Theatre--Review

Ray Blum's review of the UL-Lafayette Opera Theatre's world premiere production of Isabel appears in the Friday, July 31st edition of the Daily Advertiser.

Theatre--Auditions

Auditions for The Dream of the Marionettes/Le Rêve des Marionnettes, an original burlesque-inspired musical will be held at Cite des Arts, 109 Vine Street in downtown Lafayette, on the following dates:

Sunday, 8/23, 3pm-6pm
Monday, 8/24, 6:30pm-8:30pm

Sunday 9/6, 3pm-6pm
Monday 9/7, 6:30pm-8:30pm

Performances will be held at Cite des Arts November 5th-7th, 12th-14th, and 19th-21st.

Actors will be asked to perform a one-minute monologue AND/OR 16 bars of a song of their choice, either a capella or with CD accompaniment. There are 2 male and 11 female parts available. This is a vaudeville/cabaret style musical, so we're looking for folks who can act, sing, and dance. If you have special skills such as juggling, unicycling, sword swallowing, etc. we're looking for you. If you're an actor who sings only in groups (e.g. chorus) please come and audition, not all parts are soloists.

For questions, please contact Cite des Arts at 337.291.1122.

Theatre--Workshop

Caroline McGee, director of the Strasberg studio at the Tisch School at NYU from 2007-2009, will host a forum for parents, students and teachers on auditions and interviews for prospective applicants to BFA/MFA programs in the performing arts. The program will be held in the Bastille Room of the UL-Lafayette Student Union at 2 pm tomorrow, Thursday, July 30th.

Theatre--Review

Ray Blum has reviewed Old Wicked Songs, a UL-Lafayette Opera Theatreproduction, in the Friday, July 24th edition of the Daily Advertiser.

(Note: The broken link has been fixed, I think.)

Theatre--Performance

The Summer Youth Shakespeare Ensemble—an Acting Up (in Acadiana) program—presents the second weekend of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night's Dream. Over 30 children ages ten through high school take on the roles of fools & fairies in a strange wood filled with magic, mischief, and mayhem.

Performances take place Friday, July 24th & Saturday, July 25th at 7:30 pm and Sunday, July 26th at 2 pm at the Acadiana Center for the Arts. For tickets, call (337) 233-7060; for more information, call (337) 739-4273.

Staff for the program and the production include: Hector LaSala, set design and instructor; Paige Krause, choreographer and dance instructor; Danny Devillier, composer and music instructor; Chad Trahan, costume design and instructor, and Amy Waguespack, director. Other instructors and interns include: Marla Kristicevich, Cissy Whipp, George Saucier, Laura Sellers, Lian Cheramie, Hannah Briggs, Ricky Briggs, Megan LeBleu, Harmony Decker, Kara Guarisco, and Katie Lahey.

Theatre--Performance/Audition

There will be a staged reading of Les Marionettes, a work in progress this Monday, July 27th at 6:00pm at Cité des Arts, 109 Vine St., downtown Lafayette. This original musical, written by Johanna Divine and Christy Leichty, is Burlesque inspired. The cast is eleven women and two men. The public is invited to attend Monday’s reading and provide feedback to the writers regarding character and story development.

Auditions for Les Marionettes will be held on Sunday, August 23 (3:00pm – 6:00pm); Monday, August 24 (6:30pm – 8:30pm) and Wednesday, August 26 (6:30pm – 8:30pm). The musical will be brought to the stage this October.

Theatre--Performance

This is the final weekend to catch the Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Crimes Of The Heart, written by Beth Henley and directed by Charlee Halphen Swain. Those who have already attended are raving about this production and even returning for a second time. Join Charlee and her cast, Micahel Cato, Sarah Gauthier, Sara Hitchcock, Rachel LeBlanc, Heath Swain and Elizabeth Satterly.

At the core of this tragic comedy are the three Magrath sisters, Meg, Babe, and Lenny, who reunite at Old Granddaddy's home in Hazlehurst, Mississippi after Babe shoots her abusive husband. The trio was raised in a dysfunctional family with a penchant for ugly predicaments and each has endured her share of hardship and misery. Past resentments bubble to the surface as they're forced to deal with assorted relatives and past relationships while coping with the latest incident that has disrupted their lives. Each sister is forced to face the consequences of the "crimes of the heart" she has committed.

WHEN: July 23, 24, 25, 2009 (Thursday – Saturday) @ 7:30PM

WHERE:Cité des Arts, Main Theater, 109 Vine St., downtown Lafayette

COST: $15 for adults; $10 for seniors and students of any age

For reservations, please contact Cité at 337-291-1122.

Theatre--Article

Steven K. Landry has an article about the Acting Up (in Acadiana) youth production of A Midsummer Night's Dream in the July 17th edition of the Baton Rouge Advocate. There is another article in the July 15th edition of the Lafayette Independent on the same production.

Editor's Note

I am still looking for reviewers! I would like to share opinions about the plays presented in the area. Please contact me if you are interested.

