Sci-fi, rock n’ roll and honky tonk take over as CenterStage presents two cabaret-style shows, both opening during the same week.
Patsy Cline: A Life in Concert and The Rocky Horror Show bring a lightening nostalgia home to Louisville as they relive the past at CenterStage.
Patsy Cline: A Life in Concert, presented by Hilliard Lyons, brings the nation’s music icon and sweetheart right to the heart of CenterStage beginning Wednesday, May 11 at 7:30 p.m. For the fourth time in CenterStage history, Melissa Kenney Shepherd delivers a one-woman tribute to country music legend, Patsy Cline, but this time will be like no other.
With the revamped show, the audience can expect to hear eight additional songs, see brand new costumes, and meet a few musical guests. Kentucky honky-tonk performer, Mike Fryman, will complement Kenney as the two re-create the musical life of Cline; a woman who transcended into a female icon who was mentioned in the same breath as Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley.
Feel a part of the show in cabaret-style seating in Kenney’s foot-stomping concert that re-creates Cline’s rich and emotionally driven sound that birthed modern day country music. Fall into your loved one’s arms and swing to Cline’s biggest hits like “Crazy,” or the flirty tunes of “Walkin’ After Midnight,” and even the sensual sounds of “Leavin’ On Your Mind.”
Kenney said she’s particularly excited about this show and to deliver the spunk and spirit that made Cline’s fans love her.
“I am coming back to this show 12 years older than Patsy when she died. I am excited to introduce new musicians and to have a guest artist. For me this show is always a joy but the songs have a deeper meaning now that I personally have more life experience to apply to the telling of each song’s story,” she said.
Kenney keeps Cline’s spirit alive in this incredible, theatrical and foot-stomping experience. Patsy Cline: A Life in Concert opens on Wednesday, May 11 and runs through Sunday, May 22.
CenterStage brings The Rocky Horror Show back to Louisville for the first time in 20 years. This campy musical delivers a satirical perspective of the science fiction films between the 1940s and ‘70s. The coupling of rock n’ roll with this musical horror parody has owned stages from the West End in London to Broadway.
It is sure to be a blast with late showings and included show kits with newspaper, party hats, toast and playing cards to throw out during the show. It tells the story of a naïve and newly engaged couple, Brad and Janet, who get a flat tire while driving in a rainstorm.
Brad and Janet’s lives are forever changed as they witness spooky things and are even seduced under the influence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter. J Arts & Ideas invites the public to dress up, enjoy a cash bar and be a guest in Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s castle.
Written and produced by actor Richard O’Brien, who was jobless at the time, The Rocky Horror Show first opened in 1973 at the Royal Court Theatre and won the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical. It was adapted into The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a movie which starred O’Brien and became the longest-running release in film history.
Don’t miss your chance to welcome The Rocky Horror Show back to Louisville and to sing and dance as your favorite characters come to life. The show opens Thursday, May 12 at 7:30 p.m. and lasts through Sunday, May 22 at 7 p.m. All showings of The Rocky Horror Show will be about 90 minutes long. Both Patsy Cline: A Life in Concert and The Rocky Horror Show feature a live orchestra. Reserve your group’s table today.
CenterStage Artistic Director, John Leffert, said he chose Patsy Cline and The Rocky Horror Show with The J’s audience at the forefront of his mind.
“They are fun and we knew the audience would love them. These shows are the perfect two shows to close this season,” Leffert said. He said this will be the first time he’s directed The Rocky Horror Show but that it reminds him of Saturday nights in St. Matthews at the Vogue.
“This is my fourth Patsy Cline show with Melissa, who happens to be one of my best friends. To take this journey with her once is a blessing but to take it four times is a dream,” Leffert said.Tickets are $20 in advance or $22 at the door and can be purchased over the phone by calling 502-459-0660 or online at www.CenterStageJCC.org.