On Stage at the Ritz!
2012-2013 Season
Click on an image to learn more about each performance or scroll page to see all performances in date order.

World-Class Touring Performances!

And don't miss the public performances of
"A Christmas Carol" (December 8)
- the production our new Young Actors Ensemble is touring to local schools in December.
      

Exciting Original Productions!

Collected Stories

Fridays - September 28, October 12, 2012, at 8:00 p.m. (No performance Friday October 5)
Saturdays - September 29, October 6, October 13 at 8:00 p.m.
Sundays - September 30, October 7, October 14 at 3:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

Due to numerous requests for a return engagement, we're bringing back this acclaimed production originally mounted in the spring of 2012. A funny, insightful, sharply written character study about a famous author and her young protégée who become colleagues, friends and ultimately rivals, Collected Stories is an intimate and stimulating work that provides a tour de force for two remarkable actresses, Heather Heath and Lucy Lynn Bryson. 

Ms. Heath, who has captivated local audiences over the years with her performances in Private Lives, Shame the Devil, The Little Foxes, and many other memorable roles, plays the part of author-professor Ruth Steiner.  Ms. Bryson takes on the role of Lisa Morrison, the young woman Ruth mentors.  Collected Stories is directed by Rob Nixon, who staged the Ritz productions of Fahrenheit 451, The Little Foxes, and Happy Days.

The conflict between the established artist and the adulatory fan who becomes a protégée, disciple, colleague and friend—and finally threatening rival—is one of those great topics. It is handled with great honesty and insight in in Donald Margulies's provocative play, Collected Stories, which confronts the prominent short-story writer Ruth Steiner with her student-turned-confidante-turned-competitor Lisa Morrison.

Literate and stimulating, with sharply-written characters and incisive dialogue, Margulies' play is a dramatic tour de force starting with delightful wit and a touch of humor, then steadily pulling you toward its moving conclusion.

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The Commedia Pinocchio

Saturday, October 20 at 11:00 a.m. & 2:00 p.m.

$5 ages 18 and under, $10 over 18

The little puppet who wishes he were a real boy comes to life in a slapstick spin on the classic story. Children’s Theatre of Charlotte’s Tarradiddle Players perform this heart-warming story for the whole family, told in the humorous acting style of Italian commedia dell’arte. Puppetmaker Geppetto carves Pinocchio out of a magical piece of wood, but the talking puppet can’t stay out of trouble. Can he learn his lesson – and stop lying so his nose will stop growing – long enough to become a real boy?

In addition to special school shows prior to these public performances, we're delighted to present these special one-act, one-hour Saturday matinees that will amaze and amuse the very young and the young at heart. Make a day of it in Downtown Brunswick by taking your child (or your inner one!) to lunch and a theatrical experience they'll never forget, one that will feed their imagination for a long time.

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War Bonds: The Songs & Letters of World War II

Sunday, November 11, 2012 at 3:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

Join us for a musical journey through a war that redefined the world and a generation that distinguished itself for all history. This multi-mediacabaret is interspersed with personal letters from the front and headline news of the period. The production is a warm reminiscence and a harrowing reminder of a time when the whole world seemed upside down.

Award winning artists David zum Brunnen and Serena Ebhardt fill the stage with wartime memories and tunes. Actual veterans stories create a sentimental journey back through the days when blackouts and rationing were a small sacrifice in order to obtain freedom. A time when Rosie the Riveter discovered she could take care of herself; a time when African-Americans, who were segregated at home, integrated abroad to became heros; and when a man's only wish was to be home for Christmas.

War Bonds: The Songs and Letters of World War II explores the dark side of war and the strange juxtaposition of the light hearted, popular tunes of the time. This family show will lift your mood with 22 great songs of the period, lovingly recreated by musical director Julie Florin.

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Young Actors Ensemble: A Christmas Carol

Saturday, December 8, 4:00 & 7:00 p.m.

$5 ages 18 and under, $10 over 18

We're excited to announce a new program this season, the Young Actors Ensemble, a company of aspiring actors under 18 years old who will have several opportunities to develop their skills and perform in various projects throughout the year. The company is part of Golden Isles Arts & Humanities' continuing commitment to bring arts into our schools through our Arts in Education program.

In addition to appearing in the productions of winning plays in this year's Young Playwrights Award competition and films produced in the Summer Filmmaking Camps at the Ritz, these talented young people are also touring the schools in a new version of "A Christmas Carol" - Charles Dickens' immortal tale of the mean old miser Scrooge and his magical night discovering the true meaning of Christmas.

