Category: Art & Theater

One day, four plays

The New Hampshire State Community Theater Festival shows off NH and Mass. theater companies

By Zachary Lewis
zlewis@hippopress.com

The New Hampshire State Community Theater Festival at the Concord Auditorium opens on Saturday, Sept. 7, at noon. The Festival is put on by the New Hampshire State Community Theater Association in conjunction with The Community Players of Concord.

“Anybody can participate in it,” said Festival Chair Joe Pelonzi. “They have to be a member of good standing with AACT, which is the American Association of Community Theater.”

“This is for people who like to do theater but they’re not professionals,” he said.

And it’s a Festival that has been drawing curtains for many decades. “You can say 50-plus years safely.”

Essentially, if this black box were in a nutshell, it would be a four-show festival cracked into two sessions. “The first session is the New Hampshire shows, and there are two New Hampshire shows. Then there’s a second session, which will be the two Massachusetts shows,” Pelonzi said.

The AACT required that the festival have two separate sessions, one for each state, according to Pelonzi. Tickets are $15 for individual sessions or $25 for the whole day.

The results of the Festival will determine the New Hampshire state winner from among the New Hampshire shows, and each performance has a chance of being chosen to represent the region, Region 1, at the national competition.

What types of plays can participants expect to see? “The acts don’t matter; the show must be performed in 60 minutes or less,” Pelonzi said.

Physical limitations go along with the temporal one.

“We just tape off a 10-by-10 square on the stage,” he said. “They start at a 10-by-10 square. And that includes all your set pieces and everything. You have 10 minutes to set up your set. You have 60 minutes to perform your show, and then you have 10 minutes to put everything back into the square.”

Any genre or style is welcome. “They can do whatever they want as long as it fits within an hour time slot for a performance,” Pelonzi said.

The Festival starts at 12:30 p.m. with a performance from Bedford Off Broadway of Sammy’s Game. “That’s the only show we know exactly what time it will be starting because everything after that is dependent on how long each of the shows are,” Pelonzi said. He is the artistic director at Broadway Off Bedford but is not involved with their performance at the festival.

After that show, the Windham Actors Guild from Windham will be presenting The Yellow Boat in the 10-by-10 square.

Then there will be a short intermission immediately followed by a panel-style adjudication of those performances. “We have three adjudicators so there are no ties,” said Pelonzi.

The panel is like a master class in theater.

“The best part, I think, of Festival is the adjudications, because they tell them what they did well and what didn’t work. They always keep it positive and they tell them how they can do better if they do go on. They’re very good at what they do,” Pelonzi said.

Cut to: a short break and then the second session, the Massachusetts session, begins. First the Burlington Players will present Natural Shocks. The Quannapowitt Players from Reading, Mass., will follow with their performance of Time Stands Still. Then there will be another judging.

After a dinner break the awards ceremony will commence, where the New Hampshire winner will be presented as well as who will be going on to the national competition.

Individual awards will be presented as well. “They also give out awards for acting excellence, directing excellence, they might give out awards for lighting, for sound, for ensemble,” Pelonzi said. “The adjudicators have a wide range of awards that they can choose individually or to a group.”

Pelonzi is excited for the contest and what to expect from the performances. “You’re going to see four quality shows. Shows that the groups have been working on all summer long. So you’re going to get the best of the best and get to see four of them in one day.”

The New Hampshire State Community Theater Festival
Saturday, Sept. 7, at 12:30 p.m.
Concord Auditorium, 2 Prince St., Concord, 344-4747
$15 for one session; $25 for both sessions

Featured image: Courtesy photo.

