Tag Archives: Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati

MEALS 4 MONOLOGUES at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati

ETC_Meals for MonologuesCasting Society of America member D. Lynn Meyers to audition actors in
exchange for donations to benefit local Freestore Foodbank, December 9, 10 & 11, 2019

(Cincinnati, OH) Dim the lights, raise the curtain! With the holiday season in full swing, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati hosts its eighth annual Meals 4 Monologues auditions. Actors from throughout the Midwest are invited, on behalf of the Casting Society of America (CSA), for a general audition call to perform for CSA member D. Lynn Meyers in exchange for a suggested donation of three non-perishable food and/or toiletry items to benefit Cincinnati’s Freestore Foodbank.

The event, which is part of a nationwide Casting Society of America effort to support local food banks while auditioning local talent, will be held at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati (1127 Vine Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202) on Monday, December 9; Tuesday, December 10; and Friday, December 11, 2019 from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm each day. This is an open casting call to all Equity union and non-union actors for future theatre, film, TV, and commercial projects cast by D. Lynn Meyers, CSA.

In the 2018 iteration of this audition event approximately 22% of the actors who auditioned were hired between different theatre, film, and media projects.

Actors must bring:

  • A current HEADSHOT and RÉSUMÉ to the audition (DO NOT email them);
  • Suggested donation of THREE non-perishable food (pasta, canned goods, etc…) or toiletry items (soap, toothpaste, etc…); and
  • A short, prepared monologue and song (must be performed a cappella), or two prepared monologues.

Time slots are 3 MINUTES maximum and available by appointment only. Time slots are on a first-come, first-serve basis and must be scheduled ONLINE at www.ensemblecincinnati.org. Walk-ins and reservations via phone will not be accepted.

The Freestore Foodbank is the largest emergency food and services provider to children and families in Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky and Southeast Indiana, distributing 33 million meals annually to low-income individuals and families. The Freestore Foodbank supports 511 community partner agencies serving 20 counties in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. This includes food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, community centers, program sites, senior centers, and daycare facilities. The Freestore Foodbank is a member of Feeding America.

The Casting Society of America (CSA) is the premier organization of theatrical Casting Directors in film, television, and theatre. Although it is not a union, the CSA is a united professional society that consistently sets the level of professionalism in casting upon which the entertainment industry relies. CSA’s more than 490 members are represented not only in the United States, but also in Europe, Canada, Australia, and South Africa. “I am very proud to be a member of the Casting Society of America,” says CSA member D. Lynn Meyers. “I am delighted at the opportunity to see new faces and to spread outreach beyond the Greater Cincinnati area by embracing the idea of Meals 4 Monologues. It is such an inspiration for CSA to support this event.”

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2019-2020 Season Presenting Sponsor is the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Additional support provided PNC.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is supported, in part, by the generosity of community contributions to the ArtsWave Campaign.

The Ohio Arts Council helps fund Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati also receives funding from the Shubert Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is a professional theatre dedicated to producing world and regional premieres of works that often explore compelling social issues. We fulfill our mission through our stage productions and educational outreach programs that enlighten, enliven, enrich and inspire our audiences.

 

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SEX AND EDUCATION Quick Review

SEX AND EDUCATION presented Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati through Oct. 27. I attended the opening night performance. 

ETC_Sex and Education1

Esther Cunningham as Hannah Winters, R. Graham Rogers as Joe Marks & Dale Hodges as Miss Edwards. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

A smartly-cast production of SEX AND EDUCATION scores on the Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati stage for a limited run through Oct. 27.

ETC_Sex and Education5

R. Graham Rogers as Joe Marks & Esther Cunningham as Hannah Winters. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

Local favorite Dale Hodges is Miss Edwards, a teacher administering her last final exam of a 25-year teaching career. Recent University of Cincinnati CCM Acting graduate R Graham Rogers is the academically-underachieving, high school basketball star already dreaming of his college career. When he is caught passing a sexually explicit note to his girlfriend (local actress Esther Cunningham) it sets off an after-class confrontation between teacher and student.

ETC_Sex and Education8

R. Graham Rogers as Joe Marks & Dale Hodges as Miss Edwards. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

The script is laugh out loud funny with several of the best lines delivered as snarky asides to the audience by the cast, including now-you-see-her-now-you-don’t appearances by “Every Cheerleader” (also Cunningham). Multiple topics such as bureaucratic obstacles to teaching, athletics over academics, and high school stereotypes are touched upon. Several lines elicited vocal responses from suspected teachers in the audience. Ironically, my high school Data Processing (yes, you read that right) teacher was in attendance in the first row.