And our dedicated new company is also bringing this production to the public for two shows on one day only. NOTE: This is not the full production of "A Christmas Carol" our audiences have been used to for the previous 10 years. (Our big holiday production this year is the Ritz Radio Theatre's "It's a Wonderful Life" - see below.) But we wanted the community to be able to enjoy this beloved tale once more and to help us welcome the Young Actors Ensemble to the Ritz stage.

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It's a Wonderful Life

Fridays & Saturdays, December 14 & 15, 21 & 22, 2012 at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 3:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

Audiences delighted in our very first Ritz Radio Theatre production, The Maltese Falcon, presented as part of The Big Read in 2012. Be prepared for more of the same old-time fun as our radio troupe brings this wonderful holiday gift to the Golden Isles, just as it would have been done on the air (and before a live audience) in the 1940s, with period costume, sound effects, even vinatge-style ads by our sponsor, Ned Cash Jewelers.

Frank Capra's 1946 movie version of Philip Van Doren Stern's story is still considered one of the most inspirational and best-loved movies in all of American cinema. The Ritz RadioTheatre version has all the charm, humor, warm sentiments, and magic of the original, brought to life by our talented cast under the direction of Heather Heath.

The production features Mike Cornell as George Bailey, the down-on-his-luck family man who learns a valuable lesson about the interconnectedness of all lives and the importance of doing good, under the guidance of hapless angel-in-training Clarence, played by Joan Sheets. Be a part of the live theater audience at the Ritz for this fun, moving version of It's a Wonderful Life. (Shows will also be broadcast at a later date over WGIG-AM 1440, thanks to our partners at Qantum Communications.)

Sponsored in part by Ned Cash Jewelers.

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Madame Butterfly

Sunday, January 27, 2013 at 3:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

In the last few years, opera has once again become a fixture at what was once Brunswick's Grand Opera House (aka The Historic Ritz Theatre), and our audiences coudn't be happier. Peach State Opera, Georgia's premier touring company, brings this stunning production of Puccini's romantic story to the Golden Isles for one day only in this special matinee performance.

Since its debut at the legendary La Scala in Milan in 1904, Madame Butterfly has become a staple of the opera stage the world over with its tale of a young geisha who meets a tragic end after falling for an American naval lieutenant. (Bring your hankies!)

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Our Town

Fridays & Saturdays, February 22-23, March 2, 2013 at 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, February 28, 2013, 8:00 p.m. (NO SHOW ON FIRST FRIDAY, MARCH 1)
Sundays, February 24, March 3, 2013 at 3:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

Thornton Wilder's Our Town has become such a staple of high school productions, famed for its warm and insightful view of small-town life, that people tend to forget just how groundbreaking it was on its premiere in 1938 and how it still has the power to move us, awaken us, and urge us to look at life - and theater - through a different lens.

Golden Isles Arts and Humanities' production of the play harkens back to its original mesmerizing qualities and stark simplicty, creating a theatrical experience to inspire and delight audiences while reminding us, in the words of the character of Emily Webb, "Oh earth, you're too wonderful for anyone to realize you."

A talented cast, including Kathleen Martin (A Christmas Carol, Ah, Wilderness!), Nick Elkins, Kelly Dobbin (The Little Foxes, Talking With), and Ron Dempsey take us on a journey through "the way we were: in our growing up and in our marrying and in our living and in our dying."

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Branson on the Road

Saturday, March 23, 2013 at 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

A music extravaganza so big we're offering two shows on the same day! In the tradition of the legendary traveling road shows, Branson on the Road mixes together fiddle,mandolin, banjo, guitar, upright slap bass, rhinestone costumes, hilarious comedy and great classic country, bluegrass, rockabilly and gospel music.

Don't miss this chance for some lively, toe-tappin' family fun with the music you've known and love for years - direct from the entertainment capital of America!

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Casablanca

Fridays & Saturdays, April 19-20, 26-27, 2013 at 8:00 p.m.
Sundays, April 21 & 28, 2013 at 3:00 p.m.

Advance: Members $15 adults, $10 seniors (65+), $5 ages 18 and under; Non-Members $20 adults, $15 seniors, $5 age 18 and under
Day of Show: Members $20/$15/$5; Non-Members $25/$20/$5

The Ritz Radio Theatre takes on one of the greatest classics of all time - the immortal World War II adventure-romance that for more than 70 years has been one of the most popular and most quoted movies of all time.

This production recreates the original radio broadcast of the story of cynical American Rick, love-torn heroine Ilsa, resistance fighter Victor, and all the diverse characters who come together in the North African city to find freedom, fortune, and romance. Experiewnce it as a member of the live audience just as they did back in the 40s, with a cast in period garb, sound effects, even old-time ads. Casablanca is as much of a crowd-pleaser on the Ritz stage as it has ever been on the big screen.

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