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Monday, August 31, 2015

GUEST EVENT @ GEORGE STREET PLAYHOUSE PAYS TRIBUTE TO THE BEATLES

GUEST EVENT:

Re-Live The Beatles: A Tribute

WHEN: Sunday September 20, 6 PM
WHERE: George Street Playhouse, 9 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick

Re - Live The Sights ...The Sounds ... The Magic ...
The Fabulous 60's  & The Music  That Changed The World ! 

Take a trip back In time as the band re-creates memories of The Ed Sullivan Show, Shea Stadium, Sgt. Pepper and of course Abbey Road!  

BUY ONLINE NOW OR CALL 732-246-7717

THE SHAKESPEARE THEATRE OF NEW JERSEY OFFERS $20 STUDENT TICKETS TO “THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK”

THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK
by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett
adapted by Wendy Kesselman
directed by Joseph Discher

WHEN: begin Wednesday, October 14th and continue through Saturday, November 21; select Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Sundays at 7:30 PM and Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 PM, with a 2:00 PM matinee on select Saturday and Sunday afternoons
WHERE:
F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, 36 Madison Avenue (at Lancaster Road) in Madison
TICKETS: $20 advance-purchase student tickets. Regular tickets are available for as low as $25 for previews and $32 for regular performances.  $15 student rush tickets may still be purchased one half-hour before the show in person at the F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, but availability may be limited. 
Individual tickets and subscriptions can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 973-408-5600 or by visiting www.ShakespeareNJ.org.  

In an effort to reach as many young people and families as possible—for the first time—these discount $20 student tickets may be purchased in advance online, at the box office or by calling 973-408-5600.  

Nearly 75 years ago, a young girl named Anne Frank received a blank diary for her 13th birthday.  Today, the humor, strength, and innate goodness of Anne Frank continue to shine forth from her words—inspiring readers and audiences of all ages. In her adaptation, Wendy Kesselman restored more of the original content of Anne Frank’s diary, including references to Judaism and instances exemplifying Anne’s behavior as a teenager as well as her frustrations with her sister and mother. This unforgettable and powerful story will come to life for a new generation this fall.  

The extended run of The Diary of Anne Frank also features numerous school-time matinees for school groups.  Tickets for school-time performances are $17.    

For information about school-time performances, please call 973-408-3983 or email aromero@shakespearenj.org

CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY ART OFFERS A HOST OF CLASSES & WORKSHOPS FOR KIDS & ADULTS

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2015 FALL CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS

WHEN: starts on September 9th and runs through December
WHERE:
Center for Contemporary Art, 2020 Burnt Mills Rd., Bedminster
For further information or to register for a class, please visit The Center for Contemporary Art online at www.ccabedminster.org or call (908) 234-2345.

The Center for Contemporary Art is excited to announce its fall schedule of art classes and workshops. There are fifty-four classes and thirteen workshops for adults and twenty-nine classes for children ages five through teens. Classes are offered for artists with all levels of expertise in a variety of media including oil and acrylic paint, watercolor, drawing, photography and ceramics. 

“Drawing Fundamentals for Seniors" with James Adkins is a new introductory class for students 65 and over that will make drawing easy and understandable. The instructor will provide a foundation in drawing. Students will explore step-by-step exercises using line, shading, value, mass, proportion, composition, and perspective. Several materials will be explored such as pencil, charcoal, and pastel.

Fall workshops provide unique one-day opportunities that range from an in-depth exploration of colored pencils in “The Art of Colored Pencils” with Andrea Gianchiglia, to learning how to make ordinary pantyhose into something extraordinarily creative in “Pantyhose Creations” with Katie Truk.

The Center’s unique curriculum of children’s art classes allow young artists to enroll in either overview classes that explore a broad range of media and techniques, or in-depth classes designed to deepen and develop skills in a single medium.

About The Center for Contemporary Art

Founded in 1970, The Center for Contemporary Art is a vital regional art center with a vibrant studio art school, extensive exhibition program and important community outreach component. The Center is located at 2020 Burnt Mills Road in Bedminster, NJ. For further information, please call (908) 234-2345 or visit The Center for Contemporary Art online at http://ccabedminster.org/

MILE SQUARE THEATRE CLASSES IN THEATRE & DANCE NOW ENROLLING

Fall classes in theatre!
kindergarten through college

Mile Square Theatre, in partnership with Chase Leyner of Hoboken Children's Theater, is now enrolling for Fall 2015.

Chase Leyner, Education Director

ENROLLMENT OPEN NOW


Sarah Weber Gallo<br />Fall classes in dance!
age 6 through adult

We are excited to launch The MST Dance Academy
Sarah Weber Gallo,
Dance Education Director

ENROLLMENT OPEN NOW

About MST Dance Academy
The Mile Square Theatre Dance Academy specializes in pre-professional-level training in Ballet, Modern Dance and Theater Dance, and is staffed by working professional dancers. Emphasis is placed on alignment, technique and purity of form.

Classes are based on a semester system. Parents may attend the final class of the Fall and Winter semesters to view their child’s progress. There will be a Spring performance to demonstrate the students’ abilities and give them a chance to dance in front of an audience.

ll students are placed according to ability. Dancers may advance to pointe shoes at age 12 or older, when the appropriate musculature and bony supports are generally developed.

Girls should be attired in dark-colored leotards, pink tights, and pink ballet shoes, with hair neatly back in a bun or tight braid. Boys should wear white T-shirts and black tights or shorts, with black ballet shoes and neat hair.

Dance Education Director Sarah Weber Gallo holds an MFA in Dance Performance Studies from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee's Peck School of the Arts. She is a longtime member of the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, has performed a diversity of repertoire nationally and internationally, and was a Radio City Rockette.

Mile Square Theatre is supported by The Rockefeller Group, Bijou Properties, Party with Purpose, the Hoboken Family Alliance, and by The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.

THIS PROGRAM IS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY FUNDS FROM THE NEW JERSEY COUNCIL ON THE ARTS/DEPARTMENT OF STATE, A PARTNER AGENCY OF THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS AND BY FUNDS FROM THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS, ADMINISTERED BY THE HUDSON COUNTY OFFICE OF CULTURAL & HERITAGE AFFAIRS, THOMAS A. DEGISE, COUNTY EXECUTIVE, AND THE BOARD OF CHOSEN FREEHOLDERS.

REGISTRATION OPEN FOR LUNA STAGE CLASSES FOR CHILDREN & ADULTS

Fall Classes For Children and Adults

Classes Sell Out - Register Today

Theater and Musical Theater Classes for Children Ages 4 to 13

Fall 2015 Session: September 19 - November 21

 

 

 

 

 


Click Here for Complete Information and Registration


Adult Acting and Playwriting Classes

Fall 2015 Session: September -  December

Our unique adult theatre classes are designed for beginners, experienced amateurs, and working professionals.

New this Fall: The Luna PlayGym, a play development forum for working playwrights.

 

Classes include The PlayGym, Civic Playwriting, Acting Essentials, and Master Class: The Actor's Workshop

Classes meet either Tuesday or Wednesday Evenings

Click Here for Complete Information and Registration


Support Luna Stage

Luna is a non-profit theatre company.  We rely on your generosity to fulfill our mission "to develop and produce thought-provoking theatre that gives voice to emerging American playwrights and new life to contemporary and classic plays that speak to our times. ."


Please consider a gift today.  To give, click here

FIRST MELVIN EDWARDS RETROSPECTIVE IN 20 YEARS OPENS @ THE ZIMMERLI ART MUSEUM

MELVIN EDWARDS: FIVE DECADES

WHEN: September 1, 2015, to January 10, 2016.
WHERE:
Zimmerli Art Museum, 71 Hamilton Street (at George Street) on the College Avenue Campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick
ADMISSION: Free

 

The Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers is pleased to present the retrospective Melvin Edwards: Five Decades. Melvin Edwards’s career spans crucial periods of upheaval and change in American culture and society, and his industrial, socially charged sculptures synthesize a diversity of artistic approaches, ranging from abstraction to minimalism. Over the past five decades, Edwards has produced a remarkable body of work that has not only redefined the modernist tradition of welded sculpture, but powerfully addresses African identity and universal ideals such as freedom and individualism.

“It is a rare privilege for the Zimmerli to host this review of Edwards’s career—a career marked by powerful steps forward in the form of contemporary sculpture and by innovation and courage in the presentation of pivotal historical and political issues within the modernist context,” commented Marti Mayo, the Zimmerli’s interim director.

