Download 9/28/12 New Talkback with Shout Out Loud

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kristen van Ginhoven
www.wamtheatre.com
518 243 9627
[email protected]
Photos of cast: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wamtheatre/sets/72157631052808990/
New Talkback with Shout Out Loud Productions announced for The Old Mezzo
Presented October 12-28 at the Berkshire Museum
Starring Elizabeth Donnelly, Rylan Morsbach, Erin Ouellette, Eileen Schuyler and Ryan Winkles
PITTSFIELD, MA (28-09-12)- Shout Out Loud Productions, the beneficiary of WAM Theatre’s
World Premiere production of The Old Mezzo by Berkshire Based playwright Susan Dworkin,
will be on hand after the Friday, October 19 performance for a talkback. Jeanet Ingalls, founder
and president and Monika Pizzichemi, secretary and still Photographer will be present for the
talkback, which will be facilitated by Kristen van Ginhoven, Artistic Director of WAM Theatre.
In keeping with WAM’s double philanthropic mission, Shout Out Loud will receive up to 25%
of the box office proceeds from the production.
This talkback is in addition to the already announced Special Events which include talkbacks
with the playwright as well as 2 for 1 deals with the Museum’s Sunday Noon Opera and
Ballet offerings in the Little Cinema plus 20% restaurant discounts for pre or post
performance fare are also all on offer.
Talkbacks
*New Talkback: Jeanet Ingalls and Monika Pizzichemi of Shout Out Loud Productions, the
beneficiary of this production, will be on hand Friday, October 19 following the 8pm
performance for a talkback.
Shout Out Loud Productions is a not-for-profit organization, helmed by artist Jeanet Ingalls,
focused on raising the global awareness of sex trafficking, social accepted abuse and poverty in
the lives of women and children. Their first project is a video diary documentary that will trace
Jeanet’s early life in the Philippines. Through interviews with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
experts and a trip back to the Philippines to speak to children who have been coerced into sex
trafficking, the documentary will begin Shout Out Loud’s work to educate broadly about the
pervasive reach of sex trafficking and its life long effects on those lucky enough to escape.
Jeanet and WAM Theatre were motivated to take action by the same book, ‘Half the Sky:
Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide’ by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl
WuDunn.
Susan Dworkin, the playwright, will be on hand for two talkbacks, Sunday, October 14 and 21
following the 5pm performance of The Old Mezzo.
Ms. Dworkin is best known for her books The Viking in the Wheat Field and The Nazi Officer’s
Wife as well as her play All Day Suckers. She was also a finalist for the Susan Blackburn Prize in
1980-1981 for her play Deli’s Fable. Ms. Dworkin was one of the original writers and editors at
Ms. Magazine.
Gloria Steinem, when asked about Ms. Dworkin, recently said, “As a writer and as a human
being, Susan Dworkin has always had the ability to draw us into new dreams of justice, and to
make them irresistibly practical, humorous and human. She makes clear that progress and
pleasure go together.”
The actors will also be on hand for the Oct. 14 and 21 talkbacks.
Eileen Schuyler of the Capital Region (NY) plays the title role of Alyssa, the old mezzo. Ms.
Schuyler has worked with professional theatres across the Capital Region and beyond including
Stageworks/Hudson and Capital Repertory Theatre, most recently in their critically acclaimed
production of 33 Variations.
Ryan Winkles of Berkshire County plays Joe, one of Alyssa’s students. Mr. Winkles is familiar
to Berkshire audiences for his many notable and wide-ranging roles at Shakespeare & Company,
most recently as Ferdinand in The Tempest.
Rylan Morsbach plays Billy, another of Alyssa’s students. Mr. Morsbach is from the Pioneer
Valley and wowed audiences in the summer of 2011 with his tour de force solo performance in
Pauline Productions Scaramouche Jones.
Alyssa’s other two master class students, Marcy and Sally, are played by Erin Ouellette of the
Capital Region, graduate of Shakespeare & Company’s Conservatory and recently seen at
Hubbard Hall in Amadeus, and Elizabeth Donnelly, a Connecticut based actress with credits
ranging from Hartford Stage in CT to Stoneham Theatre in MA. Both Erin and Elizabeth were
part of WAM Theatre’s sold out 24hr Berkshire/Capital Region Theatre project held in April at
Shakespeare & Company.
2 for 1 Sunday Movie/Theatre deal with Berkshire Museum’s Little Cinema
The Berkshire Museum and WAM Theatre have teamed up to offer a 2 for 1 Sunday deal for
anyone wanting to take in an Opera or Ballet film at noon and the play performance at 5pm.
Offer is available for all three Sunday’s at $30 total. Tickets can be purchased at 1-800-838-3006
or www.wamtheatre.com with the code ‘2for1’.
Sunday, October 14 at noon: Giacomo Rossini’s Opera L’Italiana in Algeri
Sunday, October 21 at noon: La Scala Ballet with L’altra Metà del Cielo (The Other Side of the
Sky)
Sunday, October 28 at noon: Teatro Regio di Torino’s Ballet Un Ballo in Maschera.
