Ella Ilan

Ossining’s Westchester Collaborative Theater: Where New Plays Take Flight

May 31, 2019 by Ella Ilan

ABOVE: WCT’s intimate black box theater at 23 Water Street opened in the spring of 2017 with an exuberant ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Ossining Mayor Victoria Gearity (center, holding ribbon), Ossining Town Supervisor Dana Levenberg (far left), WCT Executive Director Alan Lutwin (next to Levenberg, with tie), WCT board members and persons from the community.

One need not travel to the city to see experimental theater that is cutting-edge. Simply a hop skip and a jump away in neighboring Ossining, the aptly named Westchester Collaborative Theater (“WCT”), a new play development company and performing arts center, is an amazing place where new plays are introduced and collaboration reigns supreme. This intimate “black box” theatre in Ossining, previously housing a cabinet-making factory, has been transformed over the last two years into a cool little theatre with an industrial feel.

Lot’s Wife, by WCT member Albi Gorn, featuring WCT member actors Donna James and Kurt Lauer, was the first full-length play to run in WCT’s new space in 2017.
Photo by Gregory Perry

At WCT, member playwrights, actors, and directors participate in a workshop process where new plays are read, critiqued, and improved upon. Actors receive scripts in advance, come to the readings with an interpretation of character, and do an unrehearsed reading. Feedback is provided to the playwrights and they are welcome to rewrite and return with new material.

Once a month, through WCT’s Play in the Box program, playwrights are afforded an opportunity to present their plays to the public, followed by a talkback session where the audience provides feedback to the playwright.

WCT also produces fully staged readings of selected works throughout the season, typically for a full weekend of public performances. Besides providing a crew, set design, and lighting, a director is assigned to help advance the work.

The third tier of development is a mainstage production, usually spanning a four weekend run, which receives their full cadre of production behind it in terms of set, lighting, costumes and sound. A “dramaturg” is assigned to work with the writer and director before rehearsals to fine-tune the play. This entire process is geared towards getting plays in front of the public, giving writers a chance to have their works seen and improved upon. WCT has been very successful in launching plays to be produced all over the world.

Last month, WCT presented The Legend by Rick Apicella, an original play about a young boxer ranked a 2018 ‘commended new play’ by the BBC in a multi-lingual international playwriting competition.

The WCT Jazz Masters series, here featuring Ray Blue and his quartet in a recent 2019 appearance, is a vital part of WCT’s regular offerings.

The Mission

“We are committed to developing new work and being kind of an incubator for new plays, allowing artists to collaborate together to grow the plays,” explains Founder and Executive Director Alan Lutwin. “We try to create a nurturing atmosphere – not to say we don’t criticize; we do, but it’s in a constructive way to try and further the work.”

Audiences are an integral part of the process. “We have a very loyal following of subscribers,” says Lutwin. “We only do new work so our audience really has to trust us and support our mission. We’ve cultivated that carefully, inviting people who enjoy seeing something new and being involved in the talkback sessions.

The audience is actually a collaborator with us in moving the play forward.”

Engaging the Community

Fostering a strong commitment to being grassroots oriented and giving the community a chance to participate, WCT partners with Ossining, taking advantage of its racial and ethnic diversity, to be a diverse multi-ethnic theater company. They have an ongoing relationship with the school district, working with high school students who want to act or provide technical support in their productions. Partnering with the Ossining Arts Council last year, they presented a series of productions called the Living Art Event, a docent led tour of a gallery where actors appeared and performed plays inspired by works of art displayed at the event.

Further engaging with the community, WCT strives to take every production to senior centers and perform for the residents so they can appreciate the theatre despite being limited in their mobility.

Sustaining the Dream

Without a home base for the first seven years, WCT did plays at the village library theatre, art galleries, and wherever else they could find a home. They are thrilled to have their current space, which accommodates about fifty seats.

Besides developing new works, WCT runs a jazz series twice a month where they bring in notable artists to perform. Since seating and staging in the theater is portable, the space is easily converted from a theatre into a jazz club with lighting and tablecloths. They also run acting programs and classes.

Between ArtsWestchester grants, private donations, member dues, ticket sales, and an annual fall fundraiser, WCT works hard to maintain a revenue stream.

