Central Square Theater Presents CRAVINGS 10/8-25

Boston's favorite cabaret artist Belle Linda Halpern takes a funny, intriguing and profound Jewish-American look at our constant cravings: food, sex, acceptance, fame and true nourishment in CRAVINGS: Songs of Hunger & Satisfaction at Central Square Theater. Playing Thursday, October 8th through Sunday, October 25th, press night is set for Friday, October 9 at 8:00 PM.

CRAVINGS: Songs of Hunger & Satisfaction, which will inaugurate the Cabaret Series at the Central Square Theater, will play in the intimate Studio Theater. Directed by Sabina Hamilton, with musical direction and accompaniment by Ron Roy, the show is a Ko Theater Works Production.

Songs, spiced with comic personal narrative about Halpern's culinary journey, range from Tin Pan Alley classics by Berlin and Bernstein to pop anthems and contemporary ballads. As Halpern prepares the traditional Passover dish charoset, her humorous take on our search for what feeds us evolves into a life-affirming call to taste the sweetness in the everyday.

Whether familiar with Jewish culture or not, audiences of all ages will enjoy this vibrant showpiece. It also holds particular appeal for cabaret fans, parents, grandparents, and of course, all those who love food! CRAVINGS: Songs of Hunger & Satisfaction consistently received standing ovations in its premiere run at the Ko Festival of Performance in Amherst, MA, and later at performances at Emerson Umbrella in Concord, MA and the Firehouse Theatre in Newburyport, MA.

Belle Linda Halpern has performed as a cabaret singer and actor at clubs and theatres in New York, Boston, San Francisco, Paris, Munich, Jerusalem, and Bombay. Each summer she sings cabaret concerts in the villas and castles of Northern Italy. A graduate of Harvard/Radcliffe, she performs in French and Italian as well as Yiddish and Hebrew. Her theater roles include Esther in Elizabeth Swados' rock opera Esther, Alice in her Alice in Concert, Josephine in Laura Harrington's (N) Bonaparte, and Sally in Cabaret. Belle's other theatre credits include work with Robert Wilson and Andrew Serban at the American Repertory Theatre and featured roles with

SpeakEasy Stage Company. She has taught singing and performance since 1986 at Harvard University and each summer in Italy through the Tuscany Project. She has co-created Moon Over Dark Street, a Brecht/Weill Cabaret with Pilgrim Theatre and Cutting Crosstown: From 2nd Avenue to Broadway with fellow performer Jeffrey Korn. Her interest in Weill and Yiddish music was inspired by the generous spirit of her teacher, Martha Schlamme. She has also co-authored Leadership

Presence: Dramatic Techniques to Reach Out, Motivate, and Inspire published by Penguin Putnam about the leadership development work she does with her company, The Ariel Group.

Pianist and Musical Director Ron Roy is a faculty member at the Boston Conservatory of Music and The Tuscany Project, a voice and performance workshop that takes place every summer in Italy. Ron has extensive credits in theater, cabaret, and opera both here and abroad. Theatrical credits include: Disappearing Act, Forbidden Hollywood, Crazy For You, Forever Plaid and Forbidden Broadway.

Director and designer Sabrina Hamilton is the Artistic Director of the Ko Festival of Performance which has just completed its 18th season in Amherst, MA. For many years she worked with the acclaimed New York theatre company Mabou Mines. Other credits include the New York Shakespeare Festival, the Goodman Theatre, the Mark Taper Forum and 6 years as Route Lighting Designer for New York's Village Halloween. International lighting credits include work in Bologna, Florence, Milan, London, Grenada, Geneva, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Amsterdam, Brussels, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Finland, at the Bristol Old Vic, and at the International Theatre Festival in Havana, Cuba. Her directing work, primarily original pieces, has been seen in NYC, Berlin and throughout New England. She is on the Board of the Network of Ensemble Theatres.

Ko Theater Works is an organization based in Amherst, MA that creates original works of theatre and for the past 18 years has produced the Ko Festival of Performance.

CRAVINGS: Songs of Hunger & Satisfaction plays at the Central Square Theater, 450 Mass. Ave. in Cambridge, Thursday, October 8 through Sunday, October 25, 2009. Performances are Thursdays at 7:30 PM, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM, with matinees on Sundays at 2 PM. Tickets, priced at $35; $25 for seniors; and $20 for students with a valid ID, can be purchased by calling (866) 811-4111, online at www.centralsquaretheater.org, or at the Central Square Theater's box office. Student rush tickets can be purchased the day of the show for $15 in person at the box office or by calling (617) 576-9278 x213. For box office hours, group discounts, and more info call (617) 576-9278 x213. For more information about CRAVINGS: Songs of Hunger & Satisfaction visit http://www.centralsquaretheater.org/special_events.html

Photo courtesy of Dan Green, featuring Belle Linda Halpern

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