Education Is an Open BookThe retrospective’s stop at the Zimmerli represents a triumphant return for the artist to New Brunswick: Edwards was a professor at Rutgers from 1972 to 2002, teaching sculpture, drawing, and an introduction to Third World artists. His sculpture Education Is an Open Book (1987) is located on the Livingston Campus as part of the university’s public sculpture collection that spans all campuses.

Richard S. Edwards, Chancellor, Rutgers—New Brunswick, said, “Mel Edwards was an important professor at Rutgers, teaching for 30 years in our Mason Gross School of the Arts, and we are especially proud to be one of the venues on the national tour of this exhibition. The artist’s studios in nearby Plainfield, New Jersey, as well as in Dakhar, Senegal, can be seen to represent both the local and global influences and interests of Rutgers.”

Melvin Edwards: Five Decades bears witness to Edwards’s profound commitment, from the very beginning of his career, to an art that is both abstract and deeply engaged with meaning and expression. A truly international artist well before the advent of today’s global art world, Edwards has brought his experiences of other cultures and languages, particularly those of Africa, into his work, to explore the varied ways that art can forge bonds of connection and kinship. He is best known for his Lynch Fragments, an ongoing series of small-scale reliefs begun in Los Angeles in the early 1960s and born out of the social and political turmoil of the civil rights movement. Incorporating tools and other familiar objects, such as chains, locks, and ax heads, Edwards’s Lynch Fragments are abstract yet evocative, summoning a range of artistic, cultural, and historical references.

Melvin Edwards: Five Decades features a broad selection of Lynch Fragments, beginning with early manifestations, which spoke to the racial tensions and political and cultural struggles of the 1960s. Edwards returned to the series in the early 1970s during the Vietnam War and continued it with a later group, beginning in 1978 and continuing to the present that explores memory, history, and African and African American culture.

Presenting a full range of Edwards’s achievements, Melvin Edwards: Five Decades – the first retrospective of his work in more than 20 years – reveals that his career has extended far beyond the Lynch Fragments. Major large-scale sculptures of the 1960s, such as Chaino, The Lifted X, and August the Squared Fire, are included, as well as his Rockers of the 1970s, which incorporate movement and, in some cases, sound.

With the artist’s cooperation, the Zimmerli will recreate the groundbreaking 1970 exhibition of his barbed-wire sculptures originally shown at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Several large sculptures have been restored for the exhibition, most notably the first Rocker, Homage to Coco, which was in the 1970 Whitney sculpture annual. Also on view will be sculpture Edwards made in Senegal over the past decade, a selection of maquettes and prototypes reflecting his long career in public sculpture, and rarely exhibited works on paper, including sketchbooks and collaborations with the artist’s late wife, the celebrated poet and performer Jayne Cortez.

INVENTIONS THAT WILL CHANGE THE WORLD

Dr. Ronald Mallett20th ANNUAL INDUCTION
NATIONAL GALLERY FOR AMERICA'S YOUNG INVENTORS!

 

WHEN: 12 noon, Saturday, September 12, 2015
WHERE
: Thomas Edison National Historical Park, Main Street in West Orange, New Jersey
TICKETS: Seating is still available at $100/seat and $1,000 for a table of 10. To purchase seats contact www.nmoe.org

Six young inventors will be inducted into the National Gallery for America’s Young Inventors during the 20th annual Induction Ceremony and Benefit. Inductees include:

  • Arjun Jay Arora, Grade 12 from Raleigh, NC, for his Quantitative Analysis & Targeting of Inflammatory Breast Cancer Tumor Emboli.
  • Emily Lorin Ashkin, College Freshman, from Matthews, NC, for her Novel Synergistic Method for Enhancing Immunotherapy in the Treatment of Melanoma.
  • Clemen Zineng Deng, Grade 12, from Portland, OR, for his WHAVE: A Novel Machine Learning Method for More Accurate Breast Cancer Detection.
  • Makayla Gates, Grade 8, from Peralta, NM, for her Sassy Sound Solar Cleaner.  
  • Mark D. Leschinsky, Grade 4, from Mahwah, NJ, for his Self-Disinfecting Hazmat Suit for Healthcare Workers.
  •  Michelle M. Marquez, Grade 11, from Midlothian, VA, for her Mapping of Emotional Dimensions Toward a Neuro-Thermal Biometric System for the Diagnosis of Emotional Flexibility.

National Gallery Induction Ceremony & Benefit

The National Gallery for America’s Young Inventors (a program of the National Museum of Education) is the country’s official organization established to take the great ideas of America’s youth and preserve them forever in history. Each inductee is either a national invention competition winner, a patent holder, or has his/her product on the national market. The six inductees have been chosen by the National Gallery’s Student Board of Directors, which is composed of students from across the nation. The National Gallery is sponsored by the Edison Innovation Foundation, Newark, New Jersey.

This year’s speakers are Dr. Ronald Mallett, a world-renowned theoretical physicist who currently teaches at the University of Connecticut, is the author of the “Time Traveler” and continues to work on his time machine; and Michael Berardi who has a varied background in music as a professional songwriter including over 150 songs with his own record company MRB Records. He is also the co-founder of Photo to Art, and is presently the inventor of the revolutionary Xhose, the first expandable garden hose to use an inner expandable tube and an outer fabric webbing.

READING POSITIONS!


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essexcountylibrary:<br /><br />What does Library mean to you? - We asked,<br />and our library community responded. Here is what we heard you tell us!  Woodslee!Woodslee … Your community branch<br />is an AMAZING place to visit.  With Friendly Staff and FUN technology the library is an all-around AWESOME experience.<br />Visit us again!

Saturday, August 29, 2015

SEE “MISALLIANCE” BEFORE THIS WEEKEND FLIES BY!

Pictured (L-R): Jonathan Gillard Daly, Katie Fabel, Ames Adamson, Brian Cade, Matthew Sherbach. Photo: Avery Brunkus

WHEN: Through August 30.
WHERE STNJ, Drew University campus, 36 Madison Ave. (at Lancaster Rd), Madison
TICKETS: 973-408-5600 or www.ShakespeareNJ.org

Thursday, August 27, 2015

ADULT ACTOR SOUGHT BY HUDSON THEATRE ENSEMBLE’S CHILDREN’S SERIES “SILLY ON SIXTH” PRODUCTION

OPEN AUDITIONS

Cinderella! Cinderella!

WHEN: Wednesday, September 2, 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm
WHERE: Hudson School Performance Space, 601 Park Avenue, Hoboken* 

Please just show up for open audition—no appointments or emails necessary. Sides will be provided.

Hudson Theatre Ensemble’s Children’s Series Silly on Sixth in Hoboken, NJ (www.hudsontheatreensemble.com) is looking for a fun-loving, playful adult actor for the role of Prince for our zany adaptation of Cinderella! Cinderella!

  • All heights welcome. 
  • Singing not required.
  • Non-Equity. 
  • Non-Paid.  
  • Partial travel stipends for non-local actors. 
  • We enjoy an enthusiastic following and excellent reviews.

Cinderella! Cinderella! and its all-adult cast will delight children and families in the 16th season of the Hudson Theatre Ensemble Children’s Series Silly on Sixth. This is an opportunity to appear in Cinderella! and to join the ensemble which also does a show for adult audiences in April.  

Rehearsals start September 8 with reasonable evening rehearsals during the week with some weekends toward tech week. 

Performances will be in Hoboken on Sunday, October 25; Saturday, October 31; and Sunday,  November 1, at 11 am and 1 pm

*Directions on Website  www.hudsontheatreensemble.com

We are 15 minutes from Manhattan via Port Authority or Path Train.    If driving, parking is available in back of Hudson School.   Enter on Sixth Street going west between Garden and Park on right side of street just before school building.

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

ZUFALL HEALTH SEEKS ART FROM COMMUNITY FOR FALL EXHIBIT

PEOPLE AND PACES THAT INSPIRE

Zufall Health, an organization of nonprofit community health centers, is seeking works of art by New Jersey amateur and professional artists for a new exhibit entitled “People and Places That Inspire.” Submissions will be accepted through October 2, 2015.

Artists are invited to submit original two-dimensional artwork including painting, drawing, photography or collage for the exhibit. The art will be displayed from October 20, 2015 to January 31, 2016 throughout the public and clinical spaces of the organization’s landmark headquarters building at 18 West Blackwell Street in Dover. The exhibit will officially debut on November 6 at a public reception.

