Chatham Players Presents THE FLICK

The Chatham Community Players will present the imaginative & touching play, "The Flick" by Annie Baker. The production will run from March 3 through March 12. Making her Chatham Playhouse debut, Gabrielle Wagner Mann of Summit directs.

"I am so enjoying mining the depth of this play and these rich characters, and playing with these fantastic actors. We look forward to sharing our laughs, tears and hearts with our audiences", said Gabrielle Wagner Mann. Utilizing the power of silence through impressively realistic dialogue, the Chatham players has chosen to adjust the start times to 7:30 pm for evening performances and 2:30 pm for matinees. Please make note of the adjusted start times.

"The Flick" revolves around a run-down movie theater near Worcester, MA -- one of the few that hasn't yet switched to digital film - and the lives of three employees who work just-above-minimum-wage jobs: selling tickets, cleaning up after patrons, and running the projector. Their battles and heartbreaks play out in the empty aisles of this 2014 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama. Sam, Rose, and Avery reveal themselves to be complex, feeling people with unrealized ambitions to become more than their dreary surroundings. For Avery, this isn't a dead-end job. It's a way to get closer to the art form he loves. Passionate debates about cinema lead to a friendship of sorts with co-workers Sam and Rose. But will their tentative bond survive as they reveal what they actually need from each other? Producer, Leslie Williams Ellis added, "What I love about this play and playwright, Annie Baker in general, is her use of silence to tell the story. It is in those moments between the lines that we learn so much about these characters and about ourselves."

The director, Gabrielle Wagner Mann, is a multi-hyphenate performer - actor/director/singer/writer, who grew up on the Jersey Shore, migrated to the west coast and then found her way back home to NJ in 2016. She holds a BA in Theatre & Music from Smith College and an MFA in Playwriting & Screenwriting from Point Park University. In addition, she's studied for over 20 years as an actor and director at the Beverly Hills Playhouse in Los Angeles. Favorite directing credits include Oleanna, Prelude to a Kiss, Springtime, and a theatrical version of the film Guinevere.

The talented cast includes actors from all around New Jersey: Josiah Howell of Maplewood as Avery, Ivy Leigh Meyer of Jersey City as Rose, Peter Despres of East Orange as Sam and Peter Corley of Summit as Skylar.

Rounding out the director's talented production team, Production Coordinator is Julie Ann Nolan, Stage Manager is Geneviève Anderson, Scenic Designer is Roy Pancirov & Chris Anderson, Costumes by Leslie Williams Ellis and Gabrielle Wagner Mann, Lighting Designer is Mark Reilly, Sound Designer is Chris Anderson, Scenic Artist is Dean Sickler, Props by Leslie Williams Ellis and Set Decoration by Chris Anderson.

You can help the show go on! A COVID exposure means that our show could potentially lose a performance or be shut down. Masks encouraged while inside the theater, not required. Proof of vaccination is not required. We ask if you have any symptoms of COVID-19, you stay home. These requirements are subject to change based on local health advisories.

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