Monthly Archives: April 2017

April 14, 2017 · 5:24 pm

Cast Announced for A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM at The Drama Workshop

TDW_VERTThe Drama Workshop is proud to announce the cast for its upcoming production of A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM directed by Dennis Murphy.

Cast members are:

PSEUDOLUS – Joe Penno
HYSTERIUM – Rob Bucher
MARCUS LYCUS – Gary Herman
ERRONIUS – Burt McCollom
SENEX – Chuck Ingram
HERO – Alex Cottle
PHILIA – Gina Stack
DOMINA – Samantha Strain
CAPTAIN MILES GLORIOSUS – Jon Vater
THE PROTEANS – Mark Waldfogle, Adam Drake, Jonny Hofmann
THE COURTESANS – Meagan Blasch, Rachel Kazee, Kaitrin McCoy

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. The show is a fast-paced farce which combines elements of commedia dell arte, vaudeville and musical comedy into a show that is guaranteed to have audiences rolling in the aisles. Taken straight from the roots of comedy, FORUM combines the characters from the comedies of Plautus with a modern, vaudeville-inspired sensibility.

In FORUM, the slave Pseudolus schemes to win the heart (and body) of the beautiful virgin courtesan Philia for his young master, Hero. In exchange, Hero will grant Pseudolus his heart’s desire: freedom. However, things are never as easy as they seem. Philia is promised to a vain, swaggering solider named Miles Glorious and he’s on his way to claim her. Chaos ensues with hair-brained schemes, cases of mistaken identity, slamming doors and convoluted plot twists. One of the funniest musicals ever written, FORUM boasts a happy, toe tapping score and promises: “something for everyone: a comedy tonight!”

Performance dates are August 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26 at 8:00 PM. August 13, 20, 27 at 2:00 PM.

The Drama Workshop performs at The Glenmore Playhouse, 3716 Glenmore Ave, Cheviot, Ohio, 45211.

For more information about tickets to TDW’s 63rd season, visit our website at www.thedramaworkshop.org or like THE DRAMA WORKSHOP AT THE GLENMORE PLAYHOUSE on facebook.

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April 14, 2017 · 2:03 pm

EQUUS Review

EQUUS presented by Warsaw Federal Incline Theater through April 23. Click here for more information on the production. I attended the opening Saturday night performance.

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Peter Cutler as Nugget & Christopher Carter as Alan. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

The motivations behind a horrific crime power the dark drama EQUUS which closes out the Warsaw Federal Incline Theater’s season. Director Greg Procaccino’s steady hand leads his strong ensemble of nine deftly through the engaging script.

Michael Douglass Hall plays Martin Dysart, the psychiatrist tasked with getting through to the young man who committed the crime. Hall brings a great gravity to the role. Dysart’s weariness with his job specifically and his life in general is evident, but the compassion and desire to heal which lie underneath keep his character forging ahead.

Newcomer Kelsie Rae Slaugh is Hester, a magistrate and friend of Dysart who implores him to help in Alan’s defense. She fears Alan’s lack of cooperation will result in the young man’s conviction. Hester and Dysart’s relationship is believable as both professional and affable.

If I had to use one word to describe Christopher Carter’s performance as Alan, I would have to choose “focused.” Even at his most defiant, you could see Alan’s inner emotional turmoil. Whether it was his tit for tat relationship with Dysart or his budding romantic relationship with Jill, every moment rang emotionally true. Great work.

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Rory Sheridan as Frank, Christopher Carter as Alan & Hannah Gregory as Jill. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

I also found Hannah Gregory to be completely honest and believable as Jill. Her chance encounter with Alan leads to the two working together at the stable where the crime ultimately takes place. Their connection and her firm-yet-gentle pursuit of Alan is very well done. Their nudity toward the end of the show is handled tastefully and bravely by the two fully-committed actors.

