Taproot Theatre’s Acting Studio features brand-new class for PARENTS and toddlers this spring

Drama With Your Mama, spring break camps, among exciting spring options

SEATTLE – February 8, 2010 – Brand new this spring, Taproot Theatre’s Acting Studio offers Drama With Your Mama, a fun and enriching class for caregivers and their little ones. It’s never too early to cultivate a child’s creativity and imagination, and Drama With Your Mama will do just that. This class will encourage social and self-awareness while building confidence in 1-3 year olds. Spring quarter also includes scene study sessions for both kids and adults, classes that teach the building blocks of singing for musical theatre, plus spring break camps that correspond with both the Seattle and Shoreline school districts’ schedules.

Spring quarter runs March 29 through May 22, with spring break camps running March 29-April 2 (Seattle) and April 19-23 (Shoreline).

Registration is open now. Classes are held at Taproot Theatre (204 N 85^th St.), Ballard Church (1460 NW 73^rd St.) and Grace Fellowship Church (410 NW 62nd St.) in Seattle. Registration forms and class descriptions are available online at www.taproottheatre.org, or contact Taproot’s Acting Studio at (206) 529-3668 or studio@taproottheatre.org.

Taproot Theatre’s Acting Studio would like to thank Grace Fellowship Church and Ballard Church for their flexibility in providing us with class locations after the fire.

About Taproot Theatre Company’s Acting Studio

Taproot Theatre Company’s Acting Studio offers year-round classes for youth and adults taught by local theatre professionals. Budding thespians will find classes to help them develop their acting skills, while more seasoned actors can build on their knowledge and learn new techniques. Taproot Theatre Company is a professional, non-profit theatre company with a multi-faceted production program. Founded in 1976, Taproot Theatre serves the Pacific Northwest with Mainstage Productions, Touring Productions and Acting Studio. Taproot exists to create theatre that explores the beauty and questions of life while bringing hope to our search for meaning. Taproot Theatre Company is a member of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), Theatre Puget Sound (TPS), and the Greenwood-Phinney Chamber of Commerce.

Special thanks to our media sponsor, ParentMap. Seasonal support provided by The Charles Simonyi Fund for Arts and Sciences, ArtsFund, 4Culture, PONCHO and the Nesholm Family Foundation.

The Central Heating Lab at ACT Features the Return of Pinter Fortnightly

Free public readings of plays by late Nobel laureate Harold Pinter

Pinter Fortnightly

March 15-April 26, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.

In Buster’s Special Event Room

Tickets

FREE!

Reservations are recommended.

ACT Theatre

Ticket Office: (206) 292-7676

700 Union Street, Seattle WA 98101

www.acttheatre.org

Seattle, WA – March 3, 2010 – The Pinter Fortnightly series returns to ACT as a part of its Central Heating Lab line-up of events this season, beginning March 15, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. Started in 2009 as an early highlight of the Central Heating Lab at ACT, Pinter Fortnightly features a number of Seattle’s best actors, all of whom donate their time and talent on Monday evenings—typically the actor’s “day off”—to present readings of works by the late Nobel laureate playwright Harold Pinter.

“A lively, engaged and remarkably loyal audience was developed that not only listened attentively to Pinter’s often challenging and provocative works, but participated in thoughtful and unusually animated discussions afterwards,” said series curator Frank Corrado. “ACT asked me to produce four more such evenings this season and I’m very pleased to respond with another intriguing line-up that will take our patrons even deeper into the unique world of Harold Pinter.”

Every other Monday night (fortnightly) from March 15-April 26, 2010 at 7:00 p.m, the general public can now participate in four free play readings of fascinating works performed by carefully chosen casts.

