New Playhouse Website!

The Playhouse site has moved. Please visit us at www.valleyplayhouse.com

AUDITIONS!!!!

This Spring the Playhouse will be holding auditions for two upcoming productions this Summer and Fall.

April 27 and 28, 2011: One woman – middle-aged or older

Auditions for the role of Eleanor of Aquitaine in the historical drama The Lion 
in Winter by James Goldman will be held Wednesday, April 27, 2011, 6-8 pm in the
Massanutten Regional Library Meeting room. The part requires an attractive 
middle-aged to older woman (remember Katherine Hepburn in the movie version?); Henry II, King of England, will be played by Ted Schwarz, of “Tedandcompany.”
There are also four male roles (Henry’s sons and the king of France) for actors
aged 20-50, and a 20-30 year old female character, Alais Capet. These five parts
will be cast at auditions on Thursday and Friday, September 1st and 2nd, after
which rehearsals will begin. The Lion in Winter will run November 2-6 and 9-13,
2011. **Please note participation in The Lion in Winter will not interfer with participating with our summer production The End of the World As We Know It.

May 9 and 10: 7 women and 5 men from age 18 to 60+ and one part for a young girl.

The Playhouse will hold auditions for our summer show May 9 and 10 at 6:00 PM at Massanutten Regional Library in Harrisonburg. We’re very excited about our show this year which is “The End Of The World As We Know It”– a new comedy by Jay Zehr. This is a very funny script with great parts for at least 7 women and 5 men from age 18 to 60+ and one part for a young girl. No prepared material is necessary and those of all experience levels are encouraged to audition. There will some small parts and/or non-speaking roles that would be great for those looking for their first experience on stage.Performances are August 3-14 at Court Square Theater.
Copies of the script are on reserve at Massanutten Library.
For more information contact Jay Zehr at Djayzehr@gmail.com or 433-6228.

Kimberly Akimbo auditions and additional info

Auditions for David Lindsay-Abaire's Kimberly Akimbo will take place on Monday, December 6th and Tuesday December 7th at 6:00pm at Massanutten Regional Library's Main Branch in Downtown Harrisonburg.

"Set in the wilds of suburban New Jersey, Kimberly Akimbo is a hilarious and heartrending play about a teenager with a rare condition causing her body to age faster than it should. When she and her family flee Secaucus under dubious circumstances, Kimberly is forces to reevaluate her life while contending with a hypochondriac mother, a rarely sober father, a scam-artist aunt, her own mortality and, most terrifying of all, the possibility of first love." (Dramatists Play Service)

Production dates are March 9th through 13th and March 16th through 20th at Court Square Theatre in Downtown Harrisonburg.

Parts for three women and two men:

Kimberly: a 16 year-old-girl, played by a woman in her 60s or 70s

Buddy: a man in his mid-30s, Kimberly's dad

Pattie: a very pregnant woman in her mid-30s, Buddy's wife/Kimberly's mom

Jeff: an awkward, unpopular 16 year-old-boy

Debra: a woman in her early 30's, an ex-con, Pattie's sister

No prepared piece is necessary; the audition will consist of cold-readings from the script.

~~Please note, this script does use some adult language.~~

Scripts are available for reading at the Massanutten Regional Library's Main Branch.

If you're interested in helping out behind the scenes, email The Playhouse at playhousehcst@gmail.com and/or come to the auditions.

The Drawer Boy Photos

Take a look at the cast in action!

The Drawer Boy is halfway through its run...make plans to see it next weekend if you haven't already. Show times are Wednesday, November 10 through Saturday, November 13 at 8 P.M.; Sunday, November 14 at 3 P.M. Tickets are $12 each or $10 each for groups of 10 or more. Reserve at courtsquaretheater.com or call (540) 433-9189. Please note: tickets purchased at the door will be general admission.

THE DRAWER BOY Cast and Crew

Meet the people behind our production of The Drawer Boy!
The Playhouse will perform The Drawer Boy, by Michael Healey, Thursday, November 4 through Sunday, November 14, at Court Square Theater. Show times are Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 P.M.; Sundays at 3 P.M. Tickets are available now at www.courtsquaretheater.com or by phone at (540) 433-9189.

The premiere on November 3, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. will be a special performance as part of the Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance event, "Temptations at the Theater." For tickets to this performance, please visit www.downtownharrisonburg.org for more information.


