Through SATURDAY, 5/5: Elephant Man Opens at GMHS
May 3, 2012 by Stan Fendley, Falls Church City · Leave a Comment
The George Mason High School Theater Arts Department presents the Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance, opening Thursday, May 3rd at 7:30 pm. The show runs through Saturday, May 5th. Tickets are $8 for students and seniors and $10 for adults.
The play is directed by seniors Bryan Ward and Rebecca Thackrey and produced by Theater Arts Director Pamela Ricker. The Play is set in London’s industrial revolution of the late 1800’s, and tells the story of Joseph Merrick, known as The Elephant Man, who had a bone disorder which caused him to develop terrible deformities. Merrick was a side show freak until he was rescued by Treves, a surgeon at the London Hospital. The play examines issues of people’s fear of the unknown and prejudices based on appearance as well as our intolerance of perceived imperfections of all kinds.
The play is a serious drama and will be staged with creative lighting, projections, and short animations to create the settings and communicate the themes. Technical support will be by John Ballou and the George Mason Technical Theater Crew, as well as Mr. Ballou’s classes. Starring roles include Sean Driggers as The Elephant man, Samuel Blagg as Dr. Treves, Emma Pierce as Lady Gomm, Joseph Warren as Ross and Kikki Skotte as Mrs. Kendall. The supporting ensemble brings the size of the cast up to 40 in all.
This is a very intellectual, symbolic, and challenging script and the George Mason cast is more than up to the challenge of bringing it to life. There should be striking and impressive technical elements to the show as well, which promise to make it a memorable piece of theater.
FRIDAY 2/24: Alice in Wonderland, Jr. at MEHMS
February 21, 2012 by Falls Church Times Staff · Leave a Comment
Opening night for Alice in Wonderland, Jr. is Thursday, February 23 at Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School (MEHMS). Students and staff have been working hard for weeks to prepare this musical production. With a cast of over 90, the show will delight with singing, large dance numbers and eye popping colors. There are many memorable and familiar characters including Alice (in small, medium and tall), the always late White Rabbit, the all knowing Cheshire Cat, the delightfully funny Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, the “off with your head” Queen of Hearts, the madcap Mad Hatter and March Hare, and the amazingly long and upbeat Caterpillar.
"Alice in Wonderland, Jr." will be performed Thursday, Friday and Saturday (February 23 - 25) at 7 pm at MEHMS. Shown above are Tweedledee (Jacob Plata) and Tweedledum (Andrew Connelly) with "medium" Alice (Tea Abbraciamento) Photo courtesy of Carol Sly.
The show opens Thursday and runs through Saturday, February 25 in the MEHMS Cafetorium at 7pm. Tickets are $8 per person. The lobby opens at 6 pm, and the seating area opens at 6:30pm. Admission is through the front doors only. Concessions are available each night with a variety of snacks, treats and drinks. There is plenty of parking in front, on the side and behind the school.
When in Falls Church, Do As the Italians Do
February 8, 2012 by Falls Church Times Staff · Leave a Comment
By FALLS CHURCH TIMES STAFF
February 8, 2012
Travel to Italy this weekend as the Washington, DC based Commedia dell’Arte performance troupe, Faction of Fools presents two performances at Creative Cauldron’s continuing Passport to the World Festival at ArtSpace Falls Church.
On Saturday, February 11 at 7:30 pm, Faction of Fools Artistic Director Matthew R. Wilson will perform “The Great One-Man Commedia Epic,” a one-man show in which he performs 12 different characters drawn from the historical commedia dell’ Arte canon.
The piece was originally commissioned in 2004 for Italy’s 20th annual Stage Internazionale. Young lovers have their lives thrown into chaos as their wedding plans are threatened by squabbling fathers, boasting war heroes and a host of well-meaning but dim-witted servants. The entire town is drawn to the brink of tragedy before love prevails, normalcy is restored and comedy triumphs. This one-man show is a treat for avant-garde theater fans, scholars of dramatic history, and the fun-loving child in all of us. Read more
SATURDAY 2/11: The Great One-Man Commedia Epic
February 7, 2012 by Falls Church Times Staff · Leave a Comment
On Saturday, February 11 at 7:30 pm at Creative Cauldron, Faction of Fools Artistic Director Matthew R. Wilson will perform “The Great One-Man Commedia Epic,” a one-man show in which he performs 12 different characters drawn from the historical commedia dell’ Arte canon. The piece was originally commissioned in 2004 for Italy’s 20th annual Stage Internazionale. This one-man show is a treat for avant-garde theater fans, scholars of dramatic history, and the fun-loving child in all of us.
Tickets are $20 for adults and $18 for seniors and students and can be ordered in advance at www.creativecauldron.org Creative Cauldron at ArtSpace Falls Church is located at 410 S. Maple Avenue in the Pearson Square buiding. Free parking is available in the garages at 410 and 400 S. Maple Ave.
SUNDAY 2/12: Romance, Comedy & Dance at Creative Cauldron
February 6, 2012 by Falls Church Times Staff · Leave a Comment
On Sunday, February 12 at 2 pm, the Faction of Fools troupe will bring its Helen Hayes Award Recommended show to Creative Cauldron’s Passport to the World Festival. They will present a fun-filled commedia version of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. In the Faction of Fools’ high octane version, five actors in a one-hour show bring physical spectacularity to Shakespeare’s poetry and highlight tragedy by juxtaposing it with humor.
