Tred Avon Players to Present Madcap Comedy ‘Lend Me a Tenor’

The Tred Avon Players will present Ken Ludwig’s side-splitting comedy “Lend Me a Tenor,” opening April 27 and running through May 7 at the Oxford Community Center. The second production in TAP’s 2017 “season of comedy,” the play is set in the world of opera and directed by Zack Schlag.

TAP’s “Lend Me a Tenor” cast, seated from left, Jared Koenig, Jaclyn Royer. Standing, from left, Missy Barcomb-Doyle, Alison Lynch, Craig Brittingham, Nick Grande and Ashley Chroniger. Photo Courtesy: Cid Collins Walker

Called one of the funniest modern stage comedies ever written, “Lend Me a Tenor” revolves around the Cleveland Grand Opera Company, where the general manager, Henry Saunders, is primed to welcome world-famous tenor Tito Morelli, also known as “Il Stupendo,” to appear for one night only as Otello in the Verdi opera. The star arrives late and, through a hilarious series of mishaps, passes out. Believing Morelli is dead, the frantic Saunders persuades his assistant, Max, to get into Morelli’s Otello costume and fool the audience into thinking he’s Il Stupendo. Saunders’ scheme succeeds admirably, but the high jinks that ensue are sure to leave Oxford audiences teary-eyed with laughter.

Evening performances of “Lend Me a Tenor” are scheduled for Thursday (“Thrifty Thursday,” featuring two-for-one tickets), April 27; Friday, April 28; and Saturday, April 29, all starting at 7:30 p.m. A Sunday matinee on April 30 begins at 2 p.m. The following weekend, evening shows are set for Thursday through Saturday, May 4-6, at 7:30 p.m., with the run wrapping on Sunday, May 7, at 2 p.m. 

The Tred Avon Players are funded in part by a grant from the Talbot County Arts Council, with revenues provided by the Maryland State Arts Council.                                            

For more information, contact Cid Collins Walker, publicity, at cidcollinswalker@gmail.com, (202) 210-8383.