Special to 1812Blockhouse
Rehearsals are well underway and live theatre is finally back at the Renaissance Theatre. The hit Broadway musical, Hairspray is set to delight audiences with unforgettable singing, dancing, and hilarious characters, July 31 and August 7 at 8:00 PM and August 1 and 8 at 2:30 PM, on the main stage at the Renaissance Theatre, 138 Park Avenue West in Mansfield.
It’s Baltimore 1962, and plus-sized teen, Tracy Turnblad, is delighted to find herself as the newest dance sensation on the local rock and roll dance program, The Corny Collins Show. But when Tracy discovers that the show is segregated, she finds herself on the front lines of the battle for equality and acceptance.
Leading the cast is Izzi Robles as Tracy Turnblad. A recent graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia, Izzi most recently performed at the Ren as Anita in the Mansfield Symphony concert version of West Side Story. More…
Special to 1812Blockhouse
This weekend, the cast of Mamma Mia! The Musical returns to the Renaissance Theatre for an unforgettable reunion. With most of the original leading cast members from the sold out 2019 production, this outdoor concert is going to be a smash-hit!
The concert will feature original cast members such as former Miss Ohio 2018: Matti-Lynn Chrisman, Kristin Kaufman, Katie Harrigan, Maddie Penwell, Leah Gesouras, Ryan Shreve, George Swarn, Drew Owens, Beau Roberts, and Colton Penwell. Joining the original cast are Mansfield native and educator, Scott Smith, as well as Izzi Robles, a performing artist from Georgia.
Robles joins the cast of Mamma Mia!, and will star as Tracy Turnblad in the Renaissance Theatre’s 2021 Summer musical, Hairspray. More…
Last weekend, the Renaissance Theatre opened it’s doors with a live in-person production of Little Shop of Horrors the Musical. While theaters across the world are just starting to open back up, the Renaissance Theatre has been at the forefront for producing live events safely during a global pandemic.
Little Shop of Horrors the musical features a star studded cast of professional actors from all around Ohio, such as Ryan Shreve, Emma Skaggs, Condrea Webber, Leiah Lewis, Antonio Brown, Scott Smith, and Beau Roberts. This production is unlike any version of Little Shop of Horrors you might have seen before. Directed by Ryan Shealy, and musical direction by Kelly Knowlton, this is one hilarious show you don’t want to miss. More…
Special to 1812Blockhouse
We recently shared with our readers information about Heartaches: The Music of Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, presented by the Renaissance Theatre and available for viewing starting on April 1.
That story can be accessed by clicking below.
By 1812Blockhouse
The Theatre Department of The Ohio State University at Mansfield is offering just what the doctor ordered for its Spring 2021 production.
It’s going to make you chuckle.
As the notices shared, “After the year we’ve had, we all need a laugh.”
The antidote to the pandemic blues will be short ten minute comedies written directly for a remote audience and featuring both students and community members. More…
Special to 1812Blockhouse
The Renaissance Theatre’s popular production of Always…Patsy Cline, starring Kelly Knowlton, is set to be filmed by the new division of the Renaissance Theatre, Ren Studios, for at-home streaming. The musical will premiere Saturday, March 13th with additional performances on Saturday, March 20th and 27th.
Since its premiere at the Renaissance, Always…Patsy Cline has proven to be a sold-out hit, time after time. It has been revived three times since the original production in 2010. Starring Kelly Knowlton as Patsy, and Miss Ohio 2020, Caroline Grace Williams as her “biggest fan”, Louise Sager, the show contains such Patsy Cline standards as I Fall To Pieces, Sweet Dreams, Walkin After Midnight, You Belong to Me, Back in Baby’s Arms and the immortal, Crazy. More…
Special to 1812Blockhouse
The Renaissance Theatre and Mansfield Symphony announce virtual auditions for the 2021 West Side Story in Concert which will take place live on stage March 20 at the Renaissance Theatre. Auditions are open to performers ages 16 or older. All diversities are encouraged to submit as the Renaissance maintains a policy of ethnically appropriate casting.
Seeking to fill the following roles: More…
Special to 1812Blockhouse
On Monday, The Ohio State University at Mansfield announced its Spring 2021 Theatre plans. Comic Shorts, will provide audiences an opportunity to smile and laugh. These entertaining and fun online performances will feature comedy shorts and will be presented free to the public at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 25 and Friday, March 26.
Auditions for Comic Shorts will take place on January 25 and 26 from 6 to 8 PM. There are multiple parts available and members of the community are welcome to audition. All rehearsals will take place virtually.
More information on auditions and how audiences can view performances are available at https://mansfield.osu.edu/theatre.
By 1812Blockhouse
Through our “Literary Mansfield” series, we take occasional looks at the lives and careers of those who have called Mansfield home at some point in their lives, and who have become known locally, regionally, or even nationally as authorst, poets, lyricisits, playwrights, or in other literary fields. Other posts in the series can be found here.
Today’s subject is one of those with a national reputation as well as being a native Mansfielder. And, if you have ever heard and enjoyed songs like “Put On a Happy Face” or “Applause,” you are in his debt.
Lee Adams was born in 1924 and grew up locally, graduating from Mansfield Senior before going on to The Ohio State University and Columbia University. More…
Featured, Literary Mansfield, Mansfield Senior High School, Plays and Musicals
Renaissance Performing Arts is pleased to announce the addition of an at-home streaming option for their production of Cinderella: The Broadway Musical. Cinderella will be performed on the Renaissance stage November 13-14 and 20-21 at 8:00 PM, and November 15 and 22 at 2:30 PM, with at-home streaming available beginning November 16.
Originally written as a televised special in the mid-1950s, it starred Julie Andrews. The version being used by the Renaissance, which opened on Broadway in 2013, has a vastly rewritten script that retains the magic and tradition of the original story while expanding on themes of finding your voice, self-confidence, and the power of love, compassion, and kindness. It’s a story with a strong female character who isn’t just a two-dimensional cardboard princess focused on physical beauty, but rather a self-empowered woman whose empathy and determination are the qualities that endear her to the prince. More…
Renaissance Performing Arts Association will open their 2020-2021 Season with the Broadway classic, Cabaret, October 2-3 and 9-10 at 8:00 PM and October 4 and 11 at 2:30 PM in the Renaissance Theatre. The show is directed by Ryan Shealy with Musical Direction by Jacob Poiner, and is part of the Park National Bank Broadway Series.
Based on a 1939 novel by Christopher Isherwood and a 1951 play by John Van Druten, Cabaret features music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. More…
The Renaissance Theatre has added three August shows to its summer drive-in series called the ‘Ren Backlot.’ These installations consist of film screenings, sing-alongs, and live performances featuring local talent in the back parking lot of the theatre; food trucks and concessions are often on-site.
The added shows are Newsies: In Concert, You Can’t Stop the Beat: The Best of the Ren Broadway Series and Ain’t Misbehavin’, which are all part of the Avita Innovation Concert Series.
Newsies: In Concert will take place on August 7 and 8 at 9:00 PM. One of the Ren’s biggest hits returns in a concert version, reuniting original cast members and featuring video and photo footage from the Renaissance’s 2018 production. More…
By 1812Blockhouse
This year we’re continuing our weekly look at unique events and attractions that are within an easy driving distance of Richland County. We call these “Summer Road Trips.” Of course, we regularly feature the many extraordinary places to visit right here in Richland County and encourage our readers to get out and experience what is on offer in our own backyard.
The unique kind of summer Ohio is experiencing has meant that trips and vacations have been kept a bit closer to home, and many are emphasizing outdoor experiences.
The Ohio Shakespeare Festival is doing something important this summer — it is making works of the great bard available both in person and online. More…
By: 1812Blockhouse; Renaissance Performing Arts Association release
It seems like a long, long time ago. On March 13, we carried the sad tidings that the Renaissance Theatre was making the first cancellations of its live events.
In the weeks which have followed, the creative folks at the Renaissance have been extremely busy — first with introducing new online programming such as the QuaRENtine Creations and Classroom Sessions, and then with planning an outdoor musical together with a series of moves under the stars in the Ren Backlot.
The time has come for the theatre to reopen, and on Wednesday the Renaissance Performing Arts Association shared the following release detailing its plans for that process as it applies to the health of patrons, performers, and backstage staff: More…
Featured, Plays and Musicals, Public Health, Renaissance Theatre
Renaissance Performing Arts is pleased to announce the cast for their upcoming summer production of Cinderella: The Broadway Musical, part of the Park National Broadway Series. Caroline Grace Williams, Miss Ohio 2019, leads the company in the role of Ella. Supporting her are Ren favorites, Ryan Shreve as Topher, Condrea Webber as Madame, Deon Taylor as Lord Pinkleton, Scott Smith as Sebastian, Kelly Knowlton as Marie, Anna Scheurer as Gabrielle, Jaren Baer as Jean-Michel and Leah Gesouras as Charlotte. On Sunday, August 2 and Friday, August 7, McKenna Stoffer and Daniel Kenner will play the roles of Ella and Topher. More…
