32nd Season (2017) — Old Church Theater

One Night in the Valley

Written by Tony Sportiello
Directed by Diane Chamberlain

By the same writer of "Second Chance", which we presented a few years ago, Tony Sportiello gives us three intriguing stories: A has-been opera star, a couple who realize they've just been accidentally married, and a burglar who's been caught by the homeowner… Three seemingly unrelated events playing out at the same time have one thing in common, and that's the secret for you to figure out! Opening night will feature a talkback with the playwright.

Cast:

Janet - Bettina Abrams
Jake - Will Giblin
Nathan - D. Gary Jessemen
Rick - Miles Conklin
Sharon - MaryAnn Stanford
Scott - Ken Hullican
Maggie - Emily Kuvin

Making God Laugh

Written by Sean Grennan
Directed by Sheila Kaplow

Woody Allen once said, "If you want God to laugh, tell him your plans!"
This play is both heartwarming and hilarious, in the style of last year's hit "37 Postcards".
Making God Laugh follows a typical American family as the parents become empty-nesters and the children see their plans and dreams evolve as they gather together through 30 years of holiday celebrations. We rejoice at their victories and ache at their defeats, all the while cheering, laughing and shedding tears with them at life's bumpy road in a celebration of life in the best tradition of theatrical comedy.

Cast:

Ruthie - Robin Ng
Bill - Scott Johnson
Richard - Brendon Chadwick
Rick - Miles Conklin
Maddie - Beth Button
Thomas - John Paul Hunt

Mad Gravity

Written by William Missouri Downs
Directed by Justina Kenyon

A couple couldn't have more different parents: One are a conservative, middle-class couple, while the other are performance artists who have built a theater right in their living room. When the parents meet for the first time, the conservative ones find themselves as stars in the artist's latest play. But news of a comet heading straight toward Earth changes everything and the hilarity just takes off from there.

Cast:

Archie - Peter Mendes
Eudora - Anne Foldeak
Dakota - Megan Gelsi
Mary - Meghan Bullard
Dr. Joe - Chris Leary

Mad Gravity Cast (back row): Peter Mendes and Chris Leary; (front row): Anne Foldeak, Megan Gelsi, Meghan Bullard

Duets

Written by Peter Quilter
Produced by Athene Chadwick
Directed by:
Anne Foldeak (Blind Date);
Melissa Mann (Secretarial Skills);
Ken Hullican (The Holiday);
Eli Hunt (The Bride-To-Be)

A gloriously funny examination of the chaotic world of love and relationships. Four sets of characters: Jonathan and Wendy are on a blind date and hoping to get it right this time even though they've never got it right before; Barrie is not really interested in women but Janet sees that as no reason to stop trying; Shelley and Bobby have decided to holiday in Spain to finalize their divorce whilst drowning in cocktails; and Angela is marrying for the third time to the dismay of her brother Toby and amidst a barrage of bad omens and a dress that looks like a parachute.

The Holiday Cast:

Shelley - Carrie Anne Quinn
Bobby - Jim Heidenreich

The Bride-To-Be Cast:

Angela - Justina Kenyon
Toby - Brendon Chadwick

Blind Date Cast:

Wendy - Emma Steincross
Jonathan - Peter Mendes

Secretarial Skills Cast:

Janet - Meghan Bullard
Barrie - Anthony Helm

The Bride-To-Be cast: Eli Hunt (director), Brendon Chadwick and Justina Kenyon

The Holiday cast: Jim Heidenreich, Carrie Anne Quinn, Ken Hullican (director)

Secretariall Skills cast: Meghan Bullard, Anthony Helm, Melissa Mann (director)

Blind Date cast: Anne Foldeak (director), Peter Mendes, Emma Steincross

Ethan Frome

Written by Edith Wharton
Adapted by Gary Blackwood
Directed by Miles Conklin

A faithful adaptation of Edith Wharton's romantic and tragic short novel of rural Massachusetts life near the turn of the twentieth century. Ethan Frome is a bitter and broken middle-aged man who has resigned himself to a loveless marriage, and through a series of flashbacks, we see what made him that way. But when a naive, and appealing young relative comes to live with them his bleak existence changes.

Cast: