Great theatre - Past and Present
JULY 15 & 16, 2017
ZORA & MARJORIE MAKE A RETURN VISIT!
March 25, 2017
ACT PRESENTS “A TEA WITH ZORA AND MARJORIE”
St. Augustine, FL . Zora? Marjorie? Who are these women?
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings is well known to Florida readers as the author of “The Yearling” (1938) and of “Cross Creek” (1942). A woman who came to Florida from the North and fell in love with the flora and fauna of rural Florida…it became her refuge.
Zora Neale Hurston is a New York-educated writer, born in Alabama and raised in the all-black town of Eatonville, Florida. She came to prominence during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920’s and was noted for her personality, wit and writing talent. Zora returned to her roots in Eatonville to collect stories and write about the folklore of the region. Among Hurston’s acclaimed books are “Their Eyes Were Watching God” (1937) and “Dust Tracks On A Road” (1942).
“They saw themselves as renegades and as daring, and they loved adventure,” said playwright Barbara Speisman. “They were two women who were from very different worlds.” They both lived in St. Augustine. And despite the prevailing climate of segregation, they became friends!
Speisman’s play imagines the first meeting of these two headstrong women in 1942, both at the height of their success, at Rawlings’ upstairs apartment at the segregated Castle Warden hotel in St. Augustine, and their ensuing conversation over “tea” – a colloquialism for whiskey!
''I've never been more entertained than I was today,” Rawlings said in a letter after this first meeting.
Directed by Jean Rahner, performances are Saturday, July 15 at 7:30pm and Sunday, July 16 at 2:00pm at the Lincolnville Museum Cultural Center, 102 ML King Ave., St. Augustine, FL.
Tickets are $20 for Adults and $10 for Students.
Tickets available online at http://www.aclassictheatre.org/. For information email aclassictheatre@hotmail.com or for Reservations call 904-501-5093.
Rhodie Jackson (Zora) and Nancy Grote (Marjorie)
Playwright Barbra Speisman, Nancy Grote (Marjorie) and Rhodie Jackson (Zora).
Liz Haverty, Kelly McTaggart and Elizabeth Myers in "The Lady of Larkspur Lotion"
November 2, 2017
A CLASSIC THEATRE BRINGS TENNESEE WILLIAMS CENTER STAGE
CAST ANNOUNCED for
"AN EVENiNG OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS ONE ACTS"
St. Augustine, FL- A Classic Theatre announces the cast of their December production of “An Evening of Tennessee Williams One Acts.” The production encompasses six of William’s seldom-seen one acts that puts the spotlight on the wonderfully complex women of his imagination… flawed…desperate…frightened…. Some are strangers to us…some we have known. All are fascinating.
Director Kathryn Masters has assembled a talented cast of ten, which includes ACT veterans Jan LoPresti-Beach, Julie Grayauskie, Kelly McTaggart, and Katie Timoney.
Making their debut with A Classic Theatre are: Jim Cadigan, John Grayauskie, Teresa Harris, Elizabeth Haverty, Elizabeth Myers, and Devin Reardon.
ACT is proud to give St. Augustine audiences this opportunity to see the lyrical, classic work of Williams in this new light. The one-acts selected include “The Fat Man’s Wife,” “The Pink Bedroom,” “Why Do You Smoke So Much, Lily,” “Something Unspoken,” “Lady of Larkspur Lotion” and “Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen.”
Performances are on December 1, 2, 3 and 8, 9 10. Friday, Saturday performances are at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2:00pm at the Lincolnville Museum & Cultural Center, 102 ML King Ave., St. Augustine. Tickets are $20 and are available online at www.aclassictheatre.org. Reservations: 904-501-5093.
A Classic Theatre is a 501(c)3 theater organization dedicated to bringing classic, historic and original theatrical works to the cultural landscape of St. Augustine.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A CLASSIC THEATRE
Contact: Jean Rahner
904-829-5807
August 25, 2017
A CLASSIC THEATRE HOSTS GATHERING
ACT is hosting their annual Gathering on Thursday, September 21 at 6:30-7:30pm at the Art Studio located at 370 A1A Beach Blvd., St. Augustine Beach. www.beachartstudio.com/
All those interested in the theater in St. Augustine are cordially invited to come out and meet us…old friends, new friends…all are welcome. Refreshments and snacks will be served along with introductions to A Classic Theatre’s Board of Directors and its new president, Kathryn Masters. You will also get first glimpse of ACT’s plans for the 2017-18 season.
This is an opportunity to come out and get connected with ACT. There are opportunities for actors, directors, stage managers, backstage helpers and front-of-the-house volunteers.
Questions? Contact us at aclassictheatre@hotmail.com.
MAY 7-10, 2017
A.R. Gurney’s “Love Letters”
stars Annie Gaybis and Peter Gutierrez
in this “tender sketch of the bond between two people who cannot live with, or without, each other.” ...William A. Henry III, Time
A perfect romantic offering for the Romanza Festival of the Arts, “Love Letters” has been lauded as “one of the four or five best American plays of the ‘80s.”—William A Henry III, Time. A finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in Drama, “Love Letters” chronicles the hopes and ambitions, dreams and disappointments, victories and defeats – that have passed between them throughout the 50 years of their separated lives.
Directed by Anne Kraft, “Love Letters” will have four performances, Sunday May 7 at 2:00pm, and Monday-Wednesday, May 8-10 at 7:30pm at the Gamache-Koger Theater in the Flagler College Ringhaver Student Center, 50 Sevilla Street, downtown St. Augustine.
Tickets are $20 Adults, $10 Students and are available online at www.aclassictheatre.org.
For reservations and information, call 904-501-5093. Telephone Reservations may pay at the door by Cash or Check only.
Annie Gaybis has a long list of stage, TV, and film credits as an actress/singer/dancer from Broadway to Las Vegas, with many stops in-between supporting local organizations in Palm Coast and St. Augustine. Trained and mentored by Shelly Winters, Annie has appeared with such stars as Placido Domingo, Michael Feinstein, Micheal Buble, Joel Grey, Burt Reynolds, John Raitt, Kevin Costner, Eddie Murphy, Dolly Parton, Rodney Dangerfield, the incomparable vocalist Frank Sinatra Jr. and the gifted John Byner.
Peter Gutierrez has worked in several top rated radio stations as an On-Air talent, Newscaster and voice -over actor in commercials and several projects for the Cartoon Network. As a theater actor, Peter was a member of both the Miami Repertory Theatre in Miami, FL and The Centre Stage Players in Greenville, South Carolina. Locally he has been seen at the Limelight Theatre as Mr. Saunders in "Lend Me A Tenor" and Horace Vandergelder in "Hello Dolly." This project marks Peter's fourth collaboration with Ms. Gaybis, having appeared with her in Tennessee Williams’ "Suddenly Last Summer" for the Palm Coast Arts Foundation, in Neil Simon’s "Chapter Two" for The Flagler Auditorium 25th Anniversary celebration and "The Rain Maker" at Palm Coast City Repertory Theatre.
