Noël Coward's Blithe Spirt Playbill

Just up the road from this wonderful theater is an award-winning gallery filled with original artwork from over 150 artists in a beautifully restored fruit barn and a peaceful sculpture garden. Enjoy the show and stop in for a visit the next time you’re in the neighborhood!

Welcome to Peninsula Players Theatre!

Dear Friends,

It is my honor on behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire Peninsula Players Theatre company to wish you a warm welcome to our 88th season. Our Managing Director and Artistic Director, Brian Kelsey and Linda Fortunato, have arranged for another exciting season of live theater here in beautiful Door County, and our incredible staff and interns will create a memorable theater experience for you like no other. Please enjoy the magic on stage, the magnificent sunsets, and the incredible history that is our cherished theater.

There is a special excitement in the air at Peninsula Players Theatre this season. A long overdue project has come to fruition and our valued interns and staff have the new housing that they so greatly deserve. “Out with the old and in with the new” has never been more appropriate. Our full-time staff, board of directors, and community members have worked tirelessly to make this dream become a reality. We have been blessed with the financial support of many generous donors that have been crucial to making this happen. Our fundraising continues, so please help us close the Act II Housing Campaign!

We are grateful to have the charitable support of our donors, sponsors, patrons, playbill advertisers, and volunteers. All of you make the magic that is Peninsula Players Theatre possible. You are appreciated! Please encourage family and friends to become one of our cherished patrons, so that they, too, may also experience Peninsula Players Theatre’s incredible history and beauty.

Enjoy the show!

Jill Herlache

Jill Herlache, Peninsula Players Theatre Board President

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jill Herlache, President

Sara Glenn, Vice President

Dave Borghesi, Treasurer

Barbara Simpson Fuhrmann, Secretary

Directors

Tom Birmingham

Sarah Bonovich

Julia B. Chomeau

Jackie Danis

Mary Greisen

Bill Higley

Ted Laitner

Jim Maronek

Bill Parsons

Peggy Reineck-Simpson

Greg Wait

Jerry Zaug

Hello Friends,

Welcome to Peninsula Players Theatre’s 2023 season! This year finds us celebrating many new things while simultaneously embracing and honoring the long-standing history of the theatre.

I am thrilled to be opening our season with Sean Grennan’s new play, A Rock Sails By. Peninsula Players Theatre has been the home of many world premieres over the years, including three of Sean’s previous plays. We are proud to share this beautiful story as part of World Premiere Wisconsin – a statewide festival of new work. Immediately after this brand-new play, tradition continues with Noёl Coward’s Blithe Spirit. Coward was the first playwright ever performed by Peninsula Players Theatre with Hay Fever in 1935.

As you look through this playbill, you will see many folks who are with us for the first time. From our company of interns to artists and staff, we are excited to welcome these new faces and perspectives. Alongside them are returning Players enjoying perhaps their second, or tenth or twenty-ninth season. The company members have always been the heart of the theatre, and it is a pleasure to join them in creating this 88th season.

The largest new piece this year is our new company housing. Thanks to the widespread support of our community and donors, invaluable leadership from our Board, exceptional management from The Boldt Company, and tireless work of our full-time staff, we have welcomed our interns and seasonal staff into new, modern housing. These company members work so hard to make our theatre season possible, and they now have a comfortable place to rest and unwind at the end of the long workdays. While we have added new structures to our grounds, we will always cherish and maintain the beautiful gardens, shoreline, paths, and bonfires that are such a special part of the overall Peninsula Players Theatre experience.

We are so happy you’re here and hope you will join us for many more years, as new developments and beloved traditions continue to enhance the spirit of our shared “home by the bay.”

Linda Fortunato Artistic Director

NATIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL

Ted Bird

Barbara Simpson Fuhrmann

Katherine S. Georgeson

Bill Hartman

David Hawkanson

Stacy Keach

Todd Schmidt

Eric Simonson

Kristine Thatcher

John “JW” Walker

Pamela Gaye Walker

Francesca Zambello

Values of Peninsula Players Theatre

We strive for excellence in all we do – endeavoring to present our patrons with the highest quality professional theater while ensuring their visit is as welcoming and positive as possible.

We celebrate equity, diversity, accessibility and inclusion. We value the right to be who you are and embrace differences, which makes us whole as a community. Diversity encompasses aesthetics, age, class, disability, ethnicity, gender, geography, economic status, faith, race, sexual orientation and varying points of view.

We aspire to foster a company that practices joy, humor, kindness, compassion, honesty, respect, dedication, inclusiveness, and love. One which also understands the value of a strong work ethic, ongoing professional development, as well as the value of being a member of a social and supportive campus community.

We commit ourselves to produce a wide variety of programming that remains faithful to the intentions of the theater’s founders. In addition to providing the joy of entertainment for its own sake and bringing established stories to light, we also work to produce well-known stories and new works that take an artistic risk, reflect the complexity of our shared humanity, explore social commentary, feed the soul, foster civic dialogue and fuel the curiosity of our community at large.

We pledge to be a supportive and responsible member of the Door County community and an advocate for the larger arts community. We are determined to expand public awareness of the essential contributions the arts make to society as a whole.

We prioritize the health (mental & physical) and safety of our company members, donors, patrons and volunteers and dedicate ourselves to providing a safe and secure environment for all.

We believe in the intrinsic value of life-long learning which creates an environment of continued professional and personal growth.

We mentor the next generation of theater practitioners through our internship program, by way of advice, teaching, listening, example and help in making their way into the professional world, and through supporting secondary education in the arts through our scholarship program.

We cherish and value the tranquility and splendor of the forest and water which surrounds our artistic home and commit ourselves to environmental sustainability.

We revere the rich legacy of Peninsula Players Theatre and embrace the great responsibility of ensuring it remains a stable business by using sound financial practices and accountability that will protect the theater for future generations.

Recognition of Prior Stewardship

Peninsula Players Theatre would like to acknowledge that the land on which we gather was nurtured for thousands of years before our residence in 1937. These peoples include the former Wildwood Camp for Boys, the Potawatomi Nation and other influential peoples/nations, including the Huron, Menominee, Ojibwe, Ottawa, Petun, Sauk and the Winnebago (or Ho-Chunk).

BRIAN KELSEY Managing Director

Brian celebrates his 16th season as Peninsula Players Theatre’s Managing Director. He comes to Peninsula Players Theatre with a broad range of "for profit" and "not for profit" business experience, gained both in the United States and Europe, in the fields of operations, finance, marketing and public relations. Brian is engaged in the arts and tourism industries and is currently the board chair of the Wisconsin Arts Board. He also serves on both the Marketing Committee and the Diversity, Equity, Accessibility & Inclusion Committee for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism. Locally, Brian serves on the board of the Peninsula Arts and Humanities Alliance (president) and the Marketing Committee of the Women’s Fund of Door County. A graduate of Marquette University with a degree in journalism, he is pleased to share his business experience in the community that raised him. As a side note, he is even more pleased to be working for the organization that gave him his first performing arts experience as a child.

Enjoy Your Visit to Peninsula Players

Restrooms. Restrooms are located north of the theater near the lower parking lot. As you exit the audience pavilion on the Beer Garden side, follow the footpath past the Canteen to the next building beyond. Follow the “star lights” for your respite.

Re-entry during a performance. If you must leave during the performance, please do so quietly through the nearest open house door. Re-entry, while the performance is in progress, is at the discretion of the House Manager.

Children. In general, we suggest ages eight and over attend for attention span purposes. One or more of our shows have adult themes that may be inappropriate for young children. At Peninsula Players Theatre, we generally follow the ‘school-age and up’ rule. Everyone attending must purchase a seat. Babes in arms will not be allowed in the theater. For further information regarding the age-appropriateness of any of our shows, please contact the Box Office at (920) 868-3287 or visit the play pages at www.peninsulaplayers.com.

To purchase tickets for wheelchair or limited mobility seating, please phone our Box Office at (920) 868-3287. We are better able to handle special needs in person or over the phone.

Induction Loop Technology is available to guests with hearing devices containing a telecoil (T-Coil) on the theater’s main floor, rows A through S. The loop will transmit sound directly to your hearing aid or cochlear implant while you are in the “loop.”

Assisted listening devices are available at the Canteen for the hearing impaired. A driver’s license or credit card is requested as a security deposit to use these devices.

Balcony Guests – If you are seated in the balcony, visit the Canteen for an assisted listening device. The balcony does not have hearing loop technology.

LINDA FORTUNATO

Artistic Director

Director – A Rock Sails By Director/Choreographer – Dames at Sea

This is Linda’s second season as artistic director. Her Peninsula Players Theatre credits span 19 seasons and include acting in Talley’s Folly, The Outsider (formerly, A Real Lulu), The Importance of Being Earnest, Wait Until Dark, Noises Off, The Woman in Black ; directing The Rainmaker, Ghost the Musical, Living on Love, Lend Me a Tenor, And Then There Were None, Once a Ponzi Time, The Nerd, A Fox On the Fairway ; and choreographing Chicago, A Little Night Music and Cabaret. Linda was previously the artistic director of Theatre at the Center in Munster, Indiana, where she directed Cabaret, Big River, The Tin Woman, Steel Magnolias and a dozen other shows as director, choreographer or actor. Other credits include work with Marriott Theatre, Drury Lane Oakbrook, BoHo Theatre, American Players Theatre, and teaching in the theatre departments of Loyola University and Columbia College Chicago.

