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Arc Stages

Theatre Comes Alive at Arc Stages in Pleasantville

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The creative arts bring forth emotions, feelings, and experiences and helps both youth and adults tap into personal growth toward living a more purposeful life. Arc Stages, a multifaceted arts organization in Pleasantville, is playing an integral role in introducing the power of the theater as a pathway toward living a fully engaged, connecting people with their imagination, and broadening their perspectives.

“Out of all of the benefits of theatre, the most important is that it promotes compassion and empathy. Society needs right about now, with the chance to learn about theatre, create theatre, and see professional theatre,” said Adam David Cohen, founder, and artistic director. Three additional founders include Marlene Canapi, chief growth strategist and cultural officer; Stephanie Kovacs Cohen, education stage, artistic director; and Ann-Ngaire Martin, community stage, artistic director. “Our mission is to perform, teach, and create art for and with the community,” Cohen added.

Three Theatre Companies Under One Roof

The unique organization, located at 147 Wheeler Avenue, is comprised of three theatre companies under one roof – The Next Stage, a professional theatre company that will produce high quality contemporary theatre as well as new works, cabaret, workshops and staged readings under contract with Actors’ Equity Association; The Community Stage, a community theatre company for a wide spectrum of actors, singers, and technicians to work on shows, both on and off stage; and The Educational Stage, an educational theatre company for all ages (ten months through adult) to explore the world of theatre though a professional rehearsal process, master classes, outreach, performance workshops, and intensive ensemble work.

“These three theatres better serve the community and its artistic needs. The idea of our organization is it’s an ‘arc’ encompassing all of the three types of stages we produce – education, community, and professional equity,” said Canapi, adding, “The concept gives our audiences a well-rounded theatre experience.”

Additionally, Arc Stages offers private coaching in voice; on-site after-school programs in improv, acting, and musical theatre; and a Visions & Voices Playwriting Residency, a BOCES-accredited program supported by ArtsWestchester, that introduces students to the world of the stage and self-expression and promotes literacy and writing skills.

This summer, the organization is featuring a robust summer camp comprised of classes in Acting Technique, Choreography, Improv & Theater Games, Stage Combat, Songwriting, Costume Design, Dance, and more. “The skills learned in these classes will be incorporated into the rehearsal of shows that will be performed at the culmination of each respective section,” said Canapi. “Our goal is to ready our physical footprint to open our season of shows starting in September.”

The concept for the theatre came from Martin who belonged to the Chappaqua Drama Group (CDG). “She had the idea to join forces with Adam David Cohen. At that time, Adam ran a theatre education program called the Little Village Playhouse. CDG sold the Chappaqua property and the sale was the seed money that helped fund Phase 1 of Arc Stages,” explained Canapi. From there, it has become a valuable space in the heart of the village of Pleasantville. “Arc Stages is part of the growth of the village. We’re fortunate to engage a community of theatre fans who are art lovers and supporters.”

Pleasantville Community Support

The village of Pleasantville is important to Canapi. “Years ago, I was part of a group of community leaders who worked at a Master Plan to elevate the downtown business district. We wanted to develop the identity of the village as an arts destination, with the Jacob Burns Film Center and the Gordon Parks Foundation and now Arc Stages. We believe we are indeed an arts destination,” she said, appreciating the immense community support the nonprofit has received. “It’s really amazing how we developed a theatre community who is so supportive of our Phase 2 effort to build a 150-seat Proscenium Theatre for performances.

The new theatre allows us to choose content with a bigger cast from a bigger library of theatre works, including socially relevant theatre. According to Cohen the new space will offer exceptional opportunities for everyone involved. “Theatre creates community, offers representation to marginalized communities, and inspires audiences. With this new space we will not have any limitations on what we produce; therefore, we will reach more people from different walks of life,” he said. Currently, the nonprofit is in its last phase of its Capital Campaign with a fundraising goal of $500,000.

Through Arc Stages, Cohen hopes to provide an enriching experience, along with thought- provoking fun. “A way to lose yourself in art but with a greater appreciation of humanity,” said Cohen who is a theatre composer who has worked in the industry teaching, directing, and musical directing since 1997. “For me, theatre provides a form of collaborative expression you can’t find anywhere else. Whether taking a class, performing in a show, working backstage or being in the audience, theatre takes us on a collective journey and helps us embrace our similarities and our differences. The magic of telling an important story on a stage through the collaboration of writers, composers, actors, designers, and countless others, never gets old. It’s always exciting, and quite often profound.”

