Laurel Little Theatre Presents JEKYLL & HYDE This Weekend

LLT opens its "Fifty-Fifth & Fabulous" Season with the musical thriller "JEKYLL & HYDE" for a Halloween week run this weekend, October 29th - November 1st.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, October 29, 30, 31 and there's a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. on November 1st.

The LLT reservation line opens October 22nd and will answer 24 hours a day all of show week at 601.428.0140. You can see more info on the entire LLT season at the the theatre's website LaurelLittleTheatre.com

A parental warning that this show is not appropiate for young children as it's the classic story of murder and mayhem in 1800's London, but it's a good choice for teens and adults looking for a great Halloween week event.

It's based on the classic 1886 novel of "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," and tells the story of a conflicted man with double personalities - one good, one evil - who seeks revenge for the misdeeds that were inflicted on his father.

The musical has a beautifully haunting score by Frank Wildhorn that features the hit song "This Is The Moment," and the production made Linda Eder (who was recently in concert in Hattiesburg) an international star.

The show was a "monster" hit on Broadway in its original run back in 1997, receiving numerous Tony and Drama Desk nominations and awards, and it was just revived in NYC two years ago.

A huge national tour of the show is scheduled for next year, and filming will soon begin on a major motion picture release, but LLT has secured the rights for the Mississippi premiere of this musical to bring to local audiences.

THE LLT CAST

The LLT cast of "JEKYLL & HYDE" is an amazing collection of powerful singers from all around the Pine Belt area that will all "thrill the audiences to death!"

Greg Wascoe, on the music faculty at JCJC, will make his LLT debut in the double title-roles of Dr Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. He had recent leads in HCLO productions as Javert in "Les Miserables" and Pontious Pilate in "Jesus Christ Superstar," and he will play Ebenezer Scrooge in their "A Christmas Carol" next month. Other leading roles were with Lubbock (Texas) Moonlight Musicals in "1776" and "South Pacific."

Katie Hovan, playing "lady-of-the-night" Lucy Harris, is a student at JCJC pursuing a degree in vocal performance. This is her LLT debut, but she sang the leading role of Eponine in HCLO's "Les Miserables" as well as other leads in HCLO productions of "Godspell," "Legally Blonde" and "The Drowsy Chaperone."

Jody Balius will be singing the role of Jekyll's finance, Emma Carew. She is a graduate of USM in English literature with a minor in theatre. Previous LLT credits include productions of "Dracula," "The Wizard Of Oz" and "High School Musical."

Steve Jones is cast as the sinister Simon Stride. He's a music performance major at JCJC. This is his LLT debut, but previously sang in productions of "Anything Goes," "Spamalot and "Guys & Dolls" in his hometown of Starkville, MS.

Jay Baggett, playing Sir Danvers Carew, is from Seminary, MS. He's a long-time LLT alumni with dozens of shows to his credit since his first appearances on the Arabian stage as a teenager. Leading LLT roles include the Cowardly Lion in "The Wizard of Oz," Ramases in "Aida" and the Pharoah in "Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoast.

Kyle Chesney, cast as Sir John Utterson, is another LLT alumni with leading roles as Brick in "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof" and Rooster in "Annie." Kyle is a graduate of USM's theatre department.

Jonathan LaCourse, playing the Bishop of Basingstoke, is a music major student at JCJC. He performed in Long Beach High School's productions of "The Phantom Of The Opera" and "Oklahoma." With Biloxi Little Theatre he sang in "Les Miserables," and next spring will be in JCJC's "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee."

The supporting cast and chorus includes Laura Cooley, Kelsie Hosey, Billy James, Heather James, Meredith Jordan, Adam Lofton, Jamie Rambin, Steve Jones, Will Hodges, James Nathan Moss, Herb Murray and Missy Sanderson.

THE CREW

Director Sam Buchanan is a graduate of USM with a bachelors in theatre. At USM, he performed in Shakespeare's "King Lear" and directed several original plays written by fellow students.

Sam is a Laurel native, and spent many hours growing up in LLT productions. In the past few years, he designed the set for LLT's "A Streetcar Named Desire," and directed productions of "Proof," "Dracula" and "The Glass Menagerie."

In 2014, Sam founded the Bottom of the Barrel Players, a troupe of performers dedicated to exposing actors and audience to material rarely performed in the Laurel/Hattiesburg area.

Music Director John Ridgeway is also a recent graduate of USM, with a bachelor's degree in entertainment industry. He sang with the USM Choir, appearing at Carnegie Hall in 2010 and on tour in Romania in 2013, and was also a member of the Spirit of Southern Men's A'Cappella Group. He made his LLT debut in 2013 playing Renfield in "Dracula."

Logan Prince serves as the assistant director and is another long-time member of the LLT family. Her first credit onstage was in "Dracula" and she's worked on the crew for many other productions.

She was also a founding member of the Bottom of the Barrel Players where she's had roles in "A Midsummer Night's Dream," "Romeo and Juliet" and "The Yellow Sign."

Choreographer Chris Brewer is a graduate of USM with a bachelor of science degree in forensics with an emphasis in criminal justice. He is now pursuing his master of arts in criminal justice.

Chris was a member of Clinton High School's Attaché show choir, and has been a freelance choreographer for show choirs and groups around Mississippi and Iowa.

Both season tickets and single tickets can be purchased at the door at the performances, but everyone needs to call in reservations ahead of time to have seats guaranteed for them.

The reservation line is open 24 hours a day all the week of the show at 601.428.0140. For any questions, you can also drop a line to LLTLaurelMS@aol.com

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