Taught by theater professionals, at The Peanut Gallery students grades 1-6 will create and perform an original show with songs from Broadway musicals – ALL IN ONE WEEK! An official Peanut Gallery T-Shirt is included, plus a Pizza Party following the performance for all cast members, family and friends.

2010 Camp Sessions

Five Classes 9AM-2PM

July 5-9 (grades 1-3)
July 12-16 (grades 4-6)
July 19-23 (grades 1-3)
July 26-30 (grades 4-6)

Schedule:
Monday-Friday, 9AM-2PM
Please drop off your child no earlier than 8:45AM and pick up no later than 2:15PM.

Performance begins around 1:30PM on the last day of class.

Please inquire about after-care.

Bring your own lunch. Water will be provided.

Sign Up Today! Pay the Peanut Gallery registration fee by credit card on-line by clicking here. Then click the image below to see the sign-up form. Print out the form, complete it (please note on the form that you paid on-line), and send to: The Gallery Players, ATT: The Peanut Gallery, 199 14th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11215.

By Arthur Miller

Buy tickets.

Groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $13 each (regular price $18). Click here for group tickets.

Producer – Graham Mills/The Gallery Players
Director – Heather Siobhan Curran
Associate Producer – Hannah Mason
Set Designer – Lilia Trenkova
Costume Designer – Megan Q. Dudley
Lighting Designer – David Roy
Sound Designer – Neal J. Freeman
Props Master – Virginia Monte
Dramaturg – Amanda White
Production Stage Manager – Michael Aaron Jones*
Assistant Stage Manager – Kristine Schlacter

The Cast

Judge Danforth – John Blaylock*
John Proctor – Gil Brady*
Reverend Hale – Daniel Damiano
Tituba – Lisa Darden*
Mercy Lewis – Genevieve Gearhart
Mary Warren – Emily Hagburg
Willard – Justin Herfel*
Reverend Parris – Frederic Heringes*
Thomas Putnam – John Isgro*
Giles Corey – Tom Lawson, Jr.*
Abigail Williams – Lindsay Mack
Francis Nurse – Russell Mahrt
Elizabeth Proctor – Rhyn McLemore*
Betty – Sofia Munn
Ann Putnam/Sarah Goode – Alison Ostergaard
Judge Hathorne – Bob Pritchard
Susanna – Elisa Pupko
Ezekiel Cheever – Joe Regan
Rebecca Nurse – Gina Stahlnecker*

*indicates members of Actors’ Equity Association

Pictured (l to r): Lisa Darden, Emily Hagburg, Lindsay Mack, Elisa Pupko, and Genevieve Gearhart. Photo by Bella Muccari.

This exciting drama is both a gripping historical play and a timely parable. Based on historical people and real events, Miller’s classic play about the witch-hunts and trials in 17th century Salem, Massachusetts, is a searing portrait of a community engulfed by hysteria. The story focuses on John Proctor, a farmer, and Abigail Williams, the young servant-girl who maliciously accuses Proctor’s wife Elizabeth of witchcraft. Proctor brings Abigail to court to admit the lie—and it is here that a monstrous course of bigotry and deceit is terrifyingly depicted. Proctor, instead of saving his wife, finds himself also accused of witchcraft and ultimately condemned with a host of others. Written in 1953, The Crucible is a mirror that Miller uses to reflect the anti-Communist hysteria inspired by Senator Joseph McCarthy’s “witch-hunts” in the United States.

Winner of the 1953 Tony Award for Best Play.

“A powerful drama.” —NY Times.

“Strongly written.” —NY Daily News.

Buy tickets.

Groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $13 each (regular price $18). Click here for group tickets.

Pictured (l to r): Lindsay Mack and Gil Brady in rehearsal. Photo by Bella Muccari.

Performance Schedule
Saturday, March 20 at 8:00 PM – Opening night
Sunday, March 21 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, March 25 at 8:00 PM
Friday, March 26 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, March 27 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, March 27 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, March 28 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, April 1 at 8:00 PM
Friday, April 2 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, April 3 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, April 3 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, April 4 at 3:00 PM – final performance

Pictured (l to r): Director Heather Siobhan Curran in rehearsal with actors Sofia Munn and Frederic Heringes. Photo by Bella Muccari.

Rehearsals begin March 27th, 2010, evenings and weekends. Run May 1-23, 2010, Thursday-Sunday. 16 performances. All auditions, rehearsals, and performances at The Gallery Players.

