My email box is filled to bursting again, but I won’t have time to do another mailbox post until next week, so I want to just quickly mention three, no, four things going on this weekend that particularly appeal to me:

 1)   From an email that Justin Brady sent me from the Indy Fringe:

 MobyDick Tonight!

May 21-22, 7:30 p.m., $10

“Smart and challenging stuff” – Phoenix Fringe

With “Moby Dick Tonight!”, Minneapolis based storyteller Loren Niemi takes narrative to a far place where conventional narrative ends and improvisation meets poetic imagery. Quotes from Melville give rise to shaggy dog stories, off-handed humor, philosophical digressions, improvised travelogues and erotic memoir. With a suitcase full of props and a chair, Loren condenses the great American novel of obsession and doubt while expanding Melville’s imagery with stories that draw on his experience of reading the novel in particular times and resonate places.

Loren is one of the storytellers that brought “Sex, Drugs, and Audience Participation” to the main Indy Fringe festival last August.   I have known him a long time and I would never miss a chance to hear him tell.

2)   From an email that a new contact, Cathy Strauss, Director of Communications and Development for the Indianapolis School of Ballet, sent me:

The Indianapolis School of Ballet is presenting a one-act ballet “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with three other shorter works on May 22 & 23 at 3:00 PM at the Scottish Rite Cathedral Theater. This performance features our pre-professional dancers and 6 guest artists, most notably Chris Lingner who has been touring and performing professionally for the past two years, one of them with the national Broadway tour of “Movin’ Out.”

I remember seeing this group at Penrod last summer.    Normally, it would not fit my parameters of only writing about shows by and for adults, but, hey, I am flattered to have been approached and I did enjoy their Penrod performance.

3)   Speaking of dance, the professional adult company, Dance Kaleidoscope world-premiered a new show last night called “Pictures at an Exhibition” that sounds intriguing.  I don’t have an email from DK about this show that I can quote you, nor a publicity photo to insert here, so I will just refer you to www.dancekal.org and tell you that I bet this dance piece is worth seeing.

4)   I do have a publicity photo that I can share with you about the show that just opened at the Phoenix Theatre:  “Speech and Debate” by Stephen Karam.  (See above.  Photo by…?)

I had hoped to see this last night, but when I contacted the theatre to make a reservation, director Lori Raffel told me that they had a “house buy-out” for that night.  One of the actors posted on his Facebook page that Saturday night is already sold out, too.  How cool is that!  I am definitely going to see it sometime.  I will share the bulk of the press release below.  If the show appeals to you, I would make a reservation right away.

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Indianapolis – The Phoenix Theatre of Indianapolis announces the Indiana Premiere of Speech & Debate. Written by Stephen Karam, this play starts Thursday, May 20 and runs through June 27, 2010 in the Frank & Katrina Basile Theatre at the Phoenix.

Sex, secrets and performance-art video blogs with a George Michael beat — just another typical day when you’re a teenage outcast in Salem, Oregon. Solomon, Diwata and Howie are not the typical high school debate team. An aspiring teen journalist, an awkward wannabe actress and the openly gay new kid in town have never met, but when a shocking scandal involving one of their teachers brings them together through an unexpected chain of events, they realize three voices are stronger than one. Maybe starting their school’s first speech and debate squad will be their chance to be heard at last—by the school and even by the world.  

Variety aptly described Speech & Debate as “Bristling with vitality, wicked humor, terrific dialogue and a direct pipeline into the zeitgeist of contemporary youth.” Playwright Stephen Karam creates a hilarious and revealing portrait of the borderland between late adolescence and early adulthood in this clever and contemporary comedy about the life of the un-average American teenager. Full of unbridled dark humor, Speech & Debate tackles issues of politics, sexuality, and self-expression in the digital age. 

Phoenix Producing Director Bryan Fonseca said “Last year when we were selecting plays for this season, Glee had just aired on Fox and was becoming wildly popular.  With a great mix of music, social issues and high school angst, Speech & Debate seemed like a perfect fit for the Phoenix.”  

All three teenagers are played by Phoenix Theatre alums who are also Butler University students. Kelli Johnson, previously seen in June 8, 1968 and The Dos and Don’ts of Time Travel, plays the overly-dramatic Diwata.  Mark Presto plays aspiring journalist Solomon and was previously seen in the Phoenix production of My Dad is in Atlantis.  Rounding out the “teenage” cast is Matthew Van Oss, most recently seen on the Phoenix stage in End Days, who plays recent high school transfer student Howie.  Playing multiple adult parts is Nate Walden, seen in last year’s Octopus.    

In addition to GLAAD Media nominated Speech & Debate, which ran an acclaimed and twice-extended run at Roundabout Theatre Company, Stephen Karam is also the co-author of columbinus (2006 Helen Hayes nomination), which ran off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop following a co-production by Round House/Perseverance Theatres. He is currently working on a new play commission for Roundabout Theatre Company and a screenplay adaptation of Speech & Debate for Overture Films. Karam’s writing has also appeared in The Advocate and online at McSweeney’s. He is a graduate of Brown University. 

Speech & Debate is directed by Lori Raffel, who most recently directed Crimes of the Heart for Carmel Community Players and was Assistant Director for A Very Phoenix Xmas 4: Our Stockings Are Stuffed.   Bryan Fonseca is producing the show. The high school world of Speech & Debate is being created by set designer Robert Broadfoot, who most recently designed the Sunlight set on the Phoenix Mainstage. Nolan Brokamp is designing lights, Tricia Schiro-Long is costume designer and Rachel Sellers is stage manager for the production.  

Ticket Prices

Thanks to the generosity of Duke Energy, our CheapSeats performances have expanded to Thursdays and Sundays, so our prices for the 2009-2010 Season are $15.00 per person on Thursdays and Sundays. The Phoenix continues to offer Friday and Saturday shows for $20.00 per person (down from $25.00 last season) and a youth rate of $15 for those 24 and under. All seating is general admission on a first-come, first-served basis. Performances are Thursdays at 7:00 pm; Fridays at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 8:00 pm. and Sundays at 2:00 pm. Doors open ½ hour prior to curtain for seating. The Phoenix Pub, located inside the theatre, offers beer, wine, soft drinks, coffee, and bottled water, as well as treats, and all refreshments may be taken into either theatre and consumed during the performance. 

For more information about any Phoenix productions or to purchase tickets, call the Phoenix Theatre box office at 317.635.PLAY(7529). Tickets may also be purchased online. The theatre’s website is www.phoenixtheatre.org. 

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I won’t be able to see all four of these shows, nor all of the other shows that I would like to see that are running in the Indianapolis area this weekend.  It’s a good problem to have, isn’t it.

‘See you at the theatres!

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Follow @IndyTheatre on Twitter.com, too.

As always, there was a lot going on in terms of live theatre in the Indianapolis area last weekend and I have a lot in my email box about events coming up. 

Here is my writing plan for the next few days:

• Word of Mouth and Mailbox (today’s post)
• IndyFringe DivaFest Overview
• Spotlight 2010 – For the Record
• Theatre Review: “Dash Thirty Dash” at IndyFringe DivaFest
• Theatre Review: “Madwomen’s Late Night Cabaret” at IndyFringe DivaFest
• Theatre Review: “Always Patsy Cline” at Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre.  (And since this show runs through June 6, 2010, I will tell you right away that whether or not you are a country music fan, this show is a treat.  It is a satisfying musical tribute to the late Patsy Cline, but it also a moving and funny show about friendship and the power of musical storytelling in general.  Plus there are lots of beautiful dresses.)
• If I have time, something related to the copious, compulsive notes I took at the Steven Dietz interview last month and the DivaFest panel of advisors this month.

In the meantime, here are a few items from last weekend’s gallivanting and from my email box, in random order:

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At the Spotlight benefit for the Indiana AIDS Fund Monday night, I ran into Encore Association community theatre judges Jeremy Cales and Karen Webster.  I was delighted to hear that they are both going to serve as judges a second year.  I know from experience that being a judge for the Encore Awards is in many ways a very rewarding volunteer job, but it is also hugely time-consuming, sometimes difficult, and often thankless.  Thank you, Jeremy and Karen, for serving!

I was also impressed to hear that Jeremy has become an Equity stage manager.  He is running shows for Actors Theatre of Indiana.  Congratulations, Jeremy!