Have a Few Minutes?

Please take a moment to complete this survey by our partners at World Premiere Wisconsin.

A Rock Sails By is one of nearly 50 World Premiere Wisconsin (WPW) productions. WPW is a statewide festival celebrating new plays and musicals from March 1 through June 30, 2023, presented by the Ten Chimneys Foundation. From the tip of Door County to the state line, WPW has got something for everyone! Experience a bold idea, locally brewed with pride, right here in our great state!

Learn more about WPW and other festival productions by visiting worldpremierewisconsin.com. Follow WPW on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter: @worldpremierewi

Please use this QR code to take the survey today!

Listening Devices

With our induction loop technology, guests at Peninsula Players Theatre with hearing devices containing a telecoil (T-Coil) will have sound transmitted directly to their hearing aid or cochlear implant on the main floor.

Assisted listening devices are available in the Canteen for the hearing impaired who do not have access to T-Coil technology. A driver’s license or credit card is required as a security deposit for the use of these devices.

Balcony Guests – If you are seated in the balcony, visit the Canteen located outside of the theater for an assisted listening device. The balcony does not have the loop system available.

PENINSULA PLAYERS THEATRE'S NEW HOUSING

Last year on the Opening Night of our 87th season, we announced the launch of the Act II Housing Campaign and shared our intent to build new, adequate dormitories for our interns and staff members. We are proud to say that these beautiful dormitories are complete and are in full use by our 2023 company!

We are eternally grateful for your encouragement and incredible financial support. We could not have reached this point without each and every one of you. Thank you!

HELP US CLOSE THE CAMPAIGN!

Though the dormitories are complete, our fundraising efforts continue. We are at 89% of our campaign goal of $4.2 million, leaving $475,000 yet to raise. Please help ensure the future of the theater by giving a gift to the Act II Housing Campaign today.

LEAVE YOUR LEGACY

By contributing to the Housing Campaign, you are helping to foster the next generation of

theater artists and professionals by providing them a place to call home as they share their gifts and talents each season. The new dormitories will help attract and retain the talented staff and interns that make your Peninsula Players Theatre experience what it is today. It will also ensure the future of the organization for theatregoers and the Door County community for generations to come. We can't do this without you!

Become

Act II: Protecting the Past, Ensuring the Future

Name: (as you would like your name to appear in the playbill for gifts of $50 or more)

Address:

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Email: Please save a stamp - email my receipt!

Amount enclosed: Phone:

Circle one: AMEXDiscoverMasterCard Visa Check enclosed

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Please make checks payable to Peninsula Players Theatre with "Housing Campaign" in the memo line. Peninsula Players Theatre's EIN is 39-0986031.

Mail to: Peninsula Players Theatre, 4351 Peninsula Players Road, Fish Creek, WI 54212

For more information contact: Development Director Danielle Szmanda at (920) 868-3287 or danielle@peninsulaplayers.com

7 lovely apartments located right on the water, open year around except the month of March

Thank You to Our Generous 2023 Show Sponsors!

A Rock Sails By

Tony & Judy Licata Blithe Spirit

Tim & Jackie Danis

Dames at Sea

Alibi Marina & Harbor Guest House with support from the Cordon Family Foundation

Trying

Main Street Market

Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery Door County Medical Center, Barbara & Richard Board and Dale & Margaret West

For more information on show sponsorships, please contact Development Director Danielle Szmanda at (920) 868-3287 or danielle@peninsulaplayers.com

It matters where you bank.

When you bank with Nicolet Bank you contribute to the local economy and quality of life in Door County. Working together, we can make our community the best it can be.

Proud to support the Peninsula Players.

Photo courtesy of Mike Tittel/ Destination Door County

JANET ULRICH BROOKS

Actor – A Rock Sails By, Blithe Spirit

Janet joyfully makes her Peninsula Players Theatre debut. Based in Chicago, most recent (post-Covid) credits include The Cherry Orchard (Goodman Theatre); Murder On The Orient Express and Steel Magnolias (Drury Lane Theatre); Steel Magnolias (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre); At The Wedding (Theatre Squared, Fayetteville, Arkansas). Pre-Covid: The Children (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), Plantation (Lookingglass Theatre), Tiny Beautiful Things, Pipeline, Native Gardens (Victory Gardens Biograph), Vanya Sonya Masha & Spike, 2666, The Seagull (Goodman Theatre); 15 productions with TimeLine Theatre Company where she is a company member, including Master Class (Jeff Award, Principal Actor). Films: “Divergent,” “Conviction,” “One Small Hitch.” TV: “Work In Progress,” “Fargo,” “Sense8,” “Proven Innocent,” “Boss,” “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago Med” and “Chicago Justice.” Janet is represented by Gray Talent Group.

Winner of Good Morning America’s Best Breakfast in America Challenge

Hearty breakfasts, sumptuous lunches, quiet candlelight dinners, and famous traditional Door County fish boils. Restaurant open to the public all year.

Cheers to 50 Years!

Peninsula Players Theatre would like to thank and congratulate the Wisconsin Arts Board for its continued support and service!

Since 1973, the Wisconsin Arts Board, our state's arts agency, has been nurturing creativity, cultivating expression, promoting the arts, supporting the arts in education, stimulating community and economic development, and serving as a resource for people of every culture and heritage.

Investing in your community's imagination for 50 years.

www.artsboard.wisconsin.gov

SEAN FORTUNATO

Actor – A Rock Sails By, Blithe Spirit

Peninsula Players Theatre: The Rainmaker, Talley’s Folly, Peter and the Starcatcher (Black Stache), Sunday in the Park with George (George), Doubt (Father Flynn) and Cabaret (Emcee). Off-Broadway: Rose Rage at The Duke on 42nd. Regional: Damn Yankees (Applegate) at Marriott Theatre; Intimate Apparel at Northlight Theatre; Matilda (Miss Trunchbull) at Drury Lane; Twelfth Night (Malvolio) at Writers Theatre; 2666 at Goodman Theatre and work at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Court Theatre, Theatre at the Center, Timeline Theatre Company, Porchlight Music Theatre, Remy Bumppo Theatre, About Face Theatre, Intiman Theatre and The Old Globe Theatre. TV: Antoon Dumini in “Fargo” (FX), “Chicago Med,” “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago PD” (NBC). Film: “The Merry Gentleman” directed by Michael Keaton. Sean has received nine Joseph Jefferson Award nominations and an After Dark Award.

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Björklunden, Lawrence University’s north campus, is located one mile south from Baileys Harbor on Hwy 57 at 7590 Boynton Lane.• 920- 839-2216

Photo: Rob Kopecky

HEIDI KETTENRING

Actor – Blithe Spirit, Dames at Sea

Heidi last appeared at Peninsula Players Theatre in The Taffetas in 2003! Nessa in Wicked (Broadway In Chicago), as well as work with Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Northlight Theatre, Paramount Theatre, Writers Theatre, Marriott Lincolnshire Theatre, Court Theatre, Drury Lane Theatre, Theatre At The Center, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Fulton Theatre, Maine State Music Theatre, Clarence Brown Theatre, American Theater Company, The Hangar Theatre and TheatreWorks. National Tours: Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Film and television: “Man Of Steel,” “Chicago Fire” and “Cupid.” Joseph Jefferson Award, nine Jeff nominations, Sarah Siddons’ Chicago Leading Lady Award, After Dark Award, Richard M. Kneeland Award and two Broadway World Awards. Heidi has a Karen Carpenter Concert through Artists’ Lounge Live.

REBECCA HURD

Actor – A Rock Sails By, Blithe Spirit

Rebecca is delighted to be making her Peninsula Players Theatre debut! Off-Broadway: Boswell (59E59 Theater). Favorite Chicago credits include Relentless (TimeLine Theatre Company/Goodman Theatre), An Enemy of the People (Goodman Theatre), Hello, Dolly!, Something Rotten! (Marriott Theatre), Mamma Mia! (Drury Lane Theatre), The Importance of Being Earnest (Writers Theatre) and Short Shakes! Twelfth Night (Chicago Shakespeare Theater). Regionally, she has worked with the Guthrie Theater, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre and American Players Theatre, among others. Television credits include: “Next” (FOX) and “Chicago P.D” (NBC). She holds a BFA in acting from the University of Minnesota/ Guthrie Theater and is a private acting coach for teens and young adults. @thehurdstudio

IN MEMORY OF HELOISE RATHBONE Beloved Company Member (May 19, 1942 – January 28, 2023)

Heloise was the eldest daughter of Rodion and Caroline Fisher Rathbone, who owned and operated the theater until 1960. While Caroline operated the theater, Rodion flew to and from Rome or Paris as a TWA pilot. Heloise attended school in Fish Creek when her parents were in Door County and took piano lessons with Mrs. Uno Nyman at Silver Poplar in Ellison Bay. Heloise performed in a few shows, including Happy Times and Teahouse of the August Moon with Harvey Korman. But the stage was not her calling; Heloise was drawn to music. She attended Kenosha’s Kemper Hall, was a member of the Junior Schubert Club while attending, gave recitals at Silver Poplar and Kemper, and continued to play piano throughout her life.

