HATFIELD – Valley Players has cast its first full Shakespeare production with a company of local actors from across the region. The Tempest will go up June 11–12 and 19–21 as a picnic-theater performance full of music, magic, and dance on the rolling lawn at Black Birch Vineyard (Hatfield, MA) as a benefit for the Center for New Americans, a local nonprofit organization supporting immigrant and refugee families in the Valley community. Tickets and more information will be available in April at valleyplayers.org.
The Tempest features Lucy Castoldi (Hadley) as Juno and the Mariner, Naidelyn Cruz (Holyoke) as Trinculo and Ceres, Allie Eaton (Holyoke) as Alonso, Dorian Gregory (Florence) as Gonzalo, Emily Hazelton (Northampton) as Ferdinand, Liza Manchester (Ashfield) as Ariel, Marcus Neverson (Haydenville) as Antonio, Maeve Noble (Northampton) as Miranda, Ronit Schorr (Springfield) as Stephano, William Spademan (Ashfield) as Prospero, Ethan Wattley (Northampton) as Caliban, Sheila Wood (Hadley) as the Boatswain and Francisco, and Nora Zahn (Northampton) as Sebastian.
Directed by Jill Franks (Leverett) and produced by Matteo Pangallo (Shutesbury), The Tempest is staged managed by Chris Pifer (Amherst), with music direction by Solomon Goldstein-Rose (Amherst), costumes by Piper Pichette (Deerfield), choreography by Susan Dibble (West Springfield), and stage magic consulting by David “Le Grand David” Bull (Hadley).
Valley Players is an all-volunteer 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to enrich the quality of life in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts by producing nimble, meaningful, and accessible community theater and donating half of net ticket proceeds to other Valley nonprofits. In its first two years, Valley Players’ productions have raised funds for Cancer Connection, the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, River Valley Counseling Center, Community Aid Pioneer Valley, the Peace Development Fund, the Literacy Project, and Way Finders. More information about Valley Players, including how to donate, become a business sponsor, sign up for auditions, or join the email list, is at valleyplayers.org.