Western Reserve Playhouse Presents Andrew Lippa’s THE WILD PARTY
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 1, 2025
Western Reserve Playhouse Presents Andrew Lippa’s THE WILD PARTY
Bath, OH— Western Reserve Playhouse (WRP), the award-winning historic barn theatre of Summit County, continues its bold 2025–2026 season with Andrew Lippa’s THE WILD PARTY, running July 18 through August 2, 2025. Based on Joseph Moncure March’s 1928 narrative poem, this daring musical explodes with jazz-age glamour, grit, and emotional depth. Beneath the glittering surface of excess and spectacle, The Wild Party reveals a story about silence, survival, and the devastating cost of complicity.
When vaudeville performer Queenie throws a raucous party to shake off her troubles—and her volatile lover Burrs—the night descends into chaos. As liquor flows and tensions rise, guests trade secrets, betrayals, and fleeting desires. By morning, the celebration has turned into a reckoning.
Directed by Braelin Andrzejewski, this production peels back the decadence to expose the emotional truth beneath. Andrzejewski, who helmed last season’s acclaimed Children of Eden, approaches The Wild Party through the lens of survival and silence, crafting an intimate, high-voltage experience that challenges audiences to confront their own complicity.
*“When I first listened to The Wild Party as a director, I thought I was taking on a glittery, chaotic, high-octane show. And it certainly is all of those things; but at its heart, I found that this is, truly, a story about a woman who survives despite.
Queenie is the life of the party; strong, vivacious, magnetic, and impossible to ignore. She burns so brightly it's easy to believe she is untouchable. But that is the lie we tell ourselves about women like her. Queenie is not the ‘perfect victim’—which is exactly what makes her story so vital to tell. Around her, the music roars and the party rages on. But beneath it all, there is a silence. The silence of her friends, the silence of her suffering. In this story, silence is the antagonist.”*
“This show asks us to look at that silence; not from a distance, but up close. What will we excuse in others just to keep the party going? When do we trade discomfort for complicity? And what happens when someone refuses to stay silent any longer?”
“After directing Children of Eden last season, I wanted a vastly different challenge—a show that lived in the gray areas, a show about power and survival. In my job, I spend my days teaching about consent, communication, and what it means to truly, deeply connect to the people around us. Children of Eden was a story about when we connect; The Wild Party is a story about what happens when we don’t.”
“I hope this production leaves you unsettled—in the best way. Sit with the tension. Notice the silences. And as the music fades, I invite you to ask not just ‘why did she stay?’ but ‘what would I have done if it were me?’”
—Director’s Note by Braelin Andrzejewski
The ensemble features Karina Moran and Brandon Alexander-Smith as Queenie and Burrs. The creative team includes JT Buck, Jailyn Harris, Dan Hunsicker, and Louise Schwartz, with Andrzejewski’s direction guiding WRP’s talented company through the story’s complex interplay of vulnerability, spectacle, and truth.
Performances run July 18–August 2, 2025, Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM. Seating is limited in this intimate 95-seat venue. Audiences are encouraged to book early for this bold, visceral reimagining of Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party.
For press inquiries, interviews, or more information, please contact:
Media Contact:
Braelin Andrzejewski
Director of Marketing & Communications
Western Reserve Playhouse
Braelin@thewrp.org