Rory Sheridan and Martha Slater are strong as Alan’s theologically-opposed parents Frank & Dora. In their performances, it is easy to see how the parents’ beliefs and hypocrisy heavily influenced their son’s formative years.

Also well-handled was the role of the horse, Nugget, portrayed by Peter Cutler. His height and build, in combination with the costume and headpiece struck the right chord. But it was the actors’ commitment during their interactions that really sold the conceit.

Rounding out the strong ensemble are Angela Alexander Nalley as the nurse who works with Dysart and Jim Stump as Dalton, the owner of the stable that employed Alan.

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Christopher Carter as Alan & Michael Douglas Hall as Martin Dysart. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

I felt that the various accents were handled well by the actors. For the most part, the pacing was strong but wisely also allowed some key emotionally moments to play out at their own rate.

I enjoyed the set designed by Brett Bowling. The overall shape of the set reminded me of a temple and the repeating cross motif worked well as a visual element. The lighting added clarity to the story-telling as the show jumped between the present and memories of the past. At the performance I attended, there were a few lighting cues that seemed out of place.

Overall an engrossing, well-produced drama.

My rating: 4.5 out of 5.

I would enjoy hearing what you think about the show or my review. All I ask is that you express your opinion without attacking someone else’s opinion. You can post your comments below.

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April 13, 2017 · 6:05 pm

ALL MY SONS Runs May 13-21

SC_logoALL MY SONS
Stagecrafters
May 13-21
Sharonville Cultural Arts Center

Cast: Peggy Allen, Meagan Blasch, Chris Bishop, Linda Callahan, Olaf Eide, Aaron Epstein, Jennifer Fisher, Burt McCollom, Josh Roden & Henry Weghorst

During the war Joe Keller and Steve Deever ran a machine shop which made airplane parts. Deever was sent to prison because the factory turned out defective parts, causing the deaths of many men. Keller went free and made a lot of money. The twin shadows of this catastrophe and the fact that the young Keller son was reported missing during the war dominate the action. The love affair of Chris Keller and Ann Deever, the bitterness of George Deever returned from the war to find his father in prison and his father’s partner free, are all set in a structure of almost unbearable power.

  • Sat, May 13 at 8pm
  • Sun, May 14 at 3pm
  • Fri-Sat, May 19 & 20 at 8pm
  • Sun, May 21 at 3pm

Official page |

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April 13, 2017 · 6:01 pm

The Life of an American Icon Takes Center Stage in THURGOOD

HRTC_Thurgood

Alan Bomar Jones as Thurgood Marshall

Alan Bomar Jones stars as Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in The Human Race’s one-man show, April 27 – May 14, 2017 at the Caryl D. Philips Creativity Center

(Dayton, OH) —This spring, The Human Race Theatre Company (HRTC) celebrates one of the 20th century’s best-known jurists and civil rights icons when it presents George Stevens, Jr.’s Thurgood as the first full-length theatrical production in the 54-seat performance space at its Caryl D. Philips Creativity Center. Based on the life and career of the Supreme Court’s first African-American Justice, this powerful one-man play follows Thurgood Marshall’s rise from his childhood in back-alley Baltimore, to Howard University law school, to his victorious challenges of segregation in the South, all the way to a seat on the highest court in the land in 1967. Humorous and inspiring milestones of Marshall’s journey reveal the remarkable brilliance, perseverance and hope of one of the greatest American heroes of all time. Human Race Resident Artist Scott Stoney directs fellow Resident Artist Alan Bomar Jones as the title character. The preview performance of Thurgood is Thursday, April 27. Opening night is Friday, April 28.

