Apr 06

Streamed Content to Prevent COVID-19 Brain Drain: April 2020 and All is Weird

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Kitty Drexel

Dear Readers,

Here is the latest list with online community happenings and be-ins.

Zoombombing is a threat. Please keep yourselves safe by implementing security measures against these fuckboi trolls.

Articles for context:
The Verge,”Zoom adds new security and privacy measures to prevent Zoombombing.”
The New York Times, “‘Zoombombing’ Becomes a Dangerous Organized Effort.”
Buzzfeed News, “Here Are 8 Quick Tips To Keep You From Getting “Zoombombed” By Trolls”

Keep washing your hands, stay at home, and know that you are necessary and loved,
Kitty Drexel
Queen of the New England Theatre Geeks

Boston Theater Marathon XXII: Special Zoom Edition – Boston Playwrights’ Theatre offers features free readings of ten-minute plays by New England playwrights in collaboration with New England theatres, via Zoom, April 1-May 17. They are excellent!

Central Square Theater – Central Square Theater is extending its online run of Pipeline! It’s available to watch until April 12. Get your TICKETS before it’s too late!

HowlRound has oodles of online content by theatremakers to watch and it is FREE, whether streamed or recorded. Please go to the site for details.

John J King/J-Rex Plays created a music video called, (Who Needs) Pants?! Featuring special guest star Ramona Rose King.

Liars & Believers – LAB is sharing The Huns: a radio play by Peter Papadopoulos. Directed and edited by Jason Slavick. The Huns is twelve minutes long and the silliness we need in these dire times.

Luminarium Dance Company– Artistic Director Merli V. Guerra’s The One I Keep (2013), performed by long-time company member Jessica Chang, is now available to watch online via YouTube.

New England New Play Alliance – New Play Alliance has a newsletter with information on local New England playwrights, podcasts, online events, and giveaways! Subscribe HERE.

Rockettes Dance Class: The Radio City Rockettes offer live dance classes on Instagram every week beginning on April 2 at 12PM EST. Additional classes will take place on successive Thursdays at noon.

Trinity Repertory Theatre – Rhode Island’s Tony Award-winning theater is generating digital content and creating virtual events and classes, so that “the show goes on.” Content is being delivered through its social media channels and is aggregated at

*Registration for all adult and kid’s classes and/or the knitting circle can be found HERE.

*Streaming of the movie I Am A Seagull by directors Brian Mertes, Melissa Kievmanis, and The Chekhov Project is available to steam until April 15 by clicking HERE.

*Virtual tickets are available here for a streamed version of Asolo Rep’s production of Into the Breeches!, which had its world premiere at Trinity Rep in 2018. Available through April 14.

TCG (Theatre Communications Group) – TCG has assembled resources relating to Coronavirus and has held a Webinar that you can access here. Dispatches From Quarantine will be a quick-response way for theatre folks to share thoughts, feelings, griefs, hopes, and strategies for getting through this fraught and disorienting moment.

WGBH, ArtsEmerson, Huntington Theatre Company – WGBH will present a special broadcast of Mala, a poignant drama written and performed by local playwright and performer Melinda Lopez. This award-winning play will air on WGBH 2 and YouTube TV on Thursday, April 9 at 9 p.m.

Following the broadcast, ArtsEmerson will host a pre-recorded online conversation between playwright/performer Melinda Lopez and director David Dower at ArtsEmersonBlog.org.

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Mar 30

Streamed Content to Prevent Brain Drain, Continued: Don’t Reach Out and Touch Someone

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Kitty Drexel

Dearest Readers;

Below is a continuation of last week’s list. New England area theatre companies are keeping busy. And so should you! Many of the opportunities from last week are still active and thriving. Please check those links.

Keep washing your damn hands, getting enough exercize, Zooming your friends. Stay home.

Let us know if we missed something! Email us at blognetheatregeek@gmail.com or find us on our social media pages.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/netheatregeek
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NewEnglandTheatreGeek/

All our love from six feet away,
Kitty, Queen of the New England Theatre Geeks

Apollinaire Theatre Company – ATC hosts Apollinaire at Home! It’s a free online play & film script reading gathering! Apollinaire at Home is hosted by your Apollinaire favorites, and the cast includes You!! Readings for the week are posted on Apollinaire’s main page on Tuesday evening/ Wednesday morning. Readings will be Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 7:30, and Sunday “matinee” at 3:00.

