Raising the curtain again at Black Mountain Center for the Arts
Theater performances resume with Love, Linda (The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter)
Jessica Klarp
Guest contributor
The Valley Echo
September 27, 2021
The musical, Love, Linda (The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter), will show at the Black Mountain Center for the Arts for two weekends this month. Photo courtesy of BMCA
After more than a year of darkness, theater returns to the Black Mountain Center for the Arts stage with the musical Love, Linda (The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter) with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Stevie Holland, with Gary William Friedman, arrangements and additional music by Gary William Friedman.
The show runs for two weekends beginning at 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday, Oct. 1 and 2, and continuing at 2 p.m., Sunday Oct. 3, and then again, Oct. 8, 9 and 10. Tickets for the show are $25 and can be purchased through the BMCA website. Proof of vaccination and masks are required for entry.
In this tour-de-force one-woman show, Linda Lee Thomas (Mrs. Cole Porter), candidly recounts, through song and story, her life’s journey with Cole Porter. Though Porter was gay, their companionship and love lasted through 35 years of marriage and a spectacular, glamour-filled life. With innovative arrangements, the timeless music and lyrics of Cole Porter weave through the compelling narrative of Love, Linda, examining the darker sides of their life, while also celebrating the deep love that blossomed through their unconventional relationship.
The musical is directed and produced by Misty Theisen in partnership with the Black Mountain Center for the Arts.
"Love, Linda tells the beautiful story of a love that couldn't be defined,” says Theisen. “Karen Covington-Yow (Linda) and Bob Strain (piano) bring this story to life through their flawless presentation of Cole Porter's music. We are thrilled to bring this show to the Black Mountain Center for the Arts and it's faithful patrons who are so ready to welcome back live theater!"
Audiences will be familiar with Karen Covington-Yow who has been seen in several productions on the BMCA stage including Lana Sherwood in It's a Wonderful Life Live Radio Play and Sister Peggy in As It Is In Heaven; she also directed Love, Loss, and What I Wore.
“I am so excited to be back at the Black Mountain Center for the Arts theater,” says Covington-Yow. “This has become my absolute favorite role, and I have fallen in love with Linda Porter through this process. I knew very little about her before I was cast in this show, but now I feel so honored to bring her love story with Cole to life.”
The Black Mountain Center for the Arts is located at 225 West State Street. For more information or to purchase tickets visit blackmountainarts.org or call 828-669-0930.