Auditions by appointment for the below roles* (Stone, Buddy/Irwin, Carla/Alaura, Pancho Vargas/Lt. Munoz, Werner Krieger/Luther/Gaines) ONLY: Monday, March 1, 6:30-10:30pm. Email headshot/resume to auditions(at)galleryplayers.com. No phone calls. Indicate clearly the subject line character(s) you are submitting for.

Open call auditions for all characters Wednesday, March 3 and Thursday, March 4, 7-9 pm (sign-in begins 6:30 pm both days). AEA priority. No submissions necessary for open calls; just show up.

Callbacks 3/7 & 3/9.

Please prepare 16 bars of a jazz standard or a musical theater song in the style of the show. Please provide sheet music in the correct key, no lead sheets. An accompanist will be provided.

With the exceptions of Stine and Stone, everyone in City of Angels doubles in both worlds; one being Stone’s sleek black and white world from a detective novel/film noir movie that Stine is writing, the second being a colored world where Stine is getting his novel made into a movie. Both worlds are located in 1940s Los Angeles. Unless otherwise noted, the real life characters will be listed first and the movie characters second.

Seeking:

10 men, 6 women

Stine (M 25-40) Strong Bari-tenor. A successful New York fiction writer in the process of adapting his novel for the screen. Extremely intelligent and ambitious, but easily tempted.

Stone* (M 30-45) Baritone. Stine’s protagonist in his novel and his alter ego. A private eye detective and ex-cop whose hard shelled grittiness is matched by a sex appeal and deep sensitivity. Must have some hand –to-hand combat training. A Humphrey Bogart type.

Gabby/Bobbi (F 25-40) Alto with belt. Gabby is Stine’s wife. She is sharp, confident and independent although constantly hurt. Bobbi is Stone’s soul mate and ex-wife who starts as a nightclub singer and ends up as a prostitute. Looking for a Vivien Leigh or Mary Astor type.

Donna/Oolie (F 20-35) Mezzo with strong belt. Donna is Buddy’s secretary and Oolie is Stone’s secretary. Both are brassy, hard working women who are constantly taken advantage of by the men they work for. A Martha Raye or Eve Arden type.

Buddy Fidler/Irwin S. Irving* (M 30-60) Baritone. Buddy is a mega-movie producer/director ala David O. Selznick. Irwin is a womanizing movie mogul. Both men are more concerned with money and product before integrity and art.

Carla/Alaura Kingsley* (F 30-40) Mezzo. Carla is Buddy’s glamorous movie star wife and Alaura is a femme fatale and the wife of the older millionaire, Luther Kingsley. She exudes mystery, class, and sex. A Lana Turner type.

Avril Raines/Mallory Kingsley (F 18-25) Mezzo with strong belt. Avril is a Hollywood starlet whose looks far exceed her intelligence. Mallory is the seductive and impetuous daughter of Luther Kingsley and step-daughter of Alaura. Looking for an Ann Margret or Grace Kelly type.

Pancho Vargas/Lt. Munoz* (M 30-45) Bari-tenor. Vargas is a popular Latin actor ala Fernando Lamas who ends up playing Munoz in the film. Munoz is a police lieutenant and ex partner of Stone’s. Must be a good mover.

Jimmy Powers/Peter Kingsley (M 20-40) Tenor. Jimmy Powers is a crooner/matinee idol. A young Mel Torme or Perry Como. Peter Kingsley is the charming, yuppie son of Luther Kingsley and step-son of Alaura. Looking for a strong singer.

Werner Krieger/ Luther Kingsley/ Gaines* (M 50-70) Any vocal type. Werner is an older actor who ends up playing Luther in the film. Luther is a wealthy industrialist in the process of dying. Gaines is a police commissioner.

Angel City 4: Four dynamic singer/mover/actors (2M, 2F) who are experienced in tight jazz harmonies a la The Manhattan Transfer. They act as narrators, characters in both worlds, and their own four part singing group:
Soprano and Alto. The two women will also play all of the other female parts: Margaret, Margie, Bootsie, Anna, Employees on Set, Club Patrons, Party Guests, etc.)
Tenor and Bass. The two men also play many other roles including: Mahoney, Yamato, Gilbert, Shoeshine Boy, Employees on Set, Club Patrons, Party Guests, etc.

Two Male Ensemble Members:
M1 (Any age) Tenor. Looking for a shorter actor who can move well to play many character roles including: Sonny, Del DaCosta, Pasco, Gene, Hospital Orderly, Butler, Man with Camera, Club Patron, etc. Must have some hand-to-hand combat training.
M2 (Any Age) Baritone. Looking for a bigger actor (either in weight, height or both) to play many character roles including: Big Six, Dr. Mandril, Hospital Orderly, Man in Phone Booth, Studio Engineer, Guard, Club Patron, Party Guest, etc. Must have some hand-to-hand combat training.

