Also this week: college presents ‘Pirates of Penzance’

Louise Robertson

Theater-goers have a pair of options in and around Davidson this weekend: The Gilbert & Sullivan operetta “Pirates of Penzance” runs for two shows at Davidson College Friday and Saturday. And Davidson resident Louise Robertson directs a production of Marsha Norman’s “‘night Mother” at Warehouse Performing Arts Center in Cornelius. Also below, an audition call for Davidson Community Players’ production of “Violet.” And looking ahead to the holidays, Davidson Community Players actors are in rehearsals for a December production of “It’s a Wonderful Life,” a funny and touching play based on the Frank Capra movie.

‘NIGHT MOTHER’

Warehouse Performing Arts Center this weekend brings another small production to its intimate space, on Westmoreland Road near Hwy. 21 in Cornelius. Marsha Norman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning two-person drama “‘night Mother,” which explores the final hour of a young woman who has decided life is no longer worth living, runs Fridays and Saturdays, Nov. 6-7 and 12-13, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 8, at 2:30 p.m.

The play stars local theater veterans Gloria King and Marla Brown, and is being directed by Louise Robertson of Davidson, a newcomer making her North Carolina directorial debut.

Ms. Robertson is an experienced addition to the region’s theater scene. A native of the UK, she was Stanislavski and Method-trained at the Drama Centre in London, where fellow students included Pierce Brosnan, Simon Callow and Adrian Noble, former artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Co. She began her professional career at the avant-garde Space Theatre in Cape Town, South Africa, when Athol Fugard was playwright-in-residence and later starred in London’s West End as Amanda in Noel Coward’s “Private Lives.” Since then she has appeared on TV and in the theater, touring Canada, Ireland and the UK with major English productions. She also has directed shows in Wiesbaden, Germany; London; Washington State and Connecticut.

Ms. Robertson moved to Davidson last April and was scouting around for theater opportunities when she met Marla Brown, the driving force behind Warehouse Performing Arts Center. The center is planning a major renovation at year’s end, but the two decided to squeeze in the production of “‘night Mother” before that work begins, Ms. Robertson said.

“I haven’t been here all that long,” Ms. Robertson said. “It’s been great to be thrust into this.” She said she has been excited to find that the Charlotte region has a lively theater scene.

“What I am discovering is there is so much theater going on. It’s like it’s there in the woodwork, bubbling away. There’s a big network … and plenty of opportunities for serious community actors to get work,” she said.

Tickets for “‘night Mother” are $15, and include a beverage. To order, email
tickets@warehousepac.com or call 704-619-0429. Seating at Warehouse PAC is extremely limited. Details: www.warehousepac.com.

‘ALICE’S FALL INTO WONDERLAND’ AT COLLEGE

The Davidson College Theatre Department will produce what it is calling “a bold dramatic adaptation” of the literary classic “Alice in Wonderland” next Wednesday, Nov. 11, through Sunday, Nov. 15.

Senior theatre major Samantha Karlin directs the production of this beloved tale with a script created by the Manhattan Theatre Project under the direction of André Gregory.

Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. from Nov. 11 to 14 in the Barber Theatre of Cunningham Theatre Center, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Nov. 15. General admission tickets are $8, or $5 for seniors and Davidson employees, or $4 for students with ID. For reservations, call 704-894-2135 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, or purchase tickets online at www.davidson.edu/tickets, or purchase at the door. This production is not recommended for children under age eight.

AUDITIONS FOR ‘VIOLET’

Davidson Community Players will conduct auditions for its March 2010 production of the musical “Violet” on Monday, Nov. 16, and Tuesday, Nov. 17, at Davidson College Presbyterian Church, Main Street and Concord Road.

Auditions begin at 7 p.m. each evening on the second floor in Room 215. Callbacks are scheduled Thursday, Nov. 19, at the Armour Street Theatre, 307 Armour St.

Davidson Community Players is seeking strong singer/actor/actresses of all ethnicities. Specifically looking for a strong African American baritone in his 20s, as well as two females and one additional male ages 13 to 20s to fill out the leading roles. Ensemble roles for strong singer/actor/actresses ages 20 to 70 plus of diverse backgrounds will complete this cast. Full list of available roles is below; please note that the role of Father has been cast.

Those interested in auditioning should prepare 16 bars of a folk, pop or gospel song. Please bring music in the proper key, an accompanist will be provided (a capella singing is discouraged.) A one minute monologue is optional. Please bring a head shot or recent picture, resume or list of theatrical experience and a list of conflicts for the January through March 2010 time period.

