Strike is over!

Normally we don't report much about New York theater, but the strike did have some impact on the Jersey Stage community.

Or did it?

Since Paper Mill seemed the most likely of NJ theaters to benefit, and were most in need of a break, out of curiosity last Saturday, I made some online ticket requests for "Meet Me in St. Louis." I was shocked to be offered 2 seats, front row center, for that night's performance! Continued inquiries offered good seats in most price ranges (I stuck mainly to better or best available, so for all I know the cheap seats are filled) to the Sunday matinee and evening shows the next day.

So it can be safely said that the strike was not enough to fill Paper Mill. I hope and expect they got some extra business, but certainly we're back to business as usual now, and watchful waiting, as they say in the medical business, to see what develops.

New play reading in Parsippany

Dec. 2 at 3 p.m., the Women’s Theater Company will present a staged reading of a new work by Kathrynne Forsbrey of Flanders.
“Just When I Thought It Was Safe to Wear Mascara” is Forsbey’s deeply personal memoir of a mother who loses a child. It will be read by two veteran actresses, Judy Stone and Carol Caton. Stone is a member of Actors Equity who has played starring roles in the company’s productions of “Wit” and “Painting Churches.” Caton recently appeared at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey in “The Time of Your Life.”
Forsbrey is producing manager of The Women’s Theater Company. Company founder Barbara Krajkowski directs.
Admission is free to the reading, which will take place at the Parsippany Community Center, 1130 Knoll Road, Lake Hiawatha. Reservations are suggested. For information, call (973) 316-3033.

Holiday roundup

Trying to get into the Christmas spirit. Work keeps getting in the way, although some of that work is going to see holiday shows, so I won't complain (any more).

Of course, there's plenty of holiday shows to see. Here's a link to a nice North Jersey roundup of holiday shows Lorraine Ash did for the Daily Record.

http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071123/ENT07/711230301/1082/ENT

Expanding on her geographic and deadline constraints, I'll point out a few more.

r The Theatre Project, the professional theater in residence at Union County College, will recreate the 1947 Lux Radio Theatre presentation of “It’s a Wonderful Life” Dec. 2 at 3 p.m.
This popular stage production features 12 actors and one musician, supported by an overworked, stressed-out sound-effects technician, in a unique and humorous take on the Frank Capra holiday classic. Liz Zazzi adapts.
Admission is by donation ($10 suggested) with children admitted free of charge. The theater is at 1033 Springfield Ave. For information, call (973) 659-5189.

r 12 Miles West Theatre Company is now in residence at Playwrights Theatre, 33 Green Village road, Madison, an is bringing their annual holiday radio play with them. Liz Zazzi also did this adaptation of "Miracle on 34th St.," which, unlike some 12 Miles stuff, is family friendly.
Friday @ 8pm, Saturday @ 3 & 8pmTickets are $21 Adults / $16 Students & Seniors.
My guess is Madison is an even 30 miles from 34th St.


Other notes:
Let's hope that James A. Stephens is an improvement on last year's Scrooge in McCarter Theatre's "A Christmas Carol." Paul Benedict, a fine actor (remembered from "The Jeffersons" on TV, but a veteran stage actor) seemed overwhelmed by the role.

Another reviewer was appalled by a recent production of Christopher Durang's "Mrs. Bob Cratchit's Wild Christmas Binge." I have not seen the show, but I love Durang, so I'm hoping to find time to see the community theater production at Brundage Park Playhouse in Randolph.

If you're looking for something different for Christmas, but Durang sounds like a bit much, let me once again recommend "My Three Angels" at Centenary (review above). Lots of fun.

I'll be at the Shakespeare Theatre of NJ Saturday night. See you there.

PS: Since TNT already is broadcasting "A Christmas Story," remind me to blog about author Jean Shepherd, who I grew up listening to on the radio and knew the short stories comprising the movie by heart 15 years before they were filmed. Late in his life, I got to meet him, interview him and even spend a bit of time with him. Fascinating guy.