All roles open. All ethnicities are encouraged to audition. Equity/Non-Equity. No Pay. (AEA members receive travel stipend)

Rehearsals begin March 27, 2010 for 5 weeks (evenings and weekends). Run: May 1 – 23, 2010. 16 perfs Thursday thru Sunday. Small stipend pay.

Seeking:

The right individuals will possess a theater background, attention to detail, the ability to prioritize, and will be creative thinkers with excellent people skills. Most work will take place evenings and weekends.

Costume Designer: a qualified well-organized individual who can research, design and execute the costume design within the timeline and stay within the budget. Gallery has a small stock of costumes however the designer should plan on a combination of shopping, building, borrowing and renting. Must be able to attend dress rehearsals 4/27/10 – 4/30/09, strike on 5/23/10, as well as regular production meetings.

Assistant Stage managers (2): (non-AEA only) Organized individuals who will report to PSM, run show backstage and assist with wardrobe. ASMs will be on hand for tech week 4/24-5/1 as well as during the run of the show.

To be considered for this position please e-mail your resume, an informative cover letter and two references that we can call to designstaff(at)galleryplayers.com. Please indicate in the subject line what position you are applying for.

This is an AEA approved showcase; there is no salary – small stipend pay only. All rehearsals and performances take place at The Gallery Players.

Book and Lyrics by Tony Kushner
Music by Jeanine Tesori

“If you have any level of investment in New York Theater, established or independent, you need to go to The Gallery Players production of Caroline, or Change. Please go, you will be glad you did, and you will kick yourself if you miss it. It was an astonishing performance, reinvigorating and inspiring. Mr. Viveros (The Bus/The Dryer) is among the top five voices I’ve ever been in the same room with. I can’t over-hype him enough. The real miracle, though, is Teisha Duncan (Caroline). She has a piece of music that leads to the end of the play, and only minutes into it did I realize that I was sitting there, mouth agape, hands over my eyebrows, in the presence of greatness. If you think that there are no productions worth seeing for $18, this show will change your entire worldview.” -SeanRants.com

“Brilliant material, and a production that does the company proud. If you haven’t seen this musical, you should. Duncan is giving one of the best musical performances I have ever seen on an off-off-Broadway stage.”
-Dan Dinero, Theatre Is Easy

“The Gallery Players’ production of Caroline, or Change lives up to Kushner’s theatre, theatre that can engage us emotionally and then push us politically. Housed in the comfortable yet intimate home of The Gallery Players and with a cast that pounds the stage with vigor and vibrato, this production is explosive.”
-Dan Kitrosser, nytheatre.com

“Caroline, or Change is one of the most difficult but compelling musicals of the past decade. So the mere fact that The Gallery Players, one of Brooklyn’s strongest Off-Off-Broadway theater companies, agreed to stage its first New York City revival is pretty impressive. Jeremy Gold Kronenberg’s elegant, solidly acted revival captures the characters’ emotional insecurities in full detail. Teisha Duncan gives a ferocious, thoroughly physical performance of Caroline that manages to wipe out any lingering memories of Tonya Pinkins’ acclaimed performance in the original production.”
-Matt Windman, AMNY

Brooklyn’s Gallery Players have long held a reputation for producing some of the finest productions at any level of New York theater. And yet despite such a pedigree, I couldn’t help but wonder if the Players had bit off more than they could chew with their current choice of show, Caroline, or Change. Could the Gallery Players pull off a show this profound? The answer is a resounding yes. Every aspect of Jeremy Gold Kronenberg’s carefully nourished production is magnificent.
-Doug Strassler, offoffonline.com

Producer – Lanie Zipoy/The Gallery Players
Director – Jeremy Gold Kronenberg
Music Director – Nehemiah Luckett
Assistant Director – Allison Bressi
Choreographer – Micheal Rice
Set Designer – Edward T. Morris
Costume Designer – Soule Golden
Lighting Designer – Mike Billings
Sound Designer – Jillian Marie Walker
Production Stage Manager – Andrew Zachary Cohen*
Assistant Stage Manager – Marina Steinberg

Pictured (l to r): Daniel Henri Luttway and Teisha Duncan in The Gallery Players’ production of Caroline, or Change. Photo by Bella Muccari.

