Charlie Daniels Band Concert at Palace Cancelled Following Member's Death

The Charlie Daniels Band concert scheduled to take place at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, on Saturday has been cancelled due to the death of the band’s longtime keyboardist and vocalist Joel ‘Taz’ DiGregorio.

DiGregorio, 67, died Wednesday night as a result of injuries he sustained in a single car accident in Cheatham County, TN, while driving to meet the CDB tour bus. The band was scheduled to depart for Cumming, GA, for a concert appearance at the Cumming Country Fair and Festival on Oct. 13.

 “I am in shock now, Taz was one of my best friends,” says Charlie Daniels. “The CDB family has lost a great friend and musician. We traveled many miles together and shared so many nights on the road. We’re going to miss you buddy. You were one of a kind and will never be forgotten.  We send our deepest condolences to the family.”

Out of respect for DiGregorio and the band’s loss, the Palace Theater is also cancelling the venue’s Motorcycle Ride and Fall Street Festival that were integrated with the concert and scheduled to take place before the band’s 8 pm performance. The theater is hoping to reschedule the concert and all related activities for Spring 2012.

Ticket holders are being contacted by the Palace Theater Box Office and will have the option of receiving a full refund or holding onto to their tickets until the potential rescheduled date is announced. For more refund information, contact the Box Office at 203-346-2000.

Broadwayworld.com Launches Awards for Connecticut Theaters

Nominations are sought for the 2011 Broadwayworld.com Awards for Connecticut theaters.

The online theater site will present awards in 26 different categories. Nominations will close on Oct. 31, 2011 at which point online voting will begin. All productions which opened between September 2010 and October of 2011 are eligible for inclusion.

Go to
 http://connecticut.broadwayworld.com/2011nominations.cfm?region=Connecticut#ixzz1aVe1hpt6 for the nomination form and to submit your email address if you wish to be notified when voting begins.

Theater Review: The Marvelous Wonderettes -- Ivoryton

Melissa Robinette, Paige Neal, Danielle Rhodes, Alanna Wilson. Photo by Anne Hudson.

A Double Blast from the Past Stirs Humor, Memories in the Present
By Lauren Yarger
It's 1958 and The Marvelous Wonderettes, an all-female vocal group, is entertaining at the Super Senior Prom and then flash, it's the 10-year reunion in 1968 -- both excuses for the women to sing a bunch of familiar toe-tapping pop tunes from the eras, which have audiences at the Ivoryton Playhouse smiling in nostalgia.

There's an attempt at a book by writer and creator Roger Bean: Betty Jean (Paige Neal) is feuding with former best friend Cindy Lou (Melissa Robinette, who understudied three of the roles for the show's Off-Broadway run) over a boy. Suzy (Alanna Wilson) has just been pinned by the guy running the lights (Tate R. Burmeister, design) and shy Missy (Danielle Erin Rhodes) has a secret love.

If you're looking for more plot than that, you'll be disappointed. The story device, nonsensical at times (Betty Jean and Cindy Lou make up in the middle of the feud for no apparent reason; all of the women suddenly stop, drop and roll for a few-second fire drill....) is just a device for the songs.

All four women, directed by John Sebastian DeNicola (who also music directs), scream '50s and '60s in crinoline-poofed and A-line dresses (Julia Bowers, costume design) and era-popular dos (Joel Silvestro, hair/wig design. ). They also seem to be having a lot of fun and exude lots of enthusiasm belting out the tunes, performing simple, cheesy choreography in front of a glittery silver curtain with streamers and comically interacting with audience members, where the prom theme decor extends into the house (Cully Long, set design). Neal's gift for humor is used nicely.

Some of the harmonies (Bean and Brian William Baker, vocal arrangements) are less than marvelous, with "poof" giving way to "flat," but this doesn't distract the audience,  many of whom probably are recalling their own 1958 (or prior) proms from enjoying tunes like "Dream Lover," "Goodnight Sweetheart," "Leader of the Pack," "Lollipop,"Mr. Sandman," "Wedding Bell Blues" and others accompanied by four musicians (two keyboards, guitar and percussion). The 60s tunes in the second act seem less familiar, but Robinette's "Son of a Preacher Man" is terrific.

The Marvelous Wonderettes runs through Oct. 18 at the Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. Tickets are available by calling 860-767-7318 or by visiting www.ivorytonplayhouse.org.

CT Rep Brings Our Town to Storrs

UConn Alumni, TV star and former Ms. Connecticut (1975) Mary Cadorette (center) appears as Mrs. Gibbs and counsels her children Rebecca Gibbs, played by Hannah Kaplan, and George Gibbs, played by Michael John Improta in Connecticut Repertory Theatre’s production of Thornton Wilder’s American classic Our Town playing now through Oct. 16 in the Nafe Katter Theatre, Storrs.  For tickets and information call 860-486-4226 and visit www.crt.uconn.edu.  Photo by Gerry Goodstein.

