Two featured players walked out of rehearsal just five days before the premier of “The Last Days of Cleopatra”, a musical by Charlie Barnett that was more than fifteen years in the making.
Their exit doomed the production that was to begin Friday June 13 at The Charles A. Brown Ice House in Bethlehem, PA.
When contacted for comment, director Ara Barlieb refused to name the actors who left the show and returned to their homes in New York. “But,” he said, “I’ll gladly give you the names of the 12 actors who didn’t.”
Charlie Barnett is a renowned composer living in Bethesda, Maryland. Barnett wrote the script, music, and lyrics of the play.
Fourteen actors, a music director, a choreographer, and carpenter had worked hundreds of hours to prepare for Friday’s now canceled opening. Hundreds of tickets had been sold.
When asked to estimate the financial loss, Barlieb shrugged and said, “I dunno. But, can a blood test tell you if somebody’s a New York actor?”
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