Roy Berko:  Here and There—Baldwin Wallace performs SPRING AWAKENING, CPT streams FRANKENSTEIN’S WAKE, Mad Factory does RAGTIME, U of Akron presents Waves, Verb Ballet. Benefit for Ensemble

Spring Awakening by Baldwin Wallace University’s Musical Theatre Program

Baldwin Wallace University's nationally acclaimed music theatre program will stage a virtual production of the Broadway rock musical "Spring Awakening."

Set in late 19th-century Germany, "Spring Awakening" explores the turmoil of adolescent sexuality, with themes of isolation, control, trauma, identity and enlightenment as timely today as they were when the musical premiered on Broadway in 2006.

Thursday, November 19, 8:00 p.m. EST – Wendla Cast
Friday, November 20, 8:00 p.m. EST – Moritz Cast
Saturday, November 21, 8:00 p.m. EST – Wendla Cast
Sunday, November 22 at 2 p.m. EST – Moritz Cast

General information: www.bw.edu/springawakening

Wendla cast tickets - https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/41431

Moritz cast tickets - https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/41432

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FRANKENSTEIN’S WAKE @ Cleveland Public Theatre

In 2106, my review of FRANKENSTEIN’S WAKE stated: “Holly Holsinger, in a tour de force performance, is captivating. Alone on stage during the entire performance, she transforms herself from a crazy sister of a wandering explorer/sailor into an ambitious scientist, to an abandoned soul desperate for companionship. Changes are highlighted by costume, makeup and lighting alterations. As characters die, thus increasing the character’s longing, they are wrapped in shrouds of white and piled at the top end of the runway stage, building a mound of isolation. The script and Holsinger restore Shelley’s original supernatural quality, rather than the sensationalized film’s interpretation.”

I went on to award her the Broadwayworld.com-Cleveland Honorable Mention:  2016 Outstanding Performance by A Female in Drama.

The show, as performed by Holsinger, will be streamed on October 30, 31, November 8, 14, 20 @ 7 PM, October 31 @ 10 PM. 

Tickets:  Suggested donation:  $1-$99

TICKETS

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RAGTIME—Mad Factory Theatre

Ragtime, The Musical by Mad Factory Theatre--Oberlin

November 6th through 15^th--Fridays and Saturdays at 7pm, Sundays at 2pm

Tickets $10

https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/40135  

Tickets are timed and one-time use.  

Email themadfactorytheatreco@gmail.com with any questions!

 

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UNIVERSITY OF AKRON PRESENTS “THE WAVES”

 

The University of Akron Theatre Program presents “The Waves,” a novel by Virginia Woolf which follows six friends at various points throughout their lives with lush and vibrant stream-of-consciousness monologues.  

 

Online showings for “The Waves” will be hosted Nov. 5, 6, 7 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 8 at 2 p.m.  Tickets are free for all audiences with registration in advance, but seating is limited. 

 

To reserve tickets online, visit theWavesUA.eventbrite.com or make reservations by calling the ticket office at (330) 972-7895 or emailing administration.arts@gmail.com. 

 

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Verb Ballets present Carnival Macabre with rock guitarist Neil Zaza

Verb Ballets presents an online cinematic dance-rock experience, Carnival Macabre, with rock guitarist Neil Zaza. This symphonic rock ballet is set to the music of guitar virtuoso Neil Zaza, known for mixing of powerful arrangements of classical masterpieces by with the fury of a rock concert. Choreographer Antonio Morillo has conjured up the supernatural, beginning with a carnival of souls to take you on a journey to showcase Verb Ballets at its dramatic finest. The night will offer haunting reinterpretations in this visually impressive and fiercely musical collaboration to experience dance in a whole new way.  October 30, 2020 7:00pm ET Tickets $25 View encore recording all Halloween weekend

GET TICKETS NOW>>

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BENEFIT READING FOR ENSEMBLE THEATRE

JOIN us for a Benefit Zoom Reading of :: CEASE NOT TO THINK OF ME ::
By Molly McFadden :: Directed by Erin E. Dolan ::
October 29th | @7:00pm

You can’t choose your family, but you can choose how to love them.
Beth only wants what’s best for her brother, Bill. And sisters always know what’s best, don’t they? With no other family left, and Bill dealing with alcoholism and manic depression, these adult siblings must learn how to see each other for who they really are, before the divide becomes too great to reach across. For Beth, letting go may be the only way to truly connect with her brother.