News Briefs Oct. 11

• Subscriptions are now on sale to the general public for the 2012 season at Westport Country Playhouse. They may be purchased online at www.westportplayhouse.org or by calling the Playhouse box office at 203-227-4177. To introduce the series of five productions, the Playhouse will host a “2012 Season Preview Night” on Thursday, Oct. 27 from 6 to 8 pm featuring a presentation by Mark Lamos, Playhouse artistic director, followed by a Q&A, along with complimentary hors d’oeuvres, beverages and giveaways. The event is free and open to the public.
• Fall Writing classes at The Mark Twain House & Museum 5:30 to 7:30 pm on Wednesdays Oct. 26 to Dec. 7. Novelist and memoirist Mary-Ann Tirone Smith will lead a fiction workshop and columnist and memoirist Susan Campbell will lead a non-fiction group. Fee $500. Call Steve Courtney at 860-247-0998, Ext. 243, or email steve.courtney@marktwainhouse.org to register.
• Yale School of Drama presents Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights by Gertrude Stein, directed by Lileana Blain Cruz, Oct.  25-29 at the Iseman Theater, 1156 Chapel St., New Haven. 
• The Edgerton Center for the Performing Arts at Sacred Heart University kicks off its Broadway Divas Series featuring Women of Wicked with Dee Roscioli and her Broadway Friends, all of whom have performed in Wicked and other Broadway productions. Described as an enthralling night of Broadway music, the Women of Wicked will take the stage on Saturday, Oct. 22 for two performances at 6 and 9 pm. Tickets and info 203-371-7908. This Sunday, Oct. 16,  the American Legends Series features award-winning actress and singer Shirley Jones at 3 pm.
• The Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts begins its 2011-2012 Sweet Sounds Series with rising bluegrass star Sierra Hull & Highway 111 performing at 8 pm Friday, Oct. 21. Opening the concert will be area favorites The String Fingers Band, which includes Dan Carlucci, an alumnus of Fairfield Prep and Fairfield University. Tickets are $25. Call 203-254-4010, or toll-free 1-877-278-7396; online at www.quickcenter.com.

'Amigo' Director Will Speak at Trinity College

What:
John Sayles, a celebrated independent filmmaker and author, will deliver a lecture prior to the showing of his new historical war drama, Amigo. His appearance is free and open to the public. Admission to the movie is $8, and $7 for seniors over the age of 62 and students (with a student ID).

When:
 Wednesday, October 26. The lecture is at 5:30 p.m. and the movie will be shown at 7:30 p.m. Additional screenings of Amigo will be Thursday, October 27 at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, October 28 at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, October 29 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Where:
Cinestudio on the campus of Trinity College, 300 Summit Street, Hartford.

Background: Now playing in select cities across the country, Amigo is Sayles’s 17th feature film. It is set in the Philippines in 1900 as the U.S. Army stages an in invasion to liberate the population from Spanishcontrol. The war was strongly criticized by author and humorist Mark Twain,among others.

Based on an incident in Sayles’ novel "A Moment in the Sun"  Amigo opened to rave reviews.

A drama of friendship, betrayal, romance, and heartbreaking violence, Amigo is a page torn from the untold history of the Philippines, and points to similar U.S. occupations of Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.

For more information about the movie, please visit: www3.amigomovie.com. To contact Cinestudio, please call 860-297-5126 or visit: www.cinestudio.org.

Discover the Super Hero in You at Long Wharf's Discovery Day

Long Wharf Theatre transforms into a cool Superhero Training School for its 5^th Annual Discovery Day, a fun family open house event taking place at 9 am Saturday, Nov. 19 at Long Wharf Theatre, located at 222 Sargent Drive, New Haven.

There is a suggested donation of $5 per family or $2 per person. All donations from this event will go towards funding a family friendly March production entirely adapted, produced, designed, and built by the Next Stage residents, early career professionals training in specific fields of theatre.

Discovery Day has grown in popularity over the past five years and over 200 parents and children attended the event last year. This year, kids ages three and up, will have the opportunity to become their own special kind of superhero. Prompted by a pair of headmistresses (one good and one evil, played by residents Maria DiFabbio and Marissa Friedman – think Hogwarts), kids will begin a journey using the magic of theatre as their guide. They’ll take an acting class to create their superhero personas, with lights and sound on the stage to enhance the experience. Kids will then make superhero masks and capes in the costume shop, with more fun to follow. “We want kids to be able to do something engaging and theatrical,” Friedman said.

