Posts Tagged Warren C. Bowles

“Plotting” out Theatre

By on July 7, 2020   /   Featured, News, News Alert, Press Release  

PLOTTING OUT THEATRE DURING THE CORONAVIRUS INTERMISSION
PARK SQUARE ANNOUNCES NEW INTERACTIVE ONLINE MYSTERY

Media Contact – Connie Shaver shaver@parksquaretheatre.org

Saint Paul, Minn., June 23, 2020 – As theatres in Minnesota and around the country face an ongoing “intermission,” Park Square Theatre continues to create projects that keep audiences and artists connected. The latest is RIDDLE PUZZLE PLOT, an online interactive mystery written by acclaimed playwright Jeffrey Hatcher (SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SUICIDE CLUB; SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ICE PALACE MURDERS), and directed by Warren C. Bowles (A RAISIN IN THE SUN; MY CHILDREN, MY AFRICA). The theatre would have been producing Hatcher’s play HOLMES AND WATSON on stage this summer, but rather than adapt an existing play that relies on stage tricks for a distanced production, this show is written expressly for the video chat medium. The story begins with an all-too-familiar premise: when a pandemic puts the kibosh on their annual summer scavenger hunt (as well as their acting gigs) a close-knit band of thespians take their game online.  But that is where the familiar ends. When someone winds up dead, the actors – and the audience – have to rush find the killer before the next life gets “disconnected.”  Full of secrets, clues and twisting plotlines the play will be a thrill for mystery lovers and theatre fans alike.

In a nod to classic mystery novels which were often serialized in magazines or newspapers, RIDDLE PUZZLE PLOT will be revealed in four episodes released weekly from July 24 –August 14. Audiences have the choice of streaming the episodes on their own schedule, or zooming in on Friday or Saturday nights for live introductions and post-play discussions (including hints to whodunit) with the cast and playwright, the episodes themselves being pre-recorded. One ticket will invite the ticketholder to all four episodes.

“Taking the summer mystery online in just a few weeks is a fun challenge,” notes Park Square’s executive director Michael-jon Pease. “We couldn’t have better partners than Jeffrey and Warren. Our core audience and new patrons around the country have been so engaged with our online productions – they keep pushing us to serve the mission in every way possible as we all endure the current health crisis.”

In May, Park Square released a Zoom-created production of THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK – acclaimed by the Wall Street Journal – as well as a virtual festival of scenes from plays that will eventually be on stage. A monthly online residency with THE MYSTERIOUS OLD RADIO LISTENING SOCIETY easily transitioned from on stage to online.

The cast for RIDDLE PUZZLE PLOT includes local theatrical favorites: Aimee K. Bryant (A RAISIN IN THE SUN; NINA SIMONE: FOUR WOMEN); Alessandra Bongiardina (ROMEO AND JULIET); Sun Mee Chomet (AUBERGINE); Pearce Bunting* (HOLMES AND WATSON); Shanan Custer (2 Sugars, Room for Cream, SOMETIMES THERE’S WINE); Rodolfo Nieto; and E.J. Subkoviak* (THE RED BOX, MIGHT AS WELL BE DEAD, OF MICE AND MEN).

The production team includes Aaron Fiskradatz (Zoom Technician) and Lizzie Streif* (Stage Manager) *member, actors’ equity association

MORE ABOUT JEFFREY HATCHER:
Jeffrey Hatcher is a local playwright and screenwriter, beloved for home-grown work like the musical GLENSHEEN, with music by Chan Pohling. He wrote the stage play Compleat Female Stage Beauty, which he later adapted into a screenplay. He also co-wrote the stage adaptation of Tuesdays with Morrie with author Mitch Albom, and Three Viewings, a comedy consisting of three monologues – each of which takes place in a funeral home. He wrote the screenplay Casanova for director Lasse Hallström, as well as screenplays for The Duchess (2008); MR HOLMES (2015); and THE GOOD LIAR (2019). 

TICKET PRICES: All tickets $30.

Tickets are on sale at the www.parksquaretheatre.org.  
The ticket office is temporarily closed due to coronavirus. Please email tickets@parkquaretheatre.org with questions.

CALENDAR INFORMATION

Performances:

Friday Night Series: July 24, 31, Aug 7, 14 at 7:30 pm

Saturday Night Series: July 25, Aug 1, 8, 15 at 7:30 pm

Or streaming online through August 16.

Tickets: $30

Ticket office:  www.parksquaretheatre.org

PHOTOS available at https://www.parksquaretheatre.org/media/photos/

PARK SQUARE THEATRE. 20 W. Seventh Place, Saint Paul. Ticket Office: 651.291.7005. www.parksquaretheatre.org

#   #   #

Back to Top

Lindner’s Line

By on November 6, 2016   /   News  
Robert Gardner, who plays Lindner, with Director Warren C. Bowles and all cast members (in background) on Opening Night Photograph by Connie Shaver

Robert Gardner, who plays Karl Lindner, with Director Warren C. Bowles and some other cast members (in background) on Opening Night
Photograph by Connie Shaver

 

Cast members for Park Square Theatre’s production of A Raisin in the Sun, playing on the Andy Boss Thrust Stage from October 28 to November 20, were invited to tell about the line(s) in the play that most resonates with them, a poem or line(s) from a poem that resonates with them or a personal reflection related to the play.

Robert Gardner, who plays Karl Lindner, a representative from the Clybourne Park Improvement Association, gave the following response:

I’m the only white guy in A Raisin in the Sun, playing the only white character, Karl Lindner.  The role is small but crucial as he presents the Younger family (and particularly Walter) with their dilemma at the end of the play:  accept money for staying in their old home in a black neighborhood or take the risks of moving into a white neighborhood.