Upcoming Performances

Playwrights will present their work in upcoming Play in the Box programs on June 21st and July 26th. A ten-minute play festival called “Brand New Shorts,” featuring a series of short plays that come out of the workshop process, is scheduled for performances July 19th through July 28th. The plays will be followed by talkback sessions. For a calendar of events, tickets to upcoming shows and jazz performances, and directions, please visit www.wctheater.org

It’s Prom Time: How Local High School Students Prepare for the Big Night

May 31, 2019 by Ella Ilan

Tis the season of promposals. Sitting at a restaurant the other night, I watched a waitress deliver a nutella calzone coated in powdered sugar with “Prom?” spelled out in chocolate sauce to a teenage couple dining at a nearby table. The boy looked expectantly at the girl, who replied “yes” as neighboring diners applauded.

A promposal refers to the creative way in which many teenagers ask a date to the prom. Fashioning the perfect element of surprise and creating a clever promposal has added another line item to the prom to-do list.

Byram Hills High School Principal Christopher Walsh has been a party to many promposals. “I’ve been asked to bait somebody and call them down to my office. Sometimes they’re nervous because they’ve never been called to the principal before, but then someone pops out and asks them to prom. I’m always happy to be part of that but I think there is a limit to it and it should all be done in good fun. I’ve heard of students renting aircrafts, arranging skywriting and getting really creative. It’s always interesting for me to hear about them,” he says.

Say Yes to The Dress: The Prom Version

For some girls, the dress is chosen long before they know their date. Once a dress is purchased, the trend in recent years has been for girls to lay claim to their dress by posting a picture of it in a dedicated Facebook group for the girls of the senior class. This ensures that no one wears the same dress. These Facebook posts begin as early as January. Although my senior daughter and I didn’t start shopping for a dress until March, we certainly felt pressured to find and commit to something quickly.

“Shopping for prom attire was significantly easier with my son than it was with my daughter,” reports one local Armonk mom. “My son went to one tuxedo rental place where he selected everything he needed, including shoes, in under 30 minutes. My daughter, however, tried on at least 30 dresses at multiple stores before finally selecting one that had to be shipped from another country!”

Changes in Store for This Year’s Prom

Both Byram Hills High School and Horace Greeley High School are having their proms at Glen Island Harbour Club in New Rochelle. Greeley’s prom will take place on June 6th and Byram Hills’ prom will be held on June 13th. This marks a change for both schools. Since 1993, the Byram Hills prom has been at World Yacht off of Pier 82 in New York City. In past years, the Greeley prom was held at Trump National Golf Club in Briarcliff Manor.

Another change for Byram Hills is that transportation on coach buses will be provided for students from the high school to Glen Island and back to school after prom. Previously, students arranged their own transportation, often by limousine or party bus.

“One of the things I noticed when I became principal,” says Walsh, “was that the community was really detached from prom in many ways. Since the venue was on a boat in the city, many families were scattered and there were a lot of different pre-prom parties that tend to be somewhat exclusionary. I was looking for a way to make it more of a community-centered event and a safer experience for our kids. I thought we could kill two birds with one stone by having the kids arrive here on a red carpet for a school-wide pre-prom and transport them on nice coach buses to and from the prom.”

While some students have expressed disappointment that the prom will no longer be in the city, most are looking forward to this rite of passage with great anticipation.

“I’m excited to see how it all comes together at the end…it’s going to be great to all leave from the school because our whole grade gets a pre-prom together. It’s a lot more inclusive,” says Byram Hills senior and Grade Activities Board member, Julia Weiler.

Greeley’s change in venue comes after several years of passionate pleas from some students to move away from Trump National due to the President’s controversial comments about immigrants and minorities. Students were excited about choosing a new location and forging new traditions.

“Using both the research we collected about possible prom venues and input from the class, we chose Glen Island,” says Julia Bialek of Greeley’s Class of 2019 Executive Student Leadership Council. “We could not be more excited for prom! The location is absolutely gorgeous and, who knows, perhaps we could start our own prom legacy.”