The Cast

Caroline Thibodeaux – Teisha Duncan
Noah Gellman – Daniel Henri Luttway
Rose Gellman – Eileen Tepper*
Stuart Gellman – Peter Gantenbein*
Emmie Thibodeaux – Elyse McKay Taylor*
Radio – Heather Davis, Markeisha Ensley*, & Nikki Stephenson*
Bus/Dryer – Frank Viveros*
Moon – Gisela Adisa*
Washing Machine – Marcie Henderson*
Dotty – Ellisha Marie Thomas
Grandma Gellman – Gael Schaefer*
Grandpa Gellman – John Weigand*
Mr. Stopnick – Bill Weeden*
Jackie Thibodeaux – Barrington Walters Jr.
Joe Thibodeaux – River Aguirre

*appearing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association

Pictured (l to r): Marcie Henderson and Teisha Duncan in The Gallery Players’ production of Caroline, or Change. Photo by Bella Muccari.

Set in 1963 in sleepy Lake Charles, Louisiana, Caroline, or Change centers its action on the Gellman family and their African-American maid, Caroline. “Nothing ever happen underground in Louisiana / ‘Cause there ain’t no underground in Louisiana / There is only underwater.” Caroline informs the audience at the beginning of the show, and Caroline herself is underwater, drifting through her life, nearly paralyzed by her circumstances – a single mother of four working in a service job to a white family. Caroline spends her days in the basement laundry room, with the Washing Machine (a sultry Caribbean blues singer), Dryer (a fiery R&B singer), and radio (a Supremes-like trio), with an afternoon visit from the young Gellman son, Noah, who is just as isolated upstairs in his home as Caroline is downstairs. A fragile, yet beautiful friendship has developed between Noah and Caroline since his mother’s death. Noah’s new stepmother Rose, unable to give Caroline a raise, tells Caroline that she may keep the money Noah leaves in his pockets. Caroline balks, and refuses to take money from a child – but her own children desperately need food, clothing and shoes…Does she or doesn’t she?

Performance Schedule
SOLD OUT Saturday, January 30 at 8:00 PM – Opening night
Sunday, January 31 at 3:00 PM – matinee
SOLD OUT Thursday, February 4 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Friday, February 5 at 8:00 PM – Alumni Night
SOLD OUT Saturday, February 6 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Sunday, February 7 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, February 11 at 8:00 PM
Friday, February 12 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Saturday, February 13 at 2:00 PM – matinee
SOLD OUT Saturday, February 13 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Sunday, February 14 at 3:00 PM – matinee
SOLD OUT Thursday, February 18 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Friday, February 19 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Saturday, February 20 at 2:00 PM – matinee
SOLD OUT Saturday, February 20 at 8:00 PM
SOLD OUT Sunday, February 21 at 3:00 PM – final performance

Pictured (l to r): Nikki Stephenson, Heather Davis, Teisha Duncan, and Markeisha Ensley in The Gallery Players’ production of Caroline, or Change. Photo by Bella Muccari.

By Christopher Durang
Original Music by Michael Friedman

Illustration by Michael C. Malbrough

“Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge has all the Durangian insanity you’ve come to expect. The main attraction is Joanna Parson’s very funny rendering of Mrs. Cratchit.”
-Neil Genzlinger, The New York Times

“Modern, funny, refreshing, and filled with spirit. I’d be hard-pressed to pick a favorite, funniest moment of the show, and that’s a good thing. Just when you think it can’t get any funnier or more bizarre, it does. Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge is definitely the antidote for those suffering from the syrupy schmaltz so often associated with holidays. If you see one holiday show this season, I recommend this one!”
-J Jordan, nytheatre.com

“Any version of Dickens’ classic in which Scrooge buys the Cratchit family McDonalds’ happy meals for their holiday feast is okay by me. For Durang fans, a trip to Brooklyn would seem to be in the Christmas cards.”
-Erik Haagensen, Backstage

“Christopher Durang presents a masterful mix of merriment and mirth in his absolutely delightful Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge, a hilarious send-up of the Charles Dickens classic “A Christmas Carol,” now being given its New York premiere by The Gallery Players. The play is a hoot from start to finish, injecting a breath of fresh air (and numerous topical references) into a beloved holiday tale. Fun for the entire family, it’s a nice yuletide treat for all.”
-Judd Hollander, The Epoch Times

Producer: Robin Mishik-Jett/The Gallery Players
Director: Trey Compton
Music Director: Jason Burrow
Associate Producer: Craig Anthony Bannister
Set Designer: Lilia Trenkova
Costume Designer: Steven Manuel
Lighting & Sound Designer: David Roy
Props Master: Virginia Monte
PSM: Kyle Atkins*
ASM: Emily Louick
Assistant Director: Mikey LoBalsamo

Pictured (l to r): Joanna Parson, Doug Plaut, Angela Dirksen, and Adam Segaller in The Gallery Players’ production of Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. Photo by Bella Muccari.

