Audition Notice: “Ampersand” by Vincent Delaney

Auditions for the upcoming Ampersand by Seattle-based playwright Vincent Delaney will take place this coming weekend at GRCC Spectrum Theater, 160 Fountain Street, Grand Rapids. Auditions will be held on February 4th and 5th on the second floor of Spectrum Theater. Ampersand premieres in March and is certain to keep audiences laughing – and guessing! The list of characters is below. Mark your calendars and come out to read for this fast and furious 3-person farce!

Ampersand – Audition Information:

Director: Randy Wyatt
Cast: 3 (2 Men/1 Woman)

Roles:
Kate & Clones – Female, 30’s-40’s
Marlowe & Clones – Male, 30’s-40’s
Marlowe’s Dad – Male, 50’s-60’s

Audition Dates:
February 4th & 5th, 2012 – 2PM to 5PM, Spectrum Theater Room 211

Production Dates:
March 22-31, 2012

Description:
Kate and Marlowe fly to Switzerland to rehabilitate their marriage. Then their clones arrive on the scene. Then Marlowe’s dysfunctional dad turns up in a connecting room. A fast-paced dark farce that throws you headlong into questions about marriage, family and how we try to shape those we say we adore.
[Explore Ampersand…]

Script Perusal Information: A non-printable perusal script, available for reading online may be downloaded at the Actors’ Theatre website.

The Grand Rapids Press Review for “Next Fall”

The Grand Rapids Press gives Next Fall 3 out of 4 stars!  Check out this excerpt from the article:

‘Next Fall’ by Actors’ Theatre Explores the Differences, Depths of Faith

By Lorilee Craker | The Grand Rapids Press

Ellie Frances as Holly, left, and Amy Osborn as Arlene, right, perform in "Next Fall" during a final rehearsal Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Spectrum Theatre. (Photo credit: Katie Greene | The Grand Rapids Press)

GRAND RAPIDS — “Next Fall” is the kind of play that makes you think about the characters and their story for a long time after the curtain call.

A full house at Spectrum Theater on Thursday night was moved to tears and laughter, sometimes at the same moment, as six gifted players told the tale of Luke (Dylan Harris) and Adam (Larry Young), a gay couple with striking differences in their world views. Luke is an evangelical Christian and Adam is an agnostic.

The play opens with Luke lying in a coma, the victim of a car accident, with his friends and family converging upon a Jewish hospital in New York. The fact that the hospital is Jewish factors into the conversation about faith, or lack of it. Catholicism, Judaism, evangelicalism and agnosticism all are discussed to varying degrees.

There are no pat answers in a script that raises excellent questions of what it means to believe. What falls away and what rises to the surface as death and loss lurk in a hospital corridor? End-of-life decisions must be made for Luke, and Adam is shut out, not only of the decisions, but Luke’s hospital room as well.

The audience gets to know Adam and Luke through flashbacks of their five-year relationship. We witness the ongoing conversations — and tensions — that arise between the two as they grapple with opposing beliefs about God, heaven, hell, salvation and so much more. (…)

Read the rest of the review for Next Fall here on www.mlive.com.

There are still some seats available for this upcoming weekend!  Go to www.atgr.org today to order your tickets.

Warm Up and Show Your Love for the Arts in Grand Rapids

Psst! Fall in love with GR Arts (all over again) with these sweet winter deals from all of our friends involved with CulturePassGR!

Go to www.atgr.org to learn more!

“Next Fall” Video

Check out this YouTube video on Next Fall creeated by GRCCtv on our current production.  Don’t forget, Next Fall is only running through Feb. 4th – and you don’t want to miss this one!

Go to the Actors’ Theatre website for more information and to order your tickets today!

“Next Fall” in On The Town

Did you see the article about Next Fall by Katerie Prior of On the Town?  If not, read on:

(From www.mlive.com)

Actors’ Theatre Explores Faith in its Upcoming Production, “Next Fall”

By Katerie Prior | On-the-Town

“A faith is a necessity to a man,” author Victor Hugo once wrote. “Woe to him who believes in nothing.” Even if faith is a necessity, at some point in life, we find that faith tested. Whether the test is life-threatening or small (something that comes up in conversation with good friends), we gain insight into the complexities of faith in a belief. This month, Actors’ Theatre explores this concept of faith in Next Fall.

In some ways, Luke and Adam are the perfect odd couple. Luke is a young, devout Christian. Adam is older, a bit of a hypochondriac, and a staunch atheist. It’s a dynamic in their relationship that leads to witty, sometimes contradictory banter around more profound conversations. But when Luke is in an accident and falls into a coma, Adam is heartbroken and somewhat lost. Grappling for answers from friends and Luke’s divorced parents, Adam is left remembering Luke’s words and pondering the faith in his own beliefs.

When Next Fall premiered off-Broadway in 2009, it was a critical success. On Broadway a year later, the play was nominated for numerous awards, including Best Play. But the real attraction to the play is the conversation between the characters about faith, belief, and religion. While written in a smart, approachable, and sometimes funny repartee, you’re still left pondering some of the questions that are being asked, even if they conflict with your own beliefs.

For Director Tom Kaechele, contemplating the nature of belief is something he hopes that audiences will do. “I think they’ll come away reflecting on their own belief system and having a better understanding of other views,” he said. “I think that when theater is at its best, it gets people thinking, and opens their minds to other possibilities.”

Actors’ Theatre presents Geoffrey Nauffts’s Next Fall January 26—February 4. Showtime is 8 p.m. at Spectrum Theater, 160 Fountain St. NE. Tickets are $26—$22 with $10 student rush tickets available forty-five minutes before the show. Call 234-3946 or visit actorstheatregrandrapids.org

Next Fall runs January 27th & 28th and February 2, 3 & 4th.  Go to the Actors’ Theatre website today to order your tickets for this wonderful show.