One of my very favorite Christmas stories of all time is A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote about his boyhood growing up with his eccentric cousin Sook Faulk. Geraldine Page played Sook in a 1966 telefilm, and it was later remade for television in the 80s with Patty Duke. It is the Page version that stays with me, having left a lasting impression of the woman, the era and its fierce impact on humanity. Playwright Duane Poole has fashioned a retelling of the story with music by Larry Grossman and lyrics by Carol Hall in a new musical version of A Christmas Memory, now onstage at the Sierra Madre Playhouse through December 27. On this intimate stage with the orchestra in full view behind the actors, the flavor of the original story is well preserved by Alison Eliel Kalmus' fine direction and with a terrific ensemble.
MusicalFare Theatre, Western New York's most awarded and only professional musical theatre company, presents the 2nd production of its 2015-2016 Season, PAGEANT: THE MUSICAL. An all-time favorite MusicalFare production returns to the stage!
The author returns to his childhood in this fictional account and takes readers into the heart of an Alabama town held captive by the blind hatred of the KKK. 'A profound and heartbreakingly real' [Kirkus] novel. The teenage narrator breathes life into that violent setting and pays homage to the tragedies and hardships of both black and white Southerners trying to thrive in a wicked, segregationist town.
Young Sonny Poe is trapped in a dead-end life of poverty and prejudice. Horrified after witnessing a lynching in the midnight woods, Sonny turns shy of anyone he suspects is a Klansman; soon he meets and befriends a progressive doctor with a troubled past and a crusading spirit who's trying to help end abuse against the local community of Negroes.
The headstrong teenager commits himself to 'Doctor Joe' and his cause even as both suffer betrayals, beatings, arrest and finally exile in a story that can only end in tragedyand hope.
This is a story of immense tension that pulsates with violence, love, betrayal and humor as it rushes through the forebodingness of one of America's most pressing historical moments toward a shocking climax.
The Civil Rights Movement forms the backbone of 'The Sum of His Worth,' but its strength comes from the voice of its young narrator and its strongest theme lies in the caveats of moral reckoning in a 'free' society.
Praise for 'The Sum of His Worth':
'Argo successfully creates a profound, multilayered tapestry that's full of nuance. [His] first-person perspective creates a fragile aura around the unfolding events, and makes them wholly unpredictable ... The authentic dialogue is especially effective; each restrained syllable conveys as much as a five-page soliloquy ... In a style that's evocative of S.E. Hinton's classic works, with a dash of Daniel Woodrell's Southern grit, [Argo's] novel is an engrossing, heartbreakingly real novel of the South' - Kirkus Reviews
'The Sum of His Worth is a work of serious literary fiction, a coming-of-age story set in a time of national upheaval ... rich in ambiance, descriptive detail, and incident ... My interest never flagged in this convincing, meaningful, and deeply immersive tale.' Ron Terpening, author of Nine Days in October and Tropic of Fear.
'Argo's fiction rings chillingly true.' The San Diego Union
'Ron Argo's depiction of Alabama in the late 50s and early 60s is as unrelenting as a shutter click, the image clear and unforgiving. From grits and okra to the horror show of white robes and burning crosses, the images are spot on perfect. So are the characters ... No reader will fail to come out of it unchanged.' Sharon Skains, author of Waltzing with the Devil
'Jim Crow was interwoven with growing up in small-town Southern life. Argo has captured this nuance ... Here, courage is not a single act, but an ongoing commitment that can separate one from everything that is deeply loved.' Colonel Michael Moran, USMC (Ret)
The Sum of His Worth is available in both print and ebook formats.
Book Details:
The Sum of His Worth
By Ron Argo
Publisher: Cliff Edge Publishing
Published: May 2014
ISBN: 978-0989403573
ASIN: B00A3K3A3G
Pages: 376
Genre: Historical Fiction
For review copies, author interviews, or more information please contact:
Ron Argo
Email: argostein (at) cox.net
Website: http://www.ronargo.com
Ttwitter: https://twitter.com/wordpecker
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ron.argo.3
Did Abraham Lincoln suffer from clinical depression? A grad student at Cal, newly in love, researches Lincoln's melancholy while trying to keep up with her amazing new girlfriend. The Marsh San Francisco presents the hilarious playwright, performer, juggler, and clown Sara Felder in her new solo show MELANCHOLY, A COMEDY. Felder takes audiences from the Civil War, to a Lincoln look-alike convention, to the top of UC Berkeley's Campanile, in this comedy about queer love, mental health, and Abraham Lincoln. Written and performed by Felder and directed by Michael Socrates Moran, workshop performances will be held today, May 9 - June 6, with the run continuing June 7 - June 28 (press opening: June 7).
