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Second Show at Pioneer Playhouse Opens with a Bang!  

Pioneer Playhouse of Danville opens the second show of its 74th season, Farce of Nature, with a bang on Tuesday, July 4th.  

“It’s a little unusual starting on July 4th,” admits Heather Henson, managing director of the theatre her father, Col. Eben C. Henson, founded in 1950. “There will definitely be some fireworks in the background, but that’s just part of the charm of outdoor theatre.”  

Farce of Nature, penned by the writing team of Jones, Hope, and Wooten, will run Tuesdays through Saturdays, July 4 through July 22. The comedy is set in a family-run fishing lodge in the Ozarks that’s seen better days. Enter a bungling cop on witness protection duty and a couple of Chicago wise guys, and business definitely starts to pick up.  

“What’s hilarious is that each character has their own agenda,” says Heather. “The married couple that owns the inn, played by fan favorites, Patricia Hammond and Daniel Hall Kuhn, are keeping secrets from each, and then one crazy character after another shows up, each with something fishy up their sleeves.”  

Beside Hammond and Kuhn, the play stars Erika Lee Sengstack, Peyton White, and Jack Giglia who all appeared in the first show of the season, Blood Suede Shoes. Joining the cast will be veterans of the Playhouse stage, Rita Hight and Eric Seale. New to the roster is Jonny Maldonado.  

“We worked with Jonny in New York City this past fall during our Voices Inside festival of short plays by incarcerated writers,” says Robby Henson, brother to Heather, and artistic director of Pioneer Playhouse. “He’s a terrific actor, and we’re lucky he was able to join us.”  

Maldonado, a lifelong resident of the Lower East Side of Manhattan, teaches theatre at City College of New York and performs regularly at The People’s Improv in NYC.  

“I’m happy to get out of the hustle and bustle of the city and come to this lovely state that I’ve never been to before,” says Maldonado. “I laughed so many times as I first read the script, and have been laughing even harder now that it’s coming to life.”  

Director Jennifer Goff, an associate professor and director of the theatre program at Centre College, returns for her third show having previously directed Southern Fried Funeral and Southern Fried Nuptials, two hugely popular comedies with Playhouse audiences.  

“It’s been such a blast being back this summer!” says Goff. “Farce of Nature is so silly, and the cast and I have had a great time leaning into the wild comedy of it. We have laughed a lot over our rehearsal process – and we can’t wait to pass that fun along to the audience!”  

“We love working with Jen, and we love partnering with Centre College on sponsoring this play,” says Heather. “Centre College is a terrific supporter of the arts in Danville.”  

Pioneer Playhouse is located at 840 Stanford Road in Danville. The brand-new optional pre-show dinner gives patrons a choice of Beef au Jus or BBQ Chicken Breast plus sides. Prices for dinner and show are $36; $20 for show only. Discounts for kids and groups are available. Tickets may be purchased online at pioneerplayhouse.com or by calling the box office at 859-236-2747.

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Announcing our 72nd season in the Bluegrass…

A little different, but still the same uniquely Kentucky experience you’ve come to love! 

Three Plays + One Comedy Weekend + One Music Weekend = Fun under the Stars!

Clue: On Stage
Adapted from the Paramount Pictures film written by Jonathan Lynn, and the board game from Hasbro, Inc.
June 11 – July 3  — Three week run!
Kentucky premiere! Straight from Broadway!

It’s a dark and stormy night, and you’ve been invited to a most unusual dinner party! You’re given an alias, a choice of weapons, and the host is, well, dead! So…whodunnit? And more importantly, who’s next? Join iconic oddballs Scarlet, Plum, White, Green, Peacock, and Mustard as they race to find the murderer before the body count at Boddy Manor stacks up!  Rated PG.

Southern Fried Funeral
By Osborne and Eppler
July 6 – July 24 – Three week run!

Dewey Frye is dead, and the rest of his family is left to pick up the pieces – if they don’t kill each other first! Not only must Dorothy Frye deal with sudden widowhood, she must also contend with a snake-in-the-grass brother-in-law, a nosy church lady, and a couple of grown daughters who’ve decided to act like toddlers. Funerals bring out the worst, the best…and the funniest in people! A big-hearted comedy about family – Southern style! Rated G.

Jeeves in Bloom
Adapted by Margaret Raether 
from the stories of PG Wodehouse
July 27 – August 7  — Two week run!

The quiet English countryside will never be the same after Bertie Wooster and his unflappable butler, Jeeves, pay a visit! What starts as a plan to play matchmaker for a tongue-tied, newt-loving friend goes hilariously wrong. Soon Bertie is fending off unwanted amorous advances, a bungling burglary, and a homicidal French chef! Can the one and only Jeeves save the day? A delightfully silly and high-energy comedy!
Rated G.

