Behind the Curtain with Maggie Lacey

Full Given Name:
Margaret Cecilia Lacey

Hometown:
Cleveland Heights, OH (with stops in Clarkesville, TN; West Hartford, CT; and Andover, MA.)

Playhouse Debut: 
Our Town, 2003

The thing you do before every first rehearsal:
Google my fellow actors obsessively. Kidding. Read the play as much as possible.

Why you love Lips Together, Teeth Apart:
The thrilling road map that Terrence gives his characters, the sounds of the ocean, and the iced tea.

Best thing about working at the Playhouse:
Being a part of such a rich history and the wonderful people who work here.

First time on stage:
Age 6, talent show at the Clarkesville Academy singing "Chattenooga Choo Choo". Despite my "liberal" tempo, I took home the first prize.

Biggest onstage disaster:
A leaky theatre roof so water dripped onstage through an entire performance.

Last great movie you saw:
 A Face in the Crowd. (I'm a big Patricia Neal fan after seeing her in Hud).

TV show you can’t miss:
I like shows that are cancelled: "Arrested Development" and "Friday Night Lights."

Book on your nightstand:
Great Expectations 

Guilty pleasure:
Pizza

And…. “how do you learn all those lines?”:
Well, for this particular play, QUICKLY!

 

 2011 Playhouse Gala Celebrates Musical History

 On the Playhouse’s famous poster wall, tucked among the many shows that comprise our history, you will find a poster for the 1940 Westport Country Playhouse production of Green Grow the Lilacs, a play that would help change the face of the American musical forever. It was Westport’s production of Lynn Rigg’s classic tale of the early Midwest that inspired composer and then Fairfield resident Richard Rodgers to collaborate with lyricist Oscar Hammerstein on the groundbreaking musical Oklahoma! And, for the Playhouse, this was only the beginning.

From Hello, Dolly! to I Do! I Do!, over 105 musicals have graced the Playhouse stage since 1931, and on September 19, the Playhouse’s Annual Gala “Playing Our Songs” will celebrate our rich, 80-year tradition of classic and groundbreaking musicals. Featuring songs from the productions that have played here, this year’s event will honor  our contribution to the American musical theater.

Some of the most recognizable names in entertainment have begun their careers in a musical on the Playhouse stage. One of the Playhouse’s first musical productions was a Comden and Green review, Magazine Page, which starred a young Judy Holiday and Gene Kelly (who would return a year later to choreograph dance scenes for Green Grow the Lilacs). An 18-year-old Liza Minnelli appeared in The Fantasticks at the Playhouse in 1964—the year before she won her first Tony Award.

An actor in the twilight of his career, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. also made a splash in Westport when he appeared in a 1978 production of the musical Out on a Limb. Fairbanks, who was known for his roles as a swashbuckling adventurer in action films of the 1930s and 1940s, made his first entrance in the show swinging on a rope with his feet about 6 inches off the ground. He was 69 at the time.

Apart from big name performers, works by every great writer for the musical theater, from Cole Porter to Andrew Lloyd Webber, have all played here. Most recently, the 2010 season included Jones and Schmidt’s intimate two-person musical I Do! I Do! with Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin and Playhouse alum Lewis Cleale, as well as Bock and Harnick’s She Loves Me, directed by Mark Lamos, a production first seen at the Playhouse over 40 years ago in 1967. Next year, Lamos will continue this tradition of great musicals, opening the 2012 season with his Into the Woods, book by James Lapine and music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, a former Playhouse apprentice and Gala Honoree in 2006.

Sondheim is just one of many musical theater greats whom the Playhouse has honored at our Annual Galas. The 2011 honoree will join a prestigious list of that also includes John Kander (2007), Angela Lansbury (2008) and Stephen Schwartz (2010). This year, the Playhouse will also honor of our most illustrious alumni with the Distinguished Dedication and Service to the American Musical Theater Award. Look for more information about this year’s honoree, coming soon!

In addition to being a spectacular show, the Gala is also the Playhouse’s most important fundraiser, and by purchasing a ticket, our guests help ensure that the Playhouse can continue to create quality productions of both musicals and plays for years to come. To see some of our most renowned alumni return to the Playhouse stage for this special tribute, click here to purchase your tickets today.

Melissa Cail
Development Intern

 

 Terrence McNally: At the Playhouse & Beyond

The Westport Country Playhouse team is moving at full speed as we prepare to open our third production this season, Terrence McNally’s Lips Together, Teeth Apart. As the scene shop puts the finishing touches on the set, the cast gets in their last few rehearsals and the staff prepares for our many events surrounding the show, the accomplished and prolific playwright of this moving and insightful comedy continues to change the face of Broadway and the American Theater as we know it.

Since having his first play produced at age 25, Terrence McNally has written 32 plays, 11 musicals, 3 operas, 3 films, and 3 television screenplays. Included in these are the popular plays that were later adapted for film, Love! Valour! Compassion!, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, and The Ritz, and the beloved musicals Ragtime, Kiss of the Spider Woman, and The Full Monty. Over the course of McNally’s career, he has won four Tony Awards, four Drama Desk Awards, one Emmy, two Lucille Lortel Awards, and has been a nominee for the Pulitzer Prize, among others.