Bonnie Duncan and the Gottabees – For children of all ages, Bonnie Duncan & the Gottabees give you a few moments out of your (crowded!) day where you can enjoy being together as a family with puppets and music. A familiar, underpants-stealing-squirrel makes a cameo.

Boston Theater Marathon XXII: Special Zoom Edition – Boston Playwrights’ Theatre (BPT) presents “Boston Theater Marathon XXII: Special Zoom Edition,” featuring ten-minute plays written by New England playwrights and presented by New England theatres via the video conferencing tool Zoom, April 1-May 17. Readings will begin each day at 12 noon and will last approximately 15-minutes. Audiences will need to download the free Zoom app to participate, and it is recommended they call in a few minutes before “curtain” time.

Central Square Theater – Central Square Theater has made available for streaming a video recording of its acclaimed production of PIPELINE. The recording is available today through April 5, 2020. Details on how patrons may purchase access the recording is included. TICKETS.

CompanyOne – C1 has its new C1 “New Work #socialdistancing Community” form. Please drop your ideas there. Company One Theatre is postponing the remaining productions of Season 21, Clare Barron’s Dance Nation and Inda Craig-Galván’s Black Super Hero Magic Mama. Both productions will shift to 2021 and become part of Season 22.

Upcoming from C1: Resident playwright Kirsten Greenidge is launching a series of online Open Writes. Kirsten will hold space for folx who want a communal, but quiet, energy to support their writing. The first is scheduled for Saturday April 11 (time tbd), and will be co-hosted with David Valdes. C1 will send out a formal announcement with a video link as the date approaches. Please watch the C1 website for updates.

Post-Meridian Radio Players – PMRP makes available “The Mysterious Traveler” on their Soundcloud for listening. They ask that you please enjoy this thrilling story of the gentleman thief, Arsene Lupin. Auditions with PMRP’s summer will be announced on their website.

The Umbrella Arts – The Umbrella Arts Gallery has provided wider virtual access to exhibitions from their three gallery spaces at The Umbrella.

Aperture: The annual group show featuring more than fifty Studio Artists, viewable as a 360 Virtual Tour, and with works available for purchase through Artcld.
One Day I Will Walk Into The Umbrella: The Black Box Gallery exhibition of drawings created by Justin P. Douglass while incarcerated in Concord and in Norfolk.
Gallery 3: An exhibition of mixed media works by Cynthia Katz.
#TBT: Just Added Lyle Lovett Video – As we continue to digitize various Umbrella programming, we’re pleased to share for the first time a video excerpt of last fall’s amazing benefit concert by Lyle Lovett. The video was wonderfully produced with high-quality sound by video professional and Umbrella volunteer, Bob Greim.

The Multicultural Arts Center – The Multicultural Arts Center has created a virtual gallery for Cambridge students, teachers, parents, and community members to showcase its K-8 Young Artist exhibition.

TC Squared – In response to the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic, TC Squared has launched a new online reading series: VOLUME UP Virtual Play Readings. Videos can be found on its YouTube channel. Facebook and Twitter has the most up-to-date info.

Exquisite.

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Mar 23

Streamed Content to Prevent COVID-19 Brain Drain: A March 2020 List

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Kitty Drexel

Dearest Readers;

Like you, we at the New England Theatre Geek are starting to go stir-crazy during these times of social distancing #COVFEFE19. Below is a small collection of links to streaming content, classes, and performances to occupy your days.

We wish you all the best! Please wash your damn hands, get enough exercize, Zoom your friends, and stay home as much as you can.

All our love from six feet away,
Kitty, Queen of the New England Theatre Geeks

The List

Apollinaire Theatre – Last week Apollinaire graciously hosted readings via Zoom. The scripts are still up on their main page.

Boston Center for the Arts (BCA) – The FeministFuturist exhibit is now online. Performances have been suspended. They have a page FULL ofOVID-19 relief opportunities for all artists. Please check it out… But first, FeministFuture!

The Brattle Theater – The Brattle is streaming their Boston Women’s Film Festival on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Broadway World – BWW has multiple pages devoted to online content to download or stream. Happy hunting: Classical; Broken Records; Musicals Online; What’s Streaming Today?; So much more.