March 15: The Homecoming with Sean Griffin, Brian Thompson, Jean Sherrard,

John Farrage, and Diana Hoyt

March 29: The Room and The Collection (cast to be announced)

April 12: Celebration and Victoria Station (cast to be announced)

April 26: Mountain Language and a reading of Pinter’s 2005 Nobel address “Art, Truth and Politics” featuring Kurt Beattie (additional cast to be announced)

Opening the series is The Homecoming, first produced in England in 1965. A wickedly funny and disturbing work, the play casts an all too revealing light on a hopelessly dysfunctional all-male household thrown into total disarray by the arrival of a prodigal son and his quietly alluring wife. If Freud had been a brilliant comic playwright, he might have come up with something like The Homecoming. Don’t look for socially redeeming characters or values in the play, but do expect conventional wisdoms concerning the sanctity of family, hearth, and home, not to mention the proper roles of males and females, to be turned shockingly and often hilariously on their ears.

All readings are open to the public and free of charge. Readings begin at 7:00 p.m. inside ACT’s special events room, Buster’s, and the bar will be open. No advance tickets required, but reservations are recommended. Seating is on a first come basis. ACT is located at 700 Union Street, Downtown Seattle. Information is available at (206) 292-7676 or www.acttheatre.org.

Paradise Lost will open Intiman's Season

SEATTLE— Intiman Theatre opens its 2010 Season, the first under the leadership of Artistic Director Kate Whoriskey, with Paradise Lost, written by Clifford Odets and directed by Dámaso Rodriguez, featuring an ensemble of 14 actors from Seattle and Los Angeles. Performances will begin at Intiman Theatre, 201 Mercer Street at Seattle Center , on Friday, March 19 and continue through Sunday, April 25. The opening night performance is Friday, March 26 at 8 pm. Please see the Fact Sheet at the end of this release for the schedule.

Tickets are available from www.intiman.org or 206.269.1900. Single ticket prices range from $25 to $61 for Wednesday-Sunday performances. All adult tickets on Tuesday nights are $25. Discounts are available for groups and members of the military, and patrons age 25 and under can purchase tickets to any performance for $10. Pending availability, patrons can purchase pay-what-you-can, standing room, standby and rush tickets for every production. The pay-what-you-can performance for Paradise Lost is Wednesday, March 24 at 7:30 pm. Tickets will go on sale at noon and may now be purchased over the phone as well as in person; new this season, patrons can pay by credit card with a $10 minimum per ticket. This production is sponsored by the Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs and 4Culture.

Paradise Lost conjures a time when gangsters, dreamers, agitators and idealists formed the hopeful heart of the American Dream. This rarely produced classic takes us into the home of Leo and Clara Gordon, a middle-class family in the early days of the Great Depression. In these hardscrabble times, the ground is shifting beneath their feet. Relationships are fragile, the way of doing business is changing and, just outside their door, the precarious economy threatens to upend the world. For the Gordons, everything is at risk—except hope.

The production features Seattle actors Bradley Goodwill, Tim Gouran, Seán G. Griffin, Elise Karolina Hunt, Lori Larsen, Shawn Law, Marty Mukhalian and Brandon Whitehead. Joining the company from Los Angeles , where many have worked previously with director Dámaso Rodriguez, are Nathan Patrick Agin, Erin Bennett, Matt Gottlieb, Michael Mantell, Eric Pargac and Herschel Sparber. Please see the Fact Sheet for a character breakdown.

Clifford Odets (1906-1963) began his career in 1931 with the Group Theatre, the pioneering New York theatre collective. Originally an actor with the Group, he became a sensation in 1935 with a historic benefit performance of his first completed play, the incendiary one-act drama Waiting for Lefty, which was followed by the Group’s Broadway productions of Awake and Sing! and Paradise Lost in the same year. His other works include the plays Golden Boy, Rocket to the Moon and The Country Girl, and the screenplay for Sweet Smell of Success.

Dámaso Rodriguez is Co-Artistic Director of Furious Theatre Company in Los Angeles , where he has directed more than 20 productions of new works including plays by Bruce Norris, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, Craig Wright and Yussef El Guindi. He served for three seasons as Associate Artistic Director of Pasadena Playhouse, overseeing all programming for its second stage, the Carrie Hamilton Theatre, including the Hothouse New Play Development program. He has received the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, Back Stage Garland Award, NAACP Theatre Award and the Pasadena Arts Council’s Gold Crown Award.

