“Rock of Ages" at the Timber Lake Playhouse -- June 20 through July 6.
Friday, June 20, through Sunday, July 6
Timber Lake Playhouse, 8215 Black Oak Road, Mt. Carroll IL
Described by Time Out New York as an “insanely fun mixtape musical” and by Variety as a show that “gleefully apes the worst excesses of the era's pole-dancing, crotch-grinding, big-hair-tossing movies,” the Broadway smash Rock of Ages enjoys a June 20 through July 6 run at Mt. Carroll's Timber Lake Playhouse, treating audiences to a celebration of 1980s chart-toppers that NY1 called “so cleverly staged and impressively performed that it's an irresistible, offbeat trip of a show that hits all the right notes.”
As Rock of Ages begins, it’s the tail end of the big, bad 1980s in Hollywood, and the party has been raging hard. Aqua Net, Lycra, lace, and liquor flow freely at one of the Sunset Strips last legendary venues, a place where sex machine Stacee Jaxx takes the stage and scantily clad groupies line up to turn their fantasies into reality. Amidst the madness, aspiring rock star and resident toilet cleaner Drew longs to take the stage as the next big thing – and also longs for Sherri, a starry-eyed small-town girl fresh off the bus from Kansas. But the rock-and-roll fairytale looks about to end after German developers sweep into town with plans to turn the fabled Strip into just another capitalist strip mall. Can Drew, Sherri, and the gang save the strip, and themselves, before it's too late?
Only the music of iconic bands such as Styx, Journey, Bon Jovi, and Whitesnake hold the answer as Rock of Ages delivers a cornucopia of classics from the '80s, with the musical's characters belting out such unforgettable hits as Night Ranger's “Sister Christian,” Foreigner's “I Want to Know What Love Is,” REO Speedwagon's “Keep on Loving You,” and the Twisted Sister anthem “We're Not Gonna Take It.” The original Broadway production of Rock of Ages ran for 2,328 performances, closing on January 18, 2015, and is currently tied as the 32nd-longest-running show in Broadway history. Since debuting in New York in 2009, the musical has also spawned replica productions worldwide in Japan, Australia, and the United Kingdom, among other locales, and the original Broadway production earned five Tony Award nominations including Best Musical.
Rock of Ages is being directed by James Beaudry, who returns to the theatre where he served as artistic director from 2009 to 2017, with choreographer Courtney Liu as assistant professor of musical theatre at Elon University, her Broadway credits including The Phantom of the Opera. Beaudry's production boasts Broadway veteran Michael Ehlers (Cats) alongside Sam O’Neill, Amy Chen, Anthony Arpino, Mikey Marmann, Nia Chavis, Alexander Cousins, Gabriel Salazar, and Emma Theriot. The creative team, meanwhile, also features scenic designer Jonas Harrison, costume designer Thomas J.C. Gluodenis, lighting designer Abi Farnsworth, sound designer Nick Feldmann, props designer Finley Fields, technical director Iz Dillon, and production manager Star Howard.
"We’re ecstatic to bring Rock of Ages back to TLP," said current Artistic Director Tommy Ranieri. "James Beaudry’s return and this talented cast and creative team promise an unforgettable show that captures all the fun and excitement audiences have come to expect."
Rock of Ages will be staged at the Mt. Carroll Theatre June 20 through July 6, with performances on scheduled Tuesdays through Sundays, and admission is $30-50. For more information and tickets, call (815)244-2035 and visit TimberLakePlayhouse.org.