By opening night the production had not quite gelled, but I expect a few more performances under the belt to take care of any issues I had. Congratulations on an enjoyable night of theater.

My rating: 4.25 out of 5.

Click here for more information on the production.

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Get Ready for a Hilarious Lesson in Language! ETC Presents SEX AND EDUCATION, Oct. 15-27, 2019

ETC_Sex and Education logo

(Cincinnati, OH) Sharpen  your pencils! Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati takes lousy language to school with the regional premiere of Sex and Education by Lissa Levin. This limited 2-week event is a spirited (and not-so-family-friendly) comedy about a duel between an overworked educator and an underachieving high school athlete. Playing October 15-27, 2019. Directed by Dan Guntzelman.

Meet Joe Marks, a graduating basketball star whose college scholarship is suddenly in jeopardy when his poorly-written, sexually explicit note to his girlfriend is confiscated during a final exam. Meet Miss Edwards, his jaded public high school English teacher on her last day of teaching. With nothing to lose and resentment from years of disinterested students, she assigns him the task of turning the purloined letter into a polished, persuasive essay. This scintillating romp is a hilarious lesson for all in life, sex, sports, and grammar.

“This play is very much a comedy, but it’s also very much a valentine to teachers and the importance of formal education,” says playwright Lissa Levin. “In a play about an English teacher impressing the value of language skills upon a sports phenom, I wanted to make an arena out of a classroom, and a battle of wills and viewpoints to play out with the drive, pace, intensity, and excitement of an NBA playoff game.” Producing Artistic Director D. Lynn Meyers adds, “I think the show is enormously funny and very smart, but I also think it has enormous heart. I’m thrilled with the show, and am very excited to tell this story.”

Ensemble Theatre is thrilled to welcome Dan Guntzelman back to his hometown of Cincinnati, having moved to Los Angeles in 1976 to work in television and film. He is not only the director of this production, but also the husband of the show’s playwright, Lissa Levin, who met Dan while they were working together on the Emmy-nominated hit sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati. 

About the Cast

Dale Hodges (Miss Edwards) returns to Ensemble Theatre, where she was last seen in Ripcord, as well as Outside Mullingar, Other Desert Cities, Grey Gardens, and Mrs. Mannerly. Select regional credits include Wit, King Lear, To Kill a Mockingbird, 23 years of A Christmas Carol with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, and Noises Off with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. Ms. Hodges has worked on Broadway in Equus and Benefactors, off-Broadway in Top Girls and A Woman in Mind, and in regional theatres around the country, including 15 summers with Peterborough Players in New Hampshire. 

Esther Cunningham (Hannah Winters/Every Cheerleader) was last seen at Ensemble Theatre in A Doll’s House, Part 2, Bob: A Life in Five Acts, and as the Mad Hatter understudy for Alice in Wonderland. Off stage she works with the ETC Education Department as a teaching artist for the Hunter Heartbeat Program. She is a graduate of Wheaton College, where some of her credits include Julius Caesar, The Sparrow, and Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle.

R. Graham Rogers (Joe Marks) makes his Ensemble Theatre debut with this production. He is an actor and playwright who recently earned his BFA in Acting from University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music. His recent credits include Sam in The Flick, The Esquire; H2O: A Play About Water, 2018 Edinburgh Fringe; The Government Inspector, Middletown, and the world premiere of The Earth is Flatby Todd Almond, CCM. His original play Black & White was a part of Fringe Development at the 2019 Cincinnati Fringe Festival and his series Happy Hour: The Bar Series was a part of Play(under)ground at Know Theatre of Cincinnati in November 2018.

Production Team: D. Lynn Meyers (Producing Artistic Director), Brian c. Mehring (Set & Lighting Designer), Jack Murphy (Technical Director), Matthew Hollstegge (Production Manager), Shannon Rae Lutz (Properties Master & Design Assistant), Matt Tibbs (Sound Designer), and Stormie Mac (Costume Designer). Production Stage Manager is Brandon T. Holmes. Stage Manager is Lexi Muller.

Performance Information
Performances run Tuesday through Sunday. Evening preview performances are at 7:00; evening performances are Tuesday-Thursday, 7:30 pm; Friday and Saturday, 8:00 pm; Saturday and Sunday, 2:00 pm; and Sunday, 7:00 pm. A complete calendar of performances is available online at www.ensemblecincinnati.org.

Ticket Prices
Ticket prices start at $35 for adults; student tickets are $28; and children are $24. Half-Price Rush Tickets: All remaining tickets for the current day’s performance(s) are available two hours prior to each show time for half-price (discount does not apply to children’s tickets) when purchasing by phone or in person. $15 Student Rush Tickets: Students may purchase up to two $15 student rush tickets two hours prior to show time with valid student I.D. Available in person only.

