From David Leong: you dont want to forget these events - Mark your calendars now!

The Bloginator can say...."I knew him when..."

Once more congrats to Mike Farmer - in Orlando, as we speak, enjoying the long weekend as "one of six students from around the world chosen to participate this weekend in an all-expense-paid trip to the Lighting Design International (LDI) tradeshow in Orlando, Fla."

Read ALL about it here.

Scary • Dark • Classic • Haunting Medea

[vampire]Medea opens Thursday, October 27th and runs for only five performances at VCU's Shafer Street Theatre.  Running at about ninety minutes, [v]M is packed with blood, violence, shouting, tenderness, and poetry.

It is a world premier production at VCU crafted almost entirely in the theatre department and featuring original music.  With a cast ranging from sophomores to second-year graduate students, and directed by Augustin J Correro, [v]M juxtaposes modern sensibilities about the value of women, innocence, fidelity, and other-ness with Shakespeare's immortal language and Euripides' timeless story...all set in a world of darkness rife with things that go bump in the night!

Check out [vampire]Medea for a great treat on your Halloween Weekend!

Performances are:
Thurs Oct 27 @ 8pm
Fri Oct 28 @ 8pm & 11:59 (show time 12:30, pre-show reception from midnight)
Sat Oct 29 @ 8pm
Sun Oct 30 @ 2pm

What's in YOUR lobby?

We've got GREASED LIGHTIN'!!!

Twelve days until GREASE!!

Attn: ALL Theatre VCU students - Special Student Opening Saturday November 5.

Attn: Theatre VCU community Nov. 4 Opening Night - SOLD OUT!

Theatre VCU shined for the Stars!!

For the last couple of weekends our undergraduate Performance Majors had two opportunities to entertain the university community.

First was the Gala celebrating President Rao's inauguration - mentioned in the blog here for the first time.

Here is just one of the letters we received about that celebration:

David and Patti, Your students gave a terrific performance at the Inaugural Gala! Thanks so much for sharing their multiple talents with us.
Michael Davis
Professor and Interim Dean
School of Education
Virginia Commonwealth University

AND...

I want to thank you for such wonderful entertainment last evening. Your song selection and choreography were truly outstanding.... And our students were fabulous.


Thank you for all that you do to make VCU such a special place, and many thanks for the hard work that went into the production last night.

Bravo!
Beverly J. Warren, Ed.D., Ph.D., FACSM
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs


Then last Friday Theatre VCU supplied the entertainment for the Alumni Stars Banquet held at the Sheraton.

Here's what we heard from Professor Davis about that evening's entertainmnent:

WOW! Your students were fantastic! The folks at my table (including Dale Kalkoffen, the SOE Alumni Star) could not stop talking about their talent and energy. My wife and I are looking forward to Grease.
Michael Davis
Professor and Interim Dean
School of Education
Virginia Commonwealth University

AND...

On behalf of the MCV Alumni Association, thank you both so much for the amazing performance which you all produced for the alumni stars program on Friday night. I heard so many compliments from our guests who were completely blown away by the flawless numbers perfectly executed by your talented students. The personalization of the songs really added a special, memorable touch to the evening. It was great meeting you, David and it was great seeing you again, Patti.


Thanks again for making our alumni associations look so good....

Appreciative,
Barbara J. Payton
Executive Director
Medical College of Virginia Alumni Association of VCU

Congratulations to Patti D'Beck, Justin Amellio and all our students for their hard work!

Mea Culpa & Kudos

In yesterday's post the bloginator totally forgot to mention several key players in Richmond Triangle Theatre's production of Suddenly Last Summer:

There was the lovely Ms. Sarah Jamillah Johnson, a alumnus of Theatre VCU, who played the put-upon Miss Foxhill.

Miss Becky Brooks, a fourth-year Lighting major, who designed the lighting and works every show.

Ms. Maura Cravey, a faculty member who specializes in wig and make-up here at Theatre VCU and was the costume designer for this production.

Mr. Tommy Callan, who graduated last year with a BFA in performance, and was the assistant director and stage manager for Suddenly.

And wasn't great to see Melanie Richards, VCU Dance Dept faculty, as Sister Felicity, hiding all that wonderful red her under her habit.

Kudos to all.


with chocolate on the side.

Theatre VCU well represented in Suddenly Last Summer - LAST WEEKEND of SHOW

Suddenly Last Summer

by Tennessee Williams

Richmond Triangle Players Theater

1300 Altamont Avenue

Richmond, VA

The Blogster has printed our VCU participants with VCU gold:

 Directed by Josh Chenard

 

Starring: Sarah Cole, Augustin J. Correro, Lauren Marie Hafner, Lorri Lindberg, Jacqueline O'Connor, Charley Raintree, Melanie Richards

Plays Thursday through Saturday at 8 pm through October 22. 

This is what the critic say:

"Director Josh Chenard has managed to release the poetry of Tennessee Williams ... Suddenly, Last Summer should be high on your must see list." --- John Porter, WCVE Radio

"Powerful ... RTP has done a good job here.  Lorri Lindberg's performance balances viciousness and refinement, like a switchblade at an elegant table setting."     

       -- Rich Griset, Style Weekly 

"A disturbingly wild ride ... with tension, emotion and mystery!"   -- Lauren Grant, RVANews.com

"A definite artistic and technical thumbs-up ... This play is classic Tennessee Williams, evoking the eerie, spooky ambience of New Orleans."                              -- Matthew K Miller, GayRVA.com 

"RTP's production has a pair of fine actresses in the pivotal roles. Lorri Lindberg is powerful as the ruthless Violet .. Lauren Marie Hafner embodies Catherine's sensuality, confusion, and fear ..."                        

                     -- Susan Haubenstock, Richmond Times-Dispatch 

Set in the overpowering tropical conservatory in a mansion in the Garden District of New Orleans, Suddenly, Last Summer is a landmark work by one of America's greatest playwrights, and a battle of wills between two of Williams' most memorable female characters.