Charm City Call Board: October 23 - 29

Welcome to Charm City Call Board for the week of October 23 - 29, keeping you up to date each week with all that is theater in Baltimore.    If you have some news or an event you'd like added, please contact me at jameshoward@broadwayworld.com.

Discounts and contest notices are listed first.  Show listings follow in this order: current productions and upcoming productions.  Audition notices, news bites, and book/CD recommendations are at the end.  

BROADWAYWORLD.BALTIMORE DISCOUNTS!

• The Baltimore Waltz at Single Carrot Theatre.  ALL PERFORMANCES ARE FREE.  This weekend, Sat & Sun at 2:30, this week (October 29-November 4), Weds - Sat at 8PM, Sat and Sun at 2:30PM.  At Sydonne's Event Hall on North Howard Street.
• The Great American Trailer Park Musical at Spotlighters - $5.00 each ticket.  Go to www.spotlighters.org and click on "tickets".  Enter code BWW-TPM to get your discount.  You may also get this discount at the box office by bringing a copy of this article with you.  The show runs through November 4.  ADVISORY: Adult language and situations.
• Pumpkin Theatre is hosting a bus trip to NYC to see the Broadway production of DR. SEUSS' HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS - THE MUSICAL on Sunday, November 18.  Tickets are $140.00 which includes show ticket, bus to and from NYC, and breakfast on the bus.  Call (410) 828-1814. MENTION BROADWAYWORLD.COM AND GET $10.00 OFF!!
• Macbeth at Chesapeake Shakespeare Company: On Sunday, November 18 at 2pm, BWW readers will receive $5 off the price of a General Admission ticket. To receive the discount, use the promotional code BWW when pre-purchasing tickets for 11/18 on our website, www.chesapeakeshakespeare.com, or print out this page and bring that to the box office on 11/18.

CONTESTS!

Look for a new contest soon!

ONSTAGE THIS WEEK!

A five star system will be utilized in order to differentiate between the various levels of success: artistry and entertainment value.  This system is not directly numeric, however.  That is, a 4 rated show isn't necessarily twice as good as a 2 rated show; neither is a 4 rated show a "B" or an 80%.

◊◊◊◊◊ - The absolute best theatre has to offer!  Missing this should not be an option!
◊◊◊◊ - This is excellent theatre!  Do not miss this show!
◊◊◊ - This is a very good production.  Try to get to this one!
◊◊ - This is a fair production.
◊ - Save your money.

Be sure to contact the theatre directly for show times, dates and prices.  All shows subject to change.  

 

CURTAIN UP!  Opening this week!

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at Dundalk Community Theatre (CCBC - Dundalk).

• ◊◊◊ 1/2 A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at Dundalk Community Theatre.  Through11/4.  Broad adult humor, sexual inuendo.  Review posted 10/29.  www.ccbcmd.edu
• ◊◊◊ 1/2The Last 5 Years at Vagabond Players.  Through 11/25.  Adult language and situations.  Review to be posted 10/30.  www.vagabondplayers.com or 410-563-9135.
• Hearts at CENTERSTAGE.  10/26-12/2.  Review to be posted 11/1.  www.centerstage.org or 410-332-0033.

 

CURTAIN DOWN!  Closing this week!

My Fair Lady contest to post Monday, October 29 in the afternoon!   Look for it to win one of five pairs to opening night at the Hippodrome on November 6th!

 

NOW PLAYING!  Shows that are currently running.

A Shayna Maidel at Rep Stage and The Baltimore Waltz at Single Carrot Theatre.

