January 5, 1998

ARCADIA to be presented at American College Theatre

Festival Theatre Program Schedules a Full Month

Middlebury College’s Department of Theatre, Dance

and Film/Video proudly announces that, for the fourth consecutive

year, the theatre program has been invited to send a production

to the New England Regional American College Theatre Festival,

to be held January 28-February 1 at Brandeis University.

This year’s production is Tom Stoppard’s ARCADIA,

directed by Cheryl Faraone, first presented at Middlebury in May

1997. ARCADIA, a play about chaos theory, sex, landscaping gardening,

fractals and love, takes place in Sidley Park, the estate of the

Coverly family, during two time periods separated by 180 years.

The January production will reunite most of the cast and the design

team of Alexandra Sargent ‘88, who designed the costumes as a

guest artist last spring and Mark Evancho for the set and lights.

The cast includes Sarah Nelson, Andrew W. Smith, Megan Byrne,

Katherine Inglis, Tyson Lien, Caroline Kellogg, Andrew Ritter,

Clark Freeman, Matthew Landfield and Equity guest artist James

Matthew Ryan. They will be joined for this production by Alex

Cranmer and Michael Doyle. The show will perform at the Spingold

Arts Center, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts at 8

PM Thursday, January 29.

Also participating in the festival will be a number

of students who have been nominated for Irene Ryan scholarship

awards in acting, present scenes and monologues in three days

of competition: they include Michole Biancosino and Stephanie

Janssen (nominated from DRACULA), Kat Inglis and Megan Byrne (ARCADIA),

Mike Doyle and Alex Cranmer (MAD FOREST) and Rich Price (PHILADELHIA

STORY). In previous years, Middlebury’s participation in these

awards has produced three national finalists (Claudio Medeiros,

David Barlow and Aidan Sullivan) and one national winner (Ms.

Sullivan).

Since 1988, when the Theatre Program began its involvement

with the American College Theatre Festival, seven shows have been

selected for the regional festivals (SERENDING LOUIE, 1988, directed

by Cheryl Faraone; THE GAMESMEN, 1989, written by Sean Ryan ‘88,

directed by Richard Romagnoli; HAVEL: THE PASSION OF THOUGHT,

1992, directed by Richard Romagnoli; SCENES FROM AN EXECUTION,

1995, directed by Richard Romagnoli; BOYS’ LIFE, 1996, directed

by Douglas Sprigg; THE LAST SUPPER RESTORATION, 1997, written

and directed by Daniel O’Brien, ‘96, and currently ARCADIA). In

addition, Middlebury has received numerous design awards for student

work and several students have been selected to have original

plays read and critiqued at the regional festival (this year Abby

Manzella, ‘98, is an alternate in the ten-minute play contest.)

Back at the home Art Center, the season continues

with George Bernard Shaw’s DON JUAN IN HELL, directed by Richard

Romagnoli, and designed by graduates Josh Bradford and Anne Brahic,

January 21-23 in the Studio Theatre. Alum Eric Winick is workshopping

a new performance piece with a cast of students including Mike

Doyle, Nicola Smith, Caroline Kellogg, Frank Wildermann and Lyle

Yetman. Alicia Mathewson ‘93 will compose an original musical

score and professional actress Amie Bermowitz is working with

the students. Showing of the work-in-progress are January 9 and

10 at 8 PM in the Hepburn Zoo.