Chagrin Valley Little Theatre

Press Releases

CVLT's got 'poultry in motion' in the musical Honk! - 11/1/07

CHAGRIN FALLS, OH - Ugly, the leading character in the musical Honk!,  is a troubled duckling. His gawky looks make him the target of all sorts of harsh treatment in the barnyard, and even his own father mocks him. When the hungry Cat chases him from the pond he calls home, Ugly is forced to undertake an epic year-long journey in which he goes searching for his mother and finds himself along the way. Sticking loosely to the original Hans Christian Anderson tale, this charming musical entertains children while knowingly winking to the adults in the audience as well. The tongue-in-cheek book by Anthony Drewe and toe-tapping score by George Stiles beat out The Lion King to garner the 'Best New Musical' award at the 2000 Olivier Awards (the British equivalent of the Tonys).

Chagrin Valley Little Theatre's production of Honk! is directed by CVLT's reigning choreographer Pamela LaForce, with musical direction by John Krol. Leading the cast as the naive but lovable "Ugly" is Hudson-native Jace Craft, with 20-year theater vet Sharon Lloyd as his mother "Ida". Filling the role of the villain, "Tom Cat", is Casey Braun, who delighted audiences as 'Jo Jo' in CVLT's 2005 production of Seussical: The Musical. A talented troupe of adults and children portray the various barnyard and woodland animals that the hero meets along his journey, such as the pompous goose Graylag, LoButt (the domesticated hen) and her feline companion Queenie.

Honk! begins on Saturday, November 17th and runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM through December 16th, with Sunday matinees at 2 PM on November 18th and 25th, as well as December 2nd and 16th. Tickets are $16 for adults and $12 for students and seniors, and can be purchased online at www.CVLT.org, or by calling the Box Office between 1 and 6 PM, Monday through Saturday at 440-247-8955. Chagrin Valley Little Theatre, located at 40 River Street in Chagrin Falls, was recently voted 'Best Community Theater' in Cleveland Magazine's 200 'Best of Cleveland' Readers' Poll and is currently leading the 'Best Theatre Group' standings in the WLW Fox 8 'Hot List'.

Also at CVLT in November, The Chagrin Falls Historical Society's 30th anniversary presentation of The Gathering, an Emmy Award winning TV movie starring Ed Asner and Maureen Stapleton which was filmed on location in Chagrin in 1978. Tickets to the November 16th showing are $25 or $35 with the post-film wine and cheese reception. Tickets can be purchased online at www.CVLT.org, or by calling the Box Office at 440-247-8955 between 1 and 6 PM, Monday through Saturday.

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