Not much theater onstage this weekend aside from Mariemont Players production of Steven Dietz’s play, Becky’s New Car (opening tonight and running through Jan. 21 at the Walton Creek Theatre, 4101 Walton Creek Road). If you’ve been a Cincinnati theatergoer for a few years, you might remember this show in a 2010 production at Ensemble Theatre. Becky, a married woman leading a predictable life as a sales manager at a car dealership, describes several big decisions she’s facing. Things have changed after an eccentric millionaire stops by to buy nine cars for his employees. He falls for Becky, whom he thinks is widowed. As she tries to navigate a double life, there’s a lot to keep audiences laughing. Tickets: mariemontplayers.com.
Back in the summer of 2015, Know Theatre staged Hundred Days, a show featuring The Bengsons, Abigail and Shaun, a husband-and-wife duo who have been periodic Cincy Fringe favorites. Their show was a reworked version of a piece they performed during the 2011 Cincy Fringe. An unconventional Indie Rock opera about a pair who fall in love and quickly marry, only to have their time together cut tragically short by a fatal illness. They choose to compress the 60 years they had envisioned together into the 100 days they have left. Know’s Artistic Director Andrew Hungerford, a scenic and lighting designer, has stayed connected. It’s presently in production at the New York Theatre Workshop, and it received notice in the Dec. 18 issue of The New Yorker: Directed by New York-based Anne Kauffman (who staged it in San Francisco and Cincinnati), Hundred Days features “understated choreography [by Sonya Tateh that] meshes beautifully with Andrew Hungerford’s inventive lighting.” He’s also the production’s co-scenic designer. It would be great if Hungerford brought the show back for another round locally.
On Sunday, Ensemble Theatre is hosting an open audition for performers with disabilities. Actors are invited, on behalf of the Casting Society of America (CSA) Inclusion and Diversity Committee, for a general audition call to perform for CSA member D. Lynn Meyers, ETC’s artistic director. This open call to all Equity union and non-union actors is part of CSA’s effort to broaden inclusion. Meyers casts for theater, film, TV and commercial projects. Actors must prepare a 1-2 page film or TV scene and bring a headshot and résumé with them. (Do not email.) Ten-minute time slots can be scheduled online here.
On Tuesday, the national tour of the Broadway musical Waitress opens a two-week run at the Aronoff Center, through Jan. 21. It features a winning score by Pop star and Grammy winner Sara Bareilles. The story of a woman who bakes amazing pies features slices available for purchase in the lobby! Tickets here.
If you haven’t started using Twitter to keep up with local theaters, you might want to give it a try. Here are some handles to consider: @cincyplay (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), @cincyshakes, @ensemblecincy, @UC_CCM, @knowtheatre, @covedalecenter, @broadwaycincy, @NKUTheatreDance, @xaviertheatre, @TrueTHEATRE, @falcontheatre, @cincyfringe, @TCTCincinnati (Children’s Theatre), Madcappuppets and @The_Carnegie. Know of more? Let me know, and I’ll offer them in another Stage Door blog.
Rick Pender’s STAGE DOOR blog appears here every Friday. Find more theater reviews and feature stories here.
This article appears in Jan 3-10, 2018.
