Pontine Theatre's 37th Performance Series Kicks Off Today

Pontine Theatre announces its 37th Annual Performance Series at their West End Studio Theatre in Portsmouth NH. This season, Pontine presents a five-event Performance Series and its annual WEST-FEST New Vaudeville Holiday Shows. Pontine is a resident company at the West End Studio Theatre located at 959 Islington Street in Portsmouth, NH. Contact the company at -- info@pontine.org or 603-436-6660. Pontine's 37th Season is supported by grants from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. Production underwriters include Gillian Aguilar, Chris Dwyer & Mike Huxtable, and Piscataqua Savings Bank.

This season, PONTINE'S PERFORMANCE SERIES features three productions by Pontine and two productions by invited guest artists. Two things unite the wide range of work presented in Pontine Theatre's annual performance series: all use expression through movement as a primary dramatic vehicle and all are original works or adaptations created by the artists who perform them. Performances are offered Fridays @7:30pm, Saturdays @4pm and Sundays @2pm. Tickets are $24 ($3 discount for seniors & students) and may be purchased online at www.pontine.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the door a half hour prior to each performance (cash & checks only) based on availability. Pontine's West End Studio Theatre, located at 959 Islington Street in Portsmouth NH, provides private parking and is handicap accessible. Assisted Listening Devices are available upon request.

November 7-9 • Concrete Temple Theatre (NYC, NY) Extraordinary Extremities
Extraordinary Extremities is a tale of resilience, adaptation and ingenuity that tells the story of puppet-maker Geppetto, who is attempting to perform - all by himself for the first time ever - the grand mythical love story of Perseus, who slays a sea monster to save his beloved Andromeda. During the show things begin to go haywire, and Geppetto finds himself desperately improvising to overcome the challenges of performing solo while at the same time scrambling to devise new story lines, new characters, and even new limbs.

December 12-14 • PONTINE THEATREA New England Christmas
Each season, Pontine's Artistic Directors, Marguerite Mathews and Greg Gathers, perform a selection of Christmas stories and poems by New England authors, combining old favorites with new selections in an evening of storytelling, puppetry and seasonal music. These charming holiday tales - not to mention punch and cookies - are sure to put you in the holiday spirit!

February 6-8 • PONTINE THEATRENEW ENGLAND UTOPIA
Presented as a cafe evening, with informal seating and tasty refreshments, this program by Pontine's artistic directors features scenes from their original production THE COMMON HEART with discussion of the New England Transcendentalists, centered around Ralph Waldo Emerson and the community at Concord MA, and the utopian experiments led by Bronson Alcott at Fruitlands and by George Ripley at Brook Farm. Appetizers, drinks and desserts make for a casual evening of conversation and performance.

March 13-15 • JAY O'CALLAHAN (Marshfield MA)
Forged in the Stars In 2008, NASA commissioned storyteller Jay O'Callahan to write a story to celebrate the agency's 50th anniversary. The resulting work, Forged in the Stars, features the stories of three prominent NASA personalities: J.C. High Eagle, a NASA engineer of Cherokee Indian heritage whose childhood dream was to help men land on the moon; astronaut Neil Armstrong in the 1969 Apollo moon landing; and the poignant story of New Hampshire teacher Christa McAuliffe, who died in the space shuttle Challenger disaster. Further, the story explores the wondrous journey of the twin Voyager spacecraft, launched in 1977 with the goal of exploring Jupiter and Saturn, and continuing on to this day to places no other spacecraft has ever explored.

April 24-26 • PONTINE THEATRE(plays though May 10)
THE Hunting of the SnarkAnd Other Nonsense by Lewis CarrollPontine's Artistic Directors, Marguerite Mathews and Greg Gathers present a Victorian Toy Theatre extravaganza celebrating the master of English nonsense verse, Lewis Carroll (Charles L. Dodgson). In 1876, following the success of the "Alice" books, Carroll produced "The Hunting of the Snark," a fantastical nonsense poem that follows the misbegotten voyage of a misfit crew of tradesmen, plus one beaver, who set off in pursuit of the mythical Snark. In Pontine's newest work "The Snark" and other Carroll poems are brought imaginatively to life in a miniature cardboard theatre inspired by a popular 19th century parlor entertainment.

Pontine's 7th Annual WEST-FEST SERIES features a host of New Vaudeville performances by some of New England's most talented jugglers, clowns, yoyo artists, mind readers and more! These family-friendly matinee shows are offered over the holiday season and are suitable for all ages, from 0 - 99! Each show features three different acts...variety at its best! Performances are offered daily at 2pm. Tickets are $15 (no discounts available) and may be purchased online at www.pontine.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the door a half hour prior to each show (cash & checks only) based on availability.