The Art Roundup 24/08/29

The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities

• Cue Zero announces 2025 lineup: Cue Zero Theatre Company says it is dedicated to presenting new, challenging, growth-oriented productions that enrich the cultural fabric of our community and they strive to provide opportunities for artists to develop their craft in an environment that encourages creativity, collaboration and excellence, according to their press release, and the company has a lineup of shows for the upcoming 2025 season. All main stage performances will take place at the Arts Academy of New Hampshire (19 Keewaydin Drive, Salem) and tickets are $20 per person plus fees. The first production is Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Partydirected by Jen Stearns with music direction by Amanda Morgan and choreography by Jen Stearns and Frankie Sheffield as well as fight direction by Matt Brides, according to the release. The show will run from Feb. 28 to March 2, 2025. Lovers Queenie and Burrs throw the party to end all parties in their Manhattan apartment but jealousy and desire lead to a violent climax in this electrifying musical based on Joseph Moncure March’s poem, according to the release. The other productions includeTime of Death by Jonah Knight, which will be an East Coast premier of the play May 2 through May 4, 2025, according to the release; Amélie, from June 20 to June 22, 2025, and People Like To Be Scared: An Exploration of Fearfrom Oct. 3 to Oct. 5, 2025. Visit cztheatre.com.

• Truepenny offers acting workshops: Local theater company Truepenny Arts is launching a series of workshops for actors seeking further training in high-level acting, voice/speech/text and physical skills for performance and presentation, according to a press release. The workshops will be held on the first Saturday of each month from 10 a.m. to noon at the Diamond Rolfing & Movement Studio (210 N. State St., Concord), starting with “Presence, Power and Posture through Bone Awareness” onSaturday, Sept. 7. Truepenny Arts’ Educational/Artistic Director Michael Cobb said in a statement, “Come explore and revitalize your relationship with your skeletal structure, the earth below it, the sky above, and your physical experience in the space between.” The press release advises attendees to dress comfortably to allow ease of movement. The cost for the workshop is suggested at $20. Visit truepennyarts.com.

CANADIAN FOLK
Canadian folk duo Rachel Davis & Darren McMullen (of Còig) will perform at The Word Barn (66 Newfields Road, Exeter, 244-0202, thewordbarn.com) on Thursday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. Còig’s dynamic duo brings their latest music to The Word Barn as part of a dozen-year journey that has included tours across North America, Europe and Australia. Còig has received multiple East Coast Music Awards, Canadian Folk Music Awards and a Juno Award nomination. Tickets start at $15.

• Looking for art: The Londonderry Arts Council is accepting submissions for its new digital community publication “Wild Apples: Londonderry’s Literary and Art Journal” with a tentative first release in the spring of 2025, according to a press release. This initiative aims to celebrate and amplify artistic voices throughout New Hampshire, fostering a vibrant regional arts community, according to the same release. The Council invites creative-minded individuals of all ages to share their art, whether it’s poetry, fiction, nonfiction, photography, visual art or interdisciplinary work. Contributions are welcome until Sept. 30, according to the release. No prior publication experience is needed and the Council encourages both seasoned and emerging writers and artists to take part, but all work must adhere to Londonderry’s Community Standards for Public Art. Before submitting work the submitter should ensure they have all the necessary rights to publish the pieces. Email submissions to wildapples@londonderrynh.org or visit londonderryartscouncil.org/wild-apples.

• Looking for young actors: Palace Youth Theatre has announced auditions for its upcoming production of Legally Blonde Jr. on Friday, Sept. 13. at 6, 7 and 8 p.m., for school-aged performers in grades 2 through 12. Those auditioning should arrive 15 to 20 minutes early to fill out paperwork. Rehearsals for the show will be on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays and performances will be at the Palace Theatre on Tuesday, Oct. 29, and Wednesday, Oct. 30, according to the press release. Participants should expect to stay for the entire one-hour audition slot and they will learn a dance and be asked to sing after, so they should come prepared to sing a short section of any song (a selection from musical theater or Disney is preferred). Those auditioning will be singing without music. To schedule a time to audition, email MeganAlves@palacetheatre.org with the performer’s name, age and preferred audition time. If cast, there is a production fee of $150; the release mentions to contact MeganQuinn@palacetheatre.org with questions about financial aid. The auditions will be held at Forever Emma Studios ( 516 Pine St., Manchester). Visit palacetheatre.org.