Safety First

Parents, as former prom attendees themselves, approach prom with a mix of anxiety and excitement. Knowing that prom night rarely lives up to heightened expectations, many parents hope their kids have the best time possible while most importantly, remaining safe.

Most prom-goers are excited about the after-prom parties. Prom night, however, can be dangerous with so many teenagers out on the roads late at night and the potential for drug and alcohol abuse. The atmosphere of freedom and celebration, coupled with the pressure to make prom a memorable experience, can lead kids to behave in ways they would never do in their everyday lives.

Hopefully, after speaking with promgoers seriously about behaving responsibly, parents of graduating seniors can share in this rite of passage with their children and enjoy a safe and fun prom season.

Spotlight on Joanna Mongiardo: An Incredible Operatic Talent in our Midst

April 18, 2019 by Ella Ilan

People are sometimes caught off guard when they discover that fellow Chappaqua resident and mother of two, Joanna Mongiardo, is a glamorous opera singer.

Describing her career, Mongiardo says, “there’s nothing that makes me happier than hearing the overture, getting ready and going out for my first entrance. Putting on the costume, the makeup, and the wig, I feel transformed. I’ve always felt some sort of visceral energy from the audience, and I try to connect into that to communicate to them. I just feel tremendous joy when I’m singing.”

The Making of an Opera Singer

Mongiardo is an American soprano of Italian, Greek, and Armenian heritage. From a young age, she loved to sing. Growing up in New Jersey and attending a performing arts-focused elementary school, she frequently went to musicals with her parents, who loved musical theatre. Performing in a community theatre production of the “Sound of Music” at age twelve, Mongiardo was approached and offered voice lessons by a classically trained vocalist and opera singer who recognized her potential. This teacher soon had 12-year old Mongiardo vocalizing up to high C’s. Suddenly she was hooked on opera and introduced to a whole new world.

After earning a Bachelor of Music from the Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Music from Yale University, Mongiardo procured a manager who promptly started getting her work. In between roles, she took temp jobs at various banking firms in Manhattan. Coming home at the end of each long day, she diligently practiced singing and studied roles even if she did not have an upcoming engagement. Eventually, her career began to flourish.

Career Highlights

Mongiardo has done a wide mix of both concert work and opera engagements. Recent concert performances include her NY solo recital debut at Opera America, Handel’s Messiah at David Geffen Hall with National Chorale and multiple concerts with Novus NY and conductor Julian Wachner.

Pressed to declare her favorite opera role, she chooses her performance as Sophie in Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier, which was the last role she sang when she was under a festival contract in Germany at Deutsche Oper am Rhein.

“I spent two years as a house ensemble singer in Düsseldorf and got to sing eight extraordinary roles and this was the culmination of that. Strauss’ music intimidated me at first but I ended up loving it. I loved the character and it was a traditional Viennese production with gilded walls and sets and beautiful ball gowns. It was the pinnacle of my time there and really magical,” reminisces Mongiardo.

Mongiardo has been engaged in over thirty performances of Blonde in Mozart’s Abduction from the Seraglio with houses including Grande Théâtre de Genève, Opéra Nice Côte d’Azur, and Deutsche Oper am Rhein. Her Rosalina in Il Re with Teatro Grattacielo was named “Best Individual Performance of 2011” by Das Opernwelt Jahrbuch.

Embracing Challenges

Mastering pronunciation in her first Russian opera as Brigitta in Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta at the Dallas Opera was challenging. Performers are expected to arrive at rehearsals 100% memorized with proper diction. Not knowing the Russian language well, Mongiardo worked with a Russian diction specialist to learn the music and correct pronunciations before arriving on set.

Embarking on taking on new challenges, Mongiardo recently taught classes and voice lessons as guest faculty at the University of Kentucky.

“This was an eye-opening and humbling experience. Tapping into my 20 plus years of experience, I was able to share a lot. I got nervous with each new student that came in, but once they started singing, I always knew what to say, so that was exciting for me. Perhaps teaching could be a future path. We’ll see what the future holds,” ponders Mongiardo.

