The 29th Annual Artie Awards recognized Buffalo theatrical talent (and hard work, late nights, and supportive spouses) while raising dollars to support HIV/AIDS Immunodeficiency Services. See the winnersand pictures or visit #ArtieAwards or see "Related Content" below. Now we're already into next Artie season. Two plays focus on dangers women face, with an immersive experience by Gordon Farrell titled GIRLS WHO WALKED ON GLASS at Alleyway Theatre while Kelly Beuth's students from BAVPA present the edgy LAYLA'S ROOM at Subversive Theatre.
The Irish Classical Theatre has