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My Google alert emails are usually pretty bizarre and useless but every once in a while the service tells me about an actual person quoting a review from Indy Theatre Habit and/or linking to it.  This is usually just a simple ego boost for me, but recently, when I learned that costumer Karen Witting had quoted me, I was also delighted to go to her website (http://karenwitting.com/Portfolio.html) and find a fun slide show of some of the shows she has costumed.  Thanks, Karen!

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News of a show (with photo – yay!) AND a new-to-me theatre award, came to me from Bobbi Van Howe and an all-volunteer theatre in Westfield, Indiana.  Here is an excerpt from her email:

…if you are a dues paying member of Main Street Productions, (only $10.00) your attendance is very important.  As a member you have the opportunity to vote in September for acting awards for the previous season.  See all the shows from September to August then vote for who you feel is best actor, actress, minor supporting roles, director, production, child performer, etc.  We then present awards (the Westie) to the performers that receive the most votes.  This is show #3 for our season.  Have you seen them all?

Just a reminder to call in those reservations!  This is very fun show that you don’t want to miss!

WHAT:    Wrinkled Rebellion – a play by Indiana’s own Ron Schnitzius

WHEN:    May 7-9, 14-16    Fri & Sat 7:30pm, Sundays 2:30pm

WHERE:  Westfield Playhouse  1836 West SR 32, Eagletown, IN- 3 miles west of North US 31

COST:     Adults $12.00     Senior/Student  $ 10.00       

RESERVATIONS:  317-896-2707  seating is limited

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An email from the Indianapolis Civic Theatre’s Ulrike Steinert says that this is her last week as Marketing Director there.  She is “moving on to other endeavors.”  Ulrike was one of the first theatre marketing people to say “yes” to my requests for media passes, back in 2007 when I was writing as Amaryllis Jones for IndianaAuditions.com.  I have enjoyed working with Ulrike.  I wish her good luck!

“A Flea in Her Ear” opened at the hybrid (partly volunteer, partly paid professional) Indy Civic last week.   Here is one of the photos with captions that Ulrike emailed me before she left:

“Mongrel! Snake! Reptile!”

Ian Cruz (holding gun) is jealous husband Don Carlos Homenides de Histangua, who erroneously thinks his friend Victor Emmanuel Chandebise played by Paul Hansen is having an affair with his wife in Indianapolis Civic Theatre’s production A FLEA IN HER EAR closing the Theatre’s 2009-2010 season May 7 through May 23, 2010. In true French farce fashion, there are plenty of complications, mistaken identities, revolving beds, a great many doors and unbridled passions in this Georges Feydeau classic, superbly translated by Sir John Mortimer. The show is directed by Robert J. Sorbera. More information at www.civictheatre.org.

Actually, I can’t resist sharing two photos from this show, because the costumes seem so gorgeous.  I assume they were designed and built by Indy Civic’s resident costumer, Jean Engstrom:

“I’ve got the stuff! A bottle of Scarlet Woman…”
Christine Kruz(left) is suspicious wife Raymonde Chandebise who concocts a plot—based on a perfumed letter—to catch her alledgedly filandering husband Victor Emmanuael at the Hotel Coq d’Or in Montretout, and Carrie Bennett Fedoris Lucienne, her best friend and co-conspirator in Indianapolis Civic Theatre’s production of A FLEA IN HER EAR closing the Theatre’s 2009-2010 season May 7 through May 23, 2010. In true French farce fashion, the scheme misfires when everyone shows up at the hotel, complicated by confused identities, revolving beds, a great many doors and the fact that the stupid hotel porter, Poche, is the exact double of Victor Emmanuel in this Georges Feydeau classic, superbly translated by Sir John Mortimer. The show is directed by Robert J. Sorbera. More information at www.civictheatre.org.

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Bryan Fonseca from the all-professional-artists Phoenix Theatre sent the following email to my more private email address.  It is a conversational email, not a press release, but I am sure that he sent it to more people than just me so I think (I hope!) it will be okay to share here.  I was touched by its warmth and it made me curious about the show: 

Hey there

I’ve been working on and off on a pet project for a couple of years and it’s finally coming to fruition. I’m a huge fan of John Prine. His music speaks to me. Lyrically, he is a great story-teller and poet. There is genuine warmth and wisdom in his songs. But mostly I’m attracted to his quirky, folksy humor. I don’t want to make a comparison to a storyteller or folk singer because he is that unique.

So I’ve fashioned a play using only his songs to tell the story. There is no dialogue. It’s only his music – played live. It’s sort of folk opera. Six distinct characters come together to share tall tales, hidden desires and quite a few beers at the local bar. (This takes place on the wonderful set of Yankee Tavern.)

Tim Brickley, Jenni Gregory, Tim Grimm, Bobbie Lancaster, Jan Lucas and Michael Shelton make up the cast, Laura Glover is doing the lighting and I’m staging the event.

Hope to see you there.

7 performances only – make a reservation early. I really think you’ll enjoy it.

Bryan

*****

Both Gabe Gloden and Holly Holbrook from the Bloomington Playwrights Project sent me info about an exciting series going on in Bloomington.  Here is the scoop, with  logo (I usually only post cast photos, but isn’t this a pretty logo?):

2010 BloomingPlays Festival

Staged Readings Series

Free & Open to the Public

09/10 BloomingPlays Development Series Participants

Wednesday, May 19th at 8pm

Student New Play Showcase

Wednesday, May 26th at 8pm

at the Bloomington Playwrights Project

107 W. 9th St.

812.334.1188

newplays.org

Bloomington, IN — The Bloomington Playwrights Project (BPP) announces the 2010 BloomingPlays Festival Staged Readings Series featuring two free showcases of theatrical performances. 

On Wednesday, May 19 at 8pm, the BPP will host readings of three plays developed over the past season at the theatre from local Bloomington playwrights:

Things to Believe In by Josie Gingrich & Gayle Gingrich

A young woman’s offhand question about JFK’s assassination sends her mother on a path of remembrance about her own childhood.  Written by a mother-daughter team, Things to Believe In is about parenthood, finding your place in the world, and above all, hope.

The Good Daughter by Brenda Hiatt Barber

When their aging mother appears to be slipping mentally, three daughters argue over who will take care of her. At first, they try to top each other’s excuses but then, when they’re given a substantial financial incentive, they compete to be chosen as her caretaker. However, Mom gets the last laugh.

Kindred by Cairril Adaire & Lori Garraghty

One’s on the board of the Junior League.  The other volunteers at a homeless shelter.  Two sisters, living opposite lives, are forced to examine their past as well as their future in light of their mother’s pending return from the hospital.

The following week on Wednesday, May 26th at 8pm, the BPP will host a showcase of new plays by Indiana student playwrights from Hanover College and Indiana University.  Continuing its initiative to develop and encourage new works by Indiana playwrights, the BPP has chosen four of the best local student playwrights for this year’s Student Showcase.  The night will feature works by playwrights Abbey Guthrie and Caitlin Willenbrink from Hanover College, and Clayton Gerrard and Kelly P. Lusk from Indiana University. 

An Evening Bath by Abbey Guthrie (Hanover)

Diane and Warren have been married for decades, but now Warren’s jealous because his wife his playing fantasy dress-up with someone else – the dog

What Goes Up Must by Caitlin Willenbrink (Hanover)

Jack and Jill went up the hill and met Jill’s secret lover.  Jack would frown, throw off his crown, as Jill went after another.

Gerald and Jinny by Clayton Gerrard (IU)

A one act play about a couple, coffee, and art:  She gets him.  He gets her.  They get it.  Gerald and Jinny.  That’s who they are.

The Day We Fell in Love by Kelly P. Lusk (IU)

What are you supposed to do when you’re young and in love?  And what if you’re not loved back?  Three adolescents search for the answers in sex, paint, a dead deer, and a gun.

Admission is free and open to the public.  No reservations are required.  Visit www.newplays.org for more information about the 2010 BloomingPlays Festival.

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Shayla Kenworthy, Director of Special Events & Communications for the Wayne Township Education Foundation, sent me the following cast announcement for the all-volunteer Wayne Township Community Theatre’s production of “Man of La Mancha.”  The show doesn’t open for a little while, so I should probably hold this email until a later Mailbox post, but I was excited to see that some of my destination actor/vocalists are on this list, so I’m sharing it:                              

Wayne Township Community Theatre is proud to announce the Man of La Mancha! cast list.