Review Preview: My Three Angels

Here's the subjective word from Centenary College in Hackettstown

Abstract: worth the trip, for a good production of a very enjoyable play most of us have not seen. Allen Lewis Rickman was particularly good; hope to see much more of him.

If you want to go:
What: “My Three Angels”
When: through Dec. 9
Where: Centenary Stage Company, Centenary College, 400 Jefferson St., Hackettstown
How much: $17.50 to $22.50
Info: (908) 979-0900; www.centenarystageco.org

By WILLIAM WESTHOVEN
Staff Writer
Murder seems to be catching on as a holiday-show hook in North Jersey. Scrooge was no choir boy, but at least he never committed a capital crime.
A week after the Bickford Theatre amused us with “The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940,” Centenary Stage Company regifts us “We’re No Angels,” which boasts not one, but two violent offenders.
And a week later, we’re still laughing.
Based on a French play, “La Cuisine Des Anges,” by Albert Husson, Bella and Sam Spewack, the husband-and-wife team best known for writing the book for “Kiss Me, Kate,” brought this charming—if slightly twisted—story to the London stage in 1955.
But Husson’s tale of Devil’s Island convicts who come to the aid of a kindly shop owner is best known for the Hollywood adaptation, “We’re No Angels,” a 1955 film starring Humphrey Bogart (directed by his “Casablanca” director Michael Curtiz). It was remade once again as a 1989 film with Robert De Niro and Sean Penn.
The films’ unlikely protagonists were escaped convicts tying to avoid the authorities, but the stage adaptation returns them to their original status as convicts essentially stranded on Devil’s Island in 1910. Security is light because there’s nowhere to go, so some of the criminals supplement their existence as slave-like labor for the legal residents of the tropical isle in French Guiana.
Joseph (Allen Lewis Rickman), Jules (David Volin) and Alfred (Jeremy Hall) are three such convicts, the former a white-collar crook, the latter two admitting to crime-of-passion murders. They seem remarkably well-adjusted to their fates, happy to have found a measure of brotherhood and happy to have work fixing the roof of a shop run by Felix Ducotel (Roland Johnson).
Felix is a sweet, aging man who we learn was swindled out of a better business by his nasty cousin, Henri (Patrick Cogan). His wife, Emile (Maria Brodeur) worries that he is too easy with customer credit in what appears to be a last-chance job. But Emile and their daughter, Marie Louise (Kate Billard), love him and are happily preparing for Christmas dinner, even if it is 105 degrees in the shade.
The audience, along with the eavesdropping convicts, share the family’s concern when Henri arrives to audit the books and review Felix’s job performance. Henri is accompanied by his nephew, Paul (Morgan Nichols), who Marie Louise worships, but who is now betrothed to a rich man’s daughter.
Floating through the turmoil with Zen-master serenity, the three convicts evolve into guardian angels, bringing the young lovers together and scheming to thwart Henri’s Scrooge-like mission to emasculate Felix, a Bob Cratchit if there ever was one.
But Henri is sharp and suspicious, and the convicts don’t have ghostly powers, so they draw on their checkered pasts to accomplish the mission.
“We’re No Angels” may be short on scruples compared to most holiday shows, but if for one night you accept that the end justify the means, it’s a delightful holiday treat. If not, just leave your holiday spirit home and go have a good laugh.
Whichever approach you choose, you will certainly appreciate the cast.
Equity pros Rickman and Volin have a nice chemistry with Hall as the cheerful trio of hard-timers, dressed in nearly white jumpsuits (their prison stripes are bleached by the sun and, presumably, their quasi-angelic deeds). Hall balances a tranquil calm and dark temper, while Volin, an accomplished comic actor frequently seen in the area, focuses on Jules’ never-to-be requited crush on Emile with sweet subtlety. But Rickman steals the show as Joseph, the smooth-talking con man who cooks company books with the same talent and passion that Emeril pours into a crème brule.
Johnson is perfect as the cherubic Felix, while Brodeur is convincing as the strong, yet vulnerable, wife and mother who wonders if she made the right life choices.
Brian Flynn’s cottage setting accurately suggests the home of a family clinging to Victorian values in a sweaty foreign land.
Call it devil’s food for the soul — and indulge in “We’re No Angels” as an early dessert before your traditional holiday dinner.

