‘Our Town’ Opens Oct. 17 at Shakespeare Theatre of NJ

2013_OurTown_ShowBanner

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey begins its run of the play Our Town on October 17, 2013.  The show will run through November 17, 2013.  This presentation of the classic play will celebrate 75th anniversary of the playwright Thornton Wilder’s great dramatic homage to small-town American life and the greater universal experience of life,

When I read Our Town in high school, I was not aware of the fact that it was originally produced at The McCarter Theatre in Princeton and that it went on to Broadway in 1938.  But I do remember being impressed by the easy storytelling that took place and that it won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama (1938).  Active theater goers might have seen a production somewhere along the way as it has been produced all over the world because of the universal connection this play makes.

Here is some information about Special Performances for Our Town:

October 17 and 18 at 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 2:00 p.m. – Discount preview performances.  As always, the first Preview performance is Pay What You Can night.  Visit The Shakespeare Theatre Box Office between noon and curtain on October 17th and purchase a ticket for that evening’s preview performance for what you are able to pay (offer subject to availability).

Symposium Series – For no more than the cost of a regular ticket, three Symposium Series performances are offered for each show and include a post-play discussion with the cast and artistic staff.   Symposium performances for Our Town will be Tuesday, October 22nd at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, October 26th and November 2nd at 2 p.m.

October 24thKnow the Show – From 7:00 to 7:30 p.m., an artist from The Shakespeare Theatre will present a pre-performance talk that provides background information and an insider’s perspective on the production. General admission is $5 for the general public, $4 for ticket package holders and subscribers. Tickets to that evening’s 8:00 p.m. performance may be purchased separately.

November 2nd – The 2:00 p.m. performance on  will be audio described for those who are blind or have visual impairments. Audio description enables patrons with visual impairments to hear, through an FM transmitter, a live description of the action on the stage. A pre-performance sensory seminar is offered that allows patrons to feel props, costumes and set pieces to further enhance their live theatrical experience. The service is offered free of charge.

November 10th – An exclusive open-captioned performance will be offered at 2:00 p.m. Captioning will be provided by c2 (caption coalition) inc, a 501(c)(3) non-profit company which utilizes Live Performance Captioning (sm) for Hard of Hearing and Deaf patrons at live theatrical and cultural events.

Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 973-408-5600 or by visiting www.ShakespeareNJ.org.

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‘Disaster! A 1970’s Disaster Movie Musical’ Begins Previews

Photo of the show's cast at a recent rehearsal.

Photo of the show’s cast at a recent rehearsal.

A show with a unique title, Disaster! A 1970’s Disaster Movie Musical, began previews last night at St. Luke’s Theatre, 308 W. 46th Street, New York City.  Written by Seth Rudestsky and John Plotnick, the show is a take off on the action that was famous in big movies of the 1970’s where a disaster hits and survival is the plot line.

According to the press release, the year is 1979 when:

All the hottest New York City A-Listers are putting on their platform shoes and polyester disco shirts and heading to the grand opening of Manhattan’s first floating casino and discotheque. Little do they know that the pier built to house the huge boat was drilled into the center of a dangerous and unstable fault-line.

The show uses songs from the 1970’s such as Hot Stuff, I Am Woman, Knock On Wood, Daybreak, and Signed, Sealed Delivered.  The cast includes Mary Testa, Tom Riis Farrell, Michele Ragusa, Jennifer Simard, Seth Rudetsky and others.

For more information, visit the show’s website, www.disastermusical.com.

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Something Wicked This Way Comes – 2013 Edition – Oct. 28

2013_Wicked

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey will present its fourth annual Something Wicked This Way Comes  on Monday, October 28 at 7:30 p.m.   The event is only given on one night and it is a great way to kick off Halloween week.  

Appropriately titled from a line in Shakespeare’s classic Macbeth, Something Wicked This Way Comes is described from press notes as:

a 90-minute delightfully bone-chilling evening, featuring esteemed actors from The Shakespeare Theatre company as well as guest artists.  “We are thrilled to present the fourth annual Something Wicked This Way Comes. Audiences can expect . . . a brand new line-up of classic ghost stories and tales of horror,” said Artistic Director Bonnie J. Monte. 

Directed by Brian B. Crowe, Something Wicked This Way Comes is a ghoulish collage of dramatic readings from the classic canon of the macabre including Shakespeare, Poe, Stoker, and Lovecraft. “The stories come alive in front of an audience. We combine talented storytelling and haunting music to create a wonderfully spooky atmosphere,” says Crowe.

Composer, musician, and one of the world’s foremost theremin players, John Hoge, will provide the music for this unique evening. 

Tickets for Something Wicked This Way Comes are $33 and are now on sale.  To purchase tickets, or for more information, call 973-408-5600 or visit www.ShakespeareNJ.org.  This show will be held at the F. M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, 36 Madison Avenue, at Lancaster Road in Madison on the Drew University campus.  Convenient parking is available.

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