SHAKESPEARE & AUDITIONS @ THE HOLMDEL THEATRE COMPANY

Much Ado About Nothing

Directed by Tom Frascatore

WHEN: April 20, 21, 27, 28 – 8PM; April  22 - 2PM
WHERE: 36 Crawfords Corner Rd, Holmdel
TICKETS: Students $15, Seniors $20, Adult $25
Please note all online order are subject to a $2.50 Processing fee.
At door orders are subject to a $1 Facility Fee.
For more info contact info@holmdeltheatrecompany.org
**We've been experiencing internet outages at the theater, if you plan to buy at the door please have cash. Sorry for any inconvenience.**

Please Join us for a "merry war" between the sexes. William Shakespeare's most beloved romantic comedy, Much Ado About Nothing boasts one of Shakespeare's most delightful heroines, most dancing wordplay, and the endearing spectacle of intellectual and social self-importance bested by the desire to love and be loved in return.

Featuring:

Beatrice​​​....Tess Ammerman
Benedick​​​....James Weeks*
Leonato​​​....Ed Faver
Hero​​​​....Elizabeth Colagrande
Claudio....​​​Shan Williams
Don Pedro​​​....Andrew James Gordon
Dogberry....​​​Rupert Ravens
Don John​​​....Peter Newes
Friar Francis....​​​Howard Smith
Borachio​​​....Mark Zebro
Margaret​​​....Jessica Freeland
Antonio....​​​Mike Sockol
Conrade​​​....Joseph Walter
Ursula....​​​​Julia Lupi
Messenger/Balthazar​/Watch​....Bella Ashton
Sexton.....Sami DeSocio
Verges.....Laurie Devino

*appears courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association

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Upcoming Auditions!

The Outsiders
by S.E. Hinton
adapted by Christopher Sergel
Directed by Kirk White

WHEN: Wednesday May 16 & Thursday May 17, 2018 7-9:30 PM; Callbacks (if necessary) Saturday May 19 2:00 PM
WHERE: 36 Crawfords Corner Rd, Holmdel
Production Dates: July 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29, Aug 3, 4, 5

interACT PRODUCTIONS TO HOLD FUNDRAISER EVENT IN WEST ORANGE RESTAURANT

WHEN: Sunday, April 22, at 7PM
WHERE: SuzyQue's BBQ and Bar, 34 S. Valley Rd, West Orange
ADMISSION:  For $10, you’ll hear a variety of songs, plus a teaser from Legally Blonde!

Save the date! The cast & crew of #LegallyBlondeTheMusical will be doing a special #BendandSnap cabaret fundraiser ! 

#omgyouguys
#westorange
#suzyquesbbqandbar
http://interACTProductions.tix.com

CELEBRATE SPRING WITH THE HUNTERDON ART MUSEUM

Discover the Joys of Creating Art Outdoors

WHERE: Hunterdon Art Museum, 7 Lower Center St., Clinton

Celebrate spring and ignite your creativity with an outdoor class or workshop! The Museum offers a variety of programs for adults and teens ages 16 and up throughout the year. All classes and workshops are taught by professional artists, ensuring a fun and enriching classroom experience.
Plein Air and Still Life Painting with Oscar Peterson (starts Wednesday, April 18 at 9:30 a.m.): Artists have been painting en plein air for hundreds of years. Learn the techniques to start, establish and finish a painting outdoors. Fundamental principles of capturing color, light, planes and structure will be covered. Classes will be held at a variety of locations throughout Hunterdon County including the Dvoor Farm. Visit HAM's website for more information and to register. Join Us!

Animals & Landscape Plein Air One-Day Workshop with Andrea Gianchiglia (Monday, April 23): Picturesque views, old barns and beautiful horses will serve as the inspiration for this one-day workshop in drawing and painting en plein air. You can work with pastel, oil, acrylic or watercolor. Learn all about perspective, foliage, color theory and atmosphere. Depicting animals will also be included in the lesson plans with a focus on drawing, proportion, texture and color application. All skill levels are welcome! Sign Up!