Submissions may extend across a wide variety of subject matter pertaining to the theme. Artists are encouraged to broadly explore and interpret their subjects in representational or abstract approaches.

“We are hoping that our Art for Health program continues to expand with even greater participation from local amateur and professional artists,” said Eva Turbiner, president and chief executive officer. “We especially encourage new artists to take advantage of this opportunity as we showcase the creative talents and cultural diversity of out community.”

All art must be the artist’s original work and should not include political statements, commercial advertising, and subject matter not suited for minors or public space display.

Zufall Health reserves the right to refuse art that does not conform to these standards.

  • Artists must be over 18 years of age.
  • Artwork should be no larger than 36” x 48”.
  • Accepted art must remain on view for the entire exhibit.
  • Complete submission details and rules are available at www.zufallhealth.org.
  • All inquiries regarding the exhibit should be directed to the exhibit’s curator Nicole Okumu at nicole@therarebird.net.
  • Please do not contact Zufall Health for information about the exhibit.

KEAN UNIV. DEPARTMENT OF THEATRE ANNOUNCES 2015-2016 SEASON

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With construction now complete on their state-of-the-art scene shop and several new design/technology classrooms, the Kean University Department of Theatre has announced an ambitious season for the coming academic year. (Above: The Kean Department of Theatre presented Peter Pan earlier this year. Photo by Ben Gancsos.)

“This year the Department of Theatre celebrates the opening of our new scenic construction facility, where students' exposure to all of the behind-the-scenes components will be enhanced,” stated longtime faculty member and department spokeswoman Holly Logue. “Having been recognized as one of the top ten most underrated college theatre programs in the northeast by OnstageBlog.com, we hope to continue to raise awareness of all the good things that are happening at Kean. We also celebrate our ongoing partnership with Premiere Stages, the professional theatre on campus, by producing one of [artistic director] John J. Wooten's plays, the contemporary farce, Kiss the Bride.” 

ELEKTRA
By
Sophocles
directed by faculty member E. Teresa Choate
WHEN: October 16 – 24, 2015
WHERE:
Kean’s Zella Fry Theatre, Kean University, 1000 Morris Ave., Union

A tragedy first performed in the ancient city of Athens, Elektra charts an escalation of unreasoning hatred that erupts into matricidal frenzy.

Years before the action begins, a father sacrificed his eldest daughter so that the gods would allow the winds to blow and carry him and his fleet to the Trojan War. When he returned victorious, his wife, in revenge for her daughter's murder, slaughtered him with an axe. As queen, she took a lover and ruled in his stead. A young son was smuggled away; another daughter remained to mourn her father and nurture a festering hatred for her mother.  The story of Elektra begins when the son, now grown, returns and joins with his sister to plot the assassination of the woman who gave them birth. Director E. Teresa Choate has opted to use a translation and adaptation by Ezra Pound and Rudd Fleming for the production.

“During another war, millennia later, a famous and infamous American poet, Ezra Pound, was possessed of an unreasoning hatred for his homeland,” said Ms. Choate, who most recently directed The Importance of Being Earnest for the University. “Arrested in 1945 on charges of treason for making anti-American broadcasts during World War II, [Pound] was incarcerated in a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane in Washington, D.C.  During his imprisonment, the mad American poet forged an alliance with this mad daughter of ancient Greece. Surrounded by the sights and sounds of the asylum, he translated the Greek of Sophocles’ poetic tale of murderous madness into English that resonates with 1940s America and the genius of Pound’s poetic gift.”

CHILDREN OF EDEN
by Broadway legends Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Wicked) and John Caird (Les Miserables, Candide). Based on a concept by Charles Lisanby

WHEN: November 13 – 21, 2015
WHERE: Wilkins Theatre

A joyous and inspirational musical about parents, children and faith , Children of Eden will feature direction by Holly Logue, musical direction by Meg Zervoulis, and choreography by Michele Mossay. Drawing on the Old Testament as its primary source material, this enchanting musical retells the human story from the moment of Creation until just after the Flood, bringing vibrant new life to our shared ancient history.

Children of Eden causes us to ask important questions about family, love, and social responsibility as it sweeps us along on a tide of music and lyric,” stated director Holly Logue.  “The show challenges us as it reaffirms our beliefs.  It validates our own daily struggles, comforts us as we try to make sense of sadness, and sustains us as we seek the light that illuminates each of our lives.  The show ultimately delivers a bittersweet but inspiring message: that the hardest part of love is letting go."

The Department will hold an open call for children ages 9-12 for the roles of young Cain and Abel in the production. Auditions will take place Saturday, September 12 at 11 a.m. in Vaughn Eames Hall, Room 212.  Children interested in auditioning should prepare one verse of any Broadway song. To schedule an audition appointment, please call 908-737-4420.

JULIUS CAESAR
by William Shakespeare
directed by faculty member Ernest Wiggins
WHEN: February 19 - 27, 2016
WHERE: Wilkins Theatre

Julius Caesar, a celebrated military leader, has just been publicly announced as a permanent dictator with absolute political control. As with all granted political power, envy quickly ensues.

“[Julius Caesar] tells the story of the conspiracy to murder Caesar and the power struggle that follows after his death,” explained director Ernest Wiggins.  “It also asks us to examine such themes as friendship, power, gender, manipulation, and love.  Join our Company as we explore this powerful and provocative play and attempt to not only understand Roman politics, but the politics of our day.”

KISS THE BRIDE
by John J. Wooten
directed by Wes Grantom, a founding member of New York’s Slant Theatre Project
WHEN: April 1 - 9, 2016
WHERE:
Zella Fry Theatre

In this madcap comedy, a groom schemes to murder his frequently married and very wealthy bride on their wedding night. Having hired a couple of bumbling bad guys to do the job, the groom mistakes an introverted wedding guest for the hired killer, sending him upstairs with his wife. Soon after, the real hit man arrives, having kidnapped an unsuspecting bride at the wrong reception. The kidnapped bride soon escapes from the trunk of their car and, with the help of crazed couples and uninvited guests, sends the newlyweds fleeing and the audience rolling down the aisle with laughter.

TICKETS: Standard tickets to all Department of Theatre performances are $15, with $12 tickets available for Kean faculty, staff, and alumni, and $10 tickets available for students.
To purchase tickets or request a season brochure, please call the Kean Stage box office at 908-737-SHOW (7469), email ticket@kean.edu, or visit www.keanstage.com.

Accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre, Kean University's Department of Theatre mirrors the university's mission to provide a core educational foundation based on the liberal arts. Our curricula are designed to educate theatre students to enter the realm of professional theatre, theatre education or advanced graduate studies. For more information, please call (908) 737-4420, email theatre@kean.edu, or visit www.kean.edu.

“A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM” TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

Learn more!

Click here to buy tickets!

Two River Theater | 21 Bridge Avenue | Red Bank, NJ 07701 | 732.345.1400 | tworivertheater.org | info@trtc.org

SAVE THE DATE: ART IN THE PUBLIC EYE EXHIBITION

Poster Public Eye

ANNUAL PIANO PROJECT BRINGS SOUTH ORANG COMMUNITY TOGETHER

ART & MUSIC TAKE TO THE STREETS

Outrageous colors, vibrant music, community feedback, local artists and professional musicians playing pianos-turned-contemporary-art stationed at five outdoor locations around South Orange.

WHEN: Saturday, August 29,  12-1 pm
WHERE: Cameron Park, The Gateway, Spiotta Park, Irvington and W. Fairview Avenues, and the Sloan Street Gazebo in South Orange.

Sponsored by SOPAC and PNC Bank, painters include South Orange residents Bill Billec, Larry Ciarallo, Marie Glynn, Lisa Hirkaler, Columbia High School student Austin Romanaux, as well as Seton Hall University Peer Advisors. Musicians are all professional local talent including Bob McKay of West Orange, Columbia High School graduate Ian Kenselaar and Friends, Campbell Charshee of Mark Murphy’s Music, and The Kludge with SOPAC Board member Rob Sandow and his wife Joyce Isabelle of Growth for Good.

DrJohnPLAYIN’ AROUND SOUTH ORANGE
Each year, local artists complete an application process for the honor of transforming an old piano into a contemporary piece of art. On average each artist donates up to 30 hours per piano to bring this musical event to life. Paint and supplies either come from the artists themselves or are donated by local businesses.

