Directed by John McNaughton, Florida, where social-climbing guidance counselor Sam is indifferent to teen-socialite Kelly, who retaliates by accusing him of rape, an accusation that leads to his suspension by the school and a rejection from the country club. He can’t afford a big attorney, so he hires shrewd Ken Bowden, while Kelly’s mom, Sandra, Sam’s former lover, gets a platoon of top lawyers. Trailer-trash Suzie Toller backs up Kelly’s claim and additional plot twists and turns develop. The cop on the case begins to suspect a conspiracy and a web of greed and betrayal.

Dennis Neal

Orlando actor Dennis Neal will star as legendary jazzman Louis Armstrong in the world-premiere production of Satchmo at the Waldorf, author and Wall Street Journal theater critic Terry Teachout’s play based on his biography Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong.

Rus Blackwell will direct the play, which will have its first production at the Lowndes Shakespeare Center in Orlando Sept. 15-Oct. 2.

Neal, who has acted extensively around Central Florida (most recently as Scrooge in A Christmas Carol at the Garden Theatre and in Orlando Shakespeare Theater’s Shotgun), also will play Joe Glaser, Armstrong’s controversial manager, in the play about Armstrong’s final performance before his death.

Here’s information about the folks involved, who also include designer William Elliot:

Terry Teachout

In addition to being a drama critic and biographer, Teachout has also worked as a professional jazz bassist and written the libretti for two operas. He spent the past two winters as a scholar-in-residence at Rollins College’s Winter Park Institute, where he wrote the first draft of Satchmo at the Waldorf last year. The biography, Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong, was praised by the New York Times as “eloquent and important” and chosen by the Washington Post as one of the ten best books of 2009. Satchmo at the Waldorf is his first play. Teachout was the first Armstrong biographer to have access to 650 reel-to-reel tapes made by the trumpeter during the last quarter-century of his life, many of which contain astonishingly candid recordings of his private after-hours conversations. These tapes served as the inspiration for much of the dialogue in Satchmo at the Waldorf, in which the offstage Louis Armstrong — raw, frank, and uncensored — is revealed for the first time.

Rus Blackwell

Rus Blackwell, one of the most sought after actor/directors in the Southeast, brings a wealth of experience and a passion for storytelling to Satchmo. Blackwell is a graduate of New York’s Circle in the Square Theatre School, where he had the opportunity to study with well-known directors Michael Kahn and Nikos Psachoropolous. Most recently, he directed Sweet Bird of Youth and A Streetcar Named Desire for the Tennessee Williams Tribute in William’s birthplace of Columbus, MS. He is a founding member, as well as one of the original producing artistic directors, for both Mad Cow Theatre Company and SoulFire Theatre here in Orlando and has an extensive resume as an actor in theater, film and television. Some of his credits include last year’s Shotgun for Orlando Shakespeare and feature films  Monster, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Dolphin Tale, and Battle: Los Angeles. He will be appearing on the Starz series Magic City and in this year’s God of Carnage here at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater.

Dennis Neal, one of Orlando’s most respected actors with twenty-five years experience, is a founding member of Mad Cow Theatre and has performed in such notable productions as The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Jesus Hopped the ‘A Train,’ Seven Guitars, Two Trains Running, The Piano Lesson, and Shotgun. Theatergoers will recognize him from these and many other productions at Mad Cow Theatre, Empty Spaces, Peoples’ Theatre, and Orlando Shakespeare Theater as well as from film and TV in Dead Man Walking, Wild Things, Endure, Letters to God, Sunshine State, ABC’s The Practice, and NBC’s The West Wing. He has performed in works by August Wilson, Athol Fugard, David Mamet, and Stephen Adley Guirgis and brings his own unique style and brilliance to Satchmo at the Waldorf.

The set and lighting designer William Elliot has long been a favorite for his artistic interpretation of a playwright’s vision. He was a professor at the University of Central Florida and is currently professor at Stetson University teaching production and acting as the production manager and technical director for the university. Some of his notable designs include All My Sons, Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella, and The Importance of Being Earnest.

He’s already presented one program (the e-mail notice went out late) but has two more in store. Here they are (and theater fans may want to note that local actor Dennis Neal appears in the second of these programs):

• Making an Opera: 7 p.m. Jan. 25, Tiedtke Concert Hall, Keene Hall, Rollins College. The Letter, an opera by Teachout and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Paul Moravec based on Somerset Maugham’s 1927 play, premiered in 2009 at the Santa Fe Opera. Now the two are collaborating on Danse Russe, a comedy about the creation of The Rite of Spring, which will premiere in spring 2011 in collaboration with the Rollins music department. Teachout presents a sneak preview and talks about the challenge of writing his first original opera libretto.
• Turning a Life Into a Play: 7 p.m. Feb. 1, Bush Auditorium, Bush Science Center, Rollins College.  Teachout started writing his first play, a one-man show based on Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong, during his 2010 visit to the Winter Park Institute. Now Satchmo at the Waldorf is moving toward its first commercial production. In collaboration with the Rollins theater department, Teachout will present the first public performance of staged excerpts from this first production and talk about transforming a best-selling bio into a one-man play.