Rosemary Harris coming to George St.

Big news from New Brunswick, where a change has been made to the mainstage season for good reasons. The press release follows below.

Award-Winning Actress ROSEMARY HARRIS
Comes to George Street Playhouse in
East Coast Premiere of Oscar and the Pink Lady
Jan 15 - Feb 10

Tony Award Winner (And Seven-Time Nominee) Known to Spiderman Fans as
Aunt May, Will Be Directed by the Acclaimed Frank Dunlop, Founder of England’s Young Vic Theatre

Oscar and the Pink Lady replaces Donald Marguilies’ Sight Unseen, Which Will be Rescheduled for 2008-09 Season


New Brunswick – George Street Playhouse announced today that Academy Award nominee, Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Rosemary Harris will star in the East Coast premiere of a new play by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt titled Oscar and the Pink Lady. Returning to the Playhouse to helm the play will be the acclaimed Frank Dunlop, whose work was last seen in New Brunswick in Kressman Taylor’s Address Unknown. Oscar and the Pink Lady replaces the previously-announced Sight Unseen by Donald Marguilies. This one-woman tour de force will play in New Brunswick from January 15 through February 10, 2008, with opening night set for Friday, January 18.

“I am thrilled and honored to be welcoming Rosemary Harris to George Street Playhouse,” said Artistic Director David Saint, “it is amazing to me to have this great lady of the theatre on our stage. I am doubly thrilled to welcome back Frank Dunlop, the founder of England’s Young Vic Company as well as the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s theatre company. He magnificently directed Address Unknown a few seasons ago, and we are so pleased to be able to work with him again. I am equally committed to producing Sight Unseen, as I believe it to be an amazing play, but when this opportunity, with this caliber of talent presented itself, I simply couldn’t say no. Sight Unseen will be produced next season.”

From internationally-acclaimed writer Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt comes a beautiful and surprisingly funny story of a young patient and his uplifting relationship with a kindly volunteer “Pink Lady,” whose daily visits provide him with inspiration and hope. Starring the celebrated Ms. Harris, Oscar and the Pink Lady is sensitive, heartbreaking, amusing, and ultimately life-affirming.

Originally produced at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre, the production team consists of many of the veterans of that production, including scenic designer Michael Vaughn Sims, costume designer Jane Greenwood and sound designer Lindsay Jones.

Individual tickets priced $28 - $62, as well as flexible admission and dinner/theatre packages are available by contacting the George Street Playhouse Box Office at 732-246-7717, or shop online at www.GSPonline,org. Groups of ten or more are entitled to a discounted rate; for further information call the GSP Group Sales Office at 732-846-2895, ext. 134. George Street Playhouse is located in the heart of New Brunswick’s Dining and Entertainment District, and is easily reached by public transportation.

Tickets issued for the previously announced Sight Unseen will be honored for Oscar and the Pink Lady.

Internationally-renowned actress Rosemary Harris starred in the original Broadway productions of Old Times, A Streetcar Named Desire, the Royal Family, Heartbreak House, Pack of Lies, Hay Fever, A Delicate Balance, Waiting in the Wings, An Inspector Calls and The Lion in Winter, for which she won a Tony Award. She spent six years with Association of Producing Artists (which her husband Ellis Rabb founded), appearing in works by Shakespeare, Shaw, Sheridan, Chekhov, Ibsen, Wilde, Pirandello and Kaufman and Hart at the Lyceum Theatre on Broadway. At the Royal National Theatre she appeared in Women of Troy, The Petition, Hamlet and Uncle Vanya. She has appeared in many films including Spiderman 1,2 and 3, Sunshine, and Tom & Viv (Academy Award nomination). Her numerous television credits include Notorious Woman (Emmy Award), Holocaust (Golden Globe), To the Lighthouse, and Death of a Salesman. She remains one of the most beloved and esteemed performers of stage and screen.

