Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Theatre--Auditions

AUI/AURA is in need of an actor to play a straight-acting, slightly nerdy 16 year old male coming to terms with being gay.  The role is SOLOMON in SPEECH AND DEBATE to be presented for two weeks at Cite Des Arts in mid-October.  Rehearsals are Monday and Wednesday from 6-9 pm and Saturday from 9 am to noon.

If you are interested, contact Walter Brown at 337-235-6284 or email me at wfj5552@cs.com.

Friday, August 27, 2010

Opera--Audition results

The UL Lafayette Opera Theater is announcing the cast for Too Many Sopranos by Edwin Penhorwood.  It is a contemporary comic opera in 2 acts.  
 
The cast:
Miss Titmouse - Lana Carver
Madame Pompous - Jessica Wiltz
Just Jeanette - Meghin Taylor
Dame Doleful - Alex Hollerman
St. Peter - Jonah Slason
Gabriel - TBA (not yet cast)
Enrico Carouser - Holden Greene
Nelson Deadly - Jace Fogleman
Unnamed Bass - Jared Price
Orson - Nick Manzo
Sandman - Jenee Luquette
 
The show is being directed by Shawn Roy.  Set design is by Duncan Thislethwaite.  Lighting design is by Ken Harrelson.  Pianist is Madelyne Godley.  
 
Production dates are November 5th and 6th at 7:30PM and November 7th at 3PM in Burke Hall on the UL Lafayette campus.  Tickets will available at the door only and are $10 for general public and free for UL Lafayette students, faculty and staff.  Call 482-5939 for more information.  

Theatre--Auditions (Musical Theatre)

Firelight Performing Arts announces auditions for their fall production, Cowgirls, directed by Ray Blum with Laura Blum serving as musical director. The play will have a two weekend run from October 15th through the 24th. The musical comedy calls for six female performers who can sing - three of whom are proficient in country music and the remainder who can sing in the “classical” style. All singers must be 18 years old and must be able to harmonize. Those who audition for these roles must be prepared to sing either country or “classical” music a la Vivaldi or Anonymous 4. Be prepared to sing a one minute example of either style, using either an instrumental CD or with a piano accompanist (bring your sheet music or CD). There is also a need for a banjo player, a guitarist, a pianist, and a violinist/fiddler, all of whom can be either male or female. Instrumentalists, please contact Laura Blum at 962-0306 for further information.  Auditions, which will be held at 501 Church Street in Youngsville, will be held on Sunday, August 29th from 3 to 5:00 p.m. and on Monday, August 30th from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m


For more information, call 857-6991.

Theatre--Review (IPAL)

Ray Blum's review of Remember When, the IPAL original musical running this weekend, is in the Friday, August 27th edition of the Daily Advertiser.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Theatre--Review (AUI)

Within the last two years, I have been privileged to attend forty-two plays, both in London and New York City. I have seen six Tony-award winning performances and felt the thrill of a production executed without a single hitch. The standing ovations I gave to plays like August: Osage County, Hair, Gods of Carnage, Spamalot, Ragtime, and A Little Night Music were instantaneous and well-earned.

I can now add a local theatrical production to that list of instantaneous ovations. I attended two performances of Acting Unlimited, Inc.’s production of Bat Boy: the Musical by Keythe Farley and Brian Fleming with composer and lyricist Laurence O’Keefe. Based on a preposterous headline from the Weekly World News, these gentlemen have managed to create a genuinely moving play with pathos from an outrageous, bizarre tale. Almost every element of their tale defies logic and reason, but the decisions and actions taken are all rooted in human desires and feelings.