The Cast

Scrooge – Douglas Rees*
Ghost – Safiya Fredericks*
Mrs. Bob Cratchit – Joanna Parson*
Bob Cratchit – Adam Segaller*
Tiny Tim – Doug Plaut
Boy – Sloan Grenz*
Girl – Carly Vernon
Female 1 – Angela Dirksen
Female 2 – Sarah Amandes
Male 1 – E.C. Kelly*
Male 2 – Greg Kalafatas
Male 3 – Kyle Metzger*

*appearing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association

Pictured: Douglas Rees in The Gallery Players’ production of Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. Photo by Bella Muccari.

In this departure from Dickens, young Scrooge’s exclamations of “Bah, humbug!” are an undiagnosed “kind of seasonal Tourette’s Syndrome,” and The Ghost of Christmas Past is played by a sassy African-American woman with enough attitude to portray all three spirits (which she does). She tries to show Scrooge his past, present and future in order to change him, but her magic keeps malfunctioning in Durang’s version of the beloved holiday classic, and they consistently find themselves transported to the wrong time and place. She tries to take Scrooge back to see his old employers, the Fezziwigs—”always an audience favorite”—but instead she and Scrooge keep appearing in the present at the Cratchit’s pathetic home. Mrs. Bob Cratchit, a minor character in the Dickens, takes center stage here. No longer loving and long suffering, Mrs. Bob is in a rage: She’s sick of Tiny Tim (the goody-goody crippled child), she hates her twenty other children (most of them confined to the root cellar), including oversized Little Nell, and she wants to get drunk and jump off London Bridge. As the Ghost loses more control, the plot morphs into parodies of Oliver Twist, “The Gift of the Magi” and It’s a Wonderful Life. And to make matters worse, Scrooge and Mrs. Bob seem to be kindred souls falling in love. With a dénouement that is two parts Touched by an Angel and one part The Queen of Mean, Scrooge’s tale of redemption and gentle grace is placed squarely on its head.

Pictured (l to r): Joanna Parson and Adam Segaller in The Gallery Players’ production of Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. Photo by Bella Muccari.

Performance Schedule
Saturday, December 5 at 8:00 PM – Opening night
Sunday, December 6 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, December 10 at 8:00 PM
Friday, December 11 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, December 12 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, December 12 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, December 13 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, December 17 at 8:00 PM
Friday, December 18 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, December 19 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, December 19 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, December 20 at 3:00 PM – final performance

Selected plays may be work-shopped prior to the beginning of rehearsal. Playwrights will be provided with the services of a producer/dramaturg, director and actors to provide feedback for the re-write process. All re-writes will be playwright-driven therefore the playwright must be available for this exploration.

Submission guidelines:
1. Plays must be un-produced (readings are O.K.)
2. Length may be from 10 to 30 minutes (no musicals please)
3. Playwrights will not direct their own work.
4. Deadline for submissions is March 31st 2010
5. Send two copies of your script plus a resume and plot synopsis to:
The Gallery Players
Attn: Black Box New Play Festival
199, 14th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11215

We do not accept e-mail submissions. Scripts will not be returned. If you need acknowledgment of receipt of materials, please include a stamped, self-addressed postcard.

Music by Jeffrey Lodin
Book and Lyrics by William Squier

Illustration by Michael C. Malbrough

Producer: Heather Siobhan Curran/The Gallery Players
Director: Neal J. Freeman
Music Director: Lilli Wosk
Choreographer: Katharine Pettit
Set Designer: Ann Bartek
Associate Set Designer/Props Master: Elyse Handelman
Costume Designer: Megan Q. Dudley
Assistant Costume Designer: Tracy Klein
Lighting Designer: Tsubasa Kamei
Video Designer/Supervisor: Nicholas Meyer
Production Stage Manager: Caitlin Orr
Assistant Stage Manager: Janice Acevedo
Assistant Director: Allison Bressi

Pictured (l to r): Kenny Wade Marshall and David Perlman in The Gallery Players’ production of Top of the Heap. Photo by Jen Maufrais Kelly.

