Upcoming Plays - July 2010

A full and busy summer ahead of us with upcoming plays for July:

At the Acadia Repertory Theater of Mt. Desert Island, Maine -- “SHIPWRECKED!” by Donald Margulies runs July 2nd through 18th.

“The Amazing Adventures of Louis de Rougement (as told by himself). Thrill to this 19th-century adventurer who is either the best storyteller or biggest liar in history!”

The Arundel Barn Playhouse of Kennebunkport, Maine is currently running Mel Brooks’ “The Producers” through July 17th.

The Barnstormers Theatre of Tamworth, New Hampshire presents “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”, July 6th through 10th. Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by Burt Shevelova and Larry Gelbart.

Following week, it’s the suspenseful “Wait Until Dark”, by Frederick Knott, July 13th through 17th.

The Barrington Stage Company of Pittsfield, Massachusetts is currently running “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” through July 17th. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by Hugh Wheeler from an adaptation by Christopher Bond. Musical Direction by Darren Cohen, directed by Julianne Boyd

Berkshire Theatre Festival, Stockbridge, Massachusetts will present “The Guardsman” by Written by Ferenc Molnár, July 13th through 31st. Directed by John Rando.

“Terrified that his wife is bound for infidelity, an actor decides to test her loyalty by doing what he does best: putting on a character. And so begins The Guardsman, a hilarious tale of treachery, deception, and assumed identities that has inspired three separate films. The actor’s charade grows more and more complicated as he realizes that the Guardsman is a harder role to tackle than he ever could have imagined. Witty, charming, and delightfully clever, The Guardsman is packed with twists from beginning to end.” Cast includes 2007 Tony winner Mary Louise Wilson.

The Cape Playhouse of Dennis, Massachusetts is currently running Alfred Hitchcock’s “The 39 Steps” through July 3rd.

Also, “Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings” runs July 5th through July 17th.

The Dorset Theatre Festival of Dorset, Vermont will present Noel Coward’s comedy “Fallen Angels” July 14th through July 26th.

The Gloucester Stage Company of Gloucester, Massachusetts will present “Tender” a new play by Kelly Younger, directed by Eric C. Engel July 8th through 25th.

“The family home, wallpapered with a lifetime of I.O.U’s, is about to go into foreclosure and Christopher, the Patron Saint of Travelers, is on standby. All that is tender is not green in this humorous and heartbreaking family drama by one of America’s emerging playwrights. Tender was developed with support of New Repertory Theatre, Watertown, MA.”

The Hackmatack Playhouse of Berwick, Maine will present “Leading Ladies” July 14th through July 24th, a comedy by Ken Ludwig (Moon Over Buffalo, Lend Me a Tenor) “features two down-on-their-luck actors with a scheme to dress as ladies in hopes of inheriting an elderly woman's money. Romantic entanglements, mistaken identities and comedy abound!”

The Ivoryton Playhouse of Ivoryton, Connecticut presents “The Buddy Holly Story” July 7th through August 1st.

The Mount Washington Valley Theatre of North Conway Village, New Hampshire will present the musical comedy “Singin’ in the Rain” July 13th through 24th.

The New Bedford Festival Theatre of New Bedford, Massachusetts celebrates its 20 year anniversary with the production of “Gypsy!” July 16th through 25th. “Based on the memoirs of entertainer Gypsy Rose Lee, GYPSY tells the story of Rose who is determined to make her daughters stars of vaudeville and in doing so looses one and makes a star of the other while leaving her own ambitions and dreams unfulfilled.”

The New Century Theatre, Northampton, Massachusetts, is also celebrating its 20th anniversary, and presents “To Forgive, Divine” July 1st through 10th. Written and directed by Jack Neary, “Father Jerry Dolan, a genial parish priest, dealing as best he can with the pressures and responsibilities of a job not often appreciated for its demanding workload, finds himself at the center of a challenging and unexpected situation. With great humor and an understanding of what happens when life's choices go awry, TO FORGIVE, DIVINE's story soars.”

And NCT follows with their next show, “Intimate Apparel” by Lynn Nottage, July 15th through 24th. “In the early 1900s, a gifted African-American seamstress creates intimate apparel for New York Society Ladies and Prostitutes alike. Her life becomes romantically intertwined with her clientele, challenging the sexual taboos of the age.”

The Newport Playhouse of Newport, Rhode Island is currently producing “Suitehearts” by William Van Zandt and Jane Milmore through August 1st.

“A young couple checks into a New York hotel for a romantic weekend. An older couple has inadvertently booked the same honeymoon suite! After they scuffle over the accommodations, no one is where or with whom they should be. With plenty of sight gags and one liners, this play will have you laughing all the way through!”

The North Shore Music Theater of Beverly, Massachusetts celebrates its grand re-opening with the musical “Gypsy!”, starring Vicki Lewis.

The Peterborough Players of Peterborough, New Hampshire will present “Freud’s Last Session” July 7th through 18th. This is the New Hampshire premiere of the new play by Mark St. Germain.

The Summer Theatre of New Canaan, New Canaan, Connecticut presents the Lerner and Loewe musical “Camelot!” July 18th through August 2nd.

The Ogunquit Playhouse of Ogunquit, Maine currently presents Rogers and Hammerstein’s “The Sound of Music” through July 24th, starring Rex Smith.

