Theater Review Owners -- Yale Rep

Brenda Meaney, Joby Earle, and Anthony Cochrane in Owners. 
Photo © Joan Marcus, 2013.

Dark Play That Houses Unlikable Characters, Plot Makes Us Want to Move 
By Lauren Yarger
What a bunch of unhappy, unlikable people headed toward a predictable, dark conclusion.

That was the thought running through my head through most of the almost two and a half hours of Owners, the first stage work by groundbreaking English playwright Caryl Churchill (Cloud Nine and Top Girls), getting a run at Yale Rep.

Trying to see what I had missed – like why Director Evan Yionoulis, whose work I respect, chose such a horrible play to produce, and what it was supposed to be about -- I eagerly read production Dramaturg Hugh Farrell’s notes in the program before sitting down to write this review. His take boils down to this: the conflict of two perspectives on ownership: the “western imperative to own everything: meets the “Eastern acceptance of owning nothing.”

OK, let’s say I kind of got that, minus the “eastern” and “western” tags, but more like socialism versus capitalism. I still didn’t care. The characters in this unrealistic 1972 play are so odd and unlikable that it is hard to engage. To top it off, the pay is listed as a comedy and I don’t recall laughing once.

Clegg (Anthony Cochrane) is a repulsive guy, a second generation butcher, who is angry that he doesn’t have a son to whom he can pass on his northern London business “Clegg and Son.” Lack of fertility is, no doubt, the fault of his wife, Marion (Brenda Meaney), whom Clegg loathes mostly because she is one of the most disgusting things in the word to him – a woman. Wives are property in his mind, something to be owned and ordered about. At best they are like dogs to be trained. He spends a lot of time plotting how to kill her. But she’s the one who has spent some time in a mental institution?

Marion has been keeping herself amused by buying up houses and flipping them for profit. She is particularly happy to become the owner of a home in which her former lover, Alec (Tommy Schrider) and his fiancée, Lisa (Sarah Manton) live. The couple, with a third child on the way and Alec’s demented, elderly mother (Alex Trow) in residence, has fallen on hard times, especially after Alec seems to stop caring about everything. He is socialism personified. When the flat is robbed, he wonders why they should call the police – after all, if the burglar really wanted the stuff, who are they to insist they owned it?

When he isn’t trying new ways to kill himself, Worsely (Joby Earle) acts as Marion’s agent and intimidates Lisa with threats of higher rent or removing the roof of their home to get the family to move out. Lisa turns to Marion, the only person she knows with some knowledge about housing issues, for help. Marion strings her along for a while before revealing that she is, in fact, the owner causing her problems.

A couple of things might alleviate the couples’ struggles, however: Alec can agree to reignite his affair with Marion and Lisa can agree to give up her new baby so Clegg can finally have the “and son” part for his business. This fits right in with the idea that those with money are “owners” able to buy and sell whatever they choose at the expense of those without money…. Meanwhile, Worsely extends his suicidal thoughts to plotting to doing away with Marion and the whole bunch of them. We can see where this is all headed and it isn’t going to be good. Though an end to these folks might not be such a bad idea….

Driving me to more dark thoughts were the costumes (Seth Bodie, design) and wallpaper patterns (Carmen Martinez, design) with their 1970s patterns and mismatched colors. When the building’s new owner, Mrs. Arlington (also Trow), showed up in an orange/red wig, purple dress and magenta shoes, I secretly hoped Worsely would take her out before finding a way to commit suicide.

I also must admit that I simply didn’t get the mannequins. There are a few placed throughout the set. Clegg waits on one at the beginning of the play. Yionoulis has the actors freeze frame like mannequins at the end of scenes. Why? Got me.

So, if all of this sounds like a fun time at the theater, Owners is the play for you. Me, I think I might have preferred to stay home, where yes, I own.

Owners continues through Nov. 16 at Yale Rep, 1120 Chapel Street. New Haven. Performance times vary. Tickets: $20-98: yalerep.org; 203-432-1234, Box Office, 1120 Chapel St., at York Street.