—Zachary Lewis

Taking the reins

Q&A with new Currier CEO Jordana Pomeroy

The Currier Museum of Art in Manchester welcomes new Director and CEO Dr. Jordana Pomeroy on Sept. 1. For the past nine and a half years Pomeroy has been the Director of the Patricia & Phillip Frost Museum at Florida International University in Miami. She has a Ph.D. in Art History from Columbia University and more than three decades of experience in the art world. She moved to Manchester in early July, and in a recent phone interview she spoke of her plans for leading the Currier. Here’s an edited version of the conversation.

How will your experience at Florida International University inform your role at the Currier?

The mission of the Frost is to teach and to expose students … and get the faculty using art in their curricula. Then, secondarily, the public. So here … I am excited that we are connecting with New England College to bring students in; that’s very important to me. I call it ‘educate the next generation.’ I’ve been very impressed with the Currier’s education programs and I’ll do everything to keep encouraging and growing those programs, because I think that the next generation of museumgoers, that investment, is really important for us to make as an institution.

Have you thought about some of the ways to bring in people who may not have experienced the Currier before?

It’s just talking to people. There’s a woman, for example … who is a seamstress from Africa. We had this long conversation about how she ended up in Manchester. She makes these beautiful outfits from Africa, from fabric that she imports…. She’s exactly the kind of person that I would love to bring in as a community voice if we did a show around fashion or design. Sometimes, especially in a city the size of Manchester and a state the size of New Hampshire, you get to know people and communities pretty quickly. That’s what excites me, just talking to people and finding out if they know the Currier or have never heard of it before, and trying to figure out what it is that would get them through the door.

You’ve talked about expanding inclusion and focusing on women artists. What’s your vision in that area for the Currier?

I think we’re doing a good job. Actually, we have a wonderful contemporary art curator, Lorenzo Fusi, who’s been pretty well focused on that since he was hired. I think you’re kind of living in the dark if that isn’t your concern as a curator or museum director, to be honest. Museums move glacially, especially the larger ones, and there’s really been a significant change in programming. That being said, I worked for many years at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. There was always this conversation that as soon as there’s equity in the arts, we’ll close, which I don’t see that happening anytime soon in any way. This is not going to be overnight, but the thinking is there, and the conversations are happening. It’s not just the programming, but also the exhibitions.

What do you see as your biggest challenge as you step into the role of director and CEO at Currier?

I think my biggest challenge is spending time to really understand the history of this state and this region. I can’t pretend to know it. I’m not from here, and I don’t want to come across as knowing what the Currier needs to be for this area of the country. I know certain things, because I’m a museum professional, and I have colleagues who run museums [but] we’re all from elsewhere [and] can’t pretend to know that. But I do think it’s important for me to kind of put down roots and listen a lot. I don’t know if that’s a challenge, but it’s a good challenge to have. There are other challenges in raising money. That’s always the challenge. With time, donors will come forth. They’ll see the difference that the museum makes to the region. There have been some very good, loyal members and donors, and I would like to, of course, increase that pool of interest in the institution. I think that has to do with impact and seeing good things come out of it, whether those are the different kinds of exhibitions or sorts of programs. There’s a lot going on there. I’m really impressed for a museum its size. There’s an Art for Vets program. For contemporary [art], we’ve got just a remarkable collection that I want to draw on more. So I think you will see more of the permanent collection than you’ve seen in recent years.

Featured image: Monsters. Photos by Zachary Lewis.

