Star Staff Reports
The Tipton Arts Council presents its summer musical, “Anything Goes” opening this weekend. This musical features the great classic work of Cole Porter, the famed composer and lyricist, wrote some of the most loved jazz standards including “Night and Day,” “Let’s Do It (Let’s Fall in Love),” and “I Get a Kick out of You.” The musical “Anything Goes” had a long run on Broadway that lead to a film version starring Ethel Merman and Bing Crosby. This fun musical will run this weekend and next. “Anything Goes” is set in the early 1930’s. The audience is introduced to Reno Sweeney, a famous nightclub singer, and Billy Crocker, the leading man. The musical is set on the S.S. American as it sets sail for England. The voyage involves slapstick humor, interesting disguises, and of course romance. Not only does the leading lady need to find romance, but several other characters are hoping to find romance. Appropriately the voyage will end in a wedding ceremony. Sweeney is played by Jocelyn Sanabria , who appeared as Mary Poppins in the Ruffin’s musical last summer. Billy Crocker is played by Roman Ziegler. Roman has been a supporting actor for several of the Ruffin productions but this is his first romantic lead. In addition to these actors, the cast of 26 has several new faces. One such new face is Jaylan Stubbs who plays Moonface Martin. Stubbs is making his Ruffin debut with this production. He has a marvelous sense of timing and a delightful voice. Stubbs is from Lauderdale. Hopefully we will continue to see Stubbs on the Ruffin stage. Moonface Martin is a gangster. His side kick is Erma. Erma is played by Aubrey Zurhellen. Her stage presence is amazing and is attention grabbing. Once the voyage is underway, the audience is swept up in the romance and comedy as Billy and Reno both seek out their destinies. The audience is sure to enjoy the delightful tap dance numbers of “Anything Goes” and “Blow, Gabriel, Blow.” It is important to note: this summer musical will have limited seating. Customers who buy their tickets online must bring their receipt to the ticket office to confirm the purchase and the correct date of the show. Each performance will have a separate online choice. Please choose the date for the performance you will be attending. Due to limited seating, dates will be checked for online sales. Tickets for “Anything Goes” are $10 each and are available in advance at the new Ruffin website, Ruffin.Theater. Doors open one hour before productions. Friday and Saturday performances are at 7 p.m. and Sunday performance is at 2 p.m. It is limited seating. The next Ruffin production is “Arsenic and Old Lace.” This play will be performed the first two weekends in October. The play will be directed by Rick Perry. Auditions for “Arsenic and Old Lace” will be August 12 from 10 a.m. to noon. Older teens and adults are encouraged to audition for this comedy.
The Ruffin Theater is located at 113 W. Pleasant. Covington, TN. More information can be found at The Official Historic Ruffin Theater Facebook page, or telephone (901) 616-4749. You can also look for Ruffin information on Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, or the website, Ruffin.Theater.
