Theatre For/With/As Young People

by Michael McElroy (aka Principal Grimm)

The young middle and high school-ers who make up 16/18ths of the Fairy Tale High School cast are getting a pretty unique opportunity for young actors. The have the privilege of getting a first-hand glimpse into the world of professional theatre. Most young actors are brought along slowly. They begin their acting journeys with school productions, parent volunteers and watered-down scripts. But these 16 talented kids are getting an opportunity most others do not. They are working at a professional theatre company, on a stage built, lit and designed by professionals, where they are performing a play written by an emerging playwright and theatre professional. Not too shabby.
When I was a kid, slowly realizing that my loud and vibrant personality could be honed into a talent that could carry me far in life, I would have loved an opportunity like Fairy Tale High School. Instead I would just perform in whatever play my school decided to put on. I had a blast, for sure, but I didn't have the faintest idea what it meant to be a theatre professional. When the time came to go to college and figure out my life's direction, I still didn't have a full understanding of where this career could take me. How great would it have been to get some professional experience before even having to make such big life decisions?
These students are getting just that. Whether it is learning the theatre lingo (it is called "rehearsal", not "play practice", as director Tom Quinn loves to remind them,) or just getting experience with all of the other common procedures of professional theatre (getting off book, call time, costume fittings, production photos, etc.)
The Montgomery Theatre has given these young people a tremendous gift. The gift of a first experience. And it has been an absolute privilege to play my role in these new beginnings.

Fairy Tale High School!

by Liz McDonald
Once I completed my theatre studies at Loyola University Chicago, I decided to stay in the city for 3 additional years to pursue a career in comedy and the stage. When I returned home in 2009, I didn’t know anything about the Philadelphia theatre scene, so I turned to my high school director and friend, Tony Braithwaite. The first thing he said to me was, “Go audition for Tom Quinn at Montgomery Theater.” With his advice I got online to see what the Theatre Alliance call board had to offer and to my delight there was an announcement for Montgomery Theater’s Project Stage production of Stuart Little and a second call for their Main Stage musical: I Love My Wife. I vowed in that moment to get cast in a least one of those shows. With my freakish ability to emulate a bird and a lot of hard work (and by that I mean a serious diet – TQ had us audition for I Love My Wife in bikinis!), I was cast in both shows and finally had my foot in the door of professional theatre in Philadelphia.
Working on shows in both Montgomery Theater spaces at (almost) the same time taught me the absolute best thing about The Project Stage. It is, without a doubt, professional theater. Tom Quinn conducts his rehearsals, notes, costume, set and props designs, techs, and even rehearsal breaks exactly the same upstairs as he does down. That having been said, he perfectly casts his Project Stage shows with the same meticulous precision as he does his Main Stage shows, but, with an exception for a couple adults, only with teenage and child actors. I don’t know how he does it or where he finds these kids either, but they are incredible! […he must spend his off time stalking around Merrymead Farm or Souderton High School’s cafeteria during lunch. I bet the kids are drawn to him because he comes across as a younger, hipper, Santa Claus in penny loafers, but instead of toys, he promises stardom and a career path of excellence. That’s why I was drawn to him anyway…]
A few months ago, I was thrilled to receive a call from TQ asking if I would “accept the role of the Fairy Guidance Counselor” in Fairy Tale High School. “Accept the part?! At this point in my relationship with Montgomery Theater, I’d figure out how to walk on water for you, Tom! Yes, please cast me in this incredible world premiere script!” I was so excited.
On the day of the read through, I sat down with my new cast mates, ready to hear the script for the first time in its entirety and I was immediately reminded of the level of excellence that is inherent on The Project Stage. In college, I was taught that at the first read through, one should really just focus on the words and hearing the story as a group for the first time and not to worry about using accents or anything of that nature. Right out of the gate at this read – BANG! There were 10 year olds Steven Rimdzius and Allison Lacianca giving voices to the Turtle of The Tortoise and the Hare and Goldilocks of The Three Little Bears that made me, at 28, quake in my boots and realize that I had to go home and really work on my character if I wanted to keep up with these kids! And for the past 5 weeks that’s exactly what I have been trying to do.
TQ says he hires a couple adult actors for the Project Stage shows to help “teach the kids the ropes” of professional theatre, but after working on Fairy Tale High School, I can honestly say that I learned from them (especially after Prince Charming, Brooks Inciardi, told me I was a bad influence for talking back stage… Whoops!). At all of our rehearsals, every one of the show’s 18 actors has been stepping up to the plate with new hilarious character choices to make playwright, Bill D’Agostino’s already brilliant script come to life. I couldn’t possibly be more excited for this show to open. I hope you all get a chance to see this outstanding and professional new work. You will all be in awe of the talents of these child and teenage actors and from them, much like I did, you might just learn a little about yourself in the process.
As for me and my time spent on The Project Stage, I will leave this show even MORE in love with Montgomery Theater and Tom Quinn. …but not like that! EW! He could be my father! …wait….my mom loves him too … I don’t THINK he’s my father…

Fairy Tale High School - First Reading!

