Hope Summer Rep Present INTO THE WOODS et al. Summer 2010

The Hope Summer Repertory Theatre, located at Hope College in Holland, Michigan, is presenting  INTO THE WOODS, AN ITALIAN STRAW HAT, THE LAST NIGHT OF BALLYHOO, and I DO! I DO! in repertory this summer.  In addition, there will be three productions aimed at younger audiences: A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD, BUSYTOWN THE MUSICAL, and A BRAND NEW KID. All productions will be presented in the college's DeWitt Theatre.

With INTO THE WOODS, the genius of Stephen Sondheim comes to the Hope Theatre's stage in his most beloved work. Drawing from the classic tales of Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Ridinghood and Rapunzel, Sondheim's great music weaves their stories together in this intricate grown-up version. While charming and funny, these familiar characters may answer your own questions about why your life doesn't seem to be as easy as a fairytale. Actions have consequences and wishes may not be granted as expected, but each hero learns something valuable in the end. 

A bridegroom anticipating his wedding day, a future father-in-law looking for a way to stop the progress of that day, a wandering horse that takes a big bite out of a lady's tempting straw hat, the frantic quest to replace that rare hat, the growing crowd that joins in the search: AN ITALIAN STRAW HAT is  classic and hilarious French farce! As the quest for the hat and the hour of the wedding become inexorably intertwined, the laughs embrace the whole city of Paris as well as the audience.

Winner of the 1997 Tony Award for Best Play, and written by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of DRIVING MISS DAISY, THE LAST NIGHT OF BALLYHOO is a charming and bittersweet comedy set in Atlanta on the day of the 'Gone with the Wind' premiere in the pre-WWII era. Meanwhile, a segment of Atlanta's elite is more concerned with who will be attending Ballyhoo, the social event of the season. The arrival of a handsome stranger from New York forces the Freitag family to deal with who they really are as they are pulled apart and mended again with plenty of gentle comedy, sweet romance, and unexpected turns.

20 years ago David Colacci and Susan Ericksen followed their spring wedding with a summer performing the beloved musical I DO! I DO!, which follows a young couple from the bliss and uncertainty of the wedding night, through parenthood, mid-life crisis and growing old together in the early 20th Century. Now the Hope Theatre joins them in celebrating their anniversary with a second honeymoon, as they revisit this jaunt through a married life from a new perspective.

For more information, including performance schedules, visit www.hope.edu/hrst.