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Monthly Archives: June 2011

Bloomsday Celebration June 16th

The Tradition Continues…

THE BLOOMSDAY GAZETTE — It was 16 years ago on another June 16 that a group of puzzled participants first celebrated Bloomsday at the used book store of the same name in Brookside with a 24-hour reading of ULYSSES.  In addition, that midnight, Sylvia Stoner, fresh from Skidmore College, directed the first staged reading in K.C. of Professor Opitz’s play.

The early readers were an enthusiastic crew of volunteers who struggled with the words and blushed mightily at the content.  Despite widely varying degrees of talent, it was a huge success.  Gradually over the years, the enthusiastic amateurs have given way to some of our region’s finest professional performers.

A  special thanks this year goes to Kip Niven for assembling the wonderful cast, to Nancy Wormington and Renata Rea, executor director and assistant director of the Irish Center, and to the Kansas City Irish volunteers and barflies who never fail to show when needed.

— Tom & Nancy Shawver, Bloomsday Books

The Day’s Events

•9 a.m. Marathon Reading of Ulysses, includes traditional Irish breakfast
•4 p.m. Joyce to the World, documentary of the 100th Bloomsday celebration
•5:30 p.m. Bridget Driscoll Dancers with live traditional Irish music
•7 p.m. The play Bloomsday: Dublin, June 16

Admission, beer and refreshments are free, but donations to the Irish Center are appreciated.

 

More information about Bloomsday, Joyce and all manner of Irish bawdery below the break.

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2010-11 Buddy Award Win

This weekend the Olathe Community Theatre Association held their annual Buddy Rogers Awards.  These awards honor the best of the past season and are voted on by season ticket holders and a staff committee.

I was absolutely honored and humbled by a win in the Best Leading Actor category for my role as the Stage Manager in Our Town.  It was a huge pleasure to work with our director, Darren Sextro and a very talented cast on a show that has long been a favorite of mine.  I will always be grateful of this production, coming as it did at the beginning of my time here in Kansas City, as it introduced me to so many brilliant people in the Kansas City theatre scene.  In fact, this show has given me some of my closest friends here in Kansas City.  Not to mention directly leading me to many of the productions I have undertaken in the past year.  I can’t say enough good things about the people who work tirelessly (many for free) at this theatre.  I’ll be back often to see high quality shows, friends, and (in early 2012) to direct another of my favorite shows: Lee Blessing’s Two Rooms.

Below I have listed the other wonderful artists who were honored with awards at the 2010-11 Buddy Awards.  They all deserve every bit of applause they get and more.

JENNIFER COVILLE-SCHWEIGERT
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

MIKE HASKIN
BEST CAMEO
Our Town

SHELLY STEWART
BEST SOUND DESIGN
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)

BILL CASE
BEST CHARACTER ACTOR
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

AMY ARNOTT
BEST CHARACTER ACTRESS
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

CYNTHIA EVANS
BEST SET DESIGN
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

BETSY SEXTON
BEST PROPERTIES DESIGN
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)

PHILIP LEONARD
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

LOREN BRIDGE
BEST INDIVIDUAL MUSICAL ACHIEVEMENT
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

REED UTHEBEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

PAM HASKIN
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Our Town

JANET GLASSMAN
BEST STAGE MANAGER
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

ELLEN DESHON
BEST LEADING ACTRESS
David’s Mother

COLEMAN CRENSHAW
BEST LEADING ACTOR
Our Town

DAVID MARTIN
BEST DIRECTOR
Picasso at the Lapin Agile

PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE
BEST SHOW

CHRISTIE AWARD
BOB AND KAYE MARTIN

AMY PIERRON VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR AWARD
THE PENN FAMILY

SMITH/MOYER SPECIAL SERVICE AWARD
THE JUNIOR SERVICE LEAGUES

Visiting Mr. Green coming to The Fishtank

The next, FREE Martin Tanner Monday is this coming Monday, June 6, 7:30 p.m. at The Fishtank Performance Studio, 1715 Wyandotte, KC MO

Visiting Mr. Green by Jeff Baron.
This reading features one of Kansas City’s most respected actors and acting coaches, Richard Alan Nichols, along with one of KC’s hottest young actors, Coleman Crenshaw.  The show is full of both humor and poignancy and will be sure to move you.

http://martintanner.com/Visiting-Mr–Green.php   or see the Visting Mr. Green event page on Facebook.

Mr. Green, an elderly, retired dry cleaner, wanders into New York traffic and is almost hit by a car driven by Ross Gardiner, a 29-year-old corporate executive. The young man is given a community service of helping the recent widower once a week for six months. What starts as a comedy about two men who do not want to be in the same room together becomes a gripping and moving drama as they get to know each other, come to care about each other, and open old wounds they’ve been hiding and nursing for years. Translated into 22 languages, with over 200 productions in large and small venues, it has won numerous best play and best actor awards throughout the world.

 

– Herman Johansen
http://.www.martintanner.com