Did Abraham Lincoln suffer from clinical depression? A grad student at Cal, newly in love, researches Lincoln's melancholy while trying to keep up with her amazing new girlfriend. The Marsh San Francisco presents the hilarious playwright, performer, juggler, and clown Sara Felder in her new solo show MELANCHOLY, A COMEDY. Felder takes audiences from the Civil War, to a Lincoln look-alike convention, to the top of UC Berkeley's Campanile, in this comedy about queer love, mental health, and Abraham Lincoln. Written and performed by Felder and directed by Michael Socrates Moran, workshop performances will be held May 9 - June 6, with the run continuing June 7 - June 28 (press opening: June 7). Performances will be presented Saturdays at 5pm and Sundays at 7pm at The Marsh San Francisco's Studio Theater, 1062 Valencia St., San Francisco. For tickets ($15-$100), the public may visit www.themarsh.org or call 415-282-3055 between 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday.
In recognition of its 100th Anniversary, New Haven's historic Shubert Theatre celebrated with a Gala Benefit on Saturday, March 21. This exclusive evening included an elegant sit-down dinner on the legendary Shubert Stage, dancing, theatrical entertainment and a tribute to honored guest stars. BroadwayWorld has photos from the event below!
New theater company Yutopian Entertainment is set to open The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee tonight, Oct 3rd at the Grove Theater Center in Burbank.
New theater company Yutopian Entertainment is set to open The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee this Friday, Oct 3rd at the Grove Theater Center in Burbank.
THE BRITTANY MURPHY STORY, which shares the real-life story of the ambitious and talented actress who rose to fame quickly, but succumbed much too young to the dark side of Hollywood will make its worldwide premiere tonight, Sept. 6, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Lifetime.
THE BRITTANY MURPHY STORY, which shares the real-life story of the ambitious and talented actress who rose to fame quickly, but succumbed much too young to the dark side of Hollywood will make its worldwide premiere Saturday, Sept. 6, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Lifetime.
It's 1936; the golden age of Hollywood, and two rival movie studios are in a heated battle for survival when their opposing leading men fall in love. Reminiscent of screwball comedies of the past, this new musical takes place in a world of artifice, backstabbing, lavender weddings, double-crossing starlets, and a moral crusader from the Legion of Rectitude, making it increasingly more difficult for the leading men to hold on to the one real thing each has ever found. It's funny, charming, romantic, happily nostalgic, and very tuneful.
It's 1936; the golden age of Hollywood, and two rival movie studios are in a heated battle for survival when their opposing leading men fall in love. Reminiscent of screwball comedies of the past, this new musical takes place in a world of artifice, backstabbing, lavender weddings, double-crossing starlets, and a moral crusader from the Legion of Rectitude, making it increasingly more difficult for the leading men to hold on to the one real thing each has ever found. It's funny, charming, romantic, happily nostalgic, and very tuneful.
A comprehensive survey of the works of American sculptor Tony Feher, this exhibition features key artworks that use everyday objects and found materials in a post-minimalist aesthetic, displaying the richness and complexity of Feher's investigations. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated monograph and reveals Feher's very personal vocabulary developed and refined over the past decades. Organized by Claudia Schmuckli, Director and Chief Curator of Blaffer Art Museum at the University of Houston. Check out a sneak peek below!
Theatre 40 revives TANGLIN' HEARTS on the 20th anniversary of its original production. Very loosely based on Shakespeare's "As You Like It," it's a thoroughly modern country-western musical directed by Allison Bibicoff with assistant director Kyle Nudo.
EX MACHINA will play Venue #4: Teatro Latea at 107 Suffolk Street, between Rivington and Delancey Streets on August 9 @5:30pm, August 15 @7:00pm, August 17 @3:30pm, August 21 @3:30pm, August 23 @9:30pm. Tickets are $15-$18. To order, visit www.FringeNYC.org
Cultural Park Theater in Cape Coral, FL, will not to continue with its run of RUMORS after deciding that the language would be considered inappropriate by its audiences. View a news clip on the decision below.
At the start of something new for the summer season, the actors of the FVR Performing Arts Academy are determined to get'cha head in the game with the return of Disney's High School Musical. This talented group of 8-18 year-olds will bop to the top with their lively rendition of the musical tonight, July 21 through August 5, 2012 on the Pheasant Run Mainstage.
