Wanzie Presents' MASS APPEAL to Play White Elephant Cabaret Theater in July

Former Orlando theater and opera mainstay Frank McClain, who left Orlando in 2012 to assume the role of Managing Director of Opera Tampa and who then relocated to Dubuque, Iowa (2015) to become the Executive and Artistic Director of the Grand Opera House, will return to Orlando this summer to direct Stephen Lewis and Michael Wanzie in the Wanzie Presents production of Mass Appeal - opening on Friday, July 14th, 2023 for a limited 3-performance run.

Mass Appeal will be presented in association with the not-for-profit White Elephant Theatre Productions, Inc at the production company's soon-to-debut theater located on Fairbanks Avenue in Orlando. According to producer/actor Wanzie "The fact that the new White Elephant Theater is housed within a former church seemed like a good omen to me. From the moment I first saw it I knew that was where I wanted to present Mass Appeal wherein much of the action takes place in a Catholic church sanctuary. The fact that White Elephant will offer theater patrons plenty of free parking in its own adjacent lot totally sealed the deal for me."

Mass Appeal is a critically acclaimed drama laced with comedy, which focuses on the conflict between a complacent Roman Catholic Pastor (Wanzie) and an idealistic young seminarian (Lewis) who takes issue with the ways in which the Pastor appeases his affluent congregants.

Mass Appeal was originally produced by the Manhattan Theatre Club, directed by Geraldine Fitzgerald and starring Milo O'Shea as Father Farley and Eric Roberts as seminarian Mark Dolson. It opened at the Off Broadway Stage 73 on April 22, 1980, and ran for 104 performances. The Broadway production, again directed by Fitzgerald and starring O'Shea as Tim Farley but with Michael O'Keefe as Mark Dolson, opened at the Booth Theatre on November 12, 1981, after 16 previews. It closed on May 16, 1982, after 212 performances. Over the years the manuscript has undergone several revisions to facilitate the play being presented in present day time.

BIOS

Stephen Lewis
(Mark Dolson)

Stephen is a film and theater actor and all-around creator of art. As Stephen explains, "My experiences with studio art, writing, and music informs my acting, as does my six years of Navy service as a Nuclear Reactor Operator on a submarine." Of his portrayal of family patriarch Eric in the 2019 Annie Russell Theatre production of The Humans,Orlando Sentinel theater critic Matt Palm wrote, "In a shrewdly modulated performance, Lewis holds his emotional cards close to his chest at first. But as the play goes on, his emotional metamorphosis first unnerves then unexpectedly elicits compassion." During the 2022 Orlando Fringe Festival Stephen delighted audiences performing in his self-penned one-man biographical show Lotus, and he ended the year by winning the Best Actor Award at the Orlando Independent Filmmakers Gala for his starring role in Men Are Dogs. Recently, Stephen appeared on stage with Ginger Minj and Wanzie playing multiple character roles in Fruit Wine productions' TV sitcom parody - The Munterz at The Clermont Performing Arts Center. Stephen has trained at Class Act Studios, The Actors Gym, Truthful Acting Studios, Orlando Shakes, and Rollins College.

MICHAEL WANZIE

(Father Tim Farley)

"Wanzie" has been writing, producing, directing, choreographing, and appearing in plays in the Greater Orlando area for more than 40 years. He has plied his talents at The Footlight Theater, The Ice House Theater, Stage Left Theater, Golden Coast Opera Society, Seminole on Stage, Ensemble Company in Residence at Penguin Point, Florida Theatrical Association, Orlando Classic Theater, Theatre Downtown, Civic Theaters of Central Florida, Osceola Players, Beth Marshall Presents at Garden Theatre, Jim Hansen's Sesame Street Live! Walt Disney World, Princess Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, NYfringe, San Francisco Fringe, and at the Orlando Fringe Festival where Wanzie has won multiple Critic Choice, WAVE, and Audience Choice Awards and where he remains the highest-ticket-selling artist of all time as well as being the recipient of the Festival's Terry Olson Lifetime Achievement Award. Favorite roles include Charlie in The Whale, Father Flynn in Doubt, and Vanya in The Ensemble Company production of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, which the Orlando Sentinel recognized as Best Comedic Performance of 2020.

FRANK McCLAIN

(Director)

Frank McClain was the founder and co-owner/operator of Stage Left Theatre which presented a string of well-received shows in its intimate Virginia Avenue venue in the late 1980's including a production of Mass Appeal starring Paul M. Wegman as Father Farley under the direction of Frank McClain. As an actor Frank's credits are far too extensive to list but have included leading roles in dinner and regional theaters and opera companies from Nebraska to Florida and several points in-between including Actors Equity roles on various stages at Walt Disney World where he also served as a lead (In addition to performing the villainous role of Frollo) in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame at Disney/MGM Studios. He also played the role of Andrew Borden in three productions of the Charron/Wanzie musical, Lizzie and captivated Orlando Fringe audiences with his delightful lead performance in the Wanzie Presents / D Squared production of Howard Crabtree's When Pigs Fly. Frank's professional artistic leadership credits include Resident Stage Director/Production Manager/Director of Resident Artists - Orlando Opera, Stage Director and Production Manager for Theatrical Productions - Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Artistic Director of Florida Opera Theatre, Managing Director of Opera Tampa, and most recently, Executive and Artistic Director -The Grand Opera House, Dubuque, Iowa. Orlando theater goers may recall Frank's memorable direction of such productions as Company at Mad Cow, The Medium for Florida Opera, Porgy and Bess for Orlando Philharmonic, and for late great Doug Ba'aser at Orlando Fringe - Joan Crawford's House Party, and the original production of A Tired Old Whore.

Wanzie Presents

MASS APPEAL

Written by Bill C. Davis

Directed by Frank McClain

Date:
Friday, July 14 at 8 pm
Saturday, July 22 at 8 pm
Sunday, July 23 at 2 pm

Location:
White Elephant Cabaret Theater
1123 W. Fairbanks Avenue - Orlando
COST:
$20 - $27