[Capdist-announce] PRESS RELEASE: WAM Theatre Announces 2018 Season

Tue Mar 13 10:30:41 EDT 2018

*March 13, 2018 Contact: Gail Burns, Marketing and Publicity
Associatewww.wamtheatre.com
<http://www.wamtheatre.com/#_blank>pr at wamtheatre.com <pr at wamtheatre.com>;
518.243.9627Press Photos can be found
at:www.flickr.com/photos/wamtheatre/albums/
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/wamtheatre/albums/> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE WAM
Theatre Announces 2018 Season The Berkshire-based theatre company launches
its ninth seasonwith exciting new collaborations and the fifth annual Fresh
Takes reading seriesLENOX, MA (March 13, 2018) — WAM Theatre’s Artistic
Director Kristen van Ginhoven today announces plans for the company’s 2018
season. The Berkshire-based professional theatre company celebrates its
ninth year with a main stage co-production with Dorset Theatre Festival
(Dorset, VT) starring Jayne Atkinson, a thought-provoking series of play
readings, a premiere presentation of comedienne Alison Larkin’s one-woman
show,  and various other special events, including hosting BerkChique for
the first time and continuing with the Girls Ensemble education program.
“People all around the world are taking brave risks and pushing boundaries
in order to effect positive change, and WAM's ninth season brings that
effort onto the stage. This season's play selections showcases seven fresh
and dynamic stories about inspiring women, all written and directed by
women and even including some humor and lightness--something we at WAM have
been aching for more of in today’s world,” van Ginhoven explained. “WAM is
proud to continue to take action for women and girls in 2018 with our
spirited storytelling and our impactful philanthropy.”FALL MAIN STAGE
PRODUCTION: ANN BY HOLLAND TAYLORWe are delighted to announce that this
year, our fall main stage play will be Ann by Holland Taylor, starring
Jayne Atkinson (TV’s “House of Cards”, “Madam Secretary”). The play is a
co-production with Dorset Theatre Festival, where the show will play first,
from August 29-September 1, 2018. WAM will present Ann in the Berkshires
from October 19-28 at the Tina Packer Playhouse at Shakespeare & Company in
Lenox, MA. Ann will be directed by WAM Artistic Director Kristen van
Ginhoven.A one woman tour-de-force, Ann is a hilarious and spirited
portrait of Ann Richards, legendary Governor of Texas. Written by
award-winning actress and writer Holland Taylor (“Two and a Half Men”), Ann
is an inspiring play that brings us face to face with the complex,
colorful, and captivating character, bigger than the state from which she
hailed. In a  year when an unprecedented number of women are running for
political office, WAM Theatre is proud to present this revealing portrait
performed by Emmy Award-winner, Tony Award-nominated and Berkshire favorite
Jayne Atkinson.  “Kristen van Ginhoven and WAM have long inspired me
personally for the amazing work they do on behalf of women,” shared Dina
Janis, Artistic Director of Dorset Theatre Festival. “With the Festival’s
commitment to gender equity in theatre and to women's voices in particular,
this project seemed like a perfect opportunity for collaboration between
our theaters. Jayne Atkinson is arguably one of our nations finest actors,
and a play written by the terrific Holland Taylor that celebrates one of my
favorite political rock stars - Ann Richards - feels like a true
celebration of all that is possible.”Performance schedule and ticket
information for Ann will be released in the summer.FRESH TAKES PLAY READING
SERIESThe fifth season of our Fresh Takes Play Reading Series presents a
series of ground-breaking plays that are imaginative and thoughtful
explorations of complex issues affecting women and girls, and feature local
professional actors and directors.“Fresh Takes 2018 continues WAM’s
commitment to connecting Berkshire audiences to female playwrights who are
contributing to national and international theatre conversations,” said
Talya Kingston, WAM’s new Associate Artistic Director, who also curated
this year’s readings. “Each of the plays was selected in order to provoke
conversation, and the series includes post-reading discussions that promise
to be vibrant!”Fresh Takes kicks of on Sunday, April 15, at 3:30pm at No. 6