Arc Stages’ Jonathan Evan Goldberg on the Art, Joy, and Possibilities of Improvisation

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At an ‘after party’ following an August improvisation performance at Arc Stages (L-R) First Row: Grace Bennett, Joanna Schaffer, and Rose Pagano; Second Row: Jonathan Evan Goldberg, Mary Noecker, Andrew Laden, and Paul Carousso

When I came across the “improvisational comedy” workshop description for Pleasantville’s Arc Stages, I felt my heart leap. In transition, I thought this could tap my lighter side and get the creative juices flowing. I also had no idea just how much fun I was about to have.

So now, as I write this, I’m well into a second eight-week class working with instructor Jonathan Evan Goldberg. His popular class at Arc Stages began in 2017 when Jonathan, a labor and employment lawyer (by day) moved to Pleasantville with his wife, Tara, an elementary school principal in Rye Neck, from the Upper West Side with their then preschooler.

Each Monday evening class Jonathan runs two back-to- back, 1.5 hour sessions four times a year) with students who engage in goofy exercises (“ice breakers,” as Jonathan calls them) to warm up. Scene work follows with each of the students employing their own unique wit and personality quirks. The results can be entirely unpredictable and downright hilarious.

At the workshop’s end, we ‘perform’ for family and friends on stage at Arc.

So how did Jonathan, an accomplished legal mind by day, come to develop a lifelong passion for improv and become such a popular Westchester-based improv instructor?

Inquiring about his journey, I was delighted to learn of an avant-garde volunteer improv troupe he had launched in the city with friends called Cherub Improv.

But some background, first.

Some 20 years ago, in the midst of an intense legal career, Jonathan shared, an actress friend encouraged him to try improv. A Craig’s list ad for a $10 improv workshop proved hard to resist! He worked with John Swist, “the ‘Ninja’ of improv instruction,” he said, and models his own class today in a similar fashion. “His class was called ‘Quick Thinking Improv’ and had a very nice mix of people; most were like me… not there to ‘make it in the industry’; rather, they were doing it for fun, to laugh and destress… Improv helped me survive a career in which I was slaving away.”

Jonathan also found Improv a way to make brand new “very likable and funny friends” who enjoyed making each other laugh. Swist’s classes often ended in a class show performed on stage at the city’s iconic Producer’s Club.

At the time too, Jonathan, still unclear about his life’s direction, had agreed to getting life coached by his father, Edward Goldberg, the former Chancellor of Higher Education in New Jersey. When I met with Jonathan, his dad had recently passed at Calvary Hospital. He proudly recalled that his dad encouraged him to combine his spirit of volunteerism and passion for improvisation and form a volunteer improvisation troupe.

“Cherub Improv” (cherubimprov.org) was thus born in NYC in 2007. Jonathan assembled a core group who travelled to hospitals, assisted living, and other venues (“wherever laughs were needed!”) to perform and teach free improv comedy. Before long, the troupe boasted scores of volunteers with 15-20 gigs a month. But then Covid hit.

Jonathan vows to bring the troupe back to Westchester, NYC, NJ, and wherever they can travel. “You have a captive audience aching to laugh; they might be lonely or miss their loved ones or have lost friends; it’s not easy.”

“In honor of my dad, I’m going to make it happen,” said Jonathan, all while continuing teaching at Arc Stages–Pleasantville’s beloved theater community that he discovered while playing basketball in an over 30 group at Pleasantville High School. During that time, one of the players, Matt Finkelstein, introduced Jonathan to Arc’s executive director, Marlene Canapi, and the rest of the team invited Jonathan to teach.

States Stephanie Kovacs Cohen, Arc’s Artistic Director of the Educational Stage, “Jonathan is truly a gifted teacher of improvisation. He is very warm, friendly, and clever. He has a great sense of humor… The class is filled with laughter from everyone much of the time.”