It is difficult to reveal the plot without spoiling all of the rich surprises, but the show begins with the three Taylor children (Nick Dooley, Krista Rene Corbello, and Kelly Griffin)—from the wrong side of the tracks—discovering the Bat Boy in a cave. After the Bat Boy attacks Ruthie Taylor, the other two Taylors subdue the Bat Boy and bring him to Hope Falls, a town on the verge of financial heartache. There’s been a plague recently killing off the cows in that West Virginian town, and though the Bat Boy has nothing to do with that predicament, the small-minded citizens of Hope Falls are willing to blame anything. The kind Sheriff Reynolds (Scott Meddows) brings the Bat Boy to the local veterinarian, Dr. Thomas Parker (Cody Daigle), his wife Meredith (Ruth Diaz), and their teenage daughter Shelley Parker (Martha Diaz). As the town’s hysteria slowly grows to feverish proportions, the Parkers educate the Bat Boy, now named Edgar, to the point where the townspeople should accept him, but such is not the case. Various tragedies befall the Taylor family, and with each death—yes, there are quite a few—the townsfolk turn on the Bat Boy and chase him to the Slaughterhouse. It takes a surprise denouement from the Parkers to reveal who the Bat Boy truly is, and by the finale, no one in the town, or the audience, is left unmoved by the tragic turn of events.

Having read a synopsis of the play, I knew almost every plot twist and turn, but that allowed me to stay alert for some incredibly subtle and crafted acting. Thankfully, this production avoided almost all campy elements that other directors from other productions have chosen, turning Bat Boy into a silly, preposterous, tongue-in-cheek romp. (A cow’s severed head and coal-stained handkerchiefs are the rare exception.) The cast and crew played the entire performance with a dedication usually given only to Greek tragedies, and in many ways, this was. All three Taylor children die, but not in the way one would expect, and the death of the last child Ron is particularly heart-wrenching. The Parkers have secrets that are foreshadowed throughout the entire production, and their fate is ultimately tied to their actions from years past.

Why attend two performances? Director Walter Brown cast two young actors, Phillip Smith and Erik Schneider, in the lead role of Edgar, the Bat Boy, and I had been informed that each young man brought something different to the role. I was skeptical but agreed to see two different performances, and I’m glad I did. (Full disclosure: I have directed Phillip Smith myself in a previous play and did not know Erik Schneider at all. Though Erik is a graduate of Lafayette High School, where I teach, I have never taught him in any subject.) Phillip supplied Edgar with a wide-eyed optimism and hopefulness that society might accept him, while Erik brought a tougher cynicism and poignant sorrow that society would not. They both sing achingly and played nicely off both Ruth and Martha Diaz, sisters in real life. (Martha finally has the opportunity to display both her range and her belting voice, something that’s been sorely underutilized in most of her previous shows. She manages to be a credible love interest to two different actors, not an easy thing to do.) The Bat Boy suffers a cruel fate, however, and the audience sympathizes with his awful predicament, a testament to the acting of these talented young men.

To single out any performer in this ensemble production would not do credit to the work and effort all the cast put into it, and yet here I go. Erin Segura as Mayor Maggie, Kristina Marshall as Pan, and Nathaneal Trahan as the stiletto-heeled Lorraine all added a quirky element to the play. I can honestly say that no weak links existed, and several actors assumed multiple roles, executing them brilliantly. An exceptional stroke of casting came with Cindy Hebert as both the spiritual leader Reverend Billy Hightower and the understandably-angry Mrs. Taylor, mother of three kids who die in the course of the play. As the reverend, she sang a buoyant “A Joyful Noise,” a tent revival song in Act II, but as Mrs. Taylor, she crooned her “Lullaby” in Act I, showing off her incredible range. (It also involved one very quick costume change in Act II.) Still, I must mention Cody Daigle and Ruth Diaz in performances nothing short of perfection. When confronted with his wife’s betrayal, Cody managed to choke out the single word “Yes,” with enough meaning to fill many textbooks. When Cody asked his wife pleadingly, “Say that you love me,” she paused before answering sorrowfully, “I will,” instead of “I love you.” Their final reprise of “Dance With Me, Darling,” which explained so much of the play’s tragic elements, had exquisite harmonies that only underscored the beauty of an unbelievable situation. It helps that both Cody and Ruth have long been friends and have acted as a married couple in a previous production, Cody’s exquisite Grand Pre.

