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OnStage News & Notes - October 2015
 In October we open our first show of the season; see who walked away with a Kelsey Award and a Perry Award; say goodbye to our favorite Dragon; announce this year's Kelsey Award and Perry Award winners; and see what some MPO alumni are up to.
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The Journey Begins!
A
round the World in 80 Days Set to Open
 Around the World in 80 Days
| Presented by MPOnStage |
| Written by Mark Brown |
| Directed by John M. Maurer |
The Award-winning production team of MPOnStage brings Jules Verne’s "Around the World in 80 Days" to the Kelsey stage. This is a Comedy/Adventure for the whole family. Stampeding elephants! Raging typhoons! Runaway trains! Unabashedly slapstick! Hold onto your seats for the original amazing race! Join fearless adventurer Phileas Fogg and his faithful manservant as they race to beat the clock! Phileas Fogg has agreed to an outrageous wager that puts his fortune and his life at risk. With his resourceful servant Passepartout, Fogg sets out to circle the globe in an unheard of 80 days. But his every step is dogged by a detective who thinks he's a robber on the run. Danger, romance, and comic surprises abound in this whirlwind of a show as five actors portraying 40 characters traverse seven continents in Mark Brown's new adaptation of one of the great adventures of all time.
The show will run at Mercer County Community College’s Kelsey Theatre in West Windsor, NJ October 9 - 18, 2015. A public reception, with an opportunity to meet the cast and crew, will be held on opening night.
 MPO’s Artistic director, John Maurer, is helming this production. A versatile theatre producer and director whose credits include large scale musicals like Singin’ in the Rain, Man of La Mancha, Avenue Q and Monty Python's Spamalot, Maurer's first love is comedy.
“Mark Brown has given us the world of Jules Verne’s Phileas Fogg to play in. We have 5 actors playing 40 characters’ and a world of possibilities to explore and we intend to make the most of it. Why don’t you come to the Kelsey theatre and take the journey with us?” says Maurer.
The show’s cast features Dan Keyser of Morristown as Phileas Fogg; Maria Aromando of  Bridgewater as Aouda & James Forester; Kurt Penney of Pennington as Jean Passepartout; John Pinto of Yardley PA as Detective Fix, Elephant owner, Oysterpuff and more; and Dan Slothower of Plainsboro as Sir Francis, Bunsby, Colonel Proctor… and a host of others!
Maurer Productions OnStage will present Around the World in 80 Days, Fridays, October 9th and 16th at 8pm; Saturdays, October 10th and 17th at 8pm; and Sundays, October 11th and 18th at 2pm in the Kelsey Theatre on the West Windsor Campus of Mercer County Community College. The college is located at 1200 Old Trenton Road. Free parking is available next to the theatre. To order tickets, go online at www.kelseytheatre.net, call 609-570-3333, or stop by the Kelsey Theatre Box Office. Tickets are $18 for adults, $16 for seniors and $14 for students and children plus a $1 service fee. The Kelsey Theatre is wheelchair accessible. More information about this production of Around the World in 80 Days can be found online at http://www.kelseyatmccc.org.
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80 Days Author Mark Brown Stops by for a Chat
 Mark Brown is an award-winning writer. His play Around the World in 80 Days has literally been produced around the world, from Off-Broadway, NYC to Baridhara Dhaka, Bangladesh. It has been on many “Best Of” lists and has garnered many awards since its premiere. So it was a great suprise when the author appeared on the campus of Mercer County Community College during the auditions for 80 Days to meet the MPOnStage Production crew and say ... "Hi."
According to Director John Maurer, "We were on a break between auditioners and were having a quick production meeting when we heard someone out in the hallway. Diana Maurer, the stage manager, went out to see if we had a walk in auditioner and spoke to the gentelman standing at the registration desk. He said he wasn't there to audition. His name was Mark Brown he was in town visiting family and he would like to speak to the director. There was a moment of recognition, then he was quickly ushered in to the group.
