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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 6, 2011 Contact: Holly Feldman, Manager of Marketing and Audience Development (920) 854-6117x104 [email protected] American Folklore Theatre Announces 2011 Season Summer Season to feature World Premiere Bing! The Cherry Musical, together with AFT favorites Lumberjacks in Love and Guys & Does. Fall Season will feature Guys On Ice and The Spitfire Grill at Door Community Auditorium. Critically acclaimed American Folklore Theatre in Door County has announced its 2011 Summer and Fall Season, which will run from June 15 until August 27 at the Amphitheatre in Peninsula State Park and move indoors to Door Community Auditorium from September 1st through October 16th. This year's world premiere, Bing! The Cherry Musical, is a story of the hope, love and laughter that blossom in the cherry orchards of Door County. The show is being created by the veteran writing team of Dave Hudson and Paul Libman, who also authored the 2009 and 2010 hit Cheeseheads, the Musical, as well as A Cabin with a View, Muskie Love, and Main-Travelled Roads for AFT. Hudson and Libman are the only two-time recipients of the prestigious Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theatre. The show is in the final phase of AFT's New Works Process, led by Artistic Director Jeffrey Herbst, before heading to the woods on June 15th. Jeff reports, "Dave and Paul are putting together another show tailored for AFT, a real love letter to Door County, that both visitors and locals will relate to and enjoy." Bing! The Cherry Musical plays Mondays at 8 p.m., Wednesdays at 6 p.m., and Fridays at 8 p.m. starting Friday, June 17th, with a special opening performance on Wednesday, June 15th at 8:30 p.m. Long-time AFT fans will be familiar with the all-time summer box office hit Lumberjacks In Love. Lumberjacks returns to the woods to bring audiences the story of four burly lumberjacks who live in a state of manly bliss at the Haywire Lumber Camp in Northern Wisconsin - until an encounter with a plucky mail order bride interrupts life as they know it. Created by Fred Alley and James Kaplan in 1994 and last seen on the AFT stage in 2008, Lumberjacks celebratesa world where "bath time is once a month" and "the blast of a dinner bell brings the boys running."The result is big belly laughs and beautiful music that audiences return to again and again. Lumberjacks in Love plays Thursdays at 8 p.m. and Saturdays at 6 p.m. beginning Thursday, June 16th. Rounding out the Summer Season will be Guys & Does, the deer hunting musical that promises "more bang for the buck." Appearing for the first time on the outdoor stage, Guys & Does returns to Door County after a successful tour throughout Wisconsin this past fall and winter, including a two-week run in Madison at the prestigious Overture Center for the Arts. The show earned critical praise from reviewer Warren Gerds of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, who called it "knee-slap funny" and awarded it four out of four stars. Created by Frederick "Doc" Heide, Lee Becker, and Paul Libman, Guys & Does is a wacky and wonderful excursion into the world of Wisconsin deer-hunters Fritz and Duane as they travel Up Nort' to get away from it all. Guys & Does will play Tuesdays at 8 p.m., Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m., and Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. beginning Tuesday, June 21st. This year's summer acting company will feature AFT veterans Doug Mancheski, Lee Becker, Doc Heide, Jeffrey Herbst, Chase Stoeger, Molly Rhode, and Pamela Niespodziani. Joining them will be newcomer Raeleen McMillion. General admission tickets for summer shows are $19 for adults, $8 for teens, and $5 for children. Reserved seats are $6.00 more per ticket. All summer performances take place under the stars in the stunning amphitheatre at Peninsula State Park, Fish Creek. AFT's fall season will once again move indoors to the climate-controlled Door Community Auditorium where the troupe will present Guys On Ice, September 1st through 24th and The Spitfire Grill September 30th through October 16th. Since its debut at AFT in 1998, Guys On Ice has played thousands of performances all over the country and is arguably the most beloved Wisconsin musical of all time. For audiences who will be reeling in this catch for the first time, this Fred Alley/James Kaplan collaboration spends a day in the life of Marvin and Lloyd - fishing buddies and homegrown philosophers. AFT favorites Doug Mancheski, Steve Koehler, and Lee Becker will be playing Marvin, Lloyd, and Ernie the Moocher (respectively) for the show's 4-week run at the Door Community Auditorium. Guys On Ice opens September 1st and plays at 7:30 p.m. every night except Sundays through September 24th with an additional matinee on Saturdays at 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $23.00 for adults and $13 for children 12 and under. 2011 marks the 10th anniversary since The Spitfire Grill had its Off-Broadway debut. The award-winning show by Fred Alley and James Valcq played to sold-out audiences in New York City and was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award. It has been one of the most widely produced musicals over the ensuing years with hundreds of productions in the US and around the world, even being translated into Korean and German. James Valcq, the composer and co-book writer, will make his Spitfire directing debut with this AFT production. The Spitfire Grill has been described as "soulful and transcendent" by New York Magazine, which named it "Best Musical of 2001". The Spitfire Grill opens September 30th and plays at 7:30 p.m. every night except Tuesdays and Sundays with additional performances at 3 p.m. on Saturdays and 1:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on Sundays through October 16th. (Show times subject to change.) Tickets are $27.00 for adults and $15.00 for children 12 & under. Tickets for both the summer and fall season will go on sale April 15th in the AFT box office at the Green Gables shops in north Ephraim, via phone at (920) 854-6117, and online at www.FolkloreTheatre.com. American Folklore Theatre is a non-profit professional theatre organization that produces original musical shows in repertory from June through August. AFT continues its performances into the fall with shows in Door County town halls September through October and over the Christmas holidays. American Folklore Theatre is a member of Theatre Wisconsin and the Theatre Communications Group (TCG), organizations that promote non-profit theatre groups. Logos and photos available in other formats and sizes upon request: [email protected]
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