In 1959, at the age of 17, Heloise was called upon to step in for her ill mother and run the theater. With grit and determination, she arrived with her younger brother via the bus from Chicago to break into locked buildings and open the theater with $72.16 she found in change in a coffee can. In adulthood, Heloise settled into a quiet life of teaching in Brooklyn, and, in 1987, helped found a soup kitchen for the less fortunate in her neighborhood. In 2008, she spoke to The Baker Street Irregulars Trust’s dinner celebrating Sherlock Holmes’s 154th birthday about her grandfather Basil Rathbone and what it was like to be part of the Rathbone family. A few years ago, she retired from teaching at Grace Church School, the oldest preschool in Brooklyn. Heloise quietly passed away earlier this year in California, and we extend our deepest condolences to her daughter Dounia and the entire family. She was preceded in death by her parents Caroline, in 1985, and Rodion, in 1996. Heloise is survived by her siblings Grace (Dounia) Clearsen and Richard Rodion Rathbone.

Dounia and Heloise Rathbone, 1959

JACKSON EVANS

Actor – Blithe Spirit, Dames at Sea

Peninsula Players Theatre credits: The Fully Monty (Ethan) and Peter and the Starcatcher (Mrs. Bumbrake). Chicago credits: Beauty and the Beast (Paramount Theater, Jeff Nomination - Actor in a Supporting Role); Boys in the Band (Windy City Playhouse); Ride the Cyclone, Seussical, Short Shakes! The Taming of the Shrew (Chicago Shakespeare Theater); Matilda, Spamalot (Drury Lane Oakbrook); Fiddler on the Roof, My Fair Lady (Lyric Opera); Singin' in the Rain, A Christmas Story, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (Marriott Theatre); Avenue Q, Bunny Bunny (Mercury Theater). Regional: Dad's Season Tickets at Milwaukee Repertory Theater, First Stage. Touring: The Realish Housewives (Second City). Film: "Christmas is Canceled." TV: "Paper Girls," "Chicago PD," "Sirens." Education: Northwestern University, The School at Steppenwolf.

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ALLEN GILMORE

Actor – Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery

Allen has played many iconic roles: Othello, Cyrano, Iago, Ichabod Crane, Jaques, Ebenezer Scrooge, Brutus, Aaron the Moor and many more. This summer, he created the title role of Malvolio in the world premiere of that play with the Classical Theatre of Harlem in New York. He is a proud Congo Square Theatre Company ensemble member, a 2015 LuntFontanne Fellow, a 2015 3Arts Prize awardee, and a 2019 Nicholas Rudall Prize recipient. Allen is a United States Army Infantry veteran originally from Houston and trained at the Stella Adler Studio through New York University/Tisch School of the Arts. He has performed on stage across the United States, Canada and Europe. He is thrilled to debut at Peninsula Players Theatre in this Bucket List role of Sherlock Holmes.

Stop by and meet the owner and artist, Ginnie

LEE E. ERNST Actor – Trying

Peninsula Players Theatre credits: Colonel Jessup, A Few Good Men; Alan, Opus; Waldgrave The Nerd; and Bingham The Fox on the Fairway. He is a founding company member and 17-year veteran of American Players Theatre, an 11-year company member of Resident Ensemble Players and a 20-year company member of Milwaukee Repertory Theater. Regional: Arizona Theatre Company, American Conservatory Theater, Kansas City Rep, Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival, Madison Rep and Westport Country Playhouse. Lead roles range from kings to miscreants including King Lear, Macbeth, Cyrano, Vince Lombardi, Poirot, John Barrymore, Scrooge, Marley and Harry Roat in Wait Until Dark. Off-Broadway: Sir Toby Twelfth Night (Theatre for a New Audience). International: Rodrigues in Silence (DARTSTokyo, Japan. US & Japan tour). Lunt-Fontanne Fellow/Ten Chimneys; Minerva Laureate/Wisconsin Academy of Letters, Arts, and Sciences.

MAYA MCQUEEN

Actor – Blithe Spirit, Dames at Sea

Maya is thrilled to be making her Peninsula Players Theatre debut!

Chicago credits: Sound of Music, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (Marriott Theatre), Georgiana & Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley (Northlight Theatre). Additional credits: Into the Woods (Leavenworth Summer Theater), The Pajama Game (Rising Star Project at The 5th Avenue Theatre), A Christmas Carol (ACT Theatre), and Billy Elliot (Village Theatre). She is a Seattle native and recently graduated with her BFA in musical theatre from Indiana University. Maya is represented by Stewart Talent. www.maya-mcqueen.com

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SADIEH RIFAI

Actor – A Rock Sails By, Blithe Spirit

Sadieh Rifai is an ensemble member at A Red Orchid Theatre, where she performed in Do You Feel Anger, An Evening at the Talk House and the world premiere of Grey House. Her credits include Short Shakes Macbeth, the world premiere of The Humans (Jeff Award nomination for Best Ensemble) at American Theatre Company along with The Amish Project, Hedwig and the Angry Inch (co-production with About Face Theatre), Columbinus and Speech and Debate (After Dark Award for Outstanding Performance). Film: “The Wise Kids,” "Nate and Margaret” and “Olympia.” TV: “Chicago Med,” Netflix’s “Easy,” CBS “The Red Line,” Amazon's “Patriot” (recurring role of Mahtma El-Mashad), and Apple TV’s “The Shining Girls” (recurring role of Lakshmi Awad). Sadieh is a graduate of the School at Steppenwolf and received the Princess Grace Award in 2011.

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Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), founded in 1913, represents more than 45,000 actors and stage managers working in theatres across the U.S. Equity negotiates wages and working conditions, and provides benefits, including health and pension plans, for its members. Equity’s mission is to advance, promote, and foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society. Whenever professional theatre exists, Equity exists.

James R. Smith • Richard A. Hauser • Jon R. Pinkert • Jennifer C. Hobart • Amy M. Sullivan • Tyler D. Pluff

Hannah J. Smith • Peter A. Bazianos • Zachary J. Buchta

KIMBERLY ANN McCANN

Stage Manager – A Rock Sails By, Dames at Sea

Assistant Stage Manager – Blithe Spirit, Trying

Kimberly is thrilled to return to Peninsula Players Theatre for her third season! Her regional credits include work with Goodman Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Skylight Music Theatre, Tuacahn Center of the Arts, Door Shakespeare and The Juilliard School. Broadway credits include Curtains. Off-Broadway credits include Bill W. And Dr. Bob, How to Save the World, and John Ferguson.

KAITLIN KITZMILLER

Stage Manager – Blithe Spirit, Trying Assistant Stage Manager – A Rock Sails By, Dames at Sea

Kaitlin is over the moon to be returning to Peninsula Players Theatre for a fifth season. Regional theatre credits include Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Drury Lane Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Resident Ensemble Players, Lake Dillon Theatre Company and Nebraska Shakespeare. Love and be Loved.

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Meet the Playwright ...

BY CHRIS CHAN

Noël Coward (1899-1973) and Peninsula Players Theatre have a long history together. Coward’s comedy Hay Fever opened the theater’s premiere season on July 25, 1935. Peninsula Players Theatre legend Leo Lucker acted in the play. Lucker later worked with Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne of Ten Chimneys fame. Over the decades, other Coward plays, including Private Lives, Present Laughter and Blithe Spirit have been produced on the theater's stage, sometimes multiple times.

Coward was raised in near-poverty by parents whose firstborn son passed away from meningitis shortly before Coward’s birth, though one other elder brother survived. His father scraped out a living through selling and tuning pianos, and around the age of ten, his mother decided that her boy had a talent for the stage, and encouraged him. Young Coward was remarkably successful, and by his mid-teens, he started making a surprising amount of money, and he turned to writing in addition to acting. By his thirties, he was one of England’s most successful entertainers, providing diversions during the Great Depression.

Blithe Spirit has its origins in Coward’s desire to write a comedy featuring a supernatural element. In 1941, this idea coalesced into a story about a marriage disrupted by the arrival of the spirit of the husband’s first wife. Coward claimed that the play’s plot came to him so easily that it only took him a week to write it. This was inspired, in part, by the widespread interest in spiritualism and seances amongst the “smart set” in England, as well as by the horrors of WWII, which caused Coward to assume, paradoxically, that an effective way to distract theatergoers would be to write a comedy about death. The title comes from the line “Hail to thee, blithe Spirit!” from the poem “To a Skylark” by Percy Bysshe Shelley.

Blithe Spirit was a runaway hit in London’s West End, running for 1,997 performances, setting a record for a play written by a Briton, an achievement that would stand until Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap would take the crown about 12 years later. The Mousetrap is still running today.

Not everybody was a fan of the play. Graham Greene reviewed the play negatively, calling it “a weary exhibition of bad taste,” criticizing the treatment of some characters. This led to a quasi-public feud between Greene and Coward, but several years later they apparently patched up their differences, as Coward allowed Greene to stay at his home in Italy.

