MOUNT CARROLL, IL - Timber Lake Playhouse presents Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the musical adaptation of Mark Twain's novel, Thursday, August 13th through Sunday, August 23rd. Propelled by an award winning score from Roger Miller, the king of country music, this journey down the mighty Mississippi provides a brilliantly theatrical celebration of pure Americana. The show is the final production of the playhouse's 54th annual summer season.
Courtney Crouse returns to TLP to direct this modern classic that premiered in 1985. The story is played out by actor-musicians to the sound of country, gospel and bluegrass as Huck Finn (Grant Alexander Brown plays irrepressible hero) helps his friend Jim, a slave (played by Charles Benson), escape to freedom at the mouth of the Ohio River. Their adventures are alternately suspenseful, heartwarming and hilarious.
Bringing to life the other characters from the novel are Amelia Jo Parish as the Widow Douglas and Paige ManWaring as her stern sister, Miss Watson; Matt W. Miles as the Duke, who may or may not be as harmless as he seems; Chandler Smith as Huck's partner in crime, Tom Sawyer; John Chase as Huck's drunken father, the sinister Pap Finn; and Alexis Aker as the lovely Mary Jane Wilkes.
Crouse and music director Michael Uselmann have created a production that features guitar, mandolin, banjo, fiddle, accordion and percussion played by the actors on stage. The concept gives the music an authentic country feel and showcases the virtuosity of TLP's 2015 company. Additional offstage musicians fill out the sound. Musical staging is by artistic director James Beaudry.
Crouse said of the production, "Bringing the music on to the stage creates a world that looks, feels and sounds like the folk music traditions that exist up and down the Mississippi River. The play looks at a time when the country was growing up, just like Huck does in the story. And the way the actors discover music and use it to create community really enriches the whole show."
Big River opens Thursday, August 13 at 7:30 p.m. Performances continue Friday, August 14 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, August 15 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, August 16 at 2:00 p.m.; Tuesday, August 18 at 7:30 p.m.; Wednesday, August 19 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Thursday, August 20 at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, August 21 at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, August 22 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, August 23 at 2:00 p.m.
Tickets for all TLP mainstage show are $17-$25 with discounts for seniors, active duty military and students. For reservations, call the box office at 815-244-2035 or visit www.timberlakeplayhouse.org. TLP is located at 8215 Black Oak Road in rural Mount Carroll, Illinois.
This program is partially sponsored by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.