The creative team includes scenic designer Tom Buderwitz, costume designer Leah Piehl, lighting designer L.B. Morse, sound designer Joseph Swartz, dialect coach Judith Shahn and fight choreographer Geoffrey Alm. The Seattle casting is by Kate Godman and the Los Angeles Casting is by Michael Donovan, CSA, and the stage manager is J.R. Welden.

This season, Intiman is expanding the number of post-play conversations it offers to nine per production; the bar will stay open during all of the discussions, which are moderated by a member of Intiman’s staff. The schedule for these conversations is as follows:

· Tuesday, March 30 after the 7:30 pm performance

· Friday, April 2 after the 8 pm performance

· Saturday, April 3 after the 2 pm performance

· Wednesday, April 7 after the 7:30 pm performance

· Friday, April 9 after the 8 pm performance

· Wednesday, April 14 after the 2 pm performance

· Saturday, April 17 after the 2 pm performance

· Tuesday, April 20 after the 7:30 pm performance

· Friday, April 23 after the 8 pm performance

Additional Art & Audience Events

Spotlight Supper • Wednesday, March 17 at 6 pm | Free Event

Director Dámaso Rodriguez and Intiman’s staff host an in-process technical rehearsal.

Date Night for Parents • Saturday, April 3 | 6 pm Reception | 8 pm Performance

Intiman, Kids Co. and Seattle Children’s Theatre combine forces to provide the entire family with a night out. Accredited by the National After School Association, Kids Co. is conveniently located at John Hay Elementary School in Upper Queen Anne. For pricing and additional information, patrons should contact Kathleen Maki at kathleenm@intiman.org or 206.204.3325.

Wine Wednesday • Wednesday, April 14 | 6:30 pm Reception | $15 add-on fee

The popular wine-tasting series returns for the second year, presented by Maryhill Winery.

’Round Six Happy Hour • Friday, April 16 | 6 pm Reception | Free with Ticket

Intiman hosts a free ‘happy hour’ with hors d’oeuvres, drinks from Hale’s Ales and live music.

Sign-Interpreted Performance • Saturday, April 17 at 8 pm

Reserved seating for the Deaf and hearing-impaired community.

Fences to play at the Rep

by August Wilson, directed by Timothy Bond
A 25th anniversary celebration of August Wilson's
beloved story of baseball and family

Seattle, WA – Seattle Repertory Theatre celebrates the 25th anniversary of August Wilson's beloved story of baseball and family, Fences. The play is being staged in a number of notable productions across the country, including on Broadway next month. Seattle Rep's production, which plays March 26-April 18, 2010, is proud to include Wilson's widow Constanza Romero as the costume designer.

Tickets are available now through the Seattle Rep Box Office at (206) 443-2222 as well as online at www.seattlerep.org.

Set in 1957, Fences is the story of Troy Maxson, a garbage collector who abandoned his dreams of a baseball career. As black athletes finally begin to be accepted into the major leagues, Troy's son wants to pursue his own ambitions of becoming a professional athlete—but his father has other ideas.

The play won Wilson both a Pulitzer and a Tony, and shows the playwright at his best: challenging the American dream through a poetic, powerful, and deeply personal story.

Seattle Rep had a long relationship with Wilson, who lived in Seattle for 15 years and passed away here in 2005 from cancer. Seattle Rep is the only theatre in the world to have produced all of Wilson's work: every play in his 10-play Pittsburgh Cycle, as well as his one-man show How I Learned What I Learned.

This production is a co-promotion with Syracuse Stage. Director Timothy Bond (former artistic director of the Seattle Group Theatre) is now Producing Artistic Director for Syracuse Stage. He will take the Seattle production to Syracuse after its run here.

Special Event: Fences Community Day, Saturday, April 3, 2 p.m.
Seattle Rep is opening its doors to partner organizations from across the city for this special matinee to bring new and alternative audiences to the theater. Participating organizations can receive complimentary tickets to the performance and join a special Fences 25th Anniversary reception. As part of the festivities, the Seattle Rep will honor sports legend Floyd Little, who was recently elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and will be enshrined in August. Participating organizations include Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Club, Central District Forum, Solid Ground, and YMCA Black Achievers. If your organization would like to participate, contact Kiki Abba at 206-443-2210. Community Day is generously supported by KPMG.

