PHILADELPHIA – Mauckingbird Theatre Company will present Shakespeare's R&J by award-winning playwright Joe Calarco and directed by Mauckingbird Artistic Director Peter Reynolds from August 1 – 23, 2008 at the Adrienne Theatre's Mainstage, located at 2030 Sansom Street in Philadelphia. A follow up to the company's sold-out inaugural production of an all-male The Misanthrope, Shakespeare's R&J is also performed by a male cast. Named 1 of the "Five Best Plays" in London by The Independent, Shakespeare's R & J has enjoyed successful, critically acclaimed runs both off-Broadway and on London's West End. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for seniors and students and are available by calling (215) 923-8909 or online at www.mauckingbirdtheatreco.org.

Shakespeare's R&J spins the classic story of history's most famous "star-cross'd lovers" in a modern tale of teenage awakening. Mauckingbird Theatre Company's intimate production explores youthful desires, vulnerability and burgeoning sexuality as four schoolboys at a repressive preparatory school discover William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and find themselves suddenly immersed in the tragic story of forbidden love. As the boys assume the roles of all the play's characters, the classic tale begins to blur with the students' own lives and Shakespeare's verse is heard anew.

Hailed as a "vibrant, hot-blooded new adaptation [that] pulsates with an adolescent abandon" by The New York Times and an "exploration of passion and repression in both Shakespeare's time and our own" by Variety, Joe Calarco's revisionist tale continues to speak to audiences around the globe.

"Joe Calarco's adaptation of Romeo and Juliet is inspired. It offers a powerful message of tolerance and acceptance without being didactic," says Peter Reynolds. "New discoveries are illuminated in Shakespeare's original text with the frequent gender changes of the characters, producing a provocative work that continues to remain timely and relevant in our current social and political climate."

The talented young cast of four is led by Evan Jonigkeit as Romeo, whose recent credits include Célimène in Mauckingbird's sold-out hit The Misanthrope, Six Characters in Search of an Author at People's Light & Theatre, Dishwashers at Walnut Street Theatre, and Fox TV's Twice a Hero. Conrad Ricamora portrays Juliet, and his recent credits include USER 927 (Brat Prod.), Ferdinand the Bull (Arden), West Side Story (New Candlelight), Romeo & Juliet and The Taming of the Shrew (NC Shakespeare Festival).

Newton Buchanan and Nicholas Park play the two other students and various characters. Buchanan has worked exclusively with Hedgerow Theatre for the past four years, appearing in over 30 productions as an actor, while Park is a senior musical theatre major at the University of the Arts who has appeared at the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Theatre Festival.

The Misanthrope production team returns including set and costume designer Marie Anne Chiment, lighting designer Maria Shaplin, and voice and text coordinator Lynne Innerst, with the addition of fight director John V. Bellomo.

Founded by Artistic Director Peter Reynolds and Managing Director Lindsay Mauck, Mauckingbird Theatre Company is committed to producing professional gay-themed theatre, while also exploring classic literature and musical genres and providing affordable productions of infrequently produced works.

Reynolds currently serves as the Director of Musical Theater for the Department of Theater at Temple University. For Temple Theaters he has directed productions of Into the Woods, Ragtime, Company, Pericles, Shakin' the Mess Outta Misery and Beautiful Thing. In Philadelphia, he has directed productions at Act II Playhouse, Walnut Street Theatre, Hedgerow Theatre, Villanova Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company in their collaborations with Philadelphia Young Playwrights, and he spent two seasons with the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in New Jersey where he assisted the Producing Artistic Director. Reynolds spent 6 years as Artistic Director of the award-winning HealthWorks Theatre in Chicago and has also worked at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Theatre Building Chicago, Apollo Theatre Chicago, St. Louis' HotCity Theatre, Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre, and Maples Repertory.

Playwright and director Joe Calarco is the creator of Shakespeare's R&J, winner of the 1998 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Special Achievement in Theatre for an off-Broadway production. Calarco also directed the play's premieres in Chicago (garnering five Jeff Award nominations including Best Play and Best Director), Washington, D.C. (garnering the Helen Hayes Award nominations for Best Play and Best Director), London's West End (named 1 of the "Five Best Plays" by The Independent, honorable mention from the Evening Standard Awards committee for direction), and the Japanese premiere in Tokyo. Calarco's regional credits include Philadelphia Theatre Company's The Last Five Years (Barrymore Award-nominee for Best Director, winner for Best Musical) and Elegies: a song cycle (seven-time Barrymore Award-nominee with wins for Best Musical Director and Best Ensemble of a Musical).

PERFORMANCES:
Fri, 8/1 : Sat, 8/2 : Sun, 8/3 : @ 7:30PM *previews*
Wed, 8/6 7:00pm *OPENING NIGHT*
Thu, 8/7 : Fri, 8/8 : Sat, 8/9 @ 7:30PM
Wed, 8/13 : Thu, 8/14 : Fri, 8/15 : Sat, 8/16 @ 7:30PM
Sun, 8/17 @ 2:00PM
Wed, 8/20 : Thu, 8/21 : Fri, 8/22 : Sat, 8/23 @ 7:30PM

Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for seniors and students and are available by calling (215) 923-8909 or online at www.mauckingbirdtheatreco.org.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Office: (215) 242-6393
High-resolution images available upon request and online at: www.canarypromo.com/mauckingbird

First Person Salon at the Gershman Y, June 11th
featuring Celebrated writer Lorene Cary, muralist Donald Gensler and
Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Kanter, Director of New Cops

The City’s creative community continues to embrace First Person Arts interactive programming, including the new monthly First Person Salons series, drawing dedicated and enthusiastic audiences. Held at the Gershman Y (401 S. Broad Street) from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. on second Wednesdays, the multi-disciplinary Salons showcase original works by some of the City’s finest local artists in a variety of artistic mediums, from the written word and documentary film to visual and performing arts. Each month, Philadelphians gather for this engaging series to get an inside-peek into the creative process. On June 11th, the Salon series welcomes celebrated writer Lorene Cary, muralist Donald Gensler, and filmmaker Ron Kanter, all of whom live and work in Philadelphia, and each of whom has created memoir and documentary art that has gained local and national recognition.

Founder of Philadelphia’s Art Sanctuary and Senior Lecturer in creative writing at the University of Pennsylvania, Lorene Cary will read selections from her recent memoir writing, followed by a discussion with Salon audiences. A celebrated writer, Cary is the author of FREE!, a collection of true-life Underground Railroad Stories for young readers; The Price of A Child, a 1995 novel chosen as a One Book, One Philadelphia selection; Pride, a contemporary novel, and the best-selling memoir Black Ice, an American Library Association Notable Book.

Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Kanter will discuss his newly released documentary New Cops. For eight months, Kanter followed the members of Class 332 through the Philadelphia Police Academy, capturing their transformation from ordinary citizens to professional police officers. Five years later, he returned to document their experiences on the job. Audience members will have the opportunity to hear first-hand from several of the officers featured in the documentary.

Rounding out the diverse group of presenters is muralist Donald Gensler, a frequent collaborator with Philadelphia’s Mural Arts Program. Gensler will discuss the process of developing his latest work-in-progress, the mural Independence Starts Here, located at the intersection of Broad and Race Streets, which depicts active people who are living with disabilities.

