Williamson County resident, Marilyn Fair, played the role of Luisa in The Fantasticks off-Broadway in New York City for three years and now she is directing an upcoming local production of the show for The Renaissance Players, a Middle Tennessee community theater located in Dickson, which draws members and audiences from Williamson and surrounding counties.
What is The Fantasticks?
It is the longest-running musical in the world. It is a funny and romantic musical that is perfect for the whole family. It tells the story of a young man and the girl next door, whose parents have built a wall to keep them apart. The youngsters nevertheless contrive to meet and fall in love. Their parents, meanwhile, are congratulating themselves, for they have erected the wall and staged a feud in order to encourage a marriage between their willfully disobedient children.
There is no one more capable of directing this play than Fair. From December 12,1989 through August 15,1993 (approximately 1400 performances), Fair played the lead role of Luisa at The Sullivan Street Playhouse in Greenwich Village.
“What a privilege it is to have the chance to explore this work again. I hope to bring the Sullivan Street Production to Dickson keeping the authors’ original intimate vision. An amazing goose bump moment for me was during the auditions for this production when my own son, Nick, auditioned to be The Boy. What a perfect moment it is for the both of us. I can’t believe I get to work with him on this project that is so near and dear to my heart” Fair said.
Nick Fair, playing The Boy Matt, is excited to be back on the Renaissance Center Stage after this summer’s performance of Sebastian in The Little Mermaid, Jr. Other credits include Jack in Into The Woods, Teen Ebeneezer in A Christmas Carol, Rooster in Annie Jr., Maurice in Beauty and the Beast Jr., Drake in Honk Jr, and the Artful Dodger in Oliver! for which he won a Jimmy Award. Nick has performed with the Act Too Players in productions of 13 The Musical as Evan, Rent School Edition as Roger, and High School Musical as Zeke and with Pull Tight Players in 13 The Musical as Eddie. Nick is a member of the band Triptych and also performs as a solo artist in venues in and around Nashville. He is one of Nashville’s 2014 Most Promising Actors, a finalist for Franklin’s Got Talent, and will be on Season 14 of American Idol this fall.
Opposite Nick on stage is Kimberly Rye, playing The Girl Luisa. Kimberly is a Senior at McEwen High School. She has been performing with The Renaissance Players since she was nine years old. You may have seen her most recently as ‘Chef Louis’ in the June production of The Little Mermaid Jr.
Kimberly’s life revolves around Musical Theatre, and she plans to make this her major when she heads off to college next fall. “I am so blessed to have an amazing theatre family that I’ve been able to share this experience with. I want to thank the whole cast and crew for working so hard to make this show so ‘Fantastick!’ I’d also like to thank my amazing family and friends, especially Mom and Daddy, for always supporting me in everything I do. And to our beautiful audience, please sit back and enjoy ‘The Fantasticks!'”
Other cast members include Howard Snyder, Troy Sands, Tate Blunt, Carey Thompson, Jarrod Clark, Lisa Talbott, Les Horne and Abigail Haggard.
Showtimes are Oct 10th & 11th at 7pm and Oct 12th & 19th at 2pm at The Renaissance Center, 855 Highway 46 S in Dickson. Tickets are $5 for students, $10 for senior adults and $15 for adult. Tickets are available online: http://www.renplayers.com/ or by calling 615-740-5600