After such a long and successful career, however, McNally’s work is far from finished. As we open Lips Together, Teeth Apart at the Playhouse, his work continues to delight audiences in New York and beyond. Catch Me If You Can, for which McNally penned the book, is a charming musical based on the true life story of Frank Abagnale, Jr. that is currently playing on Broadway at the Neil Simon Theatre. A revival of McNally’s Master Class recently opened at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on Broadway to critical acclaim. The John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts announced it will feature newly revised version of Pal Joey with McNally acting as book writer in its 2011-2012 Season. In addition, in a recent interview with Playbill.com, McNally revealed that there are plans for his first historical play Golden Age, to be produced at the Manhattan Theatre Club in their upcoming season. The Playhouse is proud to be a part of his continuing success.

Lips Together, Teeth Apart runs at the Playhouse through July 30. Click here to get your tickets!

Allison Van Driel
Arts Management/Finance Intern

 

 Playhouse About Town

Each spring, as Westport witnesses the return of sunshine, warmer weather and many familiar faces missing during the winter months, Westport Country Playhouse is welcoming the newest class of summer interns, preparing for the first production of the mainstage season and, most importantly, looking for new and exciting ways to connect with our community, both in town and throughout the region.

Being a part of the Fairfield County community means more to the Playhouse staff than simply inviting you into our home every few weeks for our latest production. It means visiting you where you live, learning about the things you find important, and supporting other organizations who strive to better our towns and lives. And so, whether it’s setting up a table at an arts festival or helping our neighbors by walking a 5K – every event provides us with an exciting opportunity to connect with our community on a more personal level.

Perhaps you ran into us at the first ever Art About Town event on May 26th, hosted by the Westport Downtown Merchant’s Association on Main Street, and had an opportunity to see set models from our past productions. “The Playhouse was thrilled to participate in Art About Town this year,” said David Byrd, Director of Marketing at the Playhouse. “In addition to sharing our season with the many attendees, we greatly enjoyed catching up with fellow non-profits and taking in the numerous art forms available in our culturally diverse town. From visual artists to film to live performance, Westport really is a cultural anchor of Southeastern Connecticut.”

Or maybe you were one of the many people who lined the streets of Fairfield on Saturday, June 25th to cheer on seven Playhouse staff members as they participated in the Fairfield Road Race 5K to support Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. The Playhouse team raised over $5,200, which is enough to send two children to camp for two weeks. “As a long time supporter of The Hole in the Wall Gang Camps (because of both the Playhouse’s and my personal relationship to the Newmans), it was a no brainer to join Team Hole in the Wall,” said Playhouse Artistic Advisor Annie Keefe. “Still, I was unprepared for the sense of belonging to a much bigger team I think we all experienced when we met up early Saturday morning at Jennings Beach for the Fairfield Road Race. Much like sitting in a darkened theatre and sharing a good story, there was a sense of excitement, teamwork and coming together for a good cause that made the day so gratifying to all of us.”

If you missed our first two outings, be sure to look for the Playhouse at these upcoming events:

Saturday, July 16th we’ll head out to Ridgefield Summerfest. Our home for the summer of 2004 while our theater was under renovation, Ridgefield holds a special place in the Playhouse’s heart and it’s exciting for us to be able to return and help promote the arts in this beautiful town!

Sunday, July 17th the Playhouse moves back to Westport for the town’s 38th Annual Fine Arts Festival. We’ve teamed up with a number of different arts organizations through the Cultural Alliance of Fairfield County and will be sharing a table amidst all the wonderful paintings, photographs and sculptures for sale, so be sure to stop by and say hi!

Wednesday, July 20th Moffly Media’s 7th Annual Best Of the Gold Coast event takes place in Stamford. As winners of the Best Performing Arts Venue, we’ll strap on our party shoes and join the celebration! Our third year attending this event, it provides a great opportunity to connect with business from around the county, and make new and lasting relationships.

Saturday and Sunday August 6th & 7th the SoNo Arts Festival returns, and so do we! Featuring approximately 150 artists and craftspeople, the SoNo festival also places a high importance on education, so we invite you to join us as we learn more about the process of creating art from both the exhibitors and from the Playhouse!  

Beth Huisking
Associate Director of Marketing

  
Playhouse Turns 80!

On June 29, Westport Country Playhouse invited our community to join us in celebrating our official 80th birthday. With staff, volunteers, subscribers, donors, Trustees, and community members just like you on hand, the momentous event was celebrated in our beloved garden with cake, champagne, and special proclamations from the town and state naming June 29, 2011 Westport Country Playhouse Day in recognition of 80 years bringing the highest quality theater to the region, and in hopes for 80 more years to come. Here are just a few of the many memorable moments from the celebration….