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Ocala Civic Theatre Presents PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES
by Stephi Wild - Sep 24, 2020

Ocala Civic Theatre presents Pump Boys and Dinettes beginning tonight!

BWW Review: PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES is Chock Full of Southern Charm, Song and Dance
by Frank Benge - Feb 12, 2019

PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES is a Tony nominated 1981 musical written by the performance group of the same name. The group, Pump Boys and Dinettes, consisted of John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel and Jim Wann. The members also jointly directed and starred in the original Broadway production. The show is basically a series of standalone songs rather than a conventional story tied together with music. The book for this musical is very thin and really only exists to get to the next song. Each song represents some element of small-town life: the sacredness of fishing, the fun of owning a pair of "Drinkin Shoes," and other assorted blue collar tales including growing up with with their grandma, whom they called Mamaw. The company tosses off 21 short-form songs with performances that harken back to simpler, more straight forward times with good natured knee-slapping, song, dance and humor. They shatter the fourth wall by talking directly to the audience and eventually coming right out into it and the end result is a refreshing blast from the past.

Winter Park Playhouse Announces 2019-20 Musicals; YOU'RE A GOOD MAN CHARLIE BROWN, PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES and More
by Julie Musbach - Jan 25, 2019

The Winter Park Playhouse continues to delight audiences with its new 2019-20 Series of professional Mainstage musicals.

BWW Review: Cumberland County Playhouse Sends SANDERS FAMILY Off With Heartfelt Emotion
by Jeffrey Ellis - Dec 13, 2018

Growing up in a small Southern town with fewer than 1,000 people, the prevalent thoughts tend to be centered on how to get out of that stifling, archly conservative community, in order to search for the proverbial greener pastures and to find like-minded people who will make you feel more "at home" with yourself and in your own skin. While that may well be the honest-to-God true story of my youth, nonetheless it always startles me when my emotions are stirred up by a stage musical set in the years long before my birth, with a show that fairly reverberates with the heart and soul, memories and nostalgia usually associated with a trip back home.

BWW Review: PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES Will Win You Over Hook, Line, and Sinker
by Ellen Dostal - Jul 25, 2018

One thing's for sure - country musicals are an awful lot of fun. There aren't very many of them and, if you can name one at all, it's most likely THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS or THE ROBBER BRIDEGROOM. But there is another rarely produced gem that is just as enjoyable - PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES - the fun-loving retro revue written by its original cast (John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel, and Jim Wann).

BWW Review: Original Cast of PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES Reunites at Feinstein's/54 Below for Energetic Concert
by Melanie Votaw - Jul 24, 2018

PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES was my first Broadway musical, so it not only holds a special place in my heart, but I still remember most of the lyrics. Running for 577 performances in 1982-83 and earning a Tony nomination for Best Musical, PUMP BOYS was 'the little show that could' with just six cast members and a small set. But the characters and songs captured many fans who came out to relive the experience at Feinstein's/54 Below July 22.

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Sings Ahrens & Flaherty, Vonda Shepard & More Next Week at 54 Below
by Julie Musbach - Jul 13, 2018

Next week, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club & Private Event Destination, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond.

Tovah Feldshuh, Rita Rudner, and More Next Month at 54 Below
by Julie Musbach - Jun 29, 2018

Next month, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club & Private Event Destination, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond.

Original Cast of PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES Reunite at Feinstein's/54 Below
by Julie Musbach - Jun 25, 2018

FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents Pump Boys And Dinettes: Reunion Concert featuring original cast/creators Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, Jim Wann,John Foley, and John Schimmel, with Bob Stillman. Pump Boys And Dinettes ran for 577 performances on Broadway and was nominated for a Tony for Best Musical in 1982. It was the first Broadway hit written and performed by Actor-Musicians and is considered a pioneering work in that regard. The London/West End production was nominated for an Olivier for Best Musical, 1985, and the Toronto version won Canada's Dora Award for Best Musical shortly after. Since then it has been produced across the country and around the world, became Chicago's longest-running musical for decades and remains a perennial favorite. This concert version will feature the entire score and is directed by JoAnn M. Hunter.

Terrific New Theatre Goes Country With Musical Revue Beings Tomorrow Through 5/4
by Alan Henry - Apr 18, 2018

Birmingham musician and storyteller Norton Dill, of local favorite The Dill Pickers, headlines TNT's next offering, 'Pump Boys and Dinettes.' The musical is the fifth production of the theatre's 32nd season and runs April 19 through May 4.

Terrific New Theatre Goes Country With Musical Revue
by Stephi Wild - Mar 26, 2018

Birmingham musician and storyteller Norton Dill, of local favorite The Dill Pickers, headlines TNT's next offering, "Pump Boys and Dinettes." The musical is the fifth production of the theatre's 32nd season and runs April 19 through May 4.

BWW Review: PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES at Connecticut Cabaret Theatre
by Sean Fallon - Feb 17, 2018

PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES is an amazing country musical with comedy and a talented cast who play their own instruments, telling the story, mostly through song. The Connecticut Cabaret Theatre, in Berlin, CT, has once again put together a first rate cast. For a night of great music and entertainment, I highly recommend PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES.

