SOUVENIR: A FANTASIA ON THE LIFE OF FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS
Iowa Premiere Production
March 2009
Sponsored by Arthur Neis
Florence Foster Jenkins was dubbed by critics as the “Dire Diva of Din.” “Souvenir” tells the true-life story of Jenkins, the wealthy New York socialite eccentric, who suffered under the delusion that she was a great coloratura soprano when she was, in fact, incapable of producing two consecutive notes in tune. Her wildly popular charity concerts in the 1930s and ‘40s culminated in a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall where utterly, unbelievably tone-deaf Jenkins, was blissfully unaware that her devoted fans were stifling laughs, not cheers. This is a story of how we see ourselves and how others see us, how we make music and how we make judgments about people making music.
CAST
| Florence Foster Jenkins | Gina Gedler |
| Cosme McMoon | Matthew McIver* |
* Member, Actors Equity Association
PRODUCTION TEAM
| Director | Tom Perrine |
| Production Stage Manager | Becky Scholtec |
| Scenic Designer | Eleanor Kahn |
| Lighting Designer | Nick Veenstra |
| Costume Designer | Mell Ziegenfus |
| Music Director | Ben Hagen |
| Properties Designer | Joy Kripal |
| Sound Designer | Ron Gilbert |