Dennis Neal will play Scrooge in the production, but all other roles are open.

Here’s the announcement:

Beth Marshall Presents A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas, by Charles Dickens, adapted for the stage by Michael Wilson. Directed by John DiDonna. Starring Dennis Neal as Scrooge. All other roles available.

This will be the Florida premiere of this unique adaptation presented at the Garden Theatre in Winter Garden. Performance dates are Dec. 3-19 with 8 pm shows on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 2 pm shows on Sunday. Industry Night performance will be on Monday Dec. 13 at 8 pm.

Audition Info:

Adult auditions will be held on Sat. Sept. 4 from 1 pm-5 pm in the Mandell Theater at the Lowndes Shakespeare Center, 812. E. Rollins Street in Loch Haven Park.

Adult auditioners should bring a headshot/resume and be familiar with the script and be prepared to do read sides. No monologues required. Please be prepared to do a British accent and sing an a cappella Christmas carol.

You can make arrangements to come early to read the sides or the full script when you schedule your audition appointment.

Children’s auditions will be held from 11:30 am-2 pm on Saturday Sept. 4.

Children ages 6-17 need to bring a headshot or photo/resume and come prepared with a monologue as well as read from the script as well as sing an a cappella Christmas carol.

Callbacks will be held on Sunday, Sept. 5 at 1 pm. If you have acted in a Beth Marshall Presents production in the past, you can come directly to callbacks but will still need to schedule.

This is a non-union professional production. All adult roles will be paid a stipend.

All auditions must be scheduled by appointment no later than Friday, Sept. 3 at 5 pm.

Rehearsals: One read-through in September with rehearsals beginning in mid-October-November (off for Halloween/Thanksgiving). Rehearsals will be in the evenings from 7-10 pm or on some weekend days. All rehearsals will take place at Lowndes Shakespeare Center. Complete rehearsal schedule will be available at the auditions.

Needed:

• 12-16 Adult actors of all ethnicities/ages. Can’t emphasize the ALL ETHNICITIES and AGES enough.
• 6-10 Child actors of all ethnicities ranging in age from 6-17 years.

For more information, to schedule an audition appointment or time to peruse the script, please email Production Stage Manager Chasmin Hallyburton at BethMarshallPresents@gmail.com.

Beth Marshall presents A Christmas Carol, a Ghost Story of Christmas, by Charles Dickens, adapted for the stage by Michael Wilson. Directed by John DiDonna. Starring Dennis Neal as Scrooge. All other roles available. This will be the Florida premiere of this unique adaptation presented at the Garden Theatre in Winter Garden. Performance dates are Dec. 3-19 with 8 pm shows on Thurs., Fri and Sat. and 2 pm shows on Sun. Industry Night performance will be on Mon. Dec. 13 at 8 pm.

Audition Info:

Adult auditions will be held on Sat. Sept. 4 from 1pm-5pm in the Mandell Studio Theater at Lowndes Shakespeare Center, 812. E. Rollins Street in Loch Haven Park.

Adult auditioners should bring a head shot/resume and be familiar with the script and be prepared to do read sides. No monologues required. Please be prepared to do a British accent and sing an a cappella Christmas carol.

You can make arrangements to come early to read the sides or the full script when you schedule your audition appointment.

Children auditions will be held from 11:30 am-2 pm on Sat. Sept. 4. Children ages 6-17 need to bring a head shot or photo/resume and come prepared with a monologue as well as read from the script and sing an a cappella Christmas carol.

Callbacks will be held on Sunday, Sept. 5 at 1 pm. If you have acted in a Beth Marshall Presents production in the past, you can come directly to callbacks but will still need to schedule.

This is a non-union professional production. All adult roles will be paid a stipend.

All auditions must be scheduled by appointment no later than Friday, Sept. 3 at 5 pm.

Rehearsals: One read-through in September with rehearsals beginning in mid-October-November (off for Halloween/Thanksgiving) Rehearsals will be in the evenings from 7-10 pm or on some weekend days. All rehearsals will take place at Lowndes Shakespeare Center. Complete rehearsal schedule will be available at the auditions.

Needed:

• 12-16 adult actors of all ethnicities/ages. Can’t emphasize the ALL ETHNICITIES and AGES enough.
• 6-10 child actors of all ethnicities ranging in age from 6-17 yrs.

For more information, to schedule an audition appointment or time to peruse the script, please email production stage manager Chasmin Hallyburton at BethMarshallPresents@gmail.com.