Plein Air Throughout Hunterdon County with Andrea Gianchiglia (starts Monday, May 7): Scenic views of Hunterdon County will serve as the inspiration for this three-week course in drawing and painting en plein air. You are welcome to work with pastel, oil, acrylics or watercolor, as you learn about perspective, foliage, color theory, atmosphere and more. Join Us!

Landscape and Flower Photography Workshop with Nancy Ori (Saturday, May 19, 10 a.m.): Learn all about capturing color, composition, close-up photography, white balance, lighting, getting good exposures in bright sun and shade, camera controls, accessories and use of the tripod. The Dvoor Farm is the perfect place for a photography workshop thanks to its beautiful variety of landscapes including wetlands, meadows and an old-growth forest. Sign up here!

ArtParty 2018 Offers a Fun Night for a Great Cause

Have a great time for a great cause! Get your tickets today for ArtParty 2018: The Secret Garden!

Then get ready to join us here at the Museum on Saturday, April 28 at 6 p.m. and discover a secret garden of earthly delights replete with fragrant flavors, enchanting music, signature cocktails and more.

The Toshiko Takaezu Terrace will blossom into a magical and intimate garden. Guests will step through an arch of birch and pussy willow branches into a garden of flowers and greenery, a fountain, a butterfly garden and bird sanctuary. The décor is courtesy of Greens & Beans of Clinton and Eggostic Events of Hampton.

Get Your ArtParty Tickets Here!

Mia Emerson of 15 Landsdowne Catering, who is donating the food for this event, has created a menu to tempt anyone’s taste buds featuring: Dungeness crab salad, Nashville hot chicken, steak toasts, chimichurri beef, crispy polenta cake and Tuscan ‘Arista’ pork tacos. Carving stations will offer diners smoked paprika rubbed beef and garlic roasted leg of lamb. Capping off the meal will be an assortment of desserts provided by The Lucky Cupcake Company.

See the complete menu here!

Metropolitan Seafood Co. is donating its seafood bar featuring fresh shrimp, oysters and clams. Accompanying the food will be an assortment of wines. Guests can sip cocktails while enjoying live jazz performed by La Vie en Rose.

The evening also features a silent auction where everyone can bid on one-of-a-kind works of art and exciting experience packages. The Museum will raffle off an array of prizes too.

“Attending ArtParty is a great way to support the Museum and the arts, and what could be better than enjoying a fabulous meal, cocktails and live music at one of the state’s most picturesque sites?” said Marjorie Frankel Nathanson, our executive director.

TICKETS: $175 each, and can be purchased online or by calling 908-735-8415. All proceeds benefit the Hunterdon Art Museum’s educational programs and exhibitions of contemporary art, craft and design.

ArtParty Secret Garden sponsors are: 15 Landsdowne Catering, Evco Mechanical Corporation, Provident Bank, The Lucky Cupcake Company, Greens & Beans, Eggsotic Events, Metropolitan Seafood, Starr's Party & Tent Rentals, Unity Bank and St. Luke's University Health Network.

The Hunterdon Art Tour Begins at HAM May 4

The Hunterdon Art Tour (THAT) kicks off its second annual event at the Hunterdon Art Museum Friday, May 4 at 7 p.m. with a benefit exhibition and party.

About 40 artists are participating in the self-guided tour. THAT artists’ studios and group exhibitions at multiple locations will be open to the public on Saturday, May 5 and Sunday, May 6 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Visit The Hunterdon Art Tour website for a complete artist directory, interactive maps and updates.

Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday with ASC: April 21

www.ascnj.org for information

REVIEW: “A DOG STORY” A DIVERTING CHARMER @ THE BICKFORD THEATRE

By Ruth Ross

They’re called “man’s best friend.” They’re treated like members of the family. People purchase houses only if there’s room for them to run and play. Who are they: DOGS!

But dogs are also “chick magnets.” At least that’s the premise of Eric Weinberger’s charming, if predictable, musical, A Dog Story, now receiving its New Jersey premiere at the Bickford Theatre in Morristown, after a 2014 world premiere in Key West and an Off-Broadway run in 2016.

