Western Mass Theatre News October 3, 2024

Your source for theatre events in Western Massachusetts.

Western Mass Theatre Newsletter View this email in your browser October 3 - 23, 2024 If you are a Western Mass playwright, there is one thing I recommend you do this month: submit your script for consideration to Play Incubation Collective for the 2025 Plays in Progress or Development Workshops! There is more detail in the opportunities section below, but this is fantastic way to get some energy and support behind your script development process. Submit by October 18! The next issue will include events from October 10-30. Submit upcoming events via the link below or by emailing me before Tuesday at midnight. Any questions, comments or feedback? Email me at westernmasstheatre@gmail.com Submit Your Theatre Event Exit 7 Players present Next to Normal  September 27 – October 13 at 37 Chestnut St., Ludlow  Tickets and More Information    Westfield Theatre Group presents Birthday Candles by Noah Haidle  October 18, 19, 25, 26 at the Westfield Woman's Club Tickets and More Information TheaterPlay - Spolin Improvisation Workshop Oct 10-Dec 12 at Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity, Florence More Information & Registration WAM Theatre and Central Square Theater present Galileo’s Daughter October 18-November 3 at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox Tickets and More Informatio YOUR EVENT HERE $5 per week for your poster and ticket link in top billing! Email me to reserve your dates. Click to Access: Western Mass Theatre Personnel Spreadsheet PERFORMANCES Exit 7 Players Announce Fall Production of Next to Normal  October 3 – October 13, 2024 Friday & Saturday Performances at 8pm Sunday Performances at 2pm Thursday 10/5 Performance at 8pm  Exit 7 Players Theater, 37 Chestnut St., Ludlow  More info: (413) 583-4301 or at www.exit7players.org  The Exit 7 Players are pleased to announce its fall production of Next to Normal, taking place on the Paul R. Hamel Stage at 37 Chestnut Street, Ludlow, MA.  Next to Normal is the story of Diana Goodman and her family. Traumatized by the death of her infant son, Diana has lived with bipolar depressive disorder and delusional episodes for the past several years. The illness has affected everyone in her life, and has nearly torn her family apart on several occasions. Next to Normal, with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, explores how one suburban household copes with crisis and mental illness. Winner of three 2009 Tony Awards, including Best Musical Score and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize, Next to Normal was also chosen as "one of the year's ten best shows" by critics around the country. Next to Normal takes audiences into the minds and hearts of each character, presenting their family's story with love, sympathy and heart, while exploring pressing contemporary issues of trauma, loss, mental health treatment, and the meaning of family.  This production is intended for audiences aged 13 and up, and contains themes and depictions of mental illness, profanity, discussions of self-harm and the loss of a family member.  For this production we are partnering with Empty Arms Bereavement, a nonprofit helping parents who have experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth, termination for medical reasons, or infant loss. emptyarmsbereavement.org  Due to a town event, parking for our October 6 show may be limited. Please plan on arriving early.  For more information contact the Exit 7 Players at 413.583.4301 or admin@exit7players.org. Tickets can be purchased directly from our website. exit7players.org https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/exit-7-players/6644b8a7bfdeb50b25b86081 Intended for audiences 13+ Themes/depictions of mental illness, profanity, self-harm, loss of a family member Strobe lighting will be used in the performance MAJESTIC THEATER ANNOUNCES LINEUP FOR 27th SEASON West Springfield’s Majestic Theater has announced the lineup for its 27th season.  Producing Director Danny Eaton will present a five-play season that incorporates a mix of classic and original works featuring music, comedy and drama. First up is Shear Madness (September 5 – October 20) by Paul Portner.  Shear Madness has been acknowledged by the Guinness Book of World records as the longest running non-musical play in American theater history. It ran for over 40 years in Boston.  It’s a day like any other in the local Shear Madness Salon until suddenly the lady who lives upstairs gets knocked off.  