Ojai ACT
Art Center Theater
A non-profit community ensemble
Press release by John Hankins
A play about a corporate raider, “Other People’s Monday,” is really a romantic comedy – honest.
Written by a businessman who also wrote plays, Jerry Sterner, this award-winning off-Broadway production will be at the Ojai Art Center Theater from Aug. 13 through Sept. 11. And for the first weekend only, your guest can use “other people’s money” to get in on the two-for-one admission price.
Director Steve Grumette chose the play because of its thought-provoking theme coupled with human emotions, and of course the popularity of love and money.
While the story -- made into a popular movie starring Danny DeVito, Penelope Ann Miller and Gregory Peck -- could easily be ripped from today’s headlines, the underlying story about love and labor is universal in our culture.
To pull it off, Grumette has gathered a fine cast of veteran actors.
“In an ensemble production, it’s important that the actors are not only able to create convincing portrayals of their characters, but can work together as a cohesive and harmonious whole. This cast meets that challenge admirably,” Grumette said.
Robert Sabotka plays Lawrence “Larry the Liquidator” Garfinkle, a Wall Street corporate raider who sets his sights on his next victim, the undervalued New England Wire & Cable Company. The stockholders stand to make a bundle, but not so the 1200 employees nor the community in which they live.
Besides, the company has long been owned by Andrew Jorgenson (W. David Wright), the founder’s son and a benign employer, who also has a wise assistant Bea (Linda MacNeal) and a polished and popular president, William Coles (Buddy Wilds).
When Garfinkle comes on the scene, the company hires Bea’s daughter Kate (Jennifer Brown), an alert and attractive Wall Street attorney. The heat is really turned up between these two, causing Garfinkle to wonder if he lusts after her more than the money.
The set was designed by Grumette and Michael V. Smith and constructed by Smith and Bill Spellman. Pulling the production all together is Producer Herb Hemming and Stage Manager Corina Harvey.
Performances are at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 7 p.m. Sundays at Ojai ACT, 113 S. Montgomery St. from Aug. 13 through Sept. 11. Tickets are $18 general, $15 students, seniors and Art Center members, except that prices are two-for-one for the first weekend only.
CALENDAR ITEM:
“Other People’s Money,” a dramatic comedy of love and money, work and values by Jerry Sterner, comes alive on the Ojai Art Center stage from Aug. 13 to Sept. 11 at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 7 p.m. Sundays at Ojai ACT, 113 S. Montgomery St. Tickets are $18 general, $15 students, seniors and Art Center members. For reservations, call at 640-8797 or log on to: www.OjaiACT.org.
