Category Archives: Theatre

UALR Helping Students Brush Up Their Shakespeare

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william-shakespeareUALR’s Department of English and Department of Theatre Arts and Dance is presenting the 2013 Shakespeare Scene Festival today from 9:30 a.m. to noon, in the University Theatre of the Center for Performing Arts.  The event started yesterday.

The Shakespeare Scene Festival, first held in 1998, brings together students from a variety of Central Arkansas schools to perform scenes from Shakespeare’s plays. A performance of a Shakespearean scene integrates several elements of literacy and literacy education including: intensive study of the English language, cooperative learning, process-based theatre as well as the discipline, creativity, and organization required to rehearse and perform a scene.

“The Shakespeare Scene Festival provides an exciting opportunity for middle and high school students in central Arkansas to come together with the UALR community in celebration of the works of Shakespeare,” says Dr. Kris McAbee, the festival’s director. “The student performers are rewarded for their hard work of grappling with these difficult and profound texts by getting to perform them in University Theatre in front of a large audience of their peers and community members. The festival also reminds us of the universality and timelessness of Shakespeare’s works. They are able to speak to the feelings, experiences, and concerns of Arkansas teenagers some 400 years after they were written.”

Classes from five different area schools are participating in the festival. Over 500 students are expected to attend and participate in 11 different performances. The works presented will include scenes from Macbeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Taming of the Shrew, and Richard III, as well as creative adaptations like The Suessification of Romeo and Juliet.  Among the schools participating are Little Rock Central, Little Rock J. A. Fair, Little Rock Dunbar Middle School, Joseph T. Robinson Middle School and North Little Rock High School West.

Admission is free and open to the public. Each performance will last approximately 25 minutes.

For more information, visit ualr.edu/shakespeare or contact Dr. Kris McAbee, assistant professor of English, at kxmcabee@ualr.edu.

Reel Classics with the Rep: Treasure Island

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In conjunction with the current production Treasure Island, the Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s monthly film series tonight will feature a film version of Treasure Island.  Reel Classics with the Rep starts at 6:00 pm.

Prior to the film, members of The Rep’s creative team will discuss the World Premiere of Treasure Island, The Musical by Brett Smock, Carla Vitale and Corinne Aquilina at Laman Library in North Little Rock.

Treasure Island runs through March 31.

This new musical offers a fresh take on the famous story by Robert Louis Stevenson. Set to a thrilling musical score and full of action, adventure and excitement, treasure hungry pirates and mutinous crew battle to discover the coveted Isle of Treasure.

Other special events in conjunction with Treasure Island include:

LITTLE ROCK FAMILY DAY
Saturday, March 23 | 1 p.m.- 4 p.m.
Arkansas Repertory Theatre, 601 Main Street, Little Rock
A fun day for families with activities in The Rep lobby, a preshow talk and a matinee performance of Treasure Island, A New Musical at 2:00 p.m. Sponsored by Little Rock Family.

PARTY LIKE A PIRATE sponsored by Colonial Wines & Spirits

Thursday, March 28 | 6 p.m. -7 p.m. |

Sample light bites, specialty rums and rum drinks in Foster’s prepared especially for you by local mixologist Joel DiPippa! Then grab your VIP seating in the First Mezzanine for Treasure Island, A New Musical at 7:00 p.m. Sponsored by Colonial Wines & Spirits.

 

A Princess, a Prince and a Pea at the AAC

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The Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre marches into the new month with a new take on an old tale.  The AAC revisits the Hans Christian Andersen classic The Princess and the Pea.  Alan Keith Smith wrote the adaptation and Artistic Director Bradley Anderson directs this production.

In Smith’s take on the classic tale, there is an added twist of mistaken identity as the Princess’ servant is thought to be the actual Princess.  Though there are new twists, this story still has a Prince, a Queen, twenty mattresses and one tiny pea.

The cast is led by Rachel Haislip as Princess Cordelia, Lucy Miller as her servant Jane, Jeremy Matthey as Prince Perry, Aleigha Morton as Queen Perimeta, John Isner as Womlitt, Michael Pere as Count Quint and Brooke Melton and Rachel Caffey as servants.  Though a play, it features a musical score by Lori Isner.

The Princess and the Pea opened public performances on Friday and runs through March 24.  During Spring Break week, there will be special matinees at 2pm from March 19 through 22.

While at the Arkansas Arts Center, visitors can also check out numerous outstanding exhibits including Edward Weston: Leaves of Grass and Wendy Maruyama: Executive Order 9066.  Dr. Todd Herman is the Executive Director of the Arkansas Arts Center.

COMPANY comes in to the Weekend Theater

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20130307-232808.jpgThose good and crazy people of George Furth and Stephen Sondheim’s Company come to Little Rock at the Weekend Theatre during the month of March. The production opened last night and runs through Sunday, March 24.

Craig Wilson stars as the central character Bobby who is celebrating his 35th birthday. Bobby is surrounded by five married couples and three single women as he travels through time and space. Company is a musical journey into what makes a marriage but also modern living.

The production is directed by Andy Hall. Joining Wilson in the cast are Kathryn Pryor and Ralph Hyman, Alan Douglas and Patti Airoldi, Jeremiah James Herman and Kate East, Duane Jackson and Erin Martinez, and Gabriel Washam and Julie Atkins. The women in Bobby’s life are played by Hannah M. Sawyer, Moriah Patterson and Jessica L. Hendricks.

The Weekend Theater production of the musical opens Friday, March 8, at the performance space at Seventh and Chester streets in downtown Little Rock. Curtain times are 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays through March 24. Tickets are $20 for adults and $16 for seniors age 65 and older and students.