In this “Whodunit” farce, the Majestic audience will have to match wits with the suspects to catch a killer in this record breaking and interactive solve-the-crime comedy. Shear Madness will be directed by Bob Lohrmann.  Producing director is Danny Eaton, and Sue Dziura is Associate producing director.  Production stage manager is Stephen Petit, Aurora Ferraro is Associate production manager, Dan Rist is set and lighting designer, and Dawn McKay is costume designer.  Cast members include Benita Zahn (Mrs. Shubert), Jeff Haffner (Nick), Jack Grigoli (Eddie), Elizabeth Pietrangelo (Barbara), Steve Sands (Tony) and Michael DeVito Mikey). Subscriptions to the five-play series will be accepted through October 20, but single tickets are now being sold to all five plays.  Prices for single tickets for the plays range from $35 to $38. Doors to the theater will open one hour before the start of a show, which is also when the café opens.  For more information, visit www.majestictheater.com Shakespeare & Company presents the World Premiere of Awni Abdi-Bahri’s Three Tall Persian Women, directed by Dalia Ashurina and staged at the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre through October 13. This comedic play is about generational differences, grief, control, and learning to let go; but more than anything, it’s a love story to immigrant mothers. Golnar, a punkish Iranian-American millennial, returns home to her mother Nasrin for the anniversary of her father’s passing and walks into hoards of family memorabilia that her grandmother Mamani has moved in with her. Originally staged at Shakespeare & Company in 2023 as a reading in the Plays in Process series, Ashurina said that the play explores how and why societies police women’s bodily autonomy. “We see how the women in this play are restrained by societal expectations, even in the safety of their own home," she said, "and how being honest instead of staying ‘peaceful’ can help each generation learn valuable lessons from one another.” Tickets range from $22 to $72; for more information or to purchase tickets, visit shakespeare.org, or call the Box Office at (413) 637-3353.   About Shakespeare & Company Shakespeare & Company was founded in 1978 by Tina Packer. Located in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, the Company offers performance, education, and actor-training opportunities year-round, and attracts more than 40,000 patrons annually with a core of more than 150 artists. JH Theater Matters Frances Perkins: A Woman's Work October 4 at  2:00 PM Greenfield Public Library October 8 at 5:30 PM Pelham Public Library  Living History performance about Frances Perkins, first woman Secretary of Labor and author of the New Deal. In her 12 years (1933-1945) Perkins helped orchestrate the revival from the Depression and WWII; she authored the Social Security Act, advocated for child labor laws, minimum wage, and more. Free Play Incubation Collective present PIC PIPS (Plays In Progress Series) at the Workroom (33 Hawley St, Northampton) ​ Mother by Fig Lefevre​ ​October 6, 7:30-10pm  Mama is nearing death and she has finally decided what she wants her daughters to do with her body when she passes: eat it. What unfolds is a story of womanhood, motherhood, and connection to ancestors, told in dreamscapes and dough, bread and song. ​ Featuring Candace Barrett Birk, Emily Bloch, Cordelia Dwyer, Adriana Piantedosi, and Richie Wills. With dramaturgy and stage directions by Ezekiel Baskin. Cast coordination by Madison VanDeurzen. Please use the downstairs doors, nearest to the courtyard. Outside doors will be open at 7:15 and will be locked at 7:45 so please arrive promptly. Valley Players Constellations 10/11 @ 7pm, 10/12 @ 7pm, 10/13 @ 2pm, 10/18 @ 7pm, 10/19 @ 7pm, 10/20 @2pm Munson Memorial Library (1046 South East Street, Amherst) The Valley Players’ present Constellations, Nick Payne’s play about fate, free will, love, multiverse theory, and honey. Constellations runs October 11–20, Fridays and Saturdays at 7pm and Sundays at 2pm, at the Munson Memorial Library, 1046 South East Street, in Amherst. The play runs 1 hour and 15 minutes. Tickets are on a pay-what-you-can system and half of net ticket proceeds will be donated to Cancer Connection of Northampton https://valleyplayers.org/#auditions-tickets Constellations begins when Marianne, a theoretical physicist, and Roland, a beekeeper, first meet at a barbecue. The action then splinters into multiple lines of action that explore the different possibilities of their relationship, touching on fidelity, infidelity, marriage, cancer, ballroom dancing, quantum mechanics, beekeeping, and more. Branching across timelines, through humor and through tears, Constellations