Mark was very cordial and spent the next hour with the production team discussing the show and it's history. He talked about how he went about writing 80 Days and the many interpretations of his show he has seen of it over the years. It is a rare opportunity to be able directly to speak to the author of the show you are producing so the production team peppered him with questions.
Mark also took the opportunity to let the team know about some line changes and additions that were not in the printed version of the script. He then came back to visit during the first rehearsal and spoke with the cast before production began.
We want to thank Mark for the time he took to visit and give insite into the production... and the autographed scripts!
For Tickets to Around the world in 80 Days to to http://www.kelseyatmccc.org. |
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MPOnStage Receives 3 Kelsey Awards.
Maurer Productions OnStage is proud to announce that we were awarded three 2015 Kelsey Awards.
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play
LEND ME A TENOR – Roman Sohor as “Tito Merelli”
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play
LEND ME A TENOR – Andrew Timmes as “Max”
Outstanding Production of a Play
LEND ME A TENOR – Maurer Productions OnStage
A huge THANK YOU to everyone involved with making this happen!
with Roman Sohor, Diana Gilman Maurer, Anthony Remer, Laurie Hardy,Maria Aromando, Peter Bisgaier, Stephanie A. Zimmerman, Alysia Marie, Andrew Timmes, John M Maurer, Matthew Cassidy, Judi Parrish, Emily Russoniello, Kitty Getlik and Sally Page. |
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Who walked away with a 2015 Perry Award
Sunday September 20th was the 2015 Perry Awards and the night was a Black and White gala event. Here are some of the winners from the Alumni of the Kelsey Theatre.
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| John M Maurer and Dan Maurer were inducted into the NJACT Hall of Fame. |
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| Kate Pinner, Outstanding Costume Design of a Play, A Man for All Seasons, PinnWorth Productions. |
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| Pam Jorgensen, Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical, Sweeney Todd, Villagers Theatre. (Photo Bomb by Bree Guell, Outstanding Stage Manager of a Musical, Nine, Fearless Productions.) |
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| Kevin Palardy, Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play, Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Pennington Players. |
To see more photos from the evening click here.
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We will Miss you Clementine!
 There comes that moment when a parent see's their child group up and leave the nest. And it is no different if your child is 25 feet long and has an 11 foot wingspan. Clementine, our beloved dragon and friend, is moving on.
Ever since her first performance in the MPOnStage's production of Shrek the Musical, she has been a main stay of local theatre. Both high school and community groups have invited her to be part of their shows and she has made some fast friends along the way.
 It is now time for her to spread her wings and look for new opportunities and the good people over at Voice Works have offered her a home. On August 12th as she prepared for her 12th production, Ryan and his team got an intense 2 hour course in her care and feeding. She was a little shaky as the new crew got her ready at Saint John Vianney High School but soon she was ready to take wing and strut her stuff. We wish Clementine and her new friends all the best and hope to see her on stage again real soon.
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Alumni Happenings for October and November
Outlet Dance Project at Grounds for Sculpture
Jamuna Chiarini (Man of La Mancha) started the Outlet Dance Project 11 years ago. The afternoon of dance by up and coming women choreographers from all of the country display their work in the first act in a stage setting and in the second act at various sculptures around the grounds. It all adds up to an amazing blending of artistic mediums.
Date: Saturday, October 3, 2015 at 2 pm
Where: Grounds for Sculpture
80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton, New Jersey 08619
Tickets: Free with price of admission to the grounds (Adults, $15; Seniors (65+), $12, Students/ Children (6·17 or with college ID), $10.
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Rumours at Kelsey Theatre
 Join Susan Galli (Dracula) in the Yardley Players Production of Rumors.