The most famous member of the original cast is Margaret Rutherford, best known for playing Miss Marple in four films and her Oscar-winning role in “The V.I.P.’s.” When she was cast as Madame Arcati, she insisted on not making fun of the medium, as she had too much respect for honest clairvoyants, explaining that her performance, though comedic, was meant to be sincere. Actual mediums warmed to Rutherford’s performance, and invited her as a guest of honor at one of their meetings.

(continued on page 40)

Peninsula Players Theatre has been a Door County tradition for 88 years. Your tax-deductible contribution will help us continue to provide Door County with the best in professional theater.

Noël Coward courtesy of the Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library. "Noël Coward" New York Public Library Digital Collections.

Join our growing list of dedicated friends by contributing to the Act II Housing Campaign! The following supporters have shown their commitment by investing in the campaign through June 21, 2023.

GOLD FOUNDER ($500,000+)

The Patrick & Beatrice Haggerty Foundation

FOUNDER ($250,000 - $499,999)

The 1923 Fund

The Boldt Company

The Dwight & Linda Davis Foundation

The George Kress Foundation

PRODUCER ($100,000 - $249,999)

Anthony W. & Andrea Bryant

Tony & Judy Licata

Nicholas Family Foundation

John & Dyan Smith

PARTNER ($50,000 - $99,999)

Nancy & Dave Borghesi

Chris Cramer

In Memory of Tricia Cramer & Maggy Magerstadt

Wisconsin Public Service Foundation

BUILDER ($25,000 - $49,999)

AA Harvey Foundation

Patrick & Anna M. Cudahy Fund

Tim & Jackie Danis

Marianne Diekman

In Memory of Dennis Fales

The Fales Family

Paul & Sandy Fernstrum

Larry & Kathy Gentine

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The Glenn Family

Halloran Law Offices

Tom & Wendy Halloran

In Memory of Olivia Dahl

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Jean M. Kapolnek

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Ellsworth & Carla Peterson

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Anonymous

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In Honor of Hedwig Welcker

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Great Northern Construction, Inc.

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Aaron Matthew Memorial

Charitable Fund

Nicolet National Bank

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Anonymous

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(Friend continued)

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Anonymous (11)

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Richard & Elizabeth Verhagen

Greg Vinkler

Nick & Jane Wanda

(Donor continued)

Barb & Dave Warmbrodt

Stacey Jo Johnson Watson

James & Regina Webb

Jan Weber

Jane Weis

Leanne Welker

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Leonard & Paula Werner

Richard & Patricia White

Leslie L. Wilde

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Don & Maddy Wirch

Carmen & Gene Witt

Steve & Mary Witte

Karen Wojahn

Henry Wojtyla

Mr. & Mrs. David Wood

Paul Bosanac & Barbara Yingling

Sharon & Byron Zeisler

Norb & Annie Zelewske

Lee Zwik

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

Kohler Co.

The Raibrook Foundation

Join the Pre-Show Seminars at Peninsula Players Theatre

The theater will host Pre-Show Seminars before select performances of the 2023 season. Audiences are invited to arrive early for special seminars on topics related to the shows.

Pre-Show Seminars begin at 6:30 p.m. inside the theater. General admission seating, no tickets necessary. Tickets are available for the 8:00 p.m. performances following the seminars.

Saturday, July 22 - Hosted by special guest Dr. Christopher Chan

Friday, August 11 - Hosted by Artistic Director Linda Fortunato

Seminars for Trying and Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery are to be determined.

Have you enjoyed performances at Peninsula Players Theatre and wondered how you can help ensure its unique environment is preserved for generations of theatergoers?

There are many ways you can support Peninsula Players Theatre!

• Attend performances

• Attend Peninsula Players Theatre's winter play reading series The Play's the Thing

• Share the Peninsula Players Theatre experience by giving a gift certificate

• Celebrate a special occasion, such as an anniversary, by donating to the Annual Fund

• Honor a patron by making a donation in their memory

• Become a playbill advertiser

• Volunteer for the Broom Squad, the spring cleaning crew

• Sponsor a play

• Name a seat in the theater

• Attend a pre-show seminar

• Attend a post-show discussion

• Volunteer to usher

ANGELA WEBER MILLER

Scenic Designer – Blithe Spirit

Angela is a Chicago-based designer and an Artistic Associate with First Folio Theatre who made her Peninsula Players Theatre scenic debut with last season’s Ripcord. Angela’s recent credits include The 39 Steps (Drury Lane Theatre), Cinderella (Paramount Theatre), Cabaret and Sophisticated Ladies (Porchlight Music Theatre), Sister Act and Women of Soul (Mercury Theater Chicago) The Jigsaw Bride and The Secret Council (First Folio Theatre), The Bar Show (Chicago Bar Association). Angela received a Joseph Jefferson award for her scenic design of Theater Wit’s Who’s Holiday, Remy Bumppo Theatre’s Seascape and 11 other nominations. Member USA 829. www.angelawebermiller.com

KÄRIN SIMONSON KOPISCHKE

Costume Designer – Blithe Spirit, Dames at Sea, Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery Karin has designed costumes for more than 50 productions in her 22 seasons at Peninsula Players Theatre. She has received the Joseph Jefferson Award, AriZoni Award and a Prague Quadrennial nomination for her costume designs. She has designed for regional theatre Tony winners American Conservatory Theater, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, Crossroads Theatre Company, Huntington Theatre Company, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, as well as the Milwaukee Rep Theater, Skylight Music Theatre, First Stage and American Players Theatre. She heads the costume design department at Lawrence University. Proud member of United Scenic Artists {USA 829).

JASON LYNCH

Lighting Designer – Blithe Spirit

Jason is a Chicago-based lighting designer for theatre, dance, opera, and other live performance art and returns to Peninsula Players Theatre, where he previously designed I and You. Off-Broadway: You Are Here: An Evening with Solea Pfeiffer (Audible Theatre/Minetta Lane Theatre). Regional: Alley Theatre, Alliance Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, City Theatre Company, Dallas Theater Center, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Geva Theatre Center, Goodman Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, The Old Globe, among others. Jason is represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE and The Gersh Agency. www.jasondlynch.com, @jasonlynch.design on Instagram.

VICTORIA DEIRIO

Sound Designer/Composer – Blithe Spirit

Victoria’s compositions have been heard Off-Broadway and enhancing response through music and sound in theaters nationwide. Her Off-Broadway credits include Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors (New World Stages); Nine Circles (Sheen Center); A Christmas Carol (St. Clements); Two Point Oh with Active Theatre (Primary Stages); Arnie the Doughnut at the NYMTF (The Pearl); Cassie’s Chimera (Joe’s Pub-The Public); The Bluest Eye with Steppenwolf (The Duke Theatre); and others. Regional: Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf Theatre, Syracuse Stage, Cleveland Playhouse, Indiana Repertory, etc. Victoria has won seven Jeff Awards, two After Dark Awards, and Syracuse Area Live Theater (SALT) Award. She was the head of Sound Design at DePaul University. www.victoria-sound-design.com.

Behind the Scenes of Blithe Spirit

Months before rehearsals begin, the design team and director collaborate on the overall aesthetics of a production. Noël Coward's Blithe Spirit is set in the late 1930s. Above are renderings by Costume Designer Kärin Simonson Kopischke and below is Scenic Designer Angela Weber Miller's set model. Together, the team creates the living room of Charles and Ruth Condomine's home in Kent, England.

Blithe Spirit scenic model by Angela Weber Miller, USA

BRENDON FOX Director – Blithe Spirit

Brendon is a director, teacher, adapter, producer and two-time NEA Panelist whose work has been seen from Los Angeles to Prague. His previous directing credits at Peninsula Players Theatre include Opus and Alabama Story. Other credits are Henry Six Part Three, Love’s Labour’s Lost (Prague Shakespeare Company); Love’s Labour’s Lost (Colorado Shakespeare Festival); Long Day’s Journey into Night (American Stage Theatre Company); Baskerville (Cleveland Playhouse / Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park); Peter and the Starcatcher, Angels in America (Parts One and Two) (PlayMakers Repertory Company); and Much Ado About Nothing (Old Globe Theatre). Brendon has worked at new work incubators such as Gulfshore Playhouse’s New Play Festival in Florida, JAW in Portland, New Harmony Project in Indiana, and the Asolo New Play Festival. www.foxdirector.com.

KYLE PINGEL

Costume Designer – A Rock Sails By Wig Designer – Blithe Spirit, Dames at Sea

Kyle is overjoyed to be returning to his home by the bay for his 10th season with Peninsula Players Theatre. Kyle started his journey with the theater as an intern in 2007 and spent the last eight seasons as the costume shop supervisor. He is excited to share his designs once again on this beautiful stage. Some of Kyle's designs at Peninsula Players Theatre include I and You, Salvage, and Almost, Maine. When he's not designing costumes, he's creating extravagant wigs and costumes for drag artists and fabulous upcycled sequin denim jackets through his own business: KPingel Wigs and Custom Creations.