Cast List:

Cervantes/Don Quixote: Paul Nicely

The Manservant/Sancho: Jeremy Brimm

Aldonza: Linda Heiden

Dr. Carrasco/Duke: Andrew Dillon

Governor/Innkeeper: Rory Shivers

Lt Governor/Stable Master: Ray Middleton

The Padre: John Phillips

The Housekeeper/Innkeeper’s Wife: Adrienne Reiswerg

Antonia: Libby Adams

Housemaid/Innkeeper: Jo Ann Klooz        

The Barber: Nathan Erdel

Captain of the Guard:  Scott Cline

Pedro: Aaron Cleveland

Guillermo: Jake DeWitt

Rosalita: Erica Freeman        

Luisa: Alix Keller         

Helena: Megan Lamar        

Rosa: Janis Schoo

Staff List:

Producers: Scott Cline & the Wayne Township Education Foundation

Director: Stacy Embry        

Music Director:  Deb Farmer

Assistant Director: Edie McDonnel        

Production Assistant:  Sami Hertenstein  

Performances will run Thursday – Saturday June 10-19, 20010.  All shows begin at 7:30 p.m.  General admission tickets are $10, Senior tickets $8 and Student tickets $7. You can reserve your tickets by calling the Wayne Township Education Foundation at (317) 390-0363 or purchase your tickets at the door.

For more information regarding Man of La Mancha please visit our website www.wayne.k12.in.us/wtef.

All Wayne Township Community Theatre shows are in conjunction with the Wayne Township Education Foundation.  All WTCT proceeds benefit teacher and student grants in MSD Wayne Township.

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And from Rann DeStefano, the following info and photo (yay, publicity photos!) from the all-volunteer Epilogue Players:

EPILOGUE PLAYERS

1849 N. Alabama

Indianapolis 46202

Title of Show:”Dr. Cook’s Garden”

Author: Ira Levin

Director: Beverly Gray

Cast: Ken Klingenmeier as Dr. Cook, Bob Willsey as Dr. Jim, Ethel Booth as Bea, Pat McKinley as Dora and Steve Demuth as Elias.

When: Three Weekends, May 7 thru 23, 2010

Fri. & Sat. 7:30 PM – Sun. 2 PM

Ticket Prices: Reg. $10; Members & Seniors: $9; Children (12 & under) $8

Reservations are required:  Call (317) 926-3139 or email epilogue.players@yahoo.com

This show is a powerful drama about an idyllic, contented small town in Vermont. Caring for its people is the beloved elderly Doctor Cook. Trouble brews when a former protégé of Dr. Cook comes for a visit and questions just what is going on with medical practices and procedures and in his home town.

Elias (Steve Demuth) welcomes Dr. Jim (Bob Willsey) as Bea (Ethel Booth) and Dora (Pat McKinley)  look on.

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If Indy Theatre Habit had a staff, I would send someone to report on the following, but since I am the only ITH staff member at the moment, I’ll just share the announcement:

Carmel Community Players proudly announces its 2010 Annual Members Meeting.  It will take place on Wednesday, May 19 at 7:00pm at the Carmel Community Playhouse located at 14299 Clay Terrace Blvd., Suite 140 in Carmel.  Doors open at 6:45pm for check-in and refreshments.

The meeting is open to anyone.  Attendees may establish or renew their CCP memberships that night ($25 minimum annually). If you are a member and cannot attend, you may send a written proxy assigning your voting privilege to another attendee.

The evening’s agenda includes Officers’ annual reports, elections for members of the Board of Directors and the announcement of CCP’s 2010-2011 season.

Carmel Community Players opened the doors of its classy 130-seat venue at Clay Terrace on October 15, 2009.  Since then, over 7,000 people have attended CCP productions and other events in the Playhouse.

For directions, go to http://carmelplayhouse.com/directions.

For further information, call 317-815-9387 or go to www.carmelplayers.org.

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Whew!  That is all I’m going to share from my mailbox right now, but I also want to mention that Nuvo is running its annual “Best of Indy” reader survey through June 11, 2010.  There is a place to write in your favorite local niche blog if you are so inclined…

Or, you know, you could just send me a birthday email on June 6 with the phrase “Hope, I love reading your blog!” and that would be great, too. (amarylliswriter at gmail dot com)

‘See you at the theatres!

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Follow @IndyTheatre on Twitter.com, too!

On Sunday, January 24, 2010, I drove to the Frank and Katrina Basile Theatre in the newly renovated Indiana History Center in downtown Indianapolis to hear the premiere performance of “Root Doctors, Midwives, and Fried-Mice Pie: Medicine in Early Indiana.”  Storyteller Susan Grizzell was commissioned to develop and present this piece by Storytelling Arts of Indiana and the Indiana Historical Society as part of their Sharing Hoosier History Through Stories Series.

Not all public speaking involves storytelling.  This piece as presented was more of a read-from-notes lecture than a storytelling – more about this in a moment – but the information was interesting and Sue delivered it warmly.

She stood behind a podium next to a lace-covered table on which were several onions and an egg and something else that size that I couldn’t identify from where I sat.

She shared a wealth of information from a variety of cited sources about early medical practices throughout the young United States, not just Indiana.  Much of it was ghastly, so the audience shivered in delight and gratitude that we no longer rely on, for example, axes under the bed to “cut the pain” of childbirth, or “cupping” and mustard poultices to raise welts on a patient’s skin to “pull” the illnesses out.  We gasped and cringed at the thought of removing birthmarks by rubbing them with the hand of a corpse, too. 

We laughed out loud at the thought of boiling a piece of pork meat in a patient’s urine three times and then feeding it to a pig or dog (but not your neighbor’s) so that the animal would die instead of the patient.

By the end of the program, though, when Sue was throwing the onions into the audience and prescribing them for various ailments, I felt impressed but…dissatisfied.  I felt impressed by all of the research that had obviously gone into this presentation – and I believed Sue when she said that there were many more treatments and recipes “on the cutting room floor.”  However, I had come to hear stories and at the end of the program I didn’t feel that I had heard any stories, only references to stories, if that makes sense.

Every once in a while it would seem that we were going to settle in to a story – something with people that we could get to know, having problems we could sympathize with, finding solutions that we could rejoice along with, or experiencing tragedies that we could empathize with, or whatever – but no, too quickly we were on to the next bit of information. 

I think, for example, that I would have liked to have been led by the storyteller more deeply into the personalities and actions that were part of the rivalry between the “heroic”-style doctors and the new root doctor, Thomas Chin, in the settlement where after a while everyone was putting up a shingle and calling himself a root doctor, even the man who had been a constable three weeks ago.   There are all kinds of potential humorous, cultural, and otherwise engaging story elements to unpack and flesh out in that one sentence.

And if all that wasn’t already neatly packaged and ready to learn and tell in the primary sources, then I am okay with the storyteller imagining and filling in what was not in the primary sources.  A well-crafted story can usually give the feelings and motivations and truth of a topic more effectively than mere facts.  I also think it is possible to craft a story while still respecting the facts.

I know that Sue knows how to do this because I have heard her do it many times before.  I think she just ran out of preparation time this time.

For another example, I think I would have liked to linger in a story about birthing practices.  Sue went into storytelling mode about this sub-topic at one point, telling about one specific birth and the people who were present at it, and tying it somehow to her own experiences as a mother.  You could tell it was storytelling and not fact-telling then because everyone went deeply still for a moment, listening.  But too quickly, before we had time to feel the relief with the pioneer family or share their grief or even just process however the story ended, we were on to the next piece of information.

There are other “story embryos” among the wealth of information that Sue gathered.  Maybe some of those, if more fully developed into stories, would be even more interesting to an audience of story listeners than the ones that caught my attention.

So…as is, this piece is a very interesting talk on the subject of medicine in early Indiana, but I think it has the potential to be a great example of the art and craft of storytelling.  In fact, Sue herself hinted at the end of the premiere that she hoped to continue to work on shaping the piece into a more narrative form.  I hope she does.  I expect that Sue will get a chance to present this piece a few more times this year around the state as part of the Sharing Hoosier History Through Stories grant.  I hope I get to hear it again as it evolves!

Box Office/Mailbox –

Below are excerpts from the press releases I received about the next two Storytelling Arts events (with a link embedded by me to my thoughts about the first “Jabberwocky” event.)  I am looking forward to both of them.  And how cool is it that the “Jabberwocky” series at the Indy Fringe building is supported by the Indianapolis public transportation system!  I admire whoever thought of that sensible partnership.