To make pre-paid reservations, visit the theater’s Web site, http://www.weekendtheater.org; tickets can also be purchased at the door. (As seating is currently limited due to reconstruction at the building, advance purchase is encouraged.) For information only, call (501) 374-3761.

TREASURE ISLAND at Clinton School

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Treasure-IslandThe Arkansas Repertory Theatre works in partnership with the Clinton School of Public Service to participate in the UACS’s Distinguished Speaker Series, hosting educational panel discussions on various Rep productions. The latest in these takes place today,  Thursday, March 7 at 12 noon at Sturgis Hall in Clinton Presidential Park.  The Arkansas Rep is presenting a world premiere musical Treasure Island, which will be the focus of today’s program.

The panel discussions are led by Producing Artistic Director Bob Hupp and include insights from guest directors, actors and Bob himself on bringing compelling stories to The Rep stage.  Join Rep Producing Artistic Director Bob Hupp, Treasure Island director and co-author Brett Smock and the creative team as they discuss the brand new musical production Treasure Island and how it came to be staged at The Rep. What is involved in creating an entirely new take on such a famous story?.  Call the Clinton School at (501) 683-5239 for reservations.

UACSThis new musical offers a fresh take on the famous story by Robert Louis Stevenson. Set to a thrilling musical score and full of action, adventure and excitement, treasure hungry pirates and mutinous crew battle to discover the coveted Isle of Treasure.

Treasure Island is directed, choreographed and co-written by Brett Smock.  Carla Vitale co-wrote the book with a musical score by Corinne Aquilina.  The production opens tonight and  runs through March 31. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evening performances are at 7 p.m., Friday, Saturday evening performances are at 8 p.m. Sunday Matinees performances are at 2 p.m.

TREASURE ISLAND starts world premiere at Rep

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ATreasure-Island world premiere musical adaptation of Treasure Island has dropped anchor at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre.

This new musical offers a fresh take on the famous story by Robert Louis Stevenson. Set to a thrilling musical score and full of action, adventure and excitement, treasure hungry pirates and mutinous crew battle to discover the coveted Isle of Treasure.

Bored by his mundane life at the Admiral Benbow Inn, and entranced by the mysterious Captain Billy Bones and his wild seafaring tales, young Jim Hawkins yearns for a life of adventure. His wish is soon granted as members of the infamous Captain Flint crew pursue Bones and his hidden treasure map.

When Bones dies in a struggle for the map, Jim narrowly escapes with his life and Bones’ prize possession. With a sturdy crew in place led by Long John Silver, and with Jim under the protection of a doctor, a nobleman and a stoic ship’s captain, they set sail in search of their fortunes. As greed escalates, mutiny threatens and loyalties are forever broken.

The production is directed and choreographed by Brett Smock who also co-authored the libretto with Carla Vitale.  The songs are written by Corinne Aquilina who also serves as music director.

The cast is led by Logan Rowland, Richard B. Watson, Kristy Cates and Tony winner Cleavant Derricks.  Others in the cast include Gregory Butler, Mark Campbell, Christopher Carl, Matt Farcher, Eric Gunhus, David Hess, Michael Thomas Holmes, Patrick Richwood and Cross Brandon.

The creative team includes Frederick Alden Terry (orchestrator), Stanley A. Meyer (scenery), Rafael Colon Castanera (costumes), Dan Ozminkowski (lighting), Lynda J. Kwallek (props), Allan Branson (sound) and D. C. Wright (fight choreography).  Robert Hupp is the producing artistic director of the Arkansas Repertory Theatre.

Treasure Island starts previews tonight and opens officially on Friday, March 8.  Performances continue through Sunday, March 31.

NATURAL STATE NOTABLES book launched on Monday

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natural_state_notablesSchool-aged children can learn about famous Arkansans in Natural State Notables: 21 Famous People from Arkansas by Steven Teske, a new book from Butler Center Books. Teske will read from the book and sign books, which will be available for purchase, on Monday, March 4, at 4:00 p.m. in the Central Arkansas Library System’s (CALS) Children’s Library and Learning Center at 4800 W. 10th Street.

Biographies on Arkansans including Maya Angelou, Johnny Cash, Bill Clinton, John Grisham, Scottie Pippen, Winthrop Rockefeller, Mary Steenburgen, and Sam Walton highlight the accomplishments and backgrounds of some of Arkansas’s most celebrated sons and daughters. The book features pictures, timelines, and information on each Arkansan.

Natural State Notables author Steven Teske works as an archival assistant for the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies. He has also written Unvarnished Arkansas about famous people in Arkansas in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and he co-wrote Homefront Arkansas about life in Arkansas during wartime from the war with Mexico in 1848 to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in the twenty-first century. He has worked for the Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture, the Butler Center’s online resource about the state of Arkansas, and he teaches college classes in history and comparative religions for the Arkansas State University-Beebe’s campus on the Little Rock Air Force Base.

Butler Center Books is a project of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, a department of the Central Arkansas Library System. This publishing program was made possible by a gift from John G. and Dora “DeDe” Ragsdale. Butler Center Books publishes volumes that increase knowledge about and appreciation of the history and culture of Arkansas. The University of Arkansas Press in Fayetteville is the distribution agent for Butler Center Books.

The Butler Center for Arkansas Studies was founded in 1997 to promote the study and appreciation of Arkansas history and culture. The Butler Center’s research collections, art galleries, and offices are located in the Arkansas Studies Institute building at 401 President Clinton Ave. on the campus of the CALS Main Library.

The event, which will include a reception and a preview tour of the new facility, is free and open to the public. RSVP to marey@cals.org or 918-3033. The Children’s Library will open on Saturday, March 16.