Balancing Career and Motherhood

Like many working moms, Mongiardo struggles to strike that delicate balance between committing enough time to her children and enough time to her career. “It’s easy to get wrapped up in the day to day with the kids but being a mom has helped me discipline myself because I’ve got to find 45 minutes a day or more to practice. I’m lucky to have a very supportive husband and extended family…who have traveled with me and helped with childcare while I work.”

Mongiardo’s son and husband love attending her shows and have traveled to her international engagements. Her daughter, whose playpen sits by the piano, will often hum along while she sings.

Mongiardio in costume on her knees
Photo courtesy of Deutsche Oper am Rhein

Pleasurable Pastimes

In between opera engagements, Mongiardo focuses on family life. She loves cooking, exercising, yoga, and spending time with her girlfriends.

On living in Chappaqua, she says, “It is such a beautiful and friendly community, and we’ve made such good friends. With all the travel that we do, we appreciate the chance to return to our home here.”

Always Perfecting her Craft

Mongiardo regularly takes voice lessons. “A classically trained voice never stops developing,” she explains. “A voice teacher once described it to me like a diamond that starts off rough and needs to be honed, cut and polished. The more you polish it and put the right cuts into it, the more brilliant it becomes. That’s the goal with vocal training–that you keep uncovering more color, more depth, and more richness to the voice. I’m able to do things now that I couldn’t do 15 years ago.”

To truly appreciate Mongiardo’s talent, check out clips of her past performances at www.joannamongiardo.com.

The Armonk Players: Community Theatre at its Best

April 18, 2019 by Ella Ilan

The Armonk Players (the “Players”), a true embodiment of high-quality theatre and community participation, is Armonk’s local community theatre group, which has been putting on productions at the 186-seat Whippoorwill Theater Hall adjacent to The North Castle Public Library for more than 22 years. Staging two full productions every year, one of which is a musical, along with free staged readings, the Players offer a plethora of opportunities for people to see great theatre, perform in shows, or work behind the scenes.

Key Players

The Players was the brainchild of three longtime Armonk residents, Barbara and Hal Simonetti and Susan Geffen. Geffen’s and Mrs. Simonetti’s friendship developed in the 1980s when they were both living in Tokyo while their husbands were on work assignments for IBM. Simonetti, whose passion had always been theatre, was directing a staged reading for the Tokyo International Players, and asked Geffen, an interior designer by profession, for help with producing, staging, and costumes. Geffen loved the experience and there began a great friendship and shared love of theatre.

Upon returning to Armonk, the women learned that the library was adding on a theatre complex to the building. Once it was built, they decided they needed a community theatre group. “My husband Hal, Susan and I sat in my kitchen and said ‘Let’s put on a show!’ and that’s how it all started,” recalls Simonetti.

“First I thought it was a crazy idea because even though we knew about theatre, we didn’t know about the making theatre end of it,” says Mr. Simonetti. “But after we started it, we found that out of the woodwork from every direction came people who were interested in it. We gave them an opening and in they came.”

The Armonk Players is sponsored by The Friends of the North Castle Library (“The Friends”), a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise money for purchasing “extras” for The North Castle Public Library. One of the Friends’ biggest fundraisers is the annual Armonk Outdoor Art Show, which benefits the library and the Whippoorwill Hall theatre. Geffen was on the board of the Friends and was instrumental in arranging the early funding for the Players.

“When you have a theatre group, you need an angel and there was the magic confluence of the Friends having as their mission to bring culture and education to the community, having a theatre, and putting together a theatre group,” explains Geffen.

“We’re very blessed to have the facility that we have at the library and we’re extremely blessed to have the Friends be our patrons and supporters – that’s an unusual situation and a very lucky one,” says longtime Armonk resident Rodd Berro, board member and former president of the Players. Berro, who is the president and co-owner of Pegasus Asset Management, has been involved with the Players since performing and doing lighting for them in their very first show.

Let’s Put on a Show

For that first staged reading, the Players chose 84 Charing Cross Road, a play about a writer and an antique bookseller, for its literary focus since the theatre was at the library. Mrs. Simonetti played the lead and Mr. Simonetti directed it. It was a community effort from the very beginning.

“For the set, we took furniture from people’s houses… a desk, bookcases, books, an old fashioned typewriter… Everybody involved brought something from their home,” remembers Mrs. Simonetti. “Everyone that came out that day, either in the show or doing tech or costumes or props for the show, ultimately stayed as long as they could over the years to help us with all the shows we did.”