First Person Arts is a nonprofit organization and producer of the annual First Person Festival, First Person StorySlams series and other programs that tap into the power of personal stories and speak to diverse audiences, including people whose voices are not often heard. First Person Arts is guided by the belief that the sharing of personal experience is a powerful way for people to celebrate uniqueness, bridge differences, and find common ground. For more information, please visit www.firstpersonarts.org.

Upcoming First Person Salon Events
Wednesday, June 14; artists: Lorene Cary, Ron Kanter and Donald Gensler
Wednesday, July 8; artists: TBA
Wednesday, August 13; artists: TBA

All First Person Salons are held at the Gershman Y, 401 S. Broad Street
7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. every second Wednesday of the month
$5-10 sliding scale

For more information, contact First Person Arts at (267) 402-2056 or www.firstpersonarts.org. Artists working in all media and at all levels of experience, whose work is based in real-life experience, are encouraged to submit their work for consideration at future Salon events. To apply, visit www.salons.firstpersonarts.org or email salons@firstpersonarts.org.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, (215) 242-6393

MIRO DANCE THEATRE presents Cinco de Miro: ¡Super Salsa Sensacional!
First Annual Fundraiser @ Founder’s Hall, Girard College, May 9th
featuring music, Salsa dancing competition, Latin food & drinks and more

PHILADELPHIA – Miro Dance Theatre is thrilled to invite dance enthusiasts, supporters and members of the Philadelphia community to Salsa the night away at Cinco de Miro: ¡Super Salsa Sensacional! – the company’s first annual fundraising event, on Friday, May 9th from 6 – 11 p.m. This “Party for the People” includes Latin music, a Salsa dancing competition featuring Philadelphia personalities, a live auction, Latin inspired food catered by Breath of Life Caterers and a cash bar with Margaritas, Martinis and top shelf Tequila by Gran Centenario. Held at Girard College’s Historic Founder’s Hall, located at 2101 South College Ave. (at Girard Ave. & Corinthian Ave.), the unique social and fundraising event promises to be an exciting night for all, with proceeds benefiting Miro Dance Theatre programs including the free monthly Open Studio Series, local educational outreach and development of new work.

Cinco de Miro tickets are $25 and are available online at mirodancetheatre.org, by calling (215) 962-4773 and at the following Philadelphia locations: Halloween (1329 Pine St), Black & Brew (1523 E Passyunk Ave), and American Mortals (729 Walnut St).

The highlight of Cinco de Miro is the live Salsa dancing competition featuring Philadelphia personalities Marisa Magnatta of WMMR’s Preston & Steve Show, President of Girard College Hon. Dominic Cermele, hip-hopper Michelle Byrd-McPhee of Montazh Performing Arts Company, Massage Therapist and Personal Trainer Rita Jean Clark, Bucks County Community College student Chelsea Davis, Miro’s Producing Artistic Director Tobin Rothlein, and Antony Giblisi and Heidi Hirjak of American Mortals Salon. Led by Salsa Professional and DJ Victor Colon, the contestants will team up with professional salsa dancers from Fuzion Creativa Dance Company to strut their stuff on the dance floor. Prior to the event, each contestant will receive professional training with their dance partner in preparation for the competition. Audiences are invited to cheer on and cast their vote for the best dance team along with guest Judges including Kathy Romano of WMMR’s Preston & Steve Show, Ms. Tess Tickle and Jose Guillermo Ortega Tanus.

The competition will be followed by a dance party for all, with Victor Colon as DJ for the evening. Cinco de Miro will also include a live auction with items such as private Salsa lessons, dinner with Miro Artistic Directors, gift certificates to local establishments, and more.

A vital member of Philadelphia’s independent dance community, Miro Dance Theatre creates and performs original work that explores the collaborative intersections of dance, video, and visual art. Miro uses classical technique as a departure point from which to explore new and challenging dance vocabularies, ideologies, performance disciplines, and the way media co-exist within the performance space. The company was founded in 2004 by dancer and choreographer Amanda Miller and video and visual artist Tobin Rothlein, following five years as Co-Artistic directors of Phrenic New Ballet. Miller, with ten years experience as a dancer with the Pennsylvania Ballet and choreographic studies in Europe under Siobhan Davies, is at the helm of Miro’s choreographic exploration. Rothlein, whose work as video artist and visual designer for Rennie Harris Puremovement and others has garnered national and international accolades, oversees the company’s work in combining dance, multi-media and visual arts. As the 2007-08 Girard College artists-in-residence, the company also oversees an outreach program with the school’s students.

Cinco de Miro is supported by Gran Centenario, 1800, Three Olives, Whole Foods, American Mortals, and Black and Brew. Catering for the event is generously provided by Breath of Life Caterers; Smiley Ferebee, Rodney Gains and Munirah King.

Miro Dance Theatre and the Open Studio Series are supported by the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, Independence Foundation, Advanta Foundation, Samuel S. Fels Fund and Girard College.

Schedule of Upcoming Events & Performances

Thursday, April 17th, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Open Studio Series: Behind-the-scenes of Self-Portrait
Girard College, Mechanical School
2101 South College Ave. (at Girard Ave. & Corinthian Ave.), Philadelphia
Admission is FREE.

Friday, May 2nd, 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
World Premiere of Self-Portrait
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Art After 5 series
26th Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia
For additional information about the Museum’s Frida Kahlo exhibit and Art After 5, visit www.philamuseum.org.

Friday, May 9th, 6 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Cinco de Miro: Super Salsa Sensacional
Girard College, Founder’s Hall
2101 South College Ave. (at Girard Ave. & Corinthian Ave.), Philadelphia
Admission is $25. Miro Dance Theatre is recognized as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization by the Federal government; all contributions and event proceeds are tax deductible. Tickets are available online at www.mirodancetheatre.org, by calling (215) 962-4773 and at the following Philadelphia locations: Halloween (1329 Pine St), Black & Brew (1523 E Passyunk Ave), and American Mortals (729 Walnut St).

Miro Dance Theatre is recognized as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization by the Federal government. All contributions and event proceeds are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

MIRO DANCE THEATRE presents Self-Portrait, inspired by Frida Kahlo
Audiences offered a sneak-peak @ OPEN STUDIO SERIES event, April 17th
World Premiere of Self-Portrait @ Philadelphia Museum of Art, May 2nd

Philadelphia’s Miro Dance Theatre has been actively developing their newest work, Self-Portrait, and will showcase a preview of the production at the Open Studio Series event held at Miro’s Girard College studio on Thursday, April 17th from 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. Commissioned by Art After 5 in conjunction with the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Frida Kahlo retrospective, Self-Portrait is a solo dance work celebrating Kahlo’s life and art. Audiences will have the rare opportunity to view the inner-workings of the production just weeks before experiencing the World Premiere at the Museum on May 2nd.

Self-Portrait is deeply inspired by Frida Kahlo’s paintings and diaries, reflecting on both the artist’s struggles with illness and her penchant for self-expression. Performed by Miro’s co-Artistic Director Amanda Miller, the multi-dimensional “living performance sculpture” combines dance, live animation, elaborate set design, and video.

As part of this Open Studio guest artist Julia Zagar will lead an open discussion with audience members. Zagar, who recently presented a lecture series on The Folk Arts of Mexico at the Museum, is an art collector and owner of Philadelphia’s Eyes Gallery.

A constant theme in the work of Frida Kahlo, the idea of self-portraiture (or “the self-portrait”) is timeless and universal. The notion of constantly looking at oneself and continuously exploring ones identity, and the ways in which we reinvent and integrate our experiences has become of great interest to Miro Dance Theatre as a company.

