WAM Theatre Hosts STARS IN THE ORCHARD Benefit Night Tonight

WAM Theatre's 2015 benefit will be a starry-eyed and magical midsummer night's cocktail party hosted by Hilltop Orchards in Richmond, MA tonight, July 15 from 6:30-9:30 pm. The entertainment begins the moment guests arrive at the 200 acre orchard with master slide guitarist Don McGrory's tunes playing at the twilight cocktail hour.

Pull up a hay bale as local luminaries delightfully "miscast" themselves in songs and scenes they would never be cast as but have always dreamed of performing. Performers include Berkshire favorites Kelly Galvin (WAM Theatre's Fresh Takes), Josh Aaron McCabe (Shakespeare & Company's The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), Kim Stauffer (WAM Theatre's Emilie), Ryan Winkles (Shakespeare & Company's upcoming Henry V), and more.

A live auction led by the illustrious Susie Weekes will spin the bucolic night into "gold" to support WAM Theatre's double philanthropic mission to donate a portion of the proceeds from its theatrical events to organizations that benefit women and girls. Bids can send another student to our Girls Ensemble Project, where girls learn to express themselves with theatre, or hire an actor for our main stage production, Catherine Treishmann's Holy Laughter. Over the past five seasons WAM Theatre has given over $15,500 to local and global organizations and on this special night guests will be the first learn who will be the 2015 beneficiary of this year's production. The director and cast will offer a sneak peak staged reading of excerpts from the play and be on hand to meet and mingle with the crowd.

Produced by Jessica Provenz (Producer of In Darfur) and stage managed by Hope Rose Kelly, the festivities continue with sunset hayrides, moonlit serenades, clowns in the orchards, apple cider donuts made to order, a campfire under the stars, and more.

Hearty hors d'oeuvres will be catered by Hilltop Orchards, and the cash bar will be well stocked with wines made on site at the Furnace Winery.

Benefit tickets are $50. Premier tickets at $100 get these WAM friends a special swag bag. Groups of 6 or more, can purchase $25 tickets. Tickets go on sale May 25 at www.WAMTheatre.com