• ◊◊◊◊◊ A Shayna Maidel at RepStage.  Through 11/4. Review posted 10/9.  2 hours 30 minutes, including intermission.  www.repstage.org or 410-772-4900 BEST BET 10/9!
• ◊◊◊◊ The Great American Trailer Park Musical at Spotlighters. Through 11/4.  2 hours, including intermission.  Adult language, sexuality, gun shots, magic marker sniffing, and really bad hair.  Review posted 10/16. BEST BET 10/16!
• ◊◊◊◊The Baltimore Waltz Single Carrot Theatre at Sydonne's Event Hall on Howard Street.  Through 11/4.  2 hours, including intermission.  Adult language, content and sexual situations.  Review posted 10/27.  www.singlecarrot.com or 443-844-9253.  ALL PERFORMANCES ARE FREE!!!
• Tom, Dick and Harry at Timonium Dinner Theatre.  Through 11/4.  www.timoniumdinnertheatre.com or 410-560-1113
• ◊◊◊ Menopause: The Musical at M&T Pavilion at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center.  Closes 11/4.  Tickets currently on sale through November 4. 90 minutes, no intermission.  Adult language, content and sexual themes.  Review posted 7/20. www.france-merrickpac.com or 410-547-SEAT
• ◊◊◊◊◊◊ Titanic: The Musical at Toby's Dinner Theatre of Columbia.  Through 11/11.  2 hours, 30 minutes, plus intermission.  Review posted 9/10.  www.tobysdinnertheatre.com or 1-800-88-TOBYS.  BEST BET 9/11!
• Antigone at Baltimore Shakespeare Festival.  Through 11/11. Review to be posted 10/26.  www.baltimoreshakespeare.org
• ◊◊◊◊ Dreamgirls at Toby's Dinner Theatre of Baltimore.  Through 11/11. 2 hours, 20 minutes, plus intermission.  Adult language and situations.  Review posted 9/19.  www.tobysdinnertheatre.com or 1-866-99TOBYS.  BEST BET 9/18!

 

The Great American Trailer Park Musical at Spotlighters and Titanic: The Musical at Toby's Columbia.

COMING SOON!  Shows opening soon!

Rounding Third at Catonsville Theatre Company (CCBC-Catonsville's Barn Theatre).

• Nickel and Dimed at Theatre Hopkins.  11/2 – 11/18.  Review to be posted 11/4.  410- 516-7159 or thehop@jhu.edu.
• Six Degrees of Separation at Johns Hopkins Barnstormers.  11/2 – 11/11.  Review to be posted 11/5.  www.thejhubarnstormers.org
• Rounding Third at Catonsville Theatre Company.  11/9 - 24.  Review to be posted 11/11.  410-455-4400 or catheatrecompany@comcast.net

 

AUDITIONS!

WHO: Laurel Mill Playhouse

  

WHAT: Twelve Angry Jurors, based on the award winning show by Reginald Rose, Adapted by Sherman Sergel

 

WHEN: October 28 and 29 at 7PM

WHERE: The Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St. in Laurel.

 

WHAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR: 15 male/female roles.  Director Don Neal will have sides available for cold readings from the script. 

 

PERFORMANCE DATES: January 11 through February 3 on Friday and Saturday nights with two selected Sunday matinees and one selected Thursday evening performance. 

 

INFORMATION: Please contact Director Don Neal at moncuredon@yahoo.com , Maureen Rogers at 301-452-2557 or jjjmm@aol.com, email lmp@laurelmillplayhouse.org, call LMP at 301-617-9906 or visit our website at www.laurelmillplayhouse.org.

 

BACKSTAGE BABBLE!  News, Best Bets, etc.

LOCAL JAZZ LEGEND, RUBY GLOVER, DEAD AT 77.  SERVICES PLANNED

We regretfully announce the passing of Baltimore's own jazz legend, internationally renowned vocalist, Ruby Glover.  She was 77, and died just one day after collapsing while performing at a benefit for the House of Ruth.

Services and a tribute to Glover are as follows:

• Thursday, October 25, 2007, 6:00pm - 10:00pm:
  Sojourner-Douglass College, 500 North Central Avenue, 4th Floor
  (There will be a light fare.)
• Friday, October 26,2007,  Wake begins at 6:00pm:
  City Temple Baptist Church, 317 Dolphin Street (corner of Eutaw and
  Dolphin Sts), Baltimore, Md 21201
  If you wish to participate in the activities, be you musician, artist, etc, when you arrive, you must sign up.  Ask for Ralph Fisher.  He will be coordinating the event.

