Shirley Valentine Closes

Shirley Valentine closed with a final stunning performance by star Cheryl Willis on Sunday, March 20th. Cheryl has been the toast of the town for the past six weeks, the box office phone has been ringing off the hook – one would be hard put to find an audience member who was not totally enchanted and delighted by this incredible performance. 

photo by Michal Daniel

Closing night also happened to be Cheryl’s birthday (which one? not from my lips!). Her husband, C. Andrew Mayer (who also happens to be a Jungle Sound Designer), and I hosted a birthday bash in the lobby after the show to celebrate. Food, drink, three birthday cakes (one a cherry-chocolate sheet cake made by Cheryl’s mother-in law, Jewel Mayer, who gave a lovely toast to the birthday girl at evening’s end), sandwiches assembled by Cheryl’s two sisters, Patsy and Debby, who flew in from hometown Liverpool just for the show (Cheryl herself hails from the home of Beatle-mania) to support their uber talented sister. The party (to which the entire audience was invited!) went on until well after midnight!

The next day when I arrived at the theater at nine in the morning, the crew had already disassembled the Greek Island of Santorini and the huge void of the stage loomed once again, expectant, awaiting Joel’s set for Next Fall, which opens Friday, April 8. This touching and funny play, the talk-of-the-town in New York last year, is receiving its local premiere at the Jungle. Order you tickets now—you will love it.

Bye for now. One more storm – then SPRING!

Beautiful Changes at the Jungle

The weather is warming up—how beautiful is that?! April is almost here and before we know it spring will be coming in!

Those of you who have driven by the Jungle at night have undoubtedly noticed the glowing red awnings on the newly refurbished façade of the Jungle. Isn’t it stunning now the Jungle Theater sign has been raised up to the top of the building? Inside, for those of you who were fortunate enough to see Cheryl Willis’s superb portrayal of Shirley Valentine, you have also seen the redecorated Jungle auditorium with the deep red and antique gold panels in the walls and the red velvet curtains in the arches—all of which makes our auditorium one of the most inviting, welcoming and comforting rooms in town! 

AND in May, as soon as the spring is truly here, we will begin painting a gorgeous mural (designed by artist Betsy Cole) on the outside wall of the back of the theater:  30-foot tall red hibiscus flutes surrounded by branches of huge white plumeria blossoms, and all in celebration of the theater’s 21st birthday. So come on down, see a show and experience one of the most exquisite theater renewals in town!

And speaking of, next up on this year’s superlative Jungle season is director Joel Sass’s fabulous production of Next Fall, featuring veteran actor Stephen Yoakam along with several fantastic new faces. Joel has designed a stunning set, and the play itself is a stunner. I know you will find this experience unusually rich, moving, humorous and heartwarming.

If you don’t have season tickets, buy a three-play package and save up to 20% on tickets. You deserve great theater all year and the Jungle will not disappoint: play after play, season after season, the quality of the work on the Jungle stage just keeps getting better and better, show after show, year after year. And, believe me, it’s all for YOU. The Jungle is YOUR neighborhood theater!