In true 1930s screwball comedy fashion, the foolproof plan of an aspiring amateur to impersonate a famous Italian tenor is set into motion with surprising and hilarious results.

“Lend Me a Tenor,” the fast-paced farce by Ken Ludwig, will be presented by the West Virginia University School of Theatre & Dance, Oct. 25-28, at the Metropolitan Theatre, 369 High St., in downtown Morgantown.

Teeming with the quintessential slamming of doors, quick dialogue and pratfalls, “Lend Me a Tenor” epitomizes farce in all of its brilliance.

A world-famous tenor and his jealous wife get thrown into a whirlwind of mishaps with the bombastic general manager of the opera company, his starry-eyed daughter, his talented assistant, a sexy soprano, a relentless bellhop and the fawning chairwoman of the Opera Guild.

“Lend Me a Tenor,” a loving homage to comedies in the style of Kaufman & Hart that were made famous both on screen and stage, is directed by Lee Blair, assistant professor of acting and director of the undergraduate acting program at WVU.

“Ken Ludwig’s ‘Lend Me a Tenor’ is a slickly stylized, fast-paced, hilarious romp of mistaken identities,” says Blair. “There is a great amount of operatic intrigue, comedic hijinks, and one slamming door after another, after another, after another.”

Blair received his Master of Fine Arts in acting from The University of Florida, and his professional acting credits include roles with the off-Broadway company, Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, as well as the New York International Fringe Festival. Blair has directed main stage productions at WVU for the past seven years, and has also been a director for productions at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre, Murfreesboro Little Theatre, Tennessee Governor’s School for the Arts and the Duplex Cabaret Theatre in New York.

The scenic design for “Lend Me a Tenor” is by professor Bob Klingelhoefer, lighting and sound design is by professor Alan McEwen, and costume design is by third-year Master of Fine Arts candidate Alex Vazquez, who will be completing her thesis on “Lend Me a Tenor” in May.

Ken Ludwig, with six Broadway and six West End shows under his belt, has a keen understanding of the world of both music and farce, having studied music at Harvard with Leonard Bernstein and theatre history at Cambridge University in England. His other popular works are “Moon Over Buffalo,” “Twentieth Century,” and “Crazy For You.”

“Lend Me a Tenor” was revived on Broadway in 2010 at the Music Box Theatre under the direction of Stanley Tucci with an all-star cast, including Anthony LaPaglia (Tito Merelli), Tony Shalhoub (Saunders) and Justin Bartha (Max).

The cast of the WVU production of “Lend Me a Tenor” features Theatre students Ariana Ballerini as Maggie, Joshua Smith as Max, Nick Ryan as Saunders, Nicholas Hanni as Tito, Sarah Reddy as Maria, Adam Messenger as the Bellhop, Jenna Dorece as Diana and Stephanie Freeman as Julia.

“Lend Me a Tenor” opens in the Metropolitan Theatre, Thursday, Oct. 25 at 7:30 p.m., and continues Oct. 26-27 at 7:30 p.m., with a matinee performance on Sunday, Oct. 28 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $20 for the general public and $15 for senior citizens and students. There is a group rate of $10 per ticket for groups of ten or more.

Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com, the CAC or Mountainlair Box Offices, or by calling 304-293-SHOW.

For more information on this production of “Lend Me a Tenor” please visit theatre.wvu.edu, call 304-293-2020, or email theatre@mail.wvu.edu.

An ongoing rehearsal blog is available on the School of Theatre & Dance website at http://ccarts.wvu.edu/theatreanddanceblog.

Stephanie Freeman/10-17-12

-WVU-

CONTACT: Charlene Lattea, College of Creative Arts
304-293-4359, Charlene.Lattea@mail.wvu.edu

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