Behind the Scenes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxWj-Al-uzQ; Production Footage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-N1GYaaOLnI

Mark Russell Slated for Laughter in Politics at Mark Twain House and More...

The Mark Twain House and Museum presents an evening with political humorist Mark Russell on the Laughter of Politics Thursday, Nov. 21 at 7:30 p.m.

Long before Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert, there was Mark Russell, daring to joke and sing of the often absurd political process. He started in a little piano bar on Capitol Hill - right across from the lawmakers themselves. He began knowing little about politics, but was an immediate hit because he could find humor in anything.

Russell continues to play off the day's headlines, performing stand-up comedy while accompanying himself on the piano. Reading three or four newspapers a day allows him to constantly update his material. The result is that no two shows are ever identical. "I thrive on newspapers." he frequently states. "And it looks like I'll be thriving longer than them."

A native of Buffalo, NY, Russell's first heroes were entertainers. Radio comedians like Fred Allen and Jack Benny had audiences screaming for satire. It seems that everyone was making fun of self-important people. Groucho Marx was Dr. Quackenbush. Bugs Bunny was Toscanini. Charlie Chaplin was Hitler.

Russell spent 30 years on public television as host of the "Mark Russell Comedy Specials," where it was consistently among the top-rated shows on that network.

Tickets are $45 ($40 for Mark Twain House & Museum Members). Please call (860) 280-3130 for reservations.

Also coming u at the Mark Twain House:

The Mark Twain House and Museum presents a new art exhibition Botanical Tyranny: Drawings By Jane Rainwater. The exhibition will run from Nov. 4 to Jan. 17 in the Mark Twain House Museum Center.

There will be an free opening reception for the exhibition on Sunday, Nov. 10 from 2 to 4 pm.

Botanical Tyranny features pen and ink drawings of beautiful flowers, birds, and insects that, when looked at closely, are made of weapons, bomb, swords, guns, etc. Jane Rainwater's work engages the viewer with its seemingly innocent decorative delight; yet upon closer examination the work challenges and questions our attraction by revealing darker truths. Her drawings explore the paradox of "horrible beauty," illuminating her concerns regarding wealth, greed, violence and cultural traditions.

Rainwater grew up in Westport and lives in Andover. She teaches art and design at several colleges and universities in Connecticut. She is also the owner of Rainwater Design. She holds a MFA from The Art Institute of Boston, and a BFA from The Hartford Art School. She received a Radius Emerging Artist Fellowship from The Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art in Ridgefield. Jane has exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the country.

Botanical Tryanny also ties in with the major fall exhibition at the Mark Twain House Museum Center: An Inglorious Peace or a Dishonorable War: Mark Twain's Views on Conflict which opened last month. Both exhibitions are open during regular museum hours for a special $5 museum-only admission -- or free with a ticket to tour the Mark Twain House.

This Thursday, Nov. 7

Dan Lauria in Conversation with Scot Haney

You loved him as the father on TV’s “The Wonder Years.” Now meet him in a new role: The Godfather.

Actor Dan Lauria, in conversation with Channel 3’s Scot Haney, will discuss his career and the collection of children’s stories he created for his godson, Julian, at a special event Thursday, Nov. 7 at the Mark Twain House and Museum, 351 Farmington Ave., Hartford.

The star of A Christmas Story, the musical, playing at The Bushnell Nov. 12-17, will sign copies of his book, “The Blue Hair Club and Other Stories,” the first in the Godfather Tales Series, following the program with Haney, which begins at 6 pm. Proceeds from the books’ sales benefit Evolution, a charity assisting single moms. Books (geared toward kids aged 5-10) may be pre-ordered at http://shop.marktwainhouse.org/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=67&products_id=484 or 860-280-3136.

