Category Archives: ATOI news

ATOI news

Next up for The Actors Theater: The Roommate

The Actors Theater of Orcas Island will present the second show in its summer Readers Theater series with three performances of “The Roommate” by Jen Silverman, starring the unmissable Pat Ayers and Aaimee Johnson.
The Roommate is directed by Keith Light with support from Lynda Sanders.
Performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 26, through Sunday, July 28, at the Orcas Island Grange (3252 Orcas Road).
Sharon (Pat Ayers), in her mid-fifties, is recently divorced and needs a roommate to share her Iowa home. Robyn (Aaimee Johnson), also in her mid-fifties, needs a place to hide and a chance to start over. But as Sharon begins to uncover Robyn’s secrets, they encourage her own deep-seated desire to transform her life completely. A dark comedy about what it takes to re-route your life – and what happens when the wheels come off.

This show is not to be missed.
 
Language and subject material make this  play unsuitable for younger kids.

Tickets are available at Darvill’s Book Store, online (see “BUY TICKETS HERE” and at the door. All tickets are $10. For more information, contact Keith Light at 360-317-4901.

ATOI news

Coming up next: A Readers Theater Production of Jerry Mayer’s play “2 Across”.

The Actors Theater of Orcas Island will present a Readers Theater Production of Jerry Mayer’s play “2 Across”.

Performances will take place at 7:30 pm Friday, July 5th thru Sunday, July 7th at The Orcas Island Grange (3252 Orcas Road)

Two strangers, a man (Tom Fiscus) and a woman (Suzanne Gropper), board a San Francisco BART train at 4:30 a.m. They’re alone in the car, each is married, both are doing the New York Times crossword.

She’s an organized, sensible psychologist. He’s a free-spirited, unemployed ad exec. She is a crossword pro, he always quits. When he tosses his puzzle away, she snaps, “Crosswords are a metaphor for life, those who finish, succeed, those who don’t, fail.” Now he vows to finish. Why? He’s a competitor and she happens to be lovely.

This starts an eighty-minute ride described by critics as “Hilarious,” “Witty,” “Romantic,” “Poignant,” and “Wonderfully entertaining.”

Two opposites in an enclosed space, attacking each other’s values but also being swayed and intrigued by them. They each have serious life problems that the other helps solve. Their trip is filled with unpredictable, but believable, surprises, even a passionate kissing embrace or two. As the train ride ends, it’s obvious each of them has been changed for the better.

2 Across is directed by Doug Bechtel.

While suitable for all ages, this play will not be of interest to preteens.

Tickets can be bought on line (see link at left) and will be available at Darvill’s Book Store and at the door. All tickets are $10.

For more information, contact Doug Bechtel at 360-317-5601.

ATOI news, PlayFest

Get Ready for PlayFest 2019!

We are excited to announce the selections for this year’s PlayFest, Orcas Island’s homegrown festival of 10-minute plays. You’ll find the list below.  If you are interested in acting or directing, you can read through any of the scripts at the Orcas Island Library (just ask at the front desk).

Auditions will be held in late March or early April, stay tuned for details. If you’re interested in directing please contact us (see email addresses below).

There will be six performances at the Grange, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday May 10, 11, 12 and May 17, 18, 19

The Plays:

Second Thoughts by Miguel Villarreal

Made with Love by Calen McDowell

Honing the Edge by James Wolf

Cast On — Bind Off by Brad Brown

Helping Great Aunt Lucy by Jackie Bates

A Streetcar Named Napoleon by Michael Armenia

In the Hall of the Mountain Wizard by Evan Wagoner-Lynch

Questions? Contact Aaimee Johnson: aaimee.johnson *AT* gmail.com
or Evan Wagoner-Lynch: hello *AT* evanwl.com

ATOI news, PlayFest

PlayFest 2019 Submission Info

Calling All Writers!

We are now accepting submissions for the 14th Annual PlayFest, our festival of locally-grown ten-minute plays. Please send your work to us by January 31, 2019 (to the address at the bottom of this post.) PlayFest will be held at the Grange in May, with auditions for actors in early spring.

If you’re sitting on a script because it’s not finished or perfect, send it to us anyway! We will read all scripts submitted to us by January 31. All writers will receive notes from us and will have a couple weeks to make any revisions–but you must submit by the January deadline to be in the running. Good luck!

Submission Guidelines

  • Length: Plays work best between five to ten minutes (usually five to ten pages). Read your work aloud and keep time to make sure your play isn’t too long.
  •    Sets and Scenes: Keep your sets simple without many props or excessive furniture. Avoid using too many scenes.
  • Cast: Keep the cast small—two to four people works best.
  • Plays must pull the audience right into the story/situation without a lot of set up or backstory. Most plays explore characters or follow high concept storylines. Also, consider that characters must go through some sort of change in the play. Please avoid being didactic or creating plays that teach some sort of moral lesson.
  • Playwright Requirements: Plays must be original and by Orcas Island residents only. If your play is chosen, you must be available for the first couple of rehearsals (these will take place in March).

Deadline: Plays must be submitted by January 31, 2019.

We cannot accept any late submissions.

Submissions should be sent to mmgriskey [AT] rockisland [DOT] com as either MS Word or pdf files.

ATOI news

Next up: Mom’s Gift

Looking for a fun evening with friends, family, and possibly those Summer guests you have at your house? How about an evening of Readers’ Theater at the Grange? ( Fri Aug 3rd, Sat Aug 4th, and Sun Aug 5th)

Actors Theater of Orcas Island presents “Mom’s Gift”.  It’s a little gem of a play we recently discovered in which Mom, recently deceased, returns as a ghost to attend her husband’s birthday party!

This “comedy with a heart” stars local actors Suzanne Gropper, Bethany Marie, Larry Hampel, Bailey Sande, Lisa Spesard, Kevin Hauschild, and Luann Pamatian and is directed by Melinda Milligan.

Readers’ Theater is performed script-in-hand, with minimal set and props. It’s a great way to discover a play, and don’t be surprised if we ask you to give us your thoughts about whether you would like to see a traditional production in the future!

This play is suitable for all ages but will probably not be of interest to pre-teens.

Tickets are $10 at Darvill’s, online at Brown Paper Tickets or at the door.

Show starts at 7:30pm.