Last Monday we had the first reading of Bill D’Agostino’s new children’s play Fairy Tale High School, which Montgomery Theater, Too, will be producing this October. This reading used adult actors even though the play will be performed by student actors in production. We felt that adult actors would be better able to ask Bill the more crucial questions that are valuable at this stage in development. Several alums from Villanova’s M.A. Theatre program and current members of the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s Acting Intern Company lent us their time and talent for the evening. The reading was followed by a talk-back with the playwright and dramaturg Mark Costello.

CAST
Principal Grimm – Luke Moyer
Turtle – Daniel Bound-Black
Gingerbread Boy – Chris Serpentine
Freddie (aka Prince Charming) – Will Erwin
Brian (aka the Boy who cried wolf) – Adam DeLancey
Milly – Patti-Lee Meringo
Holly – Kimberly Reilly
Pinocchio – Daniel Bontempo
Goldi (aka Goldilocks) – Kimberly Reilly
Fairy Guidance Counselor – Stephanie King
Witch – Katie Wexler
Coach – Patti-Lee Meringo
Jack – Jacob Dresch
Jill – Abbie Richards
Morty the Giant – Will Erwin
Wolfman – Will Erwin
Rose (aka Sleeping Beauty) – Jessica Joy Satryan
Cindy (aka Cinderella) – Amanda Healy
Ben Smallen read Stage Directions

A very special thanks to all who helped make the reading a success!

The Theater Looks Forward

by Linda Plank Montgomery Theater Board Member and Development Committee Chair

Montgomery Theater performances take me back to my childhood!

I remember at age 10 being taken to a performance of Yul Brynner in “The King and I.” Watching a stage performance was mesmerizing and I still feel the same way about live theater.

My professional life has been all about non-profit organizations. I love the way that the best non-profits become such a part of the community that you can’t imagine the town without them. That’s what I want for Montgomery Theater. As a board member and subscriber, I believe that MT is important to the quality of life in our area. “The Arts” add such a human and entertaining touch to Main Street!

As the Development Chair, I am proud to say that we have launched a 3-year operating support campaign for the theater. Please consider joining us in raising $320,000 over the next three years. These operating funds will strengthen the theater’s financial position and stabilize our plans to produce the very best local theater.

The best time to raise funds is when things are going great! I’m thrilled to say that we are in a positive position to move forward boldly. Attendance is at record levels, the renewal of subscriptions is extremely high and the board is engaged and leading the charge that will continue into our 20th anniversary year.

Rob Wonderling and Binny Silverman are the campaign co-chairs and represent the best of Bucks and Montgomery Counties. Their enthusiasm alone will help us reach our goal!

As we approach the 25% mark, I am planning on following up with many of our friends who have received information about the campaign. If you have questions, please give me a call (215-345-2122).

And The Winner Is. . .

I know everyone has been waiting with bated breath since I announced the finalists for Montgomery Theater Too’s Adaptation Competition last March. Well, it’s June now and as promised we’ve got a winner: Fairy Tale High School by Bill D’Agostino! Bill isn’t exactly new to the MT community - he served as Tom’s dramaturg on last year’s production of Alice in Wonderland – but this is the first time he’s lending us his playwriting skills. So without further ado, ladies and gentleman I give you an interview with Bill...

Q: What is your hometown?
A: Chappaqua, NY, a New York City suburb. It used to be known (when it was known) as the worldwide home for Reader’s Digest. Now it’s where the Clintons live.

Q: Current Town?
A: Byrn Mawr, PA.

Q: Tell me about Fairy Tale High School.
A: Fairy Tale High School imagines what it would be like if all your favorite fairy tale characters - Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Jack, etc. - were all in high school together, taking classes and getting into trouble. The witch teaches students to cook children who eat their house, the track team run laps around a beanstalk, and everyone (predictably) lives happily ever after.
FTHS began life as a sketch for a class of youngsters I taught in Harrisburg, when I was a company member for Gamut Theatre Group. The kids at the time were obsessed with High School Musical, and I wanted to write them something they’d be excited about reading. At the same time, I was also performing in funny and quick fairy tale adaptations with the company.
When Montgomery Theater announced its playwriting competition this year, I knew it was time to expand that initial germ of an idea until it became a full-fledged disease.
The play also owes huge debts to Stephen Sondheim's musical Into the Woods, which was one of the first Broadway shows I ever saw.

Q: Who is Bill? Are you an actor? Playwright? Performer? All of the above?
A: I’m just the boy who can’t say no - to theatre, that is.
I got my BA from Brown University with a theatre concentration and my master's degree in theatre from Villanova University. For theatres across the country, I've acted (mostly playing clowns and pompous anti-heroes), directed (mostly new plays), taught and written.
Currently, my day job is the Communications and Education Director for Act II Playhouse in Ambler, where I also serve as dramaturg for many of the productions. That means I help do research, gathering background material to inform the work of the director, actors and designers. Last year, I was the dramaturg for Montgomery Theater's production of Alice in Wonderland, helping director Tom Quinn with his adaptation, and I’ll also be dramaturg for Montgomery Theater’s upcoming comedy Big Boys.
I was also a professional journalist for seven years, which I mostly did because I wanted to know more about the world to write better plays.