Performance Details: Performances of Fences are at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, with 2 p.m. matinees on most Saturdays and Sundays. There is a Captioned Performance on Thursday, April 1 at 7:30 p.m.; an Audio-Described performance Saturday, April 17 at 2 p.m.; and an American Sign Language (ASL)-interpreted performance on Sunday, April 18 at 2 p.m. Post-play discussions will be held after the performances on Sunday, April 4 at 2 p.m.; Thursday, April 8 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 11 at 2 p.m. The Pay-What-You-Can Performance is March 30, 7:30 p.m.

Leading Local Theatres Collaborate During 2010-2011 Season!

The 5th partners with ACT Theatre, Village Theatre, and Seattle Theatre Group/Broadway Across America for two regional premieres

SEATTLE, WA –Exciting collaborations are underway as The 5th Avenue and ACT Theatre join resources to co-produce a regional premiere, and The 5th also teams up with Village Theatre, Broadway Across America and Seattle Theatre Group to bring a Broadway hit to Seattle and offer special ticketing prices to their subscribers in the upcoming 2010-2011 Season.

ACT Theatre will partner with The 5th to produce Vanities, a new musical adaptation of Jack Heifner’s acclaimed comedy-drama with music and lyrics by David Kirshenbaum and a new book by Heifner. The show will be co-produced by the two theatres and staged at ACT for an extended run in the winter of 2011 and offered as part of each theatre’s season ticket package. The musical will be directed by The 5th’s Executive Producer and Artistic Director, David Armstrong. The two theatres will share expenses and revenue, with joint creative decisions being made by both artistic staffs. This collaboration will also include the region’s first dual ticketing platform, selling tickets in real-time at both theatres for one production. The show will feature a cast of Northwest actors in a production created by ACT’s technical staff. The musical’s authors will be actively involved in the production which will serve as another step in the development of this new musical, which premiered at the Theater Works in Palo Alto in 2006 and was subsequently produced at the Pasadena Playhouse in 2008 and at New York’s 2nd Stage Theatre in 2009. This is the first co-production of what is intended to be an annual partnership between ACT Theatre and The 5th Avenue Theatre.

“It has always been an objective to include musical theatre in our building and as part of our seasons,” says Kurt Beattie, ACT’s Artistic Director. “This collaboration provides both organizations room to grow ascetically and artistically. The 5th brings its considerable expertise in musicals, while our theatre delivers intimate theatre experience with an eye to the contemporary condition.”

“The mission of The 5th Avenue is to celebrate our great indigenous art form — the Musical -- in all of its many aspects,” says David Armstrong. “This partnership with ACT allows us to explore some of the amazing smaller scale musicals — classic and new—that will be more perfectly suited to ACT’s stage rather than The 5th Avenue’s.”

Also in 2011 from February 22 to March 13 the Broadway smash hit Next to Normal comes to The 5th, making its triumphant return to Seattle after beginning life at Issaquah’s Village Theatre. The musical garnered three Tonys on Broadway in 2009, including one for Best Score, recognizing both the music of Tom Kitt and the book and lyrics of Brian Yorkey, who was Village Theatre’s Associate Artistic Director for six years. Originally developed under the title Feeling Electric, members of Village Theatre’s new works program Village Originals had a chance to see the show as both a staged reading in 2002 and workshop production in 2005. Now thanks to special partnerships with Village Theatre, and Seattle Theatre Group/Broadway Across America, season ticket holders at Village and The Paramount Theatre will have a chance to see the show at The 5th at a special reduced rate.

"We are excited that the groundbreaking musical we developed with Brian Yorkey and Tom Kitt in Issaquah will come back to Seattle on a full Broadway tour at the wonderful 5th Avenue Theatre,” says Robb Hunt, Village Theatre’s Executive Producer. “As fellow members of the National Alliance for Musical Theatre, we have been looking forward to this possibility, and we celebrate our respective place in the development of the art form."

