2009 - 2010 Young Company Season

Dracula

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 17:12:32 -0400

October 30 - November 8 / A Young Company Production

The mysterious Count Dracula has gone to England where he is living on a large estate next to an insane asylum run by the incredibly naive Dr. Seward. The others that make up the cast of this thriller include Professor Van Helsing who must convince Dr. Seward that Count Dracula is a vampire; Renfield, a fly-eating lunatic who serves the Count (once too often); beautiful Lucy Westenra, who has an uncanny resemblance to a girl Count Dracula loved over a hundred years ago; Charles, the Westenra family butler whose poor eyesight saves him from being hypnotized; as well as three female vampires! The plot develops with all the excitement of the original and then, in the end, the audience is given the jolt of a startling double twist.

Click here to see photographs from this stunning production.

Seen this show? Please take a moment to post a review below!

Improv-o-thon

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 17:00:34 -0400

January 9 / A Young Company Fundraiser

One of the most fiercely loyal and supportive groups we have here at The Theater Project is our high school acting company, known as the Young Company. This weekend you can see their spirit in action at our Third Annual improvATHON.

What IS "improvATHON"??

Saturday, January 9th, from 1PM until 6 PM the Young Company will play “Interruption,” an improvisational game they normally play as part of their warm-ups before shows and rehearsals. Only this time, they can’t stop. For five hours.

Here’s how it works: a single actor comes on stage, and waits. A second actor joins him, and begins a completely original, unrehearsed scene. For 30 seconds the two play out this scene, until a third actor enters. The first actor exits, and actor three begins a completely new scene, which actor two must go along with for 30 seconds … until a fourth actor arrives, bumping whoever has been on stage the longest, and changing direction of the scene yet again. It’s circular, endlessly creative, hilariously funny and … exhausting.

How does that raise money?

The actors have gathered pledges in advance, just like you do with other 'thons. We also have $1 tickets for audience members to see the mayhem as it unfolds - one ticket will be good for all day, and you can come and go as you please. Lastly, you can always make an at-the-door (or mid-show!) donation to help the improvATHON action along!

improvaTHON '10
Saturday, January 9
1 pm to 6 pm
Tickets $1

Please join us - you will be astounded by the endless creativity and enthusiasm of the Young Company.

Macbeth

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 16:47:23 -0400

March 12 - 21 / A Young Company Production

Macbeth captures the timeless nature of the human experience....There is greed for power, murderous evil scheming, and the nobility of the fight for good and evil. The tortuous guilty self-flagellation that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth succumb to is such a base human emotion. Without realizing it they are both lost in the depth of the chasm they willingly stepped into.

Click here to see production images!

Oliver Twist

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 16:30:52 -0400

May 7 - 23 / A Professional Ensemble Production + Young Company

Theater Project's OLIVER TWIST Features Young and Old Together

When The Theater Project's Professional Ensemble takes the stage in May with their latest production of OLIVER TWIST, there will be some new - yet familiar - faces added to the mix. For the first time in Theater Project history, The Professional Ensemble will share the stage in a full collaboration with teen actors from The Young Company.

Directed by Christopher Price, the play is an adaptation of the well-known Dicken's novel, set in 19th century London. In it, young Oliver runs away from an orphanage and is taken by The Artful Dodger to Fagin's den, where he joins in a series of adventures with the ragtag street gang until he is befriended by a young benefactor.

According to Price, “Although the novel’s scope is greatly reduced in playscript form, it’s still quite a challenge to produce due to multiple scenes with a relatively large cast made up of both adults and young people. The Theater Project is a good venue for this because of the availability of student actors from The Young Company and our company of professional adult actors. Working with such a range in age and experience has been interesting and rewarding. It has forced me to articulate the craft more fundamentally and less conceptually than I would normally do with an exclusively professional cast. This is a good foe me and, I think, good for the kids to have the experience of working with seasoned actors.“

Featured professional actors include David Butler as Fagin, David Currier as Brownlow, and Craig Ela as Bill Sykes . Young Company actor and Mt. Ararat senior Emily Bowie has a difficult role as Nancy, the mistreated but loving wife of Bill Sykes. "Working closely with professionals has taught me more about acting than any other acting experience," Bowie says. "I'm surrounded by adults to strive to teach me and still listen to what I have to say. I think this is a learning experience for everyone involved, a positive one. I love it." Other featured young actors include Anna Palopoli as The Artful Dodger and Odie DeSmith as title character Oliver Twist.

The production is decidedly unlike the rather well-known musical Oliver!, but rather a grittier and perhaps more accurate take on the novel. "Dickens wrote Oliver Twistas a social commentary on the appalling conditions of the poor and of children in early 19th century England, " says Price. "Work and poorhouses, the harsh treatment of orphans, child labor laws, and the gross economic disparity between the rich and the poor were favorite topics; sarcasm, caricature and black humor favorite weapons to illustrate them. This makes for great reading and, I think, great characters to portray on stage."

OLIVER TWIST will run May 7 through May 23. Performance times are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, and Sundays at 2 pm. All tickets are Pay-What-You-Want, with a suggested price of $18, and are available online anytime. Patrons may also call the box office at 729-8584, or visit 14 School Street in Brunswick.

Voices in the Mirror ’10

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 16:15:22 -0400

June 4 - 6 / A Young Company Production

For over 10 years our Young Company have been entertaining us with their views of life, love and high school.

Boxers: A Collection of Shorts

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 16:00:10 -0400

July 26 - 31 / A Young Company Teen Camp Production

Due to unforeseen circumstances we had to change one of our camps.

THE NEVERENDING STORY scheduled for July 12th – August 1st is now
BOXERS, A COLLECTION OF SHORTS. Instead of three weeks, this will be one-week, still meeting from 9:00 – 3:00. The scripts will be contemporary 10 minute pieces and short plays.

“We have done Boxers in the past, and it seemed like the right time to bring it back”, says Al Miller, director of the camp. “I will have scripts ready to go and we will jump in from the very start.”

So, the new schedule and information is as follows:
BOXERS, A COLLECTION OF SHORTS
Rehearsals: July 26th – 30th, M-F, 9:00 – 3:00
Performances: Friday, July 30th and Saturday, July 31st @ 7:30
Fee: $200
There is still time to sign-up. Call the box office at 729-8584 to register.

The Tempest

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 15:54:37 -0400

August 6 - 15 / A Young Company Production

With The Tempest, Shakespeare turns to fantasy and magic as a way to explore romantic love, sibling hatred, and the love of a father for his child. In addition, The Tempest examines many of the topics that Shakespeare had focused on in his earlier plays, topics such as the attempts to overthrow a king, nature versus nurture and innocence.