“Our intention was to create a performance that, like Frida’s paintings and writings, reaches well beyond the canvas and into the hearts of audience members,” said Amanda Miller. “There is a great perseverance and rebelliousness in Frida’s work, like a dogmatic positioning against the world, and I hope that Self-Portrait will resonate with and inspire viewers to ask their own questions about identity and history.”

To create the visual design, Tobin Rothlein, Miro co-Artistic Director and video artist, used Kahlo’s diaries as inspiration for the design elements incorporated into the performance.

“I looked closely at Frida’s diaries and the way that the ink spreads itself across, and sometimes through, the page. There is that undeniable hand-made urgency present in the drawings,” said Rothlein. “Through the use of projected imagery in the performance space and on the dancer’s body, we create a multi-dimensional, living performance sculpture that is raw, melodic, and spiritual and captures the essence of Frida’s life and work.”

In May, the World Premiere of Self-Portrait will be presented at the Philadelphia Museum of Art as part of the Art After 5 series. The one-night-only performance will take place on Friday, May 2nd at 6pm and 7:30pm in the Great Hall of the Museum, located at 26th Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia. For additional information about the Museum’s Frida Kahlo exhibit and Art After 5, visit www.philamuseum.org.

Miro Dance Theatre’s monthly Open Studio Series, which launched in December 2006, provides audiences with open access to the creative process and a chance to see and respond to new dance works in progress, as well as previous pieces from the Miro repertoire. All series events are held at Miro’s Girard College studio where the company also serves as artists-in-residence and continues to oversee an outreach program with the school’s students. Open Studio Series performances are free and open to the public.

WHEN: Thursday, April 17th, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

WHERE: Girard College, Mechanical School
2101 South College Ave. (at Girard Ave. & Corinthian Ave.)
Accessible by #15 & #33 buses; free and secure parking.

ADMISSION: FREE; light refreshments will be served.
For directions and more information, visit mirodancetheatre.org
or call (215) 962-4773.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

PHILADELPHIA – The City’s creative community continues to embrace First Person Arts interactive programming, including the new monthly First Person Salons series, drawing dedicated and enthusiastic audiences. Held at the Gershman Y (401 S. Broad Street) from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. on second Wednesdays, the multi-disciplinary Salons showcase cutting edge original works by local artists. Credited with breathing new life into the salon phenomenon, Philadelphia Metro reports, “The concept of the salon…carries with it a whiff of the old-fashioned, of bewigged 18th-century Frenchmen gathered around a harpsichord arguing philosophy. But the idea has come back into vogue of late, with [First Person Salons], a series…intending to foster a sense of community between artists.” The April 9th Salon will feature an exciting and diverse lineup of artists utilizing photography, sculpture, dance, interdisciplinary arts, theatre, and film to push the boundaries of memoir and documentary arts through a variety of mediums.

Local photographer Jacques-Jean (JJ) Tiziou and sculptor James Peniston will join audiences in a discussion about their new joint venture How Philly Moves, a proposed public art installation celebrating Philadelphia dance. Tiziou, who has made his mark photographing performance artists in Philadelphia and beyond, is thrilled to collaborate with Peniston, whose latest sculpture – a nine-foot bust of Benjamin Franklin commissioned by the City – is now on permanent display in Girard Fountain Park (4th and Arch Streets) in Philadelphia's historic Old City neighborhood.

Filmmaker David Andrew Watson will present Down the Hatch: The Life of Red Stuart, his new documentary about the life of the world’s oldest living sideshow artist and sword swallower who came to prominence in the heyday of the American circus. Artist Nicole Bindler will perform Norman: A Moving Monologue, an improvisational work incorporating dance and storytelling to celebrate the life and memories of her father, Norman.

Rounding out the diverse group is storyteller and theater artist Miss Koco, who will present Pieces of Koco, a follow-up to her presentation at February’s Salon in which she gave audience members personal objects she collected throughout the years. Now, she will explore the newfound lives of these objects she parted with along with stories collected through her Upcycled Memories letter project.

First Person Arts is a nonprofit organization and producer of the annual First Person Festival, First Person StorySlams series and other programs that tap into the power of personal stories and speak to diverse audiences, including people whose voices are not often heard. First Person Arts is guided by the belief that the sharing of personal experience is a powerful way for people to celebrate uniqueness, bridge differences, and find common ground. For more information, please visit www.firstpersonarts.org.

Upcoming First Person Salon Events
Wednesday, April 9; artists: Jacques-Jean (JJ) Tiziou, James Peniston, David Andrew Watson, Nicole Bindler and Nicole Dupree.
Wednesday, May 14; artists: TBA
Wednesday, June 10; artists: TBA

All First Person Salons are held at the Gershman Y, 401 S. Broad Street
7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. every second Wednesday of the month
$5-10 sliding scale

For more information, contact First Person Arts at (267) 402-2056 or www.firstpersonarts.org. Artists working in all media and from all levels of experience, whose work is based in real-life experience, are encouraged to apply to present their work at future Salon events. To apply, visit www.salons.firstpersonarts.org or email salons@firstpersonarts.org.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

WHEN: Saturday, April 5th, 2008 10:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.

WHERE: Depart - First Person Arts, One South Broad Street, Philadelphia
Arrive - Phillips du Pury & Company, 450 West 15th Street, New York

WHAT: First Person Arts announces an exclusive one-day excursion from Philadelphia to NYC to view the work of legendary photographer, Diane Arbus and hear the story of the discovery of vintage Arbus prints. On April 5th, a collection of Arbus photographs that have been missing since the 1960s will be exhibited for the first – and possibly last – time, after which they will be sold at auction by Phillips du Pury in NY. The First Person group will travel by chartered bus with antiquities dealer and discoverer of the lost photos, Robert Langmuir (recently featured in The Philadelphia Inquirer and whose story is the subject of a new book, Hubert's Freaks). A champagne breakfast will be served en route. Upon arrival, they will have a private reception at Phillips du Pury, a tour of the collection with Langmuir and curators from the auction house, and a seminar by experts on Arbus.

The discovery of the photographs in this collection came to light when Langmuir, a Philadelphia-based rare books dealer and collector of African-Americana, purchased the archives and memorabilia of a performer and manager of Hubert’s Dime Museum and Flea Circus located in Manhattan. Langmuir learned that Hubert’s is where Diane Arbus met many of the people who later became subjects of some of her most famous works. He also discovered 27 of her photographs, packed away in the box. These images turned out to be some of the first photographs she took of sideshow freaks and others on the margins of society – a subject that revolutionized her art and led her to create some of the most compelling photography of the last half century. The fascinating story of this discovery has been chronicled in Hubert's Freaks: The Rare-Book Dealer, the Times Square Talker, and the Lost Photos of Diane Arbus by author Gregory Gibson, and is being published on April 1.

Langmuir, who grew up in Delaware County in the primarily African American neighborhood known as Morton, began researching, collecting and selling memorabilia in his youth, including African American cultural objects and forms of artistic expression. He has spent his life exploring – as a Merchant Marine, traveler and wanderer who has lived in Europe and Russia, and roamed the United States as a roadie for the legendary blues musician Muddy Waters. In 1978, Langmuir settled in Philadelphia, where he operated the Book Mark, a Center City book shop that existed for twenty years. Now, Langmuir has turned his focus back to rare books and the collection of African-Americana.

