Geva's THE STAGE DOOR PROJECT: ALMOST, MAINE Opens 1/12/2010

Hot on the heels of its production of A Christmas Story, the next production in the GeVa Theatre Center Mainstage opening on January 12 is John Cariani's Almost, Maine - a romantic comedy set in snowy, mid-winter Maine. To accompany this production, Geva, Rochester's leading professional theatre has invited nine area high schools to participate in "The Stage Door Project: Almost, Maine."

Geva's mission has always placed its work at the crossroads of artistic excellence and community engagement. This particular play, which the playwright has referred to as "a midwinter night's dream" is a wonder-filled tale about the vulnerability and risk from which love springs. Almost, Maine breaks down into nine separate scenes that occur simultaneously on a Friday evening in midwinter.

The structure and tenor of the play make it invitingly accessible to high school-aged students. Nine area high school directors (representative of seven different school districts - encompassing private schools, parochial schools, city and suburban schools) have each cast two young actors in one of the nine scenes from Almost, Maine. Each school director has also recruited a student designer to join a creative team to discuss production elements and a student marketer to join a team led by Geva's Marketing Staff. The directors will join Artist-in-Residence Skip Greer, director of Almost, Maine, in a directing workshop to build a common language and hone their creative skills. They will also have the unique opportunity to sit in on Geva's rehearsals and to work with Geva's acting company of professional actors.

Fueled by their work at Geva, each director will return to their school to direct students in their own rehearsals of their assigned scene from Almost, Maine. The young actors from the nine schools will come together to participate in an all-day acting/ensemble-building workshop at Geva. They will have an opportunity to meet their counterparts in the Geva production at a company "Meet and Greet" on December 21st, to become email pen pals with those adult actors, observe a rehearsal, share character insights over dinner with the adult company, and attend a public performance at Geva, followed by a post-show discussion.

The production students will have the occasion to respond to the creative design opportunities in the script and, guided by Mr. Greer's vision and interpretive priorities, research, conceptualize, and begin to explore their own approach to a design element in the production. The design students will have the chance to share and discuss their ideas with Geva's professional
design team, tour Geva's shops, as well as observe elements of the technical rehearsal process at Geva. In a nutshell, students and directors will follow the entire process of putting on a show at GeVa Theatre Center.
The Stage Door Project culminates in a unique and rare opportunity. After rehearsing their own scenes independently at their respective schools, the students from nine schools will come together to perform their own version of Almost, Maine in the Mainstage on the set of Geva's production of Almost, Maine for a special one-night performance on February 1st.

This rare opportunity is a chance for local schools to work with a nationally recognized, regional theatre on a project that will provide students with professional career experience and inspiration. It offers an unparalleled professional experience fostering a deeper understanding of dramatic literature, the theatre industry and the process of bringing literature to life on the stage.

For GeVa Theatre Center and its professionals, it is an opportunity to share the wonder and creativity of students. The theatre acknowledges their roles as theatre stewards by interacting with this younger company and thanks them for the privilege of learning with them and from them.

Participating Schools:
Rush-Henrietta High School
Fairport High School
Irondequoit High School
Aquinas Institute
Brighton High School
McQuaid Jesuit School
Allendale Columbia School
School of the Arts
Pittsford Sutherland High School

GeVa Theatre CENTER
GeVa Theatre Center is Rochester's leading professional theatre and the most attended regional theatre in New York State. Founded in 1972, Geva attracts over 160,000 patrons annually, including more than 16,000 students. The 552-seat Elaine P. Wilson Mainstage offers a wide variety of shows, from musicals to American and world classics.

The 180-seat Ron & Donna Fielding Nextstage is home to Geva's own series of cutting-edge drama, comedy and musical theatre; Geva Comedy Improv; Geva's New Play Reading Series and the Hornet's Nest - an innovative play-reading series facilitating community-wide discussion on controversial topics. The Nextstage also hosts visiting companies of both local and international renown.

GeVa Theatre Center offers a wide variety of educational, outreach and literary programs, nurturing audiences and artists alike. For the past fourteen years the organization has been led by Artistic Director Mark Cuddy.