Discounts
$40 Sunday Saver: Sunday evening performances at 7:00 pm are always $40 all season long (excludes holiday production).
Half-Price Rush Tickets: All remaining tickets for the current day’s performance(s) are available two hours prior to each show time for half-price (discount does not apply to children’s tickets) when purchasing by phone or in person. $15 Student Rush Tickets: Students may purchase up to two $15 student rush tickets two hours prior to show time with valid student I.D. Available in person only. Group discounts available for 8+. Complete details available at www.ensemblecincinnati.org.

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2019-2020 Season Presenting Sponsor is the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Additional support provided PNC.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is supported, in part, by the generosity of community contributions to the ArtsWave Campaign.

The Ohio Arts Council helps fund Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati also receives funding from the Shubert Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is a professional theatre dedicated to producing world and regional premieres of works that often explore compelling social issues. We fulfill our mission through our stage productions and educational outreach programs that enlighten, enliven, enrich and inspire our audiences.

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Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati Presents 2019-2020 Season Studio Series

ETC_new_logo_banner(Cincinnati, OH) To augment its mission of presenting shows that often explore compelling social issues, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati (ETC) unveils the 2019-2020 selections for its newly launched Studio Series to complement its main stage productions and showcase aspiring local playwrights.

The Studio Series presents works by artists and companies across genre and form and are performed typically as readings. Readings play a major role in the development of new work, enabling artists to hear their writing out loud and absorb the audience’s reactions. Unless otherwise specified, all performances and/or readings take place in ETC’s renovated rehearsal hall.

The 2019-2020 Studio Series includes:

Michael Blankenship’s Poe-pourri
October 25 & 26, 2019 at 10pm
Tickets: $25 for subscribers, $30 for non-subscribers

Bold notes of character with a whiff of horror, these stories and poems of Edgar Allen Poe feature Jared Joplin, Ernaisja Curry, and Michael Blankenship.

10-minute Connections: Justice
February 10, 2020 at 7pm
Tickets: $15 for subscribers, $20 for non-subscribers

ETC will present an evening of 10-minute plays by local playwrights centering on the theme of justice to accompany the regional premiere of Pipeline by Dominique Morriseau. These short plays will be selected from among submissions, will be paired with Morriseau’s short play Night Vision, and will be performed by local actors at ETC.

She’s Crazy: Mental Health & Other Issues
April 27, 2020 at 7pm
Tickets: $15 for subscribers, $20 for non-subscribers

An interactive musical that educates, uplifts, and inspires audiences to reduce stigma associated with mental illness.

The Jackie Demaline Regional Collegiate Playwrighting Competition Reading
May 4, 2020 at 7pm

Free admission (reservation required). First public reading of this year’s winning script submission.

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2019-2020 Season Presenting Sponsor is the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation. Additional support provided PNC.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is supported, in part, by the generosity of community contributions to the ArtsWave Campaign.

The Ohio Arts Council helps fund Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati also receives funding from the Shubert Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is a professional theatre dedicated to producing world and regional premieres of works that often explore compelling social issues. We fulfill our mission through our stage productions and educational outreach programs that enlighten, enliven, enrich and inspire our audiences.

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SEX AND EDUCATION Runs Oct. 15-27

ETC_Sex and Education logoSEX AND EDUCATION
Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati
Oct. 15-27
[Over-the-Rhine]

Meet Joe Marks, a graduating basketball star whose college scholarship is suddenly in jeopardy when his poorly-written, sexually explicit note to his girlfriend is confiscated during a final exam. Meet Miss Edwards, his jaded public high school English teacher on her last day of teaching. With nothing to lose and resentment from years of disinterested students, she assigns him the task of turning the purloined letter into a polished, persuasive essay. This scintillating romp is a hilarious lesson for all in life, sex, sports, and grammar. This production contains sexually explicit language; recommended for mature audiences.

  • Sat, Oct. 12 at 7pm
  • Sun, Oct. 13 at 3pm
  • Tue, Oct. 15 at 7pm
  • Wed-Thu, Oct. 16-17 at 7:30pm
  • Fri, Oct. 18 at 8pm
  • Sat, Oct, 19 at 2pm & 8pm
  • Sun, Oct. 20 at 2pm & 7pm
  • Tue-Thu, Oct. 22-24 at 7:30pm
  • Fri, Oct. 25 at 8pm
  • Sat, Oct. 26 at 2pm & 8pm
  • Sun, Oct. 27 at 2pm

Official page |

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