Q: How did you start writing?
A: My freshman year at Horace Greeley High School, I fell in love with theatre while playing Wally Webb in Our Town. Later that year, I asked my mom to enroll me in a summer theatre camp for high school students at SUNY Purchase. In selecting classes, I had to choose between musical theatre and playwriting. Since I couldn’t sing, I chose the playwriting class, and a new lifelong obsession was born. So really, I owe my love of writing to the fact that I’m tone deaf.

Q: If you could change one thing about theater, what would it be?
A: The fact that most of my friends in theatre can’t afford to pay off their college loans. Theatre is chronically underfunded in this country, which is why in curtain speeches we are constantly thanking our generous donors.

Q: Who are or were your theatrical heroes?
A: In no particular order: Tony Kushner, John Guare, Anton Chekhov, Paula Vogel, Suzan Zeder, Bertolt Brecht, William Shakespeare, Michael Hollinger, Charles Ludlam, Thornton Wilder, Oscar Wilde, Moises Kaufman and Tectonic Theatre Project, Samuel Beckett, Tom Stoppard, Mary Zimmerman and a bunch of others I'm probably forgetting right now.

Q: What kind of theater excites you?
A: Theatre that’s original and fun. Theatre that gets my pulse beating. Theatre that's REALLY well constructed. Or really messy and exciting. Theatre that questions why things are the way they are.

Q: What advice do you have for playwrights just starting out?
A: See lots of theatre. You learn just as much from bad plays as good ones. In fact, the bad ones will probably boost your confidence as you think, “I can write something better than this.”

Q: Plugs, please. Any other upcoming projects?
A: I’ll be serving as dramaturg for Act II’s Fall production of Sylvia by A.R. Gurney, directed by Harriet Power. It happens to be starring the lovely and talented Jessica Bedford, Montgomery Theater’s Director of Education and a classmate at Villanova University’s Masters of Theatre program. She plays an adorable stray dog. (For reals!) So I’ll be driving up to Souderton for Fairy Tale High School rehearsals while she’ll be riding down here to Ambler for Sylvia performances. We’ll probably pass and wave on Route 309.

Funny

by Tony Braithwaite
Growing up, I learned that nothing is ever, "merely," funny. To my family, funny is a commodity, funny is an ace of trump, funny is a defense mechanism, funny is a gift, and funny is a life force. Then, and even now, my family members and I don't say I love you to one another very often. Rather, we try to make each other laugh. If we can make each other laugh, we can make each other feel loved. In short, we say, "I laugh you."
When I was a little boy my mom and dad came home from seeing Neil Simon's Brighton Beach Memoirs and said I should play Eugene Morris Jerome one day. When I was in 8th grade I saw my first Broadway non-musical, The Odd Couple (Female Version) with Sally Struthers and Rita Moreno. And when it was clear during my adolescence that I was a hypochondrical neurotic neat freak, I realized that Neil Simon had written the role of Felix Ungar for me 17 years before I was born.
Prisoner of 2nd Avenue marks the 4th time in my career that I have actually been in one of Simon's plays. In the fall of 1997 I was in Biloxi Blues at the Hedgerow Theatre in Media (where I did get to tackle Eugene Jerome, albeit in Brighton's sequel); a year later I played Lenny in Rumors at the same theatre; and just 2 years ago at The Kimmel Theatre I played Felix Ungar at last (having done scenes from The Odd Couple in college and a reading of it for 1812 Productions).
In short, I've been a huge fan of Neil Simon for many years.
I laugh his plays a lot.
Every time I am lucky enough to be in a Neil Simon play I am always struck by the same things: how relatable and familiar his characters feel (is it any wonder that Jack Lemmon, known for decades as the American Everyman, played so many Simon roles?), how perfectly crafted his writing seems (It's often compared to symphony music), and of course how damn hilarious he is.
I'd venture to say that no one in the history of the American Theatre has written as many laugh lines as Neil Simon. There's just been no one funnier. Theatre snobs often decry Simon's plays as trite populace fare, "merely," because he's funny. (Ironically they're often the same people who often ascribe to the theatre mantra, "Dying is easy. Comedy is hard.") This always amazes me because no one would ever look at Jerry Seinfeld or Johnny Carson and say the same thing - that they were, "merely," funny. In fact, when Seinfeld 's tv show went off the air it was uniformly lauded for being so ground-breaking and successful even though it was, "just a bunch of neurotic New Yorkers sitting around an apartment; just a show about nothing." The New York Times helpfully countered by pointing out that Neil Simon had been writing plays of that exact ilk for years.
From Vaudeville on, so much in American comedy is based on rhythms. A lot of American comedy today (stand-up, sit coms, and even things like South Park) is based on not only on the comedic situations involved but, perhaps more importantly, on the economy of words and the rhythm of the punch lines. There's a science to this, and Simon gets that. Too many syllables and the joke falls flat. Change just one word in the sentence and it triggers a laugh not present before. Simon has even said that some words may be considered inherently funny. Consonant plosives - that is words that start suddenly or "explosively" - p, b, t, d, k, and g - are often considered the funniest sounds in the English language. In the 1996 video Caesar's Writers, Simon discusses writing for Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows, and a skit in which Imogene Coca places a bet on a roulette wheel. For an hour the writers tried out various numbers before deciding "32" was the funniest number Coca could say. With such craftsmanship, how could any of that be considered merely funny?
In that great tradition Prisoner of 2nd Avenue is very non-merely funny, in part because it's also surprisingly moving and very timely. You'll see echoes of The Out of Towners, The Odd Couple, and maybe even Barefoot in the Park, and you'll also see some of the darker themes present in Simon plays like Lost in Yonkers and The Dinner Party. At its heart, Prisoner is about the struggle of a man and his wife to cope with the pressures of the day - finances, employment, marriage, family, and even noisy slash nasty neighbors. The couple uses humor as one of their great unitive resources and as one of their best defenses.
That's something I imagine many of us relate to.
I know I laugh it a lot.

