Randall L. WREGHITT

WREGHITT, SUKUP

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 5/21/2011 at 02:49:41

Obituary - Randall L. Wreghitt

The Globe Gazette
Mason City, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
by Mary Pieper

Clear Lake native, Broadway producer Randall Wreghitt dies

NEW YORK — Broadway producer Randall WREGHITT, a native of Clear Lake, Iowa, has died.

The news was announced by his family on his website Wednesday.

WREGHITT died due to complications from recent carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the TheatreMania website.

He most recently produced "Miracle Worker," starring Abigail Breslin, and "Impressionism," starring Jeremy Irons and Joan Allen, as well as the Broadway musical "Grey Gardens," which was nominated for 10 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The show went on to win three Tonys.

"He really took his work seriously," said friend Steve SUKUP of Clear Lake, who was one of WREGHITT'S fraternity brothers at Iowa State University.

The two of them worked together on VEISHA productions. SUKUP later attended a few of his friend’s Broadway productions. "He was very dedicated and sincere," SUKUP said.

WREGHITT produced Martin McDonagh's "Lieutenant of Inishmore," which was nominated for five Tony Awards including Best Play and "Little Women — The Musical."

Prior to producing "Little Women," WREGHITT produced the acclaimed "Golda's Balcony" on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre. He also produced Kenneth Lonnergan's "The Lobby Hero on London’s West End," "Velocity" in Scotland at the Edinburgh Theatre Festival and the film "A Tale of Two Pizzas.

On Broadway, WREGHITT has produced Mary Zimmerman's Tony Award winning Broadway production of "Metamorphoses," "Hedda Gabler" starring Kate Burton, the Tony Award winning revival of "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" starring Gary Sinese, Martin McDonagh's "The Lonesome West," which was nominated for four Tony Awards, including Best Play, McDonagh's four-time Tony Award winning play, "The Beauty Queen Of Leenane," the acclaimed revival of "Electra," starring Zoe Wanamaker (nominated for three Tony Awards, including Best Revival) and the musical, "Band In Berlin."

WREGHITT was the recipient of the 1996 Robert Whitehead Award for "outstanding achievement in commercial theatrical producing."

He served on the Board of Director of Early Stages. In addition, WREGHITT created and headed Pro-Marketing, a marketing and promotions company that specializes in entertainment.

Wreghitt lived in Minneapolis from 1980 to 1986, appearing in several theatrical productions with several different theater companies. He worked for the Chanhassen Theatres for five years then moved to the now closed Chimera Theatre in St. Paul until a job with Disney World took him to Orlando, Fla.

~ ~ ~ ~
Variety, Thursday, May 19, 2011

Randall Wreghitt dies at 55
Producer brought important work to stage

Theatrical producer Randall L. WREGHITT, who brought innovative dramatic work to Broadway and Off Broadway, died Wednesday, May 18, due to complications from carbon monoxide poisoning at a Hoboken Hospital.

In January of 2011, WREGHITT thought he had the flu. It turned out it was carbon monoxide poisoning when he put new batteries into his detector. He went through treatment and was getting better, then to everyone's surprise he suffered a relapse, returning to the hospital two weeks prior to his death.

He was 55.

The president of New York City-based Randall L. WREGHITT Prods. produced a number of successful productions of plays and musicals on Broadway, including "The Miracle Worker," starring Abigail Breslin, Alison Pill, Matthew Modine, Jennifer Morrison and Elizabeth Franz; "Impressionism," with Jeremy Irons, Joan Allen and Marsha Mason; musical "Grey Gardens" (10 Tony nominations including best musical); Martin McDonagh's "Lieutenant of Inishmore" (five Tony noms including best play); musical "Little Women," starring Sutton Foster (best actress Tony nomination) and Maureen McGovern; "Golda's Balcony," starring Tovah Feldshuh (best actress Tony nomination); Mary Zimmerman's "Metamorphoses" (nominated for best play and a winner for director); "Hedda Gabler," starring Kate Burton (best actress Tony nomination); "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," starring Gary Sinise (winner of the best revival Tony); McDonagh's "The Lonesome West" (four Tony noms including best play); McDonagh's four-time Tony-winning play "The Beauty Queen of Leenane" (six Tony nominations including best play); "Electra," starring Zoe Wanamaker (three Tony nominations including best revival); and the musical "Band in Berlin." He was associate producer of the Tony-winning Broadway revival of Tom Stoppard's "The Real Thing."

Off Broadway productions include Kenneth Lonergan's "The Waverly Gallery," starring Eileen Heckart, who won a Special Tony Award for the perf). He also produced Douglas Carter Beane's comedy "As Bees in Honey Drown"; Karen Trott's one-person musical "The Springhill Singing Disaster"; the revival of Mart Crowley's "The Boys in the Band"; Nicky Silver's long-running hit "The Food Chain"; Mark St. Germaine's comedy "Camping With Henry and Tom"; and the cult hit musical "Zombie Prom."

WREGHITT received the 1996 Robert Whitehead Award for outstanding achievement in commercial theatrical producing.

He was one of the producers of the revival of "Talley's Folly: for Broadway in the fall of 2011; the Broadway-bound musical "Aesop and Company" and "The Great Game."

In addition, Wreghitt created and was the head of Pro-Marketing, a marketing and promotions company that specialized in entertainment.

Born in Clear Lake, Iowa, WREGHITT attended Iowa State U. He worked as a marketing executive for Disney and the Big Apple Circus.

WREGHITT loved Disney, art, people and entertaining. His Christmas parties were his way of always staying in touch, if only during that special time of the year, which he adored.

WREGHITT is survived by his mother, Leona WREGHITT, and sister, Sherri WREGHITT. He will be buried in Iowa next to his beloved father.

Donations may be made to the Randall L. WREGHITT Memorial Fund c/o Ward Van Slyke Funeral home, 101 4th Street, Clear Lake, IA 50428.

Transcriptions by Sharon R. Becker, May of 2011

Cerro Gordo Obituaries maintained by Lynn Diemer-Mathews.
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