(continued from page 33)

Rutherford was so attached to the role that when she died, the epitaph “A Blithe Spirit” was carved on her headstone. Blithe Spirit has been adapted for screen and television at least 13 times in various languages.

Coward was not a fan of one of the earliest and most famous versions, the 1945 adaptation directed by David Lean, starring Rex Harrison as Charles, Constance Cummings as Ruth, and Margaret Rutherford as Madame Arcati, which won the Oscar for “Best Effects, Special Effects.” Notably, this version changes the ending to make it more unpleasant for one character, albeit arguably more poetically just. At least one line referring to Charles’ sex life was cut by American film censors. Coward wanted as few changes as possible to the play, telling Lean, “Just photograph it, dear boy.” At one point Coward judged that the movie “wasn’t entirely bad but it was a great deal less good than it should have been.” On another occasion, Coward was purportedly so infuriated by some stylistic choices and the changed ending that he declared that Lean had “****** up the best thing I ever did.”

Blithe Spirit remains perennially popular eighty years after its debut. A musical version, High Spirits, arrived on Broadway in 1964, earning eight Tony nominations, including one for Coward for Best Direction (Musical). A 2020 movie remake starred Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher, Leslie Mann, and Judi Dench. A 1987 Broadway revival brought a Tony nomination for Geraldine Page as Madame Arcati, and the 2009 revival saw Angela Lansbury win her fifth Tony for playing the medium.

Chris Chan is an Agatha Christie Expert and International Goodwill Ambassador. He writes for AgathaChristie.com, the office Agatha Christie Newsletter and is a consulting detective who only investigates fictional crimes.

Do you recognize these faces?

They are Peninsula Players Theatre's hard working interns.

Participating in the theater’s internship program this season are 10 students from theater programs across the country. These students and recent college graduates have focused their studies on various theater disciplines. They are joining us to help create the dynamic performances you are about to experience. Please welcome and thank them for all of their hard work in helping to make each performance possible.

Standing are Jessica Krol, a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University; Emily Muirhead, a graduate of Loyola University Chicago; Justin Roberts, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Eamon Moriarty, a graduate of Michigan State University; Cody Diedrich, undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Sitting are Alexis Flaten, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point; Hannah Kwak, an undergraduate at Loyola University Chicago; Maria Guardino Schreiner, a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College; Caitlin Preuss, a graduate of Carthage College; Isabel Osterhus, a senior at Lawrence University. To learn more about our internship program, visit www.peninsulaplayers.com

The Kathryn A. Doerr Intern Fund

Established in 2013 in memory of Kathryn A. Doerr (Katie), by her family, this fund provides critical support for Peninsula Players Theatre's intern program. During her lifetime, Katie was an advocate and supporter of art education, notably to art education in the Door County community she loved. Her legacy will provide a scholarship for Hannah Kwak during the theater's season this year.

If you are interested in supporting Peninsula Players Theatre's internship program please contact Danielle Szmanda at danielle@peninsulaplayers.com or (920) 868-3287.

Our 88th Year

July 5 – July 23, 2023

Peninsula Players Theatre

LINDA FORTUNATO BRIAN KELSEY

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR MANAGING DIRECTOR

presents

Noël Coward's BLITHE

SPIRIT

Scenic Designer Costume Designer Lighting Designer

Angela Weber Miller Kärin Simonson Kopischke Jason Lynch

Sound Designer Scenic Artist Wig Designer

Victoria Deiorio Livian Kennedy Kyle Pingel-Hickey

Stage Manager

Asst. Stage Manager Production Manager

Kaitlin Kitzmiller Kimberly Ann McCann Paul Cook

Directed by Brendon Fox

Generously Sponsored by Tim & Jackie Danis

Peninsula Players Theatre would like to thank The Shubert Foundation, the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin, and the National Endowment for the Arts for their ongoing support.

Blithe Spirit was first presented by HM Tennent Ltd and John C Wilson at the Opera House, Manchester on 16 June 1941 (the following week, the company played at Leeds); subsequently presented at the Piccadilly Theatre, London on 2 July 1941, transferred to the St James’s Theatre on 23 March 1942 and then to the Duchess Theatre on 6 October 1942 (1,997 perfor-mances) Blithe Spirit © NC Aventales AG

1941 Copyright Agent: Alan Brodie Representation Ltd. www.alanbrodie.com

Assisted listening devices are available at the Canteen. The main floor of the theater is equipped with a loop induction system.

CAST

RUTH CONDOMINE ..........................HEIDI KETTENRING

CHARLES CONDOMINE ....................... SEAN FORTUNATO

ELVIRA ......................................... REBECCA HURD

DR. BRADMAN .................................. JACKSON EVANS

MRS. BRADMAN.................................... SADIEH RIFAI

MADAME ARCATI ........................ JANET ULRICH BROOKS

EDITH .......................................... MAYA MCQUEEN

THE LIVING ROOM OF CHARLES CONDOMINE’S HOUSE IN KENT IN THE LATE 1930s.

There will be one 15-minute intermission.

PENINSULA PLAYERS THEATRE IS A PROFESSIONAL THEATER EMPLOYING MEMBERS OF ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION, THE UNION OF PROFESSIONAL ACTORS AND STAGE MANAGERS IN THE UNITED STATES. The stage manager, assistant stage manager and all cast members of Blithe Spirit are members of Actors’ Equity Association.

The director is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), the theatrical union that unites, empowers and protects professional Stage Directors and Choreographers throughout the United States.

The costume, lighting, scenic and sound designers are members of United Scenic Artists. Their work on stage is copyrighted artistic property; management respectfully requests no photographs be taken.

Please Note!

Only water is allowed in the theater.

The use of recording instruments and cameras is strictly forbidden. Please turn off or silence all mobile devices prior to the performance.

The Peninsula Players Theatre Annual Fund

The following have shown their commitment to the theater by making an investment in our Annual Fund between May 1, 2022 and June 21, 2023. These contributions are invested back into our community and theater in several ways: 1) Top Quality Entertainment- we hire the best available talent; 2) Training Youthour interns get unparalleled experience working with these professionals; 3) Historic Beauty- we preserve and enhance our beautiful and tranquil wooded shoreline for you to enjoy; 4) Community- Seminars, play readings, school programs and more enrich Door County life year-round. Our sincerest thanks to:

GOLD ($25,000-$49,999)

The Shubert Foundation

SILVER ($10,000-$24,999)

Anonymous

Susie Gebhardt

Tony & Judy Licata

BRONZE ($5,000-$9,999)

Anonymous

Nancy & Dave Borghesi

Vonnie & Dave Callsen

Door County Medical Center

William A. Guenther

The Patrick & Beatrice Haggerty Foundation

Dave Kubiak

Genie & David Meissner

MMG Foundation, Inc.

Jerry & Pam Okarma

Ron & Chris Puszynski

Sargent Family Foundation

Casey & Dolores Sylla

Sheila H. Turner

BENEFACTOR ($2,500-$4,999)

Marilyn Backer

Prilla & Tony Beadell

Barbara & Richard Board

Cordon Family Foundation

Dwight & Linda Davis Foundation

Irene Fox

Roy & Betsy Gill

Mary & Bill Hartman

Kandy & Bill Higley

James E. & Mary K. Nelson

Nicolet National Bank

Emmy & Steve Stanley

Dianne Trenchard

SPONSOR ($1,000-$2,499)

Anonymous (2)

Doug & Laura Anderson

The Leonard Apfelbach

Charitable Fund

Dave & Terri Beck-Engel

Trish & Jim Black

Bev Blietz

David & Suzy Boerke

Anthony W. & Andrea Bryant

Betty & Dave Chomeau

Tom & Meg Claggett

Kit & Dick Conner

Cynthia & Larry Crock

Sandra Dagon

Jorge & Lin Del Alamo

John & JoAnn DiBuono

Richard Eichman

Rob & Sue Engelke

Mark & Cheryl Falb

Paul & Sandra Fernstrum

Ann & Mike Flegel

Friends of Door County Library

Don & Barbara Fuhrmann

Mardi Glenn

Sara Glenn & Brian Reinhardt

Joyce & Rod Goldhahn

Barbara Gould

Tim & Barbara Graul

Jake Gudmundsen

Tom & Wendy Halloran

Halloran Law Offices

Jean Hawkinson

Jill & Tom Herlache

Richard Kanas

Jack & Karen Kellner

Julie-Anne Kress

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Doug Mac Neil

Charles Oslakovic

John L Parrish

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White Gull Inn

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PATRON ($500-$999)

ALH Foundation

Helen Ambuel

Katy Andino

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Santosh Krishnan & Lynn D'Andrea

Marianne Diekman

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Christine D. Kornely & Rick L. Gerroll

Jerry Lecy

Tom & Bev Lisle

Lee Marquardt

Mary McDermid

Wanda & Kevin McDonald

Peter Moore

Steve & Kaaren Northrop

(Patron continued)

Todd & Sheryll Rockway

Linda & Steve Sanduski

Rick Schaefer

Gary & Julie Seibold

James Stangle, Jr.