5th Wall Announces Upcoming Country Musical, PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES
by A.A. Cristi - Feb 12, 2018

Artistic Director Carol Piersol and 5th Wall Theatre in partnership with The American Theatre in Hampton, Virginia are thrilled to announce their co-production of Pump Boys and Dinettes, a musical that brought the warmth and heartfelt storytelling of country music to Off-Broadway, Broadway, and West End audiences for years.  Directed by Richard M. Parison, Jr., this show features a talented cast from Virginia and beyond that includes locals Mike Bamford, Rachel Marrs, and Desiree Roots along with New York performers Mike Cefalo and John Mervini as well as North Carolina performer Sean Powell with music direction by Storm Burks and choreography by Karen Getz.  Pump Boys and Dinettes is set on a lonely stretch of Highway 57, where the Pump Boys -- Jackson, Jim, Eddie, and L.M. -- fill the gas tanks of weary travelers while the Cupp sisters, Rhetta and Prudie, serve up comfort food and slices of their famous homemade pie in the Double Cupp Diner next door.  Together, they fashion an evening of down home country music delight with tales of both hilarity and heartbreak played on everything from guitars and pianos to kitchen utensils.

Upcoming Non-Equity Auditions Sunday, Sep. 10
by Audition Roundup - Sep 10, 2017

Updated this week! Check out upcoming Non-Equity Auditions from Sunday, September 10, 2017 for productions in your area and around the country.

BWW Review: PUMP BOYS & DINETTES Serves Up Nostalgia with a Smile
by Carla Maria Verdino-Süllwold - Mar 11, 2017

For those wishing to take a trip back to a simpler era, Biddeford City Theater's production of Pump Boys & Dinettes serves up a wistful, warm slice of nostalgia together with a foot-tapping country musical score that is guaranteed to leave the audience smiling and singing along. The 1980s juke box musical written by members of the band of the same name (John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel, Jim Wann) is set in a small North Carolina town on Highway 57 where four men who work at a gas station and two waitresses who run the adjacent Double Cupp Diner tell stories and jam on guitars, piano, bass, and kitchen utensils. The tunes are vintage country rock, filled with humor, heartache, a longing for the adventures of the road, and the flavors of small town southern life. Anchored by the show's remarkable music director, Kevin Smith, on piano, the seven-person cast sings, dances, and plays their heart out.

Downhome Musical PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES Comes to City Theater
by BWW News Desk - Mar 10, 2017

Pump Boys And Dinettes a down-home musical full of country fun opens at City Theater in Biddeford March 10th. Welcome to the Double Cupp Diner, way down on Highway 57 between Frog Level and Smyrna, where the pie is fresh, and the waitresses are like the coffee - hot! The boys from the gas station next door play a high-octane blend of country and bluegrass packed with entertaining toe-tappers about life, love, and good times. Come on in and let good American folk music melt your troubles away with a generous serving of great music and foot-stomping fun.

Downhome Musical PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES Comes to City Theater
by BWW News Desk - Mar 9, 2017

Pump Boys And Dinettes a down-home musical full of country fun opens at City Theater in Biddeford March 10th. Welcome to the Double Cupp Diner, way down on Highway 57 between Frog Level and Smyrna, where the pie is fresh, and the waitresses are like the coffee - hot! The boys from the gas station next door play a high-octane blend of country and bluegrass packed with entertaining toe-tappers about life, love, and good times. Come on in and let good American folk music melt your troubles away with a generous serving of great music and foot-stomping fun.

Downhome Musical PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES Comes to City Theater
by Julie Musbach - Feb 26, 2017

Pump Boys And Dinettes a down-home musical full of country fun opens at City Theater in Biddeford March 10th. Welcome to the Double Cupp Diner, way down on Highway 57 between Frog Level and Smyrna, where the pie is fresh, and the waitresses are like the coffee - hot! The boys from the gas station next door play a high-octane blend of country and bluegrass packed with entertaining toe-tappers about life, love, and good times. Come on in and let good American folk music melt your troubles away with a generous serving of great music and foot-stomping fun.

The LowellArts Players Presents a Classic Murder Mystery THE MOUSETRAP by Agatha Christie
by A.A. Cristi - Oct 14, 2016

The LowellArts Players will perform a classic 'who-dunnit' play, The Mousetrap, by the foremost mystery writer of her time, Agatha Christie. This murder mystery will be performed at Larkin's Other Place, 315 W. Main Street, Lowell, MI 49331 on October 28th, 29th, 30th and November 4th, 5th, and 6th. The Mousetrap is set at the Monkswell Manor Guest House, where a group of strangers is stranded during a major thunderstorm, one of whom is a murderer. The suspects include the couple who run the house, a spinster, an architect, a retired Army major, a magistrate and a strange little man. A policeman no sooner arrives when a murder occurs!

STAGE TUBE: Watch Highlights of PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES at Theatre at the Center
by Christina Mancuso - Sep 30, 2016

Five Chicago actor-musicians made their Theatre at the Center debut in this production. Christine Mild as Rhetta Cupp, Shaun Whitley as Jim, Matt Holzfeind as Jackson, Matt Edmonds as L.M. and Cody Siragusa as Eddie are joined by Veronica Garza, who returns to the TATC stage to play Rhetta's sister Prudie Cupp. Directed by Brian Russell with musical direction by William Underwood, Pump Boys and Dinettes will continue through October 16.  Check out some songs from the show below!

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