One of the most acclaimed off-Broadway shows of the ’90s, “Violet” astounded critics and audiences with its powerful story, its energetic, toe-tapping Gospel, Rock, Country, and Rhythm and Blues score by Jeanine Tesori, and book and lyrics by Brian Crawley that are not afraid to deal with important, sensitive issues. Set in 1964 in the Deep South during the early days of the Civil Rights Movement, “Violet” follows the growth and enlightenment of a bitter young woman accidentally scarred by her father. In hopes that a TV evangelist can cure her, she embarks on a journey by bus from her sleepy North Carolina town to Oklahoma. Along the way, she meets a young black soldier who teaches her about beauty, love, courage and what it means to be an outsider.

More information: www.davidsoncommunityplayers.org.

RICE LEAVING DAVIDSON COMMUNITY PLAYERS

Davidson Community Players is saying farewell this week to Cindy Rice, its director for the past seven years. As DavidsonNews.net reported Oct. 12, Ms. Rice is stepping down to become development director of Jesuit Refugee Service USA, in Washington, D.C.

A search is underway for a new director. Read more about Ms. Rice’s departure in our Oct. 12 news report, “Davidson Community Players is losing its leader.”

(Deadline for applications is Nov. 30. Apply to: Search Committee, Davidson Community Players, P.O. Box 76, Davidson, North Carolina 28036 or dcp_search@bellsouth.net.)

Meanwhile, reporter Scott Graf of public radio station WFAE-FM, 90.7, in Charlotte, aired an interview with Ms. Rice during “Morning Edition” on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Listen to that interview on WFAE.org.

THEATER AND FILM CALENDAR

FRIDAY, NOV. 6 and SATURDAY, NOV. 7, 7:30 p.m., Davidson College, Tyler Tallman Hall, Sloan Music Center – The Davidson College Music Department presents “The Pirates of Penzance.” Admission is free but tickets are required. For tickets contact the Union Box Office at 704-894-2135. More information: davidson.edu/music.

NOV. 6-14, Warehouse Performing Arts Center, 9216-A Westmoreland Road, Cornelius – Warehouse PAC presents “‘night Mother,” by Marsha Norman, directed by Louise Robertson of Davidson. Starring Gloria King and Marla Brown. This play, about the last hours of a young woman who has decided life is not worth living, won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize. Performances Fridays and Saturdays, Nov. 6-7 and 13-14, 7:30 p.m. House and beverage bar open at 7 p.m. Also, matinee Sunday, Nov. 8, 2:30 p.m. Doors open 2 p.m. Tickets at tickets@warehousepac.com or via phone at 704-619-0429. More information: Warehousepac.com.

NOV. 11-14, Cunningham Theater Center Barber Theater – Davidson College theater department presents “Alice in Wonderland,” script by the Manhattan Theatre Project under the direction of Andre Gregory. Directed by Davidson senior Samantha Karlin. An innovative adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s uproarious books is aimed at adults as it brings out the classic stories’ darkness, surreality and loopy humor. Shows Wednesday, Nov. 11 to Saturday, Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 15, 2 p.m. Details on the college website.

NOV. 16-17, 7 p.m., Davidson College Presbyterian Church Room 215 – Auditions for Davidson Community Players March production of “Violet.” (See item above.)

DEC. 3-20, Davidson Community Players Armour Street Theater, 307 Armour St. – “It’s a Wonderful Life,” directed by Anne Lambert. Based on Frank Capra’s film, written by James W. Rodgers, the play follows the tale of George Bailey, whose dreams of escaping his small town are quashed by family and obligations. As he contemplates suicide on Christmas Eve, he’s visited by a guardian angel named Clarence, who shows him what the world would’ve been like without him. Performances: Dec. 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19 at 8 pm, Dec. 16 at 7:30 pm, Dec. 5 at 4 pm matinee (Christmas in Davidson), Dec. 6, 12, 13 & 20 at 2 pm. Tickets $17 adults, $15 students and seniors (65+). Reservations: 704-892-7918 or carolinatix.org. More information about the theater company: www.davidsoncommunityplayers.org

MARCH 23-28, Davidson College Duke Family Performance Hall – The Davidson College Theatre Department’s 2009-10 Mainstage Series concludes with “Leading Ladies,” by Ken Ludwig, directed by theater professor Mark Sutch. Performances March 24-25 at 7:30 p.m., March 26-27 at 8 p.m., and March 28 at 2 p.m. Admission $15, seniors $11, faculty/staff $9, students $6. Details: 704-894-2135 or www.davidson.edu/tickets