Part of the play writing process is hearing the words you’ve written read aloud, preferably by an actor,  and figuring out what works and what doesn’t. CATCO  loves to get people involved and would love to give the playwright the benefit of hearing the feedback from a real live audience as she is shaping the script.

So we have created the “Plays in Process” series, and are about to hold 3 FREE public workshops  to help us develop the script for  Pierce to the Soul, all generously supported by a grant from the Ohio Humanities Council.

Did I mention that the workshops are FREE to the public?

What happens at a Pierce workshop?

Each  begins with an introduction by dramaturge (read “scholar”) Bill Childs, followed by a reading of an excerpt of the play, performed by actor Alan Bomar Jones.  After the performance playwright Chiquita Mullins Lee will talk about the research and playwriting process, and then open the floor for questions, comments and suggestions.  The workshops are great way to learn more about legendary Columbus folk artist Elijah Pierce, and to join in a public discussion with the playwright and creative team that will help shape the evolution of this work-in-progress.

Yes, the audience for the workshop helps shape the script! This isn’t passive listening or theoretical noodling (which is fun in its own way…). This is a chance to hear how the play got started, hear a veteran actor reading the draft, and have an impact on how the play turns out.

We held three Pierce workshops this fall, thanks to support from GCAC and in concert with our colleagues at Transit Arts and Ohio Dominican University, and the response was great. We had people from all walks of life responding to the play, sharing personal experiences some had with Elijah Pierce when he was still alive, and we got some great insights to how the play spoke to real people. The discussions were lively and fascinating, and often bumped up against the time-limits of the workshops.

Actor Alan Bomar Jones at the Central Community House/Transit Arts Pierce Workshop

Come join us for this final round or workshops before we start official rehearsals!

This winter we  are lucky enough to be working with the Columbus Museum of Art, the Columbus Historical Society,  the King Arts Complex, and the Ohio Humanities Council to present  the workshops.

When and where are they?

Tuesday February 16, 2010 at the King Arts Complex at 867 Mt. Vernon

Avenue. The workshop begins at 7 pm.

Sunday February 21, 2010 at the Columbus Museum of Art, 480 East Broad

Street. The workshop begins at 2 pm

Wednesday March 3, 2010 at the Riffe Center Studio Two Theatre, 77 S. High Street,

hosted by the Columbus Historical Society. The workshop begins at 7:00 pm

How much is admission?

FREE!

Come hear the work in progress, join in the discussion, then experience the finished play as CATCO produces its world Premiere in April!

As the media rolls out its “Best of 2009″ lists, CATCO is proud to be among the honorees!

The breadth of the offerings honored is a real salute to the growing wealth of theatre being produced in Columbus, despite some of the most trying economic times in recent memory. From Actor’s Theatre’s Shakespeare in the park with puppets, to the Phoenix/CAPA production of The Miracle Worker with both deaf and hearing actors, to Evolution’s Frozen, to Shadowbox’s original musical about Woodstock, to Gallery’s musical  Parade, to Available Light’s Dirty Math, to CATCO’s Seafarer, our community of artists and audience has clearly shown that we are not backing down in the face of the recession.

Congratulations to all honored!

We at CATCO are proud to have several productions and artists named as “Bests” of the year:

Blackbird, David Harrower’s exploration of the boundary between love and abuse, directed by Geoffrey Nelson, and featuring Jonathan Putnam, Anna Paniccia, and Marisa Jean Riegle gripped our audience and held them spellbound within the intimate confines of the Studio Two Theatre. Dispatch critic Michael Grossberg named it to his “Best Of” list for 2009. The production featured set design by Jessica Trent Secrest , Costumes by Kristine Kearney, Lighting by Jim Hutchison, and sound design by Nitz Brown.

Anna Paniccia & Jon Putnam in CATCO's "Blackbird." Photo by David Alkire

The Seafarer, Conor McPherson’s darkly humorous tale of a Christmas Eve poker game involving copious amounts of alcohol, the devil, and the chance for redemption received several honors. Mandy Fox directed a 5-actor cast that included Damian Bowerman, Rick Clark,  Ken Erney, Mark Mann, and Geoffrey Nelson. The production featured set design by Dan Gray,  costume design by Tatjana Longerot, lighting design by Darin Keesing, and sound by Keya Myers-Alkire. Michael Grossberg named it to his “Best Of”  list, and Richard Ades of The Other Paper declared it the “Best Comedy” saying:

“Director Mandy Fox was blessed with a cast of five fine actors, and she used them well in Conor McPherson’s alcohol-fueled tale. Dan Gray’s realistically dingy set was another plus.”

Ken Erney, Damian Bowerman, Rick Clark, Mark Mann, and Geoffrey Nelson in CATCO's "The Seafarer." Photo by David Alkire

Mandy Fox: Tied for Best Direction for The Seafarer. Richard Ades ‘ choice for “best Direction” was a three-way tie among Mandy for The Seafarer,  Pam Hill for The Tempest at Actor’s Theatre, and Frank Barnhart for Parade at Gallery Players. Quoth Ades:

“Try as I might, I could not find a reason to favor one of these sterling efforts over the others.”

Congrats to Mandy, and Frank & Pam as well!

