Summer Stock Theatre Article

Below is my aticle on Summer Stock Theatre which will appear in the July issue of NH To Do Magazine. I am very excited about my first magazine piece being published!

Curtain Up for NH Summer Stock 2010 Season
By Janine Leffler

The 2010 Summer Stock Theatre season is in full swing. Many local theatres look forward to putting on great performances for summer audiences.


It’s a special season for Andy’s Summer Playhouse in Wilton as they celebrate their 40th Anniversary. This season they are remounting favorite shows from the past decade which include Dick Tracy, The Swiss Family Robinson and The Day The Earth Stood Still. For Mark Healy, the Managing Director of Andy’s the most important thing about summer stock theatre is that all of their participants are children. “Andy’s gives them an amazing artistic outlet for the summer months. Many of our participants are active in their school theater groups, and the summers that they spend at Andy’s are an extension of their education in theater. Andy’s creates a creative experience for children who may otherwise be unable to express themselves artistically.” When it comes to what show he looks forward to working on this season he went on to say, “Because each of our shows represents a decade in Andy’s history and the season as a whole is such an important milestone for us, it is impossible to select one over another.” Andy’s Summer Playhouse is located at 582 Isaac Frye Highway in Wilton. For more information go to www.andysummerplayhouse.org.



This summer the Palace Theatre Youth Company is putting on Annie and 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Thirteen year old Savannah Baynum from Methuen, Massachusetts has been a member of the youth company since September. “Summer Stock is important because it teaches technique in dance, vocals, and acting,” says Baymum. “It is also a fun program and you meet a lot of new friends as well as seeing old friends. The Palace puts on fantastic shows and we all work so hard to put them together.” Baynum is very excited about being in Annie. “At auditions I saw some friends I haven't seen in a while. I am excited to be apart of another show at the Palace and I am always amazed at the talent that the kids who perform there have. It's an amazing experience!” When asked what sets the program at the Palace apart from other youth programs in the area Savannah and her father Rob stated “The Palace Youth Program teaches its students just like a real production. They get training in dance, singing and acting to help improve their performance skills. You get to watch the professional shows either in Boston or at the Palace Theater and see the gap in skill levels and where your child may need to improve. Other programs Savannah has attended focus on thinking out of the box and being creative. This of course is a very important skill but does not provide a gauge to measure improvement. Savannah has a real sense of accomplishment when she performs a play at the Palace Theater and she feels apart of a real production program.” The Palace Theatre is located at 80 Hanover St in Manchester. For more information go to www.palacetheatre.org.


Peacock Players in Nashua has a summer theatre intensive for students age 14-18 called Young Company. Thirteen Year Old Kait Mail looks forward to being a part of Young Company this summer. “Young Company is overall a learning experience, and that is what I am so grateful for in the program. I’m the youngest, only 13, and now I get to spend my summer learning about how to break into theater. As a plus, the people who are going to be teaching me are people who I have looked up to since I was little.” Mail continued by saying, “I look forward to the whole process and sense of gratification at producing our own show. The Young Company this year, because we get to direct and produce a whole show by ourselves, is going to be a process of trial and error… but with friends! As a group of friends, we can have fun and goof off while still doing something awesome that not many people our age get the opportunity to do.” For Mail the goal of summer stock theatre is “It brings Broadway to us, people who appreciate it and want to learn from it. We can be relaxed and have fun, but we get to experience a sense of professionalism; we immerse ourselves in the process, and make sort of a career out of it. In the summer, we have more time and less distractions, so we can just get down to business and put together a great show. Sumer Stock brings a professional theater environment to people who want to be involved off Broadway.”
The Peacock Players Young Company will put on two performances this summer Almost Maine which runs August 6-August 8th and The Wiz which runs August 20th-22nd. Peacock Players is located at 14 Court St in Nashua. For more information on these shows go to www.peacockplayers.org




Nancy Barry, Artistic Director at Summer Theatre in Meredith Village in Meredith, NH looks forward to the upcoming season. This summer’s season at Summer Theatre in Meredith Village includes My Way A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra, Fiddler on The Roof, Chicago, Camelot and 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. “The most important part of summer stock is that it teaches the company how to do a show in 10 days...period...there are no delays, no extensions...the show always opens. She sated “My greatest joy is to know that I have gathered all of these talented people together and then I watch the magic happen.” Barry continued by saying “This summer I am going to perform in Fiddler on the Roof. I have played all three daughters and Yente, but never played 'Golde" and now I will and what is even cooler, my Goddaughter Maya, who is 8 years old will be here again and will play one of my younger daughters. I also think many people are excited about Chicago. I love it because it is really well written. And I think 25th Annual Putnam County Bee will be a new show that folks will really respond to!” The youth theatre at Summer Theatre in Meredith Village is performing original musical adaptations of childhood favorites Peter Pan, Charlotte’s Web and Winnie the Pooh. Christina Giordano is excited about spending her first summer at Summer Theatre in Meredith Village “I'm looking forward to working on musicals and finding a deeper connection to my craft and creativity.” She is most excited about working on Fiddler on The Roof. “The goal of summer stock is a chance for the bulk of America to experience theater!” says Giordano, “It’s especially exciting to know that some stock houses produce current theatre that came from Broadway a short time ago. Stock also gives up and coming artists the chance to work on their technique.” Summer Theatre in Meredith Village is located at 1 Laker Lane in Meredith. For more information go to www.interlakestheatre.com/aboutus.

For a non-traditional summer stock experience head to Henniker for the New England College Open Door Theatre production of William Shakespeare’s As You Like It. What sets Open Door apart from other summer stock theatre groups is that they only do one show a summer and is comprised of alumni and current students of the New England College Theatre Department as well as community members. The show will feature Alex Picard as Rosalind and Michael Tucker as Orlando. Both Picard and Tucker are graduated of the NEC theatre program and have received their masters degrees, Tucker from The Actors Studio in NYC and Picard from University of Chicago Urbana Champagin. Picard is currently an associate professor of theatre at NEC. As You Like It runs July 16-18 at the Mainstage Theatre located in the Science Building on the New England College campus. Evening shows are at 7:30pm and there is a 2pm matinee on Sunday.
There is a variety of options of shows to see this summer. Get out there and support your local thespians!