One of the theatre’s goals with Discovery Day is to help cultivate the joy and love of theatre in very young people. There isn’t a staff member at Long Wharf Theatre who doesn’t remember the theatrical experience that prompted a lifelong love affair with the art form. For residents Friedman, a New Haven native working in the artistic office, and DiFabbio, a stage management resident from Guilford, it happened to be the same musical: Broadway productions of Les Miserables seen around the age of 5. “I was struck by the enormity of the whole experience,” Friedman recalls. “I remember feeling incredibly happy and angry … I left the theatre and told my parents that this is what I have to do.”

“It is  amazing that I still remember (the performance),” DiFabbio said. “I listened to the soundtrack every single day when I was a little kid. I really hope that Discovery Day, with the tour of the backstage and seeing just what we do will show the fun of it all, how theatre is a is all about expressing yourself and learning to work with others to create something extraordinary. That’s our goal."

Long Wharf Theatre’s 2011-12 Next Stage class is comprised of Marissa L. Friedman (Artistic), Kristianna Smith (Education), Gordon Granger (Scenery), Luke Reinwald (Scenic Paint), Craig Harlow (Props), Abbey Steere (Costumes), Jason Pratt (Electrics), Darlene Richardson (Sound) and Maria DiFabbio (Stage Management.)

For more information about Long Wharf Theatre and Discovery Day, visit www.longwharf.org or call 203-787-4282.

Nicholas Martin, Phylicia Rashad Will Direct at Playhouse

Nicholas Martin and Phylicia Rashad have been added to the roster of directors helming productions during Westport Country Playhouse’s 2012 season, playing May through November.

Martin will direct the intimate drama, The Year of Magical Thinking, featuring Maureen Anderman, based on the National Book Award-winning memoir by acclaimed author Joan Didion, June 12-30, 2012. Rashad will direct the powerful classic, A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, Oct. 9 – Nov.3, 2012.
As previously announced, Mark Lamos, Playhouse artistic director, will helm the season opener, a 25^thanniversary revival of Into the Woods, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by James Lapine, May 1 – 19, 2012. The musical is a co-production with Baltimore’s CENTERSTAGE. Lamos will also direct the world-premiere comedy Harbor, written by Tony Award-nominated Chad Beguelin, Aug. 28– Sept.15, 2012.  David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director, will stage the biting social satire, Tartuffe, written by Molière and translated by Richard Wilbur, July 17 – Aug. 4. 2012.

5-play subscriptions, starting at $150, are available Tuesday 4-play subscriptions, Pick 3 Plans, FlexTix and group sales will be available starting Jan. 3, 2012. Single tickets will go on sale March 6, 2012.

For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org.

Goodspeed Holds Auditions for Instrumentalists

Goodspeed Musicals will be holding auditions for instrumentalists on Saturday, Oct. 22 at the Norma Terris Theatre, in Chester, CT. The goal of these auditions is to develop more depth for the Norma Terris Theatre pit.

Appointments are being made for bass, guitar, percussion, reed doublers (flute, clarinet & saxophones), trumpet, trombone, violin and harp players. All auditions are by appointment only. Appointments may be made starting immediately by calling Goodspeed Company Management at (860) 873-8664, ext. 387, Tuesday through Saturday, 10 am - 6 p.m.

Interested candidates should prepare a brief solo or excerpt that demonstrates an ability to perform in a“Musical Theatre” style. Reed doublers should prepare something that showcases all doubled instruments.

Washington Heights Meets Waterbury

In the Heights, winner of four 2008 Tony Awards® and the 2008Grammy®  Award for “Best Musical Show Album,” brings the energy of its Latin laced rhythms and the timeless story of home to the Palace Theater in Waterbury, for three performances, Nov. 4-5. Tickets are on-sale now and available online at www.palacetheaterct.org, by phone at 203-346-2000 or in person at the box office at100 East Main St. in Waterbury. 
The show tells the universal story of a vibrant community in New York’s Washington Heights neighborhood – a place where the coffee from the corner bodega is light and sweet, the windows are always open and the breeze carries the rhythm of three generations of music.  It’s a community on the brink of change, full of hopes, dreams and pressures, where the biggest struggles can be deciding which traditions you take with you and which ones you leave behind.

In addition to taking home the 2008 Tony Award for “Best Musical,” Lin-Manuel Miranda, the show’s creator, also won the Tony Award for “Best Music and Lyrics,” Andy Blankenbuehler won for “Best Choreography,” and Alex Lacamoire and Bill Sherman won for “Best Orchestrations.”

In theme with the musical’s message about the importance of community, the Palace is offering schools, bands and drama clubs the opportunity to raise money for their organizations by organizing a group to attend the matinee performance of In the Heights on Nov. 5, at 2 pm. For every mezzanine ticket sold at the promotion’s reduced $30 student price, the Palace will donate $3.00 back to the organization. Group leaders are encouraged to contact Box Office and Special Services Coordinator Deidre Patterson at 203-346-2011 for more information or to organize their.

For more information on the production, visit www.InTheHeightsTheMusical.com or www.palacetheaterct.org.