Within a decade, Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt has become one of the most read and acted French-language authors in the world. Schmitt first made a name for himself in the theatre with The Visitor, a play that posits a meeting between Freud and – possibly – God. Further successes quickly followed, including Enigma Variations, The Libertine, Between Worlds, Partners in Crime, My Gospels and Sentimental Tectonics. His plays have won several Molières and the French Academy’s Grand Prix du Théâtre. More recently, the four novellas that make up his Cycle de l’Invisible, a series of tales dealing with childhood and spirituality have met with huge success both on stage and in the bookshops. Other works include When I Was a Work of Art, a whimsical and contemporary version of the Faustus myth, and My Life With Mozart, a compilation of the composer’s private correspondence. A keen music lover, Schmitt has also translated into French The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni from the original Italian.

Acclaimed director Frank Dunlop returns to George Street Playhouse after directing Kressmann Taylor’s Address Unknown during the 2004-05 season. He is best known for his direction of the Broadway productions of Camelot and Scapino. He was the founder and director England’s Young Vic Theatre, and has served as resident director at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre, associate director at England’s National Theatre as well as a director at the Piccolo Theatre in Manchester, England, the Nottingham Playhouse and the Edinburgh International Festival. He also founded the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Theatre Company in 1978. He holds honorary degrees from the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts, Heriot-Watt University and the Shakespeare Institute, and is an honorary fellow at the University of London.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director David Saint, George Street Playhouse has become a nationally recognized theatre, presenting an acclaimed mainstage season while providing an artistic home for established and emerging theatre artists. Managing Director Todd Schmidt was appointed in October 2007. Founded in 1974, the Playhouse has been well represented by numerous productions both on and off-Broadway – recent productions include Anne Meara’s Down the Garden Paths, the Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk and Drama League nominated production of The Spitfire Grill and the recent Broadway hit and Tony® and Pulitzer Prize winning play Proof by David Auburn, which was developed at GSP during the 1999 Next Stage Series of new plays. In addition to its mainstage season, GSP’s Touring Theatre features five issue-oriented productions that tours to more than 250 schools in the tri-state area, and are seen by more than 75,000 students annually.

George Street Playhouse programming is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, and by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts. George Street Playhouse gratefully acknowledges the Media Sponsorship of the 2007-2008 Season by our Community Arts Partner, New York Public Radio WNYC 93.9 FM/ 820 AM and Greater Media Newspapers.

North Plainfield H.S. grad at Centenary

Still trying to adjust to new schedules (I'm moonlighting on the copy desk at night these days) but I was in Hackettstown last night for "We're No Angels" at Centenary College's Equity professional company, Centenary Stage company.
Casts there typically include a handful of Equity pros and Centenary students, and I thought my Central Jersey readers would like to know that Kate Billard, a 2007 grad of North Plainfield High School, plays a featured role.
You'll get the review preview withing 24 hours, but I'll say now she does fine and the show is pretty good. That's 2 in a row for Centenary, which is having a pretty good year in my estimation.

Leaf raking this morning, football this afternoon, turkey leftovers tonight. And some theater the night before. A new professional challenge continues on Monday--much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, although I wouldn't mind regifting the leaves.

Review Preview: "The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940"

Here you go, fresh and fun, just as I promised,.

Theater review
If you want to go:
What: “The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940”
When: through Dec. 9
Where: Bickford Theatre, Morris Museum, 6 Normandy Heights Road, Morris Township
How much: $30l $27 members, $15 students
Info: (973) 971-3706; www.morrismuseum.org