Plus…

Special Stand-Up Comedy Weekend starring Joe Deuce and Friends!
August 13 & 14

New! Live Music Weekend!

Powerplay 
August 20
A night of Rock n’ Soul with Horns! High energy band playing your favorite songs from the 60’s and 70’s! Don’t forget your dancing shoes!

Elvis Under the Stars!
August 21
A very special evening with Elvis Tribute Artist Barry Lockard (Breaking Up with Elvis) and friends! Channeling the King and paying homage to the Rupp Arena “concert that never was.” 

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Etta May Brings Historic Season to a Comic Close!

Pioneer Playhouse of Danville has been celebrating a stellar 70 years in the Bluegrass this summer with five main stage productions, and will now close its historic season with a special stand-up comedy weekend starring iconic comedienne, Etta May.

“Etta May’s back, and better than ever,” says Heather Henson, daughter of Pioneer Playhouse founder Eben C. Henson and acting managing director of the official Kentucky Landmark. “My sister, the late Holly Henson, was friends with Etta May, and so we always feel like Etta is part of the Playhouse family.”

Originally from Kentucky, Etta May is hugely successful in both her home state and across the country. Hailed as the “Polyester Princess” and the “reigning queen of Southern Sass,” Etta May is the winner of the prestigious American Comedy Awards “Comic of the Year,” and has appeared on Oprah, Showtime, CMT, CBS Morning America, ABC, and NBC. She headlines the nationally popular Southern Fried Chicks Comedy Tour, and she boasts an enormous fan base with the Sirius-XM comedy channels.

“There’s no one like Etta May,” says Heather, “and we’re thrilled to have her at the Playhouse to finish off our 70thanniversary with a bang.”

Opening for Etta May will be Meg Mark, who hails from New York City, and Terron Young, a Lexington, Kentucky native.

“Pioneer Playhouse regulars will know Meg from being one of the two-actor cast of our season-ender Red, White and Tuna,” says Henson. “She played lots of different characters in that show and was just hilarious.”

“Meg started out at the Playhouse twelve years ago,” says Robby Henson, brother to Heather and artistic director of Kentucky’s oldest outdoor theatre. “She was in our first Kentucky Voices play, A Jarful of Fireflies, which was about the making of MGM classic, Raintree County in Danville. And she came back and made audiences laugh again in Dracula Bitesand Bottoms Up.”

As a stand-up comic, Meg Mark produces and hosts the Jokes at Jacks Comedy Show and is the weekly host of the Northern Lights Open Mic at QED, both in New York City. 

Pioneer Playhouse audiences will remember Terron Young from last year’s Kentucky All-Stars Comedy Tour starring Lee Cruse.

“Terron was one of the finalists last year, and we just really liked his material,” says Robby, “so we asked him back.”

Terron Young was voted Lexington’s Funniest Comic in 2015, and won the 2017 Walmart Associate Talent Search, where he had the opportunity to perform in front of a crowd of 14,000 and share the stage with Kevin Hart.

“I think it’s a really strong comic trio this year,” says Robby.  “We wanted to end our big 70th on a high note, and that’s just what we’re doing.”

The Pioneer Playhouse Special Comedy Weekend starring Etta May is sponsored by AARP of Kentucky. Card-carrying members receive a 50 percent discount by showing their card at the box-office window.

“AARP of Kentucky” is a new sponsor for us this year, and we’re just thrilled to be working with them,” says Heather Henson. “They’re a terrific organization, and I know all the comics will enjoy some good-natured ribbing of the ‘senior’ audience members. It’s going to be a fun show.”

Showtime for the Comedy Nights will be 8:00 pm, which means dinner is served at 7:00 pm for these two nights only (August 23 and 24).

A home-cooked BBQ dinner featuring pulled pork or pulled chicken, parmesan roasted potatoes, coleslaw, cornbread, and fruit cobbler is available.

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A Hilarious Helping of Tuna Closes Historic Season!

Pioneer Playhouse, Kentucky’s oldest outdoor theatre, ends its regular 2019 play season with Red, White and Tuna, a hilarious comedy set in the fictional “third smallest town” in Texas, which is populated by an eccentric cast of characters, all connected through the airwaves of the hometown radio station, OKKK and its DJs, Arles Struvie’s and Thurston Wheelis’ constant comment on local happenings.

“The plays work as a series, but they’re also complete stand-alones,” says Heather Henson, managing director of Pioneer Playhouse, which has been celebrating 70 years in the Bluegrass this summer. “Don’t worry if you haven’t seen the other plays. It doesn’t matter at all. Each play has its own plot, its own big event that the residents of Tuna, Texas are all worked up about.”

