The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Theatre

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

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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

The Armonk Players: Community Theatre at its Best

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PHOTO BY CATHY PINSKY

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

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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

ChappPAC Destined to be a Center For the Arts and Family Entertainment

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Tucked away beyond the construction crews and heavy equipment that have been plowing away for the last two years at Chappaqua Crossing lies the recently transformed Chappaqua Performing Arts Center (ChappPAC). Once named the Wallace Auditorium and used primarily for Readers Digest meetings and conferences, the intimate playhouse has been reincarnated as a performing arts center, cultural destination and mecca for educational children’s theatre.

Initially slated for demolition when Summit Development and Greenfield Partners designed Chappaqua Crossing’s retail and residential community, the small theatre was saved through negotiations with Deputy Town Supervisor Lisa Katz and the help of the New Castle Arts and Culture Committee. Summit Greenfield offered to donate the theatre to the Town of New Castle for one dollar.

When the town asked experienced theatre professional and educator John Fanelli’s opinion about saving the theatre, he said, “You don’t find 425 seat theatres in your backyard every day. You couldn’t build this. It would cost way too much money. It’s like a beautiful country playhouse and it’s pretty awesome that it’s still here.”

After issuing a request for proposal for a theatre manager, the town chose Fanelli as the theatre manager. Scott Campbell of Soup’s On Entertainment was also chosen as a promoter. Fanelli was well acquainted with the facility and well aware of its potential as he had already been renting it for productions of his own Armonk-based educational children’s theatre company, Lighthouse Youth Theatre and Standing Ovations Studio, where he serves as artistic director. His responsibilities at ChappPAC include managing bookings, rentals of the space, volunteers, vendors and maintaining the integrity of the structure. Clearly the right man for the job, Fanelli, whose passion is educational theatre, has been directing, teaching and creating programs for children and teens in theatre for almost 25 years.

“If you ask me,” Fanelli professes, “the most important education you can give your child is a performing arts education because it teaches them so much about who they are as people and gives them such great confidence. If they can stand up in front of 400 people and do a show, then they certainly can do a book report or run for class president…they can do pretty much anything they want. We are teaching life skills.”

The theatre has ushered in its second year of children’s theatre programming with a collection of fall children’s workshops presented by the Town of New Castle, Standing Ovation Studios, and Soup’s On Entertainment. Most recently this November, Tony Award winner Lindsay Mendez (Carousel, Wicked, Godspell, Grease) and Broadway star Derek Klena (Anastasia, Wicked, Bridges of Madison County) led a workshop about musical theatre technique and audition preparation. The session ended with the students performing on stage for parents and friends and a “talkback session” with the actors about their own Broadway experiences. Earlier this fall, Broadway actors and former cast members of Wicked, Arielle Jacobs and Alicia Albright, led a children’s Wicked workshop which also culminated in an on-stage performance and an informative Q & A session with the actors.

The season kicked off with a free musical theatre workshop open house where students learned to perform songs and dances from Peter Pan and Hamilton.

Three additional free workshops are planned for the new year to help get people in the door and get them excited about the programs offered.

As part of these workshops, students are split up according to age and then further divided into three small groups that rotate among a musical director, choreographer, and acting teacher. Students are then able to focus on all three disciplines.

Bringing theatre education to our youngest citizens, ChappPAC also hosts Drama Bee, an educational weekly theatre program for preschoolers, in partnership with New Castle Recreation. “My goal is to educate kids and teach them things about themselves using musical theatre,” says Fanelli. “When a parent calls and asks me how to get their child on Broadway, I always tell them to call someone else because that’s not my goal. I think the way to get to Broadway is to go to college and then be a professional and go as an adult. Being a child actor on Broadway doesn’t necessarily translate to becoming a professional actor.”

While many of the children’s programs have been made possible through a generous private grant, the reinvention of this hidden gem has been facilitated through a combined effort of the town, dedicated theatre professionals like Fanelli and private citizens. 

Deputy Town Supervisor Katz spearheaded the acquisition of this theatre for the town.  “Personally, making this theatre a reality has been very fulfilling for me. It’s really just an exciting opportunity for the town to be able to utilize it and do something incredible for not just our residents, but all of the surrounding communities as well,” she says.  “The goal is to eventually make it a preeminent destination for theatre, dance, music and visual arts in Northern Westchester,” she adds.

A foundation comprised of volunteers, The Friends of Chappaqua Performing Arts Center, has been formed to provide funding for capital improvements, programming, special projects and sponsorship opportunities to support ChappPAC. At the time of writing this article, the group was seeking and awaiting 501(c)(3) status so they can begin fundraising. Michele Gregson and Tracy Stein, Chairs of the Friends group, have been instrumental in engaging volunteers and potential donors, developing marketing strategies, and planning for the theatre’s future as a premier performing arts center.

