Other People’s Money

TERRANCE FIORE (Andrew Jorgenson) appeared with the HTC as Mellersh Wilkins in ENCHANTED APRIL, as Dr. Spivey in ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST and as Larkin in SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION. He is happy to reprise the role of Andrew Jorgenson which he played at Center Stage in Southampton. Other appearances include INHERIT THE WIND at Center Stage, IN THE BAR OF A TOKYO HOTEL at The Bridge in Bridgehampton, 110 IN THE SHADE with the North Fork Community Theatre, and THE FOREIGNER, MOONLIGHT AND MAGNOLIAS, ALARMS AND EXCURSIONS, and SHADOWLANDS with the Heavenly Rest Players in Manhattan. Last year he appeared in the movie Dark Was The Night which was filmed in the Southampton environs. Thanks to his wife Blair for her love and encouragement.

ADRIANNE HICK (Kate Sullivan), a Long Island native, is so excited to be making her Hampton Theatre Company debut! She most recently performed in the critically acclaimed Stephen Sondheim revue, YOU’RE GONNA LOVE TOMORROW, at the Bickford Theatre. She has been featured in Backstage Magazine as a “Breakout Talent” and has been seen in the national tours of LES MISÉRABLES and GOLD RUSH!, as well as in NYC in DANCING WITH TIME (with Charles Strouse), THE LARAMIE PROJECT, THE FAMILY FIORELLI (NYMF), THROUGH THE INVISIBLE DOOR (MTL Productions) and many others. She can be seen in commercials and on TV. Love to B.L. and family! www.adriannehick.com

EDWARD KASSAR (Lawrence Garfinkle) played Steve in HTC’s production of BECKY’S NEW CAR as well as Joseph in MY THREE ANGELS, Gary in I HATE HAMLET, Richard in DESPERATE AFFECTION, Mike Talman in WAIT UNTIL DARK, Ricky Roma in GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS, Mike in BREAKING LEGS, Lennie in OF MICE AND MEN, and Limping Man in FUDDY MEERS. Other theatrical credits include THE ZOO STORY, ART, MISERY, HURLYBURLY, GOOSE AND TOMTOM, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, SAME TIME NEXT YEAR, BURIED CHILD, NOT ABOUT NIGHTINGALES, THE NERD, JOE TURNER’S COME AND GONE, THE BALCONY and LA RONDE. Film credits include Unlikely Prophets, Dying for Dollars, Overdrive, Mook, Sushi Bar, Mulligan Farm, Down Clown, Nine Out of Ten, If I Only Knew and Scallop Pond. Thanks to Mom, Dad, Cara, family and friends for their support.

DIANA MARBURY (Bea Sullivan, Producer, Set Decor) is pleased to tread the boards with such a talented cast. Diana directed BLACK TIE last spring and was seen most recently as Dottie in GOOD PEOPLE, Helga Ten Dorp in DEATHTRAP and Mme. Parole in MY THREE ANGELS. She is the Artistic Director of the HTC and has worn many hats over the years. She would like to thank all the “behind the scenes” people who make these productions possible.

JOE PALLISTER (William Coles, Graphic Design) appeared most recently with the Hampton Theatre Company as Dr. Mikey Dillon in GOOD PEOPLE. Other roles with the company include Randle P. McMurphy in ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST, Father Flynn in DOUBT, Stanley in A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, John Buchanan Jr. in SUMMER AND SMOKE and Bill in LOBBY HERO. He played Bob Ewell in Bay Street’s production of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD last winter and has appeared in three productions at Center Stage at the Southampton Cultural Center–as George in OF MICE AND MEN, as Juror #8 in TWELVE ANGRY MEN and as Lee in TRUE WEST. Current feature film credits include Caliber Media Productions – REFUGE and DARK WAS THE NIGHT. www.joepallister.com

JERRY STERNER (Playwright) was a businessman turned playwright. He began his career selling tokens for the NYC Transit Authority where he wrote seven plays during his six years in the booth. When his work failed to sell, he turned to real estate, eventually become president of David C. Gold & Co. He retired and returned to writing plays in 1984. OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY was his third play, written in 1989, and it became an instant hit, leading to the movie version of 1991. None of his other plays, which include TIT FOR TAT and BE HAPPY FOR ME, really caught on. “Many other playwrights have written better,” Mr. Sterner wrote, “but no one has enjoyed having written more.”