The project runs from August 24-October 6 with Wednesday night jam sessions under the Sloan Street Gazebo 5-7 PM in September. Other community supporters of the project include The Baird, Village of South Orange, South Orange Village Center Alliance, and Seton Hall University.

SOPAC Director of Community Engagement Linda Beard’s goal for the program is “to interrupt the humdrum day-to-day and allow South Orange residents the opportunity to interact with different genres of art in a unique way.” She says with obvious enthusiasm, “It’s about bringing what we do inside the [SOPAC] building outside the building.”

All six pianos will be up for auction on www.Biddingforgood.com from the point of kick-off until October 4th when Playin’ Around South Orange is scheduled to end. More information on the auction, jam sessions, and the pianos is available on the SOPAC website at http://www.sopacnow.org/community/sopianos.

SOPAC programs are made possible in part by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. The South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) is a 501(c)(3)charitable organization.

About SOPAC

Since 2006, SOPAC has been serving as a premier performing arts center in the region. SOPAC offers innovative artistic and cultural experiences for diverse audiences in an intimate, inviting environment. The premier arts center hosts a variety of live performances, community events and education programs for all ages.  To further expand its offerings, SOPAC has a partnership with the Juilliard School of Music to present Juilliard @ SOPAC—a series featuring upcoming musicians from the acclaimed conservatory.  SOPAC is home for Seton Hall University Arts Council’s performances, including Classical Concert Series, Jazz N’ the Hall performances and Seton Hall Theatre productions.  SOPAC also presents performances by its theater company in residence, Midtown Direct Rep, and its dance company in residence, Lydia Johnson Dance.  For more information, visit SOPACnow.org.

POPULAR NEW ORLEANS BAND TO PERFORM IN TUCKERTON

HONEY ISLAND SWAMP BAND

WHEN: Tuesday, September 1, at 7:30 P.M
WHERE:
Lizzie Rose Music Room,  217 E Main St, Tuckerton
TICKETS: $25.00/$30.00
For more information call 609-296-4100 or click here.

2015 marks the 10 year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.  It also marks the anniversary of the formation of HONEY ISLAND SWAMP BAND when the members met in San Francisco while they were seeking shelter with friends in the wake of that devastating event. Honey Island Swamp Band is now one of most popular bands in New Orleans.

Honey Island Swamp Band’s music, described as “Bayou Americana,” is an amalgamation of layers of slide guitar, keyboards, strings, banjo and horns, perfectly blending Blues, Country, and Southern Rock.  Revered in the Big Easy for their solid performances, the band has won multiple Best of the Beat Awards from Offbeat Magazine for “Best Emerging Artist,” “Best Blues Album” and “Best Roots Rock Artist.”  In 2011 and 2012 they were named “Best Roots Rock of New Orleans” by the Big Easy Awards, New Orleans’ most prestigious arts and entertainment honors.  

Their highly acclaimed CD Cane Sugar was released in 2013 on Louisiana Red Hot Records. Cane Sugar charted on the Americana Music Association, RNR Roots Radio and Jambands charts while receiving rave reviews from the press. Cane Sugar garnered the band more awards with “Best Roots Rock Band” and “Best Roots Rock Album” at the 2013 Best of the Beat Awards.   Additionally, Cane Sugar was the # 4 best selling album of the 2014 NOLA Jazz & Heritage Festival.

Here is a sampling of the stellar reviews!

“Easygoing bayou rockers evoke Little Feat and Grateful Dead on their new Cane Sugar.” USA Today

"It’s an energetic eclectic set that finds the sweet spot between soul, funk, rock, country, gospel, blues, boogie, reggae and yes, swamp . . . all supported by a strong Southern rock base. Cane Sugar does its best to transport you there with an effervescent, energized album that unearths the best musical aspects of the South and delivers them to wherever you might be." American Songwriter Magazine

“Honey Island Swamp Band’s rustic, roots vibe follows the tradition of melding country, soul, funk and blues flavors to render a sound that is decidedly New Orleanian but with an Americana twist.   Mandolin and Hammond B3 figure prominently alongside searing, swampy guitar.  Cane Sugar is a sophisticated step forward for the group.” Relix Magazine

Honey Island Swamp band continues to tour incessantly in support of Cane Sugar including Holland and Germany. The band has performed at Bonnaroo, Outside Lands, Wakarusa, Wanee Fest, and more  winning audiences over with their blazing live show and Big Easy charm!

Honey Island Swamp Band includes:  Aaron Wilkinson (vocals, mandolin, guitar, harmonica); Chris MulĂ© (vocals, guitar); Sam Price (bass, vocals); Garland Paul (drums, vocals) and Trevor Brooks (keys).  

Music City Roots in Nashville(“Prodigal Son”)

Charleston Mix/Bloody Sunday Sessions (“Never Saw It Coming” acoustic version): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lQdB4WjtzY

Cane Sugar is available on CD and as a digital download file. For more information:  www.honeyislandswampband.com

WHY TEACH THEATRE IN OUR SCHOOLS?

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

AWARD-WINNING VOCALIST TO APPEAR @ GEORGE STREET THEATRE BENEFIT: 1 NIGHT ONLY!

Maureen McGovern (Photo by Deborah Feingold)

Maureen McGovern in Sing, My Sisters, Sing!
with Jeff Harris, piano

One-night-only benefit performance for George Street Playhouse, saluting women Singer/Songwriters

WHEN: Wednesday, September 16, at 8 pm
WHERE: George Street Playhouse • 9 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick
Tickets:  $50, $75, $100 ($100 includes post-performance reception)
Box Office 732-246-7717 • www.GSPonline.org for helpful parking and dining recommendations

Award-Winning Vocalist MAUREEN McGOVERN Performs From Her Upcoming CD Sing, My Sisters, Sing!

George Street Playhouse announced today that award-winning vocalist MAUREEN McGOVERN will make a special appearance at the New Brunswick theatre. Ms. McGovern’s powerful new show (and upcoming CD), pays tribute to the iconic women singer/songwriters who changed the texture of American Popular Music.  The special show features the deeply personal and timeless songs of Annie Lennox, Janis Ian, Carole King, Phoebe Snow, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon, Laura Nyro, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Amanda McBroom, Melissa Manchester and others.

Maureen also pays tribute to her “early singing sisters:” Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Annie Ross, who paved the way by writing their own signature songs. The performance includes: “Heart Like A Wheel,” “Natural Woman,” “I Feel The Earth Move,” “Poetry Man,” “Help Me,” “At Seventeen,” “Come In From The Rain,” “A Tisket, A Tasket,” “God Bless The Child,” and more.

MAUREEN McGOVERN, celebrated as "The Stradivarius Voice," marked the 43rd anniversary of the release of her #1 Oscar-winning International Gold Record, "The Morning After" from The Poseidon Adventure, which garnered her a Grammy Nomination in 1973 for Best New Artist.  Maureen received her second Grammy Nomination in 1998 for Best Traditional Pop Vocal for her solo piano/voice album, The Pleasure of His Company, with Emmy-winning, Grammy-nominated jazz pianist, Mike Renzi. She was also a featured guest artist on the Grammy Award-winning Songs from the Neighborhood: The Music of Mister Rogers. Other hits include, "Can You Read My Mind" from Superman, the Oscar-winning "We May Never Love Like This Again" from The Towering Inferno and "Different Worlds" from the TV series Angie. Maureen supports music therapy and has been an Artist Spokesperson for the American Music Therapy Association since 2001.

JEFF HARRIS is a musician who is comfortable in many kinds of music: pop, jazz, classical, and musical theatre. He is equally at home as a pianist, composer, arranger, conductor, and lyricist. He has worked with such diverse singers as Maureen McGovern, Chaka Khan, Barbara Cook, Jane Krakowski, Jack Jones, Audra McDonald, Cleo Laine, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Christine Andreas, Liz Callaway, and Karen Akers. His longest association has been with Maureen McGovern, playing on and arranging six of her CDs, writing many songs for her (she has recorded sixteen) and appearing with her frequently on television and in concerts.