Indianapolis – Storytelling Arts of Indiana and Indy Fringe Festival present the second Jabberwocky (a rendezvous of Jabbers who share their life stories) on Tuesday, February 9th at the Indy Fringe Theatre, 719 East St. Clair St, doors open at 5:30 p.m., the program begins at 6 p.m.  Tickets are $10 at the door which includes hearty soup, bread, snacks and a cash bar.

What do actors, librarians and teachers all have in common? Stories that begin with Once Upon a Time. This is a night of lustful humor, Harlequin romances and good stories by Ron Spencer of Theatre on the Square, actor Gayle Steigerwald and storyteller Celestine Bloomfield. After the heavy breathing subsides, audience members get their chance to jump in and share a tale or two. Stories shared during the open-mike portion should be limited to 3 – 5 minutes.

Jabberwocky is supported by IndyGo. IndyGo Route 5, Route 11, Route 17 and Route 21 serve the Indy Fringe Theatre.

Jabberwocky is a monthly event based themes to get every day folks to share their life stories.  Upcoming theses include Off-Key Musicians on March 9th, and Worst Case Scenarios on April 13th. Indy Fringe Festival and Storytelling Arts of Indiana have a history of collaboration. Most recently, Storytelling Arts of Indiana sponsored a stage during the 2009 Indy Fringe Festival which featured several storytellers. To learn more about the 2010 Indy Fringe Festival visit, www.indyfringe.org and upcoming storytelling events visit, www.storytellingarts.org. 
 
 *****

Indianapolis- Talk of the Town: The Tenth Annual Benefit for Storytelling Arts of Indiana is scheduled for Saturday, February 20, 2010 at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center.  The evening hosted by Lou Harry of the Indianapolis Business Journal includes a dinner, silent auction and storytelling performance, Stories for the Journey Home, told by Carmen Agra Deedy who is known for her razor-sharp wit. 

Carmen Agra Deedy is an award-winning storyteller who was born in Havana, Cuba. In 1960, she emigrated from her homeland during the Cuban Revolution, a move that has profoundly affected her life and her work. Her parents, strong proponents of human rights, decided to leave after four tumultuous years in the midst of a revolutionary environment. They took Carmen and her sister and found sanctuary in the United States under the JFK Cuban Refugee Act of 1963. They settled in Decatur, Georgia, where they coped with the separation from loved ones still in Cuba and slowly acclimated to cultural differences. The Agra family ultimately succeeded in starting over and rebuilding their lives.

While Deedy’s storytelling reflects these themes of separation and deprivation, she shapes and crafts her stories with humor. Also essential to Deedy’s experience are her strong sense of perseverance and her dual heritage, drawn from growing up steeped in the riches of both Latin American and Southern culture. 

This event begins in the Startdust Terrace Café and moves upstairs to the Frank and Katrina Basile Theater located in the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center, 450 W. Ohio St. Tickets for the entire evening are $80 per person. Tickets for the performance only are $20 in advance or $25 at the door. To order tickets or for more information, call the Indiana History Center at (317) 232-1882 or (800) 447-1830 or purchase tickets on-line, www.storytellingarts.org. Free parking is available at the Indiana History Center in its parking lot at the corner of West and New York streets. 

‘See you at the theatres!

 Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Follow @IndyTheatre on Twitter.com, too!

P.S. – The headshot I received of Susan Grizzell from Storytelling Arts of Indiana was too big of a jpg file, apparently, for resizing via Flickr.com or Wordpress.  Anyway, I couldn’t figure out how to make it work, unfortunately.  ‘Sorry!  But as a sort of substitute, I do like the “Herb Bundles” photo by Carolina Gonzalez, because Sue referred to herbs a lot in her talk.

I leave for Boston in 15 minutes or so, to attend the American Library Association’s Midwinter Meeting and to help decide the ten winners of the Alex Award.  You may remember that I posted about last year’s winners here.

This means that I will not be able to see any of the many intriguing shows that are going on around Indianapolis this weekend.  So…I’ll just tell you that if I were going to be home, I would think about seeing the all-volunteer production of “Jerry’s Girls” at Footlite Musicals. 

I would also want to catch the opening of a new play called “The Housewives of Mannheim” at the Phoenix Theatre.   Doesn’t that photo, above, by Julie Curry make it look like an interesting show?  The actor on the left is Martha Jacobs.  The actor on the right is Lauren Briggeman.

Here is most of the press release that Phoenix Marketing and Media Relations Director Lori Raffel sent me:

PHOENIX THEATRE TO PRESENT THE HOUSEWIVES OF MANNHEIM 
JANUARY 14 – FEBRUARY 6, 2010 

Indianapolis – The Phoenix Theatre of Indianapolis announces The Housewives of Mannheim. Written by Alan Brody, this play starts Thursday, January 14 and runs through February 6, 2010 on the Phoenix Mainstage.

The Housewives of Mannheim takes its name from a mock Johannes Vermeer painting that depicts four 17th-century women enveloped in the warm camaraderie of shared domestic tasks. In The Housewives, it is 1944; World War II grinds on, and Jewish housewives May Black, Alice Cohen, and Billie Friedhoff, portrayed respectively by actresses Lauren Briggeman, Wendy Peace, and Allison Moody, reside in an apartment building in a working-class section of Brooklyn.

May is the neighborhood beauty, while Alice is the local yenta and self-proclaimed moral compass of the community. Their husbands are overseas battling the Nazis. Billie is a “bohemian” and entrepreneur who sells linens from her apartment. She is trapped in a loveless marriage; ironically, her husband is the only one of the three still at home. The three women are part of a tightly knit community in which everyone knows everyone — and everyone’s private business. These women care for their children, maintain their homes, shop and gossip, but at least three of the housewives wonder if there is a more challenging and rewarding life beyond their apartment building. 

The catalyst that sets things in motion is the arrival of new neighbor Sophie (Martha Jacobs), an older, more sophisticated Jewish refugee from Europe who offers a tantalizing glimpse of a larger world beyond the fire escapes of Flatbush. When Sophie is introduced, the dynamic among the trio of Brooklyn housewives is changed dramatically and the women yearn to break free of their self-imposed, safe existence.

The play evokes childhood scenarios for SuzAnne Barabas, NJ Rep’s artistic director, who directed Housewives in its New Jersey premiere and is directing the play at the Phoenix. “My mother in Brooklyn was the same as these women,” said Barabas, a resident of Long Branch, New Jersey. “This was the life they lived, built around family and shopping at local stores. Who they are drives this story. But this community doesn’t exist anymore — it’s moved to the suburbs.”

The playwright is Alan Brody, a novelist and theater professor at MIT whose many plays have won numerous awards — including the Rosenthal Award in 1989 and the 1990 Eisner Award from the Streisand Center for Jewish Culture. Housewives was cited as best play of 1995 at the Harvest Festival of Plays and subsequently won the Reva Shiner Award at the Bloomington (Indiana) Playwrights Conference.  Brody calls The Housewives of Mannheim a “memory play” because he lived in a Brooklyn apartment house that was an extended community very much like the one in Housewives until he was 12.

For Phoenix Producing Director Bryan Fonseca, who is producing Housewives, the show represents women “contemplating freedoms that would only truly be available to generations of women yet to come. Each of these women discovers something about themselves that their husbands never could. In spite of this play’s setting in 1944, the message is very modern.” When Fonseca met Barabas at a National New Play Network (NNPN) conference last June, he was “intrigued by SuzAnne’s passion for this period piece and the characters that bring it to life.” Fonseca went on to say that “the idea of working with a director from another contemporary theatre company has always been a draw for me.”  

The Phoenix has only produced five period pieces in the last 10 years, so Housewives, which takes place in 1944, is a real departure for the contemporary theatre. Long-time Phoenix “go-to” set designer James Gross has his work cut out for him in reproducing the heart of the family home in those days – the kitchen. In addition, Karen Witting will be designing costumes for the four actresses and Merek Press will be recreating the sounds of the era.  Laura Glover is designing the lights and Christopher Hansen, Technical Director at the Phoenix, is in charge of props.      

Ticket Prices

Thanks to the generosity of Duke Energy, our CheapSeats performances have expanded to Thursdays and Sundays, so our prices for the 2009-2010 Season are $15.00 per person on Thursdays and Sundays. In response to the economy, and because we know that there are only so many entertainment dollars to go around, we are offering a discounted rate of $20.00 per person on Fridays and Saturdays (down from $25.00 last season). The Phoenix continues to offer a youth rate of $15 for those 24 and under. All seating is general admission on a first-come, first-served basis. Performances are Thursdays at 7:00 pm; Fridays at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 8:00 pm. and Sundays at 2:00 pm. Doors open ½ hour prior to curtain for seating. The Phoenix Pub, located inside the theatre, offers beer, wine, soft drinks, coffee, and bottled water, as well as treats, and all refreshments may be taken into either theatre and consumed during the performance. 