Red, White and Tuna was written by a team of playwrights, Ed Howard, Joe Sears, and Jaston Williams, and is the third in a series of four “Tuna” plays which are both an affectionate look and satirical comment on Southern small-town life and attitudes. Pioneer Playhouse has previously presented two of the “Tuna” plays in years past: Greater Tuna and Tuna Does Vegas.

As the title suggests, Red, White and Tuna is set in the week leading up to the big Fourth of July celebration, which happens to coincide with the big Tuna High School reunion. Both events have all the Tuna townsfolk in an increasingly frenzied state of anticipation.

As with all the “Tuna” plays, two actors play the entire ensemble of kooky residents in a rapid-fire series of quick-change scenes and costumes.

“If you’ve been coming to the Playhouse for a while then you know actor, Daniel Hall Kuhn,” says Robby Henson, artistic director of Pioneer Playhouse. “He’s a fan favorite, and audiences always ask when he’s coming back. Well, he’s back with a vengeance in this one.”

“Daniel was one of the two actors the last time we did a ‘Tuna’ play,” says Heather. “He was in Tuna Does Vegas, and audiences loved him. They couldn’t stop laughing at all the different characters – both men and women – he played.”

“And this time we’re doing something a little different,” adds Robby. “We have Daniel back, but we are changing things up a bit, and having an actress play the other traditionally male role.”

Meg Mark, who debuted at Pioneer Playhouse over ten years ago in Pioneer Playhouse’s very first “Kentucky Voices” production, A Jarful of Fireflies by local writer Catherine Bush, returns to the historic stage to play opposite Kuhn in the demanding 20-odd character comedy.

“Meg was here when she was just starting out,” says Heather.  “And she returned about seven years ago, and audiences loved her in Dracula Bites and Picasso at the Lapin Agile. She’s been working in New York City, acting and doing stand-up comedy. She’s funny, with great energy and crazy comedic timing. We’re incredibly lucky to have her return.”

“It’ll be fun to see Daniel Hall Kuhn and Meg Mark working together again,” says Robby. “These are two actors at the very top of their game. You’re not going to want to miss one.”

Red, White and Tuna is directed by Drew Davidson. It opens on August 6 and runs through August 17, nightly, Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8:30 pm. A home-cooked BBQ dinner featuring pulled pork or pulled chicken, parmesan roasted potatoes, coleslaw, cornbread, and fruit cobbler is available at 7:30 before the show. Reservations are suggested for the play; required for dinner.

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Pioneer Playhouse’s 70th season continues with swingin’ 60s London comedy

Pioneer Playhouse continues its 70th season under the stars with Not Now, Darling, a fast-paced comedy set in swinging 1960’s London.

The plot of Not Now Darling, written by Ray Cooney and John Chapman, centers around a London shop that sells top-end fur coats. One of the owners of the shop, Gilbert Bodley (Drew Sutherland) plans to sell an expensive mink to London mobster Harry (Eric Hedlund), dirt cheap for his wife, Janie (Katherine Rose Reardon.) Janie is actually Gilbert’s mistress, and he wants to “close the deal.”  But instead of doing his own dirty work, he gets his nerdy, reluctant partner, Arnold Crouch (Forrest Loeffler) to do it for him. Things start to go awry when Harry tries to buy the same mink at the same low price for his own mistress, Miss Lawson (Bailey Angel.)

“We’re going for ‘retro’ here,” says Heather Henson, managing director of Pioneer Playhouse, which her father, Eben C. Henson, founded and which is Kentucky’s oldest outdoor theater. “It’s an old-fashioned farce with lots of door-slamming and mistaken identity. It’s something like the comedy Boeing Boeing, which patrons absolutely loved when we did it a few years ago. Just a lot of running around and silly situations.”

“It takes you back to swinging London,” says Heather’s brother, Robby, who is artistic director of the 70-year-old summer stock. “We always like doing plays with costumes from that era. It’s always stylized and over the top.”

“Lots of fur,” Heather adds, “since it’s about a salon that makes stylish fur coats. Of course, this isn’t the most popular play with our actors — we’re asking them to wear fur in the middle of summer! But the fun thing is, they’re constantly taking the fur on and off, so I guess you could say, the fur really flies in this one,” Heather says with a smile.

Directing Not Now Darling is longtime Pioneer Playhouse favorite, Daniel Hall Kuhn, who is often seen on stage rather than behind the scenes.

“Daniel is a terrific director,” says Heather. “We thought he’d be great for this kind of crazy hi-jinks play, and then, of course, he’s staying on to star in our last show of the season, Red, White and Tuna.”

