Press release for "Dearly Beloved"

Get ready to laugh a lot as the Futrelle sisters try to throw a weddin'.

The Futrelle Sisters from Fayro, Texas—Frankie, Honey Raye, and Twink—are throwing a wedding, and y'all are invited to the Woodinville Repertory Theatre's new production of "Dearly Beloved."

The show by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, and Jamie Wooten is a two-act bundle of family dysfunction, faux snobbery, and way too much fun in the tiny (and fictional) Texas town of Fayro, located somewhere between here and there.

The show opens with an 8 p.m. performance on June 3 at the Wellington Hills Golf Club, 7026 240th St. SE, in Woodinville, WA. For more information and to buy tickets, check the Woodinville Repertory Theatre's website at www.woodinvillerep.org or the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/woodinvillerep.

The story

The Futrelle wedding is one to beat all. Frankie has almost made herself sick with elaborate preparations for her daughter Tina Jo’s antebellum-inspired wedding. The rumor mill in Fayro is working overtime.

No surprise there, the Futrelle Sisters have never been strangers to gossip. After all, they did survive the scandalous breakup of their almost-famous gospel singing trio, The Sermonettes.

But Twink’s desperate attempts to get her boyfriend of fifteen and a half years down the aisle, Frankie’s ongoing conversations with their dead mother, and Honey Raye’s tendency to race to the altar at every opportunity have kept tongues wagging for years. In spite of her own marital problems, Frankie has held steadfastly to the hope that she can pull off one “final Futrelle occasion” with elegance and style. All with the help of Miss Geneva, the town's cantankerous wedding coordinator, not to mention proprietor of the local floral shop and bus depot.

Alas, things go awry. Money is an issue. Sister Twink's alternative solution is not to cater the affair, but, rather, hold a potluck supper at the Baptist Church sponsored by Clovis Sanford's House of Meat. Honey Raye appears in skin-tight gold lame. And then Tina Jo and her fiancé elope.

And the sisters have to somehow keep the guests in their pews while the local sheriff searches for the runaway bride and groom.

About the show

"Dearly Beloved" has delighted audiences across the country and around the world. So have its sequels, "Christmas Belles" and "Southern Hospitality."

The authors of "Dearly Beloved" are veterans of stage, screen, and TV:

• Jessie Jones co-authored the award-winning classic, Southern-fried funeral comedy, "Dearly Departed," and its feature film adaptation, “Kingdom Come.”
• Nicholas Hope was Director of Casting for Theatre Communications Group in New York, The Goodman Theatre in Chicago, and ABC Television in New York and Los Angeles.
• Jamie Wooten spent many seasons as a writer/producer on the classic television series, "The Golden Girls."

The show's veteran theatrical director is Martin Mackenzie. Marty directed "Three for the Road," for the Woodinville Repertory Theatre, one of the company’s showcase of new works, featuring playwright Stasia Kehoe. He has directed in Centralia, Olympia, Lacey, Ft. Lewis, Lakewood, Tacoma, Auburn, Renton, Burien, Seattle, Edmonds, Redmond, and Woodinville. Marty will be directing "A Murder is Announced," an Agatha Christie murder mystery, for the Driftwood Players in Edmonds this fall.

Show times and tickets

The shows are being presented on the following dates and times:

• Friday, June 3 at 8 p.m.
• Saturday, June 4 at 8 p.m.
• Sunday, June 5 at 2 p.m. (matinee)
• Thursday, June 9 at 8 p.m.
• Friday, June 10 at 8 p.m.
• Saturday, June 11 at 8 p.m.
• Sunday, June 12 at 2 p.m. (matinee)
• Friday, June 17 at 8 p.m.
• Saturday, June 18 at 8 p.m.
• Friday, June 24 at 8 p.m.
• Saturday, June 25 at 8 p.m.

All performances will be in the Club House at the Wellington Hills Golf Club, 7026 240th St. SE, in Woodinville, not far from the Woodinville Costco. Free parking is available onsite. We offer comfortable, tiered seating and a refreshment bar at pre-show and intermission.

Tickets are only $15 for most shows, and discounts are available to Seniors (60+), students, Theater of Puget Sound members, Woodinville Chamber of Commerce members, and Rotarians for $12 (please be sure to bring your ID for verification at the door!).

