happy
pride!
.png)
based on the true story of infamous outlaws bonnie parker and clyde barrow
BONNIE & CLYDE
book | IVAN MENCHELL
music | FRANK WILDHORN
lyrics | DON BLACK
creative team
director/choreo. | CHRISTOPHER MICHAELS
music director/arranger | JARED MCFARLIN
set design | RYAN DZIEDZIECH
costume design | KIMBERLY WIER
lighting design | DAWSON MCDONALD
sound design | HANNAH BRACEGIRDLE
prop design | MIA TAYLOR & REILEY DUFFY
fight choreographer | WYATT KING
intimacy director | BECKS GRANGER
produced by | STAGEDOOR MANOR
cast
bonnie parker | MEGAN WERTZ
clyde barrow | BEN GLUCK
buck barrow | TEDDY SEWARD
blanche barrow | MAYA EISBART
ted hinton | JOEY GETZE
emma parker | COSEY KIEL
preacher | CREIGHTON GARCIA
cumie barrow | OCTAVIA MILLER
henry barrow | ALEX SCOTTI
young bonnie | OLWYN WHELAN
young clyde | KEEGAN CARROLL
eleanore | JANE BERMAN
trish | TESSA DRUHAN
stella | CASH KRZYSIAK
sheriff smoot schmidt | NIGEL BUTLER
deputy bud russell | ALEX SCOTTI
detective hamer | GLORIA COPELAND
ensemble | RAEGAN AVERY
teller, guard, ensemble | BEA BIELLO
ensemble | ANGELINA DELL'AQUILA
judge, ensemble | CLAIRE HOROWITZ
ensemble | PARKER JANES
bob acorn, ensemble | IDA OWENS
ensemble | IDA SHELTON
dpty johnson, guard, ensemble | AMELIA UNKEL
gov. ferguson, ensemble | LILY WAGMAN
venue
the playhouse theatre | STAGEDOOR MANOR
dates
july 8-27 | 2024
synopsis
At the height of the Great Depression, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow went from two small-town nobodies in West Texas to America's most renowned folk heroes and Texas law enforcement's worst nightmares
When Bonnie and Clyde meet, their mutual cravings for excitement and fame immediately set them on a mission to chase their dreams. Their bold and reckless behavior turns the young lovers' thrilling adventure into a downward spiral, putting themselves and their loved ones in trouble with the law. Forced to stay on the run, the lovers resort to robbery and murder to survive. As the infamous duo's fame grows bigger, their inevitable end draws nearer.
Fearless, shameless and alluring, the Tony-nominated Bonnie & Clyde, from the legendary Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, Civil War, Dracula) is the electrifying story of love, adventure and crime that captured the attention of an entire country.
a note on this production
In 2024, I was given the opportunity to be a director at Stagedoor Manor, the famed theatre summer camp that inspired 2023's movie, "Theatre Camp" and "Camp" which came 20 years earlier. Hundreds of campers age 10-18 participate in a three-week intensive rehearsal and class schedule culminating in 14 live productions in 7 different theaters on campus.
Working in this setting was exciting and interesting:
You are assigned a musical, and are given only three days to research and prepare your production. You find out your cast as they show up to rehearsal after a few days of casting by a committee. And then you rehearse for 5 hours a day for the next 2.5 weeks to ready your show before opening night.
It was one of the most challenging, yet rewarding experiences of my career. The budget is small, the timeline is short, but the creativity and talent is exceptional and yielded incredible results!
Since our production starred child actors, our interpretation of "Bonnie & Clyde" imagined the story through the eyes of Young Bonnie and Young Clyde and their respective and collective obsessions with fame and glory. Set in an old abandoned picture house in Texas, Young Bonnie and Clyde watch from front row seats as the movie of their future lives is plays out in epic fashion, right in front of their eyes. What starts as a captivating romance fit for Clara Bow meets thrilling action western (a la "Billy The Kid") quickly turns into an epic tragedy as Young Bonnie and Clyde realize that their "fame" may not be exactly what they hoped for.
I'm grateful to my team (most specifically to my music director, Jared McFarlin) who helped me bring this show to life, and to the young actors who masterfully took on such a mature, dark, and thrilling piece of theater.