Cast:

Joe Acker (Morgan) Joe is a veteran of radio and T.V. He was a speech and drama major at Madison College and acted in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe?, Anna Christie, Our Town and Miss Readen Drinks a Little. Over the last 30 years, he’s acted in church plays as well as The Subject was Roses and A Thousand Clowns at the Melrose Cavern’s Black Friar Dinner Theatre. This is Joe’s first appearance for the Playhouse.

Ryan Orr (Miles) Ryan past roles include George Gibbs in Our Town, Pat Denning in 42nd Street, Smokey in Damn Yankees, Conrad Birdie in Bye Bye Birdie and Mr. Dussell in The Diary of Anne Frank. This is Ryan’s Playhouse debut.

David Wood (Angus) David has acted in productions at Longwood College as well as church plays. He is a member of Alpha Psi Omega (National Dramatic Fraternity) and insists he acts everyday as a middle school teacher. The Drawer Boy is David’s first production with the Playhouse.

Dave Gordon (Understudy) Dave is a veteran of the Playhouse as well as other theatre groups in the area. His Playhouse credits include: The Rainmaker, The Good Doctor, Tom Foolery, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and Our Town. He has performed in plays for JMU, the Waynesboro Players and has danced with the Rockingham Ballet Theatre for 13 years.


Production Crew:

Tom Arthur (director): Tom has directed over eighty plays at the university, community and professional levels, including Playhouse productions of Morning’s at Seven; Almost Maine; Collected Stories; Doubt; Glimmer, Glimmer and Shine; and The Waverly Gallery. He is Professor Emeritus of Theatre at James Madison University, where he taught full-time for thirty-four years.

Gail Arthur (producer): Gail has produced several Playhouse productions, including most recently Morning’s at Seven, The Last Night at Ballyhoo, and Dearly Departed. She played Helga in Deathtrap, and is a former Playhouse board president. She was trained as a physician and teaches health part-time at James Madison University.

Kay Arthur (set design): Kay handled publicity for the Playhouse’s production of Morning’s at Seven and Doubt. She is professor emeritus of Art History at James Madison University. She has a B.A. from Skidmore College, M.A. and Ph.D. from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. Currently, she serves as associate curator of Medieval and Renaissance Art at the JMU Madison Art Collection.

Tay Bohn (assistant stage manager/lights op.): This is Tay's first show with the Playhouse. She has been involved with theater for 5 years now, mostly performing on the stage, but also working behind the scenes as an Assistant Director. This is her first time being up in the booth running the lights, and she is very excited to learn yet another aspect of theater. She has enjoyed working closely with Tom Arthur and Jessica Young very much and wishes her cast the best of broken legs! "We're here to get your history and give it back to you" Enjoy the show!!

Doug Clark (composer) is a musician and composer who lives in Chimayó, N.M. He has composed the music and designed the sound for many productions, including plays by Shakespeare, Tennessee Williams, Tom Stoppard and others. He holds an M.A. in Music from Brown University.

Susan Comfort (assistant director) Susan has been a volunteer with The Playhouse since 1998. She has acted, produced, and assisted in many productions.

Kathleen Conery (costume design): Kathleen is a costumer at James Madison University. She has an M.F.A. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and has worked at Creighton University (Omaha) , The Alley Theatre (Houston), Cornel University (Ithaca, N.Y.), and the Cleveland Playhouse. She has designed costumes for several National Geographic educational videos, and served as makeup artist for a NOVA special on PBS.

Candace Farthing (poster designer) Candace Farthing is a local Graphic Designer with a unique talent for blending creativity and communication. Candace Farthing Graphic Design can take complex information and easily translate it into marketable solutions for any size company, individual or non-profit looking to stand out from the crowd. Candace invites you to explore her portfolio at www.candacegraphics.com.

Tina Ferrari (assistant director): Tina is a double major in Theatre and Psychology at JMU. She has performed, stage managed, directed in numerous shows, including Morning’s at Seven, The Chairs, Bungalow at the Beach, and Bang Bang You're Dead.

Lori Smilowitz (publicity) –Lori has been involved with the Playhouse since 2004. She has performed in several productions including The Nerd: You Can’t Take it With You; The Odd Couple and Life X 3.

