Showtime: Liberace! will be on stage at the Walnut Street Theatre through April 12. PHOTO COURTESY OF Michael Brosilow
Liberace died in 1987, but a new generation is getting to know the famed pianist.
In 2013, HBO debuted the movie Behind the Candelabra, starring Michael Douglas.
And Lady Gaga frequently mentions “Mr. Showmanship.”
“In the last few years, he’s undergone some sort of resurgence,” said Brent Hazelton, a playwright and theater director.
Hazelton has been with Milwaukee Repertory Theater since 1999, and today serves as its associate artistic director. His show Liberace! debuted at The Rep during its 2010–2011 season. He said it attracted an older crowd.
The show came back for another run last year and became the all-time, best-selling show at the Stackner Cabaret. This time, there were younger faces in the audience.
“We tend to get a mix in Milwaukee,” he said.
Hazelton is bringing the show to Philadelphia. It opened with previews on Tuesday and will run through April 12 as part of the Walnut Street Theatre’s Independence Studio on 3 season.
Hazelton described the show as an honest, real, balanced and fundamentally human portrayal of a man who dressed in a tuxedo accompanied by sequins and feathers. It was created in cooperation with The Liberace Foundation.
“It’s the evolution of his career,” he said. “It’s the journey of his entire life.”
Born as Wladziu Valentino Liberace in Wisconsin in 1919, he was a child prodigy on the piano and gained fame in the 1950s with his own television show. He also released albums, toured and made films. He died of an AIDS-related illness, becoming the second celebrity after Rock Hudson to succumb to the disease.
The theater show, two hours with an intermission, will feature 30 musical pieces, ranging from Chopin to Ragtime.
Jack Forbes Wilson stars at Liberace, entertaining crowds at a 7-foot-long black piano. He’s been with the show since its premiere, and has contributed original music compositions to the production.
“He’s a great actor and wonderfully engaging,” Hazelton said. “The musicianship is top shelf. He has the sort of personality where he’s really comfortable in a room of people.”
Hazelton likes the setup at Walnut Street Theatre Independence Studio on 3.
“It’s terrific. It’s a really intimate room,” he said. “It’s great for the style of show this is. The actor can have a conversation with the audience, and the audience feels engaged.”
Hazelton is eager for Philadelphia audiences to experience what crowds in Milwaukee have seen.
“It’s certainly a good time,” he said. “The costumes are pretty fabulous, and people usually get misty at the end.” ••
Show times are 7:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Sundays. There are weekend shows at 2:30 p.m. Tickets cost $30. The theater is located at 825 Walnut St. Call 215–574–3550 or visit WalnutStreetTheatre.org
