'Rainmaker" Opens Thursday On Wilburton Campus
(Press Release 10-09-07)
Hank Mooney, Office of Public Information

“For once in your life, get carried away!” That’s the advice that H.C. Curry gives his daughter Lizzie in Theatre Eastern’s fall production, The Rainmaker, which opens Thursday night at 7:30.

The Rainmaker is a comedy set on a ranch in the Midwest in the middle of a long drought. The Curry boys are desperate for rain – but just as worrisome as the weather, is the uncertain future of their unmarried sister, Lizzie.

Bright and headstrong, but insecure, Lizzie has no suitors in sight; and already in her 20s, she’s well on her way to being a 1930s spinster. Her family devises a string of plans to get her a husband, but Lizzie’s not ready to compromise who she is. When a con man comes to town promising to make rain for $100, though, electricity starts to fill the air.

Will the charismatic dreamer, Starbuck, be able to break the long, dry spell? Will Lizzie find love on her own terms? And just what will happen to the Currys on this hot, summer night? Find out this week at Eastern Oklahoma State College’s Mitchell Auditorium. The Rainmaker plays at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 11, 12 and 15. General admission tickets are $3 and will be sold at the door. Eastern students, faculty, and staff get in free with their ID.

Many will remember this classic romantic comedy which was made into a popular movie in 1956, starring Katharine Hepburn and Burt Lancaster. But younger audiences will also fall in love with these very real characters and this timeless comedy, which has inspired several stage revivals, movie versions and even a Broadway musical, with stars from Lloyd Bridges and Geraldine Page to Woody Harrelson and Tommy Lee Jones.

“There’s a reason The Rainmaker is so popular. It’s just a fun night at the theatre, plain and simple,” said Melissa Heath-Lee, the director.

Heath-Lee, an Eastern alum from Red Oak, recently took the reins as Eastern’s new theatre instructor, and The Rainmaker will mark her return to Eastern.

“I’m so excited to be back in Oklahoma, teaching theatre at the very place where I was first exposed to the arts. I got the start to a very rewarding life here, and now I get to return the favor – and to have such a talented and dedicated group of students to work with is a dream come true.”

The cast includes; Kayla Alexander, McAlester freshman, as Lizzie, Robert Miller, Vian freshman, as H.C., Devin Wylie, Quinton freshman, as Noah Curry, Tarrant King, McAlester sophomore, as Jim Curry, Matt Tucker, Quinton sophomore, as File, Heath Shoulders, Wilburton sophomore, as Sheriff Thomas, and Boomer Lowrie, Smithville freshman as Starbuck. Wilburton sophomore, Jolene Hill, is Stage Managing.

Maggie Barber, McAlester freshman, is the Costume Crew Chief. Other technical crews are headed up by; Tucker (Sets), Wylie (Lighting), Miller (Properties), King (Makeup and Hair), and Ashley Hallemeier, Okmulgee freshman (Sound). Katie Foster, Panola freshman, is the Light Board Operator. R.J. Hensley, Alderson freshman, and Tiffany Price, freshman, will be the backstage running crew.

For more information about The Rainmaker or Theatre Eastern contact Heath-Lee at 918-465-1758.

Caption info:

A magical dream – or something that might last a lifetime – what will she choose? Find out in The Rainmaker, Eastern Oklahoma State College’s fall production, playing October 11, 12, and 15 at 7:30pm in Mitchell Auditorium on the Wilburton campus of EOSC. Tickets for this classic romantic comedy are $3 and are available at the door. The cast includes (from L to R); File (Matt Tucker, Quinton Sophomore), Lizzie (Kayla Alexander, McAlester Freshman), Starbuck (Brandon “Boomer” Lowrie, Smithville Freshman), Noah (Devin Wylie, Quinton Freshman), and H.C. (Robert Miller, Vian Freshman).

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