Twelve top rated play excerpts competed June 17-22 in Carmel, Indiana

AACTFest 2013 showed the world that community theatre may be, technically speaking, amateur theatre, but it's often far above "amateur quality."  Twelve community theatres competed at Carmel, Indiana for the American Association of Community Theatre's AACTFest, including the Geeks' home theatre, Elkhart Civic Theatre, with a production of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

AACTFest is the culmination of a state-to-regional-to national competition season that brings some of the best amateur talent together for a week of excerpt competition, education and networking.

In this extended episode, the Geeks talk about the festival and our own experiences, and include interviews with the director and cast of Wisconsin Rapids Community Theatre's production of Cradle and All.  Wisconsin Rapids was Elkhart Civic Theatre's co-winner at the AACT Midwest Regional competition, and our two troupes became friends as a result.  Steve Martin, one half of the cast, won the Best Actor Award, and the production took Best Sound Design and Third Place overall. Steve and his co-star, Karly Telleksen, will join us on this episode, along with director Susan Edgren in a separate interview.

For full information about AACT (American Association of Community Theatre) and AACTFest, check their website.  The full list of competition winners and nominees is here.

As for Elkhart Civic Theatre and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, our production received 7 nominations, of which we're very proud, and we won two of the awards.  Here's our list of nominations and wins for Jekyll and Hyde.

Nominated for Best Set Design and Dressing: John Shoup

Nominated for Best Sound Design: Dave Dufour and Garry Cobbum

WON Best Lighting Design: Randy Zonker

WON Best Costume Design: Linda Wiesinger

Nominated for Best Ensemble

Nominated for Best Actress in a Featured Role: Kaitrin Higbee, Elizabeth in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Nominated for Best Actor in a Featured Role: Tony Venable, Hyde 3 in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

All Photos in this post generously provided by Stephen Bird, photographer, Carmel, Indiana.

Music provided by Music Alley.

Gallery of ECT's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (adapted by Jeffery Hatcher from the Robert Louis Stevenson novella) and WRCT's Cradle and All.

Twelve top rated play excerpts competed June 17-22 in Carmel, Indiana

AACTFest 2013 showed the world that community theatre may be, technically speaking, amateur theatre, but it's often far above "amateur quality."  Twelve community theatres competed at Carmel, Indiana for the American Association of Community Theatre's AACTFest, including the Geeks' home theatre, Elkhart Civic Theatre, with a production of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

AACTFest is the culmination of a state-to-regional-to national competition season that brings some of the best amateur talent together for a week of excerpt competition, education and networking.

In this extended episode, the Geeks talk about the festival and our own experiences, and include interviews with the director and cast of Wisconsin Rapids Community Theatre's production of Cradle and All.  Wisconsin Rapids was Elkhart Civic Theatre's co-winner at the AACT Midwest Regional competition, and our two troupes became friends as a result.  Steve Martin, one half of the cast, won the Best Actor Award, and the production took Best Sound Design and Third Place overall. Steve and his co-star, Karly Telleksen, will join us on this episode, along with director Susan Edgren in a separate interview.

For full information about AACT (American Association of Community Theatre) and AACTFest, check their website.  The full list of competition winners and nominees is here.

As for Elkhart Civic Theatre and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, our production received 7 nominations, of which we're very proud, and we won two of the awards.  Here's our list of nominations and wins for Jekyll and Hyde.

Nominated for Best Set Design and Dressing: John Shoup

Nominated for Best Sound Design: Dave Dufour and Garry Cobbum

WON Best Lighting Design: Randy Zonker

WON Best Costume Design: Linda Wiesinger

Nominated for Best Ensemble

Nominated for Best Actress in a Featured Role: Kaitrin Higbee, Elizabeth in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Nominated for Best Actor in a Featured Role: Tony Venable, Hyde 3 in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

All Photos in this post generously provided by Stephen Bird, photographer, Carmel, Indiana.

Music provided by Music Alley.