asks questions about choice and chance, love and death, and how the bond between two people can change with the change of just a single word or decision. Though the play is written for two characters, to explore its concept of a multiverse, the Valley Players production features a cast of eight local actors: Lindsey Campbell (Belchertown), Cici Drzik (Greenfield), Maddie Evans (Holden), Cory Flood (Orange), Sam Fox (Greenfield), Benjamin Hersey (Easthampton), Jim Merlin (South Deerfield), and Terrance J. Peters (Windsor, CT). The production is directed by Matteo Pangallo (Shutesbury), with assistant direction/stage management by Anna Morrissey (Northampton), lighting advising by Kate Cell (Shutesbury), costume design by Cheryl Hayden (Shutesbury), and set advising by Miles Herter (Amherst). The production is funded in part by a Projects & Festivals grant from the Mass Cultural Council. The mission of the Valley Players is to enrich the quality of life in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts by producing nimble, meaningful, and accessible community theater. The Valley Players is an entirely volunteer-run 501(c)3 nonprofit that relies on the contributions of donors and business sponsors. All contributions are tax-deductible and go fully and only to support the organization’s mission and programming. Anyone who wants to donate or become a business sponsor, join the Valley Players contact list, or find more information about the group, can visit www.valleyplayers.org. K and E Theater Group Presents Promises, Promises at  Northampton Center for the Arts, October 11-13 & 17-19, 2024 K and E Theater Group is thrilled to announce its upcoming production of the beloved musical Promises, Promises, set to light up the stage, October 11-13 and 17-19, 2024. Audiences are invited to experience the wit, charm, and unforgettable music of this classic show, which promises to be a highlight of the theater season.   Based on Billy Wilder's acclaimed film The Apartment, Promises, Promises features a book by Neil Simon, music by Burt Bacharach, and lyrics by Hal David. The show first dazzled Broadway in 1968, earning critical acclaim and multiple Tony Awards, with a celebrated revival in 2010 starring Tony Award Winners Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth. Now, K and E Theater Group is bringing this timeless story of ambition, romance, and the complexities of office life to local audiences with a fresh and dynamic production. Promises, Promises follows Chuck Baxter, a charming but lonely employee at a large insurance company who lends his apartment to his superiors for their extramarital affairs in hopes of climbing the corporate ladder. The show’s score includes unforgettable hits like “Say A Little Prayer,” “A House is Not a Home,” “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again”, and the title song “Promises, Promises.” K and E Theater Group's production of Promises, Promises is led by Casey Dion as Chuck Baxter and Shealyn Berube as Fran Kubelik, and features Joshua Aaron Mason as J.D. Sheldrake, Myka Plunkett as Marge MacDougall/Mrs. Sheldrake, Gene Choquette as Dr. Dreyfuss, Aileen Merino Terzi as Miss Olson/Sylvia, Renee Bouldin as Mrs. Wong, Sadie Kennedy as Miss Della Hoya, Amanda Urquhart Tilghman as Miss Polanski, Henry DiNapoli as Mr. Kirkeby, Andre Ruiz as Mr. Eichelberger, Chris Webber as Mr. Dobitch, and David Webber as Mr. Vanderhof/ Karl. Choreography and Direction by Eddie Zitka, with musical direction by Elizabeth Monte.    Performances are: Friday, October 11, 2024 at 8:00 PM Saturday, October 12, 2024 at 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM Sunday, October 13, 2024 at 4:00 PM Thursday, October 17, 2024 at 8:00 PM Friday, October 18, 2024 at 8:00 PM Saturday, October 19, 2024 at 2:00 PM The closing performance is scheduled for Saturday, October 19, 2024 at 8:00 PM.   All performances are at Northampton Center for the Arts, located at 33 Hawley Street in Northampton, Massachusetts. Tickets are $27 and general admission.   This production contains adult themes, depictions of substance use, and attempted suicide. Stage effects include bright moving lights.   Tickets are now available, and full performance details for Promises, Promises can be found at www.KETG.org. CitySpace Pay It Forward Series: Phoenix in the Holy Land October 12 at 7:00 PM October 13 at 2:00 PM 43 Main Street, Easthampton, MA 01027 “Phoenix in the Holy Land” is a play birthed in the crucible of the current nakba in Palestine the incident that spurred the PeaceBirds project. In November of 2023, we launched the socially-engaged project as artists in residence at Goddard College. Then developed into a one-act play, with the support of the Playwrights Circle of the LAVA Center in Greenfield. Several more poets are featured in the play, as well as the story of one town’s struggle to pass a ceasefire resolution.  