Archive for category Productions
Video reading of ‘The Broken Angel’
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on August 17, 2020
On August 15, I held a Zoom reading of my Christmas play, THE BROKEN ANGEL, with a cast from Ontario.
Stage directions: Giselle Magie (Hamilton, Ontario)
Fluffy: Mason Micevski (Hamilton, Ontario)
Riley: Ella Kennedy (Hamilton, Ontario)
Debbie: Lynne McIntee (Guelph, Ontario)
Angel: Emily Bolyea-Kyere (Hamilton, Ontario)
Church mouse: Arlene Thomas (Kitchener, Ontario)
THE BROKEN ANGEL
A Christmas story that involves a talking cat, a talking mouse, an angel and a newly-single mom and her son/daughter. Christmas is approaching and there’s not much joy for Riley (who can be anywhere from roughly 8-15). His/her parents have broken up and his/her mother says there’s not enough money for even a Christmas tree. Riley decides to fashion his/her own — out of beer cans salvaged from the trash, with sticks to serve as limbs. The mom is touched by this gesture, and, against her better judgement, agrees to hang ornaments on it — including a very old angel ornament that once belonged to her grandmother. The cat — who can talk to the audience, but no one else — tries to warn that this isn’t a good idea, but the humans don’t listen. The ornament falls and breaks, angering the mom, who orders Riley to bed while she tries to drink away her sorrows. It’s then that the broken ornament turns into a real angel, who tries to deliver an important message. Cast: Five. Two females, and three non-gender (including the child).
Video: ‘The American Experiment’ by JaYo Théâtre
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Video on August 4, 2020
The Washington, D.C.-based JaYo Théâtre produced my play THE AMERICAN EXPERIMENT via Zoom on August 2, 2020 with an international cast (at least two of the cast members were from British Columbia).
Columbia: Lenny Mendez
Alkie: Elizabeth Aviva W
Buffy: Kira Simmons
Mrs. Page: Jacqueline Elisabeth
Agent: Matt Williams
Xenia: Fergie Fergusson-Vaux
Yo: Tamar Gasko
Zero: Megha Shetty
Narrator: Emmanuel Epitacio
THE AMERICAN EXPERIMENT
An allegory about immigration. A 13-year-old orphan has an American flag on her face. The orphanage tries to market her as a celebrity. A mysterious government agency has another plan – to test her blood and use it to replicate a new race. Cast: Eight – seven female, one male. Note that six of the seven females are teenagers. Running time: One hour.
Photos: ‘The Armadillo Queen’ in Colorado
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on June 19, 2020
She’s the Armadillo Queen and she doesn’t like it.
Fountain Community Theater in Fountain, Colorado produced my full-length script THE ARMADILLO QUEEN June 12-13 as an outdoor show. The show had been scheduled for indoors in April but was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. More photos here.
This was the premiere production. The show first had a staged reading in 2016 at Renaissance Theatre in Lynchburg, Virginia. It will be published later this year by Norman Maine / Big Dog Plays.
Video: ‘The Seven Deadly Sins’ in Virginia
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Video on June 16, 2020
In June 2020, our pandemic summer, Showtimers in Roanoke, Virginia produced my short play THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS as a Zoom production, directed by Sally Miller. Here ’tis.
Photos from ‘The Girl Who Made Emus Believe They Could Fly’ in Mass.
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions on June 12, 2020
Emus take flight.
The Quannapowitt Players Suburban Holidays festival in Reading, Mass. produced my one-act
THE GIRL WHO MADE EMUS BELIEVE THEY COULD FLY in November and December 2019. Out of the blue, they sent me these photos with the note: “It was perhaps the best received play this year.”
More below: Read the rest of this entry »
Video: ‘Q Downsized’ produced in Israel, my 16th country
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on May 22, 2020
Center Stage Israel in Ra’anana, Israel produced my short play Q DOWNSIZED on May 17, 2020 as part of a virtual festival of short plays.
This marks my Israeli debut and the 16th country in which I’ve had my work performed.
Video reading of ‘A Maple Leaf on the Wind’
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on May 17, 2020
On May 16, I held a reading via Zoom of my play A MAPLE LEAF ON THE WIND, a romantic comedy in which half the characters are non-human and one is non-corporeal. I also did it with a cast from Canada.
Stage Directions: Arlene Thomas (Kitchener, Ontario)
Veronica: Ella Kennedy (Hamilton, Ontario)
The Wind: Emily Bolyea-Kyere (Hamilton, Ontario)
Tex: Owen Lapsley (Hamilton, Ontario)
Rex: Mason Micevski (Hamilton, Ontario)
A MAPLE LEAF ON THE WIND
A quirky international love story. The Wind tries to play matchmaker between a lonely Canadian girl on the prairie of Manitoba and a lonely American boy in Texas. There’s also a talking chicken. Cast: Four – two male, two female.
* Finalist, Best Medicine Rep, Gaithersburg, Maryland, 2018.
Video: Reading of ‘Red Moon Rising in the East’
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in Productions, Uncategorized, Video on May 15, 2020
Little Theatre of Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia hosted a Zoom reading of my play RED MOON RISING IN THE EAST on May 13, 2020. This is a one-man play based on the story of Sergei Korolev, the father of the Soviet space program. He was a force of nature who almost single-handedly willed the Soviets into space, battling both the odds and his own government. However, his name was a state secret in the Soviet Union so he’s still little-known in the West, even though all the big firsts — the first satellite, the first satellite to the moon, the first man in space, the first woman in space — were all his doing. Bill Armstrong performed this role in 2009 at 40th Street Stage in Norfolk, then again in 2010 at The Venue in Norfolk. Here he is again.
Here’s a link to previous productions of this show.
Bonus: At the end of this video is a Q&A with with actor and playwright.
Two short pieces performed virtually from Houston
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on May 12, 2020
New York actress Miranda Jonte is riding out the pandemic in Houston, where she’s performing virtually over Facebook as Back Porch Theater. Here she is on May 9 performing two of my pieces, LADY MACBETH’S LAMENT and DELICACIES.
Best of all are her descriptions of my work: “Quirky, knowing . . . dark and droll . . . dark and funny.” Those are the best blurbs of all time!
‘Curiosity Killed The Cat’ produced virtually in Michigan
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized on May 12, 2020
The show poster
Four years ago — in 2016 — Emily Clark directed my one-act CATCH OF THE DAY at Michigan State University. Out of the blue, I got an email from her recently. She and several others had put together OnLive Theatre and were planning r a virtual theatre camp for kids. I sent her some and she wound up picking my CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT. On May 9, it was produced virtually over Zoom with a cast of nine kids, who probably ranged from 10 to 16, a little unclear on that. It was a remarkable performance. All the kids were rehearsed virtually and had to costume themselves with whatever they could find at home. It was a really creative performance that shows just how much can be done virtually.
