'The Drowsy Chaperone' is a loving send-up of Jazz Age musicals

Weslie Webster and Jason Ross star in "The Drowsy Chaperone" at the Cumberland County Playhouse, which runs through Oct. 27.
Weslie Webster and Jason Ross star in "The Drowsy Chaperone" at the Cumberland County Playhouse, which runs through Oct. 27.

If you go

› What: “The Drowsy Chaperone”› Where: Cumberland County Playhouse, 221 Tennessee Ave., Crossville, Tenn.› When: Multiple times Sept. 15-Oct. 27› Admission: $16, $27, $29› For more information: 931-484-5000

Cumberland County Playhouse will open the Tony Award-winning show, "The Drowsy Chaperone," a loving send-up of Jazz Age musicals, on Friday, Sept. 15.

"We know how much Playhouse audiences love to discover great new musical comedies," says director Britt Hancock, who played the role of Broadway producer Feldzieg in the national tour of "The Drowsy Chaperone."

"This warmly nostalgic show has the power to transport us into a dazzling fantasy and to lift our spirits in hard times."

Featuring one show-stopping song-and-dance number after another, "The Drowsy Chaperone" tells the tale of a modern-day musical theater fan, known as the "Man in the Chair," who will be played by Jason Ross.

As he plays his favorite cast album - the fictional 1928 musical comedy, "The Drowsy Chaperone" - on his turntable, the musical literally bursts to life in his living room. The audience becomes immersed in the glamorous and hilarious tale of a reluctant bride, a groom on skates, a tap-dancing best man, a womanizing gigolo, gangsters posing as pastry chefs, a Broadway producer, a ditzy flapper, an aviatrix and an intoxicated chaperone.

photo Weslie Webster and Jason Ross star in "The Drowsy Chaperone" at the Cumberland County Playhouse, which runs through Oct. 27.

Playing these characters will be Harli Cooper, Walker Degerness, Brett Mutter, Grayson Yockey, Ross Griffin, Aaron Atkinson, Bill Macchio, DeAnna Etchison, Illeana Kirven and Weslie Webster.

The Man in the Chair constantly brings the audience in and out of the fantasy as he expresses his thoughts about the mishaps and mayhem that ensue.

Hancock says "The Drowsy Chaperone" is an old-fashioned, laugh-a-minute crowd-pleaser. The PG-rated show will run through Oct. 27.

For more information: www.ccplayhouse.com.

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