Frank Ferrante's Groucho, the filmed version of the long-running stage comedy An Evening With Groucho, starring Frank Ferrante, will debut nationally on public television April 1. Check local listings for broadcast on your public television station.
The work celebrates the style and spirit of Marx through songs, stories, improvisation, and audience interaction. Music from Marx's Broadway and film career, including "Lydia, the Tattooed Lady" and theme song "Hooray For Captain Spaulding" are featured alongside one-liners from the Marx Brothers' film classics The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers.
Ferrante portrays legendary comedian Groucho Marx in the role he's performed for more than 35 years in more than 500 cities. As Groucho, Ferrante has received New York’s Theatre World Award, and was nominated for London’s Laurence Olivier and New York’s Outer Critics Circle Awards. Ferrante is owner of Groucho Marx Productions, Inc., which represents the name and likeness of the comedian.
Dreya Weber directs, alongside music direction and accompaniment by Gerald Sternbach, set design by Tamara L. Honesty, and lighting by Mark Williams. The production was filmed at the two-time Tony Award-winning Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. American Public Television distributes. Ferrante and Weber produce.
Frank Ferrante's Groucho will be released on DVD April 1. The public television broadcast is sponsored in part by the Buxton Center for Bainbridge Performing Arts located on Bainbridge Island, Washington.