A Christmas Story’s famous “leg lamp” will be on hand, along with “Ralphie’s” pink bunny suit from the show for photo ops with the kids. Drawings will be held for tickets to the show at The Bushnell and for CDs of the musical’s soundtrack. Refreshments, including some “Oh, fudge!,” courtesy of the show, will be served and kids from the cast of A Christmas Story will be on hand to read excerpts from the book.

The event is being presented free of charge. Questions or more information: bookauthorpub@yahoo.com.

Full disclosure: I am totally connected as the planner of this event -- but you should know about it! -- Lauren

The Flying Dutchman Sails onto Palace Theater Stage

Stormy seas, ghost ships and gleaming treasures conquer the Palace Theater stage as Richard Wagner’s famous opera Der Fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) sails into Waterbury on Friday, Nov. 15 at 7 pm.

Tickets for the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra and Connecticut Lyric Opera co-presentation are $65, $45 and $20 and can be purchased by phone at 203-346-2000, online at www.palacetheaterct.org, or in person at the Box Office, 100 East Main Street in Waterbury.

The legend of The Flying Dutchman, a ghostly ship condemned to wander the oceans forever, has fascinated opera lovers for hundreds of years. Wagner’s enthralling score is illuminated by striking stage imagery that powers a thrilling journey into an unsettling, mythic world where a tormented spirit seeks true love as his only redemption. Originating in seventeenth century nautical folklore, The Flying Dutchman is the tale of a phantom ship, an omen of doom to all who encounter it, captained by a Dutchman cursed to an eternity at sea. From Thomas Moore’s poem On Passing Dead Man’s Island to the Hollywood hit Pirates of the Caribbean, the ghost ship and its captain have haunted books, films, plays and animations for decades.

Wagner based his adaptation on Heinrich Heine's retelling of the myth in a satirical 1834 novel The Memoirs of Mr. von Schnabelewopski (Aus den Memoiren des Herrn von Schnabelewopski) in which the Dutchman is permitted on land every seven years to find redemption through a faithful woman’s love. The opera tells the tale threefold: through famous text in the heroine’s ballad, striking stage action and effects, and dramatically shifting soundscapes.

Presented in German with English supertitles, this fully staged co-production by the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra and the Connecticut Lyric Opera features an international cast of singers accompanied by a full orchestra conducted by Maestro Adrian Sylveen. This production is perhaps CT Lyric Opera’s grandest to date as the company has grown extensively since its inception 11 years ago, now enlivening stages throughout the state. Audiences are advised to hold on tight for a work whose wind, in conductor Franz Lachner’s words in 1864, “blows out at you wherever you open the score.”

London's Juice Vocal Ensemble Makes Connecticut Debut at Wesleyan

The 39th annual Crowell Concert Series presented by Wesleyan University’s Center for the Arts and Music Department continues with the Connecticut debut concert by London's Juice Vocal Ensemble 8 pm Saturday, Nov. 9 in Crowell Concert Hall, 50 Wyllys Ave  on the Wesleyan campus in Middletown. 

The concert by the experimental a cappella trio, which will combine contemporary classical with folk, jazz, world music, pop, and electronica, is also a part of the Performing Arts Series. (Please see below for more details about both the Crowell Concert Series and the Performing Arts Series).

The Juice Vocal Ensemble features sopranos Anna Snow and Sarah Dacey, and alto Kerry Andrew. For their first U.S. tour since an appearance at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas in March 2011, at Wesleyan the group will perform vibrant classical works by U.K. composers including Gabriel Prokofiev, a new work by New York-based composer and Wesleyan alumnus Toby Twining MA '06, and unusual arrangements of British folk songs and pop music by Guns N' Roses, Rihanna, Mariah Carey, Erasure, Kraftwerk, and Donna Summer.

There will be a pre-concert talk at 7:15 pm in Crowell Concert Hall by Wesleyan University John Spencer Camp Professor of Music Neely Bruce.

A Crowell Concert Series event presented by the Music Department and the Center for the Arts.