The Now or Never: The Lost Photos of Diane Arbus excursion benefits First Person Arts, a nonprofit organization and producer of the annual First Person Festival and other programs featuring fascinating real life stories. Funds from the event enable First Person Arts to offer programs that share the power of personal stories with people from underserved and isolated communities. First Person Arts is guided by the belief that the sharing of personal experience is a powerful way for people to celebrate uniqueness, bridge differences, and find common ground. For more information, visit www.firstpersonarts.org.

ADMISSION:
Admission is $145 for the full trip or $55 for the New York portion only. A champagne breakfast with Robert Langmuir will be served en route to New York from Philadelphia. First Person Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization; all contributions and a portion of the event proceeds are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law. For ticket information, please call (267) 402-2056 or email dang@firstpersonarts.org.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

First Person Salon at the Gershman Y, Mar. 12th
featuring Poet Sonia Sanchez, Musician Evan Solot and Local Filmmakers
First Person Storyslams continue on Mar. 25th @ L’Etage

PHILADELPHIA – First Person Arts continues to provide a platform for memoir and documentary arts and give voice to the city’s creative types through two interactive and engaging series: First Person Storyslams and the new First Person Salons at the Gershman Y. In February, First Person Arts drew an enthusiastic crowd to the Gershman Y for the premiere salon series event. On Wednesday, March 12th, First Person will hold the second salon featuring acclaimed poet Sonia Sanchez, musician Evan Solot, and several local filmmakers who participated in First Person Arts’ 5-day documentary competition.

Held at the Gershman Y (401 S. Broad Street) from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. on second Wednesdays, the salons showcase cutting edge original works by local artists through a variety of artistic mediums, from the written word and documentary film to visual and performing arts. On March 12th, local composer Evan Solot will present a session with poet, activist and scholar Sonia Sanchez. Solot, whose arrangements have been performed by some of the country's leading jazz performers, is in the process of translating Sanchez’s Does Your House Have Lions?, her memoir-based epic poem, into a work featuring an orchestra, rhythm section, and jazz and R&B singers. Solot will play recorded selections from the work-in-progress and lead a discussion with Sanchez about his composition and presentation styles. One of the most important writers of the Black Arts Movement, Sanchez lives and works in Philadelphia.

Local filmmakers who participated in First Person’s 2007 five-day documentary film competition will screen and discuss their short films. Media artist and educator Laura Deutch will screen her film Unspoken. Jere Paolini will present his documentary, Looking for Lucy (accompanied by the film’s subject, Terez Giuliana), and artist Susan Dipronio will screen the film made about her, entitled A Quaint and Curious Volume. Rounding out the diverse group of artists, musicians and filmmakers is storyteller Ray Tackett, who writes about the collective memories which shape our culture. Tackett will read Summer Wind, the true story of one of his early experiments with aerodynamics and its unexpected results.

On March 25, the crowd-pleasing First Person StorySlams continue at L’Etage (6th & Bainbridge Streets) with Philadelphia’s take on the theme: “The Road Not Taken.” The monthly competitive storytelling series, which began in April 2007, has attracted standing room only crowds and a dedicated online audience through monthly liveblogs and videocasts on www.uwishunu.com. Lime Projects’ Laris Kreslin –whose past publishing projects include Sound Collector and Arthur Magazine– will host the March Slam.

Everyone with a true story and a competitive streak is encouraged to participate. Storytellers are invited to share stories that relate to the theme as inventively as they’d like.

At each slam, ten participants have the chance to step up to the mic and tell a story within a five minute time limit. Contestants are judged by their peers, and each month’s highest scorer wins an invitation to the Grand Slam to compete for the title of Philadelphia’s Best Storyteller at the seventh annual First Person Festival of memoir and documentary arts in the fall of 2008.

First Person Arts is a nonprofit organization and producer of the annual First Person Festival and other programs that tap into the power of personal stories and speak to diverse audiences, including people whose voices are not often heard. First Person Arts is guided by the belief that the sharing of personal experience is a powerful way for people to celebrate uniqueness, bridge differences, and find common ground. For more information, please visit www.firstpersonarts.org.

Upcoming First Person Salon Events
Wednesday, March 12; artists: Sonia Sanchez, Evan Solot, Laura Deutch, Jere Paolini, Terez Giuliana, Susan Dipronio and Ray Tackett.
Wednesday, April 9; artists: TBA
Wednesday, May 14; artists: TBA

All First Person Salons are held at the Gershman Y, 401 S. Broad Street
7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. every second Wednesday of the month
$5-10 sliding scale

Upcoming First Person Arts StorySlams Events
Tuesday, March 25; theme: The Road Not Taken
Tuesday, April 22; theme: The Awkward Pause
Tuesday, May 27; theme: Secrets

All StorySlams are held at L’Etage, 6th & Bainbridge Streets
Doors open at 7:30 p.m., slams begin at 8:30 p.m.
$5-10 sliding scale, ages 21+

For more information, contact First Person Arts at (267) 402-2056 or www.firstpersonarts.org. Artists working in all media and from all levels of experience, whose work is based in real-life experience, are encouraged to apply to present their work at future Salon events. To apply, visit www.salons.firstpersonarts.org or email salons@firstpersonarts.org. For information about participating in the StorySlams series, email storyslams@firstpersonarts.org.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

MIRO DANCE THEATRE’s Monthly Open Studio Series Continues
Stories from the City at Night @ Girard College, Thurs. March 13th
British composer Pete M. Wyer to accompany with a live performance

Philadelphia’s Miro Dance Theatre’s monthly Open Studio Series returns to Girard College on Thursday, March 13th at 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. Miro co-Artistic Director’s Amanda Miller and Tobin Rothlein welcome longtime friend and collaborator Pete M. Wyer, one of the composers of Miro’s Hurdy Gurdy (2005). In celebration of collaborations, past and future, and the U.S. CD release of Wyer’s Stories from the City at Night, Miro will perform excerpts from their repertoire, set to Wyer’s moving music and videos featuring Miro dancers. Wyer will also accompany with a live musical performance.

The Open Studio Series, which launched in February 2007, provides audiences with open access to the creative process and a chance to see and respond to new dance works in progress, as well as previous pieces from the Miro repertoire. The 2007 season featured guest artists from the region and around the world, all at Miro’s Girard College studio where the company also serves as artists-in-residence and continue to oversee an outreach program with the school’s students. All series events are free and open to the public.

“I’ve been working with Pete Wyer longer than Miro has been in existence and I love creating work to his music,” said Rothlein, Miro’s video and visual artist. “I’ve been dancing and choreographing to Pete’s music for over 10 years now,” seconds Miro choreographer Amanda Miller. “I always have a very emotional reaction to his music which is one of the reasons I love performing with it.”

A self-taught musician hailing from the UK, Pete M. Wyer has worked with the acclaimed Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Opera North (Leeds, England), and the Julliard School, among others. The “pioneering, transatlantic composer” (The Independent) is thrilled to reconnect with Miro in 2008. For additional information on Wyer and to sample his music, visit www.pmwmusic.com.

Miro Dance Theatre and The Open Studio Series are supported by the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, Independence Foundation, Advanta Foundation, Samuel S. Fels Fund, and Girard College.