The book by the late Eric Weinberger revolves around Roland, a shy, socially awkward 24/7 workaholic. Observing that he’s being passed over for partner in his law firm because he’s not married, Roland is determined to find a wife by Labor Day when the next slot will become empty. To solve the dilemma, his testosterone-driven roommate Guy advises him to get a dog, better yet, a puppy—a fool-proof way to win a girl’s heart. At first, the scheme appears to work, when Blair, a young woman Roland has spotted in Central Park, shows up in the Hamptons where he’s taken a summer cottage and is attracted to him because of the pooch, aptly named Cupid. Because Roland knows zilch about raising and training a pup, he hires Miranda from Good Dog Training who wisely observes that she’ll have to train Roland before the dog can be considered “trained.” But Blair turns out to be too much of a hot number for Roland, and he falls in love with the dog intended as a prop to be given away at the end of the summer. At that point, Roland discovers Miranda’s charms—and well, you know the rest of the story. (Above, Daniel Robert Sullivan as Roland spies Clare Fitzgerald as Blair in Central Park)

Directed by Bickford Artistic Director Eric Hafen, the peppy, pleasant music and sometimes clever lyrics penned by Gayla D. Morgan are delivered by a quartet of young actors, all with good musical ability. Daniel Robert Sullivan (Roland) shows his professional experience (he played Jersey Boys’ Tommy DeVito in Vegas, Toronto and on tour) as he makes his character’s charming awkwardness palpable. From the show’s very first number (“Married Over Labor Day”), he owns the stage. He’s especially winning performing the “Vacation/Training Tango” with Miranda or begging a missing Cupid to “Please Come Home.” It’s hard to take your eyes off him.

Over the play’s 90-minute running time, Allie Ambriano’s Miranda (left, with Shabazz Green) morphs from nerdy, no-nonsense, unfashionable dog trainer to a very attractive girl worthy of the notice of hot-to-trot Guy and Roland. At one point, she even appears (in a nightmare) as a dominatrix! She sings well with both men and even manages to make the treacly sweet “Cupid’s Lullaby” (“Puppy, puppy pie,” she warbles) bearable. Of course, because she’s not so blatantly sexy, she’s the perfect match for Roland, and we sure root for them to get together.

Shabazz Green has a fine time flexing his very obvious muscles and thrusting his pelvis as he gives the nerdy Roland advice on attracting—and hooking up with—girls. Unfortunately, Weinberger and Morgan have created a cartoon character who’s more buffoon than real. But Green has a good voice and comedic timing, so he adds some levity to the tale.

Of the four, Clare Fitzgerald (right, with Sullivan) as Blair appears to be uncomfortable onstage. Sexy in very short skirts, her character, too, is more caricature than real and requires her to utter some over-the-top dialogue that’s rather off-putting. She does a fine job declaring her love for the “Freedom” of a summer vacation from her high-charged job as the senior manager at a hedge fund, but she doesn’t have much to do except strut around the stage and lunge at Roland in a quest to “Make Some Noise.” Fitzgerald sings well, but the part doesn’t require much of her in the way of acting, leaving her looking awkward most of the time.

What about the dog, you ask? Well, Morgan and Weinberger have specified that Cupid be depicted as invisible so each audience member is free to imagine him as the dog breed they love best. To make this work, the actors—chiefly Sullivan and Ambriano—have to pick “him” up, cuddle him and pet him so that we “see” him, a feat they carry out with genius.

The plot unfolds on a functionally furnished stage set designed by Jim Bazewicz, using projections of what appear to be paintings of window views, beachscapes and Hampton cabins to set and change the scenes effortlessly. Roman Klima’s lighting and sound enhance the summer atmosphere; thankfully, no barking or yipping sounds intrude. Hailey Benson’s costumes suit each character, even if I experienced some moments of trepidation about the shortness of Blair’s skirt. The two-man orchestra, directed by Stephanie Lindley provided good, if sometimes too loud, accompaniment.

Yes, boy meets dog meets girl loses girl meets right girl may sound a bit trite, but A Dog Story reminds us that there is room in the theater for diverting musical comedies to take our minds off the weighty matters of day-to-day living. The Bickford Theatre’s production may not solve the Syrian crisis, but it does remind us that, in the “war” of relationships, humor and love—of human or dog—can bring about a happy if unexpected ending.

