ACTC Announces Its Upcoming Season of Shows

My pal Zach Davis sends along this message loaded with important information - especially in that last paragraph! Take it away, Zach:

ACTC Theatre held its annual banquet the other night at The Chimney Corner Restaurant in Ashland, Kentucky.

There was a record attendance of over 80 people. The night included several performances from the past year shows. In between performances various awards were given out for technical aspects and acting awards. There were many awards given out so I will not try to list all the winners (I'm afraid I might mess that up). I was fortunate to receive two awards myself. I shared the honor of Outstanding Shop Foreman and Technical Director with my great friend Susan Henderson for our work in Copacabana and I won Best Community Actor in a major role, also for Copacabana.

The evening held several highlights, but the one everyone looks forward to the most is the announcement of the next Theatre Season. What an exciting year ahead - some major, never before done productions are in store.

ACTC Theatre is excited to be premier some of Bernard J. Taylor's world renowned works. Taylor has had his productions appear in many different countries and on London's West End. Taylor now resides in Columbus, Ohio, and has been in contact with Edward Figgins at ACTC Theatre and together they decided on two of his works to hit our stage here in the Tri-State.

The fall show in October will be Taylor's Nosferatu The Vampire - (Rock Opera) based on Bram Stoker's Dracula, a new take on the legend in a mix of musical and rock opera. He writes, "The vampire in Nosferatu is a much more tragic figure than the creature generally portrayed." Reviewers wrote, "Nosferatu is dark and sombre yet with an inherent beauty - eerie, ethereal and passionate. The real fascination proves to be the depth and grandeur of the abundance of haunting melodies. . ." and "The vigorous, wide-ranging music of Nosferatu resembles a lusty love child of a blood wedding between Carmina Burana and Les Miserables, orchestrated and performed with an onward driving force which almost recalls Bernstein in its progressive, narrative energy."

The winter show of course will once again be A Christmas Carol - Scrooge and Marley, a beloved adaptation based of the story by Charles Dickens. (I have to say this is one of the Tri-State's longest running annual productions.) This will be the 16th annual production of this show. Last year the show took some new direction and I am sure this year will continue to be as fresh as ever.

The children's show will be performed in February, which is Once Upon a Mattress, as the story about the Princess and the Pea becomes a wild musical comedy adventure. Due to an unhappy curse, King Sextimus is unable to speak. Meanwhile, his terror of a wife, Queen Aggravian, has taken over control of the kingdom. Most importantly, in an attempt to keep Prince Dauntless single, she has decreed that only the princess that can pass her test may marry her son. Further, no one else in the kingdom may marry until Prince Dauntless does. Lady Larken and Sir Harry are extremely disturbed by this fact since Lady Larken is now pregnant with Sir Harry's baby. Luckily, Sir Harry is able to find an amazing princess, Winnifred the Woebegone. She instantly catches the attention of Prince Dauntless, and in the end, is able to pass the Queen's supposedly impassable sensitivity test.

Once again in April we are excited to perform yet another work of Bernard J. Taylor. Wuthering Heights the Musical. The haunting image of Heathcliffe searching the moors for the ghost of his beloved Cathy is one of the most enduringly passionate scenes in English literature. Taylor's adaptation has been recognized by the Brontë Society as marking the first time that the true spirit of this masterpiece "has been captured in music." Heathcliffe enters the House on the Hill and the wild boy falls for Cathy but attracts hatred from her brother. "The icy winds that blow across the moor would never pass beyond our door. But since the old man died, the storm has come inside, in our house on the hill - Wuthering Heights." It has magnificent music, verging on operatic arias including "He's Gone" and "I Belong to the Earth." Taylor's big, sweepingly romantic score is dark, brooding, fiery and as dramatic as the subject.

We are very excited about this huge upcoming year. I have to add that wasn't the only big announcement of the evening. I am overjoyed to announce my engagement to Allison Conley. I proposed to her during the banquet and she said yes! So we are very excited about our future together. Again it was a wonderful and exciting evening in Ashland and was so nice to see everyone looking their best.

Wonderful news! Congratulations to both Zach and Allison - and it looks like a great season for ACTC!