Theatre--Photos

Denny Cuthbert of the Daily Advertiser has set up two galleries of photographs of IPAL's Disney's Aladdin Jr. on the Advertiser's website: here or here

Theatre--Performance

The Summer Youth Shakespeare Ensemble—an Acting Up (in Acadiana) program—presents William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night's Dream. Over 30 children ages ten through senior in high school take on the roles of fools & fairies in a strange wood filled with magic, mischief, and mayhem. A Midsummer Night's Dream is the culmination of the Ensemble’s 15-day intensive performing arts camp, where students study all aspects of the performing arts: music, dance, design, acting, and more. The camp is equivalent to a language immersion program, allowing the young actors to perform a full Shakespearean play just eleven days after they are cast. Staff for the program and the production include: Hector LaSala, set design & instructor; Paige Krause, choreographer & dance instructor; Danny Devillier, composer & music instructor; Chad Trahan, costume design & instructor, and Amy Waguespack, director. Other instructors and interns include: Marla Kristicevich, Cissy Whipp, George Saucier, Laura Sellers, Lian Cheramie, Hannah Briggs, Ricky Briggs, Megan LeBleu, Harmony Decker, Kara Guarisco, and Katie Lahey.

Performances take place July 17, 18, 24, & 25 at 7:30 PM and July 19 & 26 at 2 PM at the Acadiana Center for the Arts. For tickets call (337) 233-7060; for more information call (337) 739-4273.

Theatre--Performance

IPAL's presentation of Disney's Aladdin Jr. opens Friday, July 17th (at 7:30 pm) at the Essenee Theatre in New Iberia.

Theatre--Fundraiser

The annual Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre and Silent Auction benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana is back by popular demand. This event, to be held at City Club at River Ranch on Friday, August 14th and Saturday, August 15th, includes a superb 3-course dinner, an hour and ½ of complimentary wine and beer, comedy, mystery, excitement, murder and prizes! Tickets are $100 per person or $700 for a table of 8. Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre 2009 is sure to be packed with fun and surprises as the audience competes throughout the evening to solve the crime they witness. The hilarious cast of colorful characters is made up of well-known members of the local community. Some have never even set foot on stage before!!! This year’s performance, I Buried An Idol, is a spin-off of the ever popular American Idol that is guaranteed to be a scream. For more information on purchasing tickets or becoming a sponsor, please contact Alyson at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana at 269.0454 or via email at ahaymark@acadianabigs.com.

Theatre--Review

Cody Daigle reviews Crimes of the Heart, currently running at Cite Des Arts, on his Daily Advertiser blog.

Dance--Performance

The Berea Festival Dancers from Berea, KY will make a one-night stop
in Lafayette on their How the West Was Fun Southwest tour. Their program consists of lively reels, beautiful waltzes, and intricate sword and stick dances performed in beautiful costumes. To add to the fun, the Berea Festival Dancers encourage audience participation. The teen folk dance troupe, from the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, performs Appalachian dance, English Country dance, English ritual dance, contra dance, Danish folk dance, and even does an antebellum set. The Berea Festival Dancers have performed at Walt Disney World, Mount Rushmore, and at various festivals around the country, as well as in Great Britian, Ireland, Denmark, Italy, Spain, Australia, and Fiji.

WHEN: Friday July 17, 2009 @ 6:00PM – 7:00PM
WHERE: Cité des Arts, Second Stage, 109 Vine St., downtown Lafayette
COST: Free Admission

Theatre--Editor's Note

After noting that Mr. Blum had overlooked Acting Unlimited, I noticed that I had made the same error. Please let me know if there are any others out there that I've missed. If your company is listed and you have a website that I can link to, again please let me know.

Theatre--Article/Review

Ray Blum's new column in the Friday, July 10th issue of the Daily Advertiser includes an interesting list of area theatre companies. It is mostly complete, but leaves out at least one company--Acting Unlimited. If you belong to a company that has been left out of Mr. Blum's article, or if this blog has overlooked you, please let me know.

Theatre--Auditions

In October 2009 Firelight Performing Arts will present the Off-Broadway musical The Taffetas, directed by Ray Blum, with musical direction by Laura Blum. The cast will consist of four adult women, age immaterial, who have the ability to sing 1950's "Hit Parade" songs in harmony. Auditions will take place on August 3rd and 4th from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Firelight Performing Arts, 501 Church Street in Youngsville. Prepare an upbeat 1950's pop song; bring either sheet music or an accompaniment CD. There will be a cold reading with a focus on a "radio voice."

Theatre--Performance

The Iberia Performing Arts League (IPAL) is proud to present a summer youth musical, Disney’s Aladdin Jr. Based on the Disney classic Aladdin, the play focuses on the life-changing interactions between Aladdin, a down-on-his-luck street urchin, and Jasmine, a royal princess who must marry for the sake of her kingdom. Vincent P. Barras will direct the youth musical running for two weekends from July 17th to July 26th on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees. Students from New Iberia, Loreauville, St. Martinville, Lafayette, Jeanerette, and Youngsville have been cast in the show. Barras has enlisted the help of Marcus McCullough as Musical Director. McCullough is familiar to IPAL audiences as he worked with last year’s summer musical The Wizard of Oz and most recently helped with NISH’s production of Into the Woods. The cast includes Phillip Smith as Aladdin, Martha Diaz as Jasmine, Travis Guillory as the Genie, Ryan Berard as Jafar, Lanie Marcantel as Iago, Joseph Diaz as the Sultan, Nick Dooley as Razoul, and Blythe Bull as the Magic Carpet.