Working With the Guys and Dolls of Montgomery Theater, Too

by Nora Algeo

When one thinks of gambles, sinners, and hotbox dancers it’s doubtful that the image of a 12 year-old comes to mind. However, with sincerity, determination, and a light-hearted spin the cast of Guys and Dolls Jr. has proven to me that young actors could actually run New York City! When Tom Quinn offered me the role of General Cartwright I was so excited to get back to work at Montgomery Theater. Little did I know that at my ripe old age of 22 I would become over-powered by a slew of extremely talented youngsters. These kids can do it all, and then some! The most rewarding part of this experience was watching the kids grow and evolve as they developed their own individual characters. We all learned so much throughout the rehearsal process and in the end we truly came together as an ensemble. Aside from the back-stage shenanigans (we are kids after all), what you see on stage is wonderful and unique product that is never to be seen again. There’s an old saying in theater that one never wants to work with kids and animals. Yet, I couldn’t image better working conditions.

Montgomery Theater, Too

If you read our brochure this year you might have noticed that Montgomery Theater, Jr. is now Montgomery Theater, Too. Yes, that means we're growing up, but it doesn't mean the essence of what we do has changed. Just like MTJ before it, MTT offers opportunities for young people to perform in professionally-produced musicals and plays.

No matter what the name is, you always know when one of our Project Stage musicals is about to open because our office staff becomes prone to breaking out in song and the green room is filled every afternoon with rambunctious adolescent performers. The energy of these student actors pervades the whole building and reminds everyone why it's so much fun to watch young actors work. The enthusiasm and excitement these kids exhibit can't be matched by the most trained actor in the world. And following a young person through the years as she develops her skills and turns into a polished performer is hugely satisfying.

As Guys & Dolls is set to open, I've been hearing snippets of "Fugue for Tinhorns" (I had to look up the title, but I'm sure you know the song), "Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat" and of course "Adelaide's Lament" as people walk by my office. I can't wait to hear the real thing this weekend. I hope you'll join me!

You Don't Have to Go to Philadelphia for Quality Theater

by Bonnie Rankin, Montgomery Theater Board Member

When my employer transferred me back to the Delaware Valley a few years ago after a sojourn in New York, I was ecstatic to be returning to my family and friends, and thrilled to be back at our corporate headquarters. I was grumpy, however, that that the only way to see professional theater would now mean a night-time, hassle-laden trek into Philadelphia.
Or so I thought…

You see, theater and the arts (and travel, actually, except for post-work jaunts on the Schuylkill) are my great passions. Growing up in Doylestown, shows at the Bucks County Playhouse were a huge part of my life, and in college I acted in a dozen plays, travelling with friends to see dozens more. In New York, of course, there were countless opportunities, including road trips to the Stratford Festival and the Shaw Festival in Ontario, Canada. As this potential theatrical void loomed, evidently I became a bit whiney.

That’s when a dear friend (thanks, Pat!) mentioned that we should go see a play at Montgomery Theater. And so we did. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I did not realize back then that Montgomery Theater is a professional playhouse which hires Equity Actors, as opposed to being a “community theater.” Anyway, after thirty minutes in this jewel box of a theater, my heart was full again. What talent! What a venue! What positive energy! I was hooked.

The next day I phoned Tom Quinn and asked what I could do to help the theater. I remember my heart sinking when he asked if I could sew costumes. No. Or paint scenery. Umm, no… No talents in either of those areas. But I do know business and marketing and organizational development, and I know how to formulate strategies and make things happen. Might any of those things be useful? And so I was invited to join Montgomery Theater’s Board of Directors.

