Acorn's Studio Series Continues With CRYING AT MOVIES /14-30

This month, Acorn Productions presents the 3rd play in the company's inaugural Studio Series when Crying at Movies, a new John Manderino play based on his well-received memoir by the same name, premieres in the Acorn Studio Theater. In the piece, Tony recollects how his experiences watching leading ladies in movies as he matured affected his relationships with women. The play is as a tour-de-force for 2 actors, one of whom serves as narrator and remains on stage the entire play, while the other takes on the roles of more than a dozen women in his life. Acorn's production is directed by Producing Director Michael Levine, and features Naked Shakespeare's Paul Haley and former Acorn Shakespeare Ensemble member Kerry Rasor. Featuring references to well-known movies such as "La Dolce Vita," "Close Encounters of the Third Kinds," and "The Graduate," the play serves up a feast of memories for movie fans through a series of comic scenes featuring romantic mishaps. Crying at Movies performs January 14 through 30, with shows Friday and Saturday night at 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 5 p.m. Tickets are $10, $8 for students and seniors, and may be purchased online at www.acorn-productions.org or by calling 854-0065.

John Manderino lives in Maine with his wife, Marie, where he teaches college writing and provides coaching and editing services to other writers. He has published two novels, a collection of short stories and a memoir with Academy Chicago. John has also written short plays and other pieces that have been performed at the annual Maine Playwrights Festival, the Belfast International Play festival and various other venues. He is currently working on a novel about the Cuban missile crisis. He has three other books out, from Academy Chicago Publishers: Sam and His Brother Len, a novel, The Man Who Once Played Catch with Nellie Fox, a novel, Reason for Leaving, a collection of short stories. On its release, Crying at Movies received critical acclaim, including the following notices: "A memoir that movie fans will love...presents a strong picture of the crucial role movies have played in the life of the author" (Brand Lang, The Classic Movies Bookstore, www.classicmovies.org/bookstore.htm), "This is charming, about the time when the big screen was where you learned about life" (Al Gini, Book Bag), "Manderino is a very funny writer" (Kirkus Review), and "You'll laugh, you'll cry--but mostly laugh" (Maine Sunday Telegram).

Paul Haley is an original member of the Acorn Shakespeare Ensemble and has appeared in all of their productions, as well as several incarnations of the Maine Playwrights Festival. He has worked in several productions with AIRE Theater and Lanyard Theater Company, and also performed with The Stage at Spring Point, Lucid Productions and Two Lights Theater Ensemble. Kerry Rasor trained at the Lee Strasberg Theater Institute and has a BFA in drama from New York University. She has previously appeared with Acorn's Shakespeare Ensemble as Portia in The Merchant of Venice and in 3 editions of the Maine Playwrights Festival. She has also worked with the Lanyard Theater Company, the Freeport Community Players and GitGo Productions on Willard Beach: The Real Story, a web serial.

Acorn Productions Studio Series provides a showcase for local playwrights and students from the Acorn Acting Academy. The series includes plays for adults, most of which are by local playwrights, and presentations by the Fairy Tale Players, who offer "fractured" original adaptations of well-known fairy tales. These plays are presented chamber-theater style, placing the emphasis on character and action to highlight the human relationships in each script selected for performance. Each production also features one or more professional actors, usually members of Acorn's "Naked Shakespeare" Ensemble, serving as mentors to the student actors. The Acorn Studio Theater is a 90-seat "black box" theater with a raised staged and flexible seating. Ticket prices for Acorn's Studio Series are extremely affordable, ensuring access to high-quality arts entertainment for all members of the Metro West community, regardless of economic means.

Acorn Productions is currently in its thirteenth season of nurturing and developing the performing arts in our community. Previously, Acorn was the in-house Production Company at the old Oak Street Theater, and later collaborated with Friends of St. Lawrence to renovate the Parish Hall Theater, which the company opened with a production of Much Ado About Nothing in May of 2001. Since that time, Acorn has focused on events that enable project directors to establish long-term relationships with performing artists and playwrights, establishing a popular and eclectic series of annual events that appeal to a broad range of the community. In the fall of 2006, the company moved into the Dana Warp Mill in Westbrook, creating Acorn Studios, a low-cost complex of rehearsal and workshop space for use by the community. In addition to a season of public performances, Acorn offers acting classes for kids and adults, and a series of Friday dramatic readings of new scripts at Acorn Studios.

LISTING INFORMATION

Who: Acorn Productions Studio Series

What: CRYING AT MOVIES, by John Manderino

When: January 14 to 30, 2011
Friday, January 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, January 15 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, January 16 at 5 p.m.
Friday, January 21 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, January 22 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, January 23 at 5 p.m.
Thursday, January 28 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, January 29 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, January 30 at 5 p.m.

Where: Acorn Studio Theater, Dana Warp Mill, 90 Bridge St. Westbrook

How Much: $10 adults, $8 students and seniors

FMI: 854-0065 or www.acorn-productions.org

 

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