TICKETS $10 | CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ONLINE 

 

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Roy Berko:  Here and There—Blank Canvas, The Musical Theater Project, Cleveland Public Theatre, Playwright’s Local perform on-line! BLANK CANVAS GOES LIVE AGAIN!!! After the success of last month’s show, Blank Canvas Theatre is once again bringing theatre back from the dead! The safety of both our audience and actors has been and will always be our number one priority, so we invite you to join us for a no-contact, socially responsible, multimedia performance in the 78th Street Studios parking lot.    Our show will include actors dressed as iconic horror characters singing some of your favorite theatre and pop songs.  Rated: PG-13   Run time: 60 mins (no intermission) All parking is first-come, first-served. Parking lot opens at 7:15 pm TICKETS: Use ONE TRANSACTION for each vehicle.  COSTUMES: Even though you will be in your car, please feel free to dress in your favorite Halloween costume! We'll be in costumes... so you should too! JACK-O'-LATERN HOOD ORNAMENTS: In order to maximize the Halloween spirit, we are asking all audience members to bring your Jack-o'-lanterns from home!  CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.   ••••••••••••••••••••••• THE MUSICAL THEATER PROJECT’S—CONCERT ON DEMAND   From November 5-8, 2020 The Musical Theater Project will present Concert on Demand.  Featuring Ursula Cataan, Eric Fancher, Nancy Maier and Bill Rudman, it will highlight songs that are funny, charming and downright touching.    Pay What You Can! (suggested ticket price is $20).  Once you register a personalized link will be emailed to you along with instructions.  The links are for single screen use only and cannot be share.  You’ll have 48 hours to log on.  (Registration open November 5, 2020)   CLICK TO ACCESS    ••••••••••••   CLEVELAND PUBLIC THEATRE’S ON-LINE OFFERINGS   FRANKENSTEIN’S WAKE--A PREMIERE ZOOM ADAPTATION Performed by Holly Holsinger October 30, 31, November 8, 14, 20 @ 7 PM, October 31 @ 10 PM This twisted adaptation of Mary Shelley’s masterpiece revives a tour-de-force performance, first performed off-Broadway in 1997 by Cleveland’s own Theatre Labyrinth.    OR DOES IT EXPLODE? Performed by Austin Sasser, Benjamin Black, De Andre Hairston-Karim, & Dar’Jon Bentley November 6, 7, 12, 13, 19, 21 @ 7:00pm  This theatrical piece uses poetry, dance, and other contemporary theatre forms to explore questions of what it means to be Black, male, and young in the 21st century.   For further information go to:  https://www.cptonline.org/performances/upcoming-events/   •••••••••••

PLAYWRIGHTS LOCAL & THE YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS COLLECTIVE 
 
Free on-line reading of THE STORM by EJ Dahl, on Thursday, October 29 at 7:00 pm. 
 
SYNOPSIS:  Summer of 2004 at Youghiogheny Christian Camp, four counselors are settling in for a night away from their campers before an unexplained voice is heard over a walkie-talkie. As the night grows later, the storm grows heavier, dredging up what is buried within.


INFO & ZOOM ACCESS
http://www.playwrightslocal.org/fall-roundtable-series-2020/ 

 

 

EXCITING ON-LINE CONCERTS AND NEW PLAYS BY CLEVELAND AND NATIONAL GROUPS

 
Roy Berko
 
STICKS & STONES TO BE PRESENTED ONLINE

The online concert premiere of the new musical Sticks & Stones will feature a star-studded cast including Audra McDonald, Javier Muñoz and George Salazar when it premieres Friday, October 16, 2020, as part of National Bullying Prevention Month. The stream benefits Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and Born This Way Foundation.
The stream can be watched beginning at 8 pm Eastern, Friday October 16 on broadwayworld.com.  It will be available through 8 pm October 20.

STICKS & STONES adapts the Biblical story of David and his triumph over Goliath to address the issue of teen bullying. Joshua Colley will star as David. Javier Muñoz will portray David’s father, Jesse. George Salazar will appear as King Saul, Mykal Kilgore will make a cameo performance as The Prophet Samuel, and six-time Tony Award-winning and Grammy and Emmy Award-winning Broadway legend Audra McDonald will appear as David’s mother, Nizevet.

Sticks & Stones was written by Grammy and Emmy Award-winning composer and conductor John McDaniel and lyricist/librettist Scott Logsdon. The musical was recently presented at a private industry workshop in Nashville and was the winner of the 2017 Florida Theatrical Association’s New Musical Discovery series.

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BROADWAY STARS PRESENT--BIDEN ON-LINE FUNDRAISER:  IN OUR AMERICA

A host of Broadway favorites will take part in Broadway for Biden's upcoming fundraiser, In Our America: A Concert for the Soul of the Nation, which will stream on YouTube via NowThis October 21 at 8 PM ET. Though free, viewers are encouraged to donate to the Biden Victory Fund.

Directed by Tony nominee Liesl Tommy (Eclipsed), In Our America will feature more than 75 artists, including Laura Benanti, Glenn Close, Darren Criss, André De Shields, John Goodman, Jennifer Hudson, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Samuel L. Jackson, Norman Lear, Norm Lewis, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Rita Moreno, Karen Olivo, Ashley Park,  Carrie Preston, Chita Rivera, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Phillipa Soo, Ephraim Sykes, BD Wong, the Broadway Dreams Foundation Choir, and the casts of SIX and KPOP.