This being a Walter Brown production, I expected nothing short of excellence in the technical domain, and I was not disappointed. Scott Bailey’s set was a triumph of making a concise space morph into numerous different scenes seamlessly. Too many local community theatres kill the pacing of their play with interminably long scene changes, but not Bat Boy. Leah Twilley and Joseph Diaz did a brilliant job of choreography that utilized the entire cast, and I’ve never quite seen such an effective use of so many flashlights in my life. Some subtle light changes had been perfected by the second performance I saw. Jason Pennington and Andrew Elias provided the challenging musical score, which, while haunting, did tend to overpower certain cast members in their solo moments. The singing was first rate, though composer Laurence O’Keefe does like really high notes and prefers ending songs in purposefully-unusual chords.
I repeat, these are minor quibbles about a show that brought the audience instantly to their feet both nights I saw it. When Broadway and the West End are producing safe, feel-good shows, it’s refreshing to see something out of the ordinary, a show willing to take risks. It is my understanding that this show has been a dream of Ruth Diaz’s for some time; I’m glad to see someone’s wish came true.
---Vincent P. Barras

Theatre--Auditions

IPAL announces that auditions for The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson will be held at IPAL's Essanee Theater at 9am to 12pm on Saturday, October 2nd and Sunday, October 3rd from 1-4pm.  The play is IPAL's Christmas production and will open on Friday, December 3rd and will run for three weekends, closing with the Sunday Matinee on December 19th. 

    The following is a character breakdown of the roles we are looking for. 
            Adult Roles 
            Father(Bob Bradley) – solid family man 30-40 
            Mother(Grace Bradley) – 30-40 
            Mrs. Armstrong – largish woman, 50ish 
            Mrs. Slocum – pleasant, motherly woman, 35-60 
            Mrs. Clark – 35-60 
            Mrs. Clausing – 35-60 
            Mrs. McCarthy – 35-60 
            Two Fireman – Any age 
            Reverend Hopkins – 30 and up 
            Children’s Roles 
They are looking for children between the ages of 5-15 any age and any ethnicity. 

                
As in all IPAL production, these auditions are completely open and do not require any special preparation. Please bring a picture and resume if you have one available.  Questions can be directed to the Director – Charlee Halphen Swain -- by calling the theater at 364-6114 and leaving word, or by calling her directly at 371-6971. 

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Other--Auditions

The LAFAYETTE SCIENCE MUSEUM is announcing auditions for actors and extras to participate in the second annual MUSEUM OF FEAR attraction.

The actors will be paid to cover key positions in the attraction.  They will also be designated as life-safety officers in their assigned areas of the attraction.  Because of this dual nature to the position the key things we are looking for in the actors is improvisational ability and the freedom to schedule as much of the run as possible.  Actors will be expected to attend some rehearsals.

The extras will be unpaid performers who will fill out the other roles in attraction making for a more complete experience for visitors.  Extras may work the entire run if they wish or may schedule a limited number of days and/or shifts.  Extras who are available and willing may be promoted to actors as the need arises.

Auditions will take place from 6pm to 8pm on Thursday September 2 and Friday September 3 at the LAFAYETTE SCIENCE MUSEUM (corner of Congress Street and Jefferson Street, downtown).

Museum of Fear is performed in two shifts on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights from September 30 through October 30 from 6pm to 12 midnight.  For the first shift, participants report at 5:00 pm and perform from 6pm to 9pm.  For the second shift, participants report at 8pm, and perform from 9pm to 12 midnight.

There will also be two special performance nights.  There will be a one-shift night on Wed September 20 from 7-11 (report at 6pm).   There will also be a regular two-shift night on Sunday October 31 (Halloween)

If you would like to help out contact the Museum at 291-5544 or Milton Resweber (stage manager) at 261-1923 (leave a message and he will get back to you as soon as possible).

Theatre--Auditions

The date for the auditions for Barrier Island has been changed.  The new date is September 11th.  The location of the audition has yet to be announced.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Theatre--Auditions

This is a call to all high school students! Does theatre has something to offer you but the school musical isn't exactly what you had in mind? Then Cite is the place for you.