Thurgood is the first play by television and film writer George Stevens, Jr., whose interest in Justice Marshall began with Separate But Equal, a miniseries he wrote and directed about the story of the Brown v. Board of Education school desegregation case on which Marshall was the lawyer for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

Alan Bomar Jones is a professional international actor, lecturer and director who has been performing with The Human Race Theatre Company for twenty years. He is also an Artist-in-Resident with the Ohio Arts Council. He is no stranger to one-man shows. His credits include “Elijah Pierce: Pierce to the Soul,” “Nelson Mandela: His Journey” and “Lewis Clarke: My Brother Milton.”Alan has appeared in over seventy professional theatrical shows and several independent films. A few of his credits include “Criminal Activities,” “Blue Car,” “The Movement” and “Missed It.” When not acting and directing, Alan travels to colleges and universities offering Performing Arts Workshops. He currently has an independent business entitled Yes, I Remember That Too, recording family memories by way of one-on-one storytelling interviews. In conjunction with The Arts Partnership of Greater Hancock County, they have produced over a dozen storytelling segments for families which has involved over several hundred family members.

Preston D. McCarthy (HRTC’s Sweeney Todd, The Full Monty, Mame and Play It by Heart) is the stage manager.

Biographies on the cast and creative team can be found on The Human Race Theatre Company’s website.

The Human Race Theatre Company’s production of Thurgood is sponsored by Oral Funk Poetry Productions, Moore Family Fund, Dave and Dulie Greer, Merle Wilberding and Susan Elliott, and Dave and Terry Williamson.

PERFORMANCE AND SPECIAL EVENT INFORMATION

Tickets for all performances of Thurgood are $25 and seating is general admission.

All performances are in The Human Race’s Caryl D. Philips Creativity Center, located at 116 North Jefferson Street, 2nd floor, in downtown Dayton, Ohio. Show times for Thurgood are 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings and at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoons.

Tickets and performance information for Thurgood are available at www.humanracetheatre.org or by calling Ticket Center Stage at (937) 228-3630, and at the Schuster Center box office. 

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Now celebrating its 30th anniversary, The Human Race Theatre Company was founded in 1986 and moved into the Metropolitan Arts Center in 1991, taking up residence at the 212-seat Loft Theatre. In addition to the Eichelberger Loft Season, The Human Race produces new works development and special event programming. Under the direction of President and Artistic Director Kevin Moore, the company also maintains education and outreach programs for children, teens and adults, as well as artist residencies in area schools, an In-School Tour, and a summer youth program. Human Race organizational support is provided by Culture Works, the Montgomery County Arts and Cultural District, the Shubert Foundation, the Erma R. Catterton Trust Fund, the Jesse & Caryl Philips Foundation, the Virginia W. Kettering Foundation and the Ohio Arts Council, which helped fund this organization with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. The 2016-2017 Sustainability Sponsors are the ELM Foundation, Anne F. Johnson, Steve and Lou Mason, and Morris Home. The 2016-2017 Loft season sponsor is the Jack W. and Sally D. Eichelberger Foundation of the Dayton Foundation, with additional support from Premier Health.

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April 13, 2017 · 6:00 pm

P&G’s Rohan Hemani and Dance Pro Doreen Beatrice Crowned DANCING FOR THE STARS 2017 Champs

CAA_Dancing for the Stars

Dr. Allison Holzapfel named ‘Fundraising Champion’

CINCINNATI, OH – Rohan Hemani (Procter & Gamble Fabric Care Intrapenuer) and his dance pro Doreen Beatrice (Independent Dance Instructor) were crowned the champions of the Cincinnati Arts Association’s (CAA) eleventh annual DANCING FOR THE STARS on Saturday, April 8, 2017 at the Jack Casino Ballroom.

The teams of Hemani/Beatrice and Allison Holzapfel, MD (Plastic Surgeon, Mangat-Holzapfel and Lied Plastic Surgery) and Jeremy Mainous (Arthur Murray Dance Studio – Cincinnati)  both received perfect scores of 40 (out of 40). The ultimate winner between the two perfect-scoring dance teams was decided by the audience vote.  An unexpected Bollywood dance break by the first-place team of Hemani and Beatrice was one of the highlights of the night, sending the crowd into wild cheers and applause.