In the 42 years since its founding, George Street Playhouse has become a nationally recognized theatre, presenting an acclaimed mainstage season while providing an artistic home for established and emerging theatre artists.  Its leadership consists of Artistic Director David Saint, Resident Artistic Director Michael Mastro and Managing Director Kelly Ryman.  Founded in 1974, the Playhouse has been well represented by numerous productions both on and off-Broadway – recent productions include the Outer Critics’ Circle Best Musical Award-winner The Toxic Avenger; the Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk and Drama League nominated production of The Spitfire Grill; and the recent Broadway hit and Tony and Pulitzer Prize winning play Proof by David Auburn, which was developed at GSP during the 1999 Next Stage Series of new plays.  In 2015, George Street Playhouse will be represented by two productions in New York: the current Broadway production of It Shoulda Been You, and Joe DiPietro’s Clever Little Lies, opening off-Broadway this fall.  Both shows received their premieres at the Playhouse.   In addition to its mainstage season, GSP’s Touring Educational Theatre features three issue-oriented productions that are seen by more than 40,000 students annually. George Street Playhouse programming is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

AUDITIONS: MONTCLAIR OPERETTA CLUB SEEKS ACTOR/SINGERS FOR “VIOLET”

AUDITIONS FOR MONTCLAIR OPERETTA CLUB’S STAGING OF

Violet logoViolet
By Jeanine Tesori
Director: Bob Cline
Musical director: Gonzalo Valencia

WHEN: Wednesday, August 26 at 7pm, Tuesday, September 1 at 7pm and Tuesday, September 8 at 7pm. The door will open 30minutes before the start of auditions and will remain open until 8pm.
WHERE:
Montclair Operetta Club studio, 494 Valley Road in Upper Montclair

The Montclair Operetta Club, one of the country’s oldest continuously-operating community theatres, beginning its 91st season, announces open auditions for its upcoming production of Violet.

Violet won the Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Musical when it opened off-Broadway. Composer Jeanine Tesori has crafted a score that includes folk, gospel and American-roots music. She is well-known as the composer of Thoroughly Modern Millie, Shrek and Fun Home.

The show tells the story of Violet, struck as a girl by an axe blade while her father was chopping wood, leaving a scar across her face. In 1964 she is headed for the healing touch of a TV evangelist when she meets a young, African-American soldier who sees past her surface imperfections.

Says Bob Cline, the director, “The Club is seeking all types and ethnicities that are great vocalists. Movement skills are not really an issue with this show.”

A list of characters is available on the Club’s website www.mocmusicals.org.

Auditions consist of singing, reading and movement.

All roles are open. There is no pay.

Those who wish to audition are asked to bring a photo and a resume as well as sheet music in the proper key for a legitimate musical theatre song in the character of the show; an accompanist will be provided.

Show dates are November 6, 7, 8, 13, 14 & 15 at the Westminster Arts Center at Bloomfield College in Bloomfield.

M.O.C. is a membership company that earnestly supports non-traditional casting. For more information, send email to info@mocmusicals.org, or visit www.mocmusicals.org.

AUDITIONS: DRAMA GEEK STUDIOS SEEKS 15 ACTORS FOR “A FEW GOOD MEN”

Drama Geek Studios in Sparta, NJ is holding auditions for

A FEW GOOD MEN

WHEN: September 2 & 3 starting at 7:00 p.m.

The cast includes 14 men and 1 woman.

Shows will be held in November at Sussex County Community College.

Sides will be provided at the audition.

Please call 973-512-8251 to schedule an audition date and time.


Fall Trimester

Our schedule of classes for our fall trimester will begin on September 15, 2015.

Registration is taking place now. If you register by August 28, 2015 you will receive 10% off of the single class rate. This does not apply to our multi class discount packages.

To check out our class offerings go to www.dramageestudios.com.

Registration can be done either online through the Drama Geek website or in person (please call 973-512-8251 to schedule an in person registration session).

LABOR DAY PIANO SALE @ KAPLEN JCC IN TENAFLY

The Thurnauer School of Music and Forte Piano of Paramus announce

11th Annual Piano Sale

WHEN: Labor Day Weekend: September 4, 6 and 7
WHERE:
Taub Auditoriumn Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, 411 E. Clinton St., Tenafly
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (800) 742-6655 or (201) 265-1212.

Uprights, Grands and Electronic Pianos at greatly reduced prices

The Thurnauer School of Music and Forte Piano of Paramus are pleased to announce the 11th annual Labor Day Piano Sale. The sale will feature a wide selection of new and pre–owned acoustic and digital pianos by famous manufacturers such as Steinway, Bosendorfer, Schimmel, Baldwin, Knabe, Yamaha, and Roland, ranging in size from uprights to grand pianos.

Sale Schedule

  • Friday, September 4 and Sunday, September 6 , 10 am to 6 pm, by appointment only and
  • Monday, September 7, 10 am to 6 pm, open to the public.

About Forte Piano of Paramus
Forte Piano was founded in 1995 by Vladimir and Tanya Zaslavsky with a mission to help musicians and music lovers to realize their goals and find the right instrument for their family. Forte Piano has one of the largest single store piano operations in the country featuring the best piano brands in every quality and price category.

About the JCC Thurnauer School of Music
The JCC Thurnauer School of Music has been named a Major Arts Institution by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. Serving nearly 450 students from infancy through adulthood, it offers a comprehensive program similar to the finest pre-college conservatories. The Thurnauer experience includes instrumental lessons, ensembles, and classes, master classes with world-renowned artists; a chamber music series; faculty recitals; and frequent student performances. It is a member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education and received an award for “excellence and high standards” from The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

JCTC BRINGS HAPPINESS TO JERSEY CITY

logo big

JCTC_HAPPNIESS

HAPPINESS

WHEN: September 4th to October 14th
WHERE:
JCTC’s Merseles Studios, 339 Newark Avenue, Jersey City, NJ

Everyone wants happiness, but few people think they actually have it or know how to get it. The pursuit of happiness was as important as life and liberty in the Declaration of Independence, yet the 2015 U.N. World Happiness Report ranks the U.S. as only the 15th happiest nation. Why is happiness so important yet for many, so hard to achieve?

Jersey City Theater Center (JCTC) is not promising to make audiences happy, but through Happiness—a new series of art, theater, film and community dialogue—the role happiness plays in our lives and its impact on society might be better understood.

“Happiness matters to everybody,” said Olga Levina, Artistic Director. “What makes you happy may not be the same thing that makes me happy, but we both share a need for happiness. JCTC is using a range of different art forms that question what happiness means to the individual and to society.”

Featuring about a dozen ticketed & free events, including a full-scale theater production, new play reading, the launch of JCTC Films and an art exhibition international in scope, Happiness is the most ambitious project to date for Jersey City’s fastest growing arts organization. Several evenings include Talk-Back, a moderated discussion and Q&A between audience, actors and artists.

“Part of JCTC’s mission is to integrate different artistic disciplines and to unify our community,” said Levina. “Happiness will not only be looked at through theater, film and visual arts, but with our Talk-Back we will also enable perspectives from the community. We want to create a dialogue about one of the most crucial aspects of life, Happiness.”

Happiness Art Show

Happiness Art Show: an exhibit of more than a dozen works, including painting, sculpture and mixed-media, curated by Jersey City-based artist Gabriel Pacheco, will be featured in the art gallery at Merseles Studios. The artists, most of whom have shown in galleries around the world, submitted work responding to the theme of Happiness. The gallery show is free, open to the public and available for viewing throughout the entire Happiness series. In addition to 9/4 opening & reception, the Happiness Art Show will be open to the public during 9/11 JC Fridays (5:30-7:30pm) and the Jersey Art & Studio Tour 10/3-10/4.

Happiness Factors

This lecture & workshop by Leah Guy, a Holistic Lifestyle Expert, explores a range of techniques, from prayer and meditation to natural healing tools, used by people across the globe to achieve or improve their inner happiness. Guy, a noted speaker on holistic and wellness topics, is the owner of Modern Sage, a Wellness & Healing Center & Boutique (351 2nd St, Jersey City) and A Girl Named Guy Productions. Happiness Factors, on September 4th, follows the Happiness Art Show opening and is free and open to the public, no reservations required.

American Dreamers

A JCTC Production, the world premiere of American Dreamers runs for seven shows at the newly upgraded Black Box Theater at Merseles Studios.

Lia Romeo’s American Dreamers is a dark comedy about how we navigate through a 21st century world that values power, wealth, sex, and fame far more than genuine happiness.

Becca Barrington had big dreams when she graduated college. Now underemployed and saddled with enormous student loan debts, she decides to become an escort. When her first client turns out to be her former high school teacher, the consequences disrupt her life and those of her friends.

In addition to having her plays produced or developed at Project Y Theatre Company, Unicorn Theatre, 59E59, the Lark Theatre, and elsewhere, the Hoboken-based Romeo is also the author of a novel, Dating the Devil and a humor book, 11,002 Things to Be Miserable About.

