Événement

The Tavern by George M. Cohan

THE TAVERN

Catskill's Bridge Street Theatre christens its newly completed mainstage, an intimate and exquisite 84-seat jewel box auditorium, with an old-fashioned treat for the entire family - a gala production of THE TAVERN, an affectionate send-up of old-time melodrama written by Americas Yankee Doodle showman George M. Cohan. The production, featuring a cast of 14 and an off-stage thunderstorm created live, runs for two weekends only, September 15-25.

On a dark and stormy night, a rural inn shelters an unlikely assortment of oddball characters, including a mysterious vagabond who's almost certainly not what he appears to be. AEA actor Kane Prestenback stars as The Vagabond alongside a cast which features some of the finest talent in the Hudson Valley region Gabriel James, Lindsay Cahill, Robert Ragaini, Art Skopinsky Louise Pillai, David Smilow, Elisabeth Henry, Alexandra Doggette, Brett Owen, Keith Mueller, and Parker Cross.

When THE TAVERN originally premiered in 1920, it utterly baffled most of the critics. But the play was championed by Robert Benchley who called it "the biggest night in my theatergoing career, for it marked the birth of something new on the stage, a gorgeous insanity from which it is to be hoped the drama as an institution will never recover," and Dorothy Parker, who proclaimed it an entertainment "sent from Heaven, via Mr. Cohan." The play went on to become one of Cohan's greatest theatrical successes, one in which he toured the provinces for years once the original production had closed. Steven Patterson, who helms the current production, previously directed the play to great acclaim to open the 1977 Summer Season of the Lexington Conservatory Theatre in Lexington, NY. Now, in 2016, Bridge Street Theatre is delighted to share this unique celebration of the joy of theatre devised by a certifiable titan of 20th century American entertainment with a whole new audience.

Thursday September 15 and Sunday, September 18 are Pay-What-You-Can" days. You can reserve a place for those productions here on line and then Pay-What-You-Can at the door. Doors open 1/2 hour before the show.

Regular tickets are $20, $10 for students 21 and under.

For more information, visit BridgeSt.org or call 518-943-3818.