Depot Roastery and Café in West Stockbridge with Swallow by Stef Smith,
directed by Talya Kingston.  This hit of the 2015 Edinburgh Festival
introduces us to three strangers who are about to face their demons head
on. Balanced precariously on a tipping point, they may be able to save one
another if they can overcome their urge to self-destruct. Questions of
identity, heartbreak, and hope are explored with vivid, poetic intensity by
one of Scotland’s most talked about young playwrights. This is a Swan Day
event (SWAN Day/Support Women Artists Now Day is an international holiday
designed to showcase the power and diversity of women's creativity).On
Thursday, May 3, at 7:30pm, WAM will present a reading of The Virgin Trial
by Kate Hennig, directed by Kelly Galvin, at the Elayne P. Bernstein
Theatre at Shakespeare & Company.  This sequel to The Last Wife will
reunite the director and many of the cast members from WAM’s hit 2017
production of The Last Wife, including David Joseph and Alicia Piemme
Nelson, who will reprise their roles as Tom and Bess. Kate Hennig continues
her Tudor Queens Trilogy by cleverly exploring victim-shaming, sexual
consent, and the extraordinary abilities of girls who are becoming women,
as she reimagines the scandalous and little-known story of Elizabeth the
First, before she was Queen. On Sunday, June 10, at 3:30pm, we return to
No. 6 Depot Roastery and Café in West Stockbridge for a reading of Honor
Killing by Sarah Bierstock, directed by Molly Merrihew, curator of last
year’s Fresh Takes Series. In this play, Allisyn, an American reporter for
the New York Times, heads to Pakistan to cover the honor killing of a young
woman. Denied entrance, she conducts her investigation remotely from Dubai.
Through a series of cultural collisions, candid interviews, and dangerous
encounters, she learns the horrifying details of this murder. These
circumstances cause Allisyn to re-examine troubling details of her own past
and how one culture mirrors the other, asking questions about forgiveness,
self-worth, and justice.WAM collaborates with the Clark Art Institute for
the Sunday, August 12, 2:00pm Fresh Takes reading of Pipeline by Dominique
Morrisseau. Inspired by Michelle Alexander’s best-seller, The New Jim Crow,
Morrisseau tells a story of Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher
who is committed to her students, but is also desperate to give her only
son opportunities they will never have.  When a controversial incident in
his upstate private school threatens to get him expelled, Nya must confront
his rage and her own choices as a parent. Pipeline is Dominique
Morrisseau’s beautiful and deeply moving story of a mother’s fight to give
her son a future without turning her back on the community that made him
who he is.We wrap up the 2018 Fresh Takes Reading Series on Sunday,
September 16, at 3:30pm at No. 6 Depot Roastery and Café in West
Stockbridge with Escaped Alone, the latest play by one of Britain’s
greatest living playwrights, Caryl Churchill, directed by WAM Artistic
Director Kristen van Ginhoven. In the intimate setting of No. 6 Depot
Roastery and Café, three elderly friends and a neighbor spend a series of
summer afternoons in the backyard chatting, drinking tea while visions of
apocalyptic horror play out inside their minds. The Fresh Takes Series is
sponsored in part by No. 6 Depot Roastery and Café in West Stockbridge
where our readings of Swallow, Honor Killing, and Escaped Alone will be
presented at 3:30pm on select Sundays. Due to popular demand, and to allow
more audience members from across Berkshire County to attend, The Virgin
Trial will be presented at Shakespeare & Company’s Elayne P. Bernstein
Theatre on Thursday, May 3, at 7:30pm, and  the reading of Pipeline will be
presented in the auditorium at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown on
Sunday, August 12, at 2:00pm.  SPECIAL SPRING EVENT: ALISON LARKIN LIVE!On
Friday, May 4, and Saturday, May 5, internationally acclaimed comedienne,
award-winning audiobook narrator, and bestselling author of The English
American, Alison Larkin premieres her hilarious new show, Alison Larkin
LIVE!, at the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre at Shakespeare & Company. There
will be three performances: Friday, May 4, at 7:30pm, and Saturday, May 5,
