Days are getting longer, colorful spring flowers are emerging outdoors, and lots of virtual rehearsals continue to happen indoors!
Quote of the Month
“I don’t know what lies around the bend, but I’m going to believe that the best does. It has a fascination of its own, that bend.”
- L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables
Happy Spring!
Current & Upcoming
Last weekend I directed for the second year at The Growing Stage’s New Play-Reading Festival, this spring held virtually over Zoom. I loved working on the development process for Letters from Lisette by Claudia Haas, a delightful historical and whimsical adventure for middle grade audiences. Following playwright revisions based on feedback from this first round of readings, all four finalist plays will be presented again at a second festival weekend in May.
Rehearsals for Zig-Zag, the new play I will be directing for the Premiere the Play podcast (discussed last month), have also gotten off to a great start this month. We’re continuing to work toward our final recording sessions in May, and I look forward to sharing this powerful play with listeners over the summer. Speaking of summer, I don’t have final information to share yet, but I hope to have some exciting updates coming soon regarding outdoor, distanced seasonal projects. Stay tuned for more info on that!
Zooming through Scripts
Remarkably, it’s been almost a year since I joined a couple of weekly Zoom play-reading groups. So one positive thing I can say about this quarantine, I’ve filled in a lot of holes in my knowledge of classic plays and playwrights across many eras and genres! The group I coordinate focuses on Shakespeare, so while I’d read each of these plays at least once before (as you may recall from my Shakespeare 2020 Project adventures) it’s been wonderful to hear some of the less-frequently staged plays, and even often-cut scenes, aloud. The other group I read with started as a Chekhov group and has since moved on to cover a new playwright every two weeks, which has provided an excellent variety. A few new discoveries that I’ve either been introduced to or gained new appreciation of during this project include Macbett by Eugene Ionesco, Top Girls by Caryl Churchill, and Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas.
A Crafty Closing
This is where I give a little monthly shoutout to the Etsy shop to which I contribute, Queequeg & Paulina Vintage (on Instagram @Queequeg_PaulinaCrafts). We offer an ever-changing selection of varied vintage finds, beautiful hand-knitted accessories, and other exciting crafted items. For those in northern New Jersey stay tuned, we may be setting up at an outdoor socially-distanced Craft & Flea Market supporting the Barn Theatre on Saturday, April 24!
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