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PATTI LUPONE, LAURA BENANTI & VANESSA WILLIAM IN A 3-PART VIRTUAL CONCERT SERIES

Live from the West Side: Women of Broadway, a three-part virtual concert series, will kick off October 24 with two-time Tony winner Patti LuPone. The series will continue November 14 with Tony winner Laura Benanti and conclude December 5 with Tony nominee Vanessa Williams. 

Performances will take place at The Shubert Virtual Studios on Manhattan’s West Side. 
Passes are available at TUTS.com and include access to the live performances plus an additional 72 hours of on-demand viewing. 

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PLAYWRIGHTS LOCAL PRESENTS A FREE ZOOM READING OF A NEW PLAY

Playwrights Local presents a free Zoom reading of a new Play, TOUCH, written by Rachel Zake, directed by Greg Vovos, on Thursday, October 15 at 7:00 pm.

TOUCH follows nine people’s experiences from the onset of COVID-19 through the initial reopening of their city. Their tales, though seemingly disparate, are woven together as the show progresses. This one-act play is told through a series of vignettes.
 
Playwrights Local is a theater company in Cleveland. As a playwrights’ center, our goal is to provide a home for dramatic writing in Northeast Ohio. We offer classes and workshops, produce original plays, provide networking opportunities, and engage the community through outreach projects. Learn more about programs such as our Fall Roundtable Series and our annual Open Call for Submissions at http://playwrightslocal.org/.
 
For information about TOUCH and zoom access, go to:  
http://www.playwrightslocal.org/fall-roundtable-series-2020/ 
 
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Dobama Theatre Announces Alternative Programming for 2020/21 Season
 
Dobama Theatre proudly announces its alternative programming for the 2020/21 Season, which includes multiple offerings in the areas of performance, new play development, and community engagement. Dobama is happy to have Endeavors Productions and Brian Devers as resident filmmaker for the 20/21 season. Dobama is investing more resources in its Young Playwrights program by conducting virtual playwriting workshops, producing a newly expanded curriculum guide and a series of eight educational videos to assist teachers, parents, and students during this time of distanced learning. There will also be online offerings from The Playwrights' GYM, Dobama's professional playwriting unit. 

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DANCECleveland's Virtual Fall Series

DANCECleveland's Virtual Fall Series invites you to experience four different remarkable dance companies, watch performances, and pre-show discussions with the artists, and more, all from the best seat in the house- YOUR HOUSE!

Choose from our Gold all-access pass for $35 which includes extended viewing days and the ability to join in our LIVE Watch Party Zoom Conversation with BODYTRAFFIC, or select our Bronze- Access Pass and see all 4 shows for as low as $20 with 24 hour access per performance!
 
October 10th- Ballet Hispanico, "Carmen" 
October 17th- Contra-Tiempo "Agua Furiosa"
November 7th- BODYTRAFFIC "Snap" & "A Trick Of The Light"
November 14th- David Dorfman Dance- "Around Town"
 
Buy your streaming pass at DANCECleveland.org
 
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RISE: THE ISOLATION PROJECT, AN ORIGINAL NEAR WEST THEATER PRODUCTION

RISE: THE ISOLATION PROJECT, an original Near West Theater production, will stream October 10, 16, 17, 7:30pm, October 11, and 18, 2:00pm. 

An original writing and performance project for youth, by youth, exploring the impact of coronavirus and Black Lives Matter in their lives. The program offered a unique opportunity to unite NWT youth participants from across past programming and shows to share their stories, their hopes, and their experiences. Together, they developed this piece.
Watch the trailers on WST’s YouTube channel.

Online streaming access is available for purchase at https://www.nearwesttheatre.org/shows-events/2020-21/rise-the-isolation-project

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PBS’ GREAT PERFORMANCES WILL ONCE AGAIN PRESENT ITS “BROADWAY’S BEST”

PBS’ Great Performances will once again present its “Broadway’s Best” series this fall.  The presentations take place every Friday November 6–27 at 9 PM ET, kicking off with the 2011 film capture of One Man, Two Guvnors starring Tony winner James Corden.

The series continues November 13 is Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles. In interviews, producer Harold Prince shares why he hired Jerome Robbins to direct and composers Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick reveal how they wrote their score—including clips of private demos. The documentary also features commentary from Danny Burstein, Alexandra Silber, Chaim Topol, Joel Grey, and more.

November 20's offering is Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn.

The slate of programming concludes November 27 with Great Performances: Lea Salonga in Concert, filmed at the Sydney Opera House in Australia.

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ON-LINE THE SHOW MUST GO ON! FROM LONDON

The casts of multiple musicals currently in the West End—though on hold due to the pandemic—will come together for a charity concert at London's Palace Theatre November 13–15. 

The Show Must Go On! will include performances from & Juliet, Come From Away, Dear Evan Hansen, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Mamma Mia!, The Prince of Egypt, Six, Tina—The Tina Turner Musical, and Wicked.