By WILLIAM WESTHOVEN
Staff Writer
With variations of “A Christmas Carol” as common as sidewalk Santas this time of year, the stage door is wide open for counterprogramming. The folks at the Bickford Theatre not only have found a way to avoid what everyone else is doing, they’re doing almost everything else with a single show.
Slapstick comedy, satire, mystery, murder, romance and even a little music make “The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940” something of a buffet for humbugs who have had their fill of Tiny Tim. By the time it’s over, you can even cheer a victory over the Nazis.
Even better, John Bishop’s lively tribute to the golden age of pulp cinema is so rarely seen that most people can enjoy the whodunit portion of the show, which often is a problem with the recycled choices made by other revival houses.
Artistic director Eric Hafen has a knack for finding out-of-circulation mysteries such as “Dead Certain” and “Catch Me if You Can,” both produced here in recent years. Now, he delivers another refreshing mystery, although he’s turned the director’s chair over to Deirdre Yates, who has earned raves for past productions with the Women’s Theater Company and the Celtic Theatre Company, and she’s done another good job with this tricky show.
Patrons also will be hard-pressed to find a weak link among the 10-member cast (five Equity professionals), one of the larger and more talented ensembles the Bickford has recruited in years.
They assemble at the elegant Westchester County estate of Elsa Von Grossenkneuten (Angela Della Ventura), a wealthy patron of the theater. A big-shot producer, Ken De La Maize (Bill Timoney), has organized a backer’s audition of his latest show. The writers, Roger (John Correll) and Bernice (Georgette Reilly Timoney) and the hired cast arrive just as a blizzard conveniently snows them in.
This troubles Roger, who notes the creative team is the same as a fated production shut down by the unsolved serial murders of three showgirls. But there’s no coincidence: Elsa is working with a police detective (Shaka Malik) to trap the killer.
The masked murderer, however, is one step ahead of everyone. He commits his first murder within seconds of the opening curtain, and the body count rises as quickly as Bernice’s blood-alcohol level.
Everyone’s a suspect, from the German maid, Helsa (Ruth Darey) who may also be a victim, to the sultry actress, Nikki (Diana Cherkas), who clearly has fudged her resume. The actors, meanwhile, are eyeing the ladies. Eddie (Chris Barber), a bad comedian just hoping for a job, adds Nikki to his wish list, while hunky Irishman Patrick (Christopher Yates) is focused on Helsa.
Scenic designer Jim Bazewicz is another key member of the production. His expansive drawing-room set, framed by tall walls of rich, paneled wood, is as attractive as it is functional. Hidden doors, spinning bookcases and false fireplaces allow the murderer easy ingress and egress to and from his prey.
Costume designer Fran Harrison also gets to take a bow the authentic 1940s fashions that add to the considerable visual appeal of this spirited romp.
Of course, a comedy can’t settle for merely looking good, leaving most of the responsibility to the cast to pull off this complex caper. But Yates has her crew well-prepared and hitting all of their marks, no easy feat as the potential victims scurry from one hidden passage to another in search of their hunter.
Some of the jokes fall victim to the pace, as some punchlines are lost in the confusion. But there’s plenty of humor to go around and the opening-night audience certainly got its share of laughs.
Barber generated most of the snickers, channeling Bob Hope as the jittery comic who somehow summons the courage to fight back and win the gal. Georgette Reilly Timoney is a lovely lush, while Correll gets the best of Bishop’s pen as the jaded music writer.
Fresh and fun are two words not often associated with 20-year-old comedy, but here they, just in time for the holidays. What better time of year to indulge yourself?

Last night at the Bickford

A quick note to check in, say hi and promise to increase my posts in the near future. Working a lot of hours, but it's all good. Transition is going well. But sometimes, just getting to the shows is tough. I started work at 8:30 a.m. yesterday to try and wrap everything up for the weekend and still get to the Bickford by 8 p.m., but it still wasn't enough; had to go back after the show.

Anyway, a Review Preview will soon follow for "The musical Comedy Murders of 1940." For those who can't wait, here's the abstract: you probably haven't seen it, so it's fresh and a lot of fun. But it's a tricky show to pull off. Good cast and good direction, but some of the jokes fly by too fast, or too soft, to register with the crowd. Fortunately, there's a lot of them, so it's worth a look. I suspect most people will be entertained.

More importantly, I wanted to comment on the new lobby/entrance to the Morris Museum and the Bickford. They should be terribly excited and proud because the facility, a well-kept secret in some circles, really makes an impression. With the recent and dramatic improvements to the Museum and the Community Theatre, Morris County really has become a legitimate cultural destination to be reckoned with.