American Dreamers is directed by Levina, a theater professional with 25+ years of experience.

WHEN: September 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 24, 26, performances 7:30-9:30pm. September 17 (Thursday) & September 24 (Friday) include Talk-Back promptly at 9:30.
TICKETS: $24 online (visit: www.jctenter.org), $28 day of show.

Happy (The Movie)

Happy, a 2011 feature documentary film directed, written, and co-produced by Academy Award nominated film-maker Roko Belic, explores happiness by looking at the latest research from experts in positive psychology and through interviews with people from different countries and all walks of life.

Happy is a wonderful film,” said Levina. “Psychologists have been researching and treating depression for more than a century, but researching happiness is a surprisingly new field of study. I’m proud to begin JCTC Films with such an important documentary. We’ve always planned for film to be part of JCTC programming and I’m glad this season we are able to finally start showing movies at Merseles Studios.”

WHEN:  Film & Talk-Back: October 10, 7:30-9:30pm.
TICKETS
: $10 (available online and at door).

The End of the Road

Robert Kerr's The End of the Road looks at how absurdity and horror coexist in contemporary American life.

Judy and Peter’s young son is terminally ill. To counter the direness of their situation, they decide to take a family car trip to Florida in search of a transcendental “magical moment” the family can share. Encountering crazy gas station attendants, disgruntled amusement park employees and hazardous petting zoos, the journey becomes a darkly comic road trip. As the family accepts the truth of their son’s situation, they discover the magical inner happiness they’re seeking in an unexpected way.

A Minnesota transplant, Kerr has been a playwriting fellow at Juilliard, a Jerome Fellow at the Playwrights' Center, and founding member of Bedlam Theatre. His plays have been produced in both Minneapolis and New York.

The End of the Road: A JCTC New Play Reading, followed by Talk-Back, is free of charge ($5.00 suggested donation is requested). Seating is limited, so reservations are recommended. To make a reservation, please visit  www.jctcenter.org.

Jersey City Theater Center, Merseles Studios, 339 Newark Avenue, Jersey City, NJ 07302
(201) 795-5386
For more information or to purchase tickets visit: www.jctcenter.org

Happiness is made possible through the generosity of Ben LoPiccolo Development Group, JCTC’s Board of Directors, private donors and local Jersey City businesses.

THE SHAKESPEARE THEATRE PRESENTS NEW JERSEY PREMIERE OF BILL CAIN’S “EQUIVOCATION”

I saw this play at the Manhattan Theatre Club several years ago. It is an interesting “take” on how Shakespeare came to write Macbeth for King James I. I suggest that you do not miss this production!

04. EquivocationEQUIVOCATION
By Bill Cain

WHEN: Performances begin Wednesday, September 16th and continue through Sunday, October 4th
WHERE:
F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, 36 Madison Avenue (at Lancaster Road) in Madison
TICKETS: start at $25 for preview performances and $32 for regular performances.
Student rush tickets for all performances are $15, available a half-hour before curtain with a valid Student ID.
Both individual tickets and subscriptions can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 973-408-5600 or by visiting www.ShakespeareNJ.org.

When the Bard and his troupe of players receive a royal commission to dramatize the events surrounding the infamous Gunpowder Plot, the artist must confront the demons of his past, his present, and his obligations to the truth and artistic integrity. Equivocation was described in Variety as “one of the most bracingly intelligent, sizzlingly theatrical American plays in a decade.”

Cain’s inspiration for Equivocation came directly from the Bard himself. In a 2010 interview with Playbill.com, Cain talks about the vacation that kicked off the writing process. “I spent time at the Globe Theatre and time in the Tower of London. I saw inscriptions chiseled into the walls there from prisoners of conscience of the time of Shakespeare. I began to wonder about the relationship between this man who had churned out so many words and defined his time, and people of conscience who just had a few words to write for taking a stand at the same time. The moral issues of Shakespeare began to come to mind.” Cain immediately returned to London and began writing what would become his second play.  Equivocation has enjoyed a number of well-received performances across the nation since its world premiere at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in 2009. Reviewed by the LA Times, critics lauded the show as “an ambitiously sprawling work of historical fiction,” and Talkin’ Broadway praised the play as “intellectually challenging… A play that portrays the balance and struggle between politics and art as well as an insight into the working mind of Shakespeare.”

The Playwright:
Bill Cain is the author of How To Write A New Book For The Bible, which premiered in the 2011-2012 season at Berkeley Repertory Theatre and Seattle Repertory Theatre. His play 9 Circles was awarded the Sky/Cooper Prize by Marin Theatre Company where it received its world premiere production. It has gone to productions around the country including theatres in Boston, Denver, and Los Angeles.  In addition to its world premiere production at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Equivocation had its New York premiere at Manhattan Theatre Club, and has been produced at the Geffen Playhouse (Ovation Award for Best Play), Seattle Rep, Marin Theatre, and Arena Stage.

The Cast:

In his twenty-third season with The Shakespeare Theatre, James Michael Reilly takes the stage as famed playwright Shag. Mr. Reilly’s company credits include 2014’s The Alchemist as well as Our Town, To Kill A Mockingbird, The Taming of the Shrew (2010 and 1993), The Grapes of Wrath, The Comedy of Errors, The Rivals, The Three Sisters, That Scoundrel Scapin, and The Grouch. Mr. Reilly holds an M.F.A. in Acting from Indiana University

Making her Shakespeare Theatre debut as Judith, Therese Barbato is in her first season with the Theatre. Off-Broadway, she has appeared alongside David Oyelowo in Prometheus Bound at the Classic Stage Company.  Regional credits include work a The Huntington Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, Geva Theatre, and Boise Contemporary Theatre. Ms. Barbato is a recent graduate of The Julliard School, where favorite credits were Angels in America, Wild Blue, As You Like It, and Dancing At Lughnasa

Also making a Shakespeare Theatre debut is Dominic Comperatore, playing Nate. Recently, Mr. Comperatore was seen on Broadway in Tony Nominated View From the Bridge, directed by Michael Mayer. Off-Broadway credits include director Jenn Thompson’s Lost In Yonkers (Drama Desk Nominee), Clash By Night, and The Merchant of Venice. Regional credits include Romeo and Juliet, The Secret Love-Life of Ophelia, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Julius Caesar, Talley’s Folly, Burn This, All My Sons, Italian American Reconciliation, and Lonely Planet, among others.

In his seventh season with The Shakespeare Theatre Kevin Isola will play Armin. Company credits include The Alchemist, The Liar, Accidental Death of an Anarchist, Around the World in Eight Days, and As You Like It. Mr. Isola performed on Broadway in Brooklyn Boy and Off-Broadway at Second Stage, Transport Group, 59E59 Street Theatre, The Women’s Project, The Play Company, Playwrights Horizons, NYSF/The Public Theatre, and The Cherry Lane. Regionally, he has appeared at two River Theatre, the McCarter Theatre, The Old Globe, South Coast Repertory Theatre, Provincetown Repertory Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, The Hudson Theatre, The Tiffany Theatre, and Yale Repertory. Kevin received his MFA from the NYU Graduate Acting Program.

Playing Richard, Rob Krakovski is in his sixth season with The Shakespeare Theatre. Company credits include A Most Dangerous Woman, Around the World in Eighty Days, Measure for Measure, and Julius Caesar. Recently, he has appeared in Secret Order at the San Jose Rep, A Christmas Story at Geva Theatre Center, and productions of Twelfth Night and Beard of Avon at Portland Center Stage.

In his first season with The Shakespeare Theatre, Matthew Stucky plays Sharpe, Tom Wintour and King James I. Regional credits include A Lion in Winter at the Berkshire Theatre Festival, Romeo and Juliet at the Actors’ Theatre of Louisville, Titus Andronicus, Richard II, The Beaux Stratagem, and Love’s Labour’s Lost at The Shakespeare Theatre Company D.C., as well as work at Shakespeare & Company, The Studio Theatre D.C., Syracuse Stage, and The Hangar Theatre. He is a graduate of Syracuse University’s B.F.A. Acting program.