Current Artistic Director Pia Haas was brought in as a director soon thereafter to direct Lovers and Strangers and has stayed on ever since to help any way she can. She currently handles publicity for the Players in addition to her role as Director of Press and Public Relations at Westchester Broadway Theatre.

“I was immediately accepted as part of the family and it really was a family at that point,” says Haas.

Delivering High Quality Theatre

“We supply good theater to the community –remember, we are within a stone’s throw of Broadway so in order to get people to come, there have to be a couple of reasons and one of them is to see your friends and one of them may be the price, but at the end of the day you need to put on quality performances,” says Berro.

“I think we’ve achieved a quality that is kind of remarkable for a community theatre. I think our shows have really high quality productions and we pride ourselves on that,” says Haas.

“Many of us go into New York to go to the theatre. It can be a multi-hundred dollar event–we are either taking a train or driving a car in and paying fifty dollars to park, we’re going out to dinner, we buy tickets, and we get home after midnight.

“Here, you can go to the theatre within 10 or 15 minutes, you don’t pay for parking, you’re home by 10:30, and you’ve seen excellent theatre,” proffers Geffen.

Amazing Volunteers

It takes an enormous amount of effort to put on a show. The Players are grateful for all their devoted helpers and are always looking for more volunteers. From early on, they were lucky to have Haas and Christine DiTota, both experienced directors, on the theatrical side. Berro, besides his contributions as a leader, on the board, and on the stage, was critical in setting up lighting for the shows. Berro’s father, Nat Berro, designed and supervised the construction of authentic-looking sets.

“Some people have been with us for 20 years…Phyllis Sederbaum, Ann Nisenholtz, Ron Aaronson, and others…these are stalwarts whose lives have been affected by this. It’s a successful cooperative community effort that’s longstanding. Not too many of those around,” says Mr. Simonetti.

“One of the biggest challenges is finding volunteers. Everybody enjoys the acting part but finding people to do the work–from the backstage to the lighting to building the sets and taking them down to getting props and costumes to just being in there to organize–the people that do this are the unsung heroes and the unsung volunteers,” says Berro. “It’s a challenge but it’s always wonderful when new people come in. The challenge creates an opportunity to meet new people and to have new ideas.”

“We really need more people to do this; to make an investment in the town where they live,” says Geffen. “I love this town and made a decision to bring in a theatre group and get involved wherever I can. I get back so much more than I give. I have met the best people because the volunteers are always the best people.”

“For me, personally, it was the start of getting involved in volunteer work and community spirit. Even though I had a love of theatre, having a BFA from a conservatory, and it was wonderful to get back into theatre, what it did most for me is allow me to recognize the importance of community outreach to make the community stronger and better through the arts and through other volunteer organizations,” reflects Berro. “It was also wonderful to have my dad, who is now 97, involved. He built some wonderful sets over the years.”

Coming Up

Their next show, Baby, a musical comedy, is scheduled to run for two weekends beginning May 10th and promises to be a great production. The musical with a book by Sybille Pearson and music by David Shire and lyrics by Richard Maltby Jr. first ran on Broadway in 1983. Poster design and graphics for the show were provided by generous volunteers, Janet and Rich Ferrante.

“Baby is a very relatable story about three couples all in different age brackets who discover they are all pregnant at the same time. The music is fantastic and the cast is phenomenal. It’s not a show that is produced too often so it should be really interesting for the audience,” says Director and Choreographer Tom Coppola.

“It’s one of my favorite musicals,” says Rachel Schulte , the actress playing the role of “Lizzie,” in the show. “I fell in love with the music after listening to a CD of it in college and it’s been a dream role of mine ever since.”

In addition to the regularly scheduled staged readings, the Players recently hosted their first “improv night,” which was a great success. They hope to do more in the future. For tickets to Baby and information about upcoming performances, please visit armonkplayers.org

VARIOUS PRODUCTIONS OF THE ARMONK PLAYERS

The Schoolhouse Theater: An Under the Radar Arts Venue

April 18, 2019 by Ella Ilan

Culture abounds in the northern part of our county, where theater focused on nurturing new plays and presenting live theater and art, unearth hidden talent and have become launching pads for original plays. Emphasizing teamwork, The Schoolhouse Theater successfully catapults new works to the stage due to the vision and resilience of its founders, directors, playwrights, and actors.

