We Got Yer CAKE Right Here!
In this sequel to Of Thee I Sing, the Wintergreen administration is back with a vengeance. Aiming its barbs at everything from fascism to fashion shows, Let ‘Em Eat Cake is dark, cynical, hilarious, and tuneful. It’s a true American operetta featuring one of the Gershwins’ most ambitious, forward-looking scores.
Don’t miss our production –
the first in NY since 1987, and the fullest since 1933!
Here’s more about our spectacular cast…
Meet the (Un)Officials!
Fred Applegate
(Francis X. Gilhooley)
Who is he? Most recently seen as Uncle Pat in The Ferryman, Fred is familiar to Broadway audiences for dozens of roles including Tuck Everlasting, Wicked, The Producers, La Cage Aux Folles, and Young Frankenstein, in which he co-starred with Christopher Fitzgerald (who plays Kruger in this production). He can also be seen on television episodes of Crashing, Billions, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Previous MV Credit: Of Thee I Sing (2017)
How’d He Get Here? Upon Wintergreen’s winning of the election (in Of Thee I Sing), Gilhooley was promptly promoted from backroom political boss to Secretary of the Navy. Upon Wintergreen’s losing the election (in Cake), he is promptly demoted to a beat cop.
Watch Out For: What political satire isn’t complete without some quintessential stereotypes? Actually, librettists Kaufman and Ryskind were the first to incorporate ethnic humor into the book of a proper musical – previously it was reserved for revues and vaudeville. But they were New Yorkers, after all, and ethnic humor abounded here. Gilhooley embodies the infamous Tammany Hall Irishman.
Chuck Cooper
(Matthew Arnold Fulton)
Who is he? A veteran of ten Broadway plays and musicals, Chuck won the 1996 Tony Award for his role in Cy Coleman’s musical The Life. Other Broadway credits include Finian’s Rainbow, Caroline, or Change (Audelco Award), Chicago, and Passion. Television appearances include House Of Cards, Gossip Girl, and Nurse Jackie; films include Boy Wonder and American Gangster. Chuck was also a Beinecke Teaching Fellow at the Yale School of Drama. Previous MV Credits: The Mikado (2012), Of Thee I Sing (2017)
How’d He Get Here? A former newspaper magnate, Wintergreen made Fulton Secretary of State in return for his favorable coverage during the first election (Of Thee I Sing). In fact it was Fulton’s secretary, Mary, whose corn muffins won Wintergreen’s love and her own status as First Lady!
Watch Out For: With all the loyalty of his namesake, Fulton goes where the wind blows and is ready to “rah” for whoever’s winning.
Lewis J. Stadlen
(Louis Lippman)
Who is he? A experienced stage veteran, Stadlen fittingly made his Broadway debut as Groucho Marx in the musical Minnie’s Boys (1970) and was nominated twice for a Tony (Candide, 1974, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, 1996). Known to current Broadway audiences for his work in The Man Who Came to Dinner and The Producers, among others, you may also recognize him from such seminal films as Serpico and Portnoy’s Complaint. Previous MV Credits: None! Welcome to the fam, Lewis!
How’d He Get Here? Another political hack, on the team with Gilhooley and Fulton, Wintergreen had to give him something, so he picked Secretary of Agriculture. And Lippman was as qualified as… well no one, he’s never even been on a farm.
Watch Out For: See above regarding ethnic stereotypes… Lippman is the classic Jewish one. He may have been Secretary of Agriculture, but he’ll always be a dry goods salesman at heart. Just one notch short of the Borscht Belt.
