Alumnae Theatre Company Hosts 25th Anniversary New Ideas Festival, Now thru March 24

It's the 25th anniversary edition of Alumnae Theatre's New Ideas Festival, running tonight, March 6 - 24, 2013.

The New Ideas Festival was founded in 1989 by Molly Thom and Kerri MacDonald,and provides an opportunity for playwrights, directors, actors and technicians to develop never-before-produced short scripts. It's a juried, three-week annual festival of new writing, works-in-progress and experimental theatre, with a different lineup of short plays each week, and a staged reading (+ Talkback) on Saturdays at noon. Each play in the weekly program (Wednesday - Sunday) now receives 6 performances, and the readings have one each.

New Ideas is unusual among festivals, in that the scripts are read "blind" by a committee, which does not learn the writers' identities until the plays have been selected. For this year,114 scripts were received (from all over Canada, as well as the U.S.) and were evaluated by a 9-member reading committee consisting of directors, writers and actors.

This year's festival marks NIF's 25th anniversary. As part of the celebrations, two favourites from previous years are being remounted with their original directors: Revelationby Shirley Barrie, directed by Molly Thom (2001) is the opener and My Red Feather Boa by Flora Stohr-Danziger, directed by Nancy Bradshaw (2004) closes the festival. In between are 13 world premieres (ranging in length from 12 - 60 minutes), an exciting mix of themes and subjects that include love in many guises, loss and grief, rivalry in the theatre, and a visit to Hades with Penelope and Odysseus.

New this year: tickets for the weekly program (both evening and matinee performances) are now available for online purchase! Go to www.alumnaetheatre.com/tickets.html, click on the arrow-shaped TICKETS button, and have your credit card ready. Tickets for the Saturday staged readings are PWYC and available for in-person cash purchase only at the Box Office on the day of the performance.

A special 25th anniversary celebration will be held on Sunday March 10 at 12:30 pm in the Alumnae Theatre lobby. Former NIF participants are encouraged to book tickets for the week 1 Sunday matinee performance and to join NIF 2013 directors/participants and the two founders, both of whom have directed week 1 plays, at 12:30 pm before the show to raise a glass in honour of NIF.

- Revelation by Shirley Barrie / directed by Molly Thom
- Still Waters by Suzanne Gauthier / directed by Stacy Halloran
- Say the Words by Tina McCulloch / directed by Kimberley Radmacher
- Stalled by Eugenie Carabatsos / directed by Kerri MacDonald
(Total running time with intermission: approx. 1 hr 45 mins)

Saturday Staged Reading, March 9 only:

Falling by Jamie Johnson / Directed by Ed Rosing

(approx. 60 minutes + Talkback)

- The Deepest Trench by Chloë Whitehorn / directed by Justen Bennett
- Two Actresses by R. J. Downes, /directed by Pam Redfern*
- Over the Edge by Catherine Frid / directed by Pomme Corvellec
- Pieces of Penelope by Gina Femia /directed by Janet Kish

(Total running time with intermission: approx. 1-1/2 hrs)

Saturday Staged Reading, March 16 only:

Lullaby for the Abandoned by Rain Chan, dramaturged by Shaista Latif; directed by Brenda Darling (approx. 60 minutes + Talkback)

* courtesy of Canadian Actors' Equity Association

- Dead French Philosophers and What We Mean When We Talk About Love by James Papoutsis / directed by Yevgeniya Falkovich
- My Friend's Best Friend's Boyfriend by Wesley J. Colford / directed by Joanne L. Williams
- Eglinton by Anthony MacMahon / directed by David Suszek
- My Red Feather Boa by Flora Stohr-Danziger / directed by Nancy Bradshaw

(Total running time with intermission: approx. 1 hr 45 mins)

Saturday Staged Reading, March 23 only:

Everything but the Cat... by Adrianna Prosser / directed by Steph Ouaknine
(approx. 60 minutes + Talkback)

For complete show descriptions, and cast and crew bios, go to http://alumnaetheatre.com/ideas.html. Find us on Facebook, and follow the blog at http://alumnaetheatre.wordpress.com. Twitter: @alumnaetheatre.

The Details - New Ideas Festival 2013:

Running Time: Approximately 2 hrs (including intermission) for each weekly program of 4 plays. Talkback after the Saturday matinee.

Saturday readings approx. 1 hr each + Talkback.

Opening Nights: Wednesday March 6, March 13 and 20, 2013

25th anniversary celebration: 12:30 pm on Sunday March 10 in the Alumnae Theatre lobby

Performance Dates: Wednesday March 6 - Sunday March 24, 2013

Schedule: Wednesday - Saturday 8:00pm; Saturday Reading at noon (followed by a Talkback session); Saturday matinée at 2:30pm (followed by a Talkback session); Sunday matinéeat 2:30 pm.

Tickets: Wednesday - Sunday (evening or matinées) $15 per week; Saturday Readings PWYC; Festival Pass (1 ticket for each week) $35.

Location: Alumnae Theatre, 70 Berkeley Street, 3rd floor Studio, Toronto (SW corner of Berkeley and Adelaide St. East)

Box Office: NEW THIS YEAR!! Purchase tickets online at www.alumnaetheatre.com/tickets.html OR reserve a seat at 416-364-4170 (box 1) then pay cash only at Box Office. Tickets for the Saturday readings are only available for in-person cash purchase. Box Office opens one hour prior to each performance. Please note: Box Office does not accept credit or debit cards.

Absolutely no latecomers.

Alumnae Theatre Company (a non-union, not-for profit company) has been producing thought-provoking, challenging and rarely-performed plays since 1918. Check our website at www.alumnaetheatre.com for more information and a retrospective on how Alumnae Theatre has shaped Toronto's theatre scene.

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