at 2pm and 7:30pm, with a panel discussion after the Saturday matinee, and
a champagne reception with Ms. Larkin for VIP ticket holders on Saturday
night. For more about Alison Larkin, visit http://alisonlarkin.com/
<http://alisonlarkin.com/>Larkin will talk about England, America,
adoption, reunion, parenting, life in the Berkshires, and how to brew the
perfect cup of tea. This night of laugh-out-loud comedy will be presented
for one weekend only. Larkin has been hailed by The Times (London) as,
"...hugely entertaining...marvelously light footed.” The performance will
celebrate the audiobook release of Larkin’s new AudioFile Earphones
Award-winning recording of The English American, which also includes an
interview and other bonus material.“The show was performed once in preview
at The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center,” shared Alison Larkin. “Since then,
people have been asking me when it's going to premiere. I knew the answer
when Kristen asked me if there was anything I'd like to do for WAM. I'm a
big fan of the work WAM is doing and delighted to be doing this performance
in May in the Berkshires.”Alison Larkin LIVE! Performance Dates and
TimesFriday, May 4, 7:30pm - PerformanceSaturday, May 5, 2:00pm -
Performance (post-show panel)Saturday, May 5, 7:30pm - Performance
(post-show champagne reception with Ms. Larkin for VIP ticket holders in
the Bernstein Lobby). WAM GIRLS ENSEMBLEWAM Theatre’s Girls Ensemble is a
performance group for girls aged 13-18. The ensemble creates an original
performance using devised theatre methods. This summer, after two years of
running the program during the school year, WAM will invite Girls Ensemble
alumni and selected new participants to devise a brand new piece to be
performed at our summer gala. As an extension of our mission to employ
female theatre artists, we are proud to be able to compensate our summer
Girls Ensemble members with stipends underwritten by the generosity of our
sponsors. The Girls Ensemble will again attend an International Schools
Theatre Association (ISTA) Festival in Atlanta, this time in spring
2019.SUMMER GALASave the date of Wednesday, July 25, for WAM’s Midsummer
Cocktail Party Benefit. The evening’s guests will be the first to learn
about the beneficiary of the fall production and will get to see an
exclusive performance by the WAM Girls Ensemble. This year, our gala will
be held at the beautiful Berkshire Equestrian Center in Richmond, MA.
Rolling hills, drinks on the porch, and philanthropy in action with the
WAMily.The Summer Gala will be hosted by actor Bill Bowers (Broadway’s The
Lion King, Scarlet Pimpernel). Bowers has received various ‘Best of the
Berkshires’ nods for his acting and solo performance in the Berkshires. His
solo works have also been produced off-Broadway and around the world.
Bowers is hailed as one of the most accomplished and renowned mimes of his
generation.Bill Bowers also works as a theatre artist with the
International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA), a sponsor of WAM’s Girls
Ensemble program. He has worked with ISTA throughout Europe and Asia. Of
Bowers, the Washington Square News says, “...Bill Bowers is not your
typical mime…he offers a taste of his life through a series of
David-Sedaris-esque chronicles - sidesplittingly funny and tear-jerking at
the same time….” Tickets for the WAM Gala will go on sale in May. COMMUNITY
COLLABORATIONSIn 2018, WAM continues its collaborations with various
community partners. This year, the WAM Education program will collaborate
with Flying Cloud Institute in their after school programming. WAM will
also partner with last year’s beneficiary, the SOLDIER ON Women’s Program,
and with the ZONTA Club of Berkshire County, which works to empower women
through service and advocacy. WAM will work with our community partners in
different ways during the year in volunteer endeavours throughout Berkshire
County.In a new community collaboration this year, WAM will be hosting
BerkChique, the Berkshires’ annual pop-up fashion resale fundraiser. WAM
has been a fortunate beneficiary of this event in the past, and this year,
for the first time, WAM will host the event. BerkChique will take place May
11-13 at the former Country Curtains space in the Red Lion Inn in
Stockbridge, MA.“BerkChique is such a fun event —AND  it is a triple win!"
