Contra Costa Civic Theatre PresentsTintypes- A Musical Salute to The Golden Age of American Song
Contra Costa Civic Theatre (CCCT) continues its 2023-24 season with “Tintypes”, the Tony-nominated musical about America’s last great Age of Innocence. Conceived by Mary Kyte with Mel Marvin and Gary Pearle, “Tintypes”plays from October 27-November 12.
“Tintypes” is a charming musical revue focusing on the exciting yet tumultuous period of American history between the turn of the 20th century and the onset of World War I. The score is a blend of patriotic songs, romantic tunes, and ragtime by the musical masters of the era, including George M. Cohan, John Philip Sousa, and Scott Joplin. From the immigrant experience to the beginning of the Jim Crow era to the birth of the great vaudeville stars, Tintypes chronicles the growing pains of a nation on the brink of becoming a world superpower.
“Tintypes” is directed by Marilyn Langbehn as her final production as CCCT’s Executive Artistic Director. Productions for the company during her ten-year tenure include the Bay Area premiere of ‘To Master the Art’, ‘Sondheim on Sondheim’, ‘Our Town’, ‘Anton in Show Business’, ‘Broadway Inside Out’, ‘Bright Star’, ‘The Last Five Years’, ‘All the Way’, ‘Ragtime’, ‘All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914’, ‘Cabaret’, ‘The Sound of Music’, ‘The Complete Works of William Shakespeare’ (abridged)[revised], ‘The Mountaintop’, and the world premiere of ‘The Lost Years’. Her critically-acclaimed production of ‘August: Osage County‘received Best Production and Best Director nods at the inaugural Theatre Bay Area awards in 2014. She founded the Theatre’s Reading Stage series in 2015 to showcase the work of women playwrights and playwrights of color. To date, the series has produced more than 20 works, including plays by Katori Hall, Theresa Rebeck, Cynthia Wands, kimber lee, Leah Nanako Winkler, Jiréh Breon Holder, and Inda Craig-Galván, and the widely-acclaimed world premiere of her play, ‘Running For My Life’, about the January 6th insurrection which played to a national audience. Marilyn also inaugurated the “Kitchen Table Conversation” Zoom series in 2020 to engage audiences in substantive conversation about the arts in an informal setting.
Music direction for “Tintypes” is by Daniela Rodriguez-Chavez, who is making her CCCT debut with this production. John Butterfield will choreograph; his most recent work with CCCT was as choreographer for 2022’s Camelot.
The cast of CCCT’s production features Matt Gibson (Sondheim on Sondheim) as Teddy Roosevelt, Laszlo Horner (All is Calm, To Master the Art, All the Way) as Charlie, Tosca Maltzman (American Idiot, Addams Family) as Anna, Maria Mikheyenko (To Master the Art, Ragtime) as Emma, and Alana Wagner (Crowns) as Susannah.
“Tintypes” runs from October 27 through November 12. Tickets range from $10-$40, and are available on the theatre’s website at ccct.org. All performances take place in-person at the theatre, 951 Pomona Ave (cross street Moeser) in El Cerrito. Free parking is available in the adjoining lot and on the street. COVID protocols for attending the in-person performances are updated regularly and are available on the theatre’s website at www.ccct.org/safety.