Chagrin Valley Little Theatre

Press Releases

"Durang/Durang", "The Producers" bring summer laughs to Chagrin

CHAGRIN FALLS, OH - Following on the heels of a highly successful three-day visit from comedic legend Tim Conway, Chagrin Valley Little Theatre is poised to keep the laughter rolling through the summer months, rounding off its historic 80th season with wild one-acts by Christopher Durang and Mel Brooks' powerhouse musical comedy The Producers.

Opening on July 9th and playing Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM through July 24th is Durang/Durang. This evening of five one-act plays by critically-acclaimed satirist Christopher Durang includes "For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls" (a twisted take on "The Glass Menagerie"), "Wanda's Visit" (the story of a couple whose lives are turned upside down by the husband's ex), "Nina in the Morning" (an Edward Gorey-esque tale of a narcissistic socialite with a spotty past), and "Business Lunch at the Russian Tea Room" (a playwright attempting to flesh out the absurd concept of a Hollywood hotshot). Dan Sekanic directs the show, which includes actors Yvonne E. Pilarczyk, Harriet DeVeto, Andrew Parmelee, Robert A. Branch, Andrew Gorgeny, Melvin Mason, Kacey Durbin, and Natalie Dolezal. Durang/Durang is staged at CVLT's River Street Playhouse (56 River Street). Tickets are $10.

On July 23rd, CVLT will become the first community theater in northern Ohio to present Mel Brooks' smash hit The Producers - the record-breaking Tony Award winner based on his 1968 film. The hilarious plot involves washed-up theater producer Max Bialystock (Tom Hill) and his mild-mannered accountant Leo Bloom (Nathan Earley), who hatch a plan to produce the most notorious flop in the history of Broadway, thereby allowing them to keep their investors' money for themselves. Along the way, they enlist the help of New York's most awful director, a slightly crazy Nazi-sympathizer playwright, and Ulla Inga Hansen Benson Yansen Tallen Hallen Svaden Swanson, a Swedish bombshell. Brooks, whose signature brand of over-the-top shtick created such classics as Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles and Spaceballs, comes through with musical numbers like "I Wanna Be A Producer," "When You Got It, Flaunt It," "Springtime for Hitler," and "Prisoners of Love." Director J.E. Ballantyne, Jr. helms the production, which runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM through August 21, with 2 PM matinees on 8/1 and 8/8. Tickets are $18 regular admission, $14 for students and seniors

For tickets to all Chagrin Valley Little Theatre productions and events, call 440-247-8955 (Mon-Sat, 1-6 PM) or visit www.CVLT.org for information and online ticketing at no extra charge. Chagrin Valley Little Theatre is located at the end of River Street (40 River Street) in downtown Chagrin Falls, Ohio. The River Street Playhouse stage is located at 56 River Street, just west of the main building.

Chagrin Valley Little Theatre is generously funded by Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture. The Ohio Arts Council helped fund Chagrin Valley Little Theatre with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.

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