Showtimes: Saturday, October 12 at 7pm  Sunday, October 13 at 2pm  Tickets: $15-$20 in advance  JuPong Lin makes socially-engaged art, poetry, and ceremony to honor our Beloved Earth and all her critters. Ghosts of Taiwan, her born-place, haunt her with ancestral cries to end colonialism and repair our relationships with our homelands. JuPong lives in Nipmuc/Nonotuck/Pocumtuc Land, known by its colonial name of Amherst, Massachusetts, and writes poetry with the Writing the Land project. She works for food and land justice with the Hampshire County Food Policy Council and the Land Justice Affinity Group. JuPong was a faculty member of the MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts program at Goddard College for close to 20 years. “Phoenix in the Holy Land” is JuPong’s first play. https://www.cityspaceeasthampton.org/all-events/#/events JaDuke Theater The Play That Goes Wrong 10/12 at 7:00 PM, 10/13 2pm, 10/18 7pm, 10/19 7pm, 10/20 2pm Ja'Duke Performing Arts Center, Industrial Blvd, Turners Falls MA This show is a love letter to community theater, where anything... or everything... can go wrong. But the show must go on. https://eventtickets2u.com/jaduke-theater/the-play-that-goes-wrong Westfield Theatre Group presents  Birthday Candles by Noah Haidle  Directed by Tom LeCourt  October 18, 19, 25, 26 at 7:30pm  October 19, 26 at 2:00pm  Westfield Woman's Club, 28 Court St, Westfield, MA 01085 Tickets available at westfieldtheatregroup.com Ernestine Ashworth spends her 17th birthday agonizing over her insignificance in the universe. Soon enough, it's her 18th birthday, and even sooner, her 41st. Her 70th. Her 101st. Five generations, 103 goldfish, an infinity of dreams, and one cake baked over a century. In just 90 minutes, this poignant, touching, and funny play will take you through 90 years of Ernestine's birthdays, celebrating the ups, downs, loves, laughs, losses, highlights, heartbreaks, and extraordinary moments that make up one woman's ordinary life. https://www.westfieldtheatregroup.com/order-tickets Galileo’s Daughter A co-production of WAM Theatre and Central Square Theater Written by Jessica Dickey Directed by Reena Dutt at the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre Shakespeare & Company,  70 Kemble St, Lenox, MA     Previews: Friday, October 18 and Saturday, October 19 at 7pm Opening/Press Night: Sunday October 20, at 2pm Berkshire Closing: Sunday November 3 at 2pm Tickets: $25 - $100: Friend: $25 Standard: $55 Supporter: $100 Central Square Theatre: November 14 - December 8, 2024 Rattled by a personal crisis, a playwright flees to Florence to study the letters between Galileo and his eldest daughter Maria Celeste. Caught up in the threats against her father, Maria must abandon her work and join a convent. The writer’s discovery of Maria’s strength and tenacity inspires her own pursuit of purpose. Alternating between past and present, this play is a personal examination of faith, forgiveness, and the cost of seeking and speaking truth. The Chicago Reader called it “a smart and poignant” story. For more information about the 2024 Season and WAM Theatre’s programs, events, and artists, please visit www.WAMTheatre.com. Life is Full of Drama: Storytelling Theater Workshop Performance Friday, Oct. 19, 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26, 7 p.m. The LAVA Center, 324 Main St., Greenfield The LAVA Center is very excited to present a transformative theater and storytelling workshop group performance led by Brazilian actor and director Alex DeMelo. These two performances are the culmination of a six-week theater workshop led by DeMelo over the past two months. In this workshop, DeMelo has led participants through a process of story sharing, personal growth and community building. The result is a tight-knit and caring theater group. The workshop will culminate in these two public performances on Saturday, Oct. 19, 7 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 26, 7 p.m. Centered around the theme of Halloween, workshop participants will deliver a raw and emotional performance that showcases their work and personal growth throughout the workshop. It promises to be an exciting and emotional event. Admission is on a sliding scale, based on a pay what you can amount. This programming is made possible in part by grants from Mass Humanities, with funding