 Two sparkling performers and one great play will make for an unforgettable evening of theatre this April, when Kentucky Repertory Theatre brings Sally Struthers and Mike Gallagher to Kentucky for a series of performances of A.R. Gurney’s “Love Letters.”
The series, part of a five-city tour, is set to come to Somerset for a one-night performance on Wednesday, April 21, beginning at 7:30 p.m., at The Center for Rural Development.
Employing only two actors and less than two hours time, “Love Letters” tells the story of Melissa Gardner and Andrew Makepeace Ladd III, two privileged members of the “smart set,” as they read from their notes, letters, and cards exchanged over a period of 50 years.
While they have maintained separate lives, their letters reveal their hopes, ambitions, disappointments, and defeats and their own complex relationship as it evolves from second grade through their middle years.
“Love Letters” is a play that demands the most from its actors. Performing without the benefit of many of the usual theatrical devices, the performers must make especially effective use of their own ingenuity to bring the play to life. Kentucky Repertory Theatre’s production will feature two performers who are up to the task.
Starring in “Love Letters” will be award-winning actress and activist, Sally Struthers, best known for her role of Gloria Bunker Stivic, the daughter of Archie and Edith Bunker, on the 1970s ground-breaking sitcom, “All in the Family.” Struthers won two Emmy Awards (in 1972 and 1979) for her work as the pretty, petite, and vulnerable “Gloria,” quick to defend her liberal views to an anything-but-liberal “Archie Bunker” played by Carroll O’Connor.
 After seven seasons, Struthers, eager to branch out, left the show. In 1981, she made her Broadway debut in “Wally’s Café.” Four years later she returned as obsessive “Florence” opposite Rita Moreno’s slovenly, “Olive” in a gender-reversal version of “The Odd Couple.”
Struthers has performed in several TV series. In 1988, she reprised her role as “Gloria” in the series of the same name. She provided the voice for several cartoon characters, most notably the teenage “Pebbles Flintstone.” Most recently, she has performed in “Gilmore Girls”
She also filled frequent roles in touring musicals, portraying the inflexible principle “Miss Lynch” in many tours of “Grease,” and mean orphanage operator “Miss Hannigan” in several road productions of “Annie.” Recently, she won the Los Angeles “Ovation”
Co-starring with her will be Mike Gallagher, conservative political commentator and host of the nationally syndicated talk show, “The Mike Gallagher Show” that airs throughout the United States. He is also a frequent Fox News Channel contributor and best-selling author.
Passionate about performing in professional theatre, Gallagher is an Equity actor. In 2010, he has performed in “Showboat,” “Love Letters,” and soon will play Daddy Warbucks in “Annie.”
Tickets for the Somerset performance are $30. To purchase tickets for “Love Letters,” call The Center’s Box Office at 606-677-6000. |