A New Life for a Former School

Formerly the Croton Falls elementary school, the beautiful 99-seat Schoolhouse Theater in North Salem is Westchester’s longest continually operating Actor’s Equity professional theater and art gallery. In 1983, founder Lee Pope transformed the building into a visual arts center, turning classrooms into galleries showcasing the artwork of talented local artists. At that time the dining hall, gym, and auditorium space was simply a white walled room with no risers and twelve borrowed lights.

In 1986, kicking off a bright future for this theatre, Brooke Palance, daughter of Hollywood scion Jack Palance, and actor/producer Michael Wilding, son of Elizabeth Taylor, performed “Bedroom Farce” to rave reviews. Modern theatrical amenities were gradually added and the theater came to life. The Schoolhouse has produced more than 120 plays over the past thirty-two years.

Cultivating Theatrical World Premieres

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Bram Lewis, the Schoolhouse presents four original plays each year. “This is a place where things begin,” says Lewis.

The Schoolhouse has successfully launched multiple productions to Off-Broadway: Love Linda about the life of Mrs. Cole Porter, The Enlightenment of Mr. Mole, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Ingmar Bergman’s Nora, S.N. Behrman’s Biography, Elaine Del Valle’s Brownsville Bred, The Dog in the Dressing Room by Deborah Savadge, and L.O.V.E.R. by Lois Robbins.

Additional theatrical pieces birthed here include Axiel Himalo’s Christmas Fish Tale, The Mask of Jaguar King, The Cambodian Lullaby, How to Bury a Saint, and The Gift of the Magi.

Last month, The Schoolhouse presented The Color of Light by renowned journalist, author and screenwriter Jesse Kornbluth. The play explores the love between artist Henri Matisse and a young nursing student and how their relationship inspired his final piece of work, the design and building of the Chapelle du Rosaire in Vence, France.

Relying on Instinct

Selecting plays to develop, Lewis relies on experience and instinct. Before coming to the Schoolhouse, he ran The Phoenix Theatre at SUNY Purchase for a decade.

“Somewhere along the line I decided if theatre was going to get made, I wanted to be the one taking the responsibility, picking the plays, hiring the actors. It suited me because I’m bossy and opinionated and if someone was going to fail, I wanted it to be me–and I’ve certainly failed many times. But the great love I’ve had with doing this is I get to stand at the back of this beautiful theatre, and I can listen to my audience who teaches me over and over again why they’re interested and care or why they don’t…and it’s been a great journey,” Lewis reflects.

Trusting his gut when choosing plays, sometimes Lewis is right and sometimes he is wrong. “You try to pare away the dross and shine up the gold and see what you can do to make it work. But it’s also very dependent on teamwork because an artistic director can pick a play, a director can direct it and eventually it must be demonstrated in the hands of the actors and supported,” explains Lewis.

Community Support

For many years, Pope, who recently received ArtsWestchester’s 2018 Lifetime Arts Community Award, was the theatre’s sole source of support. As a nonprofit organization, the Schoolhouse has been fortunate to receive grants from ArtsWestchester in White Plains, and generous donations from the community and board members.

Every August, the Schoolhouse holds a fundraising gala called The Scottish Tattoo, modeled after the annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, called the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. The celebration features Celtic performers, Scottish dancing, comedy, great food and flights of whiskey.

Happening Soon

Their next play, Gladstone Hollow by Dorothy Lyman opens on June 13th. The play explores the takeovers of small family-run farms by corporations and how these families struggle with the decision between preserving or monetizing their heritage. “It’s a bit like King Lear because it’s about selling out the kingdom and whether or not it’s a good deal,” suggests Lewis.

The Schoolhouse regularly hosts stand-up comedy, live music, slam poetry, and artwork in the galleries. To learn more about upcoming events, buy tickets, or get directions, please visit schoolhousetheater.org