I loved the $78,000 music box they have for sale in the gift shop. A critic can dream, can't he? And the lady promised to come down on the price, so I showed it to Mrs. Willie, who keeps asking what I want for Christmas.

I'll keep you updated on that little campaign. It would great next to my jukebox. Or the gong.

Also, chatted with actors and Morristown residents J.C. Hoyt ("Mass Appeal," "Roar of the Greasepaint") and Katrina Ferguson ("The Poetry of Pizza," "Quatermaine's Terms"), often seen on professional stages in North Jersey. They and a few others are headed for Germany to do a production of "A Christmas Carol."

Check them out if you get to Deutschland. Otherwise, you'll have to settle for the half-dozen or so "Carols" to be found in North and Central Jersey in the coming weeks.

Go R.U. Talk to you soon.

Review Preview: Meet Me in St. Louis

Sunday night at the press opening, I got a chance to meet and chat with Mark Jones, the new executive director at Paper Mill. Seems to be an upbeat guy with a clear understanding of the challenges.

He told me in effect, without being prompted by a specific question, that (to paraphrase) the board of trustees must get more actively involved and that being on the board is more than coming to a few meetings and shaking hands.

That's a good place to start, although he's going to have to accomplish that without antagonizing them, since they have some say about whether he gets to keep the job.

Of course, given the current state of affairs, if this executive director doesn't get the job done, there may not be a next executive director. So let's wish him good luck and good reviews.

"Meet me in St. Louis" is a mixed bag, very nicely done but not terribly exciting or engrossing. The draft of my review, to publish Friday, follows. Let me know what you think.

If you want to go:
What: “Meet n St. Louis”
When: through Dec. 16
Where: Paper Mill Playhouse, Brookside Drive, Millburn
How much: $25-92
Info: (973) 376-4343; www.papermill.org

By WILLIAM WESTHOVEN
Staff Writer
The New Jersey holiday theater season officially began last week with the premiere of “Meet Me in St. Louis” at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn. Based on the popular 1944 MGM musical, this revival of the 1987 musical may not be a holiday show in the truest sense, but it does generate the appropriate warmth and happiness we hope to receive form the season.
And, while Halloween gets as much stage time as Christmas, “Meet Me in St. Louis is the source of one of our most beloved holiday songs, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” one of many melodies that will stick with you long after the final curtain.
Certainly, the music carries the night, as 20 minutes of plot is stretched beyond natural limits. The time is the year before the St. Louis World’s Fair (known accurately as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition), and the town is buzzing in anticipation. The Smith family children are excited about the coming fair, but there’s more important work for the time-being. Eldest daughter Rose (Julia Osborne) is busy putting up token resistance with her Ivy League boyfriend, Warren (Patrick Cummings), while Esther (Brynn O’Malley), a junior in high school, is trying to catch the eye of John (Brian Hissong), her handsome new neighbor.
Two younger daughters, Tootie (Sophie Rudin) and Agnes (Roni Caggiano), stir up some innocent trouble, while Lon (Christian Deacroix), the only son, is preparing for college at Princeton.
Throw in some flirting, a few dances and you’ve got the whole story. Alonso (Gregg Edelman), the stuffy dad, startles the family with a pending move to New York City, but the drama is as thin as the rest of the plot.
The pleasures of “Meet Me in St. Louis” lay more in spending a few easy hours in an easier time and place. Perhaps we spend too much time in the family’s home (scenic designer has fashioned a colorful and functional Victorian that opens and closes like a blooming flower), relegating an energetic ensemble to the wings for 90 percent of the night.

One-off best bets in Morris County

I haven't had a lot of time to blog lately, but I'm burning a lot of hours on the new job. But while writing my Sunday column, two special events caught my eye.

The first is Elaine Bromka's solo show, "Tea for Three: Lady Bird, Pat and Betty," in which she portrays three of America's most notable first ladies. I've seen it and she's very, very good. Even better, it's a free performance Nov. 14 at the Washington township Public Library. but you'll want to call ahead, because they will give priority seating to township residents.