First-runner-up Allison Holzapfel also took home the ‘Fundraising Champion’ Award, as the celebrity who raised the most money for the event through ticket sales and donations. Holzapfel set a Fundraising Champion record of more than $22,000.

Amal Daoud (Community Volunteer) and Josh Tilford (Independent Dance Instructor) placed third in the competition.

The sold-out event welcomed more than 670 guests.  As CAA’s largest annual fundraiser, it raised more than $125,000 in support of the organization’s acclaimed arts education programs, including the Overture Awards – the nation’s largest locally-run high school arts scholarship competition. The popular event will return next season to the Music Hall Ballroom, which is currently under extensive renovation and will reopen in early October 2017.

This year, the DANCING FOR THE STARS’ silent auction went online two weeks prior to the event to allow fans and supporters to participate whether or not they were at the fundraiser, and bidding at the event was done on laptops and/or mobile phones. This new digital approach resulted in the most successful auction in the event’s eleven-year history, raising more than $22,000.

The remaining five dance pairs included:

  • Alvin H. Crawford, MD (Honoris Causa, FACS, Professor Emeritus, Orthopaedic & Pediatric Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine) and Bonita Brockert (Independent Dance Instructor)
  • Robin Creighton (Owner/Photographer, Robin McKerrell Photography/Mecca OTR/Cheapside Café) and Alyenendrov (Len) Tsorokean (Phoenix Rising Ballroom)
  • Mark Heidrich (Director of National Accounts, Prosource) and Leigh Bradshaw (Cincinnati Ballroom Company)
  • Joe Rozzi (Vice President of Sales, Rozzi Famous Fireworks) and Desiree Mainous (Arthur Murray Dance Studio – Cincinnati)
  • Amy Tobin (Director, New Riff Distillery and Event Center) and Jozsef Parragh (Independent Dance Instructor)

Inspired by the hit ABC-TV show Dancing with the Stars, DANCING FOR THE STARS 2017 featured eight Cincinnati celebrities paired with some of the area’s finest professional dancers in a competition program, at which the audience vote and judges scores propelled the winners to victory. The competitive dance for the evening was the Foxtrot, and each dance pair had 90 seconds to woo the crowd and the judges.

Event emcees were Chris O’Brien and Janeen Coyle (“Married with Microphones,” 103.5 WGRR-FM). The four competition judges were Douglas Beal (Independent Dance Instructor), Barbara Hauser (Manager, Ohio Community Relations, Procter & Gamble – Dancing for the Stars 2015 Celebrity participant), Jamie Humes  (Vice President-Marketing, Traditions Group – Dancing for the Stars 2016 Fundraising Champion), and John Morris Russell (Conductor, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra).

Currently in its eleventh year, Dancing for the Stars has become one of the most-anticipated (and imitated) fundraising events of the season.  Since the event’s debut in 2007, more than 80 local notables have ‘danced for a cause’. The impressive list of past champions includes:  2007 – Dr. O’dell Owens (former president, Cincinnati State Technical and Community College; former Hamilton County coroner); 2008 – Jenell Walton (reporter, WLWT-TV5; former reporter, The List; former WCPO-TV9 anchor and reporter); 2009 – Phil Schworer (Attorney, Frost Brown Todd; former president, Cincinnati Bar Association); 2010 – Donna Speigel (owner, The Snooty Fox); 2011 – Dr. Tracey Skale, M.D. (chief medical officer, Greater Cincinnati Behavioral  Health Services), 2012 –  Regina Russo (former chief of communications, Contemporary Arts Center; former director of marketing and communications, Cincinnati Art Museum; former anchor/reporter, WXIX-TV19), 2013 – Chris Seelbach (Cincinnati City Councilman), 2014 – Neal Schulte (founder & president, Schulte Financial Group, LLC), 2015 – Johnny Chu (owner, KungFood Chu’s AmerAsia restaurant), and  2016 – Jay Lame (Financial Analyst, Lenox Wealth Management).