Now, four years later, it turns out that being involved with Montgomery Theater has become one of the great joys of my life. I’ve made wonderful, creative friends who share that sense of building something that matters. I’ve had the opportunities to help select a new Managing Director (the wonderful Allegra Ketchum) and to lead the Board and staff in the creation of a new three-year strategic plan. It’s incredibly rewarding to see our strategic initiatives in education and marketing forging ahead nicely. Currently I’m assisting in the revamping of our website so that Montgomery Theater’s image to the outside world is more like the first-class operation that we already are. And, I am working with another Board member to build an Ambassador program that will better leverage the energies of our loyal fan base in the coming years.

I describe Montgomery Theater to friends and neighbors as a little jewel in our midst, and tell everyone what a privilege to be part of this high quality organization. And I mean it. Encore!

A Day in the Life of a Typical Montgomery Theater Assistant Stage Manager

by Paul McEntegart

What a lot of people don’t consider when they come to see a show at the Montgomery Theater is what goes on behind the scenes or back stage during the show. So let me take you through a typical night at the Montgomery Theater. First of all, let’s assume nothing goes wrong. I won’t forget to set any props, and there won’t be any wardrobe malfunctions. It’s a Friday evening. I arrive at the theater at 7:00--an hour before curtain. Now it’s time to make the coffee. When it’s done brewing, I pour it into a large percolator that is placed stage right on top of what appears to be a heater. Next to that, I place eight cups. A stack of four, a stack of two and a single cup by itself for Joe. Typically, I would have already set the trash on the desks, taped Charlie’s paper to the blackboard, and wrote “Welcome Parents” on it, reset Mary’s desk, and reset the crayons and field trip activity papers after the last show. It is during this time that I make sure that I haven’t forgotten anything. I check to make sure that two catechisms are placed upstage in the first stage left desk, as well as the first center stage desk, a bag of pistachios is placed backstage left, Mary’s note for her students is placed in the right pocket of her jacket located back stage center, and Mother Regina’s green folder is placed backstage right. The flowers and violin are always located backstage right, because after each show, one of the first things I do is retrieve them from the desks that they end up on. Before I am done, I set a coconut glazed donut into a donut box located on a stage right desk. Something a lot of people don’t realize is that everything is set exactly the same every night, even the trash on the desks. On one of our dress rehearsals, I took pictures of the trash on my phone, in order to make sure that every cup and napkin is placed in the exact same position it was the night before. Now I make my way up to the dressing rooms. I wipe off the chalk marks on Joe’s jacket, blazer and pants, so as to create the illusion that Joe has never had any contact with the blackboard located in Mary’s classroom. During the show it is my job to strike the donut box, cups, napkins, plates and coffee percolator after the first scene. I signal Father Stanley to enter during scene two, just before Mary and Joe kiss (they don’t kiss). I strike Father Stanley’s janitor jacket, mop, and erase the blackboard during intermission. I signal Mother Regina to enter in scene one of act two, and place (spoiler alert!) Mary’s suit cases center stage just after the first scene in act two. That’s it. Honestly, anyone could do this. It’s probably one of the easiest jobs I ever had, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I feel like I have a family at the Montgomery Theater, and although the stage has transformed from a kitchen, to a trailer park and now to a classroom in the time that I’ve worked there, it will always be my home.

Serendipity on the Set of Hail Mary!

Hello Montgomery Theater fans! I'm Rebecca, I'm playing Sister Felicia in MT's current production, "Hail Mary!". When I first got cast in this play, I couldn't help think how ironic it was that I was to play a nun after 12 years of Catholic school, where it was not exactly uncommon for me to be "asked to step out" of the classes most often taught by the nuns. (Like our heroine, Mary, I too had a "big mouth," but that's all a story for another blog.)

Anyway I was anxious and excited to start rehearsal, and at our first read-through I discovered even more ironic circumstances regarding this production. As it turns out Sarah Gliko (who plays Mary) and I grew up in neighboring towns and went to the same church. Sarah and I had met before but hadn't really had a chance to get to know each other. Through all of us sharing our church-related experiences, we found that we shared a lot more than that.

My father taught CCD for Holy Savior parish in Linwood, PA for a few years in the 90's. I, being already in Catholic school, would go to class with him after mass because I loved to watch him teach, and to be his "assistant," which basically meant handing out prizes went someone answered a question correctly. Although I was not one of his students, can you guess who was? That's right, our own Sarah Gliko. She was a couple of school years ahead of me, and it's very possible that I once gave her a piece of candy or a prayer card for correctly reciting the Apostle's Creed.

Now, 15 years later, here we are. Sarah and I are working together in a play about Catholicism, with Sarah playing a character who is fighting for a lot of the same ideals my father taught his classes. Dad passed away this past Halloween, but I know he's in the audience every night, watching Sarah and me play and talk religion again.

From the Cast of Hail Mary!. . .