Jonathan, adds Stephanie, started this class with just a handful of people and it has grown to two classes of different levels. “The students return because they love what they are learning from Jonathan.”

Understanding Improv

So much to love.

Jonathan offered: “It’s a way for the students to communicate freely, creating something real and funny and spontaneous and insightful…

“The discipline of improv is to ‘say yes.’ If someone makes a statement, the improv actor accepts the role and information in a scene, so that they can work together to build something from scratch.

“Some people are naturally funny… But you can develop skills that make you funnier… Through the warm-up exercises, students feel supported and free to say things that might otherwise be outside their comfort zone.”

Ultimately too, improv is a huge confidence builder that can enhance different facets of your life.

Per Stephanie: “Jonathan imparts the idea that mistakes are gifts on stage–that it’s OK to take a risk, dare, and fall, so that next time when you try, you might fly.

“The students learn skills such as listening, staying flexible, and being in the moment, as well as working as an ensemble, making your partner look good and having a blast while you do all of it!

“The benefits they gain in this class like confidence, focus, and working with others can be useful in life anywhere, no matter what their occupation.”

Jonathan concurs: “No one is singling anyone out for being wrong, or not funny, or not smart… you start to feel, ‘hey I can do this. And if I can do this, I can do anything!”

For more information about Jonathan’s Improvisational Comedy class and about Arc Stages, visit arcstages.org

From the Mouths of Improv Students

A few students explained their own motivation for taking improv and their experiences studying with Jonathan.

Paul Carousso, a Chappaqua resident and CFO at a chemical manufacturing company, who has been studying with Jonathan for five years:

“Jonathan is a fantastic teacher…
I began classes simply to let off some steam, not to take myself so seriously, and to get a little silly. But my favorite aspect of the class is seeing my classmates open up and be unfiltered and freely creative…

“I have seen people who appear shy or reserved outwardly come up with the most wild and crazy scenes or lines. Hilarious.

“My kids are (mostly) grown by now, but after so many years of eyerolls and head-shaking when I’d spout Dad Jokes and act generally silly, it’s so nice to have a safe space to act like a goofball!”

Whitney Harris, a Sleepy Hollow-based screen writer and freelance health and parenting reporter:

“A good friend and writing partner suggested we enroll in Jonathan’s class, so we did it together… I was looking to have fun, challenge myself in a new way, and spark some personal creativity… I’m currently working on a television pilot with my writing partner, and we were very interested in expanding our creative process and meeting like-minded people.

“Improvisational skills make every conversation infinitely more engaging and empathetic… It makes human interaction purely playful and energizing since you’re working together to create funny moments…

“It helped me sharpen my mind, think on my feet, and meet great people along the way. And the occasional boost of confidence from a well-delivered line is priceless.”

Joanna Schaffer, a self-proclaimed introvert who commutes to the class from Brewster:

“A friend in my Toastmasters Club gave a speech on how impactful Jonathan’s improv class had been. He encouraged me to come to a class. That was two years ago, and I haven’t missed a session since… Jonathan makes us all feel welcome and special and talented… I tell everyone… it’s recess for adults.

“Throughout life, I wanted to be a participant, I wanted to step into the circle – be the one cracking jokes or singing a song to entertain everyone, but… I was just too introverted… now I feel I can fully participate in life.

“In our last show, for over three minutes, I shared the stage with one other “player” as we created a scene on the spot – all while performing as if we were in an opera. The laughs were the most powerful feedback anyone could ever hope to receive…”

ARC Stages Celebrates its Tenth Year Presenting the Gift of Theater

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In Arc Stages She Loves Me: Jennifer Silverman and Stacey Bone-Gleason

Name a ten-year-old who doesn’t ask for presents for their birthday but wants to give you a gift instead.

We found one.

ARC Stages, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, is eager to offer us the gift of theater.

Tony Award winner Ali Stroker, a Briarcliff resident, who acted in the play Downstairs, on the ARC stage in September to kick off the anniversary year for the company, said, “ARC stages is so essential. They’re not just providing theater for the community. They give to these kids. It’s special to have a place where they can grow and develop.”

Stroker’s husband, David Perlow, who directed Downstairs, explained that ARC Stages “is responsible for a whole generation of theater.”

