist, egotistical, lying, obnoxious, domineering, lecherous, bigot of a boss, Franklin Hart.

In a hilarious turn of events, Violet, Judy and Doralee live out their wildest fantasy - giving their boss the boot! While Hart remains “otherwise engaged,” the women give their workplace a dream makeover and rise to the top of the company that once looked at them as second-class citizens... A girl can scheme can't she?  Make those reservations now...what a way to spend an evening!

 

AND THE WINNER IS...

     Drum Roll, Please

Mitch Albom's And the Winner Is is a quirky, heartfelt, and slightly wicked tale of life, death, and sacrifice that has been hailed for its wit, originality, and hilarious portrayal of Hollywood values. Tyler Johnes is a self-obsessed movie star who is finally nominated for an Oscar. He dies the night before the ceremony. He awakens in a way station/saloon/subway in the company of Seamus, an otherworldly Irish barkeep with an aversion to swearing. Determined to know if he wins, he bargains with the heavenly gatekeeper to return to earth for the big night. Since no star can appear without an entourage, Johnes is soon surrounded by his agent, his acting rival, his bombshell girlfriend, and his ex-wife. A wildly twisting tale of Hollywood, the afterlife, and how we are judged. Click! Get the picture?

THE FOX ON THE FAIRWAY

 

Famed playwright, and Lakewood favorite, Ken Ludwig set his 2010 farce on a golf course because "after all, golf is innately funny...you wear silly clothes....you get all excited about getting a little ball in a tiny hole, and the stakes are amazingly high." This tribute to the great farces of the 1930's and 1940's has more twists and turns than a par 4 dog-leg or a double breaking, 60 foot putt as sex and water hazards collide in a mapcap adventure about love and golf. It is time for the annual match between rival clubs Quail Valley and Crouching Squirrel. The Squirrel has hoisted the trophy for many years but Baldwin of Quail Hollow is optimistic. He has found a ringer and has made a hefty bet on the outcome. When his secret asset changes teams, Baldwin must hand the ball - and his bank balance - to his nervous assistant, Justin. Justin does surprisingly well until his fiance, ditsy waitress Louise, loses her engagement ring down the toilet. Justin is unable to concentrate and as the match is slipping away Baldwin finds an unlikely replacement who may just save the day. Baldwin's humorless wife Muriel is not amused when she hears about his bet...and we hear her long before we see her. But we will be more than amused as the sturdy harridan arrives to set things straight.  Filled with mistaken identities, slamming doors, and over-the-top romantic shenanigans, it’s a furiously paced comedy that recalls the Marx Brothers’ classic. Discussing his play Ludwig concluded "My plays are an attempt to move the ball in the right direction – towards a sense of humanity and good fellow-feeling. I hope (audiences) come away feeling rejuvenated, inspired, and happier than when they went in the door."  It's a gimme!

THE MUSIC MAN

76 Trombones lead the big parade! 

 

The Music Man first marched on Broadway in 1957. The play by Meredith Wilson won a Tony and ran for 1,375 performances. It was revived in 1980 and again in 2000.  Lakewood Theater presented The Music Man in 1962 & 1995. An affectionate nod to Smalltown, USA of a bygone era, The Music Man follows fast-talking traveling salesman Harold Hill as convinces the concerned parents of Iowa City that a trumpet to the lips can replace chalk on the fingertips. With real money for 76 imaginary trombones and 110 coronets, Hill plans to grab the next train out of town. He is stopped in his tracks by Marion Paroo, the town librarian and a piano teacher. When he decides to linger to woo the aloof but lovely lady, we meet the citizens of this apple pie American town: Mayor George Shinn, his wife Eulalie and daughters, Zanetta and Gracie, the gossips known as the Pick-a-Little Ladies, the School Board members who are also a barbershop quartet, piano student Amaryllis, Winthrop, Marion's shy brother, Tommy Djilas, the local "bad boy," and Harold's old friend Marcellus Washburn, a reformed conman. Suspecting that Hill doesn't know a C-note from a hundred dollar bill, Marion resolves to unmask him until she realizes that he is bringing new life to the town and that she is falling in love with him. Songs include: Goodnight, My Someone, Till There was You, The Wells Fargo Wagon, Lida Rose, Trouble and the show-stopping 76 Trombones. The perfect family musical!

MURDERED TO DEATH

The 1930's. A lovely day for an excursion in the English country. That charming manor house belongs to wealthy Mildred Bagshot, a dotty spinster who lives there with her mousy niece Dorothy and her deadpan butler, Bunting.  He is loaded, too...much of the time. It looks like she has guests.  Let's peek in the window! There is frisky, stiff-upper-lipped Colonel Craddock with his elegant, feisty wife Margaret. She looks unhappy. In the corner is Pierre, a shady French art dealer, and his glamorous companion Elizabeth Hartley-Trumpington...what a strange accent she has. And here comes Miss Maple...the village gossip and sleuth. She wasn't invited but that never discourages her. They say when she appears death follows. Did you hear a gunshot? Cue bumbling inspector Pratt and his more intelligent aide, Thompson. Pratt is more adept at malprops than murder. The laughs are thick and fast from the witty to the downright silly, and the twisting plot will keep you guessing until the very end...or as Pratt would have it - "the thick plottens."  In this classic send up of an Agatha Christie play, the audience may die of laughter before the murderer is unmasked.

 

THE HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES

 

Writer John Guare has the nimbleness to run up and down the scaffold of gallows humor. The writing is lush with sad, ironic wisdom about fame, love and deluded values...at once a zany farce and a biting look at people chasing exulted dreams of glory into some dead-end alley of the soul. Artie Shaughnessy is a man with a dream. He is an aspiring song writer, spending his nights playing seedy, smoke-filled lounges. In the waking, working world, Artie is a zookeeper. He has a wife named Bananas and a girlfriend named Bunny. His wife is a schizophrenic and his girlfriend sleeps with him but won't cook for him. On October 4, 1965, both The Pope and a Hollywood producer pass through Queens and Artie Shaughnessy's life putting his dreams on a collision course with a devastating, wildly funny reality. The House of Blue Leaves won both the New York and Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, the Obie, and four Tonys during a recent revival.

WHO GOES BARE(Hilarious farce)

Running a Health and Strength Home in a large and somewhat decaying country mansion can be a hazardous undertaking at any time, as Eddie Manchip knows.  When one is further beset by a sinister crook to whom one has signed away the deeds of the house as payment of a gambling debt; a complete desertion of the staff except for one half-witted and generally hysterically excited maid; an erring, pompous brother; his suspicious wife; a tennis-player in the nude; a quick-change artist who appears as someone different every ten minutes or so; the tennis player's kilted Scottish husband; and a hearty country woman grabbing second-hand clothing--then the result can be, in a word --chaos!