The Art Roundup 24/08/22

The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities

• Raise your voice: The New Hampshire Gay Men’s Chorus will be holding audition Winter 2024 concert series on Tuesday, Sept. 3, as well as Tuesday, Sept. 10. Auditions are to be held from 6:30 to 7 p.m at the First Congregational Church (508 Union St., Manchester) and new singers are asked to stay for rehearsal from 7 to 9:30 p.m., according to their website. “Membership is open to all men, 18 years of age or older, who are gay or straight (gay-friendly) or who are male-identifying and who enjoy the satisfaction of singing harmony in a men’s vocal group,” according to the same website. Auditioners do not need to have any material nor music prepared; the audition will be more of an exercise in pitch matching to place your voice in the proper section, and the ability to read music is helpful but it is not a requirement for joining, according to the website. Rehearsals repeat every Tuesday through the concert series and the NHGMC asks every member for $75 seasonal membership dues; members are also asked to purchase a tuxedo to wear at most concert performances. Their Winter 2024 Concert Dates are scheduled for Dec. 7 in Nashua, Dec. 8 in Concord, Dec. 14 in Newington and Dec. 15 in Manchester.

• Art & music: Twiggs Gallery (254 King St., Boscawen) has organized an evening of free chamber music with the Terra String Quartet on Wednesday, Aug. 28, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., according to a press release. The Terra String Quartet was the prizewinner at the 2023 Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition and the 2023 Osaka International Chamber Music Competition, and is a vibrant, young international ensemble based in New York City, according to the release. The quartet is attending an arts residency at the Avaloch Farm Music Institute in Boscawen, which offers a unique opportunity for chamber music and jazz ensembles, at any stage of development, to have the time and space to work intensively on repertoire, prepare for recordings, concerts or competitions, work with composers on commissions, and forge or reconnect to a group musical identity, according to the same release. Visit twiggsgallery.org.

JAZZ 10
The Uptown Jazz Tentet, which includes 10 of New York City’s finest jazz musicians, will be performing on Thursday, Aug. 22, as part of the Summer Music Associates at the Sawyer Theater at Colby-Sawyer College from 7 to 9:30 p.m., according to the event site. This is the 51st season for Summer Music Associates. Tickets are $25 for adults and $5 for students with varying ticket packages available while the series goes on, according to the event website. Visit uptownjazztentet.com and summermusicassociates.org, or call 526-8234.

• Jazz on the coast: The 41st Annual Seacoast Jazz Festival will take place on Saturday, Aug. 24, from noon to 6:15 p.m. The Arts Festival is excited to bring back the Seacoast Jazz Festival, in partnership with Seacoast Jazz Society, for its 41st year and will be featuring the renowned saxophonist Alexa Tarantino, according to the event site. Tarantino is known for her soulful saxophone performances and innovative compositions, and she is set to deliver a mesmerizing experience, according to the same release. The Seacoast Jazz Festival has long been a staple of the Prescott Park Arts Festival and celebrates the rich tradition of jazz with top-tier musicians from around the globe, according to the same release. The performance will go as follows:

At noon Soggy Po’ Boys with Celia Woodsmith; then at 1:15 p.m. Boston Blow Up featuring Donna McElroy will perform; and at 2:30 p.m. it will be the Seacoast Jazz Band; then at 3:45 p.m. the Consuelo Candelaria, Ron Savage, Ron Mahti trio will perform with special guest Drika Overton; and at 5 p.m. the Alexa Tarantino Quartet will perform, according to the same site. The rain date will be Sunday, Aug. 25, and the organizers ask attendees to note that the line-up is subject to change in the event of moving to the rain date. Visit prescottpark.org.

—Zachary Lewis

Art where you find it

Studio 550 Monster Hunt is on

Strange creatures are lurking in Manchester and the hunt is on. Studio 550 Arts Center founder and programs manager Monica Leap — “that’s Leap, like to jump” — spoke about the scavenger hunt for wild clay treasures.

“It’s a free community event that we do every year that we’ve been open…. It’s all about getting people out to enjoy the city and find some art in the process,” she said. “The real treat is discovering your downtown and seeing what there is out there, getting art into the streets so people can find it.”

The Monster Hunt started 12 years ago. This year it will be on Saturday, Aug. 24.

“We usually do it one of the last Saturdays in August,” Leap said. “The youth-only hunt is going to be at 10:30 [a.m.] in the green space in front of the Center of New Hampshire, which is a building on the corner right next to the DoubleTree Hotel.”

The public hunt is at 11 a.m., “starting at City Hall and people will break from there,” Leap said. The Studio 550 website advises participants to meet at 10:50 a.m. for a “Monster Hunters Meeting.”

How many monsters are hiding in Manchester?

“We sculpt 100 unique clay monsters,” Leap said, “and the past couple years we’ve actually been making 125 because we started a youth hunt for kids 5 and under.” Leap made 50 of the monsters.

Originally the monsters themselves were hidden, but some monsters would wander off, “so we started hiding medallions that you can trade in for the actual monster,” Leap said. “The past year or two we’ve done medallions, and people have really enjoyed that because you kind of get two surprises during the day. One is finding the medallion out there in the streets, and that’s also very exciting because they’re all unique and different as well, and then you bring it back and then you get the second surprise of actually unveiling the monster that you get, which is associated with the number to the medallion that you found,” Leap said.

How did it start? “We just did it for fun, honestly … it’s evolved, for sure, over the years,” Leap said. “We always put them out in public places so you don’t have to buy anything, you don’t have to do anything to get one, you just have to find one, so it’s just about the art of surprise and art in daily life versus having to go to a museum or a gallery to experience it, just something that is there.”

Medallions or monsters can get you some tasty treats in the city. One monster partner is Dancing Lion Chocolate on Elm Street. “You can show it to them and they will give you a free chocolate coin which is a very artful chocolate coin,” Leap said. “Everything they make is beautiful.”

Queen City Cupcakes has a monster cupcake for any medallion finders as well, and the Bookmobile from the Manchester City Library will be at City Hall for the duration of the hunt.

The Monster Hunt is not the only way to have fun with Studio 550 Arts on Saturday, Aug. 24. “We have a whole art activities open house at our studio during the time that we’re doing the exchange of the medallions for the monsters,” Leap said, “and people can try the pottery wheel, they can sculpt their own monster out of clay, they can do some tie dye, which is also a fun activity that most people won’t do at their house because it’s so incredibly messy,” she said.

Speaking of messy, bringing a monster into the home is no small task. Where is it going to live?

“They can also create a little monster habitat where they get to pick a small piece of pottery, get some soil in there, and then put a succulent in there so that your monster has a little habitat to live in when you take it home,” Leap said.

There will be other free crafts at the Studio, like “painting a rock or creating a paper bag puppet monster and then a few other things that we put out that day,” Leap said. “It’s a whole community event.” Clean-up begins at 1 p.m. at the Studio.

Leap has an idea on why people arrive to track down the hidden clay critters: “It’s a game, it’s a hunt, you feel special when you find one.”

Participants can head over to Studio 550 Arts to make their own creation if the monsters are successful in eluding their capture. “Even if you don’t find one you can come to the studio and make your own or just experience some hands-on art activities,” Leap said.

Monster Hunt and Studio 550 Open House
Saturday, Aug. 24, youth hunt (age 5 and younger) at 10:30 a.m. in the green space in front of the Center of New Hampshire by the DoubleTree Hotel (700 Elm St.), Manchester; public hunt at 11 a.m. (meet at 10:50 a.m.) starts at City Hall (908 Elm St.)
Monster Medallions will be hidden in public places on Elm Street from Studio 550 north to Bridge Street.
Studio 550 Arts open house is 10:45 a.m. to 1 p.m.
550arts.com

Featured image: Monsters. Photos by Zachary Lewis.