Coming this fall, Cite will let YOU produce a play- 70 Scenes of Halloween by Jeffery Jones. You will direct, run set and costume design, stage manage, and act for this play. All will lead up to a real production run, including a midnight Halloween extravaganza! For more details contact Jarin Schexnider at jarin@citedesarts.org or at 291-1122. Production meetings will start the second week in September.

Theatre--Auditions

The first open call for actors interested in auditioning for the regional premiere of David Stallings' Gulf Coast drama, Barrier Island, the first play in his "Galveston Cycle" takes place on September 4.  Barrier Island is an ensemble drama focused on a tight-knit group of Galvestonians in Capadona's bar during the days leading up to the arrival of Hurricane Ike. The play is a touching drama about making peace with the past and how we decide to stay or go in the face of disaster.


Barrier Island had its world premiere in New York in May 2010 and was produced by Maieutic Theatre Works. This will mark the show's second production. The production will begin table work in September. Rehearsals proper will begin in mid-October. The show is set to run December 2nd - 11th.

We are auditioning for the following roles:

LAURA: early-mid thirties, attractive and strong, if at times cold—has hidden warmth.
DANIEL: eleven, Laura’s child—equally as withdrawn.
NATE: mid fifties, friendly—always with a joke and everyone’s friend.
BOB: sixties—a tough exterior and always in the middle of everything.
CHERYL: early-mid thirties, crass and shameless.
TREY: early-mid thirties, insightful although not well spoken.
STEPH: fifteen, tough and plain.
SUSIE: mid fifties, bright and bubbly with sass.
CARL: thirty, jittery and odd.

For the audition, actors will need to prepare a brief side from the show. If you are interested in auditioning, email cody.d.daigle@gmail.com with your contact info and the character you are interested in auditioning for. We will send you the side you will need to prepare and give you further info on the audition.

Looking forward to seeing you all at auditions! If you have any questions, please email: cody.d.daigle@gmail.com

Monday, August 23, 2010

Opera--Auditions

The UL-Lafayette Opera Theatre is holding auditions for Too Many Sopranos on Thursday, August 26th in Room 143 in Angelle Hall at 4:30 pm.  Auditioners should come prepared to sing a piece in English, preferably an aria.

Too Many Sopranos is a two act opera sung in English.  Four divas arrive in heaven to discover that there is not room for all of them in the Heavenly Chorus due to the number of tenors and basses in hell.  The divas must travel to hell to try to bring back to heaven some tenors and basses to balance the Chorus.


For more information about the auditions, contact Shawn Roy at 482-5939.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Theatre--Performance

The Daily Iberian has coverage of IPAL's Remember When, the currently running original musical, in two articles--one written by the paper and one opinion column.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Theatre--Performance

Embark on an adventure with the legendary King Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot and a host of others on Saturday, August 21st at 3:30pm and 5:30pm as the Missoula Children’s Theatre and more than 50 local students present King Arthur’s Quest at The Wolff Building in historic Washington.

This production is part of the Missoula Children’s Theatre’s unique international touring project and is presented locally by the Town of Washington.

Tickets are $5.00 for Adults and $2.50 for children and are available at the Washington Town Hall.

For more information, contact the Washington Town Hall at 337-826-3626.

Missoula Children’s Theatre (MCT) is in its 39th season of providing professionally guided theatrical experiences for children. These experiences are both artistically satisfying and educationally fulfilling. The mission of the Missoula Children's Theatre is the development of life skills in children through participation in the performing arts. During the 2009-2010 season, MCT will have up to 48 teams of Tour Actor/Directors touring 1,200 communities in all 50 U.S. states, 5 Canadian Provinces as well as over a dozen other nations worldwide. This coming season more than 66,000 young people will be involved as cast members in our International Tour productions.

For additional information on Missoula Children’s Theatre, http://www.mctinc.org/.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Theatre--Performance

(Cody Daigle, playwright and actor, has a new show which will open at off Broadway's Theatre Row on September 16th.  Below is the official press release from the producing company.  Congratulations to Cody from the entire theatre community!)