JAMES EWING (Director, Set Construction) founded the HTC in 1984 and has since appeared in over 20 productions and built numerous sets. After much coaxing, he as re-donned his director’s cap for this production. Special gratitude to his reliable and skilled production team all listed in the program. And, of course, to Sarah for her wise guidance and fortitude as we stumble along in these efforts.

SARAH HUNNEWELL (Assistant Director, Producer) wears many hats for the HTC and is happy to assist Jimmy and his stellar cast with this production. Solo directorial efforts include, most recently, GOOD PEOPLE and, coming up, the wonderful Canadian play, THE DRAWER BOY. Many thanks to our audience members, patrons and all the behind the scenes people who make our work possible.

SEAN MARBURY (Set Design) designed the set for last season’s DEATHTRAP and has worked for many years building HTC sets alongside his father Peter and friend James Ewing. He is thrilled to don the esteemed mantle of set designer once again with this production.

SEBASTIAN PACZYNSKI (Lighting Designer) first worked with the Hampton Theatre Company when he designed the company’s 2003 production of SUMMER AND SMOKE at Guild Hall and has designed all the company’s productions since PROOF in 2004 as well as the theater’s new lighting system. He has designed lighting for theater, dance and special events in a number of Broadway, Off Broadway, Off Off Broadway and regional venues. He has also worked in film and television as the director of photography. He has designed numerous productions for Guild Hall and for the Hamptons Shakespeare Festival.

TERESA LEBRUN (Costume Designer) is the resident costumer for the Hampton Theatre Company and has designed costumes for all the company’s recent productions. Teresa has also costumed for Spindletop Productions at Guild Hall. Much love to her boys Josh and Noah.

JEAN PLITT (Stage Manager). It is a pleasure to work with the talented people who perform or are involved in the production of each show presented by the Hampton Theatre Company. From auditions to opening night, the process of bringing the “page to the stage” requires the creative energies of all involved, and I am very happy to be part of it. Congratulations to the cast and crew of OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY!

ROB DOWLING (Lighting & Sound Technician) has done lighting and sound for 21 years at the North Fork Community Theater, Vail-Leavitt Music Hall, Producer’s Club (NYC), the Loft Theater at Dowling College and the Southampton Cultural Center. He has also helped Sebastian with lighting set up at Guild Hall, the Ross School, and other local venues. “Many thanks, Sebastian!” This is Rob’s sixth season with the Hampton Theatre Company. He is very happy to be part of the show and the company.

‘OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY’ REMAINS RELEVANT

by Dawn Watson Southampton Press and East Hampton Press

The time and place for “Other People’s Money” is the 1980s in New York and Rhode Island but it could just as easily be set in the here and now.

Now staging in Quogue through January 27, Jerry Sterner’s award-winning play, which he wrote in 1989, not only holds up, it seems even more relevant today than ever. The power players may have slightly changed—though Carl Icahn, Ronald Owen Perelman and Ivan Boesky, the real-life characters mentioned in an aside in the play, are all still alive and kicking—but the story of greed, in its many forms, seems to stay the same no matter the time.

This two-act dramatic comedy, directed for the Hampton Theatre Company by James Ewing and starring Joe Pallister, Terrance Fiore, Diana Marbury, Edward Kassar and Adrianne Hick, is an entertaining piece of cultural criticism. It was met with considerable enthusiasm by the sold-out audience on Sunday afternoon at the Quogue Community Hall.

The scenes between Ms. Hick as tough-as-nails lawyer Kate Sullivan and Mr. Kassar as the gluttonous Lawrence Garfinkle, aka “Larry the Liquidator,” are among the most satisfying, funny and dramatic.

As Kate, Ms. Hick uses all her feminine wiles to play up the come-hither-and-then-I’m-going-to-tear-you-into-bite-sized-pieces character. She’s quite convincing and a little scary, oozing sex appeal all the while. The words “man eater” come to mind, but in a good way, at least for Larry the Liquidator, who is as tantalized by Kate as he is by Dunkin’ Donuts.

With his performance, Mr. Kassar makes the doughnut- and dollars-loving Larry almost likeable. Sure, he’s a greedy pig who will stop at nothing to make a buck but he’s also kind of charming underneath all that oiliness.

It seems to me that Mr. Kassar does this by embracing the goodness in Larry, while still acknowledging that he’s a crude, cretinous corporate raider. Larry, who imagines himself a gunslinger and modern-day Robin Hood has the best lines in the play by far.

“I take from the rich and give to the middle-class. Well… (dramatic pause), upper middle-class,” he says, to much laughter. Additionally, he champions his unscrupulous, underhanded antics as “the Wall Street version of ‘Let’s win one for the Gipper.’”

In this production, Mr. Fiore reprises his role of New England Wire and Cable Company owner Andrew Jorgenson. He last portrayed “Jorgy” on the Southampton Cultural Center stage in 2011. He gave a nuanced performance then, and an even more finely tuned one during his turn on the stage in Quogue.

Ms. Marbury, a crowd-pleasing favorite for regular Hampton Theatre Company showgoers, does not disappoint in her portrayal of Bea Sullivan. She always sinks her teeth into her role and does not disappoint in this one. I actually overheard one lady tell her friend that she always comes to “see what Diana’s up to next.”

I would’ve liked to have seen more of Mr. Pallister, whose role was small but not his presence on the stage. He surprised me as William Coles, the Wire and Cable Company president who is looking out for number one in the midst of the fallout. He is, by turns, nerdy and cunning, loyal and manipulative. Mr. Pallister quietly infuses this character with depth and personality beyond what is on the page.

As always, the sets were beyond incredible. I don’t know what the budget is but the Hampton Theatre Company always manages to make it look as if money was never an object when it comes to set design and decor, thanks to Sean and Diana Marbury. Well done.

Bottom line: HTC has mastered knowing what its audience wants, and delivers every time.

OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY’ REVIEW: GREED, LUST

by Steve Parks Newsday

The 1980s Wall Street of “Other People’s Money” is more about swindlers like Ivan Boesky than a venture company like Bain Capital.

In Jerry Sterner’s dark comedy, Larry the Liquidator, a vulture capitalist if we’ve ever met one, makes a smutty proposition to the beautiful opposing attorney trying to rescue a viable company from Larry’s stock-squeezing clutches. Churning cash by flipping a town’s leading employer may be good business, she asks, but is it right?

As directed by Hampton Theatre’s James Ewing, it’s refreshing to meet a bad boy who’s not, essentially, the villain. Larry, as played with fat-suit aplomb by Edward Kassar, is deliciously disgusting. His counterpart — sharp-tongued, shapely-legged Kate (Adrianne Hick), an attorney for New England Wire & Cable — is smart enough to appreciate Larry’s deviant virtues. Terrance Fiore may be stiff as the company CEO, but that fits his character, while Diana Marbury as his concierge/companion is obtusely loyal. If you think Joe Pallister’s chump is slimy, you may be onto something. We liked Sean Marbury’s attention-to-detail set, too.

The performance of “Other People’s Money” last night was another tour de force by a great theatre company. Everything was superb: the set, the staging, the casting, the direction. Thanks for enriching the lives of two local retirees. – DAVID SAGMAN Don’t miss this performance of “Other People’s Money,” about a hostile take over of a small New England company. The larger-than-life Edward Kassar gives his best performance yet as the hilariously repulsive Larry “The Liquidator” Garfinkle. Adrianne Hick lights up the stage with her charisma as the attorney Kate Sullivan. The cut and thrust of their negotiations is a joy to behold. Terrance Fiore is perfect as the pillar of rectitude, Andrew Jorgenson, who fights the takeover of his company to save the jobs of his employees. The talented Diana Marbury gives her usual pitch-perfect performance, and Joe Pallister gives as much color as anyone could to the colorless narrator and president of the company, Bill Coles. “Other People’s Money” is a brilliant and timely piece of theater, superbly performed. – FRED VOLKMER “Other’s People’s Money” was a throughly engaging production from the Hampton Theatre Company. We left the theater praising every aspect of the play: acting, staging, set, lighting, sound, script… James Ewing and crew put together a brilliantly crafted performance. What a gift to our community. Thank you! – DOROTHY REILLY “Other People’s Money” is a show that is NOT to be missed. The play, although written in the 1980s, is timely and so appropriate in today’s financial climate. Mergers and Acquisitions not withstanding, the play is a winner with both laughs and sorrows. The actors are outstanding and are thoroughly a delight. – MIRIAM BRODY Another beautifully produced play in your fine space. We four who came – Vincent Downing, Maryam Seeley, Harvey Hochlerin and I – were all bowled over by the acting, the power of the script brought to life, and the superb timing of everything. Bravo once more! Hope to see “Kate” again… she is gorgeous and sooooo talented. – CHRISTINE CHEW SMITH The secret is out and this play is “in play.” A seriously great performance, I continue to be amazed at the HTC talent! – MICHAEL O’CONNOR