The Cast

Ronny Mauro – Kenny Wade Marshall*
Gil Webster – David Perlman*
Elsa Orwell – Anette Michelle Sanders*
Meryl Dean – Hollis Scarborough*
Coochie Kovack – Lorinne Lampert*
Edgar Callahan – James Andrew Walsh*
Harmon Laybourne – Greg Horton*
Sidney – Ray Bendana*
Joey/Ensemble – Roy Flores
Phyllis/Ensemble – Tina Marie Casamento*
Ensemble – Josh Bates, Ronn Burton, John Cardenas, Kristin Farrell*, Carolyn Hartvigsen, Natasha Soto-Albors*
*appearing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association

It’s New York City, 1955. The Brooklyn Dodgers are about to square off with the Yankees in a World Series that will net “dem bums” their first title in fifty-five years. So, T.V.’s most popular variety program, ‘Top of the Heap,’ is headed to Brooklyn for a live, remote broadcast tied into the Series. A struggling pair of nightclub comics see this as a chance to bluff their way out of the dives where they perform and into television. But, they soon discover just how high a price they’ll have to pay. Top of the Heap features a timeless jazz-inflected score with music by Jeffrey Lodin and book and lyrics by William Squier. The Stamford Advocate called Top of the Heap, “A gritty musical that takes a look at the darker side of showbiz.”

Listen to the Broadway Bullet podcast featuring lyricist/bookwriter William Squier, composer Jeffrey Lodin, and director Neal J. Freeman, including performances of three songs from the show.

Pictured: Kenny Wade Marshall and the cast of The Gallery Players’ production of Top of the Heap. Photo by Jen Maufrais Kelly.

Top of the Heap is directed by The Gallery Players’ Executive Director, Neal J. Freeman (Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Gallery Players; Ensemble Studio Theatre; Sonnet Rep): “Directing Top of the Heap at The Gallery Players is a special privilege for me. As a Brooklyn-based artist, it is easy for me to identify with the struggle of the two leads against the odds to make something special happen for themselves in their home borough. As I walk to rehearsal every day, I imagine the characters working and living on a street just like ours some 50 years ago, and it is both humbling and exhilarating to step into the theater and help to bring the story to life on our stage. I read the piece before listening to it and was immediately captured by the elegance of the story telling. Hearing the wonderfully unique and jazzy score sealed the deal. I knew this was a piece I wanted to direct.”

“Not for nothing is William Squier and Jeffey Lodin’s musical comedy titled “Top of the Heap.” -Rockford Register Star

“A gritty musical that takes a look at the darker side of showbiz.”- The Stamford Advocate

Pictured (l to r): Kenny Wade Marshall and Anette Michelle Sanders in The Gallery Players’ production of Top of the Heap. Photo by Jen Maufrais Kelly.

Performance Schedule
Saturday, October 24 at 8:00 PM – Opening night
Sunday, October 25 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, October 29 at 8:00 PM
Friday, October 30 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, October 31 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, November 1 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, November 5 at 8:00 PM
Friday, November 6 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, November 7 at 2:00 PM – matinee, TALKBACK WITH AUTHORS
Saturday, November 7 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, November 8 at 3:00 PM – matinee

Added performances:
Thursday, November 12 at 8:00 PM
Friday, November 13 at 8:00 PM – ALUMNI NIGHT
Saturday, November 14 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, November 14 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, November 15 at 3:00 PM – final performance

Jeffrey Lodin’s (Music) scores include: Young Abe Lincoln (Theatreworks USA, book/lyrics: John Allen-Promenade Theatre and U.S. Tour in 1994-1995, Disney’s Doug Live! (Walt Disney World, lyrics: W. Squier), About Face (BMI, Dramatist’s Guild, NAMT 08, book/lyrics: David Arthur), 100 Years into the Heart (Village Theater 07 Festival of New Musicals, Spirit of Broadway, NYMF 04, book: Richard Vetere, Lyrics: W. Squier), Rebels 1775 (Starlight Theatre, Spirit of Broadway, book: J. Allen, Mana Allen, W. Squier, lyrics: W. Squier, J. Allen), Nice People (book/lyrics: Tony Tanner), Naughty Girl (CAP21, book/lyrics: Scott Hayes, co-music: Christopher Seppe). Currently working on Blindsided By A Diaper (book: Dana Hilmer & W. Squier, lyrics: W. Squier). His songs appear on television: P.B.&J. Otter; film: Doug’s First Movie; the International Children’s Festival (lyrics: W. Squier); cd: A Celebration of Life (lyrics: D. Arthur; vocals: Randy Graff & Judy Kuhn). Recent Music Direction credits include the world premieres of Glimmerglass (Cohen/Drachman/Bolt), Love, Inc. (Marc Castle) and Liberty, the Musical (Goldstein/Goldstein). He has conducted for Chita Rivera and the late great Greg Burge, and played piano for Andy Gibb and Mongo Santamaria, amongst others. He was awarded a 2004 Meet the Composer Grant by the New England Foundation for the Arts. Jeff is a proud member of the Dramatist’s Guild.

