Mmrmmph (yawn) what time is it?

December?! Ah how time flies when not blogging. I apologize to all our faithful readers (both of you). We had some major technical problems here at Mill 6 Central that prevented us from doing anything connected with the world wide web. But now we are back. And there's not too much to report. Mill 6 will be gearing up for season 12 after the New Year's with website updates (hooray), regular blogging (yippee) and another round of T Plays in June. Plus hopefully we'll squeeze in another theater marathon and maybe a few other surprises.

What I would like to do is plug a few projects some Mill 6 alum are involved in. It is a bit short notice as many of these shows close soon and by soon I mean this weekend! Instead of being a despicable director Barlow Adamson is playing a despicable character in Speakeasy's production of Reckless. http://www.speakeasystage.com/ As an added Mill 6 bonus Maureen Keiller (The Polish Pictures) is in the cast this weekend filling in for Paula Plum. It's at the BCA tonight and tomorrow.

Sasha Castroverde continues her tearing through the Wilde Canon. She plays four different characters in Bad Habit's production of Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband. It should be noted that only four actors play all the roles in this play and do so, I think, with quite a bit of flair. Be sure to check out some of the artwork they have displayed along the walls of the theater. http://www.badhabitproductions.org/ Performances are tonight, Saturday and Sunday.

Another Bunbury alum, Marc Harpin, is appearing in The Christmas Belles, a co-production of Company One and Phoenix Productions. http://www.companyone.org/ This is playing at the Playwrite's Theater at BU and runs this weekend and next. (It's almost a lot of notice considering).

Our lack of internet has left a few projects go by unmentioned. T Play audience favorite Meg Taintor just finnished directing In On It for Whistler in the Dark Theater. The author of the piece is Daniel MacIvor whose play This Is A Play was part of Mill 6's four. Hmmm maybe we should revive that one. Also Mill 6's trusty black IKEA chairs made their first non-Mill 6 appearance.

The Gold Dust Orphanage increased it's membership by one waif when Becca A. Lewis (Rosaline in Bunbury) appeared in their production of Valet of the Dolls.

There is also some news from Mill 6 writers. Pat Gabridge's play Counting Rita presented a few years back at the Theater Marathon by Mill 6 was produced out in L.A. in October by Theater Unleashed. His play Constant State of Panic will be performed this January in Washington D.C. by the Madcap Players. http://www.madcapplayers.com/

Please Report Any Suspicious Activity, Rick Parks' hilarious and audience favorite T Play has been accepted in the 2010 SnowDance Festival in Racine WI. Rick has had success at this festival before and we wish him and his gay dolphin stars the best of luck. http://www.overourheadplayers.org/

OK. I think that brings us up to date.

Proof of Sunshine

A few weeks back we performed My Name is Leslie as part of River Fest in Cambridge. The show went well and we had a great time in the first al fresco production of Mill 6. In reviewing the photos from the show we also realized this was the last nice day weather wise that we've had. Maybe we need to get ourselves back down to the Charles and perform. Maybe that will make the rain go away.

In the photo are John Edward O'Brien, Jonathan Michael Anderson, Becca A. Lewis and Meg Taintor.

Van down by the River

OK, so it's not a van. It's a stage. But we will be participating in The 30th Cambridge River Festival this Saturday June 13th. We will perform Larry Blamire's My Name is Leslie. Our performance starts at 4:30PM on the theater stage (near Putnam Street).

My Name is Leslie is a comedy about bad service and its consequences. Part Twilight Zone episode, part after school special and part WWII movie = all comedy. Featuring Jonathan Michael Anderson and Becca A. Lewis (both recently in Bunbury) plus rare acting appearances by Whistler in the Dark Artistic Director (and T Play audience favorite director) Meg Taintor and Mill 6's own artistic director John Edward O'Brien.

Check out http://www.cambridgema.gov/CAC/Community/river.cfm for more info and complete schedule.

Bunbury: from rehearsal to performance #3

I suggest instead of a harsh florescent light, maybe a gorgeous moon could hang over their shoulders. (rehearsal photo by Becca A. Lewis; production photo by Chris Engels

Bunbury: From rehearsal to performance #2

One of the actors suggest "Maybe we could pant like dogs." (rehearsal photo taken by Becca A. Lewis; production photo by Chris Engels.

Bunbury: From rehearsal to performance #1

Barlow suggested that the butler stand on the other side. (rehearsal photo by Becca A. Lewis; production photo by Chris Engels).

A loss for Boston Theater

Boston Theater suffered a loss last week when Lesley Chapman former Artistic Director of The Theater Cooperative passed away. Lesley was always a friend to us at Mill 6. She helped us out numerous times the most obvious being supplying us with a home during the time that the Piano Factory was out of commission. She was a passionate supporter of small theater in Boston and one whose time was cut far too short. Below is a link to a tribute blog for Lesley. Please feel free to post a message there if you knew her, and if you didn't please take a few moments to read some of the comments people have left. It does provide a little comfort to see how fondly she is remembered and how far her reach went. Rest in Peace, Lesley.

http://www.lesleychapman.blogspot.com/

Be The First On Your Block...

...to get tickets to Bunbury. Our theatermania ticket page is online and ready to take orders.

http://www.theatermania.com/boston/shows/bunbury-a-serious-play-for-trivial-people_153859/

Above is Mikkel Raahede and Nathaniel Gundy rehearsing a scene from Bunbury.

