Western Mass Theatre News July 31, 2025

Your source for theatre events in Western Massachusetts.

Western Mass Theatre Newsletter View this email in your browser July 31 - August 20, 2025 This week:  don't miss Torch Song at 33 Hawley, or the Piano Lesson at Shakespeare & Company, or A Case for the Existence of God at Chester!  The next issue will include events from August 7 - 27. 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 Torch Song July 25-August 3 at Northampton Center for the Arts Tickets and More Information 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 Sliding-scale tickets now available for Harvey Fierstein's TORCH SONG at the Northampton Center for the Arts, July 25-August 3rd. Produced by an independent collective of mostly queer + trans artists, Torch Song is a hilarious, heartwarming and at times heartbreaking story that follows the journey of Arnold Beckoff, a New York City drag queen, as he navigates love, identity, and the meaning of family. An unexpected visit from his overbearing mother throws things in to disarray, forcing Arnold, and the audience, to consider the nuances of chosen and biological family, and what it looks like to heal— hilariously!  Please reach out to torchsongrevival@gmail.com with any questions or access needs. Hope to see you at the show!  LOCATION: Northampton Center for the Arts at 33 Hawley; Flex Space TICKET INFORMATION: Sliding scale tickets with a free option. 15-20% of proceeds from the show will be donated to groups supporting LGBTQ+ communities. Tickets are available now, or click on the date you want below!  DATES AND TIMES Thursday July 31 @8pm Friday August 1 @8pm Saturday August 2  @2pm (matinee) Saturday August 2 @8pm Sunday August 3 @2pm (matinee) Website Instagram Shakespeare & Company August Wilson's The Piano Lesson through August 24 70 Kemble St, Lenox MA 01240 Set against the backdrop of 1936 Pittsburgh during the Great Depression, August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning The Piano Lesson explores the lives of the Charles family, and vividly portrays an enduring conflict between siblings.  The family piano at the heart of the argument is an heirloom intricately carved by an enslaved ancestor. Determined sharecropper Boy Willie is eager to sell the piano to purchase land on which his ancestors endured hardship, while his sister Berniece fiercely maintains that the piano is where their heritage lies.  A testament to the complexities of family, history, and legacy, 2025 Elliot Norton Award-winning The Piano Lesson is an explosive and incisive inquiry into the struggle between what we owe to our past and how we build our future. Tickets and more information A Case for the Existence of God By Samuel D. Hunter Directed by Daniel Elihu Kramer Through August 3  Somewhere in the middle of America, Keith, a mortgage broker, and Ryan, a yogurt plant worker, unexpectedly let each other into their own fragile worlds. Negotiations of bank loans transform into talk of financial insecurity and the precariousness of parenthood, as the two realize they share a “specific kind of sadness.” With humor, honesty and time-bending theatricality, Hunter intertwines the lives of two ordinary men, both outsiders to the forces that govern their lives. Tickets available here. A new monthly queer open mic night, Smack Dab, to begin at The LAVA Center in August WHAT: Smack Dab Queer Open Mic WHEN: First Friday of the month starting August 1; September it will be held on Thursday, July 18; sign-up at 6:30 p.m. and performances start at 7 p..m WHERE: The LAVA Center, 324 Main St., Greenfield Facebook event The LAVA Center is excited to announce a new monthly queer open mic night, Smack Dab, hosted by Jules and Avery. Smack Dab Queer Open Mic is a free 18+ LGBTQIA community open mic in Greenfield, MA with the slogan “All genders, all the time.” Your hosts are Jules and Avery. Join us every first Friday of the month starting August 1. (September it will be held on Thursday, July 17.) Sign-up at 6:30 p.m. and performances start at 7 p.m. Smack Dab Queer Open Mic is modeled after the now defunct Smack Dab in San Francisco, founded in 2003 by Kirk Read and Larry-bob Roberts at Magnet, the gay men’s health clinic in the Castro. If you’d like to perform at the open mic, please come sign up and bring five to seven minutes of whatever you want to share: stories, poems, a song, dance, your art or, perhaps you’d simply like to join us as audience? We’re the friendliest open mic you’ll find, but we pay attention to time. Questions? Contact Jules and Avery at smackdabqueeropenmic@gmail.com. Springfield Community Theater of MA Annie August 2-3, 1:30 pm 52 Sumner Avenue, Springfield, MA Springfield Community Theater of MA presents its first annual family musical, Annie! This 50 member cast brings outstanding dancing and singing and the message we all need ...that there is always hope. 52summer.com We are always looking for passionate, fun, talented people who love theater and want to see it flourish in Springfield! Bring the family! Experience the joy! eMail: SCTofMA for how you can be a part of our new community! The Understudies: An Improvised Musical Saturday, August 2nd @ 7pm It's the opening night of a brand new musical! Unfortunately, the show was never written or rehearsed. This is the moment we've been training for. Be part of the fun as the determined Understudies create an entire musical from scratch, with a little help from the audience. The Understudies are Scott Braidman, Kelsey Flynn, Paul McNeil, Mosie