(ORADELL, NJ) -- Bergen County Players (BCP), one of America's longest-running little theater companies,  takes humor back to its roots, combining the time-tested 2,000-year-old comedies of Roman playwright Plautus with the infectious energy of classic vaudeville for an all-new production of the Tony Award-winning musical comedy A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim (his first Tony Award-winning musical)  and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart, Forum kicks off BCP's 92nd season on Saturday, September 14 and will run through Saturday, October 19, 2024 at the Little Firehouse Theatre in Oradell.

With direction by Ray Yucis, musical direction by Jalmari Vanamo, and choreography by Diana Baer, Forum is an uproarious, toe-tapping, zany romp through ancient Rome that tells the story of a crafty slave named Pseudolus and his hysterical attempts to win his freedom by any means. The plot rapidly twists and turns with cases of mistaken identity, slamming doors, wily ruses, madcap chases, bawdy innuendos and harebrained schemes. The title derives from a line often used by vaudeville comedians to begin a story: “A funny thing happened on the way to the theater”. A hit since its Broadway debut in 1962, this fast-paced, witty, and irreverent comedy won several Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Book. Its Golden-Era smash songs include “Comedy Tonight”, “Everybody Ought to Have a Maid” and “Lovely”.  The New York Times called A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum “A glorious, old-fashioned farce...almost as timeless as comedy itself!”

Show times are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00pm and on Sundays at 2:00pm. Tickets to A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, all priced at $32, can be purchased online at www.bcplayers.org, by calling 201-261-4200 or by visiting the box office at 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell during regular box office hours.

Director Ray Yucis of Paterson is a BCP Life Member and Perry Award winner for Best Direction of a Play for Time Stands Still. Yucis also directed BCP’s The Fantasticks, Brooklyn Boy, The Women, Company, Moonlight & Magnolias, Around the World in 80 Days, and Comic Potential (Perry Award nominee, Best Direction). He has been the Resident Director of SummerStage at Leonia for the past 13 years, where he helmed their productions of Les Miserables, My Fair Lady, Annie, Anything Goes, and many more. He also directed the Players Guild of Leonia productions of Black Comedy, As Bees in Honey Drown, The Fantasticks, and Comedy of Errors. As an actor he has appeared in Pack of Lies, The Actor’s Nightmare, Tartuffe, Take Me Out, and others. A former high school and college teacher, Ray is a retired Instructional Designer for a major retail chain.

Yucis said that he selected this classic musical comedy for BCP’s 92nd season opener because it is “absurd and outrageous and just plain old fun.” He continues, “Forum is Broadway’s greatest farce and promises to have audiences rolling in the aisles. It is one of the funniest musicals ever written.”

The talented cast of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum includes several BCP veterans, including Steve Bell of Hackensack as Pseudolus, the slave attempting to win his freedom (the same role Steve played in BCP’s 1999 production of Forum), John Kiely of Allendale as henpecked husband Senex, and Lori Feiler-Fluger of River Edge as his shrewish wife, Domina. Senex and Domina are the parents of Hero (played by newcomer Damon Vincenty of Westwood), who has enlisted Pseudolus’ help to woo Philia (Sherry Mayce of Little Falls, also in her BCP debut). Rounding out the cast of 18 on BCP’s intimate stage are Brad Forenza of Jersey City as Hysterium, William Cantor of Woodcliff Lake as Erronius, Edward Van Saders of Sparkill, NY as Marcus Lycus, and Jesse Kriesel of New City, NY as Miles Gloriosus. Proteans are played by Zachary Boyd of Cresskill, Bradley Carrington of Berkeley Heights, Carlos Palencia Junior of Fair Lawn, with Courtesans being played by Nikki Alvarado of Allendale, Nicole Henry of Westwood, Maria Possavino of Chestnut Ridge, NY, Melissa Rivera of Dumont, Katherine Stelma of Bloomfield, and Melissa Miller of River Vale.

The production team is comprised of Joellen Tierney (Producer), Michele Roth (Associate Producer), Geri Berhain (Production Stage Manager/Assistant to the Director), Jalmari Vanamo (Musical Director), Diana Baer (Choreographer), Carlos Palencia Junior and Nikki Alvarado (Dance Captains), Gerard Bourcier (Set Design/Construction), Lauren Zenreich (Set Décor), Allan Seward (Lighting Design), Randi Kestin and Sandra Conklin (Lighting Operation), Barry Reed (Sound Design), Ian Kenny (Sound Operation), Lynne Lupfer (Costume Design), Katie Lupfer, Olga Garey, Marisa Gore, Susan Kaufman, Bunny Mateosian, and Carlos Palencia Junior  (Costumes), Anne Powers (Dresser), Laura Dinoia and Jennifer Bancks (Properties), Joanne Guarnaccia (Make-up), Karen Maikisch-Markle (Hair and Wigs), Ken Slezak, Darlene Slezak, Aura Caicedo, and Jim Resnick (Crew), Richard Frant (Photographer), Felicia Benson-Kraft (Member-at-Large), and Marci K. Weinstein (Program Bios).

TICKET AND SCHEDULE INFORMATION

* All performances take place at The Little Firehouse Theatre at 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell, home to the Bergen County Players since 1949.  Performance times are Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm, and Sundays at 2:00pm.

* All tickets for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum are $32. Tickets can be purchased online at www.bcplayers.org, by calling 201-261-4200 or by visiting the box office at 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell during regular box office hours.  Visa, Master Card, and American Express are accepted.

* Those interested in Group Sales or benefit theater parties can call (201) 261-4200 (option #6)

* BCP offers seating to accommodate patrons who are mobility impaired and can transfer from a wheelchair. These seats can be purchased by calling the box office at 201-261-4200 and will be released for public sale two weeks prior to performance.

* BCP's popular Questions & Artists talkback session with cast and crew will be held following the performance on Friday, September 20.

* Advance discount tickets for students age 25 and under with proper ID are available for $19 by phone or walk-up at every performance, pending seat availability. Not available online. There is a limit of one discount ticket per student ID.

* "Rush' discount tickets for students age 25 and under with proper ID are available for $10 at the box office window, starting 30 minutes prior to curtain. There is a limit of one Rush ticket per student ID and cash is the only payment method accepted.

* A new program is now available for qualified non-profit organizations to use one performance of each production as a fundraising event. The group will book all 200 seats at a deeply discounted price and then resell the tickets at a price of their choosing, with the difference in price kept by the group. The available date is the Thursday of each show’s final weekend. Interested groups can email fundraising@bcplayers.org for more information.

* Parking is free for their patrons at the Park Avenue municipal lot, across the street, one-half block north of the theater, as well as street parking on Kinderkamack Road and various side streets, all within easy walking distance.

The Bergen County Players, Inc. is a non-Equity, non-profit community theater company dedicated to presenting quality productions for the enrichment of the community.

Photos by Richard Frant at bcplayers.org

 

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