Actors’ Playhouse, together with GFour Productions, producers of MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL® and Tony-nominated THE INHERITANCE and FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, today announced that they will co-produce their new play MIDDLETOWN® from November 17 to December 12, 2021 at the Miracle Theatre. The cast will star DIDI CONN, known for her portrayal of Frenchy in GREASE; DONNY MOST, who starred as Ralph Malph in HAPPY DAYS; LORETTA SWIT, best known for her portrayal of Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan on M*A*S*H, for which she won two Emmy Awards; and ADRIAN ZMED,best known for his starring roles in the BACHELOR PARTY, GREASE 2 and TV’s T.J. HOOKER. Tickets are now on sale through the Actors’ Playhouse box office at ActorsPlayhouse.org.
“This is something of a homecoming because as a South Florida-based production company, we first saw a reading of MIDDLETOWN at the Jan McArt reading series and fell instantly in love with it. We knew we wanted to produce this locally with Actors’ Playhouse, but we wanted to do some road testing before bringing it home. Usually, it’s the other way around but this play means a great deal to us and we wanted things to be just right. After all we’ve collectively been through in the past two years, a play about appreciating the moments we have together does indeed feel just right,” said Seth Greenleaf, Artistic Director of GFour Productions.
“I’m excited about the collaboration, two South Florida producing companies, a South Florida playwright in Dan Clancy, a beautiful, funny and heartwarming story and the opportunity to assemble four amazing celebrity actors who as performers bring their own individual journeys in life to this remarkable new play. What a great way to bring audiences back to the Miracle theatre and Actors’ Playhouse,” said Actors’ Playhouse Artistic Director David Arisco.
An exhilarating and universal depiction of love and friendship, MIDDLETOWN® follows the story of two couples who endure the roller coaster of life together, including the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Staged without a set or props, the stars read directly from scripts, as if reading from the book of their own lives — and ours.
“I wanted to tell a relatable ‘every-person’s’ story in a direct and straightforward manner where human emotions are front and center – without bells, whistles, special effects, or props,” said writer Dan Clancy, best known for his play THE TIMEKEEPERS, which ran off-Broadway and in Israel for 13 years. “I wanted the words to speak for themselves.”
In 2020, MIDDLETOWN® opened in Atlanta and Chicago to critical acclaim, and was selected as a Chicago Tribune Critic’s Pick. Previously, it received a Carbonell nomination for “Best New Work” in 2017, was originally presented at the Jan McArt Reading Series and West Boca Theatre Company, and later performed in Las Vegas, Bucks County, Pa., and Wilmington, Del.
As the New Hope Free Press describes, “Like Love Letters, the play’s the thing!” The show has four podiums downstage where the actors stand with scripts before them. … For all intents and purposes, this is just the actor telling you their stories with no blocking. This only works if the stories are worth telling and the actors are good enough to tell them. And the answer is a resounding YES!”
Tickets start at $55 and may be purchased at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre (280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables, FL), by phone at (305) 444-9293 ext. 1 or online at ActorsPlayhouse.org. Visit the website for full performance schedule including talkbacks (to be announced soon).
CRITICS PRAISE MIDDLETOWN:
“So darn good!”
- Chicago Tribune (Critic’s Pick)
“MIDDLETOWN® will leave you with a lump in your throat and joy surging through your veins!”
— Chicago Sun-Times
“MIDDLETOWN® is emotional gold!”
— Las Vegas Voice
“If you were charmed by LOVE LETTERS, get ready for MIDDLETOWN®. It makes you smile and sometimes cry over how rich and beautiful a good friendship can be.”
- New Hope Free Press
“MIDDLETOWN® is a universal depiction of love and loss … A compelling, funny and heartfelt story … a chronicle of friendships that survive challenges, changes, and calamities. It is a welcome beacon of light and warmth.”
