Archive for category Productions
Video reading of ‘An Improper Education For An Improper Lady’
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Video on April 28, 2020
On April 24, I did a reading via Zoom of my play AN IMPROPER EDUCATION FOR AN IMPROPER LADY with an almost all-Australian cast. This reading reunited the two leads of the 2018 Melbourne production of THIS ROSE HAS THORNS, along with their direction and another cast member.
Stage directions: Emma Newport
Rose: Ashlee Lambton
Lily: Bianca Heard
Lord Havalot: John Jennings
Augusta: Katerina Yancey (a last-minute stand-in from Virginia)
Calliope: Georgia Smith
Sydney Melbourne Brisbane IV: Matthew Carcassi
AN IMPROPER EDUCATION FOR AN IMPROPER LADY
Two orphans in Victorian London pass themselves off as governesses. They find themselves employed by a minor nobleman who is trying to get his niece married before she’s 21, so he can inherit her late father’s estate instead of her. The girl appears quite mad but, in fact, is merely faking it to discourage suitors. When the governesses are instructed to get the girl presentable for a new suitor, comedy ensues. Cast: Six – four females, two males.
‘Priorities in Aisle 14’ produced via Zoom from Minnesota
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on April 20, 2020
The Coronavirus One-Minute Play Festival produced 625 one-minute virus-related plays over six days in April — with a different batch of plays being performed each night, via Zoom, by a different theatre. My short piece PRIORITIES IN AISLE 14 came on the final night, April 17, and was performed by students at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Jessica Yates played the main character.
Phoebe Thoroughman as a screaming customer in the toilet paper aisle.
Anna Schloerb as another screaming customer. All the students screamed at the same time — as the script called for — but these were the only two that broke through the Zoom logjam.
Video reading of ‘The Taste Tester’
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on April 16, 2020
On April 15 I held a reading of THE TASTE TESTER via Zoom, with an international cast from three countries and seven U.S. states. We stretched from Waterloo, Ontario, Canada to Melbourne, Australia — and had someone in every American time zone.
Zoom host: Stephen Glassbrenner
Stage directions: Beverly Amsler (Roanoke, Virginia)
Antoinette: Kate Cash (Kansas City, Missouri)
Malvina: Katerina Yancey (Fincastle, Virginia)
Johanna: Cheryl Carter (Lynchburg, Virginia)
Fernando: Bill Armstrong (Norfolk, Virginia)
Herald: Ron Ford (Spokane, Washington)
Geraldo: Scott Cooper (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada)
Angelo: Gary Reid (Roanoke, Virginia)
Duke: John Jennings (Melbourne, Australia)
Lorenzo: Will Walker Montgomery (Paris, Texas)
Tristan: James Brunt (Denver, Colorado)
Sally: Beth Brackett (Shepherdstown, West Virginia)
Court poet: Kelly Hoagland (Bonsack, Virginia)
Jester: William Joppich (Copper HIll, Virginia)
Sommelier: Carolyn Ziegler (Roanoke, Virginia)
Celestia: Nancy Lawrence (Roanoke, Virginia)
Guard One: Tim Wood (Bogata, Texas)
Guard Two: Barry Carter (Corsicana, Texas)
Artist: Danniele Ashee Seanor (Charleroi, Pennsylvania)
THE TASTE TESTER
A comedy with a message, and echoes of Shakespeare, set in Renaissance Italy. A shipwreck on a deserted island leaves only three survivors — two young children and a forgetful woman who thinks she is their servant. The girl, Antoinette, grows up to be a pirate, the boy, Tristan, grows up to be a poet, and all are eventually rescued. But now the brother is thrown into the duke’s prison for writing an offensive poem and the sword-wielding pirate-sister is determined to rescue him. She disguises herself as a man and takes a job as the royal taste-tester in order to get close enough to free him. She finds that everyone in the palace is in the wrong job — the court herald doesn’t like to speak in public, the court poet can’t rhyme, the chef can’t cook, and so forth — though each has some other talent. The play ends with a dramatic sword fight — between a man dressed as a woman and a woman dressed as a man — and the discovery that Antoinette is the true heir to the duchy, and the forgetful servant is really her mother. Antoinette’s first act upon taking office is to put everyone in the proper job. The message, of course, is that everyone has some hidden talent. Plus, a nice sword-fighting scene and some strong roles for women. Cast: 18 — 4 female, 6 male, 8 non-gender.
Video reading of ‘Rikki The Third’
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on April 14, 2020
Like lots of others quarantined by the pandemic, I held a staged reading over Zoom on April 8 for RIKKI THE THIRD — my modern re-write of Shakespeare’s Richard III, with genders reversed and set in a modern high school where Rikki is scheming to become homecoming queen.
Here’s the result. You’ll hear some babies crying and dogs barking, but we live and learn.
The script is written for 12, with massive doubling, but I had so many people who wanted to take part that I undoubled everything and wound up with a cast of 26 plus a 27th person reading stage directions. We wound up with an international cast from three countries — the U.S., Canada and Australia. And those U.S. participants included people from six states — Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. This is amazing technology.