“Daniel has starred in our Tuna shows before, and audiences just love him,” says Robby, referencing the plays written by Ed Howard, Joe Sears, and Jason Williams, and all centered around a group of folks from Tuna, Texas, third smallest town in the Lonestar state. “Daniel and one other actor will be playing about 30 characters. Lots of quick costume changes!”

Not Now Darling opens July 23 and runs through August 3. Shows are nightly, Tuesdays through Saturdays, at 8:30. An optional home-cooked dinner of BBQ pulled pork or chicken is available at 7:30 before the show.

Reservations are suggested for the play; required for dinner. Price for dinner and show is $35; show only is $20.

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New “Kentucky Voices” Play Celebrates Elvis!

Pioneer Playhouse of Danville continues celebrating 70 years in the Bluegrass with Breaking Up With Elvis, a brand new “Kentucky Voices” play by artistic director and award-winning filmmakerRobby Henson.

Breaking Up With Elvis, which opens Tuesday, July 9 and runs through Saturday, July 20, tells the story of a woman named Hazel who goes AWOL on the day of her own husband’s funeral in Lexington, Kentucky, and ends up at the gates of Graceland, where she encounters a parade of quirky characters, including a possible mystical meeting with “the King” himself.

“The play was inspired by ‘the ghost concert,’” says Robby Henson. “Or the ‘Elvis concert that never was’ at Rupp Arena in 1977. Elvis died a week before he was set to perform in Lexington, and over 21,000 fans were heartbroken.”

According to an article in the Lexington Herald-Leader, published in August 2017, many of those fans never let go of their purchased Elvis tickets, which have become, in the decades since, a sacred souvenir.

“When I talk about the play, I’m always amazed at how many people say they still have their original tickets,” says Heather Henson, sister to Robby and managing director of Pioneer Playhouse. “I’ve read that there was a push by concert promoters to get all the tickets back so they could be refunded, but many people did not want to let go of their own little piece of Elvis.”

“Elvis was such a huge phenomenon in our culture,” says Robby Henson. “He came from such humble and hardscrabble beginnings and shot to mega-stardom. When you watch his early TV appearances and movies, you just instantly see what a talented, charismatic kid he was. He became so big, yet he never lost that ‘poor boy’ sensibility. He never lost his southern roots. I think southerners in particular, have a deep connection to Elvis. A lot of people felt that Elvis was one of ‘us,’ and that was part of his enormous appeal.”

“I loved Elvis,” says Patricia Hammond, who is a perennial favorite actor at Pioneer Playhouse, and who was an inspiration for the role of Hazel. “I was devastated when he died.”

“So many people I’ve spoken to remember exactly where they were the day Elvis died,” says Heather Henson. “It was a significant moment in their lives. And we’re asking folks to talk about that. There will be a time for audience members to get on stage during intermission and tell their Elvis story if they’d like. And original Elvis ticket holders will get fifty-percent off the price of the play.”

There will also be plenty of Elvis nostalgia, including nightly pre-show performances by two different Elvis Tribute Artists.

“We are very lucky to have two incredibly talented performers. Barry Lockard from Corbin, Kentucky, and Riley Jenkins from Tennessee,” says Heather Henson. “Barry will also be starring inBreaking Up With Elvis as ‘Big E,’ who — spoiler alert — may, or may not, be Elvis.’”

“We were really impressed with Barry when he came to meet with us to talk about doing a pre-show Elvis performance,” says Robby Henson. “We just felt he was perfect for the play, so we’re glad he was able to work us into his busy schedule.”

Barry Lockard is currently a Physical Therapist Assistant at a local nursing home. He began entertaining as Elvis five years ago after dressing up for Halloween and hasn’t looked back.

“I love performing and seeing smiles when the audience’s memories of ‘the King’ come rushing back,” says Lockard. “I also love performing for young folks, and introducing Elvis to a new generation to help keep his memory alive.”

One young man who already knows a lot about Elvis is Riley Jenkins, another Tribute Artist who will be performing for three nights at the historic theatre.

“We’re thrilled to have Riley Jenkins appear before the show as well,” says Heather Henson. “Riley is a 16-year-old who has traveled across the country to showcase the early days of Elvis.”

Breaking Up With Elvis, which is one of Pioneer Playhouse’s ongoing “Kentucky Voices” series celebrating Kentucky writers and history and culture, will begin at 8:30 pm, Tuesdays through Saturdays. A barbeque dinner featuring a special Elvis dessert is available at 7:30 each night.

Reservations are recommended for the show, required for dinner. A bar serving wine, beer, and mixed drinks is open to those 21 years and older.