The Bay Street Players are preparing to present Neil Simon’s comedy “Rumors” at The State Theatre of Eustis.
Performances will be held at the facility, located at 109 N. Bay Street in Eustis from Friday, April 2 through Sunday April 18. The production will be directed by the theatre’s artistic director and three-time regional Emmy-winner Carlos Francisco Asse.
“Rumors” stars Kristi Bell-Boliek, Rick Breese, Adam Cornett, Hector DeLeon, Olivia Hern, Kirk Klemash and Shauna Liverotti, and features Mitch Bozeman and Paloma DeLeon. It tells the story of an elegant dinner party gone absurdly wrong.
Four well-to-do couples arrive at the townhouse of a deputy New York City mayor and his wife for their 10th wedding anniversary. The guests soon discover that the staff and hostess are missing and the host is lying incapacitated in the next room with a gunshot wound.
Comic complications ensue as they decide they must do everything possible to conceal the evening’s events from the local police and the media for fear of a scandal. While vibrant and witty on the surface, when read closely, “Rumors” offers subtle, deeper undertones that reflect the hardships of the author’s life at the time it was produced. The result is a smart, intimate and joyous farce that leaves audiences continuing to wonder what could possibly happen next.
“Rumors” is among Simon’s most celebrated comedies. The play debuted at San Francisco’s Old Globe Theatre in September 1988 before opening on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre in November of the same year. The original Broadway production received the 1989 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play (Christine Baranski).
Since closing on Broadway after 535 performances, “Rumors” has been performed countless times throughout the world. This production of “Rumors” is produced through an agreement with Concord Theatricals with the support of United Arts of Central Florida and Culture Builds Florida.
For more information and to purchase tickets to “Rumors” and other performances at The State Theatre of Eustis, contact the box office at (352) 357-7777 or visit eustisstatetheatre.org. Box office hours are Monday-Friday from 1-6 p.m.