Tickets for the concert are $22 for the general public; $18 for senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff/alumni, and non-Wesleyan students; and $6 for Wesleyan students. Tickets: http://www.wesleyan.edu/boxoffice; 860-685-3355; Box Office, located in the Usdan University Center, 45 Wyllys Ave.; at the door beginning one hour prior to the performance, subject to availability. 

Watch Freedom in Three Acts

'Godfather' Dan Lauria in Conversation with Scot Haney

Full disclosure: I am totally connected as the planner of this event -- but you should know about it! -- Lauren

You loved him as the father on TV’s “The Wonder Years.” Now meet him in a new role: The Godfather.

Actor Dan Lauria, in conversation with Channel 3’s Scot Haney, will discuss his career and the collection of children’s stories he created for his godson, Julian, at a special event Thursday, Nov. 7 at the Mark Twain House and Museum, 351 Farmington Ave., Hartford.

The star of A Christmas Story, the musical, playing at The Bushnell Nov. 12-17, will sign copies of his book, “The Blue Hair Club and Other Stories,” the first in the Godfather Tales Series, following the program with Haney, which begins at 6 pm. Proceeds from the books’ sales benefit a charity assisting single moms and Julian’s education. Books (geared toward kids aged 5-10) may be pre-ordered at http://shop.marktwainhouse.org/ or 860-280-3136.

A Christmas Story’s famous “leg lamp” will be on hand, along with “Ralphie’s” pink bunny suit from the show for photo ops with the kids. Drawings will be held for tickets to the show at The Bushnell and for CDs of the musical’s soundtrack. Refreshments, including some “Oh, fudge!,” courtesy of the show, will be served and kids from the cast of A Christmas Story will be on hand to read excerpts from the book.

The event is being presented free of charge. Questions or more information: bookauthorpub@yahoo.com.

Theater Review: The Underpants -- Long Wharf

Steve Routman, Jeff McCarthy, 
Jenny Leona and Burke Moses. Photo: T. Charles Erickson

A Silly-Fun Farce from Steve Martin Pulls Up at Long Wharf

By Lauren Yarger

Crowds gather in hopes of catching a glimpse of the King as he passes by during a parade, but the real sight of the day ends up being a woman caught with her drawers down in The Underpants, a light-hearted farce by comedian Steve Martin.

The play, adapted from German playwright Carl Sternheim’s 1911 farce Die Hose, is playing at Long Wharf Theater through Nov. 10, then will get a second run Jan. 9 –Feb. 9, 2014 at Hartford Stage which is co-presenting. Long Wharf’s Gordon Edelstein directs.

While stretching on tip-toe to get a better view of the king, Louise Maske (Jenny Leona)  loses her underpants -- and the respect of her uptight, disapproving husband, Theo (Jeff McCarthy), who fears the embarrassment could cost him his job. This is just one more in a long list of things his wife of just a year hasn’t done right, he complains while criticizing her housekeeping. With an order to have his wieners ready when he gets home, he storms out.

What she lacks in the way of esteem from her husband, who hasn’t touched her since their wedding night for fear they will conceive a child they can’t afford, however, Louise more than makes up for in the undying admiration from some gentlemen who got a glimpse of her underpants at the parade.

The first to show up at her door is handsome Frank Versati (Burke Moses who delightfully puts us in mind of Harvey Korman playing a smarmy leading man opposite Carol Burnett), a poet who wants to rent a room that the Manskes have for rent. The underpants incident has given him his muse and changed his world, he tells her, as he pledges his devotion. She agrees to rent him the room.

Unbeknownst to Louise, Theo also has rented the room to shy, nerdy Benjamin Cohen (Steve Routman), who insists he is not Jewish and that his name is spelled with a “K.” He too witnessed the underpants incident, and thanks to the tools of his barber’s trade – a quickly produced mirror while he was lying on the ground – he got quite an eyeful of what the underpants left uncovered and now he is smitten with Louise as well.