A Dog Story will be performed at the Bickford Theatre in the Morris Museum, 6 Normandy Hgts. Road, Morristown, through April 22. For performance information and tickets, call 973.971.3706 or visit www.morrismuseum.org/bickford online.

Photos by Jack Grassa.

Celebrate Israel’s 70th anniversary on April 19 at Rutgers-New Brunswick

ISRAEL AT 70

WHEN: April 19, 7 pm
WHERE: Rutgers Hillel, 70 College Avenue, New Brunswick, with free campus parking in Lots 11, 26, 30 & College Avenue Deck.
TICKETS: Free and open to the public
Advance registration is requested by emailing rsvpBildner@sas.rutgers.edu, calling 848-932-2033, or on the Bildner Center’s website. For more information, visit the website https://bildnercenter.rutgers.edu/

A special event honoring Israel’s 70^th anniversary will be held at Rutgers-New Brunswick. The program will feature a lively panel discussion, “New Trends in Israeli Music and Dance,” followed by a rocking concert by the Israeli cover band ISRABAND.

The program is presented in partnership with NJPAC, Rutgers' Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, and Rutgers Hillel. It is funded in part by the Ruth and Alvin Rockoff program fund.

The panel discussion begins at 7:00 p.m. and features two experts on the topic of Israeli music and dance: Dr. Galeet Dardashti (left), assistant professor of Jewish music and musician-in-residence at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and founder of the renowned all-woman ensemble Divahn (right); and Dr. Dina Roginsky, a senior lecturer of modern Hebrew language and culture at Yale University, who specializes in Israeli culture, folklore, dance, and ethnicity. The discussion will be moderated by Professor Yael Zerubavel, professor of Jewish studies and history and the director of the Bildner Center.

At 8:30 p.m., ISRABAND will take the stage for a concert performance. An Israeli cover band based in New York City, ISRABAND specializes in providing the audience with an authentic and refreshing experience through a variety of the biggest hits of Israeli and Jewish music. Their repertoire includes popular hits by Arik Einstein, Shlomo Artzi, Kaveret, Mosh Ben-Ari, Eyal Golan, Yehudit Ravitz, and others.

The Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life connects the university with the community through public lectures, symposia, Jewish communal initiatives, cultural events, and teacher training.

STAGED READING OF NEW PLAY @ NEWARK SYMPHONY HALL

A new dramatic staged reading by Lori Roper and Rick Sordelet at the Newark Symphony Hall Newark Stage (Black Box Theater). Directed by Marshall Jones III GET TICKETS CALL BOX OFFICE 973.643.8014 WHERE: Newark Symphony Hall, 1030 Broad Street, Newark

ART IN APRIL @ RUTHERFURD HALL IN ALLAMUCHY

WHEN: Saturday, April 14th, 11:00-4:00. Mini Painting Sessions
WHERE: Allamuchy Crafters and Artisan Fair

WHEN: Thursday, April 26th 

• 6:30-8:00 pm Kid's Paint Night
• 7:00-9:00 pm Adult Wine and Paint Night

To register for any program: CLICK HERE or call 908-852-1894 Ext 338

CAROLYN DORFMAN DANCE AND RENÉE JAWORSKI OF PILOBOLUS PREMIERE NEW WORK @ NJPAC APRIL 14 & 15

Snap, Crackle, Pop

WHEN: April 14, 2018. There will be an encore performance at a matinee on April 15^th at NJPAC.
WHERE: NJPAC, Victoria Theatre, 1 Center St., Newark
TICKETS: General admission tickets for April 14 evening and April 15 matinee are available from $25 - $45 here. Individual gala tickets start at $235 and include a post-show reception that includes light supper, cocktails, dessert, dancing and music by The Hubcaps at Nico private room, inside of NJPAC. Gala sponsorships, tickets, and virtual advertisements can be purchased online at http://carolyndorfman.dance/calendar/gala2018

Carolyn Dorfman Dance, whose bold and dramatic works connect life and movement, is premiering a new work in collaboration with Pilobolus during its yearly performance and gala benefit on at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC). The new piece is being co-choreographed by Carolyn Dorfman, Renée Jaworski, Co-Artistic Director of Pilobolus and former Dorfman company dancer, and the dancers of CDD. It is co-commissioned by NJPAC. The evening performance will also feature a re-creation of Carolyn Dorfman Dance repertory pieces Lifeline and Cercle d’Amour—connecting the company and its audience in celebration of Dorfman’s 35^th Anniversary festivities.

