Catherine Rust News

Los Angeles playwright Jennifer Haley did not set out to become the first major playwright of the digital age, but that is what has happened, says Jonathan Mandell of New York Theatre in his interview with the playwright. Haley tells Mandell that after working in the theatre for years, she had the opportunity to learn web-design and Photoshop in a program specifically designed for artists- skills which then supported her in her early writing years. She states that there was no direct connection between becoming a web designer and a playwright, but after years of doing both, 'they simply started to merge...'

The world of technology and gaming was a major driving force in creation of  Jennifer Haley's play, The Nether.  In fact she openly admits to her time spent totally immersed, playing the popular World of Warcraft.    In conjunction with the NJ Premiere of the award-winning play at Centenary Stage Company this month, the theatre will hold several events during the run to fully explore the direction in which that technology is heading.  These events include guest speakers, talk backs with the cast and creative staff, and  as well as tech demos of the latest virtual reality technologies (such as  Oculus Rift), 3D scanning/printing and motion capture.

Women's voices headline the Centenary Stage Company (CSC) 2015-16 season, with plays by Jennifer Haley, Gina Gionfriddo, newcomer Eleanor Burgess, and WPS alum Merri Biechler.   The CSC season compliments a movement lead by Nan Barnett (NNPN) and the Women's Voices Theatre Festival in Washington D.C. this fall,  serving to  highlight the scope of plays being written by contemporary women.   

Technology and education collide in the play 'Start Down' by Eleanor Burgess, the 2nd featured presentation in the Centenary Stage Company's Women Playwright Series, tonight, Apr. 15 at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center.

Technology and education collide in the play "Start Down" by Eleanor Burgess, the 2nd featured presentation in the Centenary Stage Company's Women Playwright Series, on Wednesday, Apr. 15 at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center.

The 23nd annual Women Playwrights Series at the Centenary Stage Company will launch on April 8 with "Futurama", by Samantha Charlip, presented at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center.

The Centenary Stage Company will offer a special Playwrighting Class this winter, which will be open to the public. The class will be taught by Playwrights Theatre of NJ Executive Director, John Pietrowski, and will be held on Tuesdays from 6-9 PM, from Jan. 20th through May 5. The cost of the class will be $250.

Classics and family favorites are mixed in with musical memoirs and two world premieres during the 2014-2015 theatre season at The Centenary Stage Company (CSC). This year will feature eight diverse theatre events with a touch of fantasy, magic, and drama in the Lackland Center providing something for everybody.

Family dynamics can be the source of endless comedic material, as is the case in the 2nd play of the CSC Women Playwrights Series, 'In the Car with Blossom and Len' by Joni Fritz, which will be presented tonight, Apr 23 at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center in Hackettstown. In this funny and poignant new play, a basket full of unpaid bills for chemical engineer Lenny Gold's laboratory is discovered one of his adult daughters, unveiling a lifetime of secrets, a mysterious silent partner, and a few other challenges which must be met by this family. 'In the Car..' is a delightful family saga about growing up, growing older and where you put the keys.

Audiences have the opportunity to enjoy two more new plays and a take free writing workshop as the 2014 Women Playwrights Series comes to a close at the Centenary Stage Company in the final week of April.

The 22nd annual Women Playwrights Series at the Centenary Stage Company launches tonight April 16 at with 'Fata Morgana', by Mary Humphrey Baldridge, presented at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center.

Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts at Centenary College, Stephen Davis, has long been a teacher and advocate of the works of master playwright and poet William Shakespeare. For over five years, Davis has married his love of the bard and his love for education to help foster an appreciation for Shakespeare in the youth of New Jersey through a program sponsored by The Folger Shakespeare Library entitled Shakesperience, which will be hosted by Centenary Stage Company (CSC) for the first time on Tuesday, April 29th on the campus of Centenary College.

Family dynamics can be the source of endless comedic material, as is the case in the 2nd play of the CSC Women Playwrights Series, "In the Car with Blossom and Len" by Joni Fritz, which will be presented on Wednesday, Apr 23 at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center in Hackettstown. In this funny and poignant new play, a basket full of unpaid bills for chemical engineer Lenny Gold's laboratory is discovered one of his adult daughters, unveiling a lifetime of secrets, a mysterious silent partner, and a few other challenges which must be met by this family. "In the Car.." is a delightful family saga about growing up, growing older and where you put the keys.

The 22nd annual Women Playwrights Series at the Centenary Stage Company will launch on April 16 at with "Fata Morgana", by Mary Humphrey Baldridge, presented at 7:30 PM in the Lackland Center.

She was in high school when her Gym teacher found the money to take the gym class to see the Joffrey Ballet each year, which Mappa credits with instilling a love of the performing arts in her at an early age. ' I would never have been able to attend any other way, with my parents both working two jobs,' Mappa says.

Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts at Centenary College, Stephen Davis, has long been a teacher and advocate of the works of master playwright and poet William Shakespeare. For over five years, Davis has married his love of the bard and his love for education to help foster an appreciation for Shakespeare in the youth of New Jersey through a program sponsored by The Folger Shakespeare Library entitled Shakesperience, which will be hosted by Centenary Stage Company (CSC) for the first time on Tuesday, April 29th on the campus of Centenary College.

The Centenary Stage Company boasts a variety of live entertainment throughout the entire season. This February is the perfect example, providing a taste of music, theatre and family fun in all three theatre venues, from the Sitnik Theatre in the grand Lackland Center to the classic coziness of The Little Theatre.

'A tonic for children and adults...a transfixing journey...,' raved the New York Times about the show that ran for ten years in Madison Square Garden. 2011's smash hit returns to the Centenary Stage Company in this season's Family Holiday Spectacular A Christmas Carol: The Musical, running tonight, November 29 through December 15 in the Sitnik Theatre. Charles Dickens' beloved Christmas classic comes to life as a musical extravaganza in the Sitnik Theater of the David and Carol Lackland Center in Hackettstown.

"A tonic for children and adults…a transfixing journey…," raved the New York Times about the show that ran for ten years in Madison Square Garden. 2011's smash hit returns to the Centenary Stage Company in this season's Family Holiday Spectacular A Christmas Carol: The Musical, running November 29 through December 15 in the Sitnik Theatre. Charles Dickens' beloved Christmas classic comes to life as a musical extravaganza in the Sitnik Theater of the David and Carol Lackland Center in Hackettstown.

Composer Elliot Weiss and lyricist Mike Champagne have won several acclaimed awards over the years including the Eugene O'Neill Award for Musical Theatre. And now they're bringing a WORLD PREMIERE musical revue BITTERSUITE: SONGS OF MORE EXPERIENCE to the Centenary Stage Company's third annual Black Box Festival November 7-10. This third installment of their popular song cycle trilogy covers life's ups and downs, highs and lows and the bittersweet moments in between.