For Immediate Release
Contact: JT Buck at 802-274-3499 or
World Premiere of “Christmas In Akron: The Musical”
Brings Downtown Store to Life at Coach House Theatre
Akron, Ohio and Hollywood, Calif., Nov. 15, 2017 -- “Christmas In Akron: The Musical” by Akron native Rob Loos and Craig Knudsen, will celebrate its world premiere at Akron’s Coach House Theatre. The show will open with a sparkling holiday gala on Friday, Dec. 1 and run for four weekends, concluding Christmas Eve.
“It’s loads of fun for the whole family. It’s brand new, genuinely nostalgic, and authentically Akron in every way,” says Coach House Artistic Director JT Buck.
The show, set in Akron in the 1970s, won the Moss Hart & Kitty Carlisle Hart New Play Initiative Award. The initiative, based in Los Angeles and New York City, is a nonprofit program dedicated to developing live productions.
Tickets to the premiere and gala are $40. Regular admission tickets for remaining performances are $20. Student tickets are $10. Tickets can be purchased at www.coachhousetheatre.com. Reservations for groups of 10 or larger are offered at a discount and can be purchased by calling 330-434-7741.
The Storyline
Diane Diamond, the head copywriter at O’Toole’s Department Store in downtown Akron, Ohio, is preparing to direct the store’s Annual Christmas Spectacular while trying to hide a secret. All will be revealed as she enlists the help of the sarcastic art director, Roger Hamlin, and the energetic piano player from Men’s Shoes, Benjamin “Bevo” Beaverman, who is in love with her.
They have a mere 48 hours to get the show on its feet while trying to avoid the store’s bitter VP who wants to shut the whole thing down. It’s a mad dash as our team -- along with some of the craziest acts in Northeast Ohio – scrambles to pull off one of the most delightful Christmas shows ever.
The Authors
Rob Loos – Book & Lyrics
Rob Loos (pronounced as in Los Padres) has worked on more than 300 television shows, movies, and mini-movies® as writer, producer, and director. His projects have garnered more than 100 awards.
Loos launched his career as a teen when he worked on the “I LOVE AKRON” campaign for Loos & Sexauer Advertising. A graduate of Western Reserve Academy (WRA), he went on to study at Northwestern University under such greats as film directors George Cukor (“My Fair Lady”) and Garry Marshall (“Pretty Woman”).
After college, Loos headed for Los Angeles, where he helped create television movies, pilots, specials and series, including the long-running “Star Search.”
Loos co-founded TLC Entertainment. At TLC he wrote (or co-wrote) live action films, animated directed-to-video movies and half-hour shows. Loos wrote and directed TLC’s large stage productions for Busch Gardens Tampa and Williamsburg that ran more than 5,000 performances.
Loos left TLC to focus full time on his zing productions Inc., a Hollywood-based motion picture and television group. At zing, Loos wrote and produced Nickelodeon’s “NFL Rush Zone”, “Iesodo” and the pilot for “Team XYZ”, among other projects.
Loos has received many awards for creative excellence, including multiple Parents Choice Awards, Accolades and Cine Golden Eagles. He was a Knight Fellow at WRA and has spoke at the Akron Roundtable of which his father was a founding member.
Craig Knudsen - Music
Yamaha, the world’s largest music product manufacturer, has called Craig Knudsen one of the “top innovators in music software and technology”. Knudsen frequently tours the United States, demonstrating his inventions for Yamaha to music retailers, at tradeshows, and on television.
Knudsen is the official “Technology Guy” for the international YouTube sensation, The Piano Guys. In this role, Knudsen integrates new technology platforms into the work of the renowned Sony artists, to help capture and share their artistry in new and innovative ways.
Knudsen served as the musical director for the opening ceremonies of Universal Studios Hollywood, and created two shows for Disneyland’s $15 million renovation of Tomorrowland’s Home of the Future.
An accomplished keyboardist, Knudsen has performed at Carnegie Hall.
The Cast and Production Team
Coach House Artistic Director JT Buck directs and music directs, with production design by a team that includes legendary local cartoonist Chuck Ayers as well as Kirsten Williams, Daniel Hunsicker and Mark Seven.
Midge Karam, who plays the role of Diane, leads the cast of “Christmas in Akron”. Midge currently serves on the music and arts faculty at Western Reserve Academy and is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music.
The role of Roger is played by Jay Sigler, a favorite local actor recently seen onstage at Weathervane Playhouse as Frankenstein’s Monster in the musical Young Frankenstein. He also had the lead role of Joe in the world premiere musical “Goosetown” at the New World Performance Lab. He’s a math teacher in the Akron Public Schools by day.
Massillon native Brett Voina stars as Beavo Beaverman. Brett recently played the role of Riff Raff in the Rocky Horror Show at Avenue Arts in Canton.
Other company members include Wadsworth native Tara Corkery, Cleveland State University student Daniel Weddell and Akron resident Chalker Conrad, member of the Millennial Theatre Company.
Joyce Parsons, a Peninsula resident who began her acting career at Coach House more than 40 years ago, stars as department store manager Irene.
A rotating roster of area high school students and volunteers will be joining the cast.
The Coach House Theatre
In November of 1928, a group known simply as the Little Theatre Players was formed by the Akron Woman’s City Club. It was the first little theater of its kind in Akron. The first play presented by the Little Theatre Players was “The Texas Nightingale” by Zoe Atkins. The Akron Woman’s City Club moved to its current location in 1946, with the little theater occupying the mansion’s “Coach House” for which it’s now named. The 2017-2018 season is the 90th for Coach House, making the theater one of the longest-running community theaters in the country.
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