In addition, Dancing for the Stars 2017 featured:

  • Dinner-by-the-bite provided by Eddie Merlot’s, Gold Star Chili, Incredible Delights, Jeff Thomas Catering, Lala’s Blissful Bites, Metropolitan Club, Palomino Restaurant & Bar, Prime Cincinnati, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Vonderhaar’s Catering, and Whole Foods Market
  • Pre-event wine tasting and meet-and-greet with the stars
  • Open dancing before and after the competition

Event highlights included:

  • An inspiring video about the Overture Awards featuring interviews with many of the student competitors.
  • Two big screens that featured live video of the competition and engaging video introductions of the stars and pros (interviews and rehearsal footage) before their dances.
  • Humorous, astute, and supportive comments from the Dancing for the Stars panel of judges.
  • Exceptionally responsive, raucous, and energetic audience reactions, which included large cheering sections holding signs with various messages in support of their favorite Stars.
  • After the competition, the dance floor at the Jack Casino Ballroom filled with hundreds of guests who danced the night away to music by DJ Rockin’ Ron from 103.5 WGRR.

DANCING FOR THE STARS 2017 Presenting Sponsor: TriHealth

DANCING FOR THE STARS 2017 Silent Auction Sponsor: Lenox Wealth Management

DANCING FOR THE STARS 2017 Event Sponsors:  Arthur Murray – Cincinnati, Cincinnati Ballroom Company, Crest Graphics, Pebble Creek Group, Bonita Brockert, Jozsef Parragh, Phoenix Rising Ballroom, Josh Tilford.

DANCING FOR THE STARS 2017 Event Committee:  Terry Foster (co-chair, Dancing for the Stars 2010 Celebrity participant),  Joe Rigotti (co-chair, Dancing for the Stars 2012 Celebrity participant), Christina Bolden, Sue Gilkey, Jim Howland, Ginger Loftin, Rosemary Schlachter, Phil Schworer, and Dr. Tracey Skale.

CAA’s OVERTURE AWARDS AND ARTS EDUCTION PROGRAMS
Cincinnati Arts Association’s Education and Community Relations programs promote life-long engagement in the arts, while contributing to individual, organizational, and community success.  With a mission to educate, inspire, and engage the Tri-state region, these accessible arts programs ignite the imagination of students of all ages.

The Overture Awards is one of several programs (which also include Artists on Tour, SchoolTime, Emerging Arts Leaders, and more) that have served more than 1.5 million children and adults since the inception of CAA’s Education and Community Relations programs nearly two decades ago.  CAA is proud of its newest initiative, “Arts in Healing,” that will promote wellness through the arts.

The Overture Awards – the largest locally-run, high school arts scholarship competition in the country – recognizes, encourages, and rewards excellence in the arts among Tri-State students in grades 9-12.  It also provides students an opportunity to share their talents and interests among their peers in a supportive environment outside of their individual schools.

Each year, more than 450 students are nominated by their schools to compete, and this year’s competition awarded $42,000 in scholarships for excellence in Creative Writing, Dance, Instrumental Music, Theater, Visual Art, and Vocal Music. To date, the Overture Awards has awarded more than $665,000 to support artistically-talented students in pursuit of their dreams.  Now in its 21st year, the Overture Awards was launched in 1996 by the Cinergy Foundation and Leadership Cincinnati (a Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce program).

For more information about CAA’s Education and Community programs, visit www.cincinnatiarts.org/education-community.

CINCINNATI ARTS ASSOCIATION
Founded in 1992, the Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) is a not-for-profit organization that oversees the programming and management of the Tri-state’s finest performing arts venues – the Aronoff Center for the Arts and Music Hall – and is dedicated to supporting performing and visual arts. Each year, CAA presents a diverse schedule of events; serves upwards of 700,000 people in its venues; features the work of talented local, regional, and national artists in the Weston Art Gallery (located in the Aronoff Center); and supports the work of more than one dozen resident companies.

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