Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers on Stage During Silver Stage Players Summer Series
August 4, 2022 @ 5:30 pm – August 6, 2022 @ 9:00 pm
Press release, thank you!
Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers on Stage During Silver Stage Players Summer Series
Barney Cashman is forty something, married, father of three, a successful businessman, and a man going through a midlife crisis. Barney has come to the realization that his whole life can be summed up in one word: nice. And he has realized that “nice” simply isn’t enough. Barney wants to join the sexual revolution before it’s too late.
Silver Stage Players presents, Last of the Red Hot Lovers by Neil Simon. Just one of the various events being offered during SSP’s Summer Series of art.
Join Silver Stage Players for Summer Series 2022, featuring various arts disciplines all in one location. The event will be hosted by the Northeastern Nevada Museum August 4-6 beginning at 6 PM. Doors open at 5:30 PM The evening of art includes, the performance of Alex Acuff’s short play, First Impressions; a performance of, Last of the Red Hot Lovers by Neil Simon; interactive improvisation; poetry readings; exploring photography workshop; a strongman exhibition and more. The event is free to the public but donations will be gratefully accepted. Seats for events in the museum’s theater are open to the first 90 guests.
American playwright Neil Simon penned some of Broadway’s most memorable productions, including The Odd Couple and Lost in Yonkers. Born in the Bronx in 1927, Simon took refuge in the movies as a child, finding solace and delight in comedies. Neil Simon began his career writing comedy for some of radio and television’s top talents in the 1940s. Turning to the stage, he enjoyed his first major hit with Barefoot in the Park in 1963, and later scored Tony Awards for The Odd Couple (1965), Biloxi Blues (1985) and Lost in Yonkers (1991). Simon adapted many of his plays for the big screen. The Odd Couple famously became both an Oscar-nominated film in 1968 and an acclaimed TV series in the early 1970s. During his long career, Simon was nominated for 17 Tony Awards winning three times, he was nominated for four Academy Awards, named a Kennedy Center Honoree, and won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. He passed away on August 26, 2018, due to pneumonia.
Starring in the comedy are local artists Derek Burwell and Erika Patrick. The two have been performing together for more than two decades. Burwell and Patrick have appeared on local stages in such productions as The Good Doctor, Incredible Stories, Much Ado About Nothing, Bringing it All Back Home, Sister Mary Ignatius Explains it All for You, Poe & Pints, and Bard in the Yard to name a few.
Directing Last of the Red Hot Lovers is long-time community volunteer and arts advocate Frank L. Sawyer. Mr. Sawyer’s directing credits include Bard in the Yard, Poe & Pints, Much Ado About Nothing, The Odd Couple (female version), Lysistrata, War of the Worlds, Glengarry Glen Ross, Talk Radio, Bringing it All Back Home, and The Zoo Story among others. Frank is a past SSP Chairman, SSP Life-Member honoree, served on the Elko City Arts and Cultural Advisory Board, is a member of Alpha Psi Omega national acting fraternity, and has served on the Great Basin College Arts and Cultural Enrichment and National Endowment of the Humanities Grant committees.
About the opportunity Sawyer said, “I wanted to celebrate this friendship and artistic duo by featuring the two in a show. A comedy for them and, hopefully, lots of laughs for you!” Providing technical expertise in the production are volunteers Donald Jones, Kyle Ashley, John Wells, Kim Otheim, and Betty Nield.
The Northeastern Nevada Museum, in Elko, Nevada, features art and local history exhibits as well as extensive wildlife habitat dioramas. Six galleries occupy more than 20,000 square feet. There is something for everyone! NNM is the premier cultural and historical center for research, preservation, and education in northeastern Nevada. The museum will maintain a quality facility dedicated to serving the area and its visitors by providing comprehensive archives and collections, diverse history and art exhibits, research facilities, and a local community gathering space. The Northeastern Nevada Museum houses a large collection of historical archives and a 4,000 volume library. The staff maintains and preserves more than 50,000 photos, newspapers dating back to 1869, documents, local government records, and maps. Visit NNM online at www.museumelko.org.
Celebrating over eight decades of excellence in the arts, the Silver Stage Players (SSP) is dedicated to provide the finest theater, community service, and educational opportunities to its members and the residents of northeastern Nevada. The local Elko theater company is committed to creating the most complete, innovative, engaging, and contemplative theater experience possible. Over its eight-decade history, SSP has produced hundreds of productions, many of which were firsts for northern Nevada and the company continues to produce unique and inspiring drama today. Offerings have included Bard in the Yard, CLUE, Godspell, Nunsense, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, A Christmas Carol, War of the Worlds, Scrooge Makes Up, Lysistrata, Greater Tuna, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Poe & Pints 2021, The Wizard of Oz, The Man of La Mancha, The Last U.S. Mail Stage Robbery, and Much Ado About Nothing among many others.
“Last of the Red Hot Lovers” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc., www.concordtheatricals.com.
For more information about Last of the Red Hot Lovers, by Neil Simon, please call the director at (775) 934-3721, e-mail at flsawyer@designlunacy.com. For more information about SSP’s Summer Series 2022, visit us on the web at www.silverstage.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SSPElko.
