MOUNT CARROLL – Timber Lake Playhouse, the professional summer theatre of northwest Illinois, presents the acclaimed psychological thriller, Gaslight, August 11th through 21st. The production is the sixth and final in the company’s 55th summer mainstage season.
The play, by Patrick Hamilton, was so popular, it gave rise to the term “gaslighting,” with its story of a husband who presents his wife with false information to make her doubt her own memory in regard to unexplained disappearances from their home. Mrs. Manningham believes that each time her husband leaves, the lights in house grow dimmer. An inspector arrives with answers as to whether the “gaslighting” is real or all in Mrs. Manningham’s mind.
Cody Jolly, well-known to TLP audiences as an actor, makes his mainstage directing debut with the play. “The writing is so good that almost immediately you are immersed in the tension of story. It’s not a “whodunit,” but a “how’s she going to stop it” story.”
The central role of Mrs. Manningham is played by Melissa Weyn of New York City. She was previously seen at TLP in Les Miserables and as the narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Resident performers Ken Singleton and Kieran Mccabe play Inspector Rough and Mr. Manningham, respectively.
The cast is rounded out by guest performer Shaina Schrooten of Chicago as housekeeper Elizabeth, and Olivia Kaufmann, who starred as Gypsy Rose Lee earlier this summer plays young maid Nancy—a role that made a young Angela Lansbury a star.
The play premiered in London under the title Gaslight, but it was renamed Angel Street for its Broadway production. Following two very popular film adaptations which used the original title, most productions opt for Gaslight today.
Timber Lake Playhouse has announced next summer’s 56th season. June 2017 will bring new productions of Disney and Cameron Mackintosh’s Mary Poppins, Eugene O’Neill’s Ah Wilderness!, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita, an adaptation of Scapino! by Jim Dale, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel, and Little Shop of Horrors. Discounted subscriptions for all six shows are available now.
This September, TLP will present a special production of the musical Always … Patsy Cline for eight performances only over two weekends, September 9th through 11th and 16th through 18th.
Tickets for Gaslight are $17-$25 dollars and may be purchased at www.timberlakeplayhouse.org or by calling 815-244-2035. The playhouse is located at 8215 Black Oak Road in rural Mount Carroll.
