It's time for the 10th annual CINCINNATI ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS (see feature story on page 47). A long-standing element of the CEAs is recognition of community theaters, a vital component of the onstage offerings available to audiences in the Tristate. This year's four nominees for OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY THEATER PRODUCTION are Is There Life After High School?, directed by Chris Beiser for Middletown Lyric Theatre; 42nd Street, directed by Brian Anderson for Cincinnati Music Theatre; Urinetown, directed by Bunny Arszman for Showbiz Players; and Visiting Mr. Green, directed by Ginny Weil for Mariemont Players. On June 23 and 24, the ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY THEATRES-CINCINNATI held its annual excerpt festival at Miami University's campus in Hamilton. Various groups presented 30-minute excerpts, vying to represent southwestern Ohio in a statewide competition in September, sponsored by the Ohio Community Theatre Association (OCTA). Several CEA-nominated shows were excerpted, although 42nd Street and Urinetown were "showcasing" (that is, presenting an excerpt without seeking to move on to the state competition). The three productions selected for advancement: Two CEA nominees, Middletown Lyric's High School and Mariemont's Mr. Green, plus Tri-County Players' staging of Story Theatre. Milford Theatre Guild's production of The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) was named as an OCTA alternate. Several other CEA categories include community theater performances. Three performers from Showbiz's Urinetown are nominated — Sherry McCamley, Gary Wright and Ashley Bowman — and the production is one of four finalists in the Outstanding Musical category. Lauren Sprague and Dee Anne Bryll from Cincinnati Music Theatre's 42nd Street also earned individual nominations, as did Bill Hartnett, playing the title role in Mariemont Players' Visiting Mr. Green. The CEAs will be presented at UC's Corbett Auditorium on August 25. ... If you'd like to see a play in development, mark Monday evening at 7:30 on your calendar. That's when Chuck Sambuchino's SCORCHED EARTH will be given a developmental performance by Cincinnati Playwrights Initiative (CPI) at the Contemporary Arts Center's black-box theater (Sixth and Walnut streets, Downtown). Sambuchino's play was selected from several given readings by CPI earlier this year. Info: It's time for the 10th annual CINCINNATI ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS (see feature story on page 47). A long-standing element of the CEAs is recognition of community theaters, a vital component of the onstage offerings available to audiences in the Tristate. This year's four nominees for OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY THEATER PRODUCTION are Is There Life After High School?, directed by Chris Beiser for Middletown Lyric Theatre; 42nd Street, directed by Brian Anderson for Cincinnati Music Theatre; Urinetown, directed by Bunny Arszman for Showbiz Players; and Visiting Mr. Green, directed by Ginny Weil for Mariemont Players. On June 23 and 24, the ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY THEATRES-CINCINNATI held its annual excerpt festival at Miami University's campus in Hamilton. Various groups presented 30-minute excerpts, vying to represent southwestern Ohio in a statewide competition in September, sponsored by the Ohio Community Theatre Association (OCTA). Several CEA-nominated shows were excerpted, although 42nd Street and Urinetown were "showcasing" (that is, presenting an excerpt without seeking to move on to the state competition). The three productions selected for advancement: Two CEA nominees, Middletown Lyric's High School and Mariemont's Mr. Green, plus Tri-County Players' staging of Story Theatre. Milford Theatre Guild's production of The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) was named as an OCTA alternate. Several other CEA categories include community theater performances. Three performers from Showbiz's Urinetown are nominated — Sherry McCamley, Gary Wright and Ashley Bowman — and the production is one of four finalists in the Outstanding Musical category. Lauren Sprague and Dee Anne Bryll from Cincinnati Music Theatre's 42nd Street also earned individual nominations, as did Bill Hartnett, playing the title role in Mariemont Players' Visiting Mr. Green. The CEAs will be presented at UC's Corbett Auditorium on August 25. ... If you'd like to see a play in development, mark Monday evening at 7:30 on your calendar. That's when Chuck Sambuchino's SCORCHED EARTH will be given a developmental performance by Cincinnati Playwrights Initiative (CPI) at the Contemporary Arts Center's black-box theater (Sixth and Walnut streets, Downtown). Sambuchino's play was selected from several given readings by CPI earlier this year. Info: www.cinciplaywrights.org
contact rick Pender: rpender(at)citybeat.com.