Deborah L. Stephens

William & Louise Temte

Lana Tencate

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Laurie Tremain

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Jane & Stan Whiteman

Jim & Sandy Wiederholt

Karen Wojahn

Francesca Zambello

ASSOCIATE ($250-$499)

Greg & Mary Anderson

James H. & Sara Ellen Anderson

The Andritsch's

Bruce & Jane Arduser

Dr. & Mrs. David Arneson

Gerald & Diane Aschenbrenner

Carol Ballje

John & Lori Barnstorff

Jim & Beth Bauer

Tom & Penny Beerntsen

Daniel & JoAnna Birmingham

Margaret C. Boehm

Steven & Cathy Brodbeck

Linda Brooks

Lloyd & Mary Brooks

Lois N. Brown

Sue & Jim Buck

The Buckingham Family

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ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

The Raibrook Foundation

Memorials & Honorariums

Memorial gifts are a unique way to keep your loved one’s memory and legacy alive. Honorarium gifts celebrate a special person or event (birthdays, anniversaries, etc.) in your life. Remember a life well lived or honor someone you love by making a donation today.

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Corporate Matches

The following organizations have matched employees’ charitable contributions. Matching gifts are an easy way to double your contribution to the Players. Find out if your employer has a matching gift program today!

In-Kind Donations

Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit at Peninsula Players Theatre

Our 2023 production of Noël Coward 's Blithe Spirit marks the fifth time the show has been produced by our artists. The first time was in 1947 when it performed to sold-out audiences and was brought back for an encore performance later in the season. Blithe Spirit returned in the summer of 1959, autumn of 1985 and opened the 1999 season.

Blithe Spirit, 1947 Helen “Casey” Bragdon, Simon Scott, Margot Fisher, George Prescott and Jean Leslie

Blithe Spirit, 1999 with Tom Mula, Amy McKenzie, Susan Osborne-Mott, Tim Monsion and Kate Fry.

Peninsula Players Theatre's Mission Statement …

Peninsula Players Theatre is committed to preserving America’s Oldest Professional Resident Summer Theatre in its unique setting on 16 forested acres along the shores of Green Bay. The theater’s mission is to support, without reservation, the most exciting theater company possible; to preserve the Theatre in a Garden’s natural beauty; to provide artists the freedom, tools, and facilities they require to entertain, uplift, and inform our audiences; to foster future generations of theater professionals through the internship program; and to maintain fiscal policies that insure the future security of the theater.

For the past 88 years, Peninsula Players Theatre has relied on the goodwill and generosity of our patrons to help advance our mission and continue to provide exceptional theatrical experiences. If you have come to value these outstanding performances and the remarkable beauty of the theater and grounds, please consider making a taxdeductible gift to our Annual Fund. Thank you!

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Peninsula Players Theatre EIN is 39-0986031

Please mail the above form along with your donation to: Peninsula Players Theatre, 4351 Peninsula Players Rd, Fish Creek, WI 54212

Give the Gift of a Lifetime!

Share your passion for Peninsula Players Theatre with future generations by designating a planned gift through the Peninsula Players Theatre Endowment Fund. Whether it is a bequest, trust, annuity or arrangement through your IRA, planned gifts of all sizes support the theater's long-term fiscal stability and reduce your taxable estate for federal tax purposes.

The Peninsula Players Theatre Endowment Fund is managed through the Door County Community Foundation. Through this partnership, your generous gift will benefit the theater while the foundation’s professional staff and advisors facilitate your contribution and handle all the administrative details. The Door County Community Foundation provides a simple, powerful and highly personal approach to giving. By working together, we offer a variety of giving tools to help you achieve your charitable goals.

By partnering with the Door County Community Foundation, Peninsula Players Theatre is able to receive a wide variety of assets including:

Cash, stocks and bonds

Real estate and other assets

Non-cash assets such as publicly traded stock or artwork

The Door County Community Foundation is the ideal vehicle to facilitate even the most complex forms of charitable giving Please consider incorporating a gift to the Peninsula Players Theatre Endowment Fund in your estate plan

To learn more about the Endowment Fund, please contact Development Director Danielle Szmanda at (920) 868-3287 or danielle@peninsulaplayers.com or Bret Bicoy, President & CEO at the Door County Community Foundation at (920) 746-1786 or bret@givedoorcounty.org.

AUDRA BAAKARI BOYLE Business Manager

Audi is overjoyed to see artists and patrons returning to the theater, which she has called home for 29 seasons. She served as box office manager and public relations director before being appointed business manager. She was an assistant sales manager at The New Theatre Restaurant in Kansas City, Kansas, and business manager for the theater department of the University Arkansas-Fayetteville. She earned a BFA degree in technical theater, an MA in theater history and public relations and certificates in human resources and non-profit administration from the University of Wisconsin-Superior. In the winter months, she operates our Box Office via her home in Superior, Wisconsin, where her husband Scott and son Conor live. Love and be loved.

DANIELLE SZMANDA Development Director

Danielle is thrilled to be celebrating her 13th season with Peninsula Players Theatre. She joined the company in 2011 as an administrative intern, returned in 2012 as the assistant box office manager and joined the fulltime team in 2013. Before her full-time position, Danielle spent her early career in Chicago working in both administrative and production positions at various theaters throughout the city. She is a native of the Chicagoland area and a proud alum of St. Norbert College, where she earned her BA in theatre studies and business administration. Danielle is excited about another year of raising funds for this beloved theater!

Peninsula Players Theatre Scholarship

Peninsula Players Theatre is pleased to announce its 2023 Peninsula Players Theatre Scholarship recipient. The theater and its Board of Directors created this annual award to foster the career path and arts education of graduating high school seniors across Door County in the performing arts.

One $500 scholarship was available to a student at each of the five Door County high schools for a total of $2,500. Eligible applicants must plan to enroll as a full-time college student with a major or minor in arts management, music (performance or education), or theater (acting, theater studies, theater technology and design).

"The arts are such a critical part of a student’s overall education as well as continued personal development,” said Peninsula Players Theatre Managing Director Brian Kelsey. “It is with great pride that we reward and encourage the development of careers in the performing arts.”

Congratulations, Hunter Malvitz!

The 2023 scholarship recipient is Hunter Malvitz from Southern Door High School. Malvitz demonstrated a high level of participation and creativity in the arts during his academic career. His performing arts credits are extensive, including lead roles in Southern Door’s musicals and participation in concert choir and forensics.

Malvitz has received several accolades for his hard work and dedication to the arts. Most recently, the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center’s 2022-2023 Center Stage High School Theater Program recognized Malvitz for his Outstanding Performance in a Lead Role for his portrayal of Gomez Addams in Southern Door’s production of “The Addams Family.” This honor earned Malvitz the opportunity to perform as a soloist at a Tony Awards-style showcase at the Fox Cities PAC.

Malvitz will attend UW-Eau Claire this fall to pursue a BMEd in Music Education with a Choral Emphasis. There were no scholarship applicants from Sturgeon Bay, Sevastopol, Gibraltar nor Washington Island high schools in 2023. For more information about the Peninsula Players Theatre Scholarship, please contact Development Director Danielle Szmanda at 920-868-3287 or visit www.peninsulaplayers.com.

Hunter Malvitz played Gomez Addams in Southern Door High School's production of The Addams Family Photo by Rachel Luckas.

PAUL COOK Production Manager

Paul is thrilled to return for his second season with Peninsula Players Theatre! A Chicago native, Paul has lived and worked in theatre all over the country and even overseas. He received his BA in theatre and English from Marquette University (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) and his MFA in directing from the University of California, Irvine. As a production manager in Chicago, he has worked with such companies as Strawdog Theatre, Pride Arts, and Windy City Playhouse. In the off-season, he lives in Chicago with his husband, Wilhelm, and Pit Bull, Agatha Trunchbull (Aggie). Paul is passionate about Equity in the Arts and looks forward to another wonderful summer season in beautiful Door County.

GARRETT CONARD Technical Director

Garrett is from DeWitt, Iowa and is excited to be joining the Peninsula Players Theatre for his first season as technical director. Garrett received his BA in theatre with emphases in design/production and drama and theatre for youth from The University of Northern Iowa. He was most recently employed in Saint Paul, Minnesota, as the assistant technical director at Park Square Theatre.

McCLAIN WOOD Box Office Manager

McClain is excited to return for his second season as the box office manager at Peninsula Players Theatre. He has worked in the box office for Virginia Repertory Theatre and several seasons for the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville. He has entertained on the airwaves of KXUA 88.3FM and worked on independent films.

LARISSA ALMANZA

Costume Shop Supervisor

Larissa is a multi-medium artist and designer from Brownsville, Texas. She is a recent MFA graduate from the costume design program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her most recent credits include Fabulous Monsters (The Public Theater of San Antonio), White Christmas (Surflight Theatre), Mascchaos (Links Hall Artist Residency in Chicago), Because I am Your Queen (Illinois Theatre) and La Boheme (Illinois Lyric Theatre). She is grateful for this opportunity and delighted to join Peninsula Players Theatre for their 2023 summer season!

