Virginia Repertory Theatre announces the opening Say Goodnight Gracie on Friday, September 20 at Hanover Tavern, 13181 Hanover Courthouse Road. The show runs through Sunday, November 3. This one-man bio play by Rupert Holmes celebrates the live, love and laughter of George Burns and Gracie Allen. In order to join his beloved wife in heaven, George must give the performance of his life. He looks back on his impoverished youth in New York, the day he met Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen, their chemistry and comic timing, their marriage and rise to the pinnacles of vaudeville, movies, radio and television, and his solo career after her death. Say Goodnight Gracie was nominated for a 2003 Tony Award for best play, and won the 2003-04 National Broadway Theatre Award for best play.
Chase Kniffen, Associate Artistic Director of Virginia Rep, and director of the show finds the script hilarious and touching. “George Burns is one of the world’s most beloved comedic icons. He optimizes a very special time in American entertainment and culture. Scott Wichmann is perfect for the role and we are thrilled to work with him again.” Kniffen’s directing credits include most recently Lyle, Lyle Crocodile, Madeline’s Christmas, and Cotton Patch Gospel for Virginia Rep and Next to Normal (2013 RTCC nomination for Best Musical Director) for Cadence Theatre Company in partnership with Virginia Rep. He won the 2010, 2011, and 2012 RTCC Award for Best Director of a Musical for his work on The Sound of Music, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and Spring Awakening.
Richmond favorite, Scott Wichmann, is known for his comic energy and versatility. He most recently co-starred in The Producers as Leo Bloom (2013 RTCC nomination for Best Actor in a Musical) for Virginia Rep last December after returning from Afghanistan from active duty in the Navy Reserves. Other Virginia Rep credits include Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Guys and Dolls, Fully Committed, the one-man adaptation of It’s a Wonderful Life, and many others.
Direction & Design
Direction Chase Kniffen
Scenic Design Terrie Powers
Lighting Design K. Jenna Ferree
Costume Design Sue Griffin and Marcia Miller-Hailey
Cast List
George Burns Scott Wichmann*
* Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the U.S.A.
Ticket Information
Box Office 804-282-2620
www.va-rep.org
Full Price Tickets: $38
Discounted Group Rates and Rush tickets available.
U-Tix for college and high school students $10. Available day of show by phone or in person. Student ID required.
Evening performances at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Matinee performances at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday and select Wednesdays and Saturdays
About Virginia Repertory Theatre
Virginia Repertory Theatre, located in Richmond, VA, combines the talents and strengths of two nonprofit companies that shared facilities, resources, and management teams for over a decade. Now the heritages of Barksdale Theatre (founded in 1953) and Theatre IV (founded in 1975) live on in their new form, as Central Virginia’s leading professional theater company. Virginia Rep presents national caliber productions of the great dramas, comedies, and musicals as well as classics, contemporary works, and world premieres, always seeking to demonstrate the unique power of theater to engage, enthrall, educate, and inspire. Productions are staged at four distinct venues: the Sara Belle and Neil November Theatre and Theatre Gym at the downtown Virginia Rep Center, Virginia Rep’s Children’s Theatre of Virginia located at Willow Lawn, and at Hanover Tavern, home to Virginia Rep’s Barksdale Season.
Sponsorship
Partial funding is provided by the Virginia Commission for the Arts, The National Endowment for the Arts, the Shubert Foundation, and the Supply Room. Media sponsorship is provided by Richmond Times-Dispatch, Community Idea Stations, and Richmond.com.
