Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre Announces Summer 2011 Season
Five Guys Named Moe and From The Mississippi Delta will be Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre’s mainstage productions in June and July, followed by three dramatic readings in August. All shows will be performed at the Theatre at Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St., Evanston.
The 2011 season kicks off with Five Guys Named Moe. This Tony-nominated musical features the whimsical hit songs of Louis Jordan, one of the most beloved songwriting talents of the Twentieth Century. Jordan, a great composer and saxophonist, had more than 50 top-ten singles on the rhythm and blues charts. He brought a popular new slant to jazz that paved the way for the rock ’n’ roll of the ’50s. This show inspires the audience to laugh and shout; they may even dance in the aisles! Five Guys Named Moe will be presented at 7:00 p.m. on Saturdays and at 3:00 p.m. on Sundays, June 11 through June 26.
The musical director for Five Guys Named Moe is Tim Lenihan; the choreographer is Sean Blake. It will be directed by Tim Rhoze, Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre’s Artistic Director; Rhoze also will serve as set designer and costume designer. Allie Miller is stage manager. The cast is Alexander Brown (Little Moe); Andrew White Jr. (Big Moe); George Hull (Eat Moe); Rodney Greene (Four-Eyed Moe); James Perrin (No Moe) and Gerald Wilson (No Max).
In July, Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre presents From the Mississippi Delta, an autobiographical work by Dr. Endesha Ida Mae Holland. The play traces her journey through poverty and abuse in the Jim Crow South, her role as an activist in the civil rights movement, academic achievement and triumph as a Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright. This story of courage will be portrayed by three dynamic actresses playing all the characters – black and white, young and old, men and women – who will make her world come alive in an eloquently potent and impassioned journey filled with story and song.
From the Mississippi Delta will be directed by Tim Rhoze and presented at 7:00 p.m. on Saturdays and 3:00 p.m. on Sundays, July 9 through July 24. Tickets for both mainstage productions are $10 in advance or at the door.
The late-summer Dramatic Reading Series returns this year with one play featured per weekend at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday and 3:00 p.m. on Sunday at The Theatre at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center. Merc’y Rising by Gloria Bond Clunie will be read on August 6 and 7; Selecting Memory by Tania Richard will be read on August 13 and 14; and Heat by Marsha Estell will be read on August 20 and 21. Admission is $5.00 in advance or at the door.
Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre is a City of Evanston-supported program. Its mission is to present powerful, thought provoking, community-centered theater arts programming with a commitment to diversity and creative excellence. For more information, call (847) 448-8254 or (847) 448-8260 or click here.