Press release follows. Seriously, very good show.

The other best bet is even more unusual, in part because the circumstances. John Shelby Spong, the former and controversial Episcopal bishop of Newark, also a resident of Morristown, will attend two performances of a show based on his life, written and produced by a professional touring company from Los Angeles. First time the show will be seen in his home town after crossing the country for a few years. I'm only now learning about this guy, and there's a lot to learn. If you agree, the Bickford would be a good place to start your studies.

Both press releases follow. I'll be at Paper Mill Sunday night for the press opening of "Meet Me in St. Louis." You can meet me in Millburn.

A PEBBLE IN MY SHOE

Following the sellout of a first show today at 3 p.m., a second performance of “A Pebble in My Shoe” was added for 8 p.m. tonight at the Bickford Theatre.
This special production is based on the life of John Shelby Spong, former Episcopal bishop of Newark and a resident of Morristown. Spong, who will attend both performances, was a controversial figure who antagonized fundamentalist Christians, religious fanatics and those who cling to tradition, even in the Episcopal church.
“A Pebble in My Show” was written and directed by Colin Cox, artistic director of Will and Company, a Los Angeles-based theater troupe that is taking the play to colleges and churches throughout the country. For information, call the Bickford box office at (973) 971-3706.

TEA FOR THREE

Washington Twp. Public Library, 37 E. Springtown Rd., Long Valley.
908-876-3596

"Tea for Three: Lady Bird, Pat & Betty” on November 14th at 7p.m.

"Tea for Three: Lady BIrd, Pat & Betty" reveals a gallery of intimate portraits of three remarkable First Ladies with Emmy Award-winning New York actress, Elaine Bromka. We discover each at a threshold moment in her life, and learn the personal cost of what Pat Nixon called the hardest unpaid job in the world.

ELAINE BROMKA (The First Ladies, Co-author) has been a professional actress for over thirty years. Film: Cindy, the mom in Uncle Buck; Without a Trace. T.V.: E.R., The Sopranos, Providence, Dharma & Greg, Sisters, L.A. Law, Law and Order, Law and Order: Special Victims’ Unit, Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Stella Lombard on Days of Our Lives, the Emmy Award–winning Playing for Time with Vanessa Redgrave and Catch a Rainbow, for which Ms. Bromka herself won an Emmy. She has appeared on Broadway (The Rose Tattoo, I’m Not Rappaport, Macbeth) and off-Broadway (Cloud 9 at the Lucille Lortel, Roundabout’s Inadmissible Evidence with Nicol Williamson, the world premiere of Michael Weller’s Split at E.S.T. and Candide with the National Theatre of the Deaf.) She has played leads at regional theaters across the country, including Long Wharf, Hartford Stage, Center Stage, Actors Theatre of Louisville, ACT/Seattle, O’Neill Playwrights Conference, Shakespeare and Company, McCarter Theatre, Pittsburgh Public Theater, George Street Playhouse, and the Folger Theatre Group, in roles ranging from Much Ado About Nothing's Beatrice to Shirley Valentine, cited as the outstanding solo performance in New Jersey in 1997 by the Star Ledger. Starring opposite Rich Little in The Presidents for P.B.S., she impersonated the last eight First Ladies. A member of the Actors Studio and a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Smith College, she returned to Smith in 2003 as a faculty member to teach “Acting for the Media”. As a guest artist, Ms. Bromka has taught her one-day workshop, “Acting for the Camera”, at more than thirty colleges and prep schools across the country.

Call the Library at 908-876-3596 or go to http://www.wtpl.org/ under Adult Activities to sign up!Sorry

Ticket Twofer at Shakespeare Theatre

If Shakespeare's your bag but your funds are low, take not of the ticket twofer being offered by the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey for the remaining run of "Henry VI: Blood and Roses."

Great, exciting show (review posted in here somewhere) and you can't beat the price, so get thee hence. (973) 408-5600. Phone orders only.

You want bang for your buck? Bang zoom, as Jackie Gleason would say.