William Squier (Book & Lyrics) is an Emmy Award winner (WKYC-TV’s Unusual Phenomenon) whose plays and musicals have appeared Off-Bway: The Treatment of Doctor Love (Playhouse 91); Off-Off Bway: G-Man (Nat Horne Theatre), Babalu (Sanford Meisner, music/co-lyrics: J. Goldstein); Walt Disney World: Disney’s Doug Live! (music: J. Lodin); regionally: Boywonder (Contemporary Arts, Depot Theatre), 100 Years into the Heart (Village Theater 07 Festival of New Musicals, Spirit of Broadway Theatre, NYMF 04, book: R. Vetere, music: J. Lodin), The Klemperers’ New Clothes (Actors’ Playhouse, LA Festival of New American Musicals, music: N. Weiss), Rebels 1775 (Starlight Theatre, Spirit of Broadway, co-book: J. Allen, M. Allen, music: J. Lodin), Route 66 (Kansas City Crossroads Festival 06, Village Theater 09 Festival of New Musicals, co-book: J. Goldstein, music: F. Stark), The 3 Scrooges (Curtain Call, Ingersoll Theatre, licensed by Miracle of 2 Productions, music/co-book: J. Goldstein) and most recently Blindsided By A Diaper (book: Dana Hilmer, music: J. Lodin); television: It’s the Weekend (ABC, music: J. Goldstein), P.B.&J. Otter (Disney Channel, music: J. Lodin); film: Doug’s First Movie (music: J. Lodin); in workshop: ASCAP/Disney Musical Theater Workshop (CA, FL & NY) among others. He received a 2003 Connecticut Artist Fellowship, grants from the Puffin Foundation and the Anna Sosenko Assist Trust, the Coleman A. Jennings Award, Jackie White Memorial Award and 11th Annual National Children’s Festival’s new script award. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild and BMI.

Production History/Acknowledgements

Jeffrey Lodin and William Squier began writing Top of the Heap in the Tony-Honored BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. The musical was further developed via readings at the Broadway Theater Institute, Collaborative Arts Project 21, the Dramatist’s Guild Musical Theatre Workshop, New American Theater’s New Voices in the Heartland Festival (Rockford, IL), Theater Building Chicago and York Theater Company. It was first fully staged at Curtain Call, Inc., (Stamford, CT) in 2004. Top of the Heap was one of the winners of the 2006 Global Search for New Musicals and presented at the Cardiff International Festival of Musical Theater. It spent five weeks in 2007 at the Spirit of Broadway Theater (Norwich, CT). While the musical was in performance at SBT, it was also given the National Music Theater Network’s ‘Director’s Choice’ Award and performed at the New York Musical Theater Festival.

By John Guare

“The Gallery Players puts together a lively, visually appealing production that moves with pace and professionalism…an explosion of absurdity that pits startlingly funny lines against the tragic circumstances of mundane, unfulfilled lives.”
-Jo Ann Rosen, nytheatre.com

Producer: Neal J. Freeman and Brian Michael Flanagan for The Gallery Players
Director: Dev Bondarin
Set Designer: Ann Bartek
Costume Designer: Brad Scoggins
Lighting Designer: Ryan Bauer
Sound Designer: Chris Rummel
Props Master: Virginia C. Monte
Production Stage Manager: Jodi Witherell
Assistant Stage Manager: Doug Faulborn

Pictured (l to r): Burke Adams, Nora Vetter, Emilie Soffe, Sharon Hunter, and Stacey Scotte in The Gallery Players’ production of The House of Blue Leaves. Photo by Neal J. Freeman.

The Cast

Artie Shaughnessy: Burke Adams*
Bunny Flingus: Stacey Scotte*
Bananas Shaughnessy: Victoria Bundonis*
Ronnie Shaughnessy: Alex Herrald
Corrinna Stroller: Elizabeth Wood*
Head Nun: Sharon Hunter*
Second Nun: Nora Vetter
Little Nun: Emilie Soffe
Billy Einhorn: Tom Cleary*
MP: David Ojala
White Man: Ronn Burton

*appearing courtesy of AEA

Pictured: Stacey Scotte and Burke Adams in The Gallery Players’ production of The House of Blue Leaves. Photo by Neal J. Freeman.

