Visit France in ‘American in Paris’
Lowell Memorial Auditorium brings “An American in Paris” to its audience at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 17, in a nationally touring production that will transport you to post-World War II Paris.
The show, says its esteemed choreographer/ associate director Bob Richard, wasn’t written to pay homage to Gene Kelly, the well-regarded dancer-actor who starred in the 1951 movie.
“The movie doesn’t go into the depths of the liberation that went on in Paris and Europe after the war,” Richard said in a recent interview from his Pennsylvania country home.
When he staged this national tour, he noted, “there wasn’t a war going on in Ukraine.”
But that realization has colored how he looks at this remarkable, dance-influenced show.
“Out of war and oppression, art still survives,” he said. “In the show the artist survives and comes to life. She inspires him to do his art and inspired him and others to follow their dreams.”
Richard has several credits at North Shore Music Theater in Beverly including the upcoming “Little Shop of Horrors” in the fall. He has been a theater pro for over 40 years, ever since he was cut from the basketball team at age 16, joined an afterschool dance class and never looked back. His many credits include “Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,” “Peter Pan” and “The Music Man.”
“An American in Paris” is a special show, he noted.
“Due to the pandemic, we closed the tour in
March 2020 after two months. But the dancers wanted to come back, and Big League revived it. There is nothing like being in the room with the dancers,” he said.
For tickets, visit www. ticketsales.com/an-american-in-paris-tickets-lowell-memorial-auditorium/ event/3764873.
In the wings
Stepping up: Cannon Theatre brings the hilarious whodunit “39 Steps” to audiences May 13-22 at its new space at 28 Andrews Parkway in Devens. Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, then add a dash of Monty Python and you have this intriguing, thrilling, riotous and unmissable comedy. The show hurtles a notorious fugitive and spellbound blonde from a London music hall, north by northwest to Scotland’s most remote highlands. A cast of seven actors play over 100 characters in the fast-paced tale of an or
dinary guy on an extraordinary adventure. Performances May 13, 14, 20, 21 at 7:30 p.m. Matinees May 14, 15, 21, 22 at 2 p.m. For tickets, visit www.onthestage.tickets/show/thecannon-theatre/the-39steps- 62358.
A Hanover deal: Subscribe to Worcester’s Hanover Theater’s 202223 Broadway Series and save up to $96 on adult subscriptions and up to $240 on student subscriptions, including new shows never seen here like “Hadestown” and Disney’s “Aladdin.” You can also participate in Hanover’s interest-free payment plan options and defer payments to start June 15. New subscribers are entitled to complimentary tickets (one per subscription) to attend opening night of the Tony Award-winning Broadway hit “The Band’s Visit” on Thursday, June 16 at 7:30 p.m. Call 877-571-7469 for info and subscriptions.
A ‘ best’ at MRT: Story
teller Kevin Kling and musician Rob Witmer turn in captivating performances in “Best Summer Ever,” Merrimack Repertory Theatre’s final show of the 2021-22 season, on through May 22 in MRT’S Liberty Hall home in downtown Lowell. Both guys are at
the top of their game in the energetic story-play about young Maurice, his funny, slightly weird family, and their simple escapades during one summer in the 1960s when life was simpler and kids amused themselves outdoors instead of on their phones.
It’s simple, funny, and poignant, too. A highly interactive, fun night of theater. Masks required. Tickets and info at www.mrt. org.