For more information about any Phoenix productions or to purchase tickets, call the Phoenix Theatre box office at 317.635.PLAY(7529). Tickets may also be purchased online. The theatre’s website is www.phoenixtheatre.org. 

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So I won’t see you at the theatres this weekend, but I’ll see you when I get back.  There are several other shows running that I would still like to see as well.  If you go to the theatre this weekend, please let me know what you thought of what you saw!

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

I am delighted for one of my favorite playwrights:

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

www.nationaltheatreconference.org

November 3, 2009

 JAMES STILL ELECTED TO THE NATIONAL THEATRE CONFERENCE

 Playwright James Still is a newly-elected member of the National Theatre Conference and was inducted on October 30, 2009 at the historic Players Club in New York City.

The National Theatre Conference, founded in 1925, is a cooperative association of distinguished leaders of the American theatre — university, community, and professional.  Membership in the conference is by invitation only, and is limited to 120.  The conference operates as a theatrical “think tank” and meets annually to review and confer on matters pertaining to the welfare and development of the theatre and to honor outstanding achievement of organizations and individuals in the field.  For more information, see www.nationaltheatreconference.org.

Of special note to Mr. Still is that the National Theatre Conference meets annually at The Players Club at 16 Gramercy Park in New York which was where Edwin Booth lived (and died).  Audiences will remember that Edwin Booth was a character in James Still’s recent play THE HEAVENS ARE HUNG IN BLACK.  For more information about The Players Club see www.theplayersnyc.org/.

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James Still, as you probably remember, is the playwright-in-residence at the Indiana Repertory Theatre. He was one of my first interviews for this blog.

Yay, James!

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com and @IndyTheatre

Guess what?!  Broadway Across America is adding me to their media distribution list!  (Thanks very much, Nancy Parrott and Elizabeth Truitt!)  I have included an excerpt from their first press release to me at the bottom of this post.  I love reading press releases, don’t you?  Beyond their content, as pieces of writing they are as fascinating and enjoyable to me as theatre reviews.

Now if you have been reading my blog from the beginning, you may be thinking, “Hope!  The focus of your blog is live theatre in the Indianapolis area.  You don’t have time to see and write about every locally-produced show as it is!  What are you doing negotiating for media passes with a touring organization?”

The answer is: I am furthering my education.

The more I write about live theatre, the more I love it and the more I want to learn about it, and that means seeing and writing about as many kinds of theatre as I can without going into debt.  Last year I served as an Encore Association judge on top of my self-assigned blogging duties because I wanted to learn more about the eleven all-volunteer theatres in that organization and very few of them would give me media passes.  Serving as a judge was a win-win solution. 

This year I would like to understand better what all the fuss is about Broadway shows, as well as continue my life journey of learning about all kinds of theatre.  Some day I may be able to afford a trip to New York City to experience some shows there, but in the meantime I am delighted to get the chance to see some Broadway shows here at home.

Speaking of Wealth

Yesterday I happened to be in the Half-Priced Book Store at 86^th and Ditch Road looking at theatre textbooks. In one of them I read, “Most cities have one professional theatre company and three or four community theatres.” 

I laughed out loud.  Indianapolis has a whole handful of professional theatre companies and more community (volunteer) theatre companies than even I, a confirmed theatre junkie, can count. 

As always, the fact that there are always more live theatre shows in the Indy area than I have time to see makes me feel both rich and frustrated.

You may have noticed that I revised my “About the Blog” page recently to reflect my approach to dealing with all of this wealth.  I give first priority to theatres who give me media passes and who email* me press releases, publicity photos, and season announcements on a regular basis (preferably well in advance of opening nights) AND who understand that I do not write critiques or publicity pieces, only my honest and very personal responses to shows.  I focus on what I appreciated about a show because that is what interests me most.

I also come to theatre reviewing from a background in book reviewing and readers’ advisory librarianship.  The mantra in my profession is “Never apologize for your reading tastes.”  If you’re in the mood for Dan Brown or Stephenie Meyer, I’m not going to play snob and try to convince you that you should be reading something more literary.  On the other hand, I’m also not going to tell you to lighten up and live a little if you are dead set on reading Moby Dick. 

Here on Indy Theatre Habit, I won’t tell you what shows you should be seeing either.  Only you know what kind of show you’re in the mood for, or what matters most to you about a production.  I hope my reviews will give you some information to help you make your own decisions, take your own risks, and give some sort of live theatre a try.

And now I’ll be including some touring Broadway shows in my review mix!

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

*My email:  amarylliswriter at gmail dot com.

P.S. – Below is most of the press release I received about Broadway Across America’s “Mamma Mia!”  I would love to see this show, but I had already committed to reviewing other shows the one weekend it is in town.  If you see it, please drop me a line (email or comment box) about what you thought of it!

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Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus’ MAMMA MIA!, the smash hit musical based on the songs of ABBA, returns to Indianapolis for a limited return engagement October 23-25, 2009 as a Broadway Across America special presentation.  

Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased from an authorized ticket agent at Clowes Memorial Hall, downtown at the Broadway Across America Box Office, the Murat Theatre online at BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com, or by phone at 1-800-982-2787.  

Seen by over 40 million people around the world, Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus’ global smash hit musical MAMMA MIA! is celebrating 7 sold-out years at the Winter Garden Theatre on Broadway, and is currently playing a record-breaking engagement on its National Tour in the United States.  The original West End production has played more than 4,000 performances, an international tour has played in more than 40 foreign cities, and the blockbuster feature film adaptation, produced by Judy Craymer and Gary Goetzman, is the most successful movie musical of all time grossing $600 million worldwide. 

An independent, single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island, Donna is about to let go of Sophie, the spirited daughter she’s raised alone. For Sophie’s wedding, Donna has invited her two lifelong best girlfriends—practical and no-nonsense Rosie and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya – from her one-time backing band, Donna and the Dynamos. But Sophie has secretly invited three guests of her own. 

On a quest to find the identity of her father to walk her down the aisle, she brings back three men from Donna’s past to the Mediterranean paradise they visited 20 years earlier. Over 24 chaotic, magical hours, new love will bloom and old romances will be rekindled on this lush island full of possibilities. 

Inspired by the storytelling magic of ABBA’s songs from “Dancing Queen” and “S.O.S.” to “Money, Money, Money” and “Take a Chance on Me,” MAMMA MIA! is a celebration of mothers and daughters, old friends and new family found. 

MAMMA MIA! will play Clowes Memorial Hall October 23-25, 2009: Friday at 8:00PM, Saturday at 2:00PM and 8:00PM, and Sunday at 1:00PM and 6:30PM. Tickets range in price from $27-$72 depending on the seat location and performance date. Tickets may be purchased from an authorized ticket agent online at BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com, downtown at the Broadway Across America Box Office, Clowes Memorial Hall, the Murat Theatre or by phone at 1-800-982-2787. Groups of 15 or more should call 317-632-5182 x 103.

Produced by Judy Craymer, Richard East and Björn Ulvaeus for Littlestar in association with Universal, the creative team responsible for bringing MAMMA MIA! to theatrical life includes some of the most gifted and celebrated talents of musical theatre and opera. With music and lyrics by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, MAMMA MIA! is written by Catherine Johnson and directed by Phyllida Lloyd. MAMMA MIA! has choreography by Anthony Van Laast, production design by Mark Thompson, lighting design by Howard Harrison, sound design by Andrew Bruce and Bobby Aitken, and musical supervision, additional material and arrangements by Martin Koch. 

The special edition cast recording of MAMMA MIA! is available on Decca Broadway. 

For information about MAMMA MIA! around the world, go to www.mamma.mia.com.  

About Broadway Across America

Broadway Across America:  Owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and entertainment industry veteran Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman), Broadway Across America presents first-class touring Broadway musicals and plays, family productions and other live events throughout a network of 43 North American cities.  Broadway Across America is also dedicated to the development and production of new and diverse live theatre for productions on Broadway, across America and throughout the world.   

There is a LOT going on in terms of performance art in the Indianapolis area this month, especially since October is traditionally THE month for ghost stories.  In this post I would like to share excerpts from four emails that I received from people doing “scary” shows that sound interesting.

