East Lynne Theater Company Announces Stages Festival & Other Events

Just because East Lynne Theater Company isn't currently doing four shows a week in Cape May doesn't mean the company is idle. This is the time to apply for grants; finalize design work for brochures, posters, and ads; send shows on the road; and prepare for, along with other Equity professional theaters in the state, New Jersey Theatre Alliance's (NJTA) "The Stages Festival," and "Family Week at the Theatre."

"The Stages Festival," which includes the 13th Annual "Family Week at the Theatre," is a month-long, state-wide celebration of theatre and the performing arts with discounted and/or free tickets to all events, and with programming for ALL age groups (not just the little ones). The organization responsible for this much anticipated program is the New Jersey Theatre Alliance: the statewide consortium of professional theaters in the Garden State, of which East Lynne Theater Company is a proud member. For an up-to-the-minute schedule, visit the website at www.familyweek.com.

As usual, ELTC provides performances and workshops both in and out of Cape May County.
Cape May County events begin on Friday, March 12 at 7:00p.m., with a student performance of "The History of Whitesboro." ELTC's Artistic Director Gayle Stahlhuth and professional actor Patti Chambers meet with students who are part of the after-school program in Whitesboro, known as the Homework Institute, on February 18 to explain the process and the goals of the residency, and from March 1-12, they will work with them five times a week, helping the students to research, write, and rehearse their scenes about the founding and history of their hometown. The performance is open to the public, admission-free, at the Martin Luther King Center, 207 W. Main St., Whitesboro. This residency is directly funded through a grant from Target, an organization that since 1946, has given 5% of its income to the communities they serve. For reservation and information, call ELTC at 884-5898, or go to the website: www.eastlynnetheater.org.

Next up, on Tuesday, March 16 at 7:00p.m., is "Aesop's Fables" performed by students at West Cape May Elementary School, 301Moore St., in West Cape May. Like last year, Stahlhuth will only have five days of rehearsals with the students before their performance. For reservations, call ELTC at 884-5898.

The next evening, Wednesday, March 17 from 6:00-7:00p.m., Stahlhuth is teaching an "Into to Theater Workshop" for ages 11-18, at Cape May Court House Library, 30 Mechanic St., Cape May Court House. The class is free, but reservations are recommended and may be made by contacting Justin Hoenke, Teen Librarian at 463-6357 or e-mail justinh@cmclibrary.org. The class will involve a bit of everything from warm-up exercises, to improv work, to scene study, and playwriting, and those who attended last year are encouraged to attend.

On Thursday, March 18 at 2:30p.m., ELTC takes its popular radio-style show "Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" to the Ocean View Assisted Living Center: a performance that is not open the public.

Then on Friday and Saturday, March 19 and 20 at 8:00p.m., ELTC presents "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" at The First Presbyterian Church, 500 Hughes St., Cape May, where the company is in residence. Step back in time, as ELTC presents this tale in the style of a vintage radio broadcast, complete with live sound effects and commercials, just like the Sherlock Homes radio shows that were on NBC in the 1930s. To save an innocent man from prison, Holmes and Watson must find the thief who stole a valuable gem. Tickets are $23 for general admission, $13 for full-time students, and anyone age 12 and under, as always with ELTC, is free. For information and reservations, call ELTC at 884-5898 or go online at www.eastlynnetheater.org. A special "Stages Festival" offer on Friday night: Anyone age 18 and under, bring 2 General Admission patrons, and they pay only 2 for 1 = $23.

Since 2002, ELTC has produced a Sherlock Holmes performance to coincide with Mid-Atlantic Center for the Art's "Sherlock Holmes Weekends." For information about this March weekend-full of Holmes-related offerings, go to www.capemaymac.org.

ELTC' shows for "The Stages Festival" and "Family Week at the Theatre" that are beyond Cape May County include Robert Aberdeen's popular "Victorian Magic" which will appear at the North End Branch of the Newark Public Library on March 13 and at the Barnegat Township Branch of the Ocean County Library on March 17, both admission-free.
"Family Week at the Theatre" is a co-sponsored project of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. Discover Jersey Arts is a marketing partner. Additional support comes from The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, The F.M. Kirby Foundation, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, McCarter & English Attorneys at Law, The New Jersey Division of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, The George Ohl, Jr. Foundation, The Prudential Foundation and WNYC. "Beyond the Stage" programming is made possible by the support of Bank of America.

Meanwhile, ELTC is on-the-road celebrating Black History Month with Derrick McQueen performing "Paul Robeson through His Words and Music," on February 21 at Haverstraw King's Daughters Library in Garnersville, NY, admission-free. This production returns to Cape May next July as part of ELTC's mainstage season.

The panel discussions, "The South Jersey Experience: Civil War Biographies," continues, with Gayle Stahlhuth, a panelist, along with Jim Stephens, Joe Bilby, and Dr. Richard Veit, organized by Tom Sims, Executive Director of the Cape May Film Society. The next locations are: Salem Historical Society on February 25 and Cape May Historical Society and Museum on March 25. Contact the Film Society for details: 884-6700 or visit www.capemayfilm.org.
On March 21, "Sherlock Holmes' Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" travels to the Haverstraw King's Daughters Library in Garnersville, NY.

There's even another intimate fundraising event at a private home in Cape May on Sunday, February 28.

To stay up-to-date with what's going on with East Lynne Theater Company and to check out the Cape May Summer/Fall Production Season, go to www.eastlynnetheater.org, or call 884-5898. Season tickets are available through June 30. See five shows for only $90 and you many use the tickets in any way. See five different productions, or see fewer shows, and take friends. Checks may be mailed to: 121 Fourth Ave., West Cape May, NJ 08204.

Photo: Artistic Director Gayle Stahlhuth working with a student during a school residency.

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