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Theater Company To Debut With 'Nobody Don't Like Yogi'

Photo provided by EDPAC

C. David Frankel will portray Yogi Berra in "Nobody Don't Like Yogi," the inaugural production of the Eleanor Dempsey Performing Arts Center, a community theater group in Hudson. The one-man play’s three-day run begins Friday, Feb. 6.

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By Cheryl  Bentley | The Suncoast News

Published: January 27, 2009

Updated:

A new theater company in Hudson will call on the humor and charm of a beloved figure in baseball in its premiere play next week.

The EDPAC Stage Company will present "Nobody Don't Like Yogi" by Tom Lysaght at the Eleanor Dempsey Performing Arts Center in the Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School in Hudson on Feb. 6, Feb. 7 and Feb. 8.

The one-man play concerns the return of New York Yankees catcher - and perennial fan favorite - Yogi Berra to Yankee Stadium in 1999 for Old Timers Day 14 years after he had been fired as manager of the Bronx Bombers by the Yankee's principal owner, Tampa's George Steinbrenner. Remembering his vow to never come back to the stadium as long as The Boss, as the New York media dubbed the mercurial Steinbrenner, is team owner, Berra tries to figure out why he has returned.

"It touches on family - his own family and the Yankees as family - and the idea of coming home on many levels," said director Steve Mountain. Playwright Lysaght wrote the play in honor of his own father, Mountain noted.

He calls the 90-minute play a "light drama" that uses the lovable Yogi to explore serious themes.

Berra was both a major league baseball player and manager. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. As manager, he took both American and National League teams to the World Series.

Berra, the Mrs. Malaprop of the horse-hide set, is known for his unique way of using language. "Yogi-isms" include such phrases as "I didn't really say everything I said" and "It ain't over till it's over." In a current insurance company commercial trading on this image, Berra declares cash "just as good as money."

C. David Frankel stars in the one-man show. Frankel has appeared in Gorilla Theatre productions in Tampa and is assistant director of theater at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

The lowdown

The EDPAC Stage Company will present "Nobody Don't Like Yogi" 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, and Saturday, Feb. 7. Matinees will be at 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 7, and Sunday, Feb. 8. Tickets range from $5 to $14 and can be ordered by calling 727-857-2604 or on line at www.ed-pac.org.

The play will run at the Gorilla Theatre in March as part of Mountain's vision to work with area theaters. In addition to being the director of the play, Mountain manages the Performing Arts Center.

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