Salem State University theatre students Nick Palenchar, Grace Healy and Jacqui Amrich know that part of being serious about theatre is knowing what is the latest theatre news, what's being produced, what's being written. Together they created the Playbook Club, which has been meeting since October, reading a new play every two weeks, and meeting weekly. The plays selected are modern and contemporary, with well known playwrights, or emerging writers including: Rabbit Hole by David Lindsay-Abaire, The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh, In the Blood by Suzan Lori Parks, Dinner with Friends by Donald Margulies, and Dog Sees God by Bert V. Royal. The plays are re-sold on Amazon, making the finances of the group self-sufficient, especially with the additional selling of concessions at theatre performances. Want to join them? Contact npalenchar@gmail.com
Have you discovered what creative activity is happening in the basement of Sullivan Building? Peer through the door across from the Callan Studio Theatre and you'll be looking into Jane Hillier-Walkowiak's wonderland, the costume shop. A theatre faculty member for twenty years, she's currently the costume designer for Red Noses by Peter Barnes. While her costumes are masterpieces in themselves, Jane is often remembered for those essential extras-- puppets, props, masks and the like. In this picture, she sculpts a baby for Dracula, performed in 2006. In Red Noses, she creates a key character, Frapper Jr, a puppet. Her gargoyle had a leading role in last year's Imagineration, and let's just say BatBoy wouldn't have been much of a BatBoy without a set of ears and fangs created by Jane. She's a key piece of the creative team that makes up Salem State University Theatre. Want to see Frapper Jr. in action? Four performances left: December 3-6, Mainstage Theatre. Want to study and work with Jane? Sign up for Stage Tech, Stage Makeup, and Theatre WorkshopA graduate of Trent University in Nottingham, England, Jane has been designing in the Boston area since 1983 for theatres and businesses including the Publick Theatre, Lyric Stage, VDA Productions and The Costume Works.
Since graduating in 1994 with a degree in Psychology and Music, Leah's first career was that of a middle school music teacher, at Collins Middle School in Salem. She left a flourishing teaching career to pursue her creative passions, and just completed a Masters of Fine Arts degree at New York University's Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program. Having started as a composer, who at times was writing both book and music, Miles moved her focus to lyric and book writing for musicals. At NYU, she found her composer-collaborator Donny Codden. Here's a sample of one of the musicals they have written together: http://gmtw.tisch.nyu.edu/object/th_musicals.html
Miles and Codden are currently presenting new work at a Fringe Festival in Minnesota. http://http//www.fringefestival.org/2010/show/?id=1306
Leah will return to Salem State this fall with Donny Codden for a series of workshops on the collaborative process and musical theatre writing.