Theo decides they can share the room and orders his wife to take care of all the men’s needs….

Meanwhile, upstairs neighbor and confident Gertrude Deuter (Didi Conn) decides that Louise should have an affair and makes her friend a new set of underwear worthy of a seduction. The young wife discovers that she does have some physical cravings and welcomes Versati’s attentions. A couple of things get in the way of their romance, however, despite Gertrude’s agreeing to serve as watchdog for Theo’s arrival at home: Versati seems more interested in composing poems about loving Louise instead of doing anything about it, and Cohen vows to prevent anything from happening between the would-be lovers.

Things get even more complicated when the apartment gets rented again to oldtimer Klinglehoff (George Bartenieff), who thinks seeing the fallen underpants might only have been a hallucination. Theo’s interest in his wife also is rekindled when he realizes that all of the rent money he has collected could provide the means for him and his wife to have a baby after all….

All the elements of farce are here, including a silly story where “chaos ensues” and multiple doors (Lee Savage, design) with some nifty and effective staging on entrances through them by Edelstein. He keeps the pace quick and sharp – essentials for a successful farce.

Routman displays superior physical comedy skills and sounds a little like Wally Cox, which makes us chuckle even more. Leona manages to keep Louise likable and has wonderful rapport with Conn who enjoys playing the nosy neighbor indulging in a vicarious affair. And best of all, McCarthy manages, in intonation and delivery, to sound a lot like Steve Martin.

Martin’s skillful adaptation makes the tale modern, even though we know by the costumes and hair (Jess Goldstein and Charles LaPointe, design) that we are in the early 20^th Century.

 “Sternheim’s play is ribald, self-referential, and quirky. I hope I have retained those elements and assured my place in heaven – I mean, served the playwright’s intentions,” Martin wrote in his introduction to the play.

For information about the show’s run at Hartford Stage: (860) 527-5151; www.hartfordstage.org.

Catch The Underpants at Long Wharf’s mainstage theater, 222 Sargent Drive, New Haven, before they come down Nov. 10. Performance times vary. Tickets $54.50-$79.50: www.longwharf.org; (203) 787- 4282.

Theater Review: Mrs. Mannerly -- TheaterWorks

Dale Hodges and Raymond McAnally. Photo: Lanny Nagler

Remember Your Manners About Laughing Out Loud in Public Places
By Lauren Yarger
Dale Hodges and Raymond McAnally reprise roles as etiquette expert Mrs. Mannerly and her 9-going-on-10-year-old student in Jeffrey Hatcher’s brisk and funny memoir play opening the 2013-2014 season at TheaterWorks, Hartford.

Mrs. Mannerly is Hatcher’s recollection of being a nerdy, Little-League-challenged kid who finds his calling in mastering the table settings, napkin folding, dinner conversation and social graces taught by Mrs. Mannerly, an elderly woman who has seen generations of kids pass through her manners class offered at the local YMCA. Lighting Designer John Lasiter provides a nice “switch” effect which Jeffrey uses to stop and start action between his memory, spoken to the audience as an adult, and the action taking place against a “Greetings from Steubenville, OH” postcard when he was a youngster in 1967 (set design by Brian Mehring).

Jeffrey, dressed in knickers (costume design by Rebecca Senske), arrives for his first class, along with classmates Ralph, Chuckie, Kim and Jamie (all also played by the talented McAnally), who compete for the honor of earning a silver spoon pin, given by Mrs. Mannerly for exceptional displays of etiquette knowledge. Those who mess up, by asking “What?” instead of “I beg your pardon?” for example, are fined a quarter, however.

Kim quickly masters the art of arranging silverware and glasses in the correct manner with the precision of a sniper assemble his rifle in the dark for a kill. Chuckie morphs into brown noser, Ivy League wannabe “Charles,” and awkward Ralph tries to master the art of conversation while wiping his ever-draining nose. Unengaged, gum-chewing Jamie takes it all in stride with a “whatever” attitude.