Hi everybody out there in the Blog-o-sphere. I’m Bob McDonald, currently playing Joe in Hail Mary! The theatre asked us if anybody wanted to blog, and since I have a tiny experience with it I thought I would give it a shot. Now, What should I talk about?
First off let me say how awesome it is to be back here at Montgomery Theater. I was here once before in the musical, I Love My Wife. That experience was completely different from this one. Mostly because it was a musical and this one is not. Most of the work I have done has been in the musical arena. I was really happy when I was cast in this play. Yes! I get to work at a theater I love and expand my craft doing something out-of-the-box for me! Awesome!
Speaking of “out-of-the-box,” this has been the show for that. In the show my character is in the process of learning something new. I don’t want to give anything away, but I had to try that same thing myself, which is why I love this career so much. It constantly challenges me to step out of my comfort zone, and then I see that anything is possible.
If you have seen the show and know what Joe “performs” at the end of the play, then know that I accomplished that feat with only 1-2 weeks of rehearsal. Trying new things is very scary, but as an actor you are sometimes required to do things you’ve never tried before. Now, I have a new skill (I think) and it just goes to show that anything is possible. I will never stop learning. Theatre challenges me in such wonderful ways! I love my job!!
All right I think I have said enough. I hope you come and see the amazingly talented cast I get to share the stage with, and the magic that happens here at Montgomery Theater.

To get to Hail Mary! you have to say goodbye to the Trailer Park

by Tom Quinn, Artistic Director

What a great time we had here with The Great American Trailer Park Musical. As a co-production with Philadelphia’s 11th Hour Theatre Company, we enjoyed a truly successful collaboration. Once the musical had closed on a Saturday night, props, costumes, wigs and assorted equipment were boxed up in preparation to move the show downtown. On Sunday, the set was taken down, almost as if it were an archeological dig, with each piece carefully marked and copious notes taken for the reconstruction of the set in June. All these essentials were loaded into a 17 foot U-Haul and packed into a storage unit to go into slumber mode while it awaits another escort, only this time to the Arden Theatre in Old City.

This was our second co-production with 11th Hour, the first with a mounting of Reefer Madness, the Musical two years ago. Both great experiences. Shared costs and resources is the immediate realized benefit. But the shared artistry is without question its greatest reward.

The Final Countdown. . . (Cue Music)

By Jessica Bedford, MT’s Director of Education

It’s no secret that Montgomery Theater has a devotion to the playwright. The word on the page is the seed that gives life to Florida trailer parks, Catholic school classrooms, Second Avenue apartments, and all the other miniature worlds we create on our Main Stage. Loyal MT audience members know our long relationship with Chicago based writer James Sherman. (We’re doing the East Coast premiere of his latest work Jacob and Jack this fall!) But, when I came on board last summer, I noticed that we haven’t given a lot of love to writers from our own community in Southeastern Pennsylvania and the surrounding area. And so, inspired by Tom’s adaptation of Alice in Wonderland for the Project Stage last season, the Adaptation Competition was born. The call went out to universities, graduate programs, writers’ groups, and bulletin boards all over the area: send us your original adaptation of a story in the public domain, appropriate for a multi-aged cast and a family audience! Okay, so maybe it’s not the catchiest call to arms, a bit on the long side, but, nonetheless, it worked. It’s my pleasure to announce to you the finalist for Montgomery Theater, Too’s first-ever Adaptation Competition:
• Sleeping Beauty (And Friends) This classic fairy tale is given a peppy new update by Philadelphia favorite Kim Carson.
• Fairy Tale High School Hans Christian Anderson meets Glee! (well, minus the music) and asks, “What happens when all the characters from the classics have to go to school together and get along?” Bill D’Agostino, Education Director at Act II Playhouse, penned this delightful tale.
• Don Quixote The literary classic is given a zany treatment by Adam Danoff. If Adam’s name rings a bell, it means you caught his quirky and side-splitting performance as the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland.
• Once Upon a Time Worlds collide in this charming fractured fairy tale also by Kim Carson.
• Shifting for Himself Michael Schwartz took a break from his duties as MT’s go-to dramaturg to pen this adaptation of a novel by Horatio Alger, Jr.
• Under the Sea New Jersey playwright Walt Vail has adapted a Inuit myth and reset it in the warm waters of Mexico.
The next round of the competition asks the finalists to submit a draft of their completed work to the MT offices by June 1, 2011. Tom Quinn (Artistic Director), Allegra Ketchum (Managing Director), the members of our Education Committee and I will then pick a winner from these drafts. The winning writer will have his or her show produced on the Project Stage as part of our Montgomery Theater, Too series this October. So join me in keeping fingers crossed for our writers and keep your eyes peeled for when we announce the winner in late June!

The Joy of Teaching

Will Windsor Erwin, the author of the following post, is currently leading a Young Actors Workshop class and will be teaching the Young Actors Company class that is enrolling now.