“Maieutic Theatre Works has a sack of gold on its hands, they are to be commended for producing such a fine contribution to the artistic world.”nytheatre.com for MTWorks’ production of Cody Daigle’s Providence.

Maieutic Theatre Works
Proudly Presents

A HOME ACROSS THE OCEAN

Written by
CODY DAIGLE

Starring
ALEX BOND*
MARK EMERSON*
LAVITA SHAURICE BURR
DAVID STALLINGS
DATHAN B. WILLIAMS*


Directed by
DEV BONDARIN

FOUR WEEK LIMITED ENGAGEMENT
SEPTEMBER 16 –
OCTOBER 2, 2010
THEATRE
ROW COMPLEX

TICKETS NOW ON SALE AT TELECHARGE.COM

Maieutic Theatre Works (MTWorks) is pleased to present the world premiere of A HOME ACROSS THE OCEAN, by LGBTQ journalist Cody Daigle, directed by Dev Bondarin. A HOME ACROSS THE OCEAN will play a 4-week limited engagement at The Studio @ Theatre Row (410 West 42nd Street). Performances begin Thursday, September 16th through Saturday, October 2nd.

Press are cordially invited Friday, September 17th at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday, September 18th at 8:00 pm & Tuesday, September 21st at 7:00 p.m.
(Unofficial press dates will be accommodated, upon request.)

***
Connor and his boyfriend think they're ready to start a family; Connor's recently widowed mother thinks she needs to re-start a family herself. When a thirteen-year-old foster child and a poet from London arrive into their lives, they'll find out exactly how ready they are.

A selection at The 2010 National NewBorn Festival.

***
Featuring Alex Bond* (Off-B'way: Flamingo Court; MTWorks: Barrier Island), Mark Emerson* (MTWorks: Barrier Island), Lavita Shaurice Burr (GLAAD Winner: She Like Girls), David Stallings (MTWorks: Folie A Deux) and Dathan B. Williams* (B'way: Show Boat, dir. Hal Prince).

Martha Goode (Associate Producer Miracle Worker, Circle In The Square) is the producing director. Set design by Blair Mielnik (NY IT Awards Nominee, To Barcelona!), costume design by Rachel Dozier-Ezell, lighting design by Dan Gallagher, and sound design by Kim Fuhr. The production stage manager is Carolynn Richer, and Nichol C. Rosas Ullman is the assistant stage manager. Dramaturgy by Cristina Alicea.
***
A HOME ACROSS THE OCEAN plays the following schedule through Saturday, October 2nd:

Tuesdays at 7pm (followed by a talk-back)
Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8pm
***
Tickets are $18 and are now available online at www.Telecharge.com or by calling 212-239-6200. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the Theatre Row Box Office, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily.

**Running time: 2 hours including one intermission**



*Appearing Courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association.

***
BIOGRAPHIES


CODY DAIGLE (Playwright) is a playwright and journalist living in Lafayette, Louisiana. He is also a contributing blogger on LGBTQ issues for 365Gay.com and Our Big Gayborhood, a new LGBTQ online magazine. His plays include Last Night of the World (Riant Theatre, NYC), Guernica (Augusta State University, Georgia; UL-Lafayette, Louisiana), Life/Play (2007 FringeNYC), Providence (MTWorks, NYC; reading at New Jersey Repertory, NJ), and A Home Across the Ocean (MTWorks 2010 NewBorn Festival, NYC).

DEV BONDARIN (Director) is pleased to return to MTWorks where she directed a reading of Slip/Shot in last season's National New Born Festival. Directing credits include: Romeo & Juliet (EBE Ensemble @ The Music Pagoda in Prospect Park), The House of Blue Leaves (Gallery Players), Snapshots and Map Quest (Prospect Theater Company), Thucydides (Samuel French Festival - Winner 2009), and Raised by Lesbians (FringeNYC). SDCF Observership recipient. MFA in Directing - Brooklyn College. Member: Lincoln Center Directors Lab. Associate Member: SDC and the League of Professional Theatre Women.  www.devbondarin.com.