About Miro Dance Theatre
Miro Dance Theatre (“Miro”) creates and performs original work that explores the collaborative intersections of dance, video, and visual art. Miro uses classical technique as a departure point from which to explore new and challenging dance vocabularies, ideologies, performance disciplines, and the way media co-exist within the performance space. The company was founded in 2004 by dancer and choreographer Amanda Miller and video and visual artist Tobin Rothlein, following five years as Co-Artistic directors of Phrenic New Ballet. Miller, with ten years experience as a dancer with the Pennsylvania Ballet and choreographic studies in Europe under Siobhan Davies, is at the helm of Miro’s choreographic exploration. Rothlein, whose work as video artist and visual designer for Rennie Harris Puremovement and others has garnered national and international accolades, oversees the company’s work in combining dance, multi-media and visual arts.

WHEN: Thursday, March 13th, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

WHERE: Girard College, Mechanical School
2101 South College Ave. (at Girard Ave. & Corinthian Ave.)
Accessible by #15 & #33 buses; free and secure parking.

ADMISSION: FREE; light refreshments will be served.
For directions and more information, visit mirodancetheatre.org
or call (215) 962-4773.

First Person Arts launches Memoir at Middle Age:
An Introductory Workshop for Women

PHILADELPHIA – First Person Arts is seeking women ages 50 and older from underserved Philadelphia-area communities to share their stories as part of Memoir at Middle Age: An Introductory Workshop for Women. The free six-week community workshop series is designed specifically for beginners and will be led by Dianna Marder, feature writer at The Philadelphia Inquirer. Marder will guide the women in documenting their personal histories through short, descriptive pieces about their life experiences. Memoir at Middle Age aims to honor individual self-expression and help its participants recognize the value of sharing their personal experiences and observations.

Memoir at Middle Age will run on Thursday evenings from 7-8:30 p.m., April 3rd through May 8th at the Inquirer building, located at 400 N. Broad Street. Participants will attend all six workshops. The workshop series is free and open to women 50 and over who qualify following a brief registration interview. Please contact Dianna Marder at (215) 854-5702 or at dmarder@phillynews.com to register or ask questions. Go to www.firstpersonarts.org or call (267) 402-2056 for information about First Person Arts.

Dianna Marder has teamed up with First Person Arts, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit dedicated to developing and presenting the memoir and documentary arts, to conduct these workshops. Memoir at Middle Age seeks to respect and promote the voices of what Marder calls "The Ignored Generation." "I call them the 'Ignored Generation' because these matriarchs often shoulder responsibility for their own parents, their grown children, absent husbands, infant grandchildren, their churches and their communities,” says Marder. “Their remarkable resilience deserves more recognition.”

Memoir at Middle Age, part of First Person Arts' Community Writing Project, is designed to help the participants feel accomplished and respected instead of burdened and unappreciated by encouraging them to reflect on their lives and share their stories in a supportive, emotionally safe environment. Throughout the six weeks, they will be guided in writing family histories, creating personal journals, and discovering the benefits of writing and self-expression. Marder and First Person Arts hope to build bridges of understanding between diverse groups and individuals through the power of the personal stories shared in these workshops.

About First Person Arts
Founded in 2000, First Person Arts transforms the drama of real life into memoir and documentary art to foster appreciation for our unique and shared experience. First Person Arts supports the development of new memoir and documentary work and creates opportunities for it to be seen and appreciated by many through workshops, events, memoir and documentary contests, and the annual First Person Festival. The organization reaches across cultures and communities to attract a diverse audience, and explore the stories of people from all walks of life. For more information, please visit www.firstpersonarts.org or call (267) 402-2057.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Megan Wendell, (215) 242-6393, meganATcanarypromo.com
High-resolution images available upon request and online at: www.canarypromo.com/firstpersonarts

HIWAY THEATRE Announces Opening Night Line-up, February 15th
Exclusive Q&A with Last Stop for Paul Writer, Dir. & Prod. Neil Mandt
The Most Award Winning Independent Film of ‘07
Road Trips and Amazing Journeys film series runs Feb. 15-21st

PHILADELPHIA – On February 15th, the Hiway Theatre, located at 212 Old York Road in Jenkintown, will premiere the film series, Road Trips and Amazing Journeys to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the historic theatre’s reopening. The opening night celebration will begin with a screening of director Walter Salles’ acclaimed feature The Motorcycle Diaries (2004), chronicling the adventures of a young Che Guevara, followed by the featured selection for the evening – the critically acclaimed comedy Last Stop for Paul. Hailed as, “A unique accomplishment. Always entertaining. Very funny and at times quite touching” by film critic Richard Roeper, the film is slated for theatrical release in March. Following the exclusive screening, Writer, Producer and Director Neil Mandt will be on hand for a Q&A with audience members. The evening will close with a late night screening of The Secret Cinema’s collection of vintage travel films. [A full schedule of opening night follows below.]

The Road Trips and Amazing Journeys film series runs thru February 21st at the Hiway Theatre. For tickets, information on upcoming events and the history of the theatre, visit www.hiwaytheatre.org or call (215) 886-9800.

Last Stop for Paul – Winner of 45 International Festival Awards and touted as The Most Award Winning Independent Film of 2007 – presents the unique story of Neil Mandt and Cinematographer Marc Carter, who set out on an around the world journey to film a story about two friends, characterized as Cliff and Charlie, traveling to the famous Full Moon Party in Thailand. Equipped with one camera, two wireless microphones, three batteries, and a rough story outline, the filmmakers traveled without a crew, a cast or having scouted one location. There were no casting calls along the way, just strangers picked up on the street to either act in a scene or play cameraman as Neil and Marc delivered improvised lines. The outcome has proven to be a smart, funny and poignant story about world travel.

The Secret Cinema will close opening night with Bon Voyage: Vintage Travel Films, a collection of rare original 16mm film illustrating the range of styles and approaches used by early travel filmmakers. The program includes both silent films and talkies, from vintage promotional travel films to educational films including An Egyptian Adventure (1928, dir. Louis de Rochemont), The Story of Our National Parks (U.S. Department of Interior, 1920s silent era), Fairest Eden from the William M. Pizor Port O’Call series (1931), and shorts by Burton Holmes and James A. FitzPatrick, among others. For more on The Secret Cinema series, hosted by Jay Schwartz, visit www.thesecretcinema.com.

The Road Trips and Amazing Journeys series highlights tales of travel, both physical and metaphysical, personal journeys of the heart and spirit, and more. The series will also screen Brazilian director Andrucha Waddington’s The House of Sand (2005), celebrated director Susanne Bier’s Academy Award-nominated film After the Wedding (2006), and director Julie Taymor’s hit Across the Universe (2007), among others. A complete schedule of series events including additional show times will be announced soon.

OPENING NIGHT SCHEDULE, Friday, February 15th
4:30 p.m. The Motorcycle Diaries
7:00 p.m. Last Stop for Paul followed by Q&A with director and star Neil Mandt
10:00 p.m. The Secret Cinema presents Bon Voyage: Vintage Travel Films

FILM SYNOPSIS – Last Stop for Paul
Cliff and Charlie work together selling bathroom supplies for a wholesaler in Los Angeles. Charlie is a seasoned traveler, he takes adventure trips whenever he can, while Cliff only talks about leaving his mundane surroundings. When Charlie asks Cliff to join him to the famous Full Moon Party in Thailand, Cliff surprises no one with his predictable excuse to stay on life’s bench. Things suddenly change when Cliff’s childhood friend dies unexpectedly. At the funeral, Cliff learns his buddy had planned a trip around the world. Cliff vows to make sure his friend still makes that trip, even if it means carrying his ashes in a thermos to do it. Together all three embark on a trip of a lifetime as they travel to the Caribbean, South America, Europe and Asia. Shot in over 20 countries, Cliff and Charlie have unbelievable adventures in every location and their lives are changed forever. View the trailer online at www.laststopforpaul.com.