from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and from the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice. The LAVA Center strives to make its programming and events accessible to the widest possible range of community members. AUDITIONS & OPPORTUNITIES Submissions now Open for 2025 PIC PIPS and Development Workshops In 2025, PIC will host 4-6 PIC PIPS and 2 Development Workshops at the Workroom (33 Hawley St, Northampton). PIC is seeking a wide selection of plays and musicals representing diversity amongst the writers (age, race, gender, location, experience, etc) and diversity in terms of writing genre and approach to storytelling for these programs. We are specifically looking for plays with the potential to spark community conversation.   What is PIC PIPS? PIPS stands for Plays In Progress Series. These are readings of new work in front of an audience. PIC casts full length plays from our roster of artists who come together on the day of the presentation for a live reading of the script in front of an audience. The playwright and an assigned dramaturg work together to develop questions to share with audience after the reading, and in this way the audience serves as a sounding board for further development of the piece. This is reserved for scripts in a variety of developmental stages. What is the Development Workshop? Development Workshop is intended for pieces that have a first full draft and could use an intensive period of writing and hearing the work out loud with actors. This opportunity provides developmental worksessions with actors and other support artists over the course of a number of consecutive days, culminating in a reading and developmental discussion with an audience. From today through October 18th, PIC is accepting submissions of full-length scripts-in-progress by local playwrights. Priority will be given to playwrights based in Hampshire, Hamden, and Franklin counties, but playwrights also based in Worcester, Berkshires, Northern CT, and Southern VT may apply. Submission Form Due By October 18th, 2024 Click to learn more about eligibility and to submit. Easthampton Theater Company Nov 12 and 13 at 6:00 PM AUDITIONS! Easthampton Theater Company is excited to announce auditions for the first production of our 2025 season, the classic Tony and Drama Desk award-winning play On Golden Pond.  More information, character descriptions, audition requirements, appointment link and audition form are located at this link: https://forms.gle/w2hWCKvgaTQ9pfm3A  Directed by Jason Rose-Langston Produced by Michael O. Budnick  We are seeking six talented and dedicated actors - three portraying adult males, two playing adult females and one playing a teen boy, for the roles of Norman, Ethel, Chelsea, Bill, Billy Ray, and Charlie. All roles are open; no roles are precast.  Synopsis: Norman and Ethel Thayer return for another Summer together at their beloved family lake house on Golden Pond. It’s an idyllic New England paradise where the loons sing good morning and Charlie the mailman delivers the mail by boat. Norman, turning 80, is convinced it will be his last time at the lake. During the course of the summer, the couple are visited by their adult daughter, Chelsea, her new fiancé, Bill, and his 13-year-old son, Billy Ray. This warm-hearted story is a meditation on aging and the long-term family wounds that drive us away from each other, but also can bring us together. Themes include facing the ravages of time, bridging the generational divides, and finding connection in the most unlikely places. Ultimately, the play shows us how we confront and accept each other with wit, humor, and above all, love.  Performance dates: Weekends of March 14th and 21st, in Easthampton, MA Tech Week (mandatory) starts March 9th. Rehearsals start: December 15th, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings and Sunday afternoons, with a break for the Holidays.  More information, character descriptions, audition requirements appointment link and audition form are located at this link: https://forms.gle/w2hWCKvgaTQ9pfm3A Auditions are by appointment only in the evening of November 12th or 13th with sign up information provided at the above link. Callbacks (if required) will be on November 20th in Easthampton.  