preview: john drew theater

by jan silver

With the historic circus big-top design of the John Drew Theater at Guild Hall, East Hampton undergoing a major restoration (a pro bono "resurrection" courtesy of builder Ben Krupinski might be more apt!), the fine shows which graced that stage have moved to a variety of local venues. Manhattan cabaret stars John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey sang at the Maidstone Tennis Club in late June, the noted American modern dance troupe Armitage Gone! performed in the breathtaking gardens of an East Hampton estate on July 21, and Mark Weston's play Harry & Eddie had an SRO audience at the Jewish Center of the Hamptons last Sunday.

Guild Hall's summer entertainment really kicks into a high gear this Sunday, August 5, with Lee Davis' and Patricia Watt's popular American Musical Theater Salutes' program "Heart to Hart: The Warmth and Wit of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart." Broadway/cabaret stars KT Sullivan and Eric Michael Gillett will sing a selection of memorable songs from their hit musical comedies Pal Joey, Babes in Arms, On Your Toes, The Boys from Syracuse and more, accompanied by music director James Followell. Theater historian and playwright Lee Davis adds a brief narration about the composer/lyricist duo. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. in East Hampton Studios, Wainscott, and a reception to meet the cast follows the performance. Tickets are $45 for Guild Hall members and $50 for other attendees.

The John Drew Theater's co-producing affiliation with Playwrights Theatre of East Hampton resumes this year on August 12 with a staged reading of Joe Stein's hit Broadway comedy Enter Laughing, loosely based on Carl Reiner's autobiography about his early days as a struggling actor. Broadway actor/director Lewis J. Stadlen captains the veteran cast headed by Jerry Adler, Cady Huffman, Anne Jackson and Eli Wallach. This one-time-only performance starts at 8 p.m. in East Hampton Studios, and a dessert reception follows the show ($18 Guild Hall members, $20 for others).

The next Guild Hall theater offering is a new production of comedian Steve Martin's successful 1993 Off Broadway absurdist comedy, Picasso at the Lapin Agile. The plot centers on the young, unknown Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso in 1904, chatting in a Parisian cafe about the prospects for mankind in the new 20th century. The John Drew Theater's artistic director, Josh Gladstone, cast the play with a group of local professional actors including Joseph de Sane, Josh Perl, Gerard Doyle, Jonathan Peters, Kate Mueth and Kameron Steele. The show has previews on August 14 and 15, opens on August 16, and runs Tuesday through Sunday evenings, 8 p.m., until September 1 at East Hampton Studios, Wainscott. Tickets are $28 for Guild Hall members, and $30 for others.

On Saturday, August 18, another well-known Manhattan modern dance troupe, Jennifer Muller/The Works, will perform three dances including the work-in-progress Aria at an East Hampton estate. The performance starts at 5 p.m. ($30) and there is a reception at 4 p.m. to meet the dancers ($100 donation to Guild Hall includes tickets to the program).

A staged reading of award-winning playwright David Mamet's searing 1992 drama Oleanna, with accomplished Manhattan actors Larry Pine and Joanna Howard, comes to the East Hampton Studios stage on August 19 at 8 p.m. Directed by Isaac Klein, the play concerns a sexual harassment incident between a college professor and a student which may--or may not--have occurred ($18 Guild Hall members, $20 others).

Guild Hall is sponsoring two outdoor family screenings at the Springs Public School's athletic field. On Monday, August 20, 8:30 p.m., a special 30th anniversary edition of Steven Spielberg's imaginative sci-fi classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind, starring Richard Dreyfuss, is the first feature, and on Monday, August 27, the musical Grease! with John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John is the selection.

On Sunday, August 26, American Musical Theater Salutes returns with "Berlin in Hollywood." Melissa Errico and George Dvorsky with James Followell as music director and Lee Davis narrating the journey through the songs Irving Berlin wrote for Hollywood movie musicals (7:30 p.m., East Hampton Studios, tickets $45/50 include reception with the cast after the performance).

Playwrights Theater of East Hampton and the John Drew Theater are back at East Hampton Studios for a staged reading of Ruth Wolff's new comedy The Shakespeare Road on Sunday, September 2, at 8 p.m. The action centers on the tempestuous backstage lives of an aging ingenue and her leading man. The Playwrights Theater format of a Q & A after a new-play reading follows the performance ($18/20).

Tickets for all John Drew Theater/Guild Hall shows are sold at the main box office, 158 Main St., East Hampton (open Thurs. to Sun., 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.), by calling the John Drew at (631) 324-4050, or Theatermania at 866-811-4111, or email at boxoffice@guildhall.com or www.theatremania.com.

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