Senn-McNally, and Maile Shoul. With music by the amazing Jeff Kimball! Special Summer ticket offer for Western Mass Theatre News readers! Enter code "westernmasstheatre" for 50% off your ticket purchase! Offer for online ticket purchases only. Tickets and More Information   Starlight's Youth Theatre Annie Jr. Summer Show Aug 2, 2025 at 11:00 AM South Hadley High School Come and see what over 60 Starlight students can do in just one week! Tickets are available at the door (Cash, card, check, PayPal, or Venmo are accepted). Based on the popular comic strip and adapted from the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Annie Jr. features the story of a redheaded orphan who charms New York City with her positivity. Tickets and More Information Flip the Script Saturday, August 9th @7pm We invite a local playwright to bring an unfinished script to the show; an original work that's never seen the stage. Then we read the character descriptions, cast the show, and launch into its first ever performance. Once we run out of lines, we drop the scripts and improvise the rest of the play while the playwright watches in delight (or horror!) Featuring experienced improvisers Mandy Anderson, Maddy Benjamin, Scott Braidman, Moe McElligott, Laura Patrick, Pam Victor, and Kate Zak. Our playwright for August is Christine Benvenuto! Special Summer ticket offer for Western Mass Theatre News readers! Enter code "westernmasstheatre" for 50% off your ticket purchase! Offer for online ticket purchases only. https://www.happiervalley.com/2nd-saturdays.html Join Play Incubation Collective for our second Development Workshop of 2025: The Room Between (a musical) by Frank Newton Synopsis: Synopsis: Life is constantly changing. Every month brings new technology, new leaders, new winners and new losers. Moments of climax and innovation claim most story lines. “The Room Between” is about all the other times that we all share. The times that are not particularly special, but inescapable and universal to all who live life. These times transcend economics, social and racial standards. These moments happen quietly, behind doors, in the rooms between us all. Dramaturgy by Talya Kingston. Program Coordination by Madison VanDeurzen. Featuring Kyle Boatwright, Trevin Bond, Michael Garcia, Ava Godbolt, Rachel F. Hirsch, Jaydin Maldonado, Sunny Nordberg, and Craig Pinder. With stage directions read by Erin Fitzgerald. Tickets are $10, with subsidized tickets available. Registration is now open!  Doors open at 2:30. Shakespeare & Company The Taming of The Shrew August 14, 2025 at 7:00 PM August 24 70 Kemble St, Lenox MA 01240 Step into the world of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, with its timeless themes of identity, gender roles, and the clash of wills. Meet the fiery and fiercely independent Katherine, whose spirited nature meets its match in the cunning Petruchio as they embark on a hilarious and clever exploration of love, power, and transformation.   The Taming of the Shrew offers a compelling – if not at times zany – look at relationships, and social norms, making it a must-see for anyone who loves classic comedy with a bit of bite. Tickets and More Info Additional listings courtesy of the New England New Play Alliance Great Barrington Public Theater presents  The Best Medicine  by Robin Gerber August 1-17 The McConnell Theater  Great Barrington, MA directed by Matthew Penn   Rachel’s a free spirit in a long-term marriage. That ‘in sickness and in health’ vow is a distant memory, but when her husband gets a progressive, incurable disease she’s thrust into the job she’s least suited for: self-sacrificing caregiver. In this hilarious and poignant one-woman play, a stand-up comedy class becomes Rachel’s salvation and a portal to a transforming truth about life and love. Tickets: $10-$30. Barrington Stage Company presents Joan by Daniel Goldstein July 31-Aug. 17 Boyd-Quinston Stage Pittsfield, MA directed by David Ivers Go behind the curtain with the queen of stand-up comedy, Joan Rivers. Daniel Goldstein’s new play imagines the legendary comic reliving her life story in the only way possible: with laughs from beginning to end. Discover the pioneer who conquered a man’s world, the mother of all-time punchlines, and the woman who had it all, lost it all, and did it all. This no-holds-barred look at the life of a true legend makes its regional premiere. Tickets: $35-$55. Williamstown Theatre Festival presents The Gig: After Moise and the World of Reason conceived and directed by Will Davis now-August 3 The Rink North Adams, MA "A distinguished failed writer at thirty has suspended the climax as if it were a sentence that he had the audacity not to complete." This is Tennessee Williams live on an ice rink - a wholly original, site-specific performance about making a plan and leaving the world of reason. Conceived by Director/Choreographer Will Davis (Men on Boats, Colossal) with Ice Choreographer Douglas Webster and featuring special choreography by U. S. Ice Dancing champions and two-time Olympic medalists, Maia & Alex Shibutani. Tickets: $50.   