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Curtain Calls
By Heidi Masek hmasek@hippopress.com
• It’s their call: The Acting Loft decided to give teenagers a shot this spring. Teens had been saying they really want to direct, and asking how to get experience, said Chris Courage, Acting Loft artistic director.
Ten students, age 14 through 18, made director’s proposals including what script they wanted to direct, how they wanted to stage it, sketches of set and costume design and lists of things like lighting and casting needs.
Four were chosen to cast and direct under mentorship from Courage and Kirstin Kennedy, director of education. After two and a half months of work, the shows, all by David Ives, go up Friday, June 5, and Saturday, June 6, at 7:30 p.m., at the Acting Loft, 516 Pine St. in Manchester (666-5999, www.actingloft.org). Admission is by donation. The directors will give five-minute presentations about their work, and receive assessment and critical feedback.
Tommy Morrissette, 14, of Manchester West High School, directs Mystery at Twicknam Vicarage; Paige Lucier, 18, of Manchester Central High School, directs Soap Opera; Andrew Catulano, 18, directs The Philadelphia; and Jackie Marcoux, 17, directs Captive Audience. Catulano and Marcoux are from Nashua High School North.
About 20 actors are involved, some appearing in multiple plays.
Lucier has been involved in theater at the Acting Loft, Best Foot Forward Productions and her high school, but had not had an opportunity like this before, she said.
She found Kennedy and Courage’s directing experience helpful to draw from because Lucier came into the process having only experienced the receiving end of direction, she said. She’s learned about things she’d had not considered before, such as “stage picture,” how actors are positioned on stage, Lucier said.
The Acting Loft plans to offer Teen Director’s Lab annually, Courage said.
• Comm. Ave. invasion: Londonderry’s Don Tongue is bringing New Hampshire with him to the Playwrights’ Platform 37th Annual Festival of New Plays in Boston. Tongue’s short play Void was chosen for the event. John Sefel, of Ghostlight Theatre of New England, directs. Toby Paul of Nashua, Broderick Lang of Manchester and Meredith Borgioli of Amherst act.
Void is one of nine shorts playing Thursday, June 18, through Saturday, June 20, at 8 p.m. at Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, 949 Commonwealth Ave. in Boston.
Void’s first public staged reading was at the Concord City Auditorium in January during the first season of “Page to Stage.” Friends of the Concord City Auditorium and Community Players of Concord ran the series to help New Hampshire playwrights develop new work.
About 10 other shorts run the previous weekend as part of the festival, including ENVIA! - At Work & Play, by Kelly DuMar. DuMar’s Weekend at the Dreaming Cloud was chosen as a finalist in Nashua’s Yellow Taxi Productions 2007 Susan McIntyre Play Reading Series.
Tickets cost $14 and $17; call 866-811-4111 or see www.playwrightsplatform.org.
• Try out: The Majestic Theatre is looking for actors age 15 through adult to audition for a community production of Nunsensations: The Nunsense Vegas Revue, directed by Jeff Caron. Auditions are Sunday, June 7, and Wednesday, June 10, from 6 to 9 p.m., at the Majestic, 281 Cartier St. in Manchester. Performances are Aug. 14 through Aug. 23. Get details at www.majestictheatre.net or call 669-7469.
If drama is more your thing, the Nashua Theatre Guild auditions for Steel Magnolias Saturday, June 6, from 3 to 5:30 p.m., and Monday, June 8, from 6:30 to 9 p.m., at the Nashua Library, 2 Court St. Performances are in September and Dan Barth directs. E-mail Patriotdtb@comcast.net or call 438-9859. Learn more at nashuatheatreguild.org.
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