There’s nothing like listening to ghost stories outside!  Ellen Munds of Storytelling Arts of Indiana sent me two press releases about back-to-back events coming up next weekend.  Since the same four Hoosier storytellers will be telling at each, but each telling a different story (since one event is for families and one is for adults and teens), this ”double feature” weekend is a great opportunity for adults to sample a variety of tales and telling styles.

Indianapolis – Storytelling Arts of Indiana and the Indiana Historical Society are teaming up to present Scary Stories for Families on the Canal sponsored by Barnes & Thornburg, Friday, October 9, 2009 from 7:30 – 9 p.m. Join us for spooktacular fun as storytellers share tales of ghosts and ghouls! This not-too-scary family presentation is sure to give shivers (of delight). Bundle up for a crisp cool night along the canal as storytellers Celestine Bloomfield, Lou Ann Homan, Bob Sander and Cynthia Changaris spin their tales. Visit our snack bar for candy, popcorn and soft drinks. Chairs provided but you may bring your own folding lawn chairs or blanketss.

This event will take place at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center along the canal, located at 450 W. Ohio Street. The event is interpreted for the Deaf and hearing impaired.  Advance tickets are $5 for children ages 5 – 12 and $10 for adults. At the door, tickets are $6 and $12 respectively. To order tickets or for more information, call the History Center at (317) 232-1882 or (800) 447-1830 or purchase tickets on-line, www.storytellingarts.org. Limited Free parking is available at the History Center in its parking lot at the corner of West and New York streets.

This is the first of four family programs planned for the 2009 – 10 season. The Barnes & Thornburg Family Series includes performances by Bil Lepp, Friday, December 4, 2009; Bill Harley, Friday, January 8, 2010; and Peter Cook, Saturday, March 13, 2010. For details concerning this series visit, www.storytellingarts.org.

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Indianapolis – Who says scary stories are just for kids? Join Storytelling Arts of Indiana and the Indiana Historical Society for Disquieting, Disturbing & Dreadful Tales sponsored by Tube Processing on Saturday, October 10, 2009 from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.  This evening of disquieting, disturbing and dreadful tales will make you jump, look over your shoulder and groan. Beware these stories told by Celestine Bloomfield, Lou Ann Homan, Bob Sander and Cynthia Changaris are not for sissies. To help calm your nerves, a cash bar and snacks will be available for those who dare to attend!

This event will take place at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center along the canal, located at 450 W. Ohio Street. The event is interpreted for the Deaf and hearing impaired.  Advance tickets are $15 and $18 at the door. To order tickets or for more information, call the History Center at (317) 232-1882 or (800) 447-1830 or purchase tickets on-line, www.storytellingarts.org. Limited Free parking is available at the History Center in its parking lot at the corner of West and New York streets.

This is the first of ten storytelling concerts planned by Storytelling Arts of Indiana during the 2009 -10 Season. The Printing Partners Storytellers Theater will include performances featuring Patrick Ball, Bil Lepp, Bill Harley, Carmen Agra Deedy, Peter Cook, Anne Shimojima and Olga Loya. For details visit, www.storytellingarts.org.

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Storytelling Arts of Indiana is one of the premier storytelling organizations in the country. Originally founded as Stories, Inc., the non-profit organization produced its first event in 1988, the Annual Hoosier Storytelling Festival.  From its inception, the festival has attracted professional storytellers to Indiana and has sparked an active storytelling community within the state. The events and programs sponsored by Storytelling Arts of Indiana, moreover, go far beyond the festival. The organization also sponsors a family series, an annual series of storytelling concerts for adults, summertime Stories in the Park for latch-key children, storytelling for patients at Riley Children’s Hospital, the As I Recall Storytelling Guild, and numerous workshops, programs and community activities. While a number of cities host storytelling festivals, there are few organizations like Storytelling Arts that have established a year-round schedule of diverse concerts and programs centered around the art of storytelling. This unique status has made Indianapolis a location of choice on the national storytelling scene.

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It is always fun to check out a new show, especially when it is in a new (to me, anyway) venue.  Will McCarty sent me this information:

Original Edgar Allan Poe musical coming to Indy.

In celebration for Edgar Allan Poe’s 200th birthday, an original musical titled Cabaret Poe, based on Poe’s literary works will be presented every weekend in October, at the Irvington Lodge, 5515 E. Washington St. Indianapolis.  With original music and staging by Indianapolis native Ben Asaykwee, the show is a perfect match for the fall festivities already planned for the Historic Irvington neighborhood.

The production blends the classic macabre fashion of Poe with humor and fright while conjuring up most of the American literary master’s most famous stories and poems.  Some of the pieces re-imagined for the musical are The Fall of the House of Usher, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Masque of Red Death, The Black Cat, Annabelle Lee and of course The Raven.

In 2008, a large portion of Cabaret Poe was performed at the all night, international arts festival “Looptopia” in Chicago, to wildly enthusiastic reviews.

Cabaret Poe will open October 2nd at the Irvington Lodge and will continue its fall run every weekend until November 1st, making it a perfect addition to the already jam-packed Halloween season in the neighborhood of historic Irvington.

Renae Stone, Julie Lyn Barber, and writer and composer Ben Asaykwee, will be starring as three characters who weave the works of Poe together effortlessly by singing, acting and dancing their way through insanity, death and intrigue.  Rounding out the stellar cast are Maria Meschi and Sara Lukaszewski.

With professional performers and musicians, exciting lighting and set design, and the genius of one of the greatest storytellers the world has seen, Cabaret Poe is a spectacle not to be missed this fall

Online at www.cabaretpoe.com

Presented by MistahQue Artistry

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Victorian Theatre By Candlelight is presenting “Ghost Tales of Indiana” at the  President Benjamin Harrison Home.  Kay Millar included the following blurb in her e-newsletter, “What’s New at the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site?”:

 Victorian Theatre by Candlelight: “Ghost Tales of Indiana”

October 16-17. 23-25 – Fridays and Saturdays 6-8 p.m.; Sunday 3:30-6 p.m. (tours begin every half-hour)

Audience members join Ghost Trackers Interdimensional to purge the Harrison Home of ghosts from around Indiana.

Original script written by James Trofatter, local playwright and actor.

Cost: adults $10; students (ages 6-17) $6

Call 317-631-1888 for more details or to make a reservation.

On certain nights it is possible to go to this show and then take a little walk to the nearby Morris-Butler House and see their home-tour show, “Dark Pages.”  I had a wonderful time doing this last year.  The two homes themselves are interesting places to walk through, and when you’re walking through with actors doing their thing all around you, immersing you in a story, it is a special treat.

Both shows sell out quickly, so if either of these “home shows” interests you, I would make your reservations right away.  Unfortunately, I did not receive a press release or even just the 5Ws in a simple email from the “Dark Pages” people, but if I get a spare moment to search the Internet for the dates, times, and reservation number, I will add that info here later.

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See you at the theatres!

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Follow @IndyTheatre on Twitter, too!

I am DELIGHTED and honored that some of this year’s Fringe performers have started emailing me their press releases and publicity photos directly.  I am going to share them here on Indy Theatre Habit as a way of anticipating the 2009 Indy Fringe Festival, which will take place August 21-30 in various locations on and near Massachusetts Avenue in downtown Indianapolis.   I can hardly wait!

By the way, if you are a Fringe performer and would like me to consider sharing your publicity info, please email it to me at amarylliswriter at gmail dot com.  Yes, I’m on Facebook, and yes, I check IndianaAuditions.com every day, but if you really want me to consider writing about you, please send me your info via email. 

If you have never written a press release (and even if you have) be sure to include the 5 W’s – WHO you are, WHAT your show is called, WHERE you will be performing, WHEN you will be performing, and WHY your show is of interest (which might include what it’s about and/or how you came to develop it, your experience, your biographical info, quotes from reviews in other cities, etc.)

If you can also attach a publicity photo, all the better!  I didn’t start out blogging with publicity photos, but now I am totally addicted to them.  I prefer photos of performers rather than photos of show posters or graphics.

Below is an excerpt from the first info I received this year from a Fringe performer.  How excellent that Phillip Low is a solo storyteller, one of my favorite forms of performance art!  He is based in Minneapolis.   Break a leg at the Indy Fringe, Phillip!

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The Rise of General Arthur – a solo storytelling show

by phillip andrew bennett low

The fifth century meets the twenty-first as Lance-Corporal Pellinore is shipped off to Baghdad. It’s Arthur’s story…as you’ve never heard it before.