Williamstown Theatre Festival presents Spirit of the People by Jeremy O. Harris now-August 3 MainStage Theatre Williamstown, MA In “one of the most hotly anticipated events in theatre” (GQ), visionary playwright Jeremy O. Harris returns with his first world premiere after his record-breaking Slave Play. Tickets: $35-130. AUDITIONS & OPPORTUNITIES JaDuke Theater Auditions Noises Off 7/31/25 6-9pm Ja'Duke Performing Arts Center, Industrial Blvd, Turners Falls MA Auditions for "Noises Off." Show dates are October 11th, 12th, 18th and 19th. https://www.jadukeshows.com/auditions This is a non-equity show. All roles are available. See a breakdown of roles at the link provided and reserve an audition spot on the 30th or 31st. Please prepare a brief monologue. Genre not important and memorization is not required. You may also be asked to read a side from the show. Rehearsals will be limited to three weeknights per week until we get closer to show dates. Tentatively Tue-Thurs, 6-8:30pm. Please email any questions to nick@whai.com. Valley Players seeks play submissions for Take Ten, a staged reading showcase of new plays celebrating the Valley’s rich and diverse local writing talent. Take Ten will feature five brand new 10-minute plays written by Valley playwrights, chosen by leaders of the Valley theater community, directed by five Valley directors, and featuring a cast of Valley actors. Half of net ticket sales from the staged reading evening in October will be donated to The Literacy Project to support their work serving education and literacy needs across western Massachusetts. Playwrights seeking to submit a play for consideration must live in Franklin, Hampshire, or Hampden County and only one submission per person will be considered. Plays must be no more than 10-12 pages, feature a cast of no more than three actors, and have not been performed, published, or received a public reading.  There is no entry fee and no limitation on the topic, style, or genre of the play. Playwrights whose work is chosen will receive a cash honorarium in addition to the staged reading. Additional rules and instructions are available at www.valleyplayers.org. Submissions must be received by email to info@valleyplayers.org no later than July 31, 2025. The mission of Valley Players is to enrich the quality of life in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts by producing nimble, meaningful, and accessible community theater. Valley Players is a volunteer-run 501(c)3 nonprofit that relies on the contributions of donors and business sponsors. To donate or become a business sponsor, join Valley Players’ contact list, or find more information about the group, visit www.valleyplayers.org. Submissions Open Submission Opportunities for PIC PIPS and Development Workshops for the 2026 season will be opening July 14th. What is PIC PIPS?  PIPS stands for Plays In Progress Series. Plays that have been selected as part of PIPS receive a single developmental worksession with actors and a dramaturg, followed by a public reading of their piece and developmental conversation with the audience. PIC assembles the cast and assigns a dramaturg from our roster of artists. The playwright and a dramaturg work together to develop questions to share with audience after the reading as part of the developmental conversation, and in this way the audience serves as a sounding board for further development of the piece. PIC also provides extensive notes from this conversation so that they playwright can focus on engaging with the audience and hearing the feedback. This program is reserved for scripts in a variety of developmental stages. ​What types of pieces are a good fit for PIC PIPS?   Plays that have a full and complete draft. The draft could be in its first or final draft, or anywhere in between but, regardless of stage, the playwright would benefit from seeing how it sits with an audience. A play written a while ago that would benefit from a new/modern audience. A full draft the playwright has had for awhile and would benefit from hearing it one last time before sending it off into the world for potential production. Submit here. Submissions Open Submission Opportunities for PIC PIPS and Development Workshops for the 2026 season will be opening July 14th. What is the Development Workshop? The Development Workshop is reserved 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 a minimum of 8 hours of developmental work sessions with actors and other support artists over multiple days, culminating in a reading and developmental discussion with an audience. As with PIPS, PIC provides extensive notes from the discussion. ​What types of pieces are a good fit for the Development Workshop?   A full draft that needs an overhaul which could be achieved by having actors and other artists in the room. The necessary work could be on the entire script or specific sections. A play that was written a long time ago and needs an update for a modern audience. A script by a playwright interested in what actors’ perspectives will provide for the characters A script that needs further development of character arcs   Submissions are open to anyone within a one hour radius of Hampshire County Mass. Submit here. ACTORS SOUGHT FOR “IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE” Valley Players will hold auditions for their December production of It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play on September 2 and 4 at the Bangs Community Center in Amherst. The play is adapted by Joe Landry from the classic 1946 holiday film and set in a late 1940s radio station, featuring live foley effects and actors playing multiple parts. Valley Players seeks five or six actors, any gender and across ages, who will perform up to ten roles each. During the show, actors read from the “radio” script, so there is no need to be off-book, but a prime requirement to be cast is the ability to convincingly perform multiple character voices. Auditions slots