This Pilobolus and Carolyn Dorfman Dance collaboration is the first-of-its-kind for both companies—the first co-choreographic creation with an external choreographer for Carolyn Dorfman and the first time a Pilobolus creation will join another company’s repertory. The historic premiere, which encapsulates Dorfman and Jaworski’s vision of delving into human connections across time and culture, will remain exclusively a part of Carolyn Dorfman Dance’s repertory for two years, and then be added to the Pilobolus repertory.

The two choreographers agree that, while their processes originate from different perspectives, their work together is bringing them down a path that is both familiar and filled with unexpected discoveries.  “Collaborating with Renée and my dancers on this new work has been exhilarating,” says Carolyn Dorfman, “We work entirely different and yet remarkably similar. I love her spontaneity, craft, and the extraordinary physical Pilobolus trademarks embodied in this work. It has taken us all to a new, yet somehow familiar, place. For Renée Jaworski, “to celebrate an American Modern Dance company’s 35th anniversary is a rare and wonderful thing. Carolyn has always done what it takes to keep her audience engaged, and that is a desire I share. The fact that we come at that goal from our own perspectives is bringing us both to unexpected and exciting places.”

Merging their signature styles and processes, Dorfman, Pilobolus and the 11 company dancers come together to create a new premiere about connection; past, present and future. Cercle d’Amour jubilantly explores movement evoked by the American icon, the Hula–Hoop, and Lifeline utilizes ropes to showcase the strong bonds created across multiple generations.

REPERTORY DETAILS

Snap, Crackle, Pop (2018) - World Premiere

• Choreography: Created in collaboration with Carolyn Dorfman, Renée Jaworksi and the dancers of Carolyn Dorfman Dance
• Music: David Van Tieghem
• Lighting: Thom Weaver
• Costume: Anna-Alisa Belous

Delving into iconic American cultural experiences and common bonds that shape us, the premiere explores the phenomenon of commercials (content, jingles, song), social and political events, the technology explosion, and the evolution of human communication.

Lifeline (1987)

• Choreography: Carolyn Dorfman
• Music: Robert Kaplan
• Lighting: Thom Weaver
• Costume: Original - Russell Aubrey, recreated and adapted by Anna-Alisa Belous

“The tension from the ropes and the interconnectedness of the dancers make a strong and exciting statement about the bonds that join individuals across generations.” - The New York Times

Cercle d’Amour (2010)

• Choreography: Carolyn Dorfman
• Music: Andy Teirstein
• Costumes and Prop Design: Anna-Alisa Belous
• Custom Hula Hoop Construction: KaytiBunny Roberts

Cercle d’Amour is Carolyn Dorfman’s choreographic response to what she was once told: “laughter, too, can change the world.” The piece explores the visual and movement metaphors evoked by a resonant and versatile prop, the hula-hoop. Featuring music by Andy Tierstein, the ensemble work illuminates various aspects of relationships including play, competition, and fantasy.

The evening is presented as part of NJPAC’s Jersey Moves! Festival of Dance and made possible by generous grants from The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.

Read more »

JAZZ & BRUNCH THIS SUNDAY IN METUCHEN

Newark Choruses and Crescent Choral Society Sing Durufle on April 14 in Plainfield

Crescent Concerts presents the Crescent Choral Society presents

Durufle’s Requiem and Faure’s Cantique de Jean Racine

WHEN: Saturday, April 14, at 4:00 pm 
WHERE:  the historic Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church at Watchung Avenue and East Seventh Street in Plainfield.  Ample free secure parking is available for the concert.
TICKETS: General Admission-$20; Seniors-$15 and Students-$5
Tickets for this unprecedented and highly anticipated collaboration may be purchased at the door on the day of performance
For more information, call 908-756-2468, visit CrescentConcerts.org or follow Crescent Concerts on Facebook.

