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Footlighter's, Inc., one of Cincinnati's better community theaters, is staging I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE, opening Feb. 17. Turns out that during the show — it's about contemporary relationships — was a magnet for marriage proposals. So the show's director, MARK FEMIA, is looking for folks on the verge of popping the question who'd like to do it during his show's three week run, through March 5. If you're interested, send Femia at [email protected] and he'll work with you on the details. And if you want to catch the show and see if anyone takes them up on this offer, you can get tickets by calling: 513-474-8711.
Two years ago the Cincinnati Playhouse presented the world premiere of THE LOVE SONG OF J. ROBERT OPPENHEIMER by Carson Kreitzer. The work has gotten quite a bit of interest around the country. Next month it will have its regional premiere in Atlanta at Actor's Express, the theater now led by JASSON MINADAKIS, former artistic director of the Cincinnati Shakespeare Festival. Minadakis no doubt saw the Playhouse's compelling staging by New York director Mark Wing-Davey, using lots of video to tell the allegorical tale of the man who invented the atomic bomb; now Minadakis gets a chance to stage his own version. If you're in Atlanta between March 17 and May 7, call for tickets: 404-607-7469.
Footlighter's, Inc., one of Cincinnati's better community theaters, is staging I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE, opening Feb. 17. Turns out that during the show — it's about contemporary relationships — was a magnet for marriage proposals. So the show's director, MARK FEMIA, is looking for folks on the verge of popping the question who'd like to do it during his show's three week run, through March 5. If you're interested, send Femia at [email protected] and he'll work with you on the details. And if you want to catch the show and see if anyone takes them up on this offer, you can get tickets by calling: 513-474-8711. ...
Two years ago the Cincinnati Playhouse presented the world premiere of THE LOVE SONG OF J. ROBERT OPPENHEIMER by Carson Kreitzer. The work has gotten quite a bit of interest around the country. Next month it will have its regional premiere in Atlanta at Actor's Express, the theater now led by JASSON MINADAKIS, former artistic director of the Cincinnati Shakespeare Festival. Minadakis no doubt saw the Playhouse's compelling staging by New York director Mark Wing-Davey, using lots of video to tell the allegorical tale of the man who invented the atomic bomb; now Minadakis gets a chance to stage his own version. If you're in Atlanta between March 17 and May 7, call for tickets: 404-607-7469. ...
It was a sad weekend at Dayton's Human Race Theatre Company: Shortly after opening its current production of THE DRAWER BOY, directed by CCM drama chair Richard Hess, the show's production stage manager, SHERRI N. NIERMAN, was killed in a traffic accident following the Jan. 28 performance. A graduate of Ohio's Otterbein College, Nierman, who was 29, spent several seasons with the Ensemble Theatre Company of Santa Barbara, Calif., before moving to Dayton. Nierman planned to be married in June. Drawer Boy was her third production with Human Race. I send my condolences to Nierman's fiancé, her family and the theater company. ...
NEW STAGE COLLECTIVE, which has two summer seasons of adventurous theater performance under its belt, has announced its 2005 productions, staged this year at the Contemporary Arts Center's subterranean performance space. David Lindsay-Abaire's KIMBERLY AKIMBO (June 23-25) and the Cincinnati premiere of Stephen Sondheim's 1985 Pulitzer Prize winning musical, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE (Aug. 4-13). Info: www.newstagecollective.com.
Mini reviews
ENSEMBLE THEATRE offered a staged reading of a new musical, Orphan Train by Mary Murfitt, on Jan. 31. The story of kids in 1923 shipped west from New York for families to adopt — although many became unpaid servants — is a compelling one about abandonment, love and caring. It's a work in progress (ETC's D. Lynn Meyers might give the show a full staging in ETC's 2005-2006 season), and work is what it needs: There are too many stories being told and too many minor characters to follow (Meyers used a cast of 25 for the reading). But with some focus and paring, Murfitt's heartfelt tunes and several well-drawn characters — an intelligent orphan girl and the spinster music teacher who adopts her — could result in an inspiring piece of theater. (Rick Pender) Grade: Incomplete.
HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY's staging of The Drawer Boy is a story about memory. In Ontario in 1972, young actor Miles (Justin Schultz) disrupts the lives of two farmers, the seemingly addled Angus (Michael Kenwood Lippert) and his argumentative friend Morgan (Bruce Cromer). Miles causes Angus to remember details of his life he lost to a wartime injury, events Morgan has tried to shield. The play is a fine drama with an uplifting undercurrent about friendship and truth. With three actors who find the subtle chemistry between the characters, it's even better. Directed by CCM's Richard Hess, who balances the tension and humor in the production beautifully. Through Sunday. (Rick Pender) Grade: A-