McAnally, directed here by Ed Stern, gives an amusing performance as the collection of kids. The scene where he meets up with an older, more experienced girl for the dance portion of the etiquette lessons is particularly funny. Using just the different eye glasses worn by the two characters for props, McAnally manages to have a humorous makeout session with himself that leaves both the couple and the audience rolling on the floor.

As the other kids are expelled from the class for various offenses, Jeffrey suddenly realizes he might be the only one who has what it takes to shine and earn a perfect 100 on the end-of-course exam given in front of the ladies of the Daughters of the American Revolution. A feat that never has been accomplished before.

The teacher and student start to develop a relationship outside of class, but Jeffrey finds Mrs. Mannerly’s denial that she’s ever been to Chicago, and her panicky reaction every time the city’s name is mentioned, very mysterious. He knows she was there years ago, because he saw a program from a theater where she starred during her actress days as Helen Anderson Kirk. Just what is Mrs. Mannerly hiding and will it interfere with Jeffrey’s pursuit of a perfect score on the etiquette test?

The play is fun with a run time of less than 90 minutes. It could use a few tweaks -- some of the hyperbole is exaggerated a bit too much and the story gets off track at times – but overall, it’s entertaining.

Hodges shines in a scene where the perfectly coiffed (wig design by Kelly Yurko) woman lets her hair down while belting back Scotch at the bar housed below the apartment she rents. She tends to shout and whine a little too much for an etiquette expert, however. Hodges and McAnally, who have a good on-stage rapport, performed these roles in a previous production of Mrs. Mannerly in Cincinnati.

Mrs. Mannerly runs through Nov. 17 at TheaterWorks, Hartford. Peformances: Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 pm; Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm; Weekend Matinees at 2:30 pm. Tickets $15-$50 (860) 527-7838; www.theaterworkshartford.org.

Dance, Theater Combine for The Witching Hour

Miceli Productions Photography

Heart-thumping tales of women and men accused, tried and convicted of witchcraft in mid 17th-century Connecticut are cast from the past into the present through a newly re-imagined staging of “The Witching Hour,” a dance-theater piece by The Ensemble of Judy Dworin Performance Project.

A free, pre-Halloween preview will be presented on Tuesday, October 15 at noon at the Old State House, 800 Main Street.

Performances of “The Witching Hour” are Friday and Saturday, November 1 and 2, at 7:30 p.m. at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art’s Aetna Theater.

This historically informed work won the National Award of Merit from the American Association of State and Local History after its premiere in 2007. It revisits what happened in Windsor, Hartford and Wethersfield, Conn. when witchcraft was punishable by death – predating by nearly half a century the notorious trials in Salem, Mass. – and when rigid Puritan authority censored the outspoken and bedeviled the herbalists, midwives and indentured servants, among others, who practiced cherished folk traditions.

Vividly depicting how fears of difference can turn dangerous, and how designating scapegoats seems to appease the hysteria of mob mentality and other social ills, “The Witching Hour” invites comparison to contemporary problems of prejudice and persecution, such as bullying, intolerance, and gender injustice.

Stories of Connecticut’s accused witches are told by the character of Katherine Harrison (performed by guest actor and dancer Lesley Farlow), which is based on a real-life Wethersfield landowner who escaped hanging through banishment. Among those stories is the first witch trial in Colonial America, resulting in the hanging of Alse Young of Windsor in 1647 at the site where Hartford’s Old State House was built.

Larger than life size puppets by Anne Cubberly that she created for the original production, which was a collaborative venture with Connecticut Landmarks, will be seen in a lobby installation.

Dance-theater artist Judy Dworin believes that the arts can serve as a catalyst for change. In works produced by the Judy Dworin Performance Project and created by Dworin in collaboration with associate artistic director Kathy Borteck Gersten and The Ensemble, questions of history, equality, and social justice, and the potential for transformation within the individual and society at large, are thought-provokingly explored in a blend of movement, spoken word, song, and visual elements.