Rosie Ruiz Redux

It seems Rosie Ruiz is not the only person to combine a marathon and public transportation - three T Plays - Pat Gabridge's Recognition, Rick Park's Please Report Any Suspicious Activity and Ken Urban's White People will all be part of the eleventh Boston Theater Marathon happening Sunday May 17, 2009 at the BCA. Also our long time collaborator William Donnelly will have his play Sugar Glider presented. Our friends from Rough and Tumble will also be one of the presenting companies, and Mill 6's Artistic Director John Edward O'Brien's play If at First will be Mill 6's official entry in the marathon. It's always a great day with almost every theater company in Boston involved with one of the 50 ten minute plays. The entire event is a fundraiser for the Theater Community Benevolent Fund. For more information on the marathon please visit http://www.bu.edu/bpt/btm/index.html

Hope to see you there.

Additional Casting

Joining Mikkel Raahede in the cast of Bunbury: A Serious Play for Trivial People are (in alphabetical order) Jonathan Michael Anderson as Hartley/Romeo and Vladimir; Shelley Brown as Lady Bracknell/Olga/Martha and Older Cecily; Sasha Castroverde as Juliet/Cecily/Irena and Blanche; Nathaniel Gundy as Algernon/Allan and Jim; Marc Harpin as Jack/Estragon; Becca A. Lewis as Rosaline/Gwendolyn and Masha; Forrest Walter as Friar Lawrence/The Lawyer/George and Older Algernon.

It's a great mix of Mill 6 veterans and new blood. We are very pleased to have folks aboard and start rehearsals next week.

AUDITIONS for our May 2009 Show!

Mill 6 is pleased to announce that we are holding auditions for Bunbury: A Serious Play for Trivial People by Tom Jacobson.

Reviews from previous productions:
“In essaying a `play for trivial people’, Tom Jacobson has delivered a seriously clever meta-theatrical comedy and an unexpectedly moving ode to the mysterious powers of art and love in BUNBURY. …Jacobson’s antic yet humane wit harpoons some of the biggest leviathans of the theatrical sea, from Wilde to Chekhov to Albee, with an impressive range and a nimble touch that recalls the young Tom Stoppard….”
Terry Morgan, Daily Variety

“…Jacobson’s latest play is his most magnificent to date…. As Bunbury and Rosaline sweep through time and literature, his audience’s collective imagination is also swept up in ways in which the world can change.”
Travis Michael Holder, Back Stage West

Auditon Info:
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We're seeking three males (20's-30's) and three females (20's-40's)

Synopsis:
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Tired of being swept to the sidelines of drama, Bunbury, Algernon's off stage friend from The Importance of Being Earnest and Rosaline, Romeo's off stage first love are determined to make an impact. By stepping into their own plays and then crossing through literature they set drama on its head as play after play is changed and characters previously unseen take center stage.

Actors will be portraying multiple roles from these classic plays referenced during the show:

• The Importance of Being Earnest
• Romeo & Juliet
• Waiting for Godot
• A Streetcar Named Desire
• Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
• The Three Sisters

Roles Available (please note: the role of Bunbury is cast):
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• Actor 1 Algernon Moncrief/Allan (Blanche DuBois' naive husband)/Jim (George and Martha's living son) - please note: the role of Allan involves a brief nude scene
• Actor 2 Hartley (Bunbury's faithful butler)/Romeo/Vladimir
• Actor 3 Jack Worthington/Estragon
• Actress 1 Rosaline (Romeo's first love)/Gwendolyn Fairfax/Masha
• Actress 2 Juliet/Blanche DuBois/Cecily Cardew/Irena
• Actress 3 Lady Bracknell/Martha/Olga/Older Cecily

Time and Date:
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Auditions will be held Tuesday February 24, 2009 from 7-10PM.
Callbacks will be held Wednesday February 25, 2009 from 7-10PM.

Location & Reserving an Audition Slot:
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Both nights are at the Factory Theater 791 Tremont Street in Boston (the entrance is at the rear of the building through the parking lot). Appointments are required and will be set on each quarter hour. Please prepare a 1-2 minute monologue. There may also be readings from the script. To set up an audition appointment please email info@mill6.org with your preferred time. You will receive a confirmation email.

Other Information:
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Rehearsals will begin mid-March. Performances for Bunbury: A Serious Play for Trivial People are May 1-17, 2009 and will be directed by Artistic Director John Edward O'Brien and IRNE nominee Barlow Adamson. There is a stipend for all actors. All roles will be filled with non-equity actors.

Hope to see you there!

Ginger's Working Overtime

Mill 6 friend and T Play writer Ginger Lazarus has several new projects underway. A new website gingerlazarus.com is currently under construction. I was able to get a sneak peek at it, and it looks really great. Many photos from Ginger's shows. Plus information on her short plays and full length pieces. And Ginger has a new show opening this spring. It's called A Blessing and a Curse: A Duet of Plays on Motherhood, and it's at the Boston Playwright's Theatre. www.bostonplaywrights.com March 6-15

So check out what's new with Ginger over at her site, and check out her shows in March.

So what did I miss?

So I took a short nap after the T Plays closed and I wake up and find out it's 2009?! Well, that was quite a nap. Now refreshed I can tell you that our next production will be Bunbury: A Serious Play for Trivial People written by Tom Jacobson. Yes, this was the show we were going to produce last fall, but due to some crazy scheduling we had to put it off until now. Or rather until May. May 1-17 to be exact. It will play at the Factory Theater. I will post exact dates and times in the next few weeks. I can say it will be co-directed by Artistic Director John Edward O'Brien and IRNE nominee Barlow Adamson. Mikkel Raahede (shown in photo) last seen as the Artist in Match will play Bunbury. We will be posting here and elsewhere when our audition dates and times are set. Our website will soon be updated with more photos from The T Plays, so be on the lookout for these changes. Mill 6 is also working with some other small theater companies in Boston to help promote - what else - small theater in Boston. So, it looks like that long nap was needed because it should be a busy and fun winter and spring. Stay tuned.....