CompanyOne – C1 is running an online auction. Alas, the JAM in cancelled.

Company Theatre – online classes – https://www.companytheatre.com/online-classes/

Cloud Cafe – Tune into Cloud Cafe tonight at 6 p.m.! Each night of this performance series will be curated by a different Boston based artist–all of whom have been forced to cancel gigs and tours to protect the community from COVID-19. Each curator will hand-pick members of their community who have been directly impacted by the pandemic to build creative performances that bring people together to heal and find joy.

Flat Earth Theatre Company – The radio play Lovecraft’s Unnamable Tales is free to listen to on YouTube and SoundCloud. We know the unknown is terrifying, but you can at least experience the indescribable virtually, from the comfort of your own attic laboratory full of unheard-of monsters.

HowlRound Events – HowlRound is streaming their events. Please check their site for more info.

John J King is hosting Johnny Cakes a weekday dance break at 12:45PM ETD.

Penobscot Theatre Company – PTC will livestream its production of Safety Net through March 29. It runs 90 minutes with no intermission. The playbill is available online. Tickets may be purchased HERE.

Playbill – Playbill has a Daily Distraction page.

Metropolitan Opera – Daily streaming of opera for all – If you can beat the rush and the site doesn’t crash from the opera fervor!

MIT Arts – MIT is posting home concerts to its Facebook and Twitter account:s starting on March 20. Please check these links: Facebook ad Twitter. Free to watch and listen!

This New York Times article has oodles of opportunities in it: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/theater/theater-streaming.html

Wilbury Theatre Group – Thanks to a new collaboration with GoLocalProv, the Wilbury Theatre Group is streaming classes, performances and events on their Facebook and YouTube pages. Their calendar is HERE.

Young Jean Lee – Playwright Young Jean Lee has posted her 2011 performance of We’re Gonna Die and playwright class on Twitter.

The New England Theatre Geek will post events, performances and classes as they appear on its Facebook and Twitter pages. Please let me know if we’re missing out by emailing us at blognetheatregeek@gmail.com.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/netheatregeek
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NewEnglandTheatreGeek/

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Mar 23

Book Release and Online Event:”There Must Be Happy Endings” by Megan Sandberg-Zakian is Released Today!

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Kitty Drexel

There Must Be Happy Endings: On Theatre of Optimism & Honesty
By Megan Sandberg-Zakian
Published by The 3rd Thing Press
Olympia, 2020
Available on Kickstarter with a $24.00 pledge
Paperback, 230 pages

LIVE ONLINE EVENT!
Megan Sandberg-Zakian in conversation with Melinda Lopez
March 23, 2020, 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Free on the HowlRound website! More info below.
Event on Facebook

Review by Kitty Drexel

“An ending doesn’t have to be happy to be satisfying. A good ending, happy or not, draws a line around the experience of story hearing and telling. It picks the story up, holds it in its hands, and offers it out, whole. It gives us the opportunity for a collective breath. A good ending is honest: a boundary we can feel, the knowledgable edge of a reliable container. It is a ritual threshold between story and not-story.”

— Megan Sandberg-Zakian, “There Must Be Happy Endings,” There Must Be Happy Endings: On Theatre of Optimism & Honesty, 2020.

Somerville, Mass — There Must Be Happy Endings by Megan Sandberg-Zakian is an exploration in the personal dramaturgy of the mind and spirit. In her first book of essays, the author takes a deep dive into the works that have made a lasting impression upon her. They are an extension of her need to share stories through theatre. Whether by quoting Homer, The Dark Knight or Annie, these essays draw the reader into the author’s personal story by circumnavigating the landscape of the greater western narrative. She tells us why happy ends are important and why they are especially important to her. Her title essay isn’t demanding sappy closure but commanding a divine right to culminate our narratives with an end to the suffering within them. Continue reading →

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Mar 03

Grow to Live: “The Children”

Posted on March 3, 2020 by Kitty Drexel

Paula Plum, Karen McDonald, Tyrees Allen. Photo by Maggie Hall Photography.

