16 Nov 2004

"The Tempest" Continues Prenzie's "Guerrilla" Style

By Eileen Eitrheim

The Prenzie Players are so serious about presenting innovative interpretations of Shakespeare's scripts, they promise audience members "won't forget our shows, ever." Pretty lofty standards for a small group of Quad Cities actors who hold performances in rented found spaces (currently the Rock Island Housing Authority building) and use minimal props, costumes, staging, and production.

07 Sep 2004

"Death of a Salesman" Offers a Rare Opportunity

By Jill Walsh

Once in a while a script lingers in a realm of such greatness that it demands the patience, creativity, and collaboration of the most dedicated and talented individuals in theatre to do justice to the playwright's original intentions.

03 Aug 2004

Will "Your Favorite Band" Get Groupies?

By Jill Walsh
Sean Leary is sticking to basics. The author and producer of the innovative Your Favorite Band believes - despite the unique combinations of film, theatre, and music media used during the performances - that "a good story will always be the key to a successful show. " We'll see whether he followed this maxim and how local audiences respond to his part-live-theatre, part-film show when Your Favorite Band starts a two-week run August 5 at ComedySportz.
06 Jul 2004

Don't Mess with The Hobbit

By Jeff Ignatius
If Peter Jackson taught the world anything with his epic three-movie The Lord of the Rings series, it's that audiences want their Tolkien to be faithful to the original work. So when Susan Holgersson started comparing J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit with Patricia Gray's script, "I started to realize there was a situation there," she said. Playcrafters Barn Theatre decided about a year ago to do the play, and Holgersson was selected as its director in August.
18 May 2004

Ghostlight Strives for Increased Presence

By Jeff Ignatius
Ghostlight Theatre's production of the Sam Shepard play True West - running the next two weekends at the Holzworth Performing Arts Center at Davenport North High School - will mark the end of the organization's days as an enigma, putting on shows periodically but infrequently and without any discernible pattern.
24 Feb 2004

Augustana College's Short Play Festival Lives Up to Title

By Administrator
They said it would be short, and they meant it. Clocking in at just under 45 minutes, last weekend's production of Augustana College's annual Short Play Festival was a collaboration of four student producers and featured Tony Kushner's script East Coast Ode to Howard Jarvis.
25 Nov 2003

"The Guys" Commemorates, Benefits

By Jill Walsh

When Zach Pethoud read the script of The Guys by Anne Nelson, he decided it was an opportunity he couldn't turn down. "I knew right away that if I didn't direct it locally, someone else would," he said. So the Bettendorf native gathered a cast, secured the Bettendorf High School auditorium stage, and worked hard to put together the Quad Cities premiere of the play, which will be presented weekends from December 6 to 14.

25 Nov 2003

New Ground Tries Something New: Romantic Comedy

By Jill Walsh

With The Primitive opening this weekend, New Ground Theatre is doing something it's never tried before, and director Chris Jansen is very excited. The Primitive "is a charming romantic comedy!" she said.

11 Nov 2003

Quad City Arts Presents World-Premiere Play

By Dawn Wolford-Metallo
Most people hated the Interstate 74 bridge construction, but theatre actress and director Melissa McBain loved it. Being stuck on the bridge gave her an opportunity to chat regularly with journalist and author Stephen G. Bloom about Shoedog, the play he co-wrote. The piece will get its world premiere this weekend with three performances at Quad City Arts, with McBain directing.
26 Aug 2003

Fire up the Grill for Ghostlight's Das Barbecü

By Administrator

Melissa Coulter was thrilled when she was asked to direct a show at Ghostlight Theatre. What she didn't yet know was that the show, Das Barbecü, is actually a musical comedy loosely based on Richard Wagner's four-hour Ring opera, is performed in country-western style, and calls for a fairly large cast of about 15 people.

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