Wednesday, April 21, 2004

Cast announced for Comedy of Errors

Fayette County-based Offshoot Productions will present the classic Shakespearean farce, The Comedy of Errors, at the Villages Amphitheater in Fayetteville in June. The show is now in rehearsal with an energetic cast from the southside and throughout the metro Atlanta area.

Apprentices, who appear in small roles and do much of the technical work for the production, include Fayetteville residents Marissa Glade, Jen Johnson and Erin Dukes, as well as Richard Anthony Burke from Lithia Springs, and Christal Webb from Riverdale.

Professional cast members are Justin Hand (Jonesboro) and Justin Sims (Fairburn) as the twins Antipholus of Syracuse and Antipholus of Ephesus; Fracena Byrd (Stone Mountain) and Kristi Rivas (Marietta) as the twins Dromio of Syracuse and Dromio of Ephesus; LeeAnna Lambert (Atlanta) as Adriana; Lesley Howe (Fayetteville) as her sister, Luciana; Ken Wright (Decatur) as Egeon; and Jane Bass (Decatur) as Emilia. Additional cast members include Joey Ellington (Peachtree City), Janie Hitchcock (Decatur), Danny Dolan (Marietta), Bill Bouris (Whitesburg), and Jeremy Steadman (Peachtree City) as an Attendant to the Duke.

Returning cast members have a broad history with Offshoot. Most recently, Lesley Howe has appeared in Offshoot's Tales from Beatrix Potter (2002) and Stuart Little (2003). Jane Bass played roles in Going to See the Elephant (1998), What Doesn't Kill Me... (1999) and Twelfth Night (2001). LeeAnna Lambert portrayed Olivia in Twelfth Night and had the lead role in Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz (2002), and Bill Bouris played Egeus in A Midsummer Night's Dream (2002). Danny Dolan, a former apprentice, has performed or filled technical positions in many plays since he began working with Offshoot in 1993. Most recently he portrayed Quince in A Midsummer Night's Dream and acted as stage manager for Stuart Little.

The show, which runs June 11, 12, 13, 17, 20, 25, 26, 27 at the Villages Amphitheater, is a joint venture with Main Street Fayetteville, and is funded in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts through a Grassroots Arts Award and the Endowment Committee for the Cultural Arts of Fayette County. Tickets ($5 each, with free admission for children 10 and under) will be available in late May at the Fayetteville City Hall, the Peachtree City Library, and the Fayette County Library. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

For additional information, call the Offshoot office at (770) 631-2362 or send e-mail to offshootpr@aol.com.