“Boppity Bop Bop Bop!”
“Zip! Zap! Zop!”
“Teapot. One, Two, Three!”
The combination of words may sound odd to some, but these are just some examples of the strange games played within Montgomery Theater’s youth theatre classes… and I couldn’t be more thrilled to help lead them.
After spending the last two years earning my MA in Theatre, up to my ears in theatre theory, writing, acting, and defending a thesis, and applying all I’ve learned in actual practice I was burned out. I spent all-nighters creating production histories, visual files, annotated bibliographies. I wrote papers, papers, and more papers.
I didn’t hate graduate school. I loved it, in fact. I made some amazing friends, worked with talented professors, designers, and directors. I participated in a play that took place in and around a water-filled pool. I even shaved my head.
All in the name of theatre.
And after the whirlwind was over, after all the Pomp and Circumstance, after the degree arrived (much mangled) in the mail, I felt like a piece was missing. And suddenly… the piece arrived.
My time at Montgomery Theater has reawakened everything about theatre I thought I’d lost. I am free to imagine again and can play these games with a refreshed view and vigor. And it has come to me through the excitement of the children I work with in Montgomery’s youth classes.
I have two rules when I teach a class:

1) NO NEGATIVES.

2) HAVE FUN.
I implement these rules because I want to create a positive learning atmosphere. How can ANYONE let go and be free in the fear of someone laughing at them? With so much negativity out there, theatre is the one safe space I have left… and I wanted to make sure the space was there for the young ones willing, eager, and able to learn.
As much as I try to teach my students about the aspects of theatre:
about vocal control, working as a team, about being fearless to try new things, and, most importantly, about OWNING POSITIVE SELF ESTEEM… they have taught me more.

I had forgotten what it was like to let go of everything. I had forgotten what it was like to first learn about theatre. What it was like to let my imagination run wild. What it was like to be a kid.
I cherish the time here at Montgomery because I am constantly surprised at the students’ continued wonderment within each class I teach. I am inspired to see the shy student break out, or the “bossy” student take the step back into the ensemble. And I am empowered knowing that every ounce of self esteem I have helped plant and nourish will aid my students in every step of their lives.

- Will Windsor Erwin

How Not to be a Doctor

By Kristin Heckler, Production Associate/Box Office Manager


I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love theater. Like most people involved in theater, I started as a performer and have always been involved in any school activity remotely related to drama. In middle school and high school, my closest friends were my friends from the musicals or choir. I always felt happiest when working on a show, rehearsing or performing.

I attended Duke University and began as a Pre-Med student. I wanted to be a doctor for a long time and although my parents supported my love of theater, they always insisted it was a hobby. That didn’t stop me from getting involved in theater at Duke and soon after arriving, I auditioned for Hoof ‘n’ Horn, Duke’s completely student run musical theater organization. It was very exciting to get back into the theater scene and I quickly found my true friends among their ranks. As soon as I joined Hoof ‘n’ Horn, my happiness with Duke increased dramatically (no pun intended) and I knew I would invest a lot of time in the organization.

The spring show that year was Guys and Dolls, which I had already performed in at Pennridge. As fun as the show is, I wasn’t looking forward to wearing an ugly dress and singing “Follow the Fold” for the rest of the semester, so I volunteered to be the Props Mistress for the show. It was a very difficult and thankless job, but it was the first real exposure I had to working behind the scenes and I liked it better than I thought I would. I was just focused on my part of the production running smoothly and fastidiously checked the prop table before each performance.

Although I do not aspire to a life in props, this job is an important part of my story because it was the first time I realized I was good at work behind the curtain. I also learned to appreciate all of the designers, run crew, stage managers and everyone else that contributed to the production. Well eventually I left Pre-Med and wandered around through my Spanish and Women’s Studies classes for a couple more years, never really feeling at home or spurred to start my career in any specific field.

Fall semester of senior year, several things happened at once. First, I was in a musical theater class. The professor (whom I developed a wonderful relationship with) assigned the class to create a musical revue of the history of musical theater, rather than having a final exam. Although my fellow students were not performers and we had limited time for rehearsals, I dove right into the project and contributed more hours than anyone else in my class. Working on the revue never felt like work. I found myself putting off my other class work just to make schedules and coordinate between producers, writers, accompanists and performers. It never felt like work and I could spend hours on it without even realizing time had passed. The second thing was planning my following semester. I was planning to audition for a show, costume design the Hoof ‘n’ Horn spring show and direct a cabaret for Hoof ‘n’ Horn. I realized all of my time was going to be spent working on shows and it excited me and sort of confused me. I still wasn’t planning to work in theater and yet I would be spending all my time there? The third thing happened to me while I was home on Thanksgiving break. I saw I Love My Wife at Montgomery Theater and decided during intermission that I wanted my career to be in theater (basically aspiring to be Tom Quinn, watch out TQ!) and I would love to be involved in a theater like this one.

Well, six months later I was graduated, jobless, relatively unconcerned about it and my dad and I had lunch with Tom Quinn to discuss how he got to be the Artistic Director of Montgomery Theater. At lunch, Tom mentioned they would be having a job opening as Production Associate/Box Office Manager. Well that sounded pretty great to me since I was spending every minute looking for unpaid internships in New York. So I applied and the rest is history. Here I am, Production Associate/Box Office Manager and loving every minute!

