International City Theatre, the resident company at the Long Beach Performing Arts Center, has announced the cast for Ken Ludwig's Lend Me a Tenor, which opens Sept. 3 for a three-week run. The cast includes Frank Ashmore, Jill Brewer, Kathy Davis, Kevin P. Kern, Alyse Mandel, Skye McKenzie, Patricia Thielemann and Matthew Walker. Shashin Desai directs.

Ludwig's farce involves an amateur music group in Cleveland, circa 1930, which has imported an Italian tenor to sing Otello. When the tenor -- "Il Stupendo" -- is unable to perform, the group starts scrambling to replace him and keep the audience in its seats. Multiple cases of mistaken identity, slapstick, romance and panic follow in rapid-fire fashion.

Lend Me a Tenor was first presented at the Globe Theatre in London. It later played on Broadway, earning seven Tony nominations including two wins (Best Actor, Philip Bosco, and Best Director, Jerry Zaks), four Drama Desk Awards and three Outer Critics Circle Awards.

The Center Theatre is located at 300 E. Ocean Blvd. For tickets and information call (562) 938-4128.

-- By Willard Manus
Southern California Correspondent