The finale of this weekend trip to Italy will be an Italian Village Dance Workshop led by Celest DiPietrapolo, Rosina DiPietrapolo and Marie Cocco at 4 pm Sunday, February 12. Audiences will be introduced to traditional music and dance from small villages throughout Italy and will learn several dances. Family friendly so bring the kids and the grandparents.
Tickets for Romeo and Juliet are $20 for adults and $18 for seniors and students. Dance workshop tickets are $10 each. Order in advance at www.creativecauldron.org Creative Cauldron at ArtSpace Falls Church is located at 410 S. Maple Avenue in the Pearson Square buiding. Free parking is available in the garages at 410 and 400 S. Maple Ave.
SUNDAY, 2/5: Tales from the Andes Story Theater
February 3, 2012 by Falls Church Times Staff · Leave a Comment
Creative Cauldron performing artists will join forces with Raymi musicians for an afternoon of storytelling, folktales from the Andes in South America, puppets, choreography and music. An interactive event for the whole family on Sunday, February 5 at 2 pm. Part of the Passport to the World Festival presented by Creative Cauldron.
Tickets are $10. Creative Cauldron is located at 410 S. Maple Avenue in the Pearson Square building. Order in advance at www.creativecauldron.org or by calling 571-239-5288
“Nevermore” Open at ArtSpace Falls Church
October 9, 2011 by Special to the Falls Church Times · 2 Comments
SPECIAL TO THE FALLS CHURCH TIMES
October 9, 2011
Creative Cauldron has launched its 2011-2012 season with the critically acclaimed musical Nevermore that uses Edgar Allan Poe’s poetry and short stories as its base to tell the story of Poe’s obsessions with the women in his life.
Headlining the Nevermore cast is equity actor Sean Thompson in the role of Edgar Allan Poe. Thompson has appeared regionally in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Philadelphia’s Mauckingbird Theatre Company; at Signature Theatre as Artie in Sunset Boulevard and Charles in And the Curtain Rises; and as Alex in The Little Dog Laughed at Philadelphia’s Flashpoint Theatre Company. The women in Poe’s life are played by Priscilla Cuellar, Dani Danger Stoller, Mary Payne Omohondro, Katie Culligan and Karissa Swanigan-Upchurch.
Directed by Matt Connor, who also composed the music, the Creative Cauldron production of Nevermore features a live orchestra.
The production runs weekends through October 30 at ArtSpace Falls Church, 410 S. Maple Avenue. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, Saturdays at 2 pm and Sundays at 4 pm. Tickets are $25 for adults, $22 for seniors/students. Seating is limited. Tickets can be reserved on-line at www.creativecauldron.org or by calling 571-239-5288.
“Nevermore” Opens Creative Cauldron’s Season
October 2, 2011 by Special to the Falls Church Times · Leave a Comment
SPECIAL to the FALLS CHURCH TIMES
On Friday, October 7, the anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe’s death, Creative Cauldron will launch its 10th anniversary season with the critically acclaimed musical Nevermore. This imaginative musical uses Poe’s poetry and short stories as its base and his shifting obsession with the women in his life as its catalyst.
The production will run weekends through October 30 at ArtSpace Falls Church, 410 S. Maple Avenue. Performances are Fridays at 8:00pm, Saturdays at 2:00 pm and 8:00 pm, and Sundays at 4:00 pm. Tickets are $25 for adults, $22 for seniors/students. Seating is limited so advance purchase is encouraged. Tickets for Nevermore can be reserved on-line at www.creativecauldron.org or by calling 571-239-5288.
Nevermore premiered at Signature Theatre in 2006, winning praise from The Washington Post for its “romantic music, ablaze with feeling.” Matt Conner, who will direct Nevermore, also composed the music, adapting lyrics from the writings of Edgar Allan Poe. Grace Barnes wrote the book.
Guiding a professional cast through what Conner describes as a work about “love, death, and acceptance of one’s self,” he adds “while Poe has more often than not been depicted as a dark, depressed monster, in this work you will see him in all his vulnerability and humanity. You will be transported back to a time when poetry and letters were supremely valued… when one simple word held immense power and meaning.”
The Nevermore cast features equity actor Sean Thompson in the role of Edgar Allan Poe. Thompson has appeared locally at Signature Theatre as Artie in Sunset Boulevard and Charles in And the Curtain Rises. His other regional theater credits include Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Philadelphia’s Mauckingbird Theatre Company; the Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance, Curly in Oklahoma! and Paul in Barefoot in the Park at Missouri’s Maples Repertory Theatre; Alex in The Little Dog Laughed at Philadelphia’s Flashpoint Theatre Company; and Bill Sykes in Oliver! at MediaTheatre.
The women in Poe’s Life will be played by Priscilla Cuellar (Mother), Dani Danger Stoller (the Whore), Mary Payne Omohondro (Muddy), Katie Culligan (Virginia) and Karissa Swanigan- Upchurch (Elmira).
Conner has more than 15 years of experience working as a musical director, performer and teaching artist in the DC metropolitan area. But it was Nevermore that launched his career as a musical theater composer. In 2008, he was one of six composers to receive Signature’s American Musical Voices: The Next Generation award funded by the Shen Family Foundation.Conner’s newest composition The Hollow, an adaptation of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, opened Signature’s 2011-2012 season.
The Nevermore production team includes Creative Cauldron Producing Director Laura Connors Hull, Music Director Amy Massey, Assistant Director Danny Tippett, Scenic Designer Margie Jervis, Lighting Designer Paul Spiegelblatt, and Wig Design by Jonathan Jackson.