Michelle Schroeder, The Other Paper’s “Best Performance (Female)” of 2009! Richard Ades honored Michelle for her work with CATCO in Almost, Maine, and for her role in Available Light’s production of God’s Ear. If you saw CATCO’s Almost, Maine you will remember Michelle as the petite actress who portrayed a wide variety of roles from Sandrine, whose bachelorette party is interrupted by an ex-boyfriend,  to Rhonda the tom-boy who discovers love wrapped up in a snowmobile outfit. Almost, Maine was Michelle’s debut production at CATCO and her work on the show was nothing short of brilliant! I had enjoyed her acting in Phoenix productions in the past, and colleagues tell me she was simply heart-breaking in AVLT’s God’s Ear. We were thrilled to have her with us for Almost, Maine and are glad her talents are being recognized!

Kevin McClatchy and Michelle Schroeder in CATCO's "Almost, Maine." Photo by David Alkire

Michelle Schroeder and Malcolm Callan in CATCO's "Almost, Maine." Photo by David Alkire

Congratulations Michelle, you deserve it!

Thanks to our colleagues in the press for their continued coverage and recognition!

Have a happy and safe new year!

–T.J. Gerckens
Managing Director
CATCO

It’s the last week of 2009, so it’s inevitable: The 2009 Review!

What were your favorite CATCO moments of 2009?

Here are some of mine:

–Experimenting with the tiny reflective glass beads they paint onto highway signs to see if we could make the projections on the Almost, Maine set brighter (it didn’t work, but was cool & fun)

–Sitting in on prop discussions for Almost, Maine. Some sample snippets:
   -”So how big are these Bags of Love?”
   -”What does a broken-heart-in-a-bag sound like?” 

Christina Ritter and Malcolm Callan in "Almost, Maine." Photo by David Alkire

–CATCO’s return to the Studio Two theatre. It’s cozy, intimate, and a great place to see theatre, up close and personal!

–Realizing how much more Geoff Nelson and Jon Putnam know about casting than I do: 
   -Kerry Shanklin as an old, exotic Argentinean?!?  Really? She’s a great actress, but……    Well, if you saw The Clean House, you know how  GREAT she was in that role!

–Being absolutely mesmerized and gripped by Blackbird: a play that I loathed when I first read it! The cast had me so tightly in the palm of their hands that I physically gasped several times during the performance!

–Rolling out CATCO’s new logo! A fresh new look, designed by CAPA graphic Artist Scott Fitzpatrick, with a great “tag line” by Terence Womble (also a part of the CAPA-CATCO marketing team). “CATCO is Theatre” tells us what we need to know!

The new CATCO logo and tag line, modeled by Stacy Siak and Delora Gilzow

It also introduced “CATCO Orange.” Some love it, some hate it, but you can’t help but notice it! I was wearing a new CATCO T-shirt in a parking lot one day, and a student driver tried to practice parallel parking around me…..

But seriously….thanks also go to the Branding & Marketing Committee of our Board of Directors who worked very closely with us on the logo and website (see more on that below).

–Telling the “…darn near killed ‘em!” joke backstage one day to someone who had actually NEVER heard it before!

–Rolling out the new CATCOistheatre.org website. Matt Dopkiss and his team at DynamIT  hit a home run with the design for our site, and the CAPA-CATCO team really came together to develop the content.  It is so great to be able to direct people to the CATCO web site without having to apologize for it! If you haven’t explored beyond this blog, check out the wealth of resources and multimedia now available at your fingertips!

A Screenshot of www.catcoistheatre.org Web Design by DynamIT

–Having an increase in subscribership for our 09-10 Season, even in the face of a deep recession. Thank you to all of our supporters!

–CATCO’s debut at ComFest! Special thanks go out to Jon Putnam, Whitney Thiessen, and honorary hippy Peter Hersha for making our first appearance at ComFest such a success!

–The success of Murderers: This play was VERY popular with our play reading groups, and proved to be  a crowd-pleaser as well!

–Columbus proves it has a discerning audience, as demonstrated by the success of The Seafarer. For our main-stage  holiday offering CATCO mounts a challenging Irish comedy-drama about the devil playing cards for a man’s soul on Christmas Eve, and Columbus flocks to see it. It’s thrilling to see quality  writing, directing, acting, and production rewarded by a savvy audience. Thank you to the great team that created it, and to the audience for supporting great theatre!

Mark Mann and Geoffrey Nelson in CATCO's "The Seafarer." Photo by David Alkire

– Hearing my son say on Christmas morning: “After two years of misery, I finally got the Boulder Mountain set!” O.K. technically that isn’t a CATCO moment, but hey….this is my blog entry this week and I thought it was pretty darn cute!

These are a few of my favorite moments of 2009.

Comment on this post and let us know some of yours!

T.J. Gerckens
Managing Director
CATCO

CATCO mourns the loss of Harrison W. Smith, Jr., one of our strongest supporters. Since blog entries are supposed to be short, I can’t even begin to describe the tremendous impact he has had on CATCO: the blog would go on for days. We love and appreciate Harrison (Bill) and his family, and find comfort in the legacy he has provided for the city of Columbus.

Harrison and Connie Smith

Bill Smith was also a strong proponent of Maryhaven, central Ohio’s oldest and most comprehensive treatment facility for people with alcohol and drug dependencies. At the conclusion of each of CATCO’s performance of Murderers, members of the cast will be collecting donations for Maryhaven in Bill Smith’s honor. As you leave the theatre, please consider contributing a dollar — or more — to celebrate a great gentleman and a worthy nonprofit organization.

Help us honor Harrison by supporting a cause near and dear to his heart.

Thank you.

T.J. Gerckens,

Managing Director, CATCO