— Talkin’ Broadway
GFOUR PRODUCTIONS (Producer)
Proud producers of some of the nation’s highest caliber shows, from Broadway to the West End including MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL®, now in its 20th year, and 16th as the longest-running musical in Las Vegas history. It can be seen nightly at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas strip as well as on tour around the U.S. and is touring in Australia, Canada, Europe, and New Zealand in 2021. Seen by more than 17 million fans, it has played every state in the continental U.S. and more than 500 cities in 17 countries worldwide, and has been translated into nine languages. Current Broadway productions and investments include: TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL, THE BOOK OF MORMON, SIX THE MUSICAL opening in October 2021, and AMERICAN BUFFALO opening in April 2022 starring Sam Rockwell, Laurence Fishburne and Darren Criss. Current U.S. tours include THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG (also re-opening Off-Broadway), and the Tony Award®-nominated FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. They are producers of the first U.K. tour of the award-winning West End production of DREAMGIRLS, and AN EVENING WITH WHITNEY: THE WHITNEY HOUSTON HOLOGRAM TOUR in partnership with BASE Entertainment and the Estate of Whitney Houston opening in Las Vegas in October 2021. Other highlights include winning the 2013 Tony Award® for their production of WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF; co-financing the 5-time Tony Award® winner for Best Musical, MATILDA THE MUSICAL; producing 9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton; and producing AMERICAN SON starring Kerry Washington, which was recently adapted for Netflix. Their combined shows have been nominated for 146 Tony Awards®, winning 44 and 110 Drama Desk Awards, winning 56. They are currently Tony Award® nominees for THE INHERITANCE and TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL. Their newest play, MIDDLETOWN® by Dan Clancy was selected as a Chicago Tribune Critic’s Pick, and has performed in Las Vegas, Chicago, Atlanta and will continue its national tour this year. For more information, visit GFourProductions.com.
DAN CLANCY (Playwright)
Dan’s plays have been performed regionally, off-Broadway, and in 12 foreign countries. His play THE TIMEKEEPERS had an extended Off-Broadway run and was performed in Israel for 13 years. Its South Florida premiere received six Carbonell Awards. VOLUNTEER MAN won an Obie Award and received a GLAAD nomination for Best New Play. TWO SISTERS won the Joseph Kesslering Playwrighting Award and the initial workshop of MIDDLETOWN® received a Carbonell nomination for best new work in 2017. AT HOME, workshopped at the Jan McArt Reading Series, opened in Tel Aviv in the fall of 2019. His musicals include 108 WAVERLY, with music by Lynn Portas; and THE PERFECT DAY, with lyrics and music by Julie Gold. Dan is a member of the Dramatists Guild and ASCAP and is represented by the Barbara Hogenson Agency in New York City.
SETH GREENLEAF (Director)
A Tony Award® winner for his work on the 50th anniversary production of WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF, Seth would be the first to tell you that he’s lived a theatrical life. A graduate of UCLA’s School of Theatre, Film and Television, he was bitten early by the entertainment bug and has worked in theatre and film ever since. Some of his favorite highlights include producing 9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL on Broadway with Dolly Parton, co-financing the Tony Award® and Olivier Award-winning musicals THE BOOK OF MORMON and MATILDA THE MUSICAL, and directing the award-winning documentary F(L)AG FOOTBALL (FlagFootballTheMovie.com). He currently has THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG, THE BOOK OF MORMON, TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL and SIX THE MUSICAL reopening on Broadway in Fall 2021. Seth serves as CEO and Co-Founder of OVERTURE+, an innovative theatre streaming platform created during the Covid-19 pandemic, and he is a founding member of the Broadway Green Alliance, helping to green the Great White Way. For more information on that effort, please visit BroadwayGreen.com.
ACTORS’ PLAYHOUSE AT THE MIRACLE THEATRE
Actors’ Playhouse is an award-winning nonprofit regional professional theatre company celebrating 33 years of artistic excellence. Located in the historic Miracle Theatre on Miracle Mile in downtown Coral Gables, Actors’ Playhouse is a Florida Presenting Cultural Organization and one of 13 major cultural institutions in Miami-Dade County. The company produces five Mainstage and four professional Children’s Theatre productions annually, a year-round Theatre Conservatory and Summer Camp Program, educational arts outreach programs, and the Young Talent Big Dreams countywide youth talent contest in partnership with The Children’s Trust.Learn more at ActorsPlayhouse.org.