Season subscriptions to The 5th’s 2010-2011 Season will be available on Monday March 8, over the phone by calling 206-625-1900/toll-free 888-5TH-4TIX (584-4849), in person at the box office at 1308 5th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101, or online at www.5thavenue.org.

The 5th Avenue Theatre is Seattle’s premier musical theater. In 1980, the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre began producing and presenting top-quality live musical theater for the cultural enrichment of the Northwest community. The 5th Avenue Theatre maintains a subscription audience of over 25,000 and an annual attendance of more than 287,000. It ranks among the nation’s largest and most respected musical theater companies. The Theatre is committed to encouraging the next generation of theatergoers through its Educational Outreach Program which includes: The Adventure Musical Theatre Touring Company, The 5th Avenue High School Musical Theatre Awards, the Student Matinee Program and Spotlight Nights. Unique in its Chinese-inspired design, the exquisite theater opened in 1926 as a venue for vaudeville and film. Today, under the leadership of Executive Producer and Artistic Director David Armstrong, Managing Director Bernie Griffin and Producing Director Bill Berry, The 5th Avenue Theatre continues to achieve the highest standards in all aspects of artistic endeavors and facility operations, while preserving its artistic, architectural and historic legacy. Visit www.5thavenue.org.

Special thanks to The 5th’s 2011 Corporate Co-Sponsors Safeco Insurance and US Bank.

ACT—A Contemporary Theatre is located in the heart of downtown Seattle and serves a population of curious, open-minded, and brave audiences. It is the only local theatre dedicated to producing contemporary work with promising playwrights and local performing artists since 1965. A theatre of new ideas, ACT serves as a cultural engine that makes plays, dance, music, and film that touch us. Because contemporary life demands examination, ACT is driven to inspire and strengthen our diverse community through works that advance our understanding of human life. ACT is an interactive community where artists and the public witness, contemplate, and engage in dialogue on today’s thought-provoking issues, ideas and art, presented with intelligence, insight, and humor.

The remainder of ACT’s 2011 season will be announced late summer 2010.

Village Theatre—The mission of Village Theatre is to be a regionally recognized and nationally influential center of excellence in family theatre:

• To promote a season of top quality productions
• To commission and produce new musicals that achieve national exposure
• To train young people in theatre skills for career opportunities and enriched lives
• To develop a broad-based appreciation for live theatre
• To promote positive values through art

STG is the 501c3 non-profit arts organization that operates the historic Paramount and Moore Theatres in Seattle, Washington. Our mission is to make diverse performing arts and education an integral part of our region's cultural identity while keeping these two landmark venues alive and vibrant. STG presents a range of performances from Broadway, off-Broadway, dance and jazz to comedy, concerts of all genres, speakers and family shows—at both historic theatres in Seattle and venues throughout the Puget Sound and Portland, Oregon.

Broadway Across America is owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and entertainment industry veteran Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman). It presents first-class touring Broadway musicals and plays, family productions and other live events throughout a network of 43 North American cities. BAA is also dedicated to the development and production of new and diverse live theatre for productions on Broadway, across America and throughout the world. BAA most recently produced the Broadway productions of Hair, West Side Story and Irving Berlin's White Christmas. Upcoming productions include Minsky’s, Promises, Promises, Million Dollar Quartet and the West End production of Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Touring productions include Nickelodeon's Storytime Adventures featuring Dora the Explorer and Dreamgirls. For more information or to purchase tickets through an authorized agent go to BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.

Check Out Seattle's New Adventure Playhouse!

Adventure Playhouse is an improvised adventure story where kids create the show with the actors. Adventure Playhouse will feature live music, games and art, all designed to engage kids in the story making process and spark their imaginations.

Adventure Playhouse is created and directed by Amanda Lee Williams and Adina Gillet.

The cast of Adventure Playhouse is Kai Curtis, Nick Edwards, Philip Fox, Dora Lanier, Natasha Ransom, Jen Rizor, and Paul Vitulli. With costumes by Kate Swenson.

Adventure Playhouse performances are at Saturdays at 2:00pm, March 20th to April 24th at The Historic University Theater at 5510 University Way NE. Tickets are $10.