Well, here it is Charley and Myra Brock's 10'" Anniversary, and my wife and I are looking forward to a classy evening with our closest friends and the always excellent cuisine that Chaney's post as Deputy Mayor of New York affords them at Sneden's Landing. Well, we arrive
to find that our host has "accidentally" shot himself, his wife is missing and, what's even worse,
the kitchen staff has vanished!! What are we to do? We cannot let the media, or the police for that matter, reveal this horrendous scandal. At least, not until we really know what has happened! This comedic mayhem is surely something that only Neil Simon could have thought up and, if I weren't personally ensnared in the chaos, I am sure I would be hilariously entertained, as you will be, by this fast-paced, laugh-a-minute show.
Dates and Times:
Fridays and Saturdays, October 23, 24, 30 and 31 at 8 pm
Sundays, October 25 and November 1 at 2 pm
Tickets:
Adults, $18, Seniors, $16, Students/Children, $14
Tickets can be purchased online at: http:llwww.kelseyatmccc.org or by calling the box
office at (609) 570-3333, or at the box office.
Theater Info:
Kelsey Theatre
Mercer County Community College
1200 Old Trenton Road
West Windsor, NJ 08550
For directions to the theater, visit http://www.mccc.edu/welcome_directions_wwcampus.shtml.
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AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY at Kelsey Theatre
 Join Laurie Hardy as Barbara, Sally Page as Ivy, Roman Sohor as Little Charlie and Kyla Donnelly as Karen in the pinnworth production of August:Osage County
Well, if anyone were to make a movie about this little Weston family reunion we are having, it would have to star Meryl Streep as our dear mother and Julia Roberts as me. So, Father has disappeared, and Mother, with her prescription drugs and major mood swings, thinks it is a good idea to bring my two sisters and me back to our old Oklahoma homestead to share exactly what, I don’t know. Lies, unsettling secrets, repressed truths and scathing humor? All I can say is our truths are unflinching and fiercely funny, and bring new meaning to “dysfunctional family.” This one is definitely not recommended for children!
Dates and Times:
Fridays, Jan. 8 & 15, 2016 at 8pm
Saturdays, Jan. 9 & 16 at 8pm
Sundays, Jan. 10 & 17 at 2pm
Tickets:
Adults, $18, Seniors, $16, Students/Children, $14
Tickets can be purchased online at: http:www.kelseyatmccc.org, or by calling the box
office at (609) 570-3333, or at the box office.
Theater Info:
Kelsey Theatre
Mercer County Community College
1200 Old Trenton Road
West Windsor, NJ 08550
For directions to the theater, visit http://www.mccc.edu/welcome_directions_wwcampus.shtml.
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VIOLET at Kelsey Theatre
 Join Kyrus Keenan Westcott as Flick, Tom Bessellieu as the bus driver, Jaimie McMillin as the Hotel Singer as well as Nicole Farina-Machin is the show's choreographer, and Judi Parrish as the lighting designer on Pennington Players Production of Violet, a Musical.
It’s about the Journeys you take to discover who you are. I am so excited I can hardly get a lick of sleep on this Greyhound bus. I’m leaving North Carolina behind and setting off on an adventure that could just change my life! I’ve already made two new friends, Flick and Monty, and am set to meet up with a preacher in Tulsa who may be able to heal the scars on my face that my poor Daddy accidentally inflicted upon me and have given me no shortage of misery. Life in the South in 1964 has a whole nest of problems, but maybe, just maybe, we can all find a way to get along. I know that I am ready to overcome! Join Violet in this stunning award-winning musical that features a score of show-stopping anthems ranging from American roots to folk to gospel. Not recommended for children.
Dates and Times:
Fridays, Nov. 6 & 13, 2015 at 8pm
Saturdays, Nov. 7 & 14 at 8pm
Sundays, Nov. 8 & 15 at 2pm
Tickets:
Adults, $20, Seniors, $18, Students/Children, $16
Tickets can be purchased online at: http:www.kelseyatmccc.org, or by calling the box
office at (609) 570-3333, or at the box office.
Theater Info:
Kelsey Theatre
Mercer County Community College
1200 Old Trenton Road
West Windsor, NJ 08550
For directions to the theater, visit http://www.mccc.edu/welcome_directions_wwcampus.shtml.
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