Set against the backdrop of the first Gulf War, this military drama uses the body of medieval legend surrounding the early days of King Arthur and his knights to explore the nature of idealism in the face of armed conflict. Comparing and contrasting the contemporary and classical language of martial heroism, this wholly unique blend of scholarship and performance art promises to be a controversial and thought-provoking event.

WARNING: This show contains profanity, gunshots, and some violent imagery.     

Phillip low is a Chinese-American playwright and slam poet, storyteller and mime, theatre critic and libertarian activist. His performances have won acclaim at such varied venues as the Minnesota Renaissance Festival, Spirit in the House, FoolFest, and the Iowa, Kansas City, and Minnesota Fringe Festivals, where his one-man show “Descendant of Dragons” was the bestselling show in its venue and honored with a coveted Encore slot. He is also the co-founder and Chair of the Rockstar Storytellers, a team of bestselling Minneapolis spoken-word artists.

PRAISE FOR OTHER SHOWS BY PHILLIP LOW AND MAXIMUM VERBOSITY”…a scream (sometimes literally) for critical thought and intellectual clarity…surely not lacking in original, brainy tones.”

-Quinton Skinner, City Pages

“…his ever-expanding skill and bending language to his will and slinging it at you from five different directions at once – that’s the primary reason you should see his show. He is damn good at what he does. He is smart. He is funny. He is brilliant. No question.”

 -Matthew Everett, playwright and critic for the Twin Cities Daily Planet

Performance Times:                                                                     

Saturday, August 22 @ 1:30pm

Sunday, August 23 @ 10:30pm                                             

Monday, August 24 @ 7:30pm                       

Friday, August 28 @ 6pm                                    

Saturday, August 29 @ 4:30pm

Sunday, August 30 @ 6pm

Venue:

The Phoenix Theatre

749 N Park Ave

Indianapolis IN 46202

website at – www.maximumverbosityonline.org

Ticket prices are $10.

Tickets can be reserved at indyfringe.org.

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Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Follow IndyTheatre on Twitter, too!

Guess what?  I am going to be one of three judges for a new liar’s contest at the Indiana State Fair on Sunday, August 16, 2009!  The other two judges will be two of my favorite sister storytellers, Sue Grizzell and Celestine Bloomfield.  There will be cash prizes!

So what do you say?  ‘Know any good stories? 

Details are below in the press release that Ellen Munds sent me from Storytelling Arts of Indiana.  It includes the contest rules and info about the prizes.  Oh, I am so excited about this!  I love listening to good stories told live.  I also love being one of the first to hear and see promising new tellers.  So, whether you are an experienced teller or not, I hope you will consider entering this contest!

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Storytelling Arts of Indiana is pleased to announce the First Annual Liar’s Contest during the Indiana State Fair in Pioneer Village on Sunday, August 16, 2009. Registration begins at 4 p.m. and the contest begins at 5 p.m. This is your chance to tell your biggest lie or tall tale for cash prizes and ribbons. All ages invited to tell. No experience is necessary.

Contest Rules

1. The contest is open to Indiana residents only.
2. The “lies” should be short stories with a maximum length of 3 – 5 minutes.
3. Registration begins at 4 p.m. on Sunday, August 16^th. All contestants must register. The contest will begin at 5 p.m.
4. A first, second and third place winner will be chosen from all competitors in two categories; Adult and Youth (17 and under).
5. Ribbons and cash prizes will be awarded following the contest in the adult and youth categories; First Prize Ribbon and $100, Second Prize Ribbon and $50 and Third Prize Ribbon and $25.
6. Judging will be done by a panel of three storytelling experts who will score each contestant in the following categories:
   1. Technique – delivery, confidence, general stagecraft
   2. Story Development – development of the story in time available
   3. Originality – new material, or fresh handling of a familiar tale
   4. Effectiveness – in the judges’ opinion, taking audience response into consideration.

The three judges will score each of the four categories on a scale of 1 to 5 with a maximum of 20 points per competitor. Final scores will not be given to contestants.

1. The judges will confer at the end of the contest to decide the winners.
2. The decision of the judges will be final.
3. All tales will be recorded and archived at the Indiana Historical Society. Stories may be placed on the web site of Storytelling Arts of Indiana and the Indiana State Fair
4. All winners are required to submit their social security number in order to collect their prize money. Parents’ social security numbers are prohibited for youth winner.

This first-time collaboration with the Indiana State Fair should be a blast for all contestants and listeners. The contest is free and open to all Indiana residents but you must purchase a fair ticket to enter the grounds of the Indiana State Fair.

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Storytelling Arts of Indiana is one of the premier storytelling organizations in the country. Originally founded as Stories, Inc., the non-profit organization produced its first event in 1988, the Annual Hoosier Storytelling Festival.  From its inception, the festival has attracted professional storytellers to Indiana and has sparked an active storytelling community within the state. The events and programs sponsored by Storytelling Arts of Indiana, moreover, go far beyond the festival. The organization also sponsors Scary Stories, an annual series of storytelling concerts for adults held November through May, summertime Stories in the Park for latch-key children, storytelling for patients at Riley Children’s Hospital, the As I Recall Storytelling Guild, and numerous workshops, programs and community activities. While a number of cities host storytelling festivals, there are few organizations like Storytelling Arts that have established a year-round schedule of diverse concerts and programs centered around the art of storytelling. This unique status has made Indianapolis a location of choice on the national storytelling scene.

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Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Follow IndyTheatre on Twitter.com, too.  (One of these days I will learn how to add an official Twitter button to my blog!)

(PS – If you roll your mouse over the photo above, you will see that it is called “Axe” and that Ben Fulton took it.)

I will be on a blog vacation from now until July 19, 2009.  I hope you won’t forget about Indy Theatre Habit during that time.  More importantly, I hope you won’t forget about going to the theatre!  

There is a lot going on in terms of live storytelling and theatre in the Indianapolis area in the next couple of weeks.  Even if I weren’t taking a blog vacation, I would be wishing I could be three places at once.  Below are some items from my e-mailbox, in random order, to give you some ideas of what to see while I’m off.  If you feel like it, I hope you will leave a comment telling me about what I missed.

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From Ellen Munds of Storytelling Arts of Indiana:

“White River State Park Family Arts Series 2009

FUNtastic Classics featuring Bob Sander narrating “Corn in the Rock” at 6 p.m. and Bill Harley performing stories and songs at 7 p.m.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

FREE

Enjoy an evening of storytelling at White River State Park! Grammy Award-winning artist, Bill Harley will be performing his stories and songs. As many of you know, Bill’s stories and songs are wise and witty, portraying contemporary American life with a slightly off-center beat. His performances are enjoyable for the whole family!

Prior to Bill’s performance, the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra will perform a FUNtastic Classic of “Corn in the Rock” narrated by Bob Sander. This Hispanic folktale is set to music played by brass and percussion instruments.

The Family Arts Series will feature free shows where the grass grows all summer long! Bring the whole family, your blankets and picnic baskets to the outdoor Celebration Amphitheater at White River State Park. An American Sign Language interpreter will also be at the show. Food and drinks will be available for purchase on site. For more information and additional dates for the FREE Family Arts Series, visit http://www.INwhiteriver.orgor call 317-233-2434. Rain location: George Washington Community School, 2215 W. Washington St, Indianapolis, IN 46222.

The Family Arts Series is made possible by the Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation and the Lilly Endowment, Inc.”

I have enjoyed Bill Harley’s storytelling many times, most recently with Carrie Newcomer.

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 ”Sanders Family Christmas” opens this week at Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre.  These are the same folksy, home-spun characters from “Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming” that I wrote to you about last summer. 

Patricia Rettig, B&B’s media relations person, told me that several performances of this musical Christmas-in-July show have already sold out, so whether you were thinking of treating yourself to this show because you already have all your Christmas presents bought and wrapped, or because you want something to get you in the mood for working on that Christmas craft project you’ve been planning, be sure to make a reservation soon.

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Ashley Jackson reminded me that the Greenwood Shakespeare group’s production of “The Tempest” opens this Friday at the Greenwood Amphitheatre at 7pm.  It runs only the one weekend, with performances on Saturday and Sunday also at 7 pm.  Her email doesn’t say, but I believe this production is also free of charge, same as their production of “Love’s Labours Lost” earlier in the summer.