Visit the website Here!

Young Playwrights at ACT

ACT Sets the Stage for

Amazing Talent, Amazing Opportunities with its

Eighth Annual Young Playwrights Festival

Eight Writers Age 14-18 Receive Staged Readings of Their Plays

ACT’s Eighth Annual Young Playwrights Festival

March 11-13, 2010

In the Allen Theatre

Tickets

$10 for adults

$5 for students/people (age 25 and under) and seniors (65 and older)

Special tax-deductable Festival Sponsorship tickets are available for $100

ACT Theatre

Ticket Office: (206) 292-7676

700 Union Street, Seattle WA 98101

www.acttheatre.org

Seattle, WA – February 23, 2010– ACT’s annual Young Playwrights Festival returns March 11-13 for an eighth year, featuring a wonderful mix of dramatic and comedic new works from talented student writers ages 14 to 18.

ACT will present staged readings of eight new plays developed through ACT’s Young Playwrights Program (YPP) serving upwards of 300 middle and high school students from King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Thurston counties throughout 14 greater Seattle-area schools and including students attending Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center’s after school YPP program. Plays were selected by an artistic panel at ACT from approximately 260 plays by participating students. To prepare for the staged readings, each student playwright is partnered with a professional director, and actors, and participates in nearly 20 hours of rehearsal with his or her creative team. Each program will be performed twice during the three-day festival.

ACT Young Playwrights Festival Schedule:

Program A
Thursday, March 11 at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, March 13 at 1:00 p.m.

David Harris, Dealing with the Neighbors, Seattle Academy, 12^th grade

Directed by Andy Jensen

Emma Framson, Unrequited Love, Garfield High School, 12^th grade

Directed by Gillian Jorgensen

Joslynn Vasquez, From Trailor Parks to Amusement Parks: The Story of Jane Gyre, Highline High School, 12^th grade

Directed by Kate Jaeger

Marianna White, Forgetting Sarah, TOPS K-8, 8^th grade

Directed by David Gassner

Program B
Friday, March 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 13 at 4:00 p.m.

Pauline Lai Heng, The Pseudo-British Comedy, Franklin High School 12^th Grade

Directed by K. Brian Neel

Zoe Furlong, El Cartel, Lakeside School, 12^th Grade

Directed by Julie Beckman

Adillia Loud, I Am My Brother's Keeper, Washington Middle School, 8^th Grade

Directed by Isiah Anderson Jr.

Jimmy Blackmon, Fire and Rain, Olympia High School, 12^th Grade

Directed by Timothy Hyland

“We are very excited about this year's Young Playwrights Festival! The eight playwrights featured are some of the strongest, most creative voices to emerge from the 2009 Young Playwrights Program. It is truly amazing to see these students take their plays from the page to the stage under the mentorship of local professional theatre artists,” said Director of Education Kristina Sutherland. “These young playwrights dig into the artistic progress, attend rehearsals, rewrite their scripts, and make their voices heard on stage. They work hard to showcase their best work and the results are impressive.”

“Being a part of the 2009 Young Playwrights Festival, learning about all the different aspects of playwriting, having a teacher who never censored me, and being given a chance to see my work preformed and taken seriously gave me the confidence to identify myself as a writer,” said 2009 Young Playwright Festival participant Rebecca Ehlers.

YPP offers greater Seattle-area students a high-quality, exciting language arts curriculumdramatic structure, character creation, dialogue, action, subtext, point of view, understanding and developing dramatic conflict, writing a scene, generating ideas through improvisation, the importance of rewrites, and writing for an audience. based on the art of playwriting. Professional playwright/teaching artists from ACT teach the rudiments of playwriting in participating area schools in the fall quarter of each school year. Concepts taught include

Each student playwright completes a 10- to 20-minute original play by the end of the session. The 10-week classroom portion of the YPP runs from September through December each year.

Started in 2002, YPP is a natural extension of ACT's commitment to new plays and playwrights. Since its inception, ACT's YPP has grown from 72 middle and high school students in six schools and an eight-week curriculum to more than 300 students in 15 schools and a 10-week/20-session curriculum.