Presented by SpeakEasy Stage Company
By Lucy Kirkwood
Directed by Bryn Boice
Fight & intimacy consulting from Jessica Scout Malone

Feb. 28 – March 28, 2020
Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA
SpeakEasy on Facebook

Critique by Kitty Drexel

“You have a choice, don’t you, exactly, at our age which is that you slow down, melt into your slippers, start ordering front fastening bras out of Sunday supplements, or you make a committed choice to keep moving you know because you have to think: This is not the end of our lives but a new and exciting chapter.” – Hazel, The Children by Lucy Kirkwood

Boston, MA — Science fiction is about how humans interact with each other and the world amidst scientific and/or technological changes. Without getting into the nitty-gritty details of what is and isn’t science fiction, The Children is science fiction theatre. It has a lot to offer to everyone: science fiction enthusiasts will see themselves represented on the stage; science fiction cynics will see scientists as people. Everyone will see a great play by Lucy Kirkwood. Continue reading →

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Mar 02

100% That Witch: “Hansel & Gretel”

Posted on March 2, 2020 by Kitty Drexel

The “Hansel & Gretel” cast. C/o imaginary beasts on Facebook.

Presented by imaginary beasts
Written & directed by Matthew Woods
Additional text by the Ensemble: Laura Detwiler, Lauren Foster, Colin McIntire, Amy Meyer, Bob Mussett, Kiki Samko, Jamie Semel, Sivan Spector, Jennifer Taschereau, Matthew Woods
Puppets designed by Elizabeth Owens & Jill Rogati

Feb. 7 – March 1, 2020
The Charlestown Working Theater
Charlestown Working Theater
442 Bunker Hill Street, Charlestown, MA
The beasts on Facebook

Review by Kitty Drexel

Charlestown, MA — The run of Winter Panto 2020: Hansel & Gretel by imaginary beasts ended on March 1. You are out of luck if you are reading this review now. It was wonderful! The cast’s acting talents were in excellent form because the script was chock full of boisterous puns and pop culture references. Scenery chewing extended to the audience just a little bit so as to rope all comers into the play’s antics. Best of all, the audience was game to interact with the show for the duration of the took the two-and-a-half-hour performance. If you watch the beastie website, you can catch them next year. Continue reading →

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Feb 25

Honor Your Boundaries: “Hir”

Posted on February 25, 2020 by Noe Kamelamela

Photo via Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/apollinairetheatre/photos/a.59182456990/10156464525606991/?type=3&theater

Presented by Apollinaire Theatre Company
Written by Taylor Mac
Directed by Brooks Reeves

February 14 – March 8, 2020
Chelsea Theatre Works
Chelsea, MA
Apollinaire on Facebook

Review by Noelani Kamelamela

Chelsea, MA — This month, Apollonaire Theatre Company tackles Hir, Taylor Mac’s comedy of manners fixing conservative against expansive American views on gender, class and sex. It is understood, even in the writing, that quite a few of the concepts will cheerfully ride over the heads of the audience. Advanced gender studies classes may not be enough of an education to appreciate the entire play, but the production unfolds for as more than just the text: with costume, set dressing, emotion, repetition, intonation and even art in the lobby to bolster meaning and heighten context. At 120 minutes with a single intermission, the time passes quickly, but I do caution people who are sensitive to issues such as domestic violence, elder abuse, teen bullying, and post traumatic stress disorder to perhaps read a synopsis or steel themselves to potentially be triggered. Continue reading →

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Dec 17

An Apocalyptic “Parade”

Posted on December 17, 2019 by Chloé Cunha

Presented by Moonbox Productions
Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Book by Alfred Uhry
Directed by Jason Modica
Music direction by Catherine Stornetta
Choreography by Kira Troilo
Costume Design by Chelsea Kerl
Set Design by Lindsay Genevieve Fuori
Lighting Design by Steve Shack

Performance dates: Dec 15 – Dec 28, 2019
Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, Roberts Theatre, 527 Tremont St., Boston:
Facebook link

Review by Chloé Cunha

(Boston, MA) “Where will you stand when the flood comes?” An angry mob asks the ominous question, and Parade gives little comfort in its answer. Moonbox Production’s staging offers an apocalyptic vision of the past and present, with little optimism for the future. It’s a dizzying tale well-told, but the bleakness it offers may be tough to swallow in the present day when hope feels increasingly scarce. Continue reading →

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Nov 18

A Ritual and Remembrance: “What to Send Up When It Goes Down”

Posted on November 18, 2019 by Shiyanbade Animashaun

The company of What to Send Up When It Goes Down; Photo by Lauren Miller.