Judy Dworin was a 2012 honoree at the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony that celebrated women of “Voice and Vision.” That same year the Judy Dworin Performance Project received an Award of Merit from the Connecticut League of History Organizations for “In This House,” a work inspired by the history of the 1678 Joshua Hempsted House in New London. In 2010, the Judy Dworin Performance Project was presented with the Hartford Courant Tapestry Award for its efforts at bridging diverse community sectors, which includes teaching and mentoring children in the Hartford Public Schools, children of incarcerated parents, and inmates of York Correctional Institution, the state’s sole prison for women.

Ticket prices are $25, $15 for seniors and Let’s Go! Members and $10 for students. To purchase tickets call (860) 527-9800. Tickets will also be available at the door.

The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art is located at 600 Main Street; the entrance to the Aetna Theater is through the museum’s Avery Memorial, across from the Traveler’s building on Atheneum Square North.

Judy Dworin Performance Project is able to present this timely performance thanks to the Department of Economic and Community Development’s CT Office of the Arts, Greater Hartford Arts Council’s United Arts Campaign, Simon Konover Fund, and Connecticut Humanities (CTH). CTH is a non-profit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities that funds, creates and collaborates on hundreds of cultural programs across Connecticut each year. CTH brings together people of all ages and backgrounds to express, share and explore ideas in thoughtful and productive ways. From local discussion groups to major exhibitions on important historical events, CTH programs engage, enlighten and educate. Learn more by visiting www.cthumanities.org. Special thanks are extended to Connecticut Landmarks, Connecticut’s Old State House, Hartford Public Schools, and Trinity College.

For curious folk, here are a few related sites and sources pertaining to “The Witching Hour”:

Judy Dworin Performance Project:

http://www.judydworin.org/programming/ensemble/current-repertory/

Witches and Witchcraft: The First Person Executed in the Colonies:

http://www.jud.ct.gov/lawlib/history/witches.htm

Connecticut Witch Trials and Posthumous Pardons:

http://www.cga.ct.gov/2006/rpt/2006-R-0718.htm

Research Guide to Colonial Witchcraft Trial Materials at the Connecticut State Library:

http://www.cslib.org/witchbib.htm

“The Witch of Blackbird Pond” by Elizabeth George Speare (1908-1994)

Winner of the Newbery Medal in 1959.

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin

Buttolph-Williams House, Wethersfield:

http://www.ctlandmarks.org/index.php?page=buttolph-williams-house

The Music of Johnny Cash Plays Over at Seven Angels

Photo courtesy of Seven Angels.

Ring of Fire-The Music of Johnny Cash

through Oct. 20 at seven angels Theatre, 1 Plank Road, Waterbury

Created by Richard Maltby Jr., Conceived by William Meade
From the iconic songbook of Johnny Cash comes this unique musical about love and faith, struggle and success, rowdiness and redemption, and home and family. More than two dozen classic hits—including “I Walk The Line,” “A Boy Named Sue,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” and the title tune—performed by a multi-talented cast, paint a musical portrait of The Man in Black that promises to be a foot-stompin’, crowd-pleasin’ salute to a uniquely American legend! Richard Maltby, re-conceived his Johnny Cash tribute specifically for a five-member ensemble, and making its Connecticut premiere at Seven Angels.

"Most of the songs in the show are songs people already know. And yet put together in an evening, they tell a story. Johnny had the soul of a poet, and when you listen to these songs together you hear something in them that is surprising. It's the story of America.” -- Richard Maltby Jr.

For tickets: https://www.choicesecure03.net/mainapp/eventschedule.aspx?Clientid=SevenAngels

Don’t miss these special food and drink nights and matinees.
Friday, 10/11 Sweet Maria’s Night
Saturday, 10/12 Fascia’s Chocolate Night
Friday, 10/18, Wine & Martini Night
Sunday, 10/20 Sundaes on Sunday