Easthampton Theater Company is a production group created by Easthampton and nearby residents to bring quality community and regional theater productions to Easthampton and the Pioneer Valley. Its founding board and members are dedicated to establishing community-based live theater productions in Easthampton as a premier venue and destination for the region. Our recent productions include God of Carnage, Harvey Fierstein's Torch Song and The Man Who Came to Dinner. Our performance venues include Williston Theater and CitySpace in Easthampton. We can be found on the web at easthamptontheater.com  Easthampton Theater Company seeks volunteers! No community-based theater exists without the much appreciated work of theater lovers who are willing to provide their time and expertise. If you are interested in any aspect of theater production for On Golden Pond or future productions, such as tech, set design or building, ushering, marketing, or board membership, and you have time and skills to offer, please contact us at info@easthamptontheater.com https://forms.gle/w2hWCKvgaTQ9pfm3A WORKSHOPS & CLASSES Phantom Sheep Players Game On! Improv Workshops 10/7, 10/14, 11/11, 11/18 Unity House Players, 245 Porter Lake Dr, Springfield, MA Focusing on short form theater games with a different theme each week such as "storytelling", "guessing", "gibberish", "character swaps" and more. This is an all levels program perfect for those who are brand new to improv, as well as those experienced who want to develop their stage technique. Each person is challenged at their own pace. Facebook event $22 per week drop in rate. Bonus Halloween Themed Open Jam Oct. 28th! TheaterPlay Spolin Improvisation Workshop Oct 10, 17, 24, 31; Nov 7, 14, 21; Dec 12 6:30 PM Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity, 130 Pine St. Florence, MA 01062 An 8-week workshop exploring Viola Spolin’s improvisational theater games with Steve Eldredge. https://TheaterPlaySpolin.eventbrite.com Viola Spolin's theater games are a form of actor training, but they’re also several other things:  * An intuitive learning system Spolin spent decades developing (first with children, then with adults) which only later evolved into “comedy improv” as it’s now known. While the workshop is filled with laughter, it is not focused on any individual “being funny”.  * A series of learning experiences guiding students to release fears and inhibitions and enter into playful engagement with each other, their five senses, and their environment. From this collaborative world, any imaginative journey can be shared with an audience.  * A foundation from which students can pursue either further improvisational training or a lively approach to script reading and scene work. Steve will be offering both kinds of training as follow-ups to this workshop. Submit your workshop, class, audition, performance, or any other theatre opportunity here! Western Massachusetts Theatre Companies Academy of Music Theatre Amherst Community Theater Arena Civic Theatre A.C.T. Youth Theatre Barrington Stage Company Berkshire Theatre Group Chester Theatre Company CitySpace Completely Ridiculous Productions Drama Studio Double Edge Theatre Easthampton Theater Company Eggtooth Productions Exit 7 Players Ghost Light Theater Great Barrington Public Theater Greenfield Community College's Theater Department Hampshire Shakespeare Company Happier Valley Comedy Hawks and Reed Performing Arts Center Human Agenda Theater Ja'Duke Center for the Performing Arts K and E Theater Group Ko Theater Works/Ko Festival of Performance Majestic Theater Mount Holyoke College Rooke Theatre No Theater Northampton Community Arts Trust Northampton Playwrights Lab PaintBox Theatre Panopera Pauline Productions Performance Project Phantom Sheep Players Play Incubation Collective Plays In Place Real Live Theatre Serious Play Theatre Ensemble Shakespeare & Company  Shakespeare Stage Shea Theater Arts Center Silverthorne Theater Smith College Department of Theatre South Hadley Players Spindrift Theatre St. Michael's Players Starlight's Youth Theatre, Inc. Theater Between Addresses Theatre Guild of Hampden TheatreTruck UMass Department of Theater UMass Theatre Guild Unity House Players Valley Light Opera Valley Players WAM Theatre Ware Community Theatre Westfield Theatre Group Wilbraham United Players Williamstown Theatre Festival World and Eye Want to know even more about events in Western Massachusetts and beyond, including reviews, interviews, and previews? In the Spotlight, Inc. Berkshire on Stage Stagestruck ArtsBeat TV/Radio and News Column Local Theater Critic Max Hartshorne Copyright © 2024 Western Mass Theatre, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up to receive the Western Mass Theatre Newsletter. This newsletter is published weekly on Thursdays and all information about upcoming performances and auditions is reader submitted. The newsletter is limited to information about theatre in Western Massachusetts. unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences