Our Town ends

Closed Our Town last night, after a three-week run. Fun to do, especially since I played two very small roles, so wasn't terribly crucial to the success or failure of the piece. It was a good production, however. Not very good photos of my small roles; here I am
as Professor Willard
in the first act; he gives details about the geological and anthropolical context for Grovers' Corners--caricature all the way, but fun to play. And in the last act, I was the undertaker, Joe Stoddard

loved the hat. Sorry the costume folks didn't give me black gloves, however!

Played to mostly full houses; production was in honor of Dr. Roy Bowen, a major figure in Columbus theatre for half a century, who died last year at 93; Our Town was his favorite play--and the production was truly an appropriate homage--terrific press, great response, and an auspicious debut for director Jimmy Bohr. Terrific performance from alumus Glenn Peters as the stage manager, and guest performers Damian Bowerman as Doc Gibbs and Mary Gray as Mrs. Webb. Good performances from first year MFA students Kal Poole, Julie Ann McMillan, and Bruno Lovric as Editor Webb, Mrs. Gibbs, and Simon Stimson, respectively. And undergraduates Cole Simon and Angela Henderson were moving as George and Emily. Good show all around. Was happy to have been a part, however small.

snow!

This week's blizzard left several inches of snow on the deck in the back yard
and filled the bird feeder


leaving a cushion of snow on the table and chairs

and since I'm newly clean-shaven for a production of Our Town at Ohio State--and clean-shaven for the first time in forty years!--the cold is particularly noticeable!

After Our Town, readings of five short plays for International Women's Day on March 8th--details at http://osureadings.blogspot.com -- plays by members of the International Centre for Women Playwrights that we archive in the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute.

Our Town -ing

After all these years, I'm back on the stage--the brief appearance last spring for Women at Play's Hungry Hearts hardly counts, since I was on for only about three lines. Now I'm in Ohio State's production of Our Town in two fairly small roles: Professor Willard in the first act, and Joe Stoddard, the undertaker, in the third. A new faculty member, Jimmy Bohr, is directing, and asked me to be in it--since Jimmy had done a reading for me in November, of Emily Mann's Meshugah as the first step in what may become an ongoing Jewish Theatre Festival (and more about that at http://beyondborschtbelt.blogspot.com/), it was the least I could do. Memorizing lines is the most difficult part -- don't think I've gotten through a single rehearsal without a flub of some sort. Ah, well. It opens tomorrow. February 8th, and plays through the 25th. More about it at http://theatre.osu.edu, and a feature story in the OSU faculty/staff news magazine, http://www.oncampus.osu.edu/article.php?id=1095