“RUST” on Stateside

Just in case you missed it – on March 27th, “RUST” was featured on Michigan Radio’s Stateside! Here is an exerpt from the piece:

It’s a familiar Michigan story. In 2008, General Motors decided to shutter a stamping plant in Wyoming – just outside Grand Rapids.

But to Austin Bunn, a new professor of writing at Grand Valley State University, the close of the plant wasn’t the end of a story, but a beginning.

For the next four years, Bunn interviewed the workers at the plant about the experience of job loss, displacement and their lives after the close.

From these transcripts he created a documentary play, RUST. It was originally produced at the Actors’ Theatre of Grand Rapids

Go to www.michiganradio.org to listen to the complete story, and hear an exerpt from featured actors including Tracey Walker, Rena Dam, Chris Nye, Wayne Swezey, GF Korreck, Paul Arnold, Fred Stella, and Laurence Drozd.

Actors’ Congratulates All of this Year’s Grand Award Winners

Did you get the opportunity to attend this year’s Grand Awards? If not, the Grand Rapids Press has a list of all the winners over at www.mlive.com. Thanks to Sue Merrell for the great write up!

We have photos from all the Actors’ Theatre winners over on our Facebook page.  Click the photo below to check them out!

Outstanding Choreography — Kyle Amanda Dutkiewicz, “Spring Awakening”

Photo credit: Moments in Life Photography

Check It Out – Cast List for Next Week’s LOTE IX “Evil Things”

You are not going to want to miss this year’s Living on the Edge!  Actors’ Theatre will present five 10 minute plays, all written by Michigan playwrights.  It is going to be a great night of entertainment.  LOTE runs June 6th through June 9th, starting at 8PM.

“Basement Story” by Austin Bunn
Directed by Lizzy Sulkowski

Cast: Ethan Grimm (Young Man)

“Chapter and Verse” by Mike Smolinski
Directed by Kaile VanOene

Cast:
Brian Alford (Jack)
Sydney Doornbos (Louise)

“This Ground is Heavy” by Andrew Wernette
Directed by Mackenzie McElroy

Cast:
Dylan Harris (Dad)
Lindsey Hansen (Wife)
Owen McIntee (Soldier)

“Price Check” by David MacGregor
Directed by Jason Marlett

Cast:
Perry Dixon (Manager)
Duncan McCargar (Kenny)
Nubia Gomez (Customer)

“Sweetie” by Kristin Andrea Hanratty
Directed by Kylie Piette

Cast:
Brian Lauer (Dan)
Kelsey Kohlenberger (Beth)
Jason Townes (Alec)
Chelsea Herrema (Nadia)

Join us next weekend for five new 10 minute plays and support Actors’ Theatre and Michigan playwrights in the process!

Note:  All seating is general admission with only 50 seats available per performance.  Every year seats go very fast for this, so make sure to order your tickets early!  Tickets are only $10.  Order your them today by clicking the link below.

Living on the Edge IX: “Evil Things” Next Weekend!

Each year, for the past nine seasons, Actors’ Theatre Grand Rapids has issued a call for ten-minute play submissions in the fall, five of which are selected for full public performance.  The theme selected for our ninth annual Living on the Edge series is “Evil Things”.  On Saturday, April 28th, 2012, ten semi-finalists were read publicly from this years submissions – which was restricted only to Michigan playwrights.

Actors’ is proud to announce the following five plays have been selected for performance June 6-9, 2012 in the GRCC Spectrum Theater Black Box (Room 201):

• “Basement Story” by Austin Bunn – When his mother decides to sell his childhood home, a young man returns to help clean out the basement and rediscovers traces of a dark childhood game that never really ended. “Basement Story” is an unsettling exploration of mental illness and loyalty between twin brothers.
• “The Ground is Heavy” by Andrew Wernette – A soldier in a war zone, a betrayed wife, and a new father all tell their overlapping and life-changing stories.
• “Chapter and Verse” by Mike Smolinski – In the distant future, archeologists Jack, an expert, and Louise, a recent college grad, are at a dig that is close to uncovering artifacts from the early 21st century.
• “Price Check” by David MacGregor – A freshly-hired clerk at a dollar store discovers the dark secret behind his new job.
• “Sweetie” by Kristin Hanratty – It’s man versus man’s best friend when a normally good-natured dog bites a guest at a dinner party; but does the attack show the viciousness of the pet, or reveal something about the victim?

We would like to thank all of the Michigan playwrights who submitted work on this year’s theme.  Tickets are only $10, General Admission with only 50 seats available per performance, and can be purchased by calling the box office during regular business hours or online by clicking the link below.  Join us next weekend for five new 10 minute plays and support Actors’ Theatre and Michigan playwrights in the process!

More Photos of “August: Osage County” Online

Thinking about seeing August: Osage County this weekend?  better call soon – tickets are going fast!  The phone number for the box office is (616)234-3946 or go to www.atgr.org to purchase your tickets online.

Eryn Kovach of Moments in Life Photography was in taking some photographs of the production for us.  Click the photo before to see some of her shots of the show on our Facebook page:

Production photos from the Actors’ Theatre production of August: Osage County by Tracy Letts, playing through 5/26/12.
Photo credit: Eryn Kovach, Moments in Life Photography