Stage directions: Bill Armstrong (Norfolk, Virginia)
Richelle: Mayalin Quinones (Lynchburg, Virginia)
Summer: Heather Sexton (Roanoke, Virginia)
Georgia: Erika Degraffinreaidt (New York, New York)
Principal: Lydia Gladstone (New York, New York)
River: Michelle Drinnan (Melbourne, Australia)
Grey: Kerry Plank (Christiansburg, Virginia)
Bucky: Beverly Amsler (Roanoke, Virginia)
Stana: Johanna Cooper (Richmond, Virginia)
Edie: Cadie Burks (Roanoke, Virginia)
Rachel: Kaiya Hoagland (Bonsack, Virginia)
Harriet: Arlene Thomas (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
Student One: Emily K. Boyhea-Kyere (Hamilton, Ontario, Canada)
Student Two: Carolyn Ziegler (Roanoke, Virginia)
Student Three: Sherilyn Lawson (Roanoke, Virginia)
Student Four: Beth Brackett (Shepherdstown, West Virginia)
Senior One: Kate Cash (Kansas City, Missouri)
Senior Two: Cheryl Carter (Lynchburg, Virginia)
Junior One: Darlene Fedele Thompson (Sarver, Pennsylvania)
Junior Two: Laura Dial Risinger (Paris, Texas)
Sophomore One: Sharon Reynolds (Roanoke, Virginia)
Sophomore Two: Dannielle Ashlee Seanor (Charleroi, Pennsylvania)
Player One: Mason Micevski (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Player Two: Dylan Kennedy Grey (Bedford, Virginia)
Andy Warwick: Matthew Carcassi (Melbourne, Australia)
Bad Boy One: Brian Lee (Roanoke, Virginia)
Bad Boy Two: Chad Snyder (Roanoke, Virginia)
Video: ‘The Curious Case of Jockstrap Malone’ in Toronto
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Video on March 27, 2020
Here’s video of THE CURIOUS CASE OF JOCKSTRAP MALONE at the Alumnae Theatre in Toronto, Canada in March 2020, just before the pandemic shut theatres down.
I have still photos from the production here. One of the actresses was sick for this performance so the director subbed for the part of Trixie.
Photos from ‘The Curious Case of Jockstrap Malone’ in Toronto
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on March 12, 2020
Turns out he shouldn’t have insulted the Girl Scouts. Revenge is sweet.
My one-act THE CURIOUS CASE OF JOCKSTRAP MALONE is running in the New Ideas Festival at the Alumnae Theatre in Toronto — my first show in Toronto! Now I can say I’ve been produced in New York, London, Melbourne, Chicago, Los Angeles . . . and Toronto! Along with a bunch of other places. Alas, I had planned to see the show but cancelled my plans amid the COVID-19 pandemic fears.
Samantha Devries, Director
Mofi Agboola, Stage Manager/Assistant Director
Alison Dixon, Pixie
Andrew Horbatuik, Malone
Kim Sprenger, Tabitha
Piyal Sarker, Drixie
Sundance Nagrial, Trixie
More below: Read the rest of this entry »
Photos from ‘There’s A Reason Why They Call It Falling’ in Florida
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on March 12, 2020
They’re both at Lover’s Leap, trying to jump off but run into each other. Injuries result.
My 10-minute play THERE’S A REASON WHY THEY CALL IT FALLING had its premiere in February at South Walton High School in South Walton, Florida. A lot more photos here.
Directed by Lily Hanley
He’s Cole Bailey
She’s Ava Clark
You know that really hurts.
But she has a different plan.
Photos from ‘The Four Horsemen of the Internet’ in Florida
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on March 12, 2020
The old guard. From left: Famine, Death, Plague, War.
My 10-minute play THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE INTERNET — which recently completed a run in a festival in New York — was also in a festival at South Walton High School in South Walton, Florida. You can see the full photo gallery here.
Directed by SPENCER EICHBERGER
War…….BENNETT HOBBS
Plague…….MAYBRY JENNINGS
Famine…….SIDNEY WILLIAMS
Death…….REID BUSHONG
Deletion…….CHRISTINE WEHNER
Viral…….COLE BAILEY
Ghosting……..RACHEL CALDERAZZO
Trolling…….GRACIE O’HARE
The newbies. From left: Trolling, Viral, Deletion, Ghosting.
Death, spectacular, expressive Death.
Photos from ‘Troubleshooting’ in Florida
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on March 12, 2020
Jiggle the mouse, he said.
My 10-minute play TROUBLESHOOTING — which previously won an award in Australia that I couldn’t accept — was produced by South Walton High School in South Walton, Florida in February. The full photo gallery is here.
Director: Carissa Groves
The show is set up to be gender-neutral. In Australia it was done with two women. Here the characters were Marie, the office worker, played by Molly Turner, and Tyler, the IT help desk, by Spencer Eichberger.
Of course, he’s not going to bother coming to the cubicle when he can do it over the phone.
This will take care of the problem, for sure.
Here’s another photo and the poster.
More photos from ‘The Four Horsemen of the Internet’ in New York
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on February 27, 2020
The official cast photo with director Leslie Kincaid Burby
My short play THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE INTERNET has finished its run in the festival at The Secret Theatre in New York. Here’s a final batch of photos.
Fun photo.
More photos below: Read the rest of this entry »
