November 25, 2017November 25, 2017

FLAT ROCK PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS ‘A FLAT ROCK PLAYHOUSE CHRISTMAS’

Kendra Jo Brook, Katie Barton and Ben Hope in *A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas*.

Experience the songs and festivities of the season with an original revue that combines singing, dancing, humor and everyone’s favorite holiday classics – Vagabond style!

It’s that time of year when the Playhouse décor hangs quite full of cheer and onstage… music, dancing, Christmas-time romancing brings… classic songs to mind, love, and hope combine, in a Flat Rock holiday revue. That’s right, folks. Tis’ the season for frosted windowpanes, candy canes, sleigh rides and chestnuts roasting on an open fire – holiday traditions made extra special by experiencing them with loved ones. But before the calendar is full of the fun and festivities of the season, add a NEW holiday tradition to this year’s Christmas schedule, A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas. In an original revue with holiday favorites for the whole family, Flat Rock Playhouse brings the spirit and magic of Christmas to life onstage – Vagabond style. A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas will run November 25 – December 22 on the Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage.

A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas will transport audiences through the era of Charles Dickens, Santa’s Toy Shop and even NC’s own, Blue Ridge Mountains, in a snow and holly filled journey of the season. Beginning with a host of traditional carols, and songs and dances from holiday classics including the Polar Express and White Christmas, A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas will also take audiences on an exciting adventure to modern-day Santa’s Toy Shop, where Vagabond celebrities, Scott Treadway and Preston Dyar, will fill the theatre with he-he-he’s and ho-ho-hos in a secret musical showstopper. In Santa’s Toy Shop audiences will enjoy classic tunes like “Man with the Bag,” “Jingle Bells,” and “Sleigh Ride.” Act II will settle right here at home in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains with those seasonal country and bluegrass hits including Dolly Parton and Kenny Roger’s “I’ll Be Home With Bells On,” and “Mary Did You Know.” A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas will feature everyone’s holiday favorites, finishing up with those two songs no Christmas show can be without, “O Holy Night” and “Joy to the World.”

Flat Rock Playhouse favorites from near and far will take the stage in this Christmas revue. Last seen in the Playhouse’s The Buddy Holly Story (Buddy) and the 2007 production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor (Joseph), Ben Hope will return to the Playhouse stage alongside wife, Katie Barton (past-apprentice at Flat Rock Playhouse). Having performed on Broadway and across the nation, Hope and Barton will bring exceptional musical prowess to the stage in A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas. Playhouse celebrities Scott Treadway and Preston Dyar will also take the stage alongside familiar faces that include: Erin Rubico (Marian, The Music Man), Maddie Franke (Lily St. Regis, Annie), Matthew Glover (Writer, Director and Choreographer), Claire Griffin (Chasing Rainbows; Glinda, The Wizard of Oz), Nathan Fister (2016 apprentice) and Blair Ely (2017 apprentice). Also in the ensemble, Kendra Jo Brook will make her Flat Rock Playhouse debut.

The cast of *A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas*.

This original revue, written, directed and choreographed by Matthew Glover (whose choreography, music direction and direction could be seen this season in The Little Mermaid, Charlie Brown and Pinkalicious, respectively), will present a cast of over 60 performers including the ensemble, local dancers from Pat’s School of Dance and the Flat Rock Playhouse Chorus, last seen in Music of the Night: The Songs of Andrew Lloyd Webber (also directed by Glover). A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas will feature Scenic Design by Dennis C. Maulden, Costume Design by Rebecca Conway, Lighting Design by CJ Barnwell, Sound Design by Kurt Conway, and Props by Paul Feraldi. Ethan Andersen will Music Direct, and Maddie Franke will assist Glover as Assistant Director/Choreographer. Adam Goodrum and Christopher Simpson will serve as Production Manager and Technical Director, respectively.

The Executive Producer of A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas is Pardee Hospital. Flat Rock Playhouse 2017 Sponsors include Mainstage Series Sponsor, Henderson County Tourism Development Authority; Opening Night Sponsor, BMW of Asheville; Official Transportation Sponsor, Hunter Automotive Group.

As a celebration of the season, this original holiday revue will be a delight for the whole family, enough to inspire Scrooge to deck the halls or cause the Grinch’s heart to grow more than three sizes in one day. Join the Vagabonds as The State Theatre of NC wishes A (“Merry”) Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas to all, “and to all a good night.”

TICKETS AND SCHEDULE

A Flat Rock Playhouse Christmas will run from November 25 – December 22 on the Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage in the Village of Flat Rock. Performances Wednesday and Thursday evenings (11/30, 12/20 & 12/21) at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8pm, and Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoons at 2pm (matinée). Tickets are available for $15 – $50 and can be purchased by calling the Playhouse Box Office at 828-693-0731 or online at www.flatrockplayhouse.org. Flat Rock Playhouse is located at 2661 Greenville Hwy, Flat Rock, NC 28731.

Another opportunity for holiday fun at Flat Rock Playhouse, The Studio 52 Family Series production of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever will run at this time, from November 30 – December 17, at the Playhouse Downtown.

FLAT ROCK PLAYHOUSE

In 1937, a group of struggling performers, led by Robroy Farquhar, organized themselves as the Vagabond Players. The Vagabonds worked in a variety of places over the course of three years, and in 1940 found themselves in the Blue Ridge region of WNC. The local and tourist community welcomed them with open arms when they presented their first summer season of plays in a 150-year-old grist mill they converted into The Old Mill Playhouse at Highland Lake. So successful was that summer, they returned in 1941. After WWII, the Vagabond Players reorganized came back to the region and opened a playhouse in nearby Lake Summit. The Lake Summit Playhouse thrived during the post-war years, and soon the Vagabond Players were looking for a larger and permanent home. In 1952, the troupe of performers, and a newly formed board of directors made an offer to buy an 8-acre lot in the Village of Flat Rock. This new home made the Vagabonds “locals, ” and a rented big top gave birth to Flat Rock Playhouse. As the beautiful Western Carolina region continued to grow, so did the Playhouse and in 1961, by Act of the NC General Assembly, Flat Rock Playhouse was officially designated The State Theatre of North Carolina. What began as a few weeks of summer performances in 1940 is now a nine-month season of plays including Broadway musicals, comedy, drama, and theatre for young audiences. The Playhouse’s dual mission of producing the performing arts and providing education in the performing arts includes a professional series; a summer and fall college apprentice and intern program; and Studio 52, family-focused programming that offers immersive, hands-on theatrical experiences for children in kindergarten through adults. Flat Rock Playhouse now hosts over 98,000 patrons annually and is a significant contributor to the local economy and the Arts in NC.