Artie Shaugnessy is a songwriter with visions of glory. Toiling by day as a zoo-keeper, he suffers in seedy lounges by night, plying his wares at piano bars in Queens, New York where he lives with his wife, Bananas, who is. This is much to the chagrin of Artie’s downstairs mistress, Bunny Flingus, who’ll sleep with him anytime but refuses to cook until they are married. On the day the Pope is making his first visit to the city, Artie’s son Ronny goes AWOL from Fort Dix stowing a home made-bomb intended to blow up the Pope in Yankee Stadium. Also arriving are Artie’s old school chum and now a successful Hollywood producer, Billy Einhorn, with his starlet girlfriend in tow. Billy holds the key to Artie’s dreams of getting out of Queens and away from the life he so despises. But like many dreams, this promise of glory evaporates amid the chaos of ordinary lives. Winner of the 1971 Critics Award and the Obie Award as Best American Play.

Pictured: Burke Adams and Victoria Bundonis in The Gallery Players’ production of The House of Blue Leaves. Photo by Neal J. Freeman.

Performance Schedule
Saturday, September 12 at 8:00 PM – Opening night
Sunday, September 13 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, September 17 at 8:00 PM
Friday, September 18 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, September 19 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, September 19 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, September 20 at 3:00 PM – matinee
Thursday, September 24 at 8:00 PM
Friday, September 25 at 8:00 PM
Saturday, September 26 at 2:00 PM – matinee
Saturday, September 26 at 8:00 PM
Sunday, September 27 at 3:00 PM – final performance

“The Tragedy of King Lear is insanely good! The decorated Park Slope troupe pours its heart out on stage, wringing wonderful performances from the cast. Dominic Cuskern portrays Lear with appropriate levels of mania, chastened entitlement and regret. King Lear has extended periods of brilliance.”
-Mike McLaughlin, The Brooklyn Paper

Producing Directors: Sidney Fortner and Dominic Cuskern for the Gallery Players
Production Stage Manager: Kristine Ayers
Set and Costume Designer: Sidney Fortner
Lighting Designer: Emily McGillicuddy
Fight Choreographer: Robert Najarian

The Cast

Albany – Kevin Blackwelder
Kent – John Blaylock*
Curan – Jonah Ramu Cohen
Lear – Dominic Cuskern*
Oswald – Andrew Danish
King of France, Captain, Soldier – Adam Ewer
Fool, Doctor – Andrew Firda*
Goneril – Suzy Kimball
Gentleman 1 – Mark Kinch
Gloucester – Elliott Mayer*
Edgar – Brandon Mears
Herald, Servant 2 – Peter Oliver
Cornwall – Ross Pivec
Regan – Molly Pope
Burgundy, Gentleman 2, Servant 2 – Jerrod Kazumi Popham
Cordelia – Jessica Rothenberg
Edmun – Montgomery Sutton*

*Appearing courtesy of AEA

King Lear (Dominic Cuskern) is amused by his Fool (Andrew Firda) in The Gallery Players’ production of The Tragedy of King Lear. Photo by Joshua Luria.

Players Shakespeare, The Gallery Players’ newly-created Summer Shakespeare Festival, presents Shakespeare’s classic tale of a king’s descent into madness. Dominic Cuskern, a Gallery Players veteran and long-time member of the Pearl Theatre Company’s Resident Acting company, stars as Lear.

Read the nytheatre.com cyber interview with Dominic Cuskern.

King Lear is believed by many to be Shakespeare’s masterpiece. Written as a political and social commentary on post-Elizabethan England, King Lear demonstrates what results when individuals let vanity and greed lead them to trespass the bounds of order and proportion, ignoring their natural responsibility to family, community and country. The chaotic consequences: leaders renounce duty; fathers disown children; children displace fathers; war, homicide, fratricide, suicide, and madness. We join Lear and his counterpart, Gloucester, as they are stripped of position, power, family, and sanity – and in the process, through the unwavering devotion of Kent and the Fool, the filial loves of Edgar and Cordelia – discovering their humanity and what it means to forgive and be forgiven. Lear becomes the antithesis of his former arrogant self; he achieves a life without “lendings” – the accumulated material possessions we cling to for meaning – or the need of them.

NOTE: This show is an addendum to the regular season and is not part of our subscription packages.

Lear (Dominic Cuskern) mourns his youngest daughter, Cordelia (Jessica Rothenberg) in The Gallery Players’ production of The Tragedy of King Lear. Photo by Joshua Luria.

Performance Schedule
Thursday, July 23rd at 8pm
Friday, July 24th at 8pm
Saturday, July 25th at 2pm – matinee
Saturday, July 25th at 8pm
Sunday, July 26th at 3pm – matinee
Monday, July 27th at 7:30pm (Pay What You Can – cash at the door only)
Wednesday, July 29th at 8pm
Thursday, July 30th at 8pm
Friday, July 31st at 8pm
Saturday, August 1st at 2pm – matinee
Saturday, August 1st at 8pm
Sunday, August 2nd at 3pm – matinee, final performance