“We have a great model in the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville, a highly regarded cinematic destination, where the surrounding merchants have benefited. We hope to do the same here where you can see a show, make an evening out of it, and go to one of our local restaurants downtown,” suggests Gregson.

Some of the exciting ideas that Gregson says have been discussed for the theatre are to organize a lecture series with prominent speakers along the lines of the offerings at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan, to use the theatre as a developmental space for prospective Broadway shows, and to host art exhibits.

Gregson, who also serves as Chair of Westchester Women at UJA-Federation of New York, has helped secure a grant from UJA to produce three Jewish-related programs at the theatre, which will likely be presented in the spring.

(L-R): At a ChappPac celebration following its opening: Jonathan Leibner, David Restivo,
Jeff Kuduk, Michele Gregson, Scott Campbell, Lisa Katz and John Fanelli.

The leaders behind this theatre are also open to suggestions. Their goal is to provide programming that the community craves. As they move forward, they will continually assess what is successful and optimize programming to bring in audiences.

Besides producing shows, maintaining the space is also at the top of the agenda for the town and the volunteers. Luckily the building was in good shape and already beautifully laid out as a theater when the town acquired it. Fanelli put in new LED lighting, upgraded the lighting board and the acoustic equipment, and renovated the stage. With the help of the Friends group, he hopes to continue improving the space. “Within three years it will be just like the Ridgefield Playhouse. That’s the goal,” he says, referring to the 500-seat venue in Connecticut. 

As the front of the building is in need of repairs, Gregson hopes to undertake a fundraising initiative where donors can purchase bricks engraved with their names on them to adorn the building. She also anticipates planning a fundraising gala in the near future. Additional plans for the theatre include adding a box office and a concession stand. Organizers hope to hire and train workers with special needs to work at the concession stand.

With various improvements yet to be made, exciting ideas yet to bear fruit, and despite the surrounding construction, the theatre has been open for business and successfully putting on programming.

Recent performances in November have run the gamut from family fun with Tim Kubart and the Space Cadets, an indie pop dance party for all ages, to fodder for adult audiences like folk/rock singer-songwriter and former Chappaqua resident Dar Williams. On December 1st, comedians and co-hosts of the popular parenting podcast What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood performed.

“The funny thing is that nobody really knew this place was sitting here for 30 years,” remarks Fanelli. “I hope that we can establish ourselves as the number one place for family entertainment and for educational theatre programming in the area.  If you want to go see a great show for the whole family, Chappaqua Performing Arts Center is your place,” he says.

RESERVE YOUR TICKETS:

An interactive screening of the Christmas film Elf will take place on Saturday, December 8.

Junie B. Jones will be performed by Theatreworks USA on Saturday, February 9.

On March 9, the Chappaqua Orchestra will perform an interactive, inclusive family concert spotlighting the special needs community playing with the orchestra.

For program information, visit www.chappaquapac.org. For fundraising inquires, email the Friends of Chappaqua Performing Arts Center at friendsofchapppac@gmail.com.

Yeston & Kopit’s ‘PHANTOM’ IS BACK! Dinner/Show & Matinee Options At WBT Through November 25th

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Matthew Billman (as Erik; The Phantom)
and Kayleen Seidl (Christine Daaé)

Phantom’s first New York Premiere at the Westchester Broadway Theater (WBT) was in 1992 and enjoyed a record breaking nine-month run: over 120,000 people attended. Night after night, audiences rose to their feet for the stunning musical thriller PHANTOM, which returned in 1996 and in 2007, directed and choreographed by Tom Polum, who had been in the original production. This extraordinary piece has already been brought back to WBT, and once again with Tom Polum at the helm.

PHANTOM was written by Arthur Kopit, with music and lyrics by Maury Yeston who were the Tony Award winning collaborators for the Broadway Musi­cal “Nine.” PHANTOM is not to be confused with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, although both shows are based on the same Gaston LeRoux novel, with the Webber extravaganza being more like an opera, compl­etely sung. The Yeston/Kop­it PHANTOM is more of a traditional Broadway Musical with dia­logue and songs throug­hout.

The story revolves around the central character of a man named Erik (also known as the Phantom), who was born and raised in the cata­combs under the Paris Opera House. Through a series of circum­stances, he takes on as a pupil a young woman named Christ­ine, who has been a street singer. She has a natural talent and a beauti­ful voice, but she lacks the special training to perform in an Opera company. He agrees to take her on as a student with certain condit­ions, the main one being that she will never see his face. After a lot of hard work she eventually auditions for the company and is not only accepted but is given the oppor­tunity to play a principal part in an Opera. Without realizing it, they fall in love with each other. The rela­tionship becomes obsessive and impossi­ble, leading to a stunning conclusion which can only be experi­enced by attending a perfor­mance.

The music and the drama of this piece are extraordinary and should not be missed!

For further details and for individual and group reservations: Call (914) 592-2222.

Or visit www.BroadwayTheatre.com.