 

TOBY ORENSTEIN NAMED "MARYLANDER OF DISTINCTION"

Long time friend of BroadwayWorld.com, and even longer friend to the performing arts in the Baltimore/DC area, Toby Orenstein received the Marylander of Distinction Award on October 18^th.  Ms. Orenstein, owner and director of both Toby's Dinner Theatres of Baltimore and Columbia, has worked tirelessly to bring theatre to patrons of all ages and focuses much of her time nurturing the talents of youngsters in the area. 

At the dinner on Thursday, about 400 guests from theatre, tourism officials, Maryland Life magazine staff, State and County arts councils, state and county politicians, 4 college presidents, her extended family.  Carole Lehan was mistress of ceremonies, including a "Toby Orenstein This is your Life" program.  There were some phenomenal vocal performances by original Young Columbians who have gone on to rewarding theatre careers, accompanied by piano, and moving speeches by Dr. Ben Carson, Johnny Holliday, and Illona Kessel, among others. 

Congratulations, Toby, on an honor well-deserved.

 

SPOTLIGHTERS PRESENTS FREE STAGED READINGS! 

Spotlighters will present staged readings of two short works on Thursday, Oct 25 at 8pm
at University of Baltimore - Performing Arts Theatre at 21 West Mount Royal Ave - 5th Floor

 

• Head Rush written by Alex Peri and directed by Audra Mains.
  Head Rush is a psychedelic glimpse into the ultimate power of the mind over the body: a manifestation of those demons which we carry around in us all. The fears that we cannot help let go of and the lies we keep to hold onto our realities.

• Facing East written Carol Lynn Pearson and directed by FUZZ Roark
  Facing East is the story of a family, bound by faith, duty and tradition and nearly destroyed by the lies they are forced to live in order to do the right thing. Following Andrew's suicide, Ruth and Alex (his parents) learn who their gay son really was, from his lover.

These are FREE EVENTS, but reservations are requested.  Either order tickets on line at www.spotlighters.org (Just click on TICKETS)
or call 410-752-1225, x1.

 

THEATRE PROJECT PRESENTS TWO PLAYS ON FEAR OF DEATH

Theatre Project presents Hystery of Heat and Spoleum on November 8-17: Thurs.-Sat. at 8pm and  Sun. at 3pm.  Tickets are $20 general admission/ $15 seniors and artists/ $10 students.  Box Office: 410-752-8558 or www.missiontix.com 

The fear of death is the inspiration for two lively shows at Theatre Project. From Nov. 8-17, The Performance Thanatology Research Society presents Hystery of Heat and Spoleum, a double bill that reflects the group's dedication to the study of death and dying.

• Hystery of Heat is a multimedia performance piece about heat, love, death, dance, hysteria and the dangers of rock and roll. Structured as a lecture, the show features a live soundtrack and an extra warm theater. As the heat (literally) rises, the lecturer and his researchers have to avoid the high anxiety and heat given off by their own subjects. Some of it is funny and some of it is very dark, but all of it will make you think.
• Spoleum is a one-act-play about Venice, memory and architecture. In a race to save relics from the Italian city, an obsessed architect - played by Towson University alum Daniel Allen Nelson - becomes submerged in the darkest mysteries of the empire's foundation. The show is an intriguing performance-hybrid romp through the drowning city, where obsessions and ghostly sightings from the empire's wicked past abound.

 

CHILDREN'S PLAYHOUSE OF MARYLAND STAR CAST IN OFF-BROADWAY'S CROSSING BROOKLYN; BUS TRIP PLANNED

Over the past four years CPM has had a young man by the name of Bradley Bowers appear in 11 of their shows.  Bradley, last summer, got cast and appeared in Tarzan, on Broadway, as Young Tarzan.  

