McGRATHPR.com – Saving the best of its summer season for last, Deertrees Theatre, Maine’s most enchanting playhouse, presents Duncan MacMillon’s critically acclaimed play “Every Brilliant Thing,” Friday and Saturday, August 26 and 27, 7:30 pm, and on Sunday, August 28, 3 pm. The production stars Mary Beth Murphy in the one-person show, directed by David Costa, sponsored by Jane Curran and Gail Bowen. The following week, spanning Labor Day weekend, Deertrees presents a one-hour version of the musical “The Marvelous Wonderettes ‘58,” from Friday through Sunday, September 2, 3 and 4, 7:30 pm. The work is created by Roger Bean, and the production is directed by Gail Phaneuf, with choreography by Katie Mebane Harvey and music direction by Eric Johnson, sponsored by Garvey Construction and Chalmers Realty. Deertrees has been serving the Greater Maine region, at 156 Deertrees Road, Harrison, since 1936 offering an eclectic summer season of entertainment, featuring theatrical productions and comedies, family shows, concerts annually from June through early September. Tickets are available at deertrees-theatre.org.
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Acclaim for “Every Brilliant Thing”
Play Nominations: Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Solo Performance;
Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Solo Show
Production Nominations: DASH Awards, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Production
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Duncan MacMillon’s critically acclaimed play “Every Brilliant Thing” is a life-affirming story about the strength inside all of us and how to delight in the everyday. This heart-warming, one-person show tells the story of a woman who started a list of “brilliant things about the world” as a little girl to ease her mother’s depression. She continues the list as an adult, and discovers it has a great impact on her life. Enlisting the audience to tell the story, witness how “Every Brilliant Thing” shares how to achieve hope by focusing on life’s smallest miracles, and pulls back the curtain on the lengths we go to for those we love. “Every Brilliant Thing” is much more than a play, according to Director David Costa. “It’s an interactive, theatrical experience that shines a light on one of the most powerful things we can do – focus on all the positive things in our lives, rather than the negative. Audiences experience a very special performance, leaving the theater uplifted and with the reminder that there are many brilliant facets of life to celebrate” Performed in Massachusetts earlier this year, the production earned several nominations from the Eastern Massachusetts Association of Community Theater’s Distinguished Achievement and Special Honors (DASH) Awards, with the recipients anticipated to be announced in late August.
“The Marvelous Wonderettes ‘58” takes the audience to the 1958 Springfield High School prom, where they meet The Wonderettes – four girls (in perfect harmony) with hopes and dreams as big as their crinoline skirts! As we learn about their lives and loves, the girls perform classic ‘50s songs including “Lollipop,” “Dream Lover,” “Stupid Cupid,” “Lipstick on Your Collar,” “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me,” and other classic hits! You’ve never had this much fun at a prom, a must-take musical trip down memory lane, a delightful one-hour version of the smash Off-Broadway hit. The production features actors Frankie Johnson, Jessica Banegas, Liz Casper and Nicole Essien.
Tickets to “Every Brilliant Thing” are $26, seating is limited to Salt Lick Café cabaret space capacity. Patrons will be seated on stage and in the Art Gallery, limited to 70-seat capacity. Please note that “Every Brilliant Thing” explores topics related to depression and suicide. Tickets to “The Marvelous Wonderettes ‘58” are $26. All ticket prices include a $2 Heritage Fee that supports the ongoing restoration and improvements of the Deertrees Theatre. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit deertrees-theatre.org, email gail@deertrees.org, call 207-583-6747 or follow Deertrees Theatre on Facebook and Instagram.
About Deertrees Theatre
Founded in 1936 as an opera house, Deertrees Theatre was built on the site of an old deer run in the forest above the village of Harrison, Maine. Constructed of rose hemlock in the Adirondack style with hand carved fixtures and near perfect acoustics, the theatre has long been home to Broadway-quality entertainment.
Now listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, the non-profit Deertrees Theatre presents an eclectic offering of theatrical productions and comedies, family entertainment, and a variety of musical concerts during the quintessential summer theater season annually from late June through early September. As a most active performing arts venue of the Northeast, Deertrees is home to the Sebago-Long Lake Music Festival on Tuesday evenings in July, The Backstage Art Gallery featuring the works of local artists, and The Salt Lick Café, offering cabaret acts, small bites, beer and wine.
Deertrees Theatre is located at 156 Deertrees Road, Harrison, Maine. For more information, visit deertrees-theatre.org, email gail@deertrees.org, or follow Deertrees Theatre on Facebook and Instagram.