The Director
Now in his twenty-fourth season with The Shakespeare Theatre, director Paul Mullins has helmed a number of productions. Company credits: Henry VII, The Devil’s Disciple, The Playboy of the Western World, The Liar, Accidental Death of an Anarchist, The Lion in Winter, Noises Off!, Private Lives, The Time of Your Life, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Richard II, Illyria, King John, The Illusion, Tartuffe, Rhinoceros, Measure for Measure, All’s Well That Ends Well, and The Threepenny Opera. Other credits include Good People, Twelfth Night, Measure for Measure, and Macbeth at The Old Globe, Henry V at Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and a number of other regional productions that include work at The Studio Theatre D.C., Chautauqua Theatre Company, Portland Stage, the Dorset Theatre Festival, and the Connecticut Repertory Theatre. Mr. Mullins is a graduate of New York University, the Yale School of Drama, and The Julliard School.

The Artistic Staff:
The world of Equivocation comes to life with the help of scenic designer Michael Schweikardt, costume designer Nikki Delhomme, lighting designer Michael Giannitti, and sound designer Karin Graybash. Alison Cote serves as production stage manager.

Special Performances:

Discount preview performances for Equivocation take place on Wednesday, September 16th at 7:30 PM, Thursday, September 17th and Friday September 18th at 8:00 PM, and Saturday, September 19th at 2:00 PM. Preview performances offer opportunities for reduced-priced tickets while enjoying the excitement of the very first performances in front of an audience. As always, the first Preview performance is Pay What You Can Night. Visit The Shakespeare Theatre Box Office between noon and performance-time on Wednesday, September 16th to purchase a ticket for that evening’s 7:30 PM show, at a cost that is affordable to you. Offer subject to availability.

For no more than the cost of a regular ticket, three Symposium Series performances are offered for each show, and include a post-play discussion with the cast and artistic staff. Symposium performances for Equivocation will be Tuesday, September 22nd at 7:30 PM and Saturday, September 26th and Saturday, October 3rd at 2:00 PM.

For each production, The Shakespeare Theatre presents the popular education program Know the Show. From 7:00 to 7:30 PM, an artist from The Shakespeare Theatre will present a pre-performance talk that provides background information and an insider’s perspective on the production. The Know the Show performance will be held on Thursday, September 24th at 7:00 PM, and is free of charge.

One of the leading Shakespeare theatres in the nation, serving 100,000 adults and children annually, The Shakespeare Theatre is New Jersey’s largest professional theatre company dedicated solely to Shakespeare’s canon and other world classics. Through its distinguished productions and education programs, the company strives to illuminate the universal and lasting relevance of the classics for contemporary audiences.

The acclaimed Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey is an independent, professional theatre company located on the Drew University campus. The Outdoor Stage is located on the campus of the College of St. Elizabeth and the Theatre’s support and education facility is in Florham Park.

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey’s programs are made possible, in part, by funding from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as funds from the National Endowment for the Arts.  Additional major support is received from The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, F.M. Kirby Foundation, The Edward T. Cone Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, CTW Foundation, The Samuel H. Scripps Foundation, and Drew University, as well as contributions from numerous corporations, foundations, government agencies and individuals.

BY POPULAR DEMAND” “EXPERIENCING DOWNTON ABBEY” IS BACK AGAIN

EXPERIENCING DOWNTON ABBEY

WHEN: New convenient time! Eight Sundays from September 27-November 22, 2015 (no class October 25), 2:00-3:30 PM.
WHERE: Fairleigh Dickinson University (Florham Campus), Hartman Lounge, 285 Madison Avenue, Madison, NJ
TUITION: Early bird registration $120. After September 1, $150
To register or for further information, contact Abagail Eckert at (973) 443-8721 or abagail@fdu.edu

For Downton Abbey addicts or for newbies who would like to know what all the fuss is about, Fairleigh Dickinson is offering a unique non-credit course open to everyone.

Taught by Judith Israel, Instructor at Florham Institute for Lifelong Learning.

The Florham Institue for Lifelong Learning (FILL) is where seniors aged 62 and older and professionals-in-transition can enrich their lives through adult education and recreation programs.

Watch Our Video!

“TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD” @ PAX AMICUS CASTLE THEATRE 3 WEEKS ONLY

WHERE: Pax Amicus Castle Theatre, 23 Lake Shore Drive, Budd Lake
TICKETS: www.paxtix.org

Monday, August 24, 2015

PREMIERE STAGES @ KEAN UNIV. TO PRESENT PLAY FESTIVAL WINNER

The People Before the Park

The People Before the Park
by Keith Josef Adkins
directed by Premiere Stages’ producing artistic director John J. Wooten

WHEN: September 3 – 20; Thursdays and Fridays at 8:00 pm, Saturdays at 3:00 and 8:00 pm, and Sundays at 3:00 pm
WHERE:
Zella Fry Theatre, Vaughn Eames Hall, 1000 Morris Avenue, Union
TICKETS: $30 standard, $20 for senior citizens and Kean alumni, and $15 for students and patrons with disabilities.
Significant discounts for groups of eight (8) or more apply.
To make reservations or to order a season brochure, please call the Kean Stage Box Office at 908-737-SHOW (7469) or visit Premiere Stages online at Zella Fry Theatre (Vaughn Eames Hall, 1000 Morris Avenue, Union, N.J.). www.kean.edu/premierestages.

Premiere Stages at Kean University will present the winner of its 2015 Play Festival, The People Before the Park. This moving new play tells the story of Seneca Village, the 19th-century African-American community removed by eminent domain to create New York City’s world-renowned Central Park. Selected from over 440 submissions as the winner of the Play Festival, an annual competition for unproduced scripts by area playwrights, The People Before the Park received a developmental reading in March, and immediately struck a chord with audiences unfamiliar with the plight of Seneca Village.

The People Before the Park is a fascinating play about the original melting pot of Manhattan,” said John J. Wooten, who helms the production. “After seeing the play, a patron’s visit to Central Park should be significantly more intriguing.”

keithphotoPlaywright Keith Josef Adkins is the co-founder of The New Black Fest, a theater organization dedicated to new and provocative playwriting, music and discussion from the African Diaspora. His plays include Pitbulls, which received its world premiere at Rattlestick Theater in New York, and Safe House, which received its world premiere at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and was produced at Repertory Theatre of St. Louis earlier this year. His works have also been produced and/or developed at the Public Theater, LaMaMa, Lark Play Development Center, Epic Theatre Ensemble, New York Theater Workshop, Alliance Theater, Hansberry Project, and the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, among others.

Producing artistic director John J. Wooten has developed, directed and produced numerous new plays at Premiere Stages, including The Beautiful Dark, The Good Counselor and Follow Me to Nellie’s, all of which were honored by the American Theatre Critics Association and were subsequently produced.

BillyEugeneJonesPremiere’s stellar cast includes W. TrĂ© Davis, recently seen Off-Broadway in Hamlet (The Public), Zooman And The Sign (Signature Theatre Co.), and Airborne (EST); Bridget Gabbe, seen on television in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix), The Following (FOX), and Blue Bloods (CBS); Billy Eugene Jones (right), who has appeared in the Broadway productions of The Trip to Bountiful, The Big Knife, The Mountaintop, Passing Strange, Radio Golf, Gem of the Ocean, and A Raisin in the Sun; Shane Taylor, whose distinguished regional credits include the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, and Luna Stage in West Orange; Andy Truschinski, recently seen in the Broadway production of The Heidi Chronicles and the National Tour of War Horse; and Michelle Wilson, who was in Follow Me to Nellie’s at Premiere Stages, and whose New York credits include A Raisin in the Sun (Broadway) and Detroit '67 (Public Theater/Classical Theatre of Harlem).

In conjunction with Premiere’s 2015 Talk-Back Series, the theatre will offer several free post-show discussions for audience members after select matinee performances. Current guest speakers include playwright Keith Josef Adkins (Sunday, September 6 at 3:00 pm), and Jim Picinich, docent for The New-York Historical Society (Saturday, September 19 at 3:00 pm).

Tickets are also available for Premiere Stages’ exclusive The People Before the Park Opening Night Party on Friday, September 4th. This event features a pre-show party with wine and hors d’ oeuvres at the four-star farm-to-table restaurant Ursino, admission to the performance, and a post-show champagne toast and dessert reception with the cast. Tickets for this exclusive event are just $55.00, and may be purchased by calling 908-737-7469.

Premiere Stages offers affordable prices, air-conditioned facilities, and free parking close to the theatre.