ABOUT HIWAY THEATRE:
Built in 1913, the one-screen movie house can trace its history to the silent film era. Now an important cultural landmark for the Montgomery County and Greater Philadelphia region, the Hiway Theatre operates as a nonprofit member-supported community theatre, offering a unique cinematic experience that enlivens the human spirit, fosters dialogue and promotes learning in an unparalleled environment. The single-screen movie house evokes an earlier time with its retro interior finishes and original fixtures, while incorporating modern conveniences, complete with 320 new seats for the auditorium, updated projection equipment, Dolby surround sound, as well as an expansion of the lobby with a full service concession stand. In addition to screening first run films, the Hiway has been an annual venue for the Philly Film Fest and the CJHSA Holocaust Film Series and hosts a number of regular programs including the Children’s Matinee Series, Monthly Film Discussion, Classics Series, and Movies Under the Stars, a free, summertime, outdoor program in collaboration with the Abington Art Center, among others.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

First Person Arts Offers New Artist Series in 2008
First Person Salons premiere Feb. 13th @ Gershman Y
Popular StorySlams continue on Feb. 26th @ L’Etage

PHILADELPHIA – First Person Arts’ 2008 season is now in full swing with an exciting lineup of events including the February premiere of the new First Person Salons at the Gershman Y and the continuation of the wildly successful First Person StorySlams at L’Etage. Through these monthly series, First Person Arts continues to celebrate memoir and documentary arts by embracing the city’s creative community, giving audiences a chance to experience engaging real life stories and tell their own tales in a community setting.

On Wednesday, February 13th First Person Arts will launch the salon series from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at the Gershman Y (401 S. Broad Street). The salons, which will be held at the same time each month on second Wednesdays, will showcase cutting edge original works by local artists through a variety of artistic mediums, from the written word and documentary film to visual and performing arts. The multi-disciplinary and interactive Salons are designed to engage audiences directly in the creative process.

The first Salon will feature several Philadelphia-area artists whose work pushes the boundaries of memoir and documentary arts. Nicole Dupree explores the personal history and memories sparked by objects she has collected throughout the years. Part of her presentation will involve actually giving some of the objects away. Documentary filmmaker David Kessler turns his camera from the neighborhood portraits of his successful Shadow World series to a new project documenting the lives of artists at work and at home in their studios. Titled Studioscopic, Kessler’s series includes a profile of Jenny Kanzler, a Philadelphia painter who explores the discomforts of memory in her work and Laura McKinley, who approaches self-portraiture through stripped-down, multimedia compositions. Rounding out the diverse group of artists is photographer Corey Armpriester, whose images frame the lives of everyday Americans through the lens of a suspicious state and storyteller Sharon Cole, who traces the ribbons of a formative adolescent road-trip through Aquafresh toothpaste.

On Tuesday, February 26th, the First Person StorySlams return to L’Etage (6th & Bainbridge Streets) with Philadelphia’s take on the theme of “Brotherly Love (and Sisterly Affection).” The monthly competitive storytelling series, which began in April 2007, has captivated the city’s storytelling community and attracted an online audience through monthly liveblogs and videocasts on www.uwishunu.com.

Everyone with a true story and a little sense of competition is encouraged to participate. Storytellers are invited to interpret the theme as inventively as they’d like, sharing with the audience tales about any real life experience that relates to the theme.

At each slam, ten participants have the chance to step up to the mic and tell a story within a five minute time limit. Contestants are judged by their peers, and each month’s highest scorer wins an invitation to the Grand Slam to compete for the title of Philadelphia’s Best Storyteller at the seventh annual First Person Festival of memoir and documentary arts in the fall of 2008. SBK Pictures’ Jim McGorman – whose filmmaking moves easily between slice-of-life storytelling and visual imagery – will host the February Slam.

First Person Arts is a nonprofit organization and producer of the annual First Person Festival and other programs that tap into the power of personal stories and speak to diverse audiences, including people whose voices are not often heard. First Person Arts is guided by the belief that the sharing of personal experience is a powerful way for people to celebrate uniqueness, bridge differences, and find common ground. For more information, please visit www.firstpersonarts.org.

Upcoming First Person Salon Events
Wednesday, February 13; artists: TBA
Wednesday, March 12; artists: TBA
Wednesday, April 9; artists: TBA

All First Person Salons are held at the Gershman Y, 401 S. Broad Street
7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. every second Wednesday of the month
$5-10 sliding scale

Upcoming First Person Arts StorySlams Events
Tuesday, February 26; theme: Brotherly Love (and Sisterly Affection)
Tuesday, March 25; theme: The Road Not Taken
Tuesday, April 22; theme: The Awkward Pause

All StorySlams are held at L’Etage, 6th & Bainbridge Streets
Doors open at 7:30 p.m., slams begin at 8:30 p.m.
$5-10 sliding scale, ages 21+

For more information, contact First Person Arts at (267) 402-2056 or www.firstpersonarts.org. Artists working in all media and from all levels of experience, whose work is based in real-life experience, are encouraged to apply to present their work at future Salon events. To apply, visit www.salons.firstpersonarts.org or email salons@firstpersonarts.org. For information about participating in the StorySlams series, email storyslams@firstpersonarts.org.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, emaleighATcanarypromo.com

PHILADELPHIA – The Rosenbach Museum & Library welcomes Philadelphia’s Dave Burrell, famed composer, jazz pianist and Musician-in-Residence to the museum on Wednesday, February 20 at 6:00 p.m. and Saturday, February 23 at 2:00 p.m. Burrell will premiere Syllables of the Poetry of Marianne Moore, a series of new compositions commissioned by the Rosenbach. The series is inspired by the museum’s extraordinary collection of Marianne Moore materials and based on Burrell’s research into the life and work of the Modernist American poet and writer who was a central figure in New York Modernism.

In an intimate concert setting, Burrell will perform and discuss his new works, which serve as musical translations of Moore’s poems: What Are Years?, The Mind is an Enchanting Thing, Those Various Scalpels, and O To Be a Dragon. The compositions interpret Moore’s poetry in striking detail, often down to one musical note for every syllable in each poem. Upright bassist Michael Formanek, professor at Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute, will accompany.

The performance is free with museum admission. Seating is limited and tickets will be sold at the door on the day of the performance. The Rosenbach Museum & Library is located at 2008-2010 Delancey Place and is open Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is $8 for adults, $5 for students and seniors, and free for children under 5. For more information, please call (215) 732-1600 or visit www.rosenbach.org.

Since 1998, the Rosenbach has commissioned artists to bring its collections to life in unexpected ways and through a variety of projects. As Musician-in-Residence, Burrell’s previous work with the Rosenbach includes Bill of Sale for a Slave Girl, inspired by the museum’s African American collections.

