For Immediate Release:
Contact: David Kuehn, Executive Director
Cotuit Center for the Arts
Phone: (508) 428-0669
Email: David@cotuitcenterforthearts.org
Website: ArtsOnTheCape.org
“Monty Python’s Spamalot” Comes to Cotuit Center for the Arts, June 6 to 30
Cotuit Center for the Arts presents the 2005 Tony Award-winning musical comedy, “Monty Python’s
Spamalot,” June 6 through 30. Performances are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday
at 4 PM. Michele Colley directs, and Patricia Anderson provides musical direction.
“Spamalot” is described as “lovingly ripped off from” the 1975 film, “Monty Python and the Holy
Grail.” It is an uproarious and highly irreverent retelling of the legend of King Arthur and his Knights
of the Round Table, as they set off to find the Holy Grail, stopping by a Las Vegas-style Camelot and
putting together a Broadway musical along the way, while beset with cows, rabbits, French people,
and other peculiar characters and happenings.
The New York Times called the show “resplendently silly,” sure to appeal to those valuing “shrewd
idiocy, artful tackiness and wide-eyed impiety.”
“The show features a lot of big, fun, glitzy production numbers, a really great group of female
dancers, and a large cast of hilarious characters,” said Michele Colley, a long-time Monty Python fan
who has wanted to direct this show since she first saw it on Broadway.
“It has all the great Monty Python bits, and pokes fun at everything—and we are trying to add our
own bits, as well,” she said. “It is a great community effort, a true ensemble piece, with 23 to 25
actors, depending on the night, some Cotuit Center for the Arts favorites, and some terrific
newcomers.”
Cast members range in age from 18 to 60ish, including some seasoned actors, and some new to the
theater. All share a love for Monty Python and for making people laugh.
Michael Ernst plays King Arthur, and Bonnie Fairbanks plays the diva, Arthur’s love interest, the Lady
of the Lake. Both are accomplished actors, with many local credits to their names, including recent
productions in Falmouth, Woods Hole, and at Cotuit Center for the Arts.
The dancers, several from Colley’s dance classes, keep energy levels high with elaborate, over-thetop dance numbers, combining humor and intricate choreography. Colley herself will dance in some
performances.
“It is a very funny show,” said Colley. “I still laugh at it. I guffaw at it. All the Holy Grail bits that
people love are in there.”
Costumes are by Amy Canady and Heidi Sarles. Colley said they promise to be fabulous. For the Black
Knight, they pulled in a set of experts including magician Richard Archer and engineer Claude Danner.
The set is by Bruce Allen and Michele Law, who are, said Colley, “going all out to create a funny,
goofy, and happy setting for the show.”
Colley cautions that it is not a show for children. “This is irreverent, risqué, adult humor,” she said.
Book and lyrics are by Eric Idle, with music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle. Mike Nichols directed the
original Broadway show, which won numerous awards.
Tickets are $25, $22 for seniors, $20 for members, and $15 for students. For tickets and more
information, visit artsonthecape.org or call 508-477-0669. Cotuit Center for the Arts is at 4404 Route
28 in Cotuit.
# # # #
What:
“Monty Python’s Spamalot”
Where:
Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28, Cotuit
When:
June 6 to 30, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 8 PM; Sunday, 4 PM.
Admission:
$25, $22 for seniors, $20 for members, and $15 for students
END