Gallery of ECT's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (adapted by Jeffery Hatcher from the Robert Louis Stevenson novella) and WRCT's Cradle and All.

Emerging playwrights and unique plays gain exposure and a shot at publication

The Geeks are joined by Amy Marsh and Casey McLain of Samuel French, Inc., in New York, to talk about the Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, a competitive play writing festival now in its 38th year.

Samuel French, Inc, is the largest of the theatrical publishing and licensing companies, and has been around since the early 1800s. The company has offices in London and Los Angeles as well as in New York.

The festival staff, including Amy and Casey, who coordinate the event, whittles up to a thousand short play submissions down to 30, which are then presented as part of the week-long festival, which runs from July 23 -28 this year. Six winning plays are ultimately selected to be published in the Off Off Broadway Plays compilation.

The Festival starts July 23, so obviously, this year's competition is closed for submissions. Info on next year's competition and festival can be found at http://oob.samuelfrench.com/.

Join the Geeks plus Amy and Casey for a fun conversation about this long-running, prestigious New York theatrical event.

Music provided by Music Alley

Emerging playwrights and unique plays gain exposure and a shot at publication

The Geeks are joined by Amy Marsh and Casey McLain of Samuel French, Inc., in New York, to talk about the Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, a competitive play writing festival now in its 38th year.

Samuel French, Inc, is the largest of the theatrical publishing and licensing companies, and has been around since the early 1800s. The company has offices in London and Los Angeles as well as in New York.

The festival staff, including Amy and Casey, who coordinate the event, whittles up to a thousand short play submissions down to 30, which are then presented as part of the week-long festival, which runs from July 23 -28 this year. Six winning plays are ultimately selected to be published in the Off Off Broadway Plays compilation.

The Festival starts July 23, so obviously, this year's competition is closed for submissions. Info on next year's competition and festival can be found at http://oob.samuelfrench.com/.

Join the Geeks plus Amy and Casey for a fun conversation about this long-running, prestigious New York theatrical event.

Music provided by Music Alley

The more you know what to expect in the unusual world of competitive theatre, the better off you'll be. Here are some of our insights.

The more you know what to expect in the unusual world of competitive theatre, the better off you'll be. Here are some of our insights.

Deirdre Lovejoy's (and Tom Hanks') opening night and more from Marcia

Recorded before this week's Tony Awards, this episode features Marcia telling us all about the opening of Tony-nominated "Lucky Guy" with Tom Hanks and daughter Deirdre Lovejoy, plus the revival of "Pippin" and more fun in the Big Apple.  Marcia tells it so well.

Congratulations to Deirdre on such a successful run of this play.  She's chronicled a lot of the experience on her LuckyGirlBlog.

 

Music provided by Music Alley.

Deirdre Lovejoy's (and Tom Hanks') opening night and more from Marcia

Recorded before this week's Tony Awards, this episode features Marcia telling us all about the opening of Tony-nominated "Lucky Guy" with Tom Hanks and daughter Deirdre Lovejoy, plus the revival of "Pippin" and more fun in the Big Apple.  Marcia tells it so well.

Congratulations to Deirdre on such a successful run of this play.  She's chronicled a lot of the experience on her LuckyGirlBlog.

 

Music provided by Music Alley.

Entertainment attorney Gordon Firemark shares insights about music licensing and more. Community theatres often use recorded music as part of pre-show or intermission, and sometimes within productions. All uses of recorded, copyrighted music require some kind of licensing -- a fact that somehow gets "forgotten" by many producers. The way in which a particular piece of music is used makes a difference as to what the licensing (and licensing costs) will be. And it can get complicated.

Entertainment attorney Gordon Firemark shares insights about music licensing and more. Community theatres often use recorded music as part of pre-show or intermission, and sometimes within productions. All uses of recorded, copyrighted music require some kind of licensing -- a fact that somehow gets "forgotten" by many producers. The way in which a particular piece of music is used makes a difference as to what the licensing (and licensing costs) will be. And it can get complicated.