KATHARINE BAUMAN Assistant Box Office Manager

Katharine (they/she) recently graduated from Millikin University with a BA in theatre and performance studies, a BS in biology, and a music minor. This spring, they directed Stop Kiss and assistant directed Spring Awakening at Pipe Dreams Studio Theatre. She was the executive coordinator of the MRI branch of Shakespeare Corrected for two years, bringing undergraduate students together with adults with developmental disabilities. They worked on the patron services staff at Interlochen Arts Camp last summer and cannot wait to spend this summer with Peninsula Players Theatre!

Are you interested in The Play's the Thing, our winter play reading series?

We look forward to seeing you at Björklunden in 2024!

Free Admission General Seating Donations Accepted

JOSHUA WILLIAMS Lighting and Sound Supervisor

Joshua is delighted to join the Peninsula Players Theatre family. He received his BFA in theater technology and design from Oakland University and is finishing his first year as a graduate student at the University of Memphis, studying sound and lighting design with an extended focus on music composition and education. Previous credits include The Rocky Horror Show and Emerge Dance Concert (University of Memphis), A Christmas Carol (Central Florida Community Arts), Mame (Forestburgh Playhouse), My Fair Lady (Forestburgh Playhouse) and Sweet Charity (Oakland University). Joshua has also worked with various performance companies such as Walt Disney World Resorts, SOBO Art Gallery, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Take Root Dance and more. Joshua is a proud member of IATSE Local 69 and USITT. Thank you for coming to the show!

ROWAN DOE Prop Shop Supervisor

Rowan is thrilled to join Peninsula Players Theatre! They hold a BFA in theater technology and a minor in film production from DePaul University. They have designed for Chicago theaters such as Remy Bumppo Theatre Company, Porchlight Musical Theatre, TimeLine Theatre Company, Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre, Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, House Theatre of Chicago and The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival. They are the resident props designer for Niles West High School and a program instructor for K-6 students at Youth Guidance. Their passions include youth arts education, LGBTQ+ and basic human rights, and good food.

IN MEMORY OF BRUCE W. & JANICE MIELKE Company Photographer for Three Decades

When General Manager Tom Birmingham, Sr. was having a tricky time in the early 1980s finding a photographer to take publicity shots, he reached out to a fellow University of Wisconsin-Green Bay professor, Bruce W. Mielke. When Bruce became full-time faculty at UW-Green Bay in 1982, he and Jan settled in Ellison Bay. Jan was a talented designer in the Office of Marketing and University Communication at UW-Green Bay for many years. In 2001, Bruce was granted associate professor emeritus status.

They both used their skills and talents to assist many organizations in Door County, including documenting hundreds of performances at various arts venues such as Birch Creek Music Performance Center, Peninsula Players Theatre and Northern Sky Theater. They would arrive at odd hours or stay after a show to take photos, then rush home to process the film in his dark room. Often returning the next day to hand deliver the product to meet press deadlines. Bruce was an avid photographer who also taught nature photography and exhibited his images, often being cited for his work. He was selected for an exhibition at the Hardy Gallery in 1976. He was honored for his work in the classroom, too, receiving the “Teaching at its Best” award from UW-Green Bay in 1998.

Bruce and Jan were both hospitalized at the end of 2022 and died within a week of each other. Their passing deeply saddens all of us who knew them, and we are grateful their images of Peninsula Players Theatre and its artists are among the archives at the UW-Green Bay’s library.

The Play's the Thing Winter Playing Reading Series

The Play’s the Thing is part of our community outreach programming, presenting free professional play readings for the public on the first Mondays of February, March, and April. The 2023 readings were directed by Artistic Director Linda Fortunato, performed at Björklunden, and featured new works by playwrights John Reeger, Christopher G. Smith and Jeff Talbott. In 2022, Sean Grennan's A Rock Sails By received such stellar feedback from

its reading that it was chosen to open our 2023 season. We opened our 13th year of the three-part play series on February 6 with Painted Desert by Christopher G. Smith, in coordination with Door County Reads and its exploration of “Raft of Stars” by Andrew J. Graff. Both works explore young characters “coming of age” in a stunningly beautiful natural setting. Peninsula Players Theatre actors, Amy Ensign, Mark Moede and Lee Palmer, performed alongside newcomer Kenneth Hamilton.

The Play’s the Thing continued Monday, March 6, with John Reeger’s Changing Channels, set backstage at the DuMont Television Network in New York City in 1952 and is based on actual events during the Red Scare. Making their Door County debut were Andrés Enriquez and Frankie Breit, who participated in the internship program at Peninsula Players Theatre in 2022. They joined Peninsula Players Theatre actors Erica Elam, Karl Hamilton and Noah Simon.

i, a mysterious love story by Jeff Talbott, closed the series on Monday, April 3. Joining 2022 company members Ayanna Bria Bakari and Eva Nimmer were newcomers Karen Moeller and Andrew Mueller. The Play’s the Thing continues to bring people together and maintain a human connection over the winter months in Door County. This winter program is funded in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as generous grants from Door County Medical Center, Friends of Door County Libraries, The Shubert Foundation and operating funds of Peninsula Players Theatre. Thank you to the amazing staff at Björklunden for their hospitality and for hosting this series year after year.

To learn more about the 2024 winter play readings, sign-up for e-News at www.peninsulaplayers.com.You can also watch the Community Outreach section of our website for upcoming information on the readings on February 5, March 4 and April 1, 2024.

A reading of Painted Desert. From left to right: Kenneth Hamilton, Mark Moede and Lee Palmer.

A captivated audience enjoying the play reading in Vail Hall at Björklunden.

KELLYN GAGNER

Assistant Costume Shop Supervisor

Kellyn

She

BECCA STOCKHAUS Lead Carpenter

Becca has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in technical theatre from the University of Minnesota Duluth. This is her fourth summer at Peninsula Players Theatre, where she participated in the internship program in 2019. She currently lives in Knoxville, Tennessee doing freelance and overhire work at the Clarence Brown Theatre, Oak Ridge Playhouse and IATSE Local 197. She is so excited to be back down by the bay and with her Peninsula Players Theatre family for another summer.

MICHAELA LOCHEN Assistant Prop

Shop Supervisor

Michaela is a scenic and properties designer from St. Paul, Minnesota. She holds bachelor’s degrees in anthropology and scenic design from the University of Minnesota Duluth and is currently pursuing an MFA in scenic design at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. This is Michaela’s first summer in Door County.

Box Office Hours

Scan the QR code to check our daytime Box Office hours. Our Box Office is closed on Mondays. Call (920) 868-3287 or email tickets@peninsulaplayers.com.

The Box Office is open 90 minutes before a show.

2023 Concerts

Performances in Birch Creek’s historic concert barn

June 22 - July 1

July 4 | July 6 - 15

Jazz I: July 19 - 29

Jazz II: August 2 - 12

Fall Concert Series: September through December

Order tickets online or call (920) 868-3763.

birchcreek.org/Tickets

3 Miles East of Egg Harbor on County Rd E |

Scan for Events & Tickets

SAMUEL KALLIS

Carpenter

Sam is a University of Wisconsin-La Crosse student pursuing a degree in American history and technical theater. During the school year, he works in the university scene shop. After participating in the 2022 season as a scenic intern, he is excited for his second season at Peninsula Players Theatre.

MICHAEL MITCHELL

Carpenter

Michael is a Maryland native and the scenic studio specialist for Salisbury University's Department of Music, Theatre and Dance. Michael has worked in theater since the third grade after his parents suggested he join drama club because he was "dramatic." This is his first season with the Peninsula Players Theatre, and he is excited to continue developing his skills as a part of this team. When not building sets, Michael can be found performing with Fultontown Theatre Company, Salisbury University's resident theater company.

Peninsula Players Presents YouTube Series - The History of Peninsula Players Theatre

Learn the history of Peninsula Players Theatre on YouTube, where hosts

Greg Vinkler, our former artistic director, and Business Manager Audra Baakari Boyle take viewers back in time to 1935 and through the 1960s.

SUMMER SHINES AT APT

JUNE 10 – NOVEMBER 19, 2023 | SPRING GREEN, WI

Phoebe González & Samatha Newcomb,

Love’s Labour’s Lost , 2022.

Photo by Liz Lauren.

A Brief History of Peninsula Players Theatre

Take a rustic, woodsy site outfitted with a few little cabins that once served as boys’ camp along the bay. Add a dream, a barn-like proscenium stagehouse and a hundred or so seats open to the stars above and you have the early days of Peninsula Players Theatre.

Richard and Caroline Fisher, a young novice brother-and-sister team, started the troupe in 1935 when they produced Noël Coward’s Hay Fever at a site behind the former Bonnie Brook Cottage/Motel in Fish Creek, now the Fish Creek Town Park.

By 1937 the Fishers along with their parents (“Mama” who designed and made costumes and fed the company and “Papa,” the general handyman) realized the ensemble had outgrown the motel site so they purchased the 22-acre Wildwood Boys Camp, the present site of the theater.

Now in its 88th season, it is no longer a dream, we are America’s oldest professional resident summer theater.

In the 88 years Peninsula Players Theatre has performed in the Theatre in a Garden, more than 1,000 actors have crossed our boards. Some had their first professional experiences here. Many continued their careers

in the arts, either on- or off-stage, and some have even gone onto stardom.