Presented by the American Repertory Theatre
Produced by The Movement Theatre Company
Written by Aleshea Harris
Directed by Whitney White
Presented in collaboration with Hibernian Hall
Ensemble Alana Raquel Bowers (Three), Nemuna Ceesay (Four/Eight), Rachel Christopher (One/Made), Ugo Chukwu (Six/Miss), Kambi Gathesha (Two), Denise Manning (Nine/Song Leader), Javon Q. Minter (Seven), Beau Thom (Five/Man/Driver)

NOV 14 – 16 at Hibernian Hall
184 Dudley Street
Roxbury, MA 02119
NOV 20 – 24 at The Ex (Loeb Drama Center)
64 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

Review by Shiyanbade Animashaun

(Roxbury/Cambridge, MA) In its initial moments, What to Send Up When It Goes Down declares itself as a ritual for Black people. Acknowledging the non-Black people in the audience it welcomes all others, with a clear request that all partakers be respectful. Even before it began, I knew the performance would tackle important issues that I resonate with, but the play was surprisingly evocative for the larger audience as well. Continue reading →

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Nov 07

Nora Theatre Company Seeks 10-Minute Plays for “Sport-a-thon”

Posted on November 7, 2019 by Kitty Drexel

Logo via https://www.centralsquaretheater.org

The Nora Theatre Company
Central Square Theater
Cambridge, MA
CST on Facebook

(Cambridge, MA) The Nora Theatre Company’s new 10-Minute Play Festival, Sport-a-thon is a new play event for New England-based playwrights.

Riding the passion that all New Englanders have for sports of practically every kind, The Nora will be starting a festival of 10-minute plays about sports focusing on the feminine perspective. We welcome bold ideas and innovative forms of performance within these plays and look forward to seeing the many ways that “plays about sports” can be written.

As the Nora’s mission focuses on promoting the feminine perspective, we will be looking for plays that showcase the feminine voice. The Nora strongly encourages female-identifying artists to apply as it is our goal to make your voices heard. Additionally, we especially encourage artists of color, LGBTQ+, and diverse viewpoints to apply for this marathon.

Please send applications to The Nora’s Assistant to the Artistic Director, Samantha Stafford at sstafford@centralsquaretheater.org.

Overview
PARTICIPATION: Sport-a-thon uses a committee based selection process to ensure that a diverse set of projects, both in content and message, are selected for this marathon.

SCHEDULE: The Nora Theater Company will begin reviewing new projects starting in January of 2020. The Marathon will take place March 23 and 24, 2020.

RESOURCES: The Nora and Central Square Theater will provide space, technical support/design, and a small budget for performers and directors as determined by the Artist Director.

BOX OFFICE, TICKETING, FRONT-OF-HOUSE: Central Square Theater will provide event RSVP mechanisms through our box office and all contact information is kept for future use. Central Square Theater will provide FOH support.

PUBLICITY: Central Square Theater will provide a level of publicity for the marathon and all publicity will adhere to CST’s union contracts.

ARTISTIC SUPPORT: While you control the development of your project, the Nora’s Artistic Director and Central Square Theater’s Staff will provide advice and aid in the production of your work.

Selection Criteria

You must be a New England based playwright
Your 10 minute play must involve sports in some way
The subject must be focused on the feminine perspective

Selection Process
Your play will be reviewed by a committee in consultation with the Nora’s Artistic Director. You may be contacted by the project curators in order to discuss your project further or clarify certain details.

How to Apply / Contact
Please send applications to The Nora’s Assistant to the Artistic Director, Samantha Stafford at sstafford@centralsquaretheater.org.

Please submit the following:
The Project: Please include a copy of your 10 minute play. The script must be in standard play format, with a title page, a character listing, the setting, props, and any technical requirements or other production considerations. Your name must not appear on the script.

Personal Details: Include a brief bio of who you are and the work you do. Please put all contact information for the playwright, including name, address, telephone number and email address on this page as well.

Please contact Samantha Stafford at sstafford@centralsquaretheater.org with any further questions.

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