Rock of Ages opens this weekend at CT with all your favorite 80s rock-n-roll hits!
The Cumberland Theatre continues their 34th Main Stage Season with the rock musical ROCK OF AGES, which will run July 7th – 24th. The show is being sponsored by David and BettyJo Gehauf.
Rock of Ages is a jukebox musical built around classic rock songs from the 1980s, especially from the famous glam metal bands of that decade. The musical features songs from Styx, Journey, Bon Jovi, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Steve Perry, Poison and Europe, among other well-known rock bands.
It’s the tail end of the big, bad 1980s in Hollywood, and the party has been raging hard. Aqua Net, Lycra, lace, and liquor flow freely at one of the Sunset Strips last legendary venues, a place where sex machine Stacee Jaxx takes the stage and scantily clad groupies line up to turn their fantasies into reality. Amidst the madness, aspiring rock star (and resident toilet cleaner) Drew longs to take the stage as the next big thing (and longs for small-town girl Sherri, fresh off the bus from Kansas with stars in her eyes). But the rock 'n' roll fairy tale is about to end when German developers sweep into town with plans to turn the fabled Strip into just another capitalist strip mall. Drew, Sherri and the gang must save the strip – and themselves – before it's too late.
Heading the cast as Drew and Sherri will be Matt Henningsen and Payton Reilly. Both are making their debuts on the CT Stage. Henningsen holds a BA in Musical Theatre from SUNY Cortland. Previous credits include Side Show (Ensemble), A Bronx Tale (Crazy Mario/Doo Wop), and The Littlest Tree (Carl). Reilly was recently seen in the First National Tour of Tootsie: The Comedy Musical as Sandy Lester. Other credits include Kinky Boots (Lauren), Mamma Mia (Lisa), The Great American Trailer Park Musical (Pippi) and Cabaret (Lulu).
Local actor Jordan Kline will be featured as Stacee Jaxx. He has appeared on the CT stage in Rent (Roger), Spamalot (Sir Galahad) and Hairspray (Link) as well as directing and choreographing for several other theatre companies in the area.
The supporting cast is comprised of both local and visiting actors. Returning to the stage will be Matt Kurzyneic (last seen in Clue) as Lonnie and Shane Lynn (last seen in Company) as Dennis. Also returning are Tim Bambara, Hayden Kline and Katelyn Shreiner. Makeing her CT debut will be Jmonet Hill as Justice. Hill comes to Cumberland after finishing an Off-Broadway run of the play Chasing Andy Warhol. The cast is rounded out by Morganne Chu, Kiersten Gasemy, Jamiel Burkhart, Dante Santos, Emily Snyder, Matt Montes and Kimberli Rowley as Waitress #1.
The show features a six-piece band comprised of Jeff Wine (keyboards), Shawn Zimmerman (guitar), Harley Kuhn (guitar), Montes (guitar), Mark Kolwalski (bass), and Daniel Hicks (drums).
The show's creative team includes Danny Durr (director/choregrapher), Mikayla Dodge (vocal director), Rhett Wolford (scenic and lighting designer), Jennifer Clark (costume designer), Reilly (props designer) and Kurzyneic (props designer). The run crew is comprised of Em Uranga (stage manager), Ebony Gennes (assistant stage manager), Bredon McCabe(sound tech), Trevor McCabe (lighting tech), and Elizabeth Mudge (wardrobe assistant).
The production features a VIP bar as part of the set, for which eight VIP seats per show can be purchased. VIP tickets include bar seat, 80s throwback cocktails, swag bags and more. A ticket upgrade can also be added to any regular ticket purchased through the theatre’s website and includes one free beverage and a swag bag.
The show has a running time of approximately two hours and contains some strong language and some moments of intimacy. Parental discretion is advised. Thursday, Friday and Saturday shows begin at 8:00 pm and Sunday performances at 2:00 pm. There will be a complimentary wine and cheese reception following the official opening on June 8th. Tickets may be purchased online at cumberlandtheatre.com or by calling the box office at 301.759.4990.