said Vicki Bonnington, longstanding BerkChique Event Chair and one of the
driving forces behind BerkChique since its inception. “First, the clothing
donors win by cleaning out their closets, knowing that their donation helps
local nonprofits like WAM Theatre. Next, the BerkChique shoppers win by
getting fabulous, gently-used garments and accessories at unbelievable
prices — also knowing that every single dollar they spend will go to
support nonprofits in their own community.  Finally, the recipients like
WAM win by receiving the proceeds from every item sold at BerkChique. Since
its inception in 2012, BerkChique has donated over $150,000 to support
local nonprofits.”To find out more about BerkChique, visit
www.BerkChique.com <http://www.berkchique.com>For more information about
the 2018 Season and WAM Theatre’s programs, events, and artists, please
visit www.WAMTheatre.com <http://www.WAMTheatre.com>.WAM THEATRE 2018
SEASON HIGHLIGHTSApril 15 Fresh Takes Play ReadingSwallowby Stef
Smithdirected by Talya KingstonSunday, April 15 at 3:30pm - talkback
followingat No. 6 Depot Roastery & Café, 6 Depot Street, West Stockbridge,
MATickets: $25May 3Fresh Takes Play ReadingThe Virgin Trialby Kate
Hennigdirected by Kelly GalvinThursday, May 3 at 7:30pm - talkback
following at the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre at Shakespeare & Company,
Lenox, MATickets: $25May 4 & 5Special Spring Event: Alison Larkin
LIVE!Friday, May 4 at  7:30pmSaturday, May 5 at 2pm - panel discussion
followingSaturday, May 5 at 7:30 pm - champagne reception with Alison for
VIP ticket holders following at the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre at
Shakespeare & Company, Lenox, MATickets: $30-$60May 11 -13BerkChiqueMay 11
at 5:30pm-8:30pmMay 12 at 10am-4pmMay 13 at 10am-2pmFormer Country Curtains
Space in the Red Lion Inn, 30 Main Street, Stockbridge, MAJune 10Fresh
Takes Play ReadingHonor Killingby Sarah Bierstockdirected by Molly
MerrihewSunday, June 10 at 3:30 pm - talkback following at No. 6 Depot
Roastery & Café, 6 Depot Street, West Stockbridge, MATickets: $25July
25Annual Gala: A Midsummer Cocktail Party BenefitWednesday, July 25, from
5:30-8pmBerkshire Equestrian Center in Richmond, MATickets: $75-$250August
12 The Clark Art Institute hosts a WAM Fresh Takes Play Reading Pipelineby
Dominique MorriseauSunday August 12 at 2pm - talkback following at The
Clark Art Institute, 225 South Street in Williamstown, MATickets: $25 ($15
for Under 30s)September 16Fresh Takes Play ReadingEscaped Aloneby Caryl
ChurchillDirected by Kristen van GinhovenSunday, September 16 at 3:30 pm -
talkback following at No. 6 Depot Roastery & Café, 6 Depot Street, West
Stockbridge, MATickets: $25October 19-28Annby Holland TaylorStarring Jayne
AtkinsonDirected by Kristen van Ginhovenat the Tina Packer Playhouse at
Shakespeare & Company, Lenox, MAA portion of box office proceeds will be
donated to a beneficiary to be announced at our July GalaTickets:
$30-$60TICKET INFO*
-- 
Gail M. Burns

*Marketing + Publicity Associate*
www.WAMTheatre.com <http://www.wamtheatre.com/>
413-274-8122

*Our 8th Season:*  <http://www.wamtheatre.com/special/>
Fresh Takes <http://www.wamtheatre.com/fresh-takes-2017/> | Emilie
<http://www.wamtheatre.com/emilie-remount-2017/>| Stars in the Orchard
<http://www.wamtheatre.com/stars-in-the-orchard-2017> | The Last Wife
<http://www.wamtheatre.com/the-last-wife/> | Leadership Summit
<http://www.wamtheatre.com/berkshire-leadership-summit-2017/>


Make a donation now <https://www.wamtheatre.com/donateonline/> to WAM
Theatre!
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://capdisttheater.org/pipermail/capdist-announce/attachments/20180313/d6e9e6f6/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Alison Larkin.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 14894 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://capdisttheater.org/pipermail/capdist-announce/attachments/20180313/d6e9e6f6/attachment.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Jayne Atkinson.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 341294 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://capdisttheater.org/pipermail/capdist-announce/attachments/20180313/d6e9e6f6/attachment-0001.jpg>