Publisher Description
It's 1929 as The Jazz Singer hits the silver screen and the talkies promise to change movies forever. Enter three down-and-out vaudevillians who hatch a hare-brained scheme to "make it big" in Tinsel Town. Their plan? To open a voice academy for the witless stars of silent movies. The only things standing in their way are ditzy starlets and power-hungry movie moguls. Starring Ed Asner and directed by Moss Hart's son, this is top-of-the-bill screwball comedy and Kaufman and Hart genius at its very best.
An LA Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring Caroline Aaron as Helen Hobart and Miss Chasen, Edward Asner as Herman Glogauer, Jen Dede as Susan Walker, Jeanie Hackett as Mrs. Walker and Miss Leighton, David Kaufman as George Lewis, Katharine Leonard as Florabel Leigh and Bridesmaid #2, Joe Liss as Ernest and others, Kellie Matteson as Phyllis Fontaine and Bridesmaid #1, Jon Matthews as Rudolph Kammerling and others, Sarah Rafferty as May Daniels, Jonathan Silverman as Jerry Hyland, and Steve Vinovich as Lawrence Vail and others. Directed by Christopher Hart and recorded before a live audience at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.
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About the Authors
Moss Hart (1904–1961) began his career as a playwright in 1925 and achieved his first major success in the 1930 collaboration with George S. Kaufman titled Once in a Lifetime. With Kaufman he also wrote such American classics as The Man Who Came to Dinner and You Can’t Take It with You, winner of the 1937 Pulitzer Prize. Hart also gained universal recognition for his award-winning direction of many shows, including My Fair Lady and Camelot.
Moss Hart (1904–1961) began his career as a playwright in 1925 and achieved his first major success in the 1930 collaboration with George S. Kaufman titled Once in a Lifetime. With Kaufman he also wrote such American classics as The Man Who Came to Dinner and You Can’t Take It with You, winner of the 1937 Pulitzer Prize. Hart also gained universal recognition for his award-winning direction of many shows, including My Fair Lady and Camelot.
About the Narrators
Edward “Ed” Asner (1929–2021) was an American actor best known for his Emmy-winning role as Lou Grant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, later continued in a spin-off series, Lou Grant. He made dozens of appearances—including voice-over work—on television shows and recorded a number of audiobooks.
Jeanie Hackett is
an actor, director, author, and teacher. She has performed on Broadway,
regional, and Los Angeles stages, and appears frequently on film and
television. She has directed award-winning productions and has served as
artistic director for two prestigious Los Angeles theater companies. She is the
author of two popular books for actors and has taught or coached hundreds of
actors, from beginners to celebrated artists.
Matthew Wolf has worked extensively as a voice, theater, radio, and television actor. He has appeared in many productions on the London stage, including the title role in a sell-out production of Macbeth alongside Twilight star Robert Pattinson. He is also the official voice of Thor for Mavel Studios’ animated films Hulk Vs. Thor and Thor: Tales of Asgard. He lives in Los Angeles, where he is also producing with his production company, Cool Hand International.
David Kaufman is the bestselling author of Doris Day: The Untold Story of the Girl Next Door as well as a longtime theater critic and contributor to the New York Times, Nation, and Vanity Fair. He lives in New York City.
Jeanie Hackett is
an actor, director, author, and teacher. She has performed on Broadway,
regional, and Los Angeles stages, and appears frequently on film and
television. She has directed award-winning productions and has served as
artistic director for two prestigious Los Angeles theater companies. She is the
author of two popular books for actors and has taught or coached hundreds of
actors, from beginners to celebrated artists.