must be reserved at valleyplayers.org. No preparation is required: all auditioners will read from excerpts from the script. Call-backs will be held on September 5. Valley Players’ production of It’s a Wonderful Life is directed by Chris Rohmann and produced by Matteo Pangallo, with sound effects by Chip Roughton, stage management by Jason Fregeau, and costumes by Chloe Roy. The show goes up Fridays and Saturdays, December 12–20, as a dinner-theater event at the Blue Heron Restaurant in Sunderland and half of net ticket sales will be donated to the Springfield-based affordable housing nonprofit Way Finders. Rehearsals will be on weekday evenings in November at the Bangs Community Center. Valley Players is an all-volunteer nonprofit group with a mission to enrich the quality of life in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts by producing nimble, meaningful, and accessible community theater. Valley Players uses community theater to help build community, donating half of net ticket proceeds to other nonprofits and charities serving the Valley and beyond. All contributions to Valley Players are tax-deductible and go fully to support the organization’s mission and programming. Anyone who wants to donate or become a business sponsor, or find more information about the group, can visit valleyplayers.org. Salmon Falls Climate Action Performances Oct 14, 2025 porches of Shelburne Falls and Memorial Hall in Shelburne Falls We are looking for directors and actors for three performances in October/November of about 12 five-minute climate related plays in Shelburne Falls. They are moving, surprising, and, at times, funny. It's part of the Climate Change Theater Action. We can choose from 60 skits written by people from all over the world. shelburnejackieb@gmail.com WORKSHOPS & CLASSES Theater enthusiasts are invited to go Behind the Curtain this spring and summer, through Shakespeare & Company’s series of discussions led by Shakespeare scholar Ann Berman. Held on select Saturdays throughout the spring and summer at the Shakespeare & Company campus, these free public talks offer audiences insight into the creative process of Season 2025’s productions, featuring directors, cast, and design team members as they explore themes, artistic choices, and behind-the-scenes stories. Behind the Curtain talks begin on Saturday, March 8, and continue through Saturday, August 16: August 2, 10:30 a.m. – The Taming of the Shrew with directors Tina Packer and Allyn Burrows (Rose Footprint Theatre, outdoors) August 16, 10:30 a.m. – Mother Play with director Ariel Bock (Rose Footprint Theatre, outdoors) For more information and to reserve free tickets, visit shakespeare.org/talks-tours, or call the Box Office at 413.637.3353. Photo Caption: Ann Berman, far right, leads a series of free Behind the Curtain talks in the spring and summer at Shakespeare & Company. Pictured are director Dalia Ashurina (far left) and playwright/cast member Awni Abdi-Bahri of Three Tall Persian Women, which debuted at Shakespeare & Company last year. Photo by Eran Zelixon. Summer Theater Workshops August 4-8, 8:30am-4:30pm 33 Hawley Street, Northampton MA This is a one week process-focused theater workshop that is tailored to the group's interest and skills. Ages 7-12 will explore storytelling, group work, improvisation, how to stage a theater production, and building social-emotional skills. Ages 15-18 will focus on monologues, partnered scene work, and how to create a character. Both groups perform for family and friends at the end of the week. Ages 7-12 is full day and Ages 15-18 is half day. https://www.nohoarts.org/theatre-and-film Shakespeare & Company’s Center for Actor Training will host a 9-Day Intensive at its Lenox campus from Wednesday, August 20, through Friday, August 29.  Designed for mid-career actors, educators, directors, and others seeking professional and artistic development, the 9-Day Intensive is inspired by Shakespeare & Company’s Month-long Intensive. Director of Training Sheila Bandyopadhyay said the workshop offers participants an opportunity to immerse themselves in Shakespeare training and make connections with like-minded artists in a robust, accessible format.  “The 9-Day intensive is a unique opportunity for mid-career artists to enjoy a workshop which is both professional development and a replenishing creative retreat,” said Bandyopadhyay. “The training is balanced between focused studio time, theater-going, and building lasting connections.” The daily schedule includes classes in Linklater Voice, Movement and Dance, Monologue and Sonnet work, Structure of the Verse, and the Actor-Audience Relationship, and the format and tuition include admission to three Shakespeare & Company shows staged at the height of its 2025 performance season.  Tuition is $1,495 with partial scholarships available for BIPOC artists. Early payment, alumni, and union member discounts are also available. Limited on-campus housing is available on a first-come, first-served basis for an additional $400. For more information or to apply, visit shakespeare.org or call 413.637.1199, ext. 114. Photo Caption: Director of the Center for Actor Training Sheila Bandyopadhyay and Month-long Intensive alumnus Davis Brinker at Shakespeare & Company's campus in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. Shakespeare & Company’s Center for Actor Training will host a 9-Day Intensive in August. 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 © 2025 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