Since the mid-1960s, Dave Burrell has contributed to over 100 recordings, including 26 under his own name, in addition to pivotal recordings with Archie Shepp (Attica Blues), Pharoah Sanders (Tauhid), Marion Brown (Three for Shepp) and Grammy Award-winner David Murray (Lovers, Ballads). A recipient of numerous grants and awards from organizations including the National Endowment for the Arts, Philadelphia Music Foundation, and the Pew Fellowships in Jazz Composition. Burrell’s recent releases include Momentum (High Two Records) and Consequences (Amulet Records) – his first recording with Medeski, Martin and Wood percussionist Billy Martin. 2004’s Expansion, recorded with his Full-Blown Trio featuring William Parker and Andrew Cyrille, ranked #2 in The Village Voice's year-end best Jazz albums. In 2006, Burrell premiered the Db3 ensemble with Michael Formanek and Guillermo Brown. Hailed as a “living treasure” by The Village Voice and a "veteran pianist” who personifies “the best of neoclassicism-uncompromising individuality and in-the-moment gusto” by The New Yorker, Burrell joined the prestigious Steinway Artist Roster in 2007 and is one of only six Steinway Artists in the Philadelphia region.

Marianne Moore (1887 – 1972) was a Modernist American poet and writer. The Rosenbach houses The Moore Collection, including a recreation of Moore's living room – where she worked for more than forty years – just as she once lived in it. A graduate of Bryn Mawr College, Moore's complete library, with many personally inscribed and annotated books from her friends and contemporaries including Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot and Elizabeth Bishop, is part of the Rosenbach collections in addition to drafts of her poetry, correspondence and unpublished memoirs. The collection is a unique literary repository, preserving intact a comprehensive record of a writer's intellectual development.

The commission of Dave Burrell by the Rosenbach is made possible by a grant from the Helen Burke Charitable Foundation and additional support from the Hirsig Family Fund of the Philadelphia Foundation.

About the Rosenbach
The Rosenbach Museum & Library seeks to inspire curiosity, inquiry, and creativity by engaging broad audiences in exhibitions, programs, and research based on its remarkable and expanding collections. The museum was founded by legendary book dealer A.S.W. Rosenbach and his brother and business partner Philip. With an outstanding collection of rare books, manuscripts, furniture, and art, the Rosenbach is a museum and world-renowned research library, set within two historic 1865 townhouses, that reflects an age when great collectors lived among their treasures.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, (215) 242-6393
High-resolution images available upon request and online at: www.canarypromo.com/rosenbach

In February, Hiway Theatre, located at 212 Old York Road in Jenkintown, will celebrate the one-year anniversary of the historic theatre’s reopening with a new film series. Guided by the theme, Road Trips and Amazing Journeys, the upcoming series will run from February 15th through February 21st.

Built in 1913, the one-screen movie house can trace its history to the silent film era. Now an important cultural landmark for the Montgomery County and Greater Philadelphia region, the Hiway Theatre operates as a nonprofit member-supported community theatre, offering a unique cinematic experience that enlivens the human spirit, fosters dialogue and promotes learning in an unparalleled environment. For information on upcoming events and the history of the theatre, visit www.hiwaytheatre.org or call (215) 886-9800.

Road Trips and Amazing Journeys will include independent and studio films, as well as repertory selections, to be announced in the coming weeks. Highlighting documentary and fiction features, film narratives include tales of travel, both physical and metaphysical, personal journeys of the heart and spirit, and more. The series will also feature specialized programming for youth: specifically, selections for tweens and teens.

Hiway Theatre Executive Director Fred Kaplan-Mayer is thrilled to offer this special film series, which is being launched by virtue of a generous contribution from the Jenkintown Borough. “Since our reopening, the community response has been tremendous,” says Kaplan-Mayer. “This is our Valentine’s Day present to all our moviegoers and supporters – special films that tell tales of journey and transformation. It is due to community support that the Hiway has been able to transform itself and fulfill its potential as an entertainment destination and as a community organization.”

The series coordinator is Teri Yago Ryan. Ryan is the former Director of Michigan’s acclaimed East Lansing Children’s Film Festival, with a background that includes extensive industry experience in motion pictures and television.

Since 1913, Hiway Theatre has undergone many renovations and name changes. In 2003, a group of local residents who recognized the Hiway’s importance to the Jenkintown community formed a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization to purchase, operate and rehabilitate the theatre. After many years of neglect by previous owners, the new Board of Directors persevered in raising $2 million to fully renovate and update the theatre, adopting the name Hiway – one of the original names of the theatre, recalled affectionately by many Montgomery County and Philadelphia residents. The single-screen movie house evokes an earlier time with its retro interior finishes and original fixtures, while incorporating modern conveniences, complete with 320 new seats for the auditorium, updated projection equipment, Dolby surround sound, as well as an expansion of the lobby with a full service concession stand. The Board is currently at work on the second phase of the capital campaign, raising the remaining funds needed for the “finishing touches,” including the installation of a vertical, neon sign bearing the HIWAY name – a well known sight to residents of the area who came to the theatre during its initial time of operation from 1940 through the 1970s.

In addition to screening first run films, the Hiway has been an annual venue for the Philly Film Fest and the CJHSA Holocaust Film Series and hosts a number of regular programs including the Children’s Matinee Series, Monthly Film Discussion, Classics Series, and Movies Under the Stars, a free, summertime, outdoor program in collaboration with the Abington Art Center, among others.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Emaleigh Doley, (215) 242-6393
High-resolution images available upon request and online at: www.canarypromo.com/hiway

Mauckingbird Theatre Company debuts with
all-male production of Molière’s
The Misanthrope
directed by Peter Reynolds
starring Dito van Reigersberg as Alceste
January 10 – February 2, 2008

PHILADELPHIA – Mauckingbird Theatre Company, under the direction of Artistic Director Peter Reynolds and Managing Director Lindsay Mauck, is pleased to announce its premiere production – Molière’s The Misanthrope performed with an all-male cast. The production runs January 10 through February 2, 2008 at the Adrienne Theatre’s Second Stage located at 2030 Sansom Street in Philadelphia. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students and are available by calling the Adrienne box office at (215) 563-4330.

Molière’s brilliant comedy about the hypocrisies of the 17th century French aristocracy is transplanted to a gay society in Mauckingbird Theatre Company’s production. This modern spin on the classic debate between etiquette and earnestness features Dito van Reigersberg (Pig Iron Theatre Company, Martha Graham Cracker) as Alceste.

Alienated from society by its insincerities, the misanthropic Alceste rails against the disingenuous conduct of the men who surround him. Yet he pursues the seemingly most shallow of all: the narcissistic “pretty-boy” Célimène, played by Evan Jonigkeit, whose recent stage credits include Six Characters in Search of an Author at People's Light & Theatre, Dishwashers at Walnut Street Theatre, and Fox TV’s Twice a Hero. When Célimène’s deceitful nature is revealed, Alceste’s excessive virtue is challenged and Molière makes his strongest argument against a world of fashionable false pretenses.

Maukingbird’s production of The Misanthrope is translated into English verse by Ranjit Bolt, whose translation has been staged by Sir Peter Hall and at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. The fast-paced dialogue builds tension with every insult of the rich and powerful, and the traditional renaissance court is reimagined as a new world, one populated and controlled by gay men.

“Our aim is to illuminate Moliere’s text in a new way by transporting the artifice inherent in the French court to an equally pretentious world where gay men call all the shots,” says director Reynolds.