Noah Zachary, also in Downstairs, said, “I’m from Long Island. We didn’t have community theater. I would have lived here (the theater).”

ARC Stages has three programs: The Educational Stage, including a summer program, called Summer Stage; Community Stage, which puts on productions using non-professional actors living in the region; and Next Stage, which presents professional shows, providing “quality theater in your backyard,” said Adam Cohen, executive artistic director for ARC, and a Pleasantville resident.

In The Mountaintop: Gabriel Lawrence and Shavonna Banks

The Educational Stage offers acting classes for children from kindergarten to 12th grade, as well as adults. It recently expanded the program to provide pre-school children, from as young as ten months old, with music, theater, and storytelling sessions. About 130 children in total are enrolled.

“Last summer was our largest camp yet,” Cohen said. “We care about the art we’re creating with the kids. We stress kindness, fun, and creative expression.”

The Community Stage puts on three shows each year. In November, ARC will be presenting She Loves Me, a romantic comedy musical, and in April 2023, Peter and the Starcatcher which explores Peter Pan’s origins.

“The idea is that anyone who wants to come in can audition. The talent around here is amazing,” Cohen said.

Next Stage, the professional actors’ arm, puts on two shows a year, in October and February, which generally run for three or four weeks. Auditions are conducted in New York City.

“We’re doing shows that aren’t done all the time, stories that are worth telling, to spark conversations about social change and cultural change,” Cohen said.

“A lot of people we’ve had here have Broadway credits,” he explained. “We have actors who’ve done major tours and off-Broadway too.”

Several Broadway actors have taught classes at ARC, including Tony award winner Joanna Gleason, who played the baker’s wife in the original production of Into the Woods. Gleason sits on ARC Stages’ industry advisory board, as does Broadway, film, and TV veteran Vanessa Williams, who once starred in Desperate Housewives and graduated from Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua.

Downstairs by Theresa Rebeck, a one-night event ARC put on to commemorate its tenth year, focuses on a man living in his sister’s basement, who is unwanted by the sister’s husband. Zachary played the brother, Stroker the sister and Perlow the difficult husband.

The play starts on a comic note, with Zachary’s character, named Teddy, knocking around in his sloppy basement lair, cluttered with tools, old paint cans, and tubs full of clothes, and pouring water and coffee creamer in his cereal. Conflict flares immediately when Stroker’s character, named Irene, asks him when he’s leaving. There’s a lot of tortured family history too.

In the small ARC space (74 seats), theatergoers can observe at close range the way the actors physically transform themselves. Perlow, so friendly in conversation before the show, became on stage a lumbering giant with barely contained anger and massive potential for violence in his shoulders.

“This is such a great way to do theater,” Cohen said. “It doesn’t matter where you sit.”

The first official show of Next Stage’s season was The Great Leap, which ran from September 30th to mid-October. Before one October show, County Legislator Margaret Cunzio proclaimed on stage that October 10th would be “ARC Stages Day in Westchester.”

The Great Leap concerns a fictional Chinese American basketball player named Manford, who is a loudmouth, but with the skills to back it up. He wins a spot on an American team that goes to China to play an exhibition game with the Chinese team in 1989, during the Tiananmen Square protests for democracy.

Manford’s American coach, born in the Bronx, immediately insults the Chinese coach to get under his skin and emphasizes aggressive play, while his Chinese counterpart finds himself fearfully paralyzed in going against the wishes of a powerful, vengeful bureaucracy directed by the country’s leader.

The play is funny and touching, with multiple dramatic entanglements. Political and cultural conflict abound (and rebound too).

ARC Stages carries the theatrical spirit way beyond Broadway. This 10-year-old offers electric inspiration to anyone who walks in the door.

‘From the Wings: Broadway Behind the Scenes’ Exhibit: Works by Photographer Chad David Kraus

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Opening January 23 Inside the Radius Gallery of Arc Stages in Pleasantville

From January 23 through April 30, the Radius Gallery at Arc Stages in Pleasantville is going to give you a front row seat to a behind the scenes look of the Broadway stage. From the Wings: Broadway Behind the Scenes comes courtesy of Chad David Kraus and the five years he has spent documenting the day to day of numerous shows.  So just imagine an actual camera stealthily perusing the landscape of a big time production and putting you in the photographer’s place. But that’s not quite how the Pleasantville resident has gone about conveying the heart and soul of the Great White Way.