Jerry Sweeten (set design) Jerry's involvement in amateur theater includes acting in Dog Days and has performed set design and construction for In Motion School of Dance (Harrisonburg) and the Playhouse's production of Morning’s at Seven. He owns AKG, Incorporated, which designs and manufactures lead wires for the medical industry.

David Vogel (lighting designer) David designed last year's Morning's at Seven. He is resident lighting designer for EMU, most recently designing Triumph of Love. His designs have also been seen with Ted and Co. TheaterWorks, Saint Louis Ballet and Paul Bunyan Playhouse, as well as Penn State University, Washington University in St. Louis, and Huntington University.

Chloe Wendt (assistant lighting designer) Chloe is a 5th year senior at James Madison University, concentrating in technical theatre. She has designed the lights for many shows, including I Love You Because, Nine, and Last Nights of Ballyhoo. She is an experienced dancer/actor/singer and stage manager. She works as a Production Crew member and Dance Lighting Supervisor for the new Forbes Center. After graduation, she hopes to move to a big city and pursue theatre.

Jessica Young (stage manager) This is Jessica’s second time as stage manager for the Playhouse, the first time being for Jay Zehr's The Last Night of Ballyhoo. She is a self-proclaimed townie, having lived in Harrisonburg since elementary school. She is now a junior theatre and dance major at JMU. Jessica was in many high school musical productions at Harrisonburg High school, such as Godspell, Seussical, Oliver! and Beauty and the Beast. She also took part in the spring plays there by Bradley Walton, including Rednecks, Werewolves and Aliens; Bottle of Cola, and Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enter Here: The Story of a Prom. She hopes to be a part of more productions, both in school and around town, as her years at JMU come to an end.

We’d like to thank the following friends and local businesses who help keep our community theatre going:

Acme Stove and Fireplace Center; The Blue Nile; Candace Farthing, Graphic Designer; Catherine Crummett; Clementine; Eddie Bumbaugh & the Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance; EMU Theatre; Francos Pizza; Fort Defiance High School; James Madison University School of Theatre & Dance; Nancy Polonitza; Noah McBrayer Jones & Court Square Theater; Robert Benedetti; Zachary Koops & Trade Show Direct Printing; The Arts Council of the Valley; Water Works Treatment, Inc.

A special thank you to Katrina and Ernie Didot of A Bowl of Good for their generous donation of fresh bread for every show!

Mark your November Calendar for The Drawer Boy

The Playhouse will perform The Drawer Boy, by Michael Healey, Thursday, November 4 through Sunday, November 14, at Court Square Theater. Show times are Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 P.M.; Sundays at 3 P.M. Tickets are available now at www.courtsquaretheater.com/ or by phone at (540) 433-9189.

The premiere on November 3, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. will be a special performance as part of the Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance event, "Temptations at the Theater." For tickets to this performance, please visit www.downtownharrisonburg.org for more information.

The Drawer Boy is a humorous drama focusing on life on a Canadian farm. The script is based on an early 1970s alternative theater project in which actors moved to rural communities to find dramatic material for future productions. In the play, a young Toronto actor, Miles, arrives on a farm to observe how two brothers, mentally-challenged Angus and his long-time caregiver/brother, Morgan, live and work. Morgan is not thrilled with the arrangement, and Angus, because of a World War II head injury, can't remember from moment-to-moment why the young actor is present.

Horrified to learn first-hand that the farming activities Miles admires such as "planting, nurturing and nourishing" go hand in hand with others he abhors such as "harvesting, reaping, destroying" and "eviscerating," he discovers surprising truths about the brothers' pasts.

The play has won numerous awards and in recent years has been one of the most widely produced shows in Canada and the United States. Healey's amusing, unadorned dialogue, is especially affecting because it refuses to squeeze excessive sentiment from the story. As one critic said, "Think farm life is boring? Think again! Think plays about farm life are boring? You be the judge."

THE DRAWER BOY Auditions

The Playhouse, Harrisonburg's community theater, will hold auditions for The Drawer Boy by Michael Healey on Monday, September 20 and Tuesday, September 21 from 6-8 PM each night, at the Massanutten Regional Library in downtown Harrisonburg.

There are parts for three men, ages 20s to 50s. No prepared material is necessary. The performances will be November 3-14 at Court Square Theater.

We're also still looking to for backstage and production help if you've ever been interested in getting involved in theater. Please contact Susan Comfort at (540) 820-0964 or susancomfort26@gmail.com if you'd like more information.

We hope to see you there!