The Misanthrope cast is led by Dito van Reigersberg as Alceste. Van Reigersberg is a founding member of Pig Iron Theatre Company and has also made a name for himself over the past several years performing as his drag alter-ego, Miss Martha Graham-Cracker. He has also performed with several Philadelphia companies, including Arden Theatre Company, Mum Puppettheatre, Lantern Theater Company, Headlong Dance Theater, and the Opera Company of Philadelphia. Van Reigersberg studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse, the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, and is a graduate of Swarthmore College.
“We’re excited to have Dito leading our cast, giving him an opportunity to tackle the rich language in this classic text,” says Reynolds. “We think audiences familiar with his other more physical theatre work will thrill to his skill with heightened text.”

The full cast of nine features Keith Conallen as Arsinoé, Brian Cowden as Oronte, Jerrell Henderson as Acaste, Josh Hitchens as Clitandre, Evan Jonigkeit as Célimène, Patrick Joyce as Éliante, Cosimo Mariano as Basque/Dubois, Dito van Reigersberg as Alceste, and Bradley Wrenn as Philinte.

The design team includes set designer Meghan Jones, costume designer Marie Anne Chiment, lighting designer Maria Shaplin, and sound designer Evan Jonigkeit.

Founded by Reynolds and Mauck, Mauckingbird Theatre Company is committed to producing professional gay-themed theatre, while also exploring classic literature and musical genres and providing affordable productions of infrequently produced works.

Reynolds currently serves as the Director of Musical Theater for the Department of Theater at Temple University. For Temple Theaters he has directed productions of Into the Woods, Ragtime, Company, Pericles, Shakin’ the Mess Outta Misery and Beautiful Thing. He also served as an Assistant Professor of Theatre at Villanova University where he directed The Robber Bridegroom. In 2008, he will direct Baby for Villanova Theatre, Smoke on the Mountain for Hedgerow Theatre and Songs for a New World for Act II Playhouse. He has directed for the Philadelphia Theatre Company in their collaborations with Philadelphia Young Playwrights and spent two seasons with the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in New Jersey where he assisted the Producing Artistic Director. He spent 6 years as Artistic Director of the award-winning HealthWorks Theatre in Chicago.

Molière was born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin in Paris, France in 1622. Working as an actor, director and playwright in his own theatre troupe, he was admired by the King and went on to find success with his comedies such as Tartuffe (1664), School for Wives (1662) and The Misanthrope (1666). Moliere is said to have written The Misanthrope as a reaction to the critics who prohibited and slandered his previous works. On February 17, 1673, Molière, who suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis, died hours after performing the lead role in The Imaginary Invalid.

Press Contact:
Canary Promotion + Design
Megan Wendell, (215) 242-6393
High-resolution images available upon request and online at: www.canarypromo.com/mauckingbird

Age of Arousal
by Linda Griffiths
Wildly inspired by George Gissing’s The Odd Women
directed by Blanka Zizka
December 5, 2007 – January 6, 2008

PHILADELPHIA – The Wilma Theater is honored to present the U.S. Premiere of Age of Arousal by award-winning Canadian playwright, Linda Griffiths, and directed by Wilma co-Artistic Director, Blanka Zizka. Age of Arousal explores a boldly uncensored world of loosened corsets as five Victorian women pursue a new age where erotic and economic freedom will reign supreme. Acclaimed at the Enbridge playRites Festival, Canada’s foremost new play festival, Age of Arousal runs at the Wilma from December 5, 2007 through January 6, 2008. Tickets are $37-$52 and are available by calling the Wilma Box Office at (215) 546-7824 or online at www.wilmatheater.org.

Age of Arousal is set in England in the late 19th century when a population imbalance leaves the country flooded with half a million more women than men. The Women’s Suffrage Movement is invigorated by the rise in numbers as non-married ”Odd Women” fight with passion, clarity, and confusion for sexual and financial independence. Determined to make women rich, a formerly militant Suffragette and her devoted protégée battle for equal opportunity and enlist female students to master the technology of the male-dominated workplace.

But when a charismatic man with new ideas is thrust amongst the women, their most passionately held beliefs are thrown into question. Can women remain friends when a man comes between them? Is it possible for two people to love as equals? Sexy, fresh, and vibrantly funny, Age of Arousal is a modern look at forbidden Victorian desires on the brink of explosion.

Playwright Griffiths describes Age of Arousal as “wildly inspired” by The Odd Women, a Victorian novel by George Gissing. Gissing described his title characters as “odd in the sense that they do not make a match as we say ‘an odd glove.’” George Orwell called the novel “one of the best in English,” and it has also been called the most important novel published in Britain in the 1890s.

When Griffiths discovered Gissing’s novel in a used-book store, it prompted her to undertake an investigation of the women’s suffrage movement that she’d long put off. “These are my philosophical ancestors,” Griffiths said. “I always wanted to know more about them but was too lazy to find out more until I read The Odd Women. I knew I wasn’t going to do a conventional adaptation. I’ve taken his basic characters and situation, and leapt off a cliff I was dying to leap off.”

She explains that Age of Arousal is less a “historical play” than a “fantasia,” “a dream of Victorian England. It is stuffed with historical facts and modern/Victorian issues, but the world created is unreal. Everyone in this play is on the brink of tumultuous change. They’re not dry historical figures, but sexual and lubricious, explosive and contradictory.”

Heralded as “one of Canada’s ‘originals’ known not only for the quality of her work, but for the sheer range of her career” by Maclean's Magazine, Griffiths is recognized for her work as both a playwright and an actress. She describes her work as attempting “to dance between the personal, the political and the fantastic. The goal is to create theatre that is highly literate, physically imaginative, and emotionally connected.”

She is the winner of five Dora Mavor Moore Awards, a Gemini award, two Chalmer’s awards, the Quizanne International Festival Award for Jessica, and Los Angeles’ A.G.A. Award for her title performance in the John Sayles’ film Lianna. Her nine plays include Maggie & Pierre – a hit that toured Off-Broadway – Chronic, Alien Creature, and The Duchess: a.k.a Wallis Simpson. Canadian theaters battled over the rights to her newest play Age of Arousal after it brought audiences to their feet at the 2007 Enbridge playRites Festival.

Director Blanka Zizka and the design team have followed the idea of fantasia and dream in their preparation for Age of Arousal. “On nearly every page I saw the characters becoming aroused – intellectually, sensually, sexually, artistically, and politically,” Zizka says. Rather than attempting to reproduce Victorian London onstage, the creative team imagined “a space in which all this stimulation and excitement could live, a space that could burst open, but that would still suggests a sense of claustrophobia and secret desires, in which characters change costume because they’ve changed psychologically, in which the sound echoes Linda’s language and moves between the end of the nineteenth century and the present to create a bridge between the Victorians and us.”

The cast of the Wilma’s production features Eric Martin Brown as Everard Barfoot, Monique Fowler – who was previously seen at the Wilma in Loot – as Alice Madden, Krista Hoeppner as Rhoda Nunn, Mary Martello – a recipient of multiple Barrymore Awards and nominations who has been seen in dozens of Philadelphia theaters over the past ten years – as Mary Barfoot, Larisa Polonsky as Monica Madden, and Roxanne Wellington as Virginia Madden.

The creative team includes set designer Matthew Saunders, costume designer Janus Stefanowicz, lighting designer Russell H. Champa, and composer and sound designer Troy Herion who will compose original music for the production.

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To request more information, photos, and interviews, please contact:
Megan Wendell, Canary Promotion, 215.242.6393