For years at The Schoolhouse Theater — up a steep hill on Owens Road in Croton Falls — the vibe was much more schoolhouse than theater. Stroll down the main hall and you could easily imagine an unruly child cooling his heels on a chair outside one of the classroom… Read More →
Stopped by Harrison High School yesterday to catch a bit of rehearsals for “Crazy for You,” which runs March 14 to 17. I found musical director Lynn Fusco at the piano and director-choreographer Deb Toteda at the production table, mike in hand, watching the action as set pieces were introduced… Read More →
It took a while, but Mamaroneck’s singing sensation Carly Rose Sonenclar, the runner-up for “The X Factor,” has a contract with Simon Cowell’s SYCO company. It took a while. “The X Factor” finale was Dec. 20 and, while other contestants Tate Stevens, Emblem3 and Fifth Harmony had been signed, Carly… Read More →
Bad dress rehearsals, they say, make for good runs. If you subscribe to that maxim, Larchmont’s John Treacy Egan should have a great run as Tito Merelli in “Lend Me a Tenor” at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ. Just watch what happened at their dress. JT is such… Read More →
Nicolas Penfold tried his hand at pottery. “I made a bunch of pots, and they broke when I dropped them,” says the Scarsdale High School senior. Now the 17-year-old works in a sturdier medium: steel.
AP photo class teaches the finer points of photography (Olivia Crumm in Gwynne Bettencourt’s AP Photo class at Mamaroneck High School. On the screen is Crumm’s untitled image depicting the pressure girls feel to conform to society’s idea of beauty. Portrait by Tania Savayan/The Journal News.) Mamaroneck High School senior… Read More →
A nice surprise at Westchester Broadway Theatre in Elmsford last night when, before the curtain for the press night of “In the Heights,” director John Fanelli came out to the stage with local dignitaries and introduced Luis Miranda, the father of Tony-winner Lin-Manuel Miranda. Luis spun three stories about his… Read More →
School named a Signature School semifinalist Harrison High School Chior Director Lynn Fusco rehearses a music selection with her ninth-period chorus class. Photo by Matthew Brown/The Journal News. On Feb. 10, the music world focuses on Los Angeles, and the 55th annual Grammy Awards. Meanwhile, 2,800 miles away, from the… Read More →
Artwork honored at Concordia The assignment, given the first week of school last fall in Joanne Dalsimer’s Art 3-4 class at Bronxville High School, was clear: Create an 18×24 grid drawing using graphite pencil as the medium, with two light sources. Use objects that have meaning to you. Two months… Read More →
John Jay seniors discuss the music festival, and music’s role in their lives They are both 17, both seniors at John Jay High School in Cross River, both accomplished musicians. Flutist Rachel Rodgers, of South Salem, and violinist Yanni Metaxas, of Katonah, also share the confidence that comes with years… Read More →
Meet Jangle Bells and Chumley the Walrus (“The Year Without a Santa Claus,” airs on at 4 p.m. Dec. 22 on ABC Family. Dobbs Ferry’s Bradley Bolke provided the voice for Jangle Bells, the character on the left. Photo courtesy Rankin&Bass and ABC Family.) Since its 1974 premiere, there has… Read More →
At Woodlands, a white Othello and a black Iago Shakespeare’s tragedy “Othello” tells the story of a Moor, an African or Arabian general, who is unlike the men of Venice he commands. He is a leader but an outsider, a black face among whites. But not at Woodlands High School… Read More →
Fox Lane junior stitches together his own course of study It was the ultimate throwaway assignment, but it led Conner Ives to what he hopes will be a long career. When Ives was a freshman, the art department at Fox Lane High School held a “Trashing Competition,” a challenge where… Read More →
John Gwardyak is kind of crazy. Well, he’s more than kind of crazy. He’s insane, in the best possible way. So it’s great to see him infecting his theater kids at Eastchester High School with his particular brand of loopiness. To promote “Why Bump Off Barnaby?”—the drama club’s fall comedy—they… Read More →
Soprano, alto, tenor, bass sing the praises of choir (Soprano Emily Brotmann, alto Sebastianne Kent, tenor David Axelrod and bass Justin Fischer in Penelope Cruz’s choir room. Photo by Matthew Brown/The Journal News) As four of the 40 voices in the White Plains High School Choir, they are accustomed to… Read More →
Making movies has a special effect on Eastchester student (Eastchester High School senior Jessica Costa, 16, in the school’s film studio. Photo by Seth Harrison/The Journal News.) Eastchester High School’s Jessica Costa knows, at 16, that movies are going to play a role in her future. In her third year… Read More →
Here’s yesterday’s In the Wings Live chat with Nyack’s Joe Egan and Greg Baccarini and Pelham’s John Orefice and Tom Beck. Watch this and you’ll learn some of the tricks and tools that directors use to help students get ready for opening night. These directors also perform at times. Find… Read More →
Magic abounded on stages across the Lower Hudson Valley last year. Here’s a video sampling of moments that continue to shine bright in memory. Below, find a list of the company Web sites, to find out what’s coming up on their schedules or to give them a well-deserved donation.
Clarkstown High School South’s director Mike DeLucia (mdelucia@ccsd.edu) is looking for the following items for his production of “Cabaret.” 12-20 Old fashioned chairs 6 Old rotary phones 2 Old wall or desk phones 1 Old cash register 1 Old manual typewriter with case (Mike: I know that Mark Zizolfo at… Read More →
Here’s a quick video review of “The Woman in Black,” the final show in a very successful 31st season at Penguin Rep in Stony Point. Download:
Matthew Cossolotto of the Yorktown Heights-based Shakespeare Oxford Society makes his case that the man credited with writing the works attributed to a glovemaker’s son from Stratford-upon-Avon (who spelled his name “Shakespere”) is not the man who wrote them. Cossolotto leads the society’s annual authorship conference in White Plains this… Read More →
You can read my story about Mamaroneck’s Matt Sax here, but seeing is believing. Here’s Tanya Savayan’s cool video, shot in the lobby at Lincoln Center after Matt and I chatted.
Lisa Post runs the New Victory Theater in New York, dedicated to presenting world-class theatrical events for children that won’t have parents bored to tears. The Oradell, N.J., native now calls Pleasantville home. Here she is, in her own words.
Here’s a brief chat with Laurence Holzman and Felicia Needleman, the lyricists and librettists behind “The Jerusalem Syndrome,” part of the New York Musical Theater Festival. The show opens this week.
This week’s “In the Wings” video catches up with “Kent Stories” at Arts on the Lake, which runs Friday and Saturday.
Two directors represent both ends of the directorial spectrum in this week’s “In the Wings” video.
The tent will come down soon, but the memories of this season at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival will linger on. Here’s this week’s video segment.
Here’s this week’s “In the Wings” video, with on-camera reviews of “Molly Snyder” in Stony Point and “The Producers” at Westchester Broadway Theatre. Enjoy!
Penguin Rep readies “Ten Percent of Molly Snyder” and Robert Cuccioli prepares to play King Arthur in White Plains this fall. Both are featured in my “In the Wings” video this week.
There’s so much to see on local stages in coming weeks. Here’s this week’s installment of “In the Wings” which will air on Friday on RNN TV. (When I say “today,” I mean Friday.)