All Premiere Stages facilities are fully accessible spaces, and companion seating is available for patrons with disabilities. Assistive listening devices and large print programs are available at all times; publications in alternate formats are available with advanced notice. Please call 908-737-4092 for a list of sign-interpreted, audio-described or open-captioned performances. For more information, please visit Premiere Stages online at www.kean.edu/premierestages

Premiere Stages is made possible in part through funding from The New Jersey State Council on the Arts, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, The Northfield Bank Foundation, The New Jersey Historical Commission, The Provident Bank Foundation, Union County HEART Grants, The Hyde and Watson Foundation, The Union Foundation, E.J. Grassmann Trust, The New Jersey Theatre Alliance, and through the generous support of individual patrons. Discover Jersey Arts is our marketing partner. Visit www.JerseyArts.com for more information about other arts programming happening around the Garden State.

KEYBOARD WIZARD TO APPEAR @ THE MINSTREL

Bob Malone

Keyboard Wizard: Bob Malone

WHEN: Friday, September 4, 8:00 pm 
WHERE:  Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Heights Rd, Morristown. 
TICKETS: $9.00 per person at the door. Children 12 and under are free.  For further information, call 973-335-9489 or visit www.folkproject.orgFor samples of both Bob’s and Mike's music, please visit the Folk Project website.

Opening act will be singer/songwriter Mike Miz.

The performance is part of The Minstrel Acoustic Concert Series, sponsored by The Folk Project each Friday evening at the Fellowship. 

Los Angeles based Bob Malone plays keyboards with rock legend John Fogerty, and continues a long running, successful solo career.  His sound is a one-of-a-kind hybrid of rock, blues and New Orleans R&B, delivered with high-energy piano virtuosity and a voice all his own.  In addition to his Fogerty band duties, he plays over 100 solo shows a year across the globe, and has played with or opened for Bruce Springsteen, Rickie Lee Jones, The Neville Brothers, Rev. Al Green, Dr. John and many others.

His own music is heard regularly on Dr. Phil, Entertainment Tonight, and the Rachael Ray show.  Bob Malone's six CDs have earned Top-20 spots on The Living Blues Roots Music Report and Earshot radio charts, and are played on stations worldwide, including Sirius/XM's Bluesville, and NPR favorites Car Talk, Acoustic Cafe, and Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour.  His newest Mojo EP was released  in the UK to rave reviews in the summer of 2014, and the Mojo Deluxe album was released worldwide in early 2015.

Opening act will be Rock-Americana artist Mike Miz.  From northeast Pennsylvania, Mike is known as a skillful and well rounded master of both acoustic and electric guitar.  His sound is directly impacted by the coal mining region of Pennsylvania and the songs evoke the rustic tones and imagery you would expect from the region and its cultural heritage.

The Folk Project is a non-profit 501(c)(3) Corporation whose mission is to present high caliber folk music performances and instructional workshops for the public and members; to encourage development of musicianship and performance skills in the northern New Jersey area; and to provide interesting social and learning activities relating to traditional and participatory folk music and dance.

Funding has been made possible in part by funds from Morris Arts through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

“MERCHANT OF VENICE” IN BASKING RIDGE & WESTFIELD

Trilogy Repertory Company will present Shakespeare’s

IMG_0004Merchant of Venice

WHEN: 8 pm on Thursday, August 27, Friday, August 28, and Saturday, August 29 in partnership with Westfield’s Troupe of Friends theater company. 
WHERE: amphitheater in Pleasant Valley Park on Valley Road in Basking Ridge
ADMISSION: The production is free to the public, but donations are gratefully accepted.  Bring a blanket or lawn chair, and come early with a picnic supper, if you like, to the amphitheater in Pleasant Valley Park on Valley Road in Basking Ridge. 

WHEN: Thursday, September 3, Friday, September 4, and Saturday, September 5 at 8 pm.
WHERE:
Mindowaskin Park in Westfield

This production of Merchant of Venice will be set in a more contemporary period than usual, and several of the actors are undertaking multiple roles, appearing as different characters in different performances.  Come for an evening of theater under the stars and enjoy this classic tale of love, hate, and justice. (Above: Juliet Hommes of Branchburg and Paul Bettys of Parsippany rehearse for the Trilogy/Troupe of Friends production of Merchant of Venice)

The production is directed by Joseph Penczak of Westfield and produced by Hank Barre of Basking Ridge.  The cast will feature Juliet Hommes of Branchburg, Kelly Maizenaski of Middlesex, Peter Curley of Maplewood, Paul Bettys of Parsippany , Ken Bigelow of Cranford , Lee Grabelsky of Cranbury, Eric Russell of Basking Ridge and  Sean Marner,  Michael Bieber and Joe Penczak   of Westfield.  All of these performers have appeared on the Pleasant Valley stage in previous productions.  Newcomers to the ensemble include Meghan Coates of Hampton, Bill Powers of Clifton, Claudio Venancio  of Rahway, Megan Tobias of Linden, Amie Quivey of Convent Station, Paul Arfanis of Westfield, and Chloe Yu of Basking Ridge. 

GUEST REVIEWER: “NOBODY’S GIRL” PROVOCATIVE NEW DRAMA @ NJ REP IN LONG BRANCH

nobodysgirlReviewed by Michael T. Mooney
www.njspotlight.net
Saturday, August 22, 2015 at 8 PM

The 'girl' in the title of Rick Viede's new play currently onstage at NJ Rep is Currah, a young Muslim who claims horrific abuse at the hands of her father in an Iranian cellar. Her world also includes Ant, a scheming social worker, Ronnie Lowe, a slick literary agent, and Tyrelle, Ronnie’s campy gay assistant. When Currah’s controversial memoir (also titled Nobody’s Girl) hits the bestseller list and vaults her to mega-stardom, the power struggle between the foursome twists and turns as they ruthlessly play the fame game—for keeps.

Viede's play is actually a revised version of one he wrote in his native Australia. Now a New Yorker, the play has been re-tooled, re-titled, and re-thought for American audiences. An award-winning young writer and performer, Viede takes on the monstrous topic of fame—questioning who we choose to put on a pedestal in our Kardashian-crowded world. To wield his dramatic sword, he utilizes the recent phenomenon of the 'misery memoir'—biographical tomes so horribly bleak that we question their authenticity as well as the veracity of their authors.

Luckily, in Nobody's Girl, precious few bother to question Currah's tale of abuse and redemption. We soon learn that the social worker has aspirations to be a famous writer—at any cost—and NJ Rep audiences quickly put the puzzle pieces together (even if Currah's adoring public doesn't). Complicating matters, Viede has Currah claim she actually enjoyed being sexually abused, making it difficult to imagine a world where Nobody's Girl (Currah's biographical tome and perhaps the play itself) might earn favor with the public. Viede chooses razor-sharp wit to put forth his themes (at least in Act One), and it is his first-rate cast that help him achieve his vision.

judith hawking Nobody's Girl is vaguely reminiscent of the work of playwright Douglas Carter Beane, especially his 1997 pop culture satire As Bees In Honey Drown. Beane's most recent exercise in quip-filled satire was Shows for Days at Lincoln Center Theater. Lincoln Center had Patti LuPone—NJ Rep has Judith Hawking (right). Hawking plays fast-talking Ronnie Lowe, who eagerly (one might say greedily) helps Currah transform from wide-eyed waif to media darling. Physically and vocally, however, Hawking's take-no-prisoners style owes more to Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada than Ms. LuPone.

Greg Haney Teamed with Gregory Haney's Tyrelle (a self-hating homosexual fashionista, right), they deliver Viede's dishy dialogue with the split second timing of a gold-plated Rolex.

Jacob A. Ware's Anthony (or Ant, as he constantly insists on being called), is a mass of nervous tics about his behind-the-scenes role in the plan. Viede's skillful writing allows Anthony / Ant to put forth the most despicable deception imaginable, yet remain a charming loser at the same time.

Layla Khoshnoudi As Currah, Layla Khoshnoudi (right) grows from a scrappy climber to a manipulative schemer who allows fame and fortune to go to her pretty (but empty) head. Khoshnoudi more than capably holds her own against powerhouse Hawking, especially in the play's grimmer second half, where the fame game escalates to life-or-death mode.

The show is billed as “a provocative new play for American audiences.” Perhaps the description refers to the play's earlier origins down under, or perhaps it is a sly condemnation of our national fascination with the sordid stories that fill our media. Either way, Nobody's Girl certainly lives up to its claim of being provocative.

Nobody's Girl plays through September 20th at New Jersey Repertory Company, 179 Broadway, Long Branch, New Jersey. For tickets call 732.229.3166 or visit www.njrep.org

Thanks to Rick Busciglio for sharing this review.