Everybody Loves Sets

Hi everyone, Cameron here, Technical Director for MT



It’s been a little while since we spoke (Bless me Father, for I have sinned. It’s been….”
Anyway, since I last posted, there have been a couple of interesting sets, with their own interesting challenges to face and overcome. Everybody Loves Opal comes to mind. At face value, a rundown Victorian-style house, described by the playwright as an “ode to the jigsaw”. That means lots of scrollwork, intricate moldings and the like.


A challenge in itself. BUT. Add the topper at the end of Act one, when the second floor comes crashing down in a Rube Goldberg/Mousetrap kind of sequence of events, depositing about 200 pounds of debris on the stage floor. There’s a musical carousel, a winding string, a pulled pin, a careening wagon on the stairs, a toppled support post, a cracked header beam, and a torrent of falling items from “upstairs” including yellowed newspapers, an old iron that swings like a hanged convict, handfuls of clattering silverware and an unfurling oriental rug that manages to conceal the secret escape of Opal, who we all assume is buried under the pile of rubble.
If this works, there should be a link to the youtube video of a rehearsal of this event. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R835TCdGiAo Trust me, when we got it up to full speed, with all the real debris falling, and the precision timing, it was awesome to see. And it took about three miles of rigging rope, about 25 pulleys, springs, lynch pins, synchronized communication on headsets and a LOT of faith from the director, Tony Braithwaite. Oh, and there was a lot of experimentation to get the right “falling dust” effect. Too dusty, and it would form a cloud that would hang for an hour. We ended up with a mixture of scoopable kitty litter and baking soda sprinkled on top of everything that fell, so there was a nice rain of dust for realism. Ultimately, I stayed on to crew with the ASMs to make sure it ran flawlessly every night. So, for four weekends, my social life consisted of sitting in a dark hallway, whispering off-color jokes and singing through a headset to my friends Nancy, Tom, Tina and sometimes Brian who just couldn’t stay out of the booth.
It was one of the best times of my life. (inside joke: How deep is your well?)

Cameron Purdy
March, 2011

Trailer Park Party

This post by Montgomery Theater Board member and hostess extraordinaire Laura Heckler illustrates perfectly her talent for bringing the excitement with her wherever she goes. I hope you enjoy reading about the memorable Trailer Park after party.

Did you know that you can rent the upstairs rehearsal hall at Montgomery Theater for private parties? When I heard that MT was producing “The Great American Trailer Park Musical”, I was inspired. We had to have a Trailer Park Cook-off! I would invite my guests to get a ticket to the show and afterward we would go up for a tasting of some “fabulous” food. You know… those kinds of recipes made with Velveeta, Cream of Anything Soup, Jello or Lipton Onion Soup.

I thought that it would be fun if everyone dressed the part. Guys could wear flannel shirts, camouflage, work boots or anything with a NASCAR logo. Women should wear anything tight & made up of a flammable, polyester material with tons of blue eyeshadow and mall chick hairdos. Fantastic prizes would be awarded in many categories.

Last Sunday the big day arrived. Over 60 friends hooted and howled at the uproariously funny “Trailer Park Musical” and then headed upstairs to continue the fun. The stairway was posted with “Top Ten Ways To Tell If You Are In A Trailer Park”. (My personal favorite was number 1 “If you let your 12 year old daughter smoke at the dinner table in front of her children.”). The room was decorated with a clothesline full of hunting clothes and gaudily colored lingerie. The mirrors were framed with glowing Luau Flip Flop lights. Mismatched napkins left from bygone Birthday, Easter and Christmas parties were handy on every table. Trash bags and duct tape served as tablecloths. We had a blow up “Ducky” pool Filled with Boone’s Farm, Budweiser and Mad Dog 20/20 on the bar. The Jell-o shots were lovely shades of lime green, electric raspberry, glow in the dark blue and school bus yellow.

The food, boy was there food. Guests were really into finding the perfect recipe for the competition. Aluminum sterno trays were laden with everything “Tan”. Potato Chips topped chicken and cheese casseroles. We had the old favorite green bean casserole, broccoli soufflé, sloppy joes, and pulled pork. Some of the more unusual entries were: Frito Pie made with Hormel chili, cheese and…Fritos; Henny Penny Chicken Salad made with Old English Cheddar Cheese (yes it comes in a jar); “Is it really better than sex?” cake – some said yes!; and the grand prize winner, Kitty Litter Cake. It was hilarious, the cake came in a kitty litter pan with a scoop and tootsie rolls on top. It took a while for people to be brave enough to try it!

Next were the prizes. The maker of the pretzel jell-o salad (made by sautéing the pretzels in butter before adding the jell-o) won a redneck wine glass – a mason jar on a stem. She happily exclaimed “Look it has a lid so it can be a to-go cup!” Another guest won a camouflage six pack holder/fanny pack. He was seen on the way out wearing it fully loaded with Budweiser. Another coveted prize was the floating, flamingo wine coasters. Everyone agreed that this was the best way to beat the winter blues!

Laura's right - if you want to throw your own party (for a birthday, an anniversary or just for the fun of it), you can rent the upstairs rehearsal hall after a show. Call (215) 723-9984 x11 for more information.