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Summer Play

Big RiverMore...

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*Our Mission*
To enhance the cultural and economic vitality of our city by inspiring, enlivening and educating our citizens through the arts.

Summer Play 2009

Big River

The Hilliard Arts Council’s summer production will be Big River, the musical based on the novel, Huck Finn on Friday and Saturday July 10 and 11 at 8:00 pm and Sunday July 12 at 3:00 pm at the Hilliard Davidson High School performing arts center, 5100 Davidson Rd. Tickets are 15.00 for adults and 12.00 for students and senior citizens.

Big River sweeps us down the mighty Mississippi as the irrepressible Huck Finn helps his friend Jim, a slave, escape to freedom at the mouth of the Ohio River. Their adventures along the way are hilarious, suspenseful and heartwarming, bringing to life your favorite characters from the novel--the Widow Douglas and her stern sister, Miss Watson, the uproarious King and Duke, who may or may not be as harmless as they seem; Huck’s partner in crime, Tom Sawyer, and their rowdy gang of pals; Huck’s drunken father, the sinister Pap Finn; the love Mary Jane Wilkes and her trusting family. Propelled by an award-winning score from Roger Miller, the King of country music, this jaunty journey provides a brilliantly theatrical celebration of pure Americana.

The cast includes Nate Effinger as Huck and Harold Yarborough as Jim. Nate is a native of Boston and a recent graduate of Ohio Weslyan in music. This is Nate's first production with the Arts Council. Harold is from Columbus and appeared last summer in the Hilliard Arts Council production of Jekyll and Hyde. Other cast members include: Tyler Edwards, a 2007 Hilliard Davidson grad as Tom Sawyer, Kurt Zielenbach as the King and Jeff Meyers as the Duke, both of Hilliard. Paula Carlson and Karen Zielenbach Brown, both of Hilliard, will portray the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson, Huck's guardians. Ray O'Neal of Hilliard will play the role of Pap Finn, Huck's devious father. Matt Wilson, a Hilliard grad and the new drama director at Bradley High School, will play Uncle Silas with Hilliard resident Jodi Leis playing Aunt Sally. Erin McGinnis, a Hilliard Darby grad, will play Mary Jane with Alexa Rybinski and Kelly Williams playing Mary Jane's sisters. Other supporting roles are played by Anita Seipel, Don Azelvandre, Geoff McTurner, Dan Vance, Scott Jones, Kevin Doll, Carla McCrary, Alex Moog, Tim Norden and Justin Eberhard.

The show is under the direction of Ken and Robin Brenneman. Diana Vance is the technical director, Dori Jenks, a 1979 Hilliard grad is choreographer and Dixie Heck is rehearsal accompanist.

Tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door on the day of the performance. If you have any questions or need further information, please contact Ken or Robin Brenneman at 614-527-4407 or email us at kenrob@columbus.rr.com

Last Winter's Production 2008

Press Release--Crimes of the Heart The Hilliard Arts Council will present Beth Henley’s Pulitzer Prize winning play, Crimes of the Heart, on Friday and Saturday March 13 and 14 at 8:00 pm and Sunday March 15th at 4:00 pm (note new time) at the Tripleforce Artistic Center, 3979 Parkway Lane in Hilliard. Tickets are 12.00 for adults and 10.00 for senior citizens and students.

Warmhearted, irreverent, zany and brilliantly imaginative, the play teems with humanity and humor as it examines the plight of three young Mississippi sisters betrayed by their passions. The scene is Hhazelhurst, Mississippi, where the three Magrath sisters have gathered to await news of the family patriarch, their grandfather, who is living out his last hours in the local hospital. Lenny, the oldest sister, is unmarried at thirty and facing diminishing marital prospects; Meg, the middle sister, who quickly outgrew Hazelhurst, is back after a failed singing career on the West Coast; while Babe, the youngest, is out on bail after having shot her husband in the stomach. Their troubles, grave and yet, somehow, hilarious, are highlighted by their priggish cousin, Chick, and by the awkward young lawyer who tries to keep Babe out of jail while helpless not to fall in love with her. In the end the play is the story of how its young characters escape the past to seize the future--but the telling is so true and touching and consistently hilarious that it will linger in the mind long after the curtain has descended.

Cast as Lenny Magrath is Hilliard resident Krista Morelli. Bethany Schoeff will portray Meg and Kelly Williams will play Babe. Barnet Lloyd will be played by Tyler Edwards with Christopher Seitz playing the role of Doc, Meg’s former boyfriend. Joy Bemis will play the role of Chick, the cousin and next door neighbor to the Magrath sisters. The production is directed by Robin Brenneman with DJ Williams and Audra Sturgill assisting her. Ed Daniels will provide set and lighting design. To reserve tickets or get more information you may call 614-527-4407 or email kenrob@columbus.rr.com.

Rehearsal pictures...