Theatre by the Sea of Mantunuck, Rhode Island is currently producing the musical “Hello, Dolly!” through July 11th.

The Weston Playhouse of Weston, Vermont will present the Vermont premiere of the mystery comedy, Alfred Hitchcock’s “The 39 Steps” July 15th through 31st.

The Westport Country Playhouse of Westport, Connecticut presents “Happy Days” by Samuel Beckett, with 5-time Tony nominee Dana Ivey.

“From the Nobel-Prize winning author of Waiting for Godot—recently revived on Broadway to wide acclaim—comes a play of luminous beauty and rare power. Samuel Beckett's masterpiece, the story of a woman's cheerful optimism in the face of a trifling universe, is among the most inspiring and exhilarating explorations of what it means to be alive.”

The Williamstown Theatre Festival of Williamstown, Massachusetts presents “Samuel J. and K” by Mat Smart, directed by Justin Waldman, July 7th through 18th.

“Samuel J. surprises his adopted brother, Samuel K., with a trip back to his birth country of Cameroon for college graduation—but Samuel K. has no desire to face a place and a past that abandoned him. Samuel J. and K. challenges the traditional definitions of family and asks if a place we’ve only imagined can become home overnight.”

The Winnepesaukee Playhouse of Laconia, New Hampshire presents “Scotland Road” July 7th through 17th.

“The Titanic meets The Twilight Zone…A beautiful young woman is found floating on an iceberg in the middle of the North Atlantic. When she is rescued, she says only one word: Titanic. Trouble is, it’s 1992. Who is this woman and how is she so well-preserved? Is this all an elaborate hoax or are supernatural forces at work? One of the world’s foremost Titanic experts is determined to find out in this intriguing mystery that may leave you asking if anyone is really who they say they are.”

Teresa Wright - Summer Stock in Provincetown

Teresa Wright, remembered best perhaps for her performances in the films “The Best Years of Our Lives” (1946), “Shadow of a Doubt” (1943) and “Mrs. Miniver” (1942), began her acting career in New England summer stock at the Wharf Theater in Provincetown, Mass.

A short time later she hit Hollywood by storm giving star Bette Davis a run for her money in “The Little Foxes” (1941). Teresa Wright remains the only person to have been nominated for Oscars for her first three films in a row. Such was her notoriety, that when appearing in the Lux Radio Theater version of “Shadow of Doubt” with William Powell, the show’s host, Cecil B. DeMille asked her to explain her acting experience, what was it that brought her to fame in Hollywood?

She responded, “I played in summer stock. Naturally, that included building scenery, wrestling props, painting backdrops, taking tickets, and sweeping up the theater.”

This radio appearance of January 3, 1944 could have been light years away from this description of her humble beginning as a summer stock ingénue, but it was only about five years.

While in high school in New Jersey, Miss Wright was encouraged in her desire to become an actress by a teacher, who himself worked summers at the Wharf Theater in Provincetown. She was allowed to become a member of the company (through paid tuition) as a student apprentice the summer between her junior and senior years.

According to an article by James Reid in Silver Screen Magazine, published June 1942, Miss Wright recounts, “I had the chance to study acting for eight solid weeks, along with about twenty other young hopefuls. The study consisted mostly of watching the professionals and playing a few bits…I was the youngest, smallest, and shyest of the group, and I would have been completely lost in the shuffle, if it hadn’t been for one lucky circumstance. Several child parts came up, and no one else was small enough to play them, so they gave them to me. That led to my being invited back the next summer to play bigger roles.”

In the fall of 1938, Teresa Wright understudied for Martha Scott and Dorothy McGuire in “Our Town” on Broadway, and took over the role of Emily Webb on tour, largely through the efforts fellow Provincetown actress Doro Merande who was cast as Mrs. Soames in the show and recommended her. Among the cities she played were Boston, Providence, and New Haven. Theater giants Walter Hampden and Eddie Dowling were also in the cast. She was nineteen years old.

The following summer she was back in stock with the Barnstormers Theater at Tamworth, New Hampshire. After that, when she was cast in Broadway’s “Life with Father”, Teresa’s life would change forever and Hollywood claimed her for many years.

It was film mogul Samuel Goldwyn who brought her to Hollywood after seeing her performance on Broadway in “Life with Father.” According to A. Scott Berg’s Goldwyn-A Biography (Alfred A. Knopf, NY 1989), Goldwyn went backstage after the show to meet the then 20-year old Wright.

“‘Miss Wright was seated at her dressing table when I was introduced, and looked for all the world like a little girl experimenting with her mother’s cosmetics,’ Goldwyn would remember. ‘I had discovered in her from the first sight, you might say, an unaffected genuineness and appeal.’ He offered her a contract that night.”

Teresa Wright would later have regrets both about Samuel Goldwyn’s contract and the limitations of a Hollywood career, and in later years she happily returned to the theatre.

The Wharf Theater, where her theatrical career began, had its beginnings when members of a group called the Barnstormers, which had formed in Provincetown the year before, split from that group and established a separate theater company in 1924. They performed as the Wharf Theater on a pier in the west end of town. This West End Wharf Theater was destroyed in 1940 in a winter storm. The West End Racing Club, a non-profit sailing club for children, is now located here.