by Macey Levin When Thornton Wilder’s play Our Town opened in 1938 it was considered experimental: a character (the Stage Manager) speaks directly to the audience, there are no sets, no props, just the actors pantomiming everything from drinking coffee to throwing newspapers, and the words, marvelous words! It is one…
by Macey Levin For the adventurous theatregoer, artistic directors, Jeffrey Mousseau and Paul Ricciardi, have created bold and provocative theatre experiences at the Ancram Opera House in Ancram, New York. Their programming is varied including full-length productions, acting and writing workshops, readings of off-beat materials, They also sponsor community-member involvement…
by Macey Levin Four acting hopefuls have enrolled for a creative dramatics class in the imaginary town of Shirley, Vermont. The group, led by the wife of the community center administrator, finds to their consternation, that in spite of the seemingly innocuous and at times mystifying acting exercises, their lives…
by Macey Levin The Sharon Playhouse in Sharon, Connecticut, is currently presenting Lionel Bart’s Oliver! a show seldom produced on local stages. Presented on Broadway in 1960 it won a Tony for Bart’s score. This was followed by a movie in 1968 which won the Oscar for best picture. The…
by Macey Levin Enduring love requires people to look into themselves in order to realize who they really are or what they have become in relationship to each other. In Loy A. Webb’s riveting The Light at Chester Theatre Company in Chester, Massachusetts, Genesis and Rashad confront themselves and their…
by Macey Levin It is 1930 and the Harlem Renaissance, as well as the Depression, is in full bloom. The community is struggling to find a new life and though its inhabitants are reaping the rewards of the time, their finances are precarious. This is the setting of Pearl Cleage’s…
by Macey Levin Two friends banter, argue and dream as they stand guard at the Taj Mahal in Agra, Hindustan in 1653, the year of the monument’s completion. Their relationship is the core of Guards at the Taj by Rajiv Joseph, a complex and compelling drama at the Chester Theatre Company,…
by Macey Levin The theatre, the world, and life are at the core of Peter Sinn Nachtrieb’s complex play-within-a-play The Making of a Great Moment at Chester Theatre Company, Chester, Massachusetts. Terry Dean (Bill Bowers) and Mona Barnes (Esther Williamson) are an acting team whose company is named Victoria…