The Art Roundup 24/08/15

The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities

• Creative communities: Twiggs Gallery, in partnership with Concord Makerspace, will be hosting a discussion with members of the New Hampshire Potters’ Guild (NHPG) for their “Third Thursday Discussion Series: Building Creative Communities” on Thursday, Aug. 15, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Twiggs Gallery (254 King St., Boscawen). In a statement, Twiggs Gallery director Laura Morrison said Twiggs is “looking forward to talking with NHPG about how they are successfully building a rich and vibrant community of artists and craftsmen. The series is an open-style panel discussion engaging the local creative community in conversations about how we can all work together to help each other grow, not only as creative beings but as a thriving creative community that benefits everybody.” Local artists, crafters, musicians, performers, makers, creatives, writers, collectors, and anyone interested in living and working in a thriving arts community are encouraged to join the discussion, according to the release. Visit twiggsgallery.org, concordmakerspace.org, and nhpottersguild.org.

• Music and glass: On Friday, Aug. 16, Laura Belanger, along with Dennis Akerman, will present “The Colors of Sanbornton Congregational Church – A Mosaic of Organ Music and Stained Glass”at Sanbornton Congregational Church (21 Meeting House Hill Road, Sanbornton) at 5 p.m. Ears will be treated to some unexpected sounds produced through an artfully chosen blend of organ stops, chimes and bells, coming together to present a sound representing each unique and colorful window. In one part of the program, as a special treat, audience members will witness the playing of the pump organ that was brought to the church in 1890, according to the release. Admission is free. A stair-less entry is accessible through the parking lot at the rear of the church and assistive hearing devices are also available. Call 286-3018 or visit uccsanbornton.org.

NEW EXHIBIT
Glimpse Gallery (Patriot Building, 4 Park St., Concord), owned by Miriam Exum and curated by Christina Landry-Boullion, will hold multiple receptions for its newest exhibit, which features the work of Kristin Selesnick, Corey Garland, Leslie Ossoff, Ashley Audet, Sandy Sereno, Marisol-von-Hardenberg and Christina Landry-Boullion, on Saturday, Aug. 17, and Saturday, Aug. 24, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. They ask that you RSVP if possible. Visit theglimpsegallery.com or call 892-8307.

• Romance Day: On Saturday, Aug. 17, at 2p.m. Gibson’s Bookstore (45 S. Main St., Concord) celebrates the sixth annual Bookstore Romance Day by having a mocktail party with New England romance novel authors where attendees can meet some authors, mingle and chat, talk tropes, debate who is the best book boyfriend/girlfriend, and enjoy some delicious drinks from Gibson’s Cafe, according to the press release. Authors in attendance will be Jilly Gagnon, author of Love You, Mean It; Sarina Bowen, author of the True North series and the Brooklyn Hockey series and co-author of the W.A.G.S series with Elle Kennedy; and Margaret Porter, author of A Change of Location and more than a dozen historical romance novels, according to the same release. Bookstore Romance Day is a day designed to give independent bookstores an opportunity to celebrate Romance fiction (its books, readers, and writers) and to strengthen the relationships between bookstores and the Romance community, according to the same release. Visit gibsonsbookstore.com

• Summer improv: Join Stranger Than Fiction at the Players’ Ring Theatre (105 Marcy St., Portsmouth) for one last summer night of unscripted comedy where anything can happen on the cozy, intimate stage on Saturday, Aug. 17, at 8 p.m. Participants will be asked for summer-themed suggestions and will watch them transformed into hilarious scenes, characters and stories. Participants are encouraged to have a picnic in the back lawn before the show and they do have air conditioning. Tickets are $15. Visit playersring.org/shows/stfsplash.

CULTURE FEST
Positive Street Art, Manchester Central Little League and MYTURN welcome everyone to The Manchester Multicultural Festival and Mural Unveiling on Saturday, Aug. 17, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Sheehan-Basquil Park in Manchester’s Center City, celebrating a new colorful Central Little League mural, according to their website. There will be live performances from New Hampshire’s own premiere rock band Cozy Throne as well as music and hoop performers from Akwesasne, as well as other activities like an art vendor market and mobile gallery sale, giveaways and photography by the talented Esmeldy, according to the website. See positivestreetart.org.

—Zachary Lewis

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