All followed by the 5pm performance of WAM Theatre’s The Old Mezzo.
Restaurant Discounts:
The following restaurants are offering 20% discounts for patrons of The Old Mezzo:
Mission Bar & Tapas, 438 North Street, Pittsfield, MA
Spice Dragon, 297 North Street, Pittsfield, MA
Ybar, 391 North Street, Pittsfield, MA
Simply bring proof of your ticket purchase to enjoy this pre or post performance discount.
The Old Mezzo concerns the political awakening of a great opera singer. Alyssa, the old mezzo,
is driven by the recent death of a famous conductor to teach a master class concerning the
Politics of Singing. The class becomes a play within a play where we revisit important scenes
from Alyssa’s past. She has assigned parts to four of her students and as the exercise unfolds, we
see how Alyssa had to risk her fame and success to preserve the freedom that is so essential to
the arts. By the end of the play, through a surprising connection to recent events, the importance
of politics in art is revealed.
Tickets, ranging from $12-$30, can be purchased by calling 1-800-838-3006 or online at
www.wamtheatre.com. The production runs October 12-28 at the Berkshire Museum at 39 South
Street, Pittsfield, MA, playing Friday and Saturday nights at 8pm and Sunday at 5pm. In keeping
with WAM’s double philanthropic mission, the beneficiary for the production will be Berkshirebased Shout Out Loud Productions, a non-profit helmed by Jeanet Ingalls that takes action to
address sexual trafficking. Shout Out Loud will receive up to 25% of the box office proceeds.
"By selecting Shout Out Loud Productions as the beneficiary for 'The Old Mezzo', WAM
Theatre demonstrates that it not only understands our mission and purpose to raise awareness to
protect victims of sex trafficking, but it also wants to be proactive in this effort as well," said
Jeanet Ingalls, Founder / President.
Pier Boutin, Vice President, continues "We thank WAM for its bold action, are honored by their
choice, and we hope the power of our outreach project will inspire and motivate others to do
what they can to help the victims of sex trafficking."
WHERE:
Berkshire Museum
39 South Street
Pittsfield, MA
“Berkshire Museum is delighted to host WAM Theatre this fall,” says Van Shields, Berkshire
Museum’s executive director. “The innovative nature of their work, from their dedication to
producing art that engages the community to their unique philanthropic model, makes
collaborating with them most rewarding. And that they have chosen to produce a play by a
Berkshire-based author makes this production particularly appropriate for presentation in our
theater.”
WHEN:
Friday, October 12 @ 8pm (Preview)
Saturday, October 13 @ 8pm (Opening Performance)
Sunday, October 14 @ 5pm*
Friday, October 19 @ 8pm
Saturday, October 20 @ 8pm
Sunday, October 21 @ 5pm*
Friday, October 26 @ 8pm
Saturday, October 27 @ 8pm
Sunday, October 28 @ 5pm
*Performance followed by a talkback
TICKETS:
$25 adults
$15 students + groups of 10 or more
$20 adults/ $12 students + groups (Preview Price for Friday, October 12 8pm Performance)
$30 2 for 1 Sunday Movie/Theatre deal with Berkshire Museum’s Little Cinema (code 2for1)
Purchase by calling 1-800-838-3006 or online at www.WAMTheatre.com
CAST:
Elizabeth Donnelly*- Sally/Pow
Erin Ouellette - Marcy/Marcelle
Rylan Morsbach - Billy/Captain Billy/Louie
Eileen Schuyler*- Alyssa
Ryan Winkles*- Joe/Johannes
*Member of Actors Equity Association
CREATIVE TEAM:
Director-Kristen van Ginhoven
Scenic Designer- Juliana von Haubrich
Costume Designer-Rita Watson
Lighting Designer-Meryl Joseph
Sound Designer-Brad Berridge
Choreographer-Rosie Spring
Stage Manager-Christopher Donovan
Technical Director-Sam Craig
Associate Producer-Corissa Bryant
Graphic Designer-Enrico Spada
The production sponsor is Mission Bar & Tapas. Other sponsors include: Berkshire Museum,
Adams Community Bank, Arizona Pizza, Berkshire Bank Foundation, Cohen Kinne Valicenti &
Cook LLP, Greylock Federal Credit Union, Interprint and Pittsfield Coop Bank.
Other organizations helping to make this production possible include: Barrington Stage
Company, Berkshire Museum, Berkshire Theatre Group, Greenbergs, Luminix Light, Sonoco
and Williams College.
About WAM Theatre:
WAM Theatre is a theatre company based in the Berkshires of Massachusetts and the Capital
Region of New York State. Inspired by the book ‘Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into
Opportunity for Women Worldwide’ by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, WAM Theatre
was founded in 2009 by professional theatre artists Kristen van Ginhoven and Leigh Strimbeck.
WAM’s philanthropic mission is two-fold; first, producing theatrical events for everyone, with a
focus on women theatre artists and/or stories of women and girls; second, to donate a portion of
the proceeds from those events to organizations that benefit women and girls. WAM has donated
nearly $5000 to its beneficiaries by creating professional theatre for everyone that benefit women
and girls. www.wamtheatre.com
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