“I get to know a lot of the actors really well throughout the process,” Kraus said. “I feel like In many ways I’m part of the team,” and as a result of the connection, people are put at ease. A real true display of emotion then emerges, he added.

The very nature of Broadway already gives him a pretty good lead in.  “They have all been incredibly kind and caring people. I’ve worked with Tony Award winners Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Platt, Kristen Chenowith, Lauren Patten, and Katrina Lenk, and they all show the utmost respect for everyone involved in bringing a piece of theater to life, Kraus said. “Whether that be their interactions with a make-up artist, costume designer, stage manage or photographer, the theater community that I’ve been around has embodied nothing but inclusiveness.”

He’s certain that the true spirit of collaboration and emotion will come across at the Gallery, and so will an insight into the nuts and bolts of any artistic endeavor.  “My hope is that the exhibit will give people who love the arts and love theater an insider view into the whole process,” he asserted.

That said, Kraus’ own passion puts him very good position to deliver.  Growing up on the Upper West Side, the city kid got to know the guys who owned a little one hour photo, and a strong interest developed. Self reliance then got him on his way.  “I saved up money from the lemonade stand I had and bought my first camera,” said Kraus.

However, the hobby aspect of photography remained into adulthood. He studied theatre in college, and afterwards, became a sales rep for a record company.  

The needle eventually skipped a beat when making a photography career serendipitously appeared in a flash. Kraus was at a Bat Mitzvah, and according to the hosts, his pictures were better than those of the photographer for hire. “That was my light bulb moment,” he revealed, and first posting on Craigslist about 12 years for events evolved into a full time business with five other photographers in tow.

The Broadway gig took flower via his brother. The VP of a major digital marketing firm, their search for a photographer to do social media marketing and campaigns for Broadway shows landed on Kraus. 

EXHIBIT PHOTO by Chad David Kraus

Grateful for the lucky break, a portion of the sales of the framed prints will go to Arc Stages, and either way, hoping for a good turnout on opening night is good for everyone, according to Kraus. “It will be a nice time to gather with friendly faces and support the arts,” he concluded.

EXHIBIT PHOTO by Chad David Kraus

Catch an Arc Stages Production of Merrily We Roll Along

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Also, Explore Community Theatre Opportunities at ARC STAGES

DO see if you can still catch an Arc Stages November production of Merrily We Roll Along for their Community Stage. The Community Stage is the second wing of a company that also includes a thriving Educational Stage and a professional stage, the Next Stage.

Performances are being held at Arc Stages, from November 12 to Sunday, November 21.  The theatre is located at 147 Wheeler Avenue in Pleasantville. Tickets are $28 for adults, $22 for Students and Seniors. To purchase tickets, please visit www.arcstages.org or call 914-747-6206.

Merrily We Roll Along will be directed by Ann-Ngaire Martin, with Musical Direction by Marcus Baker. Featuring: Reid Aronson, William Benson, Nancy Jane Blake, Rena Gavigan, Oliver Ipri, Hannah Kluger, Luz Montez, Liz Nolan, Luís Quintero Jr., Joey Sanzaro, Leander Tanner, Arnie Toback, and Claude Tusk. The authors of the landmark Company reunite to turn the traditional showbiz musical on its head in this thrilling and compelling Broadway fable about friendship, compromise, and the high price of success. Stephen Sondheim and George Furth expertly blend the excitement and energy of a backstage musical with a poignant and emotional contemporary story about the importance of staying true to one’s ideals.

Arc Stages is a multifaceted arts organization in Pleasantville, New York, which is composed of three theatre companies under one roof. The Next Stage is a professional theatre company that produces innovative, contemporary theatre as well as new works, cabaret, workshops and staged readings.

The Community Stage is a community theatre company for actors, singers and technicians from all walks of life that offers the best in American musicals and dramas.

The Educational Stage is an educational theatre company where students of all ages (youth and adult) can explore the world of theatre through a professional rehearsal process, master classes, outreach and intensive ensemble work. These three theatres, all under one roof, strive to better serve the community and its artistic needs.