Tickets can be purchased through the company’s website at www.woodinvillerep.org/tickets.html. If seats are still available, they can also be purchased at the door, but buying tickets online is recommended to ensure you get a seat.

Cast list

This show’s talented cast includes:

• David Foster (as Wiley Hicks)

  David appeared in Charlie Brown in "You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown," Ralph Rackstraw in "H.M.S. Pinafore," Ken De La Maize in "Musical Comedy Murders of 1940," and Curtis Appleby in "Night Watch."

• Austin Gregory (as John Curtis Buntner)

  Austin has performed with the Woodinville Repertory Theatre in "One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest" as R.P. McMurphy, "The Odd Couple (Female version)" as Manolo Constasuela, "Blithe Spirit" as Charles Condomine, Mel Edison in the recent success of "The Prisoner of Second Avenue," and Jerry Hyland in "Once in a Lifetime" at The Phoenix Theatre in Edmonds.

• Susan Connors (as Honey Rae Futrelle)

  Susan appeared last year in Woman Seeking …A Theatre Company’s inaugural production of “Last Summer at Bluefish Cove.” She was also a cast member in Women Seeking….a Theatre Company's Production of "Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean" and "The Torch Bearers." Other appearances include Kaufman and Hart's "Once in a Lifetime" at Edmonds' Phoenix Theatre.

• Dan Niven (as Dub Dubberly)

  Dan has appeared locally as Harold Hill in "The Music Man" and Jacob Marley in "A Christmas Carol."

• Laura Hanson (as Frankie Futrelle Dubberly)

  Laura was last seen at the Woodinville Repertory Theatre as Edna in "The Prisoner of Second Avenue." Before that, she appeared in Women Seeking ...a Theater Company’s production of “The Torch-Bearers”.

• Tracey Cruz (as Twink Futrelle)

  Tracey appeared in the Woodinville Repertory Theatre's production of "The Prisoner of Second Avenue," "Blithe Spirit," and "The Odd Couple (Female version)."

• Sara Call (as Patsy Price)

  Sara has appeared in a number of Woodinville Repertory Theatre shows, including "An Evening with Christopher Durang" in July 2010. Sara has been teaching youth drama for the last several years at Arrowhead Elementary and Kenmore Junior High School.

• Misty McCormick (as Tina Jo/Gina Jo Dubberly)

  Misty has performed in "Rocky Horror Picture Show" and "Little Shop of Horrors" in Boise, Idaho.

• Sam Thomson (as Justin Waverly)

  Sam has appeared in local high school productions.

• Melanie Calderwood (as Geneva Musgrave)

  Melanie appeared in the Woodinville Repertory Theatre's recent production of "The Prisoner of Second Avenue." She appeared in the Woodinville Repertory Theatre's first production, "I Hate Hamlet" as well as in many other theaters in the Seattle area, including The Phoenix Theater in Edmonds, Driftwood Players, the Burien Little Theater, and the Renton Civic Theater.

• Carol Mabbot (as Nelda Lightfoot)

  Carol recently appeared in the King's Players' productions of “Oklahoma” and “The Sound of Music.”

Coming Soon

The Woodinville Repertory Theatre is scheduled to present "A Party to Murder," a murder-mystery by the Canadian team of Marcia Kash and Douglas Hughes in the fall of 2011.

The play is about six people who come to a rustic island cottage on Halloween to play a murder mystery game. The game takes on a sinister dimension when guests begin to die and the remaining players realize that they are playing for their lives.

In search of a new venue

The location of the Woodinville Repertory Theatre’s fall 2011 show is under discussion. The theatre company is actively searching for a new home after the company and Wellington Hills Golf Club recently agreed to part ways.

Check the theater's website, www.woodinvillerep.org, for more details.

About us

Founded in 1998 by Peg Phillips, who played Ruth-Anne Miller, the general store owner on the television series "Northern Exposure," Woodinville Repertory Theatre is dedicated to producing quality theater to appeal to audiences throughout the Seattle Eastside/Northshore region to inspire and engage the local youth and community in theatrical arts.

We are a registered 501(c)(3) charitable organization with the US Internal Revenue Service. All donations and sponsorships offered are gratefully accepted, and may be tax-deductible.