Theatre--Performance

The cast and crew of Dorothy Meets Alice are ready to open the show at the Eunice Players' Theatre! The lively musical is fun for all ages and promises to have children squeal with delight at the sight of some of literature's favorite characters. The actors do a fine job in portraying the well-known characters from The Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland, but the makeup and costumes are what bring them to life. The colors are bright and the makeup is authentic. Against the backdrop of the woodsy scenes, complete with bits of Oz and Wonderland, the actors sing and dance their way out of the confusion brought about by the dream of a modern-day girl.

Character driven comedy drives the show rather than an abundance of songs, and there's enough action (running and hopping and falling down, oh my!) to keep even very young children entertained. The story is simple and easy to follow, with plenty of wackiness, corny jokes, and larger than life villains - including a (not-so-scary) monster. Audience members won't pay attention to their watches, until the show ends and they'll wonder how the time passed so quickly.

In addition to the show itself, LaCalle has planned a three hour workshop on Saturday, July 11 beginning at 9:00 a.m. for children ages 8-12. The workshop will include singing, acting, and games designed for children to learn the basics of the performing arts. Registration fee is $10, which also allows the child entrance to the Sunday, July 12 matinee performance. Space for the workshop is still available but limited so interested parties should register soon.

This show provides a refreshing change from TV, video games, and the boredom of summer so bring the children, the grandchildren, and even the neighbor's children. You'll be glad you did!

Regular performance dates for the show include July 8, 9, 15, and 17 at 7:00 p.m. and July 12 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at Turning Point and David‘s Ltd. Hair and Nail in Eunice. General Admission is $10 for adults and children over age 5, and $5 for children age 5 and under.

The dinner performance is scheduled for Thursday, July 16; tickets for dinner plus the show are $20 for adults and children over 5; $15 for children age 5 and under. The dinner menu consists of catfish bites and popcorn shrimp with french fries, and brownies and ice cream for dessert.

This show is not on the season ticket so anyone wanting to see the show will need to purchase a ticket. For more information about the play or the workshop, call 337-457-2156 or 337-546-0163. The theatre is located at 121 S. Second St. in Eunice.

Theatre--Master Class/Workshop

Caroline McGee will be offering a discussion of the audition/interview application process for Drama, Film, Musical Theatre programs such as NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Yale Drama School, Juilliard, etc. Both parents and students are invited, date and times TBA, during the week of July 27-31.

Caroline has served as Director of NYU's Strasberg Studio and the MFA Acting Program at Catholic University. She currently serves as Director of NYU's Stonestreet Acting Studio for Film & TV.

Also, there are a few remaining spaces for The Master Acting Workshop which she is teaching based on Lee Strasberg's work , the legendary creator of modern actor training. Classes are 3 hours per day, July 27th-31st at UL-Lafayette. There is a day class as well as an evening session available. Partial, need-based scholarships can be requested.

If you are interested in the discussion and/or to receive an application for the workshop, contact: caroline@stonestreet.pro, subject line: "Lafayette, La."

Theatre--Performance

Crimes of the Heart is a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Beth Henley. At the core of this tragic comedy are the three Magrath sisters, Meg, Babe, and Lenny, who reunite at Old Granddaddy's home in Hazlehurst, Mississippi after Babe shoots her abusive husband. The trio was raised in a dysfunctional family with a penchant for ugly predicaments and each has endured her share of hardship and misery. Past resentments bubble to the surface as they're forced to deal with assorted relatives and past relationships while coping with the latest incident that has disrupted their lives. Each sister is forced to face the consequences of the "crimes of the heart" she has committed.

Directed by:
Charlee Halphen Swain

Staring:
Michael Cato
Sarah Gauthier
Sarah Hitchcock
Rachael Leblanc
Elizabeth Satterly
Heath Swain

Performances will be on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30 at Cite Des Arts, opening on Thursday, July 9th and closing Saturday, July 25th.

Tickets prices:
$15 general admission
$10 students and seniors

Theatre--Performance

The local theatre company Acting Unlimited is sponsoring a show to be performed at the Minnesota Fringe festival. The show, featuring local actor Dr. Robert Sidman and Ms. Patricia Drury, is entitled Sex, Lies and Social Security. Embedded below is a "trailer" for the show.



The Fringe's website has a page for each show. The page for Sex, Lies and Social Security is here.

Theatre/Dance--Reviews

Ray Blum's reviews of The Princess and the Pea (Jennifer Miller-Frank through the Lafayette Parish School System's Extended Learning Program) and Abigail's Dream (The Ballet Studio under the direction of Beverly Spell) appear in the Friday, July 3rd edition of the Daily Advertiser and online on the Advertiser's website.