The Old Opera House Theatre Company in historic Charles Town, WV presents the 10th Annual New Voice Place Festival, featuring the premier of four one-act plays Friday & Saturday, June 25 & 26 at 8:00pm and Sunday, June 27 at 2:30pm.
The first is Golden Curtain Winner SHOOTING POOL WITH A ROPE by Lynn-Steven Johanson (Macomb, IL). The show features Rob Madden as Stacey Miller and Ron Harris as Al Crawford and is directed by James P. Whipple. Stacey's mother is in the hospital fighting a losing battle, causing Stacey to be overwhelmed with anger. He retreats to a local park, adjacent to the hospital, and meets Al who is sitting quietly on a park bench. The conversation that ensues from this chance meeting is both humorous and enlightening, as both Al and Stacey have some demons to address and their lives are entwined in ways that is a surprise to both of them.
The Silver stage winner, DICKY'S LASY STAND, is by Dennis Jones from Powhatan, VA. The cast features Troy Crossley as Dicky, Katie Lese as Tammy, Betsy Crutcher as Ashley, Norm Snyder as man, Kaitlyn Dykes as Bonnie, Beth Hood as Woman, Glenn Frail as Buck, Dan Rice as Bob, and Richard Hamstead as Officer Ward. The production will be directed by Will Heyser. Dicky the weather clown is holding the Channel 9 newsroom hostage at gunpoint. Management is preparing to replace their long-standing Weather Clown with a new weather reporter to boost ratings, Skippy the chimpanzee; and Dicky is not going to accept this change quietly. This fast paced farce includes a redneck couple watching the newsroom drama unfold on their TV, and more quirky, slightly twisted, and definitely off-center characters than one television studio can possibly handle. The Spotlight winner is TREE by Jeff Carter featuring Lorraine Bouchard as Jo, Jim Beck as Donnie, Walter Tomlin as Rollie, and Richard Hamstead as Garvy. TREE is directed by Meaghan Barry. In northern Maine, Jo is about to receive a great honor. One of the large fir trees on her farm, a tree that she can see each morning from her kitchen window, is about to be taken to Washington DC to serve as this year's (1959) White House Christmas tree. After accepting the honor, Jo begins to have second thoughts about losing the tree and all it represents. Is change inevitable? A richly woven drama about what it means to hold on tightly to one's heritage in light of change and the pressures of society.
The other Spotlight winner, IN THE BEGINNING by Joan Broadman, features Christine Brewer as Rose, Sondra DeRocha as Lily, and John-Michael Rolnick as Adam. The play is directed by Winky Francis. A honey of a comedy set in a garden in ancient Israel, in 1000 B.C.E. Rose and Lily, two honeybees, discuss the beginning of life on Earth and begin writing a document that will capture all the elements of creation for posterity. The story that we know as Genesis is told from the unique perspective of two creatures that inhabited the earth before humans.Honorable Mentions are THE SKYLAB IS FALLING by Ty DeMartino (Frostburg, MD), LABOR DAY by Brent Englar (Baltimore, MD), THE DAY THAT BRANDO DIED by Lawrence Dukore (New York, NY), RELATIVELY NORMAL by Carl L. Williams (Houston, TX), and STRANGERS by Eileen Siedman (Mill Valley, CA).
Tickets cost $12 Adults and $8 for students. Call the Old Opera House Box-office at (304) 725-4420 for reservations.
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