'Love Letters' Opens at Silver Spur Theater, Sat. May 10;
Different Couples Play Leads on Three Weekends
SALADO, TEXAS (May 5, 2008) – Playwright A. R. Gurney's "Love Letters" graces the Silver Spur Theater for three weekends in Salado, beginning with a Sat., May 10 evening (only) performance. Each weekend, a diferent couple will portray the two-character dramedy, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
The play centers on just two characters, Melissa Gardner, a free-spirited artist, and Andrew Makepiece Ladd III, a successful attorney. Using the epistolary form, the two characters tell the bittersweet story of their life-long relationship through their letters to each other.
“This show is a bit of a departure for the Silver Spur,” says Grainger Esch, co-founder of the four-year-old performance venue. “Our audiences are more accustomed to seeing slapstick, satire and vaudeville under our historic roof. This entertaining piece, while it does have very funny moments, is more thought-provoking and heartwarming. Even the e-mail generation will find this relationship, built on decades of correspondence, both engaging and endearing.”
"Another unique aspect of this production is the fact that each weekend of performances will feature a different cast," says Tony Blackman, the play's director and a regular member of the Spur-radical players, He directed last year's production of "Luv" by Murray Schisgal and just completed an exhausting role in the Spur's extended revival of "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)."
"The three casts -- all comprised of talented Salado residents -- are not understudies for each other, but serve to provide different interpretations of the play, as the actors themselves are at different stages of life," Blackman explained.
On opening night, the role of Andrew will be played by Ramon Carver, director of Salado’s Living Room Theatre,and president and founder of Salado ’s Public Arts League. Melissa will be played by Betsy Tyson, whose stage credits include many productions with the Dallas Theatre Center . The second weekend (three shows) will feature Gary Askins, a retired master teacher of theatre from Salado High School and playwright for the Silver Spur's annual melodrama. Rita Oden, who played opposite of Gary in the original cast of the long-running "Salado Legends,"at the Tablerock Theatre, works at Salado Realty.
Doug Mackie and Lauren Culver take the stage for the final weekend's three shows, May 23-24. Doug , a Salado native and graduate of the high school drama program, was in last year's "Idolatry on the Creek" melodrama. He's currently a student at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Lauren, a senior at Salado High, is fresh from U.I.L. one-act play competition, and appeared as "Fame" in the melodrama.
"Love Letters" runs from Saturday, May 10 (evening show only), through Saturday, May 24. Performances are on Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday matinees at 2 p.m. Admission for evening shows is $15 for adults; $12 for senior citizens, military personnel, and students with ID; and $8 for children aged 12 and under. For matinees, admission is $12, $10 and $8, respectively. Group rates are also available. For reservations, call 254-947-3456. For more info, visit, www.saladosilverspur.com.
About the Silver Spur Theater: The Silver Spur Theater, which received the “2007 Business of the Year” award from the Salado Chamber of Commerce in January, was developed in the renovated and historic Guest and Sanford Granary at 108 Royal St. The Silver Spur strives to revive a bygone era of family entertainment, offering a trademark blend of live vaudeville acts, live music, plays and classic cinema. Weddings, reunions, business conferences, concerts, field trips, dances, even customized private shows are also held at the venue, with catering available from the renowned Stagecoach Inn a block away and other area restaurants.