STAGE STRUCK: FROM KEMBLE TO KATE Plays Tonight at the Snapple Theater Center

The Society for the Preservation of Theatrical History is pleased to present STAGE STRUCK: From Kemble to Kate, an evening with five legendary actresses from the 19th to the early 20th Century, tonight, December 12, 2013, 7:30pm to 9:30pm at the Anne L. Bernstein Theater at the Snapple Theater Center, 1627 Broadway @ 50th Street. Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 at the door. Wine reception to follow.

In the course of the evening, the audience will meet Fanny Kemble (1809-1893), actress and abolitionist; Clara Morris (1849-1925) actress and author; Mrs. Minnie Maddern Fiske (1865-1932) actress, director, producer and activist; Alla Nazimova (1878-1945) actress, director, and producer; and Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003) actress and producer. Hear the personal stories of these extraordinary women--the triumphs and struggles of their lives on the stage, as well as the outstanding contributions each made to the New York Theatre Community! All content for the evening has been researched and derived from their memoirs, letters, autobiographies, biographies and diaries.

The evening is produced by Mari Lyn Henry, Educator, Theatre Historian and Archivist. It is directed by Melody Brooks (Artistic Director, New Perspectives Theatre Company), and features Meghan Duffy, Karen Eterovich, Paula Ewin, Mari Lyn Henry and Romy Nordlinger. A Study Guide for Stage Struck has been sponsored in part by the League of Professional Theatre Women, a not-for-profit organization promoting visibility and increasing opportunities for women in theatre since 1982. The Guide is a product of the research and scholarship of the LPTW Heritage Committee which is dedicated to reclaiming the stories and contributions of women to the Theatre that have largely been erased from the historical record that is taught and known. (www.theatrewomen.org)

The Society for the Preservation of Theatrical History was formed by Mari Lyn Henry out of her many years of research and advocacy on behalf of forgotten theatre artists who had a major impact on the development of the modern theatre, especially in New York City. It brings together historical scholarship on the people, circumstances and societal forces that shaped the modern era, along with a performance element that allows the voices of these innovative and important figures to be heard again by modern audiences.

MELODY BROOKS (Director) is the founder and Artistic Director of New Perspectives Theatre Co, an award-winning multi-racial theatre company now in its 22nd season. She directs NPTC's Women's Work LAB, developing short and full-length plays by 6-10 members per year; she also serves as Executive Producer for NPTC's Voices From The Edge Festival, which has showcased more than 75 new works by African-American writers since 1997. Through these and other programs she has developed and directed dozens of original and classic plays, receiving critical and industry acclaim. Ms. Brooks is an advisor to the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre new play lab; co-founder of 50/50 in 2020: Parity for Women Theatre Artists; and currently co-producer of ON HER SHOULDERS, a program of staged readings of plays by women throughout history in association with the New School for Drama.

MARI LYN HENRY (Producer) is an educator, author, theatre historian and archivist. After twenty years as a casting director she started a career coaching business and is the co-author of five editions of How To Be A Working Actor which for over 26 years has been considered 'the bible of the biz' by industry professionals and educators. Her seminars and workshops have been successful in cities and universities across the country. She received her M. A. in Theatre History from the Catholic University of America. Her thesis concerned the origin and significance of the dramatic material in American vaudeville, 1893-1925.

Meghan Duffy, PhD, (Mrs. Fiske) is a professional actor, theatre scholar, educator, writer, and director. Broadway, National Tours, some Regional, Off, and Off-Off Broadway credits include: The Rocky Horror Show, Mame, Grease, The Bikinis, Marrying George Clooney, Sweeney Todd, Brigadoon, The Wonder Years, Swirl, Georgy, A Christmas Survival Guide, Over Here, She Loves Me, Forbidden Planet, Christmas Carol, Pump Boys & Dinettes, Beehive, Little Shop of Horrors, Jacques Brel, Godspell, and Dames at Sea. She has written and produced her one-person performance pieces, What A Wonderful World!, The Meghan Duffy Show, and Girls Don't. She is the founder of The Edge Effect Improv Lab.

KAREN ETEROVICH, (Fanny Kemble) playwright, performer and activist, has two one-woman shows, Love Arm'd, Aphra Behn & Her Pen and Cheer from Chawton, a Jane Austen Family Theatrical which have toured nationally and internationally to 135 cities including the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the Jane Austen Festival in Bath, England. Karen interned at the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, DC under Michael Kahn and received her MFA in Acting from the University of South Carolina. she is Managing Director of Blue Roses; member of the Playwrights Gallery and Wright On Playwriting Group; activist with LPTW;s Women Stage the World and Co-Chair of its Heritage Committee.

PAULA EWIN (Katharine Hepburn) is a Founding Member and long time player in the ensemble of the acclaimed Off Broadway theatre company, 29th Street Rep. She played leading roles in over 27 premiere productions since 1988, including 6 characters written for her by playwright Bill Nave; notably Visiting Oliver (OOBR Award for Best Actress) and Bible Burlesque (opposite Edward Norton). A graduate of The William Esper Studio. her more recent credits include the National Tour of On Golden Pond, Tea at Five (as Katharine Hepburn) at The Pasadena Playhouse, among others. Paula is the Founder of 29th Street Rep's The Hive.

Romy Nordlinger, (Alla Nazimova) actress, educator, playwright, has been a theatre teaching artist working with underserved communities and the developmentally disabled population for the past 15 years. Her recent acting credits include: DEAD RECKONING: Between Here And There by Cecilia Copeland at NPTC; The Woman on the Bridge workshop, directed by Ludovica Villar-Hauser Other regional and NYC credits include Actor's Theatre of Louisville, NY Fringe Festival, Primary Stages, Hudson Guild, Circle Rep, Wilma Theatre and the Shubert. TV: Law & Order CI, The Ruthless Spectator with Rob Bartlett. She has narrated 80 titles for Audible Audiobooks. Member, Resonance Theatre Ensemble

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE: Thursday, December 12, 2013, 7:30pm to 9:30pm, wine reception to follow. Tickets: $10 in advance; $12 (cash or check only) at the door. Reservations: 212-501-2101; heritagecommittee@theatrewomen.org. Performances run at the Anne L. Bernstein Theater, Snapple Theater Center, 1627 Broadway @ 50th Street, 4th Floor.

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