Not Your Grandma’s AIDA!

(L to R) Douglas Lyons (Mereb), Brianna Horne
(Aida, the enslaved princess)
and Heather Holohan (Amneris, daughter of a Pharoah)
Photo credit: Randy O'Rourke

A Personal Note:

This Is Not Your Grandma’s Aida!
If the First Run-through Is This Amazing,
What Will the Show Be Like?

July 24. Even the first full run-through of Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida tonight was incredible, and that’s rare enough to report on.

To be honest, I did not expect to experience the ecstatic response that professional, fully staged live theater can give us, though TriArts’ Executive Director Alice Bemand had warned me I would. I would be attending a mere rehearsal, after all. Not even a dress rehearsal—only a first run-through. How effective could it be?

The answer: Very, very, and very! The first bare-bones rehearsal of the Sarah Combs-directed Aida that I saw last night—street clothes, broomstick swords and all—was outrageously impressive. And that’s without the oboe, the English horn, the flute, the cello, guitar, bass, drums, or percussion that will be there the evening of July 31.

It was also without costume designer Kirche Leigh Zeile’s hot Egyptian reds, oranges, and magentas, her Nubian sea blues and greens, as well as the scenery and lighting’s extravagant color.

What can you tell from such a bare-bones rehearsal? I can tell you that Aida’s voices, solo and in chorus, are splendid. That Aida’s two young leads, Brianna Horne and Brett Travis, possess unusual power and presence. That Aida’s story is heartbreaking and passionate and that there is magnificent music and dynamic choreography by Cindi Parise. I found myself smiling and weeping at the same time. That’s not common. Nothing about this prize-winning show is.

Musical Director John Moran said of an earlier staging of this Elton John/Tim Rice masterpiece,“It was the most moving show I’ve ever done.”

Do not miss this Aida, theater-lovers.

Patricia Horan
Editor, TriArts Trumpet

Elton John and Tim Rice’s AIDA opens Thursday, July 31 at 7pm

Elton John and Tim Rice’s AIDA July 31 - August 17 July / August S M T W T F S 31 7PM 1 8PM 2 8PM 3 5PM 4 5 6 2PM 7 7PM 8 8PM 9 8PM 10 5PM 11 12 13 2PM 14 7PM 15 8PM 16 2/8PM 17 5PM 18 19 20 21 22 23 Prices are $28.50 Standard, $42.50 for Premium (Front-and-Center) Tickets. Matinee performance tickets are $23.50 Standard, $32.50 Premium. Senior/student tickets are $22.50 evenings, $18.50 for matinees. Children: $16.50 evenings and $12.50 matinees. Call the TriArts Box Office at 860.364.7469 or visit www.triarts.net. Where you can get tickets 24/7. The theater is at 49 Amenia Road, Sharon at the junction of Rt. 343/41/4. Sponsored by Elyse Harney Real Estate, Founders Insurance Group, Herrington’s

Rise of Young Playwrighs

By Emily Duus, from the Litchfield County Times Monthly

Young writers in the region apparently have a lot of serious issues on their minds.  Winners of this year’s Young Playwrights Contest at the TriArts Sharon Playhouse may be elementary and high school students, but their subject matter comes form the world of adult concerns—the dangers of teen driving, the ostracism of those who are different, converting grief into new hope and presidential politics.

Winners of TriArts 2008 Young Playwrights Festival: front row, left to right: Kristine Klein (Bridgewater, CT), Cassandra Case (Housatonic, MA), Shannon Salem (Hopewell Junction, NY), Samantha Bakke (Poughkeepsie, NY); back row: Samuel Clements O'Brient (Stockbridge, MA), Monica Weigel Chin (Lakeville, CT),  Kristin Miller (Thomaston, CT),  Eric Larocca (Kent, CT).

The plays by the four winners from Litchfield County in different age categories are among the works to be performed at the Young Playwrights Festival on August 5th at 7 p.m.

Each winner was given a mentor to help in polishing his or her piece, which had to be a maximum length of 10 minutes for the performance and consist of no more that four characters according to the TriArts website.

Miss Miller, a 17-year old senior in high school from Thomaston, was the oldest winner in the contest.  Her play, “Invincible”, is a poignant piece dealing with issues that are pertinent in the lives of those making their way through high school….

For tickets to the festival on Aug. 5 call the box office at 860-364-SHOW, X. 201.  Tickets may also be purchased at the door. The cost is $5.

For the entire story, check out http://www.countytimes.com/ and click on LCT Monthly magazine for August.

Thanks Emily, for a great story!