Lindner’s key line for me, as he makes his offer to buy the Youngers out of their new house, is: “I want you to believe me when I tell you that race prejudice simply doesn’t enter into it.” 

Well, of course it does enter into it, as is perfectly clear to the Youngers and, I’m sure, to the audience.  But I believe Lindner himself believes that he is being honest when he says this.  I also believe that his unacknowledged racism is something we all have to contend with.  And there’s a seductive plausibility to his argument that “people get along better, have more of a common understanding of the life of the community, when they share a common background.” While this may be true (and it has been the guiding principle of many communities, not just white ones), when it is adopted as a principle of exclusion, it is a formula for stagnation that denies communities the ability to grow and improve.

 

Robert Gardner as Lindner in a rehearsal with Greta Oglesby, who plays Mama Photograph by Connie Shaver

Robert Gardner as Lindner in a rehearsal with Greta Oglesby, who plays Mama
Photograph by Connie Shaver

 

Back to Top

Theatre That Builds Futures: A Benefit for Africa Classroom Connection

By on October 26, 2016   /   News  

On Saturday, November 5, Africa Classroom Connection (ACC) holds a benefit at Park Square Theatre’s Andy Boss Stage in Saint Paul’s historic Hamm Building. Support ACC by joining in this delightful afternoon of events:

  • Doors open at 1 pm for an African Marketplace, selling beautiful handcrafted jewelry, baskets, wooden masks and more from South Africa.
  • Let the show begin at 2 pm! Don’t miss seeing the powerful American classic, A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. The play was the first written by an African American woman to be produced on Broadway, winning the 1959 New York Drama Critics Award.
  • After the performance, enjoy a South African wine and cheese reception and participate in a brief live auction, featuring uniquely enticing items such as a South African Wine Tasting for 10.
Director Warren C. Bowles with a model of Lance Brockman's set design for A Raisin in the Sun Photograph by Connie Shaver

Director Warren C. Bowles with a model of Lance Brockman’s set design for A Raisin in the Sun
Photograph by Connie Shaver

Purchase tickets ($65, $40 tax-deductible) through Park Square Theatre’s Ticket Office at 651.291.7005 (mention “Africa Classroom Connection fundraiser”) or online at http//parksquaretheatre.org/box-office/special events/order-form-special-benefit-performance-of-a-raisin-in-the-sun/

Generous sponsors* have paid for all event expenses, so 100 percent of your contributions go directly toward building classrooms!

Questions? Contact Claire at 612.767.4430 or info@africaclassroomconnection.org

———-

What is Africa Classroom Connection (ACC)?

Africa Classroom Connection (ACC) is an American nonprofit organization that builds schools in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Its vision is that every child in KwaZulu-Natal has the opportunity for an excellent education. The program was started in 1977 by the Rotary Club in a small rural town Eshowe, South Africa. Amazingly, the organization has built over 3,000 classrooms in 800 schools, more than the government.

It’s a self-help partnership: the community must raise a five percent deposit, then donors cover the remainder to build each classroom. As a result, the community respects and cares for its school. Each school’s simple standard classroom design ensures that common materials and local labor can be used. That local labor develops income and skills in the community. The government maintains and staffs the schools. A local Steering Committee makes all decisions about where need is greatest, and provides evidence and audits to ensure international accountability. ACC is volunteer-lead, with all administrative costs generously paid for by its board members, so 100% of contributions go directly to construction.

Board member Tammie Follett and 16 others just returned from a Learning Tour to KwaZulu-Natal to visit classrooms and communities in need of schools. “One day,” Follett said, “we met 630 primary school students. We described our careers and they asked us questions such as ‘What did you study? What do I have to do to be a doctor? Lawyer? Teacher? Electrician?’ We aim to inspire and inform them about the power of education. We hope they explore the possibilities!”

The traveler group also brought home beautiful handcrafts available in an African Marketplace at the benefit performance of A Raisin in the Sun at Park Square Theatre on the afternoon of November 5. Please come enjoy great theatre and support powerful education through Africa Classroom Connection www.africaclassroomconnection.org! Event sponsors include *Books For Africa, Merrill Lynch, Presentation Wiz, Thomson Reuters and Z Wines USA.

Cast member Theo Langason looks at set designer Lance Brockman's drawing. On November 5, see how art can also open doors to education. Photograph by Connie Shaver

A Raisin in the Sun cast member Theo Langason looks at set designer Lance Brockman’s drawing. On November 5, join us at Park Square Theatre when art opens doors to education.
Photograph by Connie Shaver

Back to Top

An Interview with Warren C. Bowles, Director of A Raisin in the Sun

By on October 19, 2016   /   News  

Warren C. Bowles, fresh from winning an Ivey Award for his direction of The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife at Minnesota Jewish Theatre, now comes to Park Square Theatre to direct the American classic A Raisin in the Sun on the intimate Andy Boss Thrust Stage, where audience members will feel up close and personal with the Younger family.

Of the play, Bowles says, “Issues here go beyond race.”

Check out his video interview below

 

A Raisin in the Sun – Park Square Theatre’s Andy Boss Thrust Stage – October 28 to November 20

Back to Top

Tickets

The box office is currently closed. Please email tickets@parksquaretheatre.org with any questions.

Stay in Touch!

Get the latest updates and offers from Park Square Theatre.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

    Park Square on Instagram  See Park Square Videos on Vimeo