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Actors’ Theatre of Indiana is extending its run of “Forbidden Broadway Greatest Hits, Vol. One.”  The extra performances are on Wednesdays and Thursdays only, and begin this week!  Here is an excerpt from ATI’s new newsletter:

“Location:  The Mansion at Oak Hill is located at the intersection of 116th Street & Hazel Dell Parkway in Carmel (5801 E. 116th Street, Carmel, IN 46033).

Performance Dates: The extended run of FORBIDDEN BROADWAY opens Wednesday July 8 and runs on Wednesdays and Thursdays through the end of August: Wed. 7/8, Wed. 7/15, Wed. 7/22, Thurs. 7/23, Wed. 7/29, Thurs. 7/30, Wed. 8/5, Thurs. 8/6, Wed. 8/12, Wed. 8/19, Wed. 8/26, Thurs. 8/27.
Hours: Doors open at 6:00 PM, dinner is at 6:30 PM & show begins at 7:30 PM.
Admission: $45 per person includes dinner with the show; $25 show only tickets with 2 drink minimum. Reservations are required. To purchase tickets, contact Jennifer A. Zehr at (317) 843-9850.”

ATI’s new newsletter was packed with interesting info about the three founders’ other creative projects.  Subscribe yourself via the ATI website.

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You know that I find “drag” (where men re-invent themselves as women through their clothing, hair, makeup, and mannerisms and sometimes also sing, dance, and/or do stand-up comedy) one of the most fascinating forms of performance art. 

So I was doubly fascinated to learn that the Bloomington Playwrights Project is trying a new fundraising event called “A Brunch of Drag.”  The email that BPP managing director Gabe Gloden sent me says:

“Start your Sunday off right with your two favorite things: brunch and drag.  Enjoy a delicious buffet brunch featuring four types of quiche, bacon, sausage, coffee cake, a full cash bar…the works!  All while you experience a professional-quality drag show featuring celebrity impersonators from throughout the years.

This is a drag show you can take your parents to!  And don’t forget your dollar bills.”

Sunday, July 19, 2009.  12 noon-2 pm at KRC Banquets & Catering, 216 S. College Ave., Bloomington, IN.  Tickets $35 (includes a full brunch and one free drink) are available at the Buskirk Chumley Box Office or online at www.buckirkchumley.org.  Produced by Vicci Lane & the Bloomington Playwrights Project.

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After several attempts, the folks from “The Drink and I” managed to send me an email that was actually addressed to me and, more importantly, included all 5 of the essential “W”’s (who, what, where, when, why/how), so even though I still can’t imagine enjoying this show, myself, because I have too many not-funny associations with drunkenness, I mention the show as an example of there being all kinds of performance art in the Indianapolis area.  Really, there is something for everyone around here!

“The Drink and I” is a “drinking play,” so if you go, be sure someone in your group volunteers to be the designated driver.  The email I received says it is “sketch comedy about the funny thing you see happen at the bars in Indianapolis.  Two parts Sketch Comedy, One Part improv, and One part drinking games.  We play drinking games during the play.  Cast vs. Audience etc.  We do not endorse the over consumption of alcohol.  5% of all ticket sales go to the SCI Hope Fund of Hendricks County.  Tickets are $9 online and $12 at the door.  VIP tickets 12.95 (selective seating + free drink).  Full access Tickets 19.95 (backstage pass + free drink + T-Shirt)”

July 19, 2009.  9:30 pm.  Morty’s Comedy Joint – 3625 E. 96^th St. Indianapolis IN.  www.thedrinkandi.com

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An email from Lori Raffel reminded me that this is the last weekend to see “Octopus,” by Steve Yockey, at the Phoenix Theatre.  Thursday night’s performance starts at 7:00 and tickets are only $15, thanks to Duke Energy.  Friday and Saturday shows are at 8:00 and tickets are $25.  Call the Phoenix box office at 317-635-PLAY (7529) to make a reservation.

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Sharon Gamble sent me a press release telling about the Midwest premiere of “The Do’s and Don’ts of Time Travel,” a love story by Nicholas Wardigo.  It opens downstairs on the Frank and Katrina Basile stage at the Phoenix Theatre on Thursday, July 16, 2009.  ALL performances of this show will be priced as Duke Energy Cheap Seats!  Call the Phoenix box office at 317-635-PLAY (7529) to make a reservation.

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I also have some other theatre-related news to share:

HART (the Heartland Actors Repertory Theatre) is seeking volunteers to assist with “front of house” activities for their production of “Much Ado About Nothing” in the White River State Park on July 31 and August 1, 2009.  They need people to pass out programs, collect surveys, sell merchandise, etc.  You will receive a HART t-shirt as a special thanks.  If you can help, please send an email to Ben Tebbe at heartlandactors at gmail dot com and indicate which night you can help.  You will need to arrive by 6 pm.

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And finally, I don’t normally include items in my Mailbox posts that I’ve received via Facebook because it’s hard enough for me to pull everything together from one email box, let alone every social network I participate in.  However, I am making an exception today with news about “Midwestern Hemisphere.” 

You remember that this piece was written by local playwright Lou Harry and Eric Pfeffinger, and that it had its world premiere here in Indianapolis.  Now it is getting a staged reading in Philadelphia.

Here is the description from the Facebook page:

“What happens when people who live next door to each other suddenly have to become neighbors? That’s the question asked in Midwestern Hemisphere: a suburban metaphysical comedy by Lou Harry and Eric Pfeffinger.

The play had its world premiere in Indianapolis in April of 2008, courtesy of Heartland Actors Repertory Theatre, earning notice in American Theatre magazine, and causing critic Hope Baugh of indytheatrehabit.com to write “…this play is gently profound as well as funny.” Davis Zivan, editor of Indianapolis Monthly added “..lots of big laughs. A truly clever play with a big heart.” John Belden of the Greenfield Reporter called it “…laugh-out-loud funny…”

Midwestern Hemisphere was further developed in a workshop with Crossroads Repertory Theatre in the summer of 2008. The reading at the Walnut Street Theatre will be the first full presentation of the revised play.

A Temple University graduate and former writer for, among others, Philadelphia Magazine, Main Line Today, and Seven Arts, Lou Harry is the author or co-author of more than 25 books including Strange Philadelphia, The High-Impact Infidelity Diet: A novel, The Encyclopedia of Guilty Pleasures and Creative Block. In addition, he has written for over 50 publications (including Variety, TheatreWeek and Dramatics) and was the founding Artistic Director of the Philadelphia-based Comedy for Kids theater company.

Co-author Eric Pfeffinger’s plays have been produced by the Actors Theatre of Louisville, Geva Theatre Center (Rochester, NY), Visions and Voices (Chicago), Vox Humana (L.A.), the Noble Fool (Chicago), and the Bloomington Playwrights Project.

The cast for the reading includes: Ben Lipitz, Jeb Kreager, Maggie Lakis, Erin Reilly, Laura Giknis and Andrea Miskow

Production: MIDWESTERN HEMISPHERE: a suburban metaphysical comedy
By: Lou Harry and Eric Pfeffinger

Location: The Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia.  (5^th and Walnut Streets – 5^th floor studio)

Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Time: 7 pm

Tickets: Free, but donations accepted. Please RSVP* since space is limited.”

Lou gave me permission to share with you a message that he sent me privately as well.  Here is an excerpt:

“The cast that’s shaping up is, well, humbling. A member of the tour of Avenue Q, a winner of last year’s Barrymore Award for Best Actor in a Play…even the woman reading stage directions has extensive experience in the classics. And dear Ben Lipitz (Pumba from the Lion King tour) is playing Jerry and directing.

It should be quite an event. Meet in the morning, rehearse all day, read in the evening. So far, a good response from Philly theater companies and media. And some people on the Maybe RSVP list that are making me gulp. I’ll let you know if any of them show.

Anyway, just wanted to thank you for your ongoing interest, understanding, and support of the show.”

You’re welcome, Lou.  I wish I had the time and resources to fly to Philadelphia for this new reading!  I love this play.

*I’m not sure how people can RSVP saying they want to come if they are not on Facebook.  I hesitate to post any of the email addresses I have for Lou without his permission, but if I get more info, I will share it. 

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There are also Encore shows opening in the next couple of weeks but, as you know, I am not allowed to write about them.

If you would like me to consider including news of your non-Encore show (theatre, storytelling, comedy, dance, music, etc.) in a future Mailbox post, please email me your press release at amarylliswriter at gmail dot com.

‘See you at the theatres!  (And back on my blog July 19.)

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com

Twitter:  IndyTheatre