Kate Baldwin and Lewis Cleale in “I Do! I Do!” at Westport Country Playhouse, extended through September 4.
Photo by T. Charles Erickson
Westport Country Playhouse announces that due to ticket demand for “I Do! I Do!,” the charming and touching musical about marriage, three extra performances have been added, Thursday through Saturday, September 2 – 4, evenings at 8 p.m. The tuneful journey through the ups and downs of a 50-year marriage stars Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin and Drama Desk Award nominee Lewis Cleale. The musical is written by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, composers of “The Fantasticks,“ and directed by Susan H. Schulman.
“We’re thrilled by the audience response to ‘I Do! I Do!’,” said Mark Lamos, Playhouse artistic director. “It’s a delight to watch them watch the show. They’re completely taken with the story and all its twists and turns, and they love the score, and of course Susan has directed a magnificent production with these two wonderful performers. I couldn’t be happier that the extension means even more people will be able to see it.”
Kate Baldwin, who plays Agnes, starred on Broadway in “Finian's Rainbow,” for which she received nominations for Tony and Outer Critics Circle awards. She was also on Broadway in “Wonderful Town,” “Thoroughly Modern Millie” and “The Full Monty.” For PBS, she appeared in “Live from Lincoln Center: Stephen Sondheim’s Passion.”
Lewis Cleale, who portrays Michael, appeared at Westport Country Playhouse in “Hot ‘n Cole.” In the last year he was part of “Sondheim on Sondheim,” with Barbara Cook and Vanessa Williams. Other Broadway shows include “Spamalot,” “Amour,” “Once Upon a Mattress” with Sarah Jessica Parker, and “Swinging on a Star,” for which he earned a Drama Desk Award nomination.
Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt began their musical collaboration writing “The Fantasticks,” the longest-running production in the history of the American stage and one of the most frequently produced musicals in the world. In addition to an Obie Award and the 1992 Special Tony Award for “The Fantasticks,” in 1999, their “stars” were added to the Off-Broadway Walk of Fame outside the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
Director Susan H. Schulman’s Broadway credits include the Tony Award-winning musical “The Secret Garden,” which earned 12 Drama Desk and seven Tony award nominations; the revival of “Sweeney Todd,” for which she received Tony and Drama Desk award nominations for Outstanding Direction; and “The Sound of Music,” a Tony Award-nominated revival.
Choreographer Michael Lichtefeld has choreographed six Broadway musicals and eight shows at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. He has been nominated as best choreographer for the Drama Desk Award, The LA Ovation Award and three Outer Critics’ Circle Awards.
Music director Joel Fram has worked extensively in New York and London, conducting the Broadway productions of “Wicked,” “Sweet Smell of Success,” “The Music Man,” “James Joyce’s The Dead,” “Jumpers” and “Cats.”
Corporate production partner for “I Do, I Do!” is Northwestern Mutual Financial Network, The Bender Financial Group. Board of trustees production sponsors are Helen Lee Henderson and Johnna Torsone and John McKeon. Board of trustees production partners are Barbara and John Streicker.
Single tickets range from $40 to $60. Students and educators are eligible for 50% discounts. Groups of 10 or more save up to 30%. For group sales information call (203) 227-5137, x120.
About the Playhouse:
Westport Country Playhouse, a not-for-profit theater, serves as a treasured home for the performing arts and is a cultural landmark for Connecticut. Under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management direction of Michael Ross, the Playhouse creates quality productions of new and classic plays that enlighten, enrich and engage a diverse community of theater lovers, artists and students. The Playhouse’s rich history dates back to 1931, when New York theater producer Lawrence Langner created a Broadway-quality stage within an 1830s tannery. The Playhouse quickly became an established stop on the New England “straw hat circuit” of summer stock theaters. Now celebrating its 80th season, Westport Country Playhouse has produced more than 700 plays, 36 of which later transferred to Broadway, most recently the world premiere of "Thurgood" and a revival of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" with Paul Newman, and in earlier years "Come Back, Little Sheba" with Shirley Booth, "The Trip to Bountiful" with Lillian Gish, and "Butterflies Are Free" with Keir Dullea and Blythe Danner. For its artistic excellence, the Playhouse received a 2005 Governor's Arts Award and a 2000 "Connecticut Treasure" recognition. It was also designated as an Official Project of Save America's Treasures by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is entered on the Connecticut State Register of Historic Places. Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, the Playhouse transformed into a year-round, state-of-the-art producing theater, which has preserved its original charm and character. In addition to a full season of theatrical productions, the Playhouse serves as a community resource, presenting educational programming and workshops; a children's theater series; symposiums; music; films; and readings.
Westport Country Playhouse’s five-play 2010 season: “She Loves Me,” a romantic musical comedy, with book by Joe Masteroff, music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, directed by Mark Lamos, April 20 – May 15; “Dinner with Friends,” a comic drama by Donald Margulies, directed by David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director, June 1 through 19; “Happy Days” by Samuel Beckett, a play of luminous beauty and rare power, directed by Mark Lamos, July 6 through July 24; “I Do! I Do,” an endearing musical, with book and lyrics are by Tom Jones and music by Harvey Schmidt, directed by Susan H. Schulman, August 10 through August 28; and “The Diary of Anne Frank,” a timeless and powerful classic, by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, adapted by Wendy Kesselman, directed by Gerald Freedman, September 28 through October 30.
For more information or ticket purchases, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets may be purchased online at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to the Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse) and/or follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse).