ALEX BOND (Grethe) Most recently she appeared in MTWorks production of Barrier Island by David Stallings.  Off-Broadway: Flamingo Court at New World Stages.  Regional theatres:  Provincetown Theatre, New Harmony Theatre, Depot Theatre, Buffalo Studio Arena, Virginia Stage Company, Theatre Virginia, Dallas Theatre Center, Theatre Three.  Numerous national commercials.  Stand-up comedy.  Whenever she can, Ms. Bond promotes tolerance by reading selections from her novel Late Nights With The Boys: confessions of a leather bar chanteuse with David L. Carson.  Their work has received the Producer’s Pick Award from the 2007 Dallas/Ft. Worth Fringe Festival, the Best Literary Staging from the 2008 San Francisco Fringe Festival, and Fruit of Distinction Awards from the 2009 Fresh Fruit Festival.

DATHAN B. WILLIAMS (Mahmbi) Broadway and 1st National Tour of Show Boat. National Tours of: The Color of Justice, The Wind In The Willows and The King and I. Recent Credits include: Whatever The Weather (Mythic City), Macbeth (TWAS Classical Lab), West of The Willow Tree (New Professional Theater), Line In The Sand (Virginia Stage Company), Nathan The Wise (Pearl Theatre Company), Josephine Tonight! (Songbook Series), Buffalo Gal (Primary Stages), Show Boat (Carnegie Hall), Medea (TWAS), The Matchmaker (Winston Prep – Guest Artist), American Duet and Becoming Tennesse  (both at Eugene O’Neill Theater Center). Also work with these New York Companies:  AMAS, The Woman’s Project, Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, York Theatre, MTC, SoHo Rep and 92nd St Y. Regional Theaters include: Prince Music Theater, California Music Theater, Bay Street Theater, Maine State Music Theater, The Cleveland Playhouse, Orlando Shakespeare Festival, Barrington Stage Company, Madison Rep, Goodman Theater, Marriott-Lincolnshire Theater, Milwaukee Rep Festival/The Next Act Theater, Stage One, two seasons with The Stratford Shakespeare Festival (Guthrie Award) and Folger Shakespeare among others. This fall he can be seen as Captain Ross in the Web Sci-Fi Series, The M Theory.

MAIEUTIC THEATRE WORKS (MTWorks) is a non-profit NYC based theatre company that has premiered distinctive plays and brought numerous Broadway performers to Off-Off Broadway audiences since 2006. Now a family of 12 theater professionals and 28 company actors, MTWorks’ mission is to birth new plays inspired by playwrights and regions outside of New York City.

Past productions include Carol Carpenter’s Good Lonely People at The Robert Moss Theatre (Winner of 3 Planet Connections Theatre Awards; Best Supporting Actress, Best New Playwright, Activist Award), directed by Diánna Martin; David Stallings’ Barrier Island (Center Stage), directed by Cristina Alicea; The 2010 National NewBorn Festival at Asya Geisberg Studio, various directors; Underworld: Duets at The Triad NYC (Benefit); 4 Variations of Mee at Manhattan Children’s Theatre, various directors; Louise Flory's Look After You at The SoHo Playhouse (FringeNYC 09), directed by David Stallings; Jacqueline Goldfinger's The Oath at The Arclight Theater, directed by Cristina Alicea; The 2009 National NewBorn Festival at The ArcLight Theater, various directors; Into the Underworld: A Broadway Understudy Tell All...With Music at The Triad NYC (Benefit); David Stallings' Anaïs Nin Goes to Hell at The Connelly Theater, directed by Cristina Alicea (FringeNYC 08); Cody Daigle's Providence at The Rock Theatre, directed by Ian Crawford; Underworld: A Night With Broadway's Understudies at The D-Lounge (Benefit); The 2008 National NewBorn Festival at The Payan Theatre, various directors; David Stallings's Arpeggio at The 45th Street Theatre, directed by Cristina Alicea; The 2007 National NewBorn Festival at The Payan Theatre, various directors; and David Stallings’ Folie a Deux: Insanity in Pairs at The Rock Theatre, directed by Cristina Alicea. www.mtworks.org