Joining the Choral Society for this concert of French music are the Newark Arts High School Advanced Chorus (the nation’s first public high school for the Arts) and the  Newark Boys’ Chorus Touring Choir. “What a joy it is for us to perform a major masterwork such as Durufle’s Requiem alongside young artists!” said Artistic Director Dr. Deborah Simpkin King.   

“Both directors—Donald Morris of NBCS and Jerry Forderhase of NAHS—are brilliant and dedicated educators, as well as long-time friends and colleagues, and their students’ singing is inspirational!”

Mahwah Museum Presents a Jazz Guitar Workshop with Vic Juris and Ed Laub

Jazz Guitar Workshop with Vic Juris and Ed Laub

WHEN: Saturday, April 21, 2018, 10:00 am to 4:30 pm
WHERE: Mahwah Museum, 201 Franklin Turnpike Mahwah
TICKETS:  $85.00 per person. The $85.00 cost includes take-home materials, lunch, and a two-year individual Mahwah Museum membership. 
Students are asked to bring a guitar (acoustic or archtop, preferably, as amplifiers will be limited) to the workshop.  All levels, from beginner to advanced, are welcome.

Join Jazz Guitar Master Vic Juris, assisted by Rhythm Guitarist Ed Laub, for an all-day Jazz Guitar Workshop, where you will spend your day exploring and discussing jazz guitar, chord development, improvisation and techniques! 

The workshop will conclude with a private performance for the students by Laub and Juris, and an improv session with participants.

There is a 20 person limit, so please register ASAP. For further information, please visit www.mahwahmuseum.org or contact programs@mahwahmuseum.org.

Advanced registration is required.  Space is limited to twenty students, so please register early. To register online via PayPal, visit www.Mahwahmuseum.org. PayPal registrations will need to pay the full $85.00 cost at time of purchase.
Please check back soon to www.mahwahmuseum.org for information about another exciting workshop to be held at Ramapo College on June 9^th, 2018.  Produced by Ed Laub, the June event will feature classes by outstanding musicians Roni Ben-Hur, Gene Bertoncini, Paul Meyers and luthiers Dale and Tyler Unger, followed by a performance by the instructors. Don’t miss these great events!
These workshops are made possible by a grant from the Les Paul Foundation and are hosted by the Mahwah Museum Society Inc. These workshops are produced by Ed Laub.

Instructor Vic Juris (top, left) has been called one of the leading jazz educators throughout the world; he is also the author of several educational jazz books. Vic studied with Charlie Banacos and Pat Martino and has performed with Barry Miles, Richie Cole, Eddie Jefferson, Jimmy Smith, Mel Torme, Nancy Wilson, and Sarah Vaughan.  An instructor at The New School in NYC, the New York Jazz Workshop School of Music, Rutgers Mason Gross School of the Arts, Lehigh University, The Pennsylvania Jazz Collective, and a Youth Jazz Canada Artist-in-Residence, his workshops have been called “an absolute must for serious jazz guitarists.”

Born in northern Bergen County, rhythm guitarist and vocalist Ed Laub (top, right) studied guitar with Bobby Dominic and Bucky Pizzarelli.  He has performed in Jazz Festivals, concert halls and clubs throughout the New York/New Jersey area, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Kitano, The Iridium, Birdland, PNC Arts Center, Bickford Theatre, NJ-PAC, Berrie Performing Arts Center, The Annual Elkhart Jazz Festival and Smalls Jazz Club in Greenwich Village.  For many years he has partnered with his close friend and mentor, the renowned Bucky Pizzarelli, playing jazz festivals and venues in the Metropolitan area and in cities across the US.  When not working with Bucky, Ed is in demand as an accompanist; as one of the more accomplished 7-string guitarists, he adds a pianistic style that makes a duo sound more like a trio. 

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ARNIE GOODMAN AND HTTPS://WWW.7STRINGMUSIC.COM/, RESPECTIVELY