Kentucky’s grandest Greek Revival mansion will echo with the sound of voices, footsteps, music, dancing, laughter, passionate argument, intrigue, and betrayal, as the men and women of Chekhov’s classic drama “The Cherry Orchard” come to turbulent life under its roof. As common throughout On The Verge presentations, small audiences will follow the action as it weaves through this magnificent manor house.
Built Junius and Matilda Viley Ward for the princely sum of $50,000 in gold in 1857, Ward Hall is a 12,000 square foot mansion that has been described as “a veritable palace surrounded by a fairy garden.” During its heyday, it was the scene of lavish parties and salons where eminent visitors rubbed shoulders with the founders of Kentucky’s then fledgling Thoroughbred breeding industry. But just ten years later, in 1867, Junius was forced to put the house and its 500-acre estate on the auction block when war-inflicted losses to his cotton plantations drove him into bankruptcy – in an eerie parallel with the events of “The Cherry Orchard,” which centers on an aristocratic Russian woman and her family as they return to their family estate (which includes a large and well-known cherry orchard) just before it is auctioned to pay the mortgage.
Note: Patrons should be prepared to move around and be able to climb stairs. There are some short periods of standing involved. Unfortunately, at this stage in its renovation Ward Hall is not wheelchair accessible.
June 22-26 and June 29-July 3; all shows 7:30 p.m. except Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.
Tickets $40, available at ontheverge.org. Limit 25 per performance. Contact Stephanie Peniston at (859) 948-2762 or stephanie@czarky.net for group sales.
www.ontheverge.org
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