Monday, August 16, 2010

Theatre--Audition (Musical Theatre)

Firelight Performing Arts announces auditions for their fall production, Cowgirls, directed by Ray Blum with Laura Blum serving as musical director. The play will have a two weekend run from October 15th through the 24th. The musical comedy calls for six female performers who can sing - three of whom are proficient in country music and the remainder who can sing in the “classical” style. All singers must be 18 years old and must be able to harmonize. Those who audition for these roles must be prepared to sing either country or “classical” music a la Vivaldi or Anonymous 4.  Be prepared to sing a one minute example of either style, using either an instrumental CD or with a piano accompanist (bring your sheet music or CD). There is also a need for a banjo player, a guitarist, a pianist, and a violinist/fiddler, all of whom can be either male or female. Instrumentalists, please contact Laura Blum at 962-0306 for further information.Auditions, which will be held at 501 Church Street in Youngsville, will be held on August 29th from 3 to 5:00 p.m. and on Monday, August 30thfrom 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.

For more information, call 857-6991 or go to www.firelightenterprises.com.

Theatre--Performance

Acadiana Repertory Theatre is pleased to announce its first production in its ART after Dark series, which features edgy and sometimes offbeat theatre, art and music as a complement to its mainstage series. A mixed media play world premiere by Keith Dorwick and John Patrick Bray, NightFears has been developed through 21 interviews with people here in the Acadiana region. Asked to talk about their fears, the interviews have become the source (in part) for the material that appears on three large video screens that appear at the back of the set. A cast of four (Lexie Carroll, Michael Cato, Casey Harmon and Josey Toups) will present material from the interviews in ways that underscore the pervasive fear that we all face as we attempt to cope with such realities as disease, death, war and various kinds of financial insecurity as well as the childhood fears we never really outgrow. Note: NightFears uses mature content and language

NightFears opens Saturday, Sept. 11, 2010 at 8 pm and then runs Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 pm from Sept. 15 through 25, 2010. Full Admission is $12.00 and students and seniors pay just $7.00 (Wednesdays are "Pay What You Can" Nights). NightFears will run at the Acadiana Outreach Center Brick Warehouse, 125 South Buchanan Street Lafayette, LA and is supported by a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Office of Cultural Development, Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism in cooperation with the Louisiana State Arts Council as administered by the Acadiana Center for the Arts.

The Acadiana Repertory Theatre is a professional theatre company serving the culturally rich area in southern Louisiana, known as Acadiana. Consisting of a core team of actors, directors, and visual artists, the Acadiana Repertory Theatre is the newest addition to the cultural reawakening in this area. Using local playwrights, directors, designers, actors and crew, ART strongly believes in the need to showcase local talent in professionally produced productions since it also believes in that local talent. Most of the company members are Louisiana natives who grew up right here in the Acadiana region, but all of the company members are dedicated to the idea that theatre, music and the other arts can flourish here in southwestern Louisiana.

Playwright, director and videographer Keith Dorwick is an associate professor in the English Department of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. As a member of the steering committee of the Acadiana Repertory Theatre, he is, with playwright John Patrick Bray, the co-author of two plays built out of the experiences of people affected by HIV in the Deep South. As a visual artist, he was one of two winners of a $600 Juror's prize for his short direct animation, Ganymede, which ran for two months at the juried Southern Open. His Icarus will run for two weeks in mid October at the Acadiana Center for Film and Media. John Patrick Bray is an off Broadway playwright with several recent productions; his Hound (an adaptation which premiered at Lafayette's own Cite' Des Arts) has just been published by Next Stage Press. Duncan Thistlewaite is set designer and builder; Rick Manuel will design lights and choreography is by Stacy Broussard.


For more information and reservations, email info@acadianarep.org or (337) 366-2277.