Although Peninsula Players Theatre began under the stars, a canvas top was draped above the audience in 1946, and in 1957 Caroline’s dream of a permanent roof came true when the open-sided pavilion was built.

In 1960, after 25 years of involvement, the Fishers sold the theater at public auction to Kenneth Carroad, a New York City attorney. Jim McKenzie was hired to oversee the theater’s operations as producer. He and his wife, actress Jeanne Bolan, both associated with the theater since 1947, took on the Fisher legacy.

The non-profit organization, Peninsula Players Theatre Foundation, Inc., was formed in 1962, to operate the theater, and in 1978 Carroad sold the theater. McKenzie became owner of the property in 1978 and continued as the Company’s producer.

Peninsula Players, circa 1937

Salome, 1939 with Statcy Keach Sr., Jean Sincere, Evaline Uhl Wright(Mary Keach) and Margo Fisher.

On Borrowed Tim, 1954 with Robert Thompson, Gale Koiste, Helen Bragdon and Eric Beckstrom.

The Way of the World, 1937 with Caroline Fisher.

Anticipating significant renovation and repair to the theater pavilion and surrounding support buildings, as well as the need for new production and housing facilities, McKenzie decided to sell the property to the Peninsula Players Theatre Foundation, Inc. in 1993. As a member of the Players Board of Directors, McKenzie continued to help preserve and improve the theater’s facilities and environment until his death in 2002.

More than a decade ago many improvements were made, including actor housing, public restroom facilities, an expanded and upgraded rehearsal hall and storage areas, and a computerized box office. The close of the 2005 season brought the beginning of the theater's largest improvement – a new stage house and audience pavilion.

Through the generous support of many donors, benefactors and volunteers all intent on continuing the magic of live theater for future generations, the organization built a new facility in the exact same foot-print of the first theater. In June 2006, the 621-seat audience pavilion opened. Included was up-to-date wiring, more space for actors and scenery, a redesigned space to provide better sightlines for the audience, not to mention new comfy seats.

The passion that Richard and Caroline shared to stretch their imaginations, provide reason for laughter and tears and

furnish cutting edge theater experiences is still the hallmark at Peninsula Players Theatre. Safeguarding that dream and this lovely Theatre in a Garden is paramount to the Board of Directors which is committed to –

• Preserving America’s oldest professional resident summer theater;

• Supporting the most exciting theater company possible;

• Providing freedom, tools and facilities so artists may entertain, uplift and inform audiences; and

• Fostering future generations of theater professionals through internships.

We hope you enjoy your visit as you explore the theater where the sun sets, the curtain rises and the stars shine.

Welcome to our theater in the woods.

Proof, 2003 with Patrick New and Cassandra Bissell.

The Rainmaker, 2022 with Ayanna Bria Bakari, Xavier Edward King and Sean Blake.

Rain, 1998 with Larry Yando, Jonathan Weir, Amy McKenzie and Karen Sheridan.

ERIC SMITH Landscape Design/Grounds Manager

Eric returned to Door County nine years ago to establish himself as an artist and pursue his talented career in Landscape Design. He brings to the theater more than 20 years of experience in design and landscaping, having worked for companies such as Leids Nursery and David J. Frank Landscaping. He served as grounds manager for Community Memorial Hospital in Menomonee Falls and as a computer graphics art designer at Flexcraft, Inc. in Wisconsin. Eric’s special talents for landscape painting, photography and his love for the outdoors add to his ability to create the beautiful gardens that are displayed throughout the property of Peninsula Players Theatre. Truly a work of art in the making!

The Box Office emails curtain time reminders 24-hours before the show. If you did not receive a reminder, please contact the Box Office to verify we have your email address.

Are you interested in our pre-show seminars?

Scan to see our 2023 seminars.

ANNI & DEB LAMPERT

Cook & Head Chef

Once upon a time, Mrs. Lampert had a beautiful daughter, then another (then another, but that’s a story for another day). One decided she was the queen, and the other decided to be a princess. Now they run our kitchen and feed us all summer. God save the queen and the princess, too. You may know them as Deb Lampert and Anni Lampert. They live in a small castle in Sturgeon Bay, where they exercise active imaginations but rarely caution.

Celebrating Diversity in Door County with Inclusion for All

Pride Flag Initiative

What's My Pride

Learn more about Open Door Pride!

Community Events

Sandy Brown Award Scholarship Donations

info@opendoorpride.org opendoorpride.org

Annual Pride Festival Last Saturday in June

Peninsula Players Theatre’s Internship Program

The internship program at Peninsula Players Theatre is part of a tradition that runs as deep as the roots of the theater itself. Since the Peninsula Players Theatre launched its first season in 1935, interns, then called apprentices, have been given the opportunity to work side-by-side with professionals, learning the craft by observing and participating in it. Theater is one of the few professions where apprentices still learn from those who practice their art.

Gaining experience in a professional theater setting, such as the one at Peninsula Players Theatre, develops communication skills, provides hands-on training and builds networking opportunities with working professionals. Participants in the internship program work with the theater’s professional actors, designers, managers and technicians for 14 to 20 weeks. They witness all facets of theater in action, from backstage to front office, creating a constant path of growth throughout the season, thus making the Peninsula Players Internship Program unique among theater programs.

Peninsula Players Theatre has always provided its interns with a weekly stipend and provided free room and board. You may see them directing traffic in the parking areas, shifting scenery, delivering posters or operating the sound board during the shows. During the day, they assist in building the next show. These company members are an integral part of our theater, and they deserve a huge standing ovation.

For more information about our internship program, phone the Box Office at (920) 868-3287 or visit our website www.peninsulaplayers.com for an application for the 2024 season.

Join the Post-Show Discussions at Peninsula Players Theatre

The theater invites our audience to stay after certain performances in 2023 and participate in a conversation with our artists. Have a question about the performance? Or do you want to know how a bit of stage business was accomplished? Now is the chance to ask! Please check the centermost pages of this playbill for the pre-show seminar dates.

A Rock Sails By - Tuesday, June 20

Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit - Friday, July 14

Dames at Sea - Thursday, August 3

Trying - Wednesday, August 23

Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes MysterySaturday, September 16

We invite you to the best seat on the bluff to enjoy delicious dinners and Sunday brunch with a full bar, awardwinning food, and friendly and attentive service. We can’t wait to serve you!

Scan for our menu and hours and to book a reservation.

June 13 – July 2

OUR 2023 SEASON

A ROCK SAILS BY

A world premiere by Sean Grennan. Dr. Lynn Cummings, a distinguished astrophysicist, is grappling with personal questions, reconnecting with her daughter, and mourning the loss of her husband. When an unidentified object is discovered heading toward Earth, she tries to bring science and faith into balance while monitoring the mysterious object with an ambitious journalist. Dr. Cummings hopes to witness nothing remarkable, but there is no telling what she will discover beyond the stars.

July 5 – July 23

NOËL COWARD’S BLITHE SPIRIT

While researching for his latest novel, Charles Condomine invites an eccentric medium to perform a séance at his home. Charles, his wife, and their guests are all quite skeptical, but things turn chaotic when the ghost of Charles’ first wife, Elvira, is summoned. Appearing only to Charles, Elvira is full of mischief and turns the household upside down. For decades, this witty and smart comedy has entertained audiences on Broadway, in London and worldwide.

July 26 – Aug. 13

DAMES AT SEA

Book and Lyrics by George Haimsohn and Robin Miller, Music by Jim Wise. Ruby arrives in Manhattan with a pair of tap shoes and a dream. She is soon cast in a Broadway show starring a temperamental diva. Just before opening night, the cast learns their theater is being demolished, so with the help of some adoring sailors, it is “all hands on deck” to find a stage to put on the show. Featuring show-stopping tap dancing, love at first sight, joyful music and a boatload of laughs, this glittering musical showcases six actors and everything you need to sweep your troubles away..

Aug. 16 – Sept. 3

TRYING

By Joanna McClelland Glass. The refined and brilliant Judge Francis Biddle, who served as Attorney General for Franklin Roosevelt, is now an arthritic and cantankerous man. His new secretary, the young yet tenacious Sarah, fresh from the Canadian prairie, is the latest in a line of secretaries who have not lived up to Biddle’s expectations. Through their time together, we see how strangers from different backgrounds at different points in their lives can grow to understand and even learn from one another.

Sept. 6 – Oct. 15

KEN LUDWIG’S BASKERVILLE: A SHERLOCK HOLMES MYSTERY

From the award-winning mastermind of mayhem, comes a murderously funny adventure that takes us from Baker Street to the haunted moors. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson must crack the mystery of “The Hound of the Baskervilles” amid a dizzying web of clues, disguises, and deceit as five actors deftly portray more than 40 characters.

June 13 - Sept. 2: Tuesday - Saturday 8:00 p.m., Sun. 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 6 - Oct. 14: Tuesday - Sunday 7:00 p.m.

*Except Sundays July 2 & 23, Aug. 13, Sept. 3 and Oct. 1 & 15 at 2:00 p.m. Order tickets online: peninsulaplayers.com