Bradley has now been cast in an Off-Broadway show – Crossing Brooklyn.  It is a modern day musical that deals with the emotions of a schoolteacher, his wife, and one of his students (Bradley) after September 11th. He is one of the leads in the show.

A bus trip planned for NY to see Bradley in this show, Saturday, November 17th.   Please join us if you can. It is going to be a fun-filled day and very exciting to see Bradley perform. 

Please email actorlist@yahoo.com to reserve your spot and then fill out the form below and mail it with payment to: Diane Smith, 2126 Eastridge Rd, Timonium, MD 21093 

• Cost:  $88.00 per person
• Price includes: Bus, Crossing Brooklyn Ticket, light snacks on the bus, driver gratuity and a GREAT TIME.  We will spend the day in lower Manhattan.  We can visit Ground Zero, South Street Seaport, Chinatown and/or The Statue of Liberty prior to the show.

 

FROM LAST WEEK'S BABBLE!

NEW TO THE BWW FAMILY!: THEATRE HOPKINS OFFERS AREA PREMIERE OF NICKEL AND DIMED!  

For the first time, Theatre Hopkins will be the guest of Mobtown Players, presenting the area premiere of Nickel and Dimedopening Friday, Nov. 2.

 Adapted by Joan Holden from Barbara Ehrenreich's book of the same name, the drama Nickel and Dimed chronicles Ehrenreich's effort to explore the lives of Americans surviving on minimum wage income by joining their ranks. Led by Mandy Dalton as author Barbara Ehrenreich, the cast also includes Gail Anderson, Ameerah al-Mateen, Joey Hellman, Jennifer Johnson and Tawanna Kane.

The production will run three weekends through Sunday, Nov. 18, at Mobtown's theater located at 3600 Clipper Mill Rd., off Union Avenue in Hampden. Curtain time for Friday and Saturday performances is 8 p.m.; Sunday matinees begin at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15. Student rush tickets for $5 are available at curtain time for all performances, if space allows. For reservations or information, contact Theatre Hopkins at (410) 516-7159, or by e-mail to thehop@jhu.edu.

BALTIMORE PLAYWRIGHTS GROUP TO DISCUSS ANNA IN THE TROPICS!

The Baltimore Playwrights Group will hold its next Fifth Tuesday play discussion on Tuesday, October 30 at Fell's Point Corner Theatre, 251 S. Ann Street. They will be discussing Nilo Cruz' Pulitzer Prize winning play Anna in the Tropics.  Admission: a dessert or non-alcoholic beverage to share. Please read the play in advance and/or see the current production at FPCT. (www.fpct.org). Come ready to discuss what makes Anna in the Tropics a 21st century Pulitzer winner.

Note:  This is event is designed for anyone interested in playwrighting specifically.

BROADWAY LEGEND SPONSORS CABARET SERIES AT THE KENNEDY CENTER!

Musical theatre actress, Barbara Cook (The Music Man, She Loves Me) has leant her name and considerable talents to a new series at the Kennedy Center, Barbara Cook's Spotlight.  Three time Tony Award nominee Judy Kuhn will be up next at the Terrace Theatre at the Kennedy Center on October 26^th, singing the songs of Laura Nyro.  This will be a true treat for local theatergoers, as Ms. Kuhn was just announced to assume the role of Fantine in the Broadway revival of Les Miserables.  Audiences familiar with the original Broadway cast of the show will remember she originated the role of Cosette, Fantine's daughter.  Judy was Tony nominated for that role, as well as the revival of She Loves Me and the legendary (if flop) musical Chess.  She also appeared on Broadway in The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Rags, as well as Passion at the Kennedy Center's Sondheim Celebration.

Later in the season, the Spotlight Series will feature Lillias White (Tony Winner for The Life) on November 16, Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner (Side Show, the Kennedy Center production of Company) on April 11 and Brent Barrett (Kiss Me, Kate, Chicago, Grand Hotel: The Musical) on June 28.

For tickets and information, call 202-467-4600 or go to www.kennedy-center.org.

 

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