Turns out the world of live theater, especially in Chicago, is a small world indeed. And Key West’s Waterfront Playhouse is reaping the benefits of the connections that its artistic director, Patrick New, has cultivated in the Windy City.
Waterfront Playhouse will present “Tuesdays with Morrie,” a moving adaptation of Mitch Albom’s bestselling memoir. The play follows the poignant reunion of Albom, a busy journalist, and his former professor, Morrie Schwartz, who is facing ALS with heart, humor and wisdom.
“It’s an unforgettable drama that celebrates what truly matters,” states the theater’s website.
“Tuesdays with Morrie” runs Jan. 15-18 as part of Waterfront Playhouse’s Spotlight Series, which presents more intimate shows with smaller casts and shorter runs.
Using his Chicago connections, New recruited two theater, film and television stars — who also happen to be his friends — for “Tuesdays with Morrie.”
Scott Lowell, who played Ted in Showtime’s hit TV series “Queer as Folk” from 2000-2005, arrived in Key West last week to begin rehearsals as Mitch Albom, joining his longtime friend and frequent stage costar Jim Ortlieb, who plays Morrie Schwartz. Ortlieb has worked on TV shows such as “Grey’s Anatomy,” “West Wing” and the “CSI” franchise. Both actors also have serious Broadway and live theater credits.
“I got a call from Pat (New) last year, and he said he was thinking of doing ‘Tuesdays with Morrie,’ and wondered if I could do it,” Ortlieb said last week. Shortly after arriving in Key West, he and Lowell joined the Keys Weekly on a Zoom interview to discuss their history together; their friendship with New and their enthusiasm for “Tuesdays with Morrie” at Waterfront Playhouse.
“Chicago in the 1980s and ‘90s was a magnet for theater artists,” Ortlieb said.
“Stephen Colbert was actually my roommate for a while in Chicago,” Lowell said. “And when it comes to Jim (Ortlieb) and myself, there’s an ease with us that translates well to this play. Our generation of Chicago actors, we all got imbued with this sense of ensemble theater, so no one person is seeking to be the star. There’s a common vocabulary and a common sensibility with us.”
Once live rehearsals began last week at Waterfront Playhouse, both Lowell and Ortlieb fell further in love with the play, and the bestselling book that prompted it.
“I was actually surprised by how stage-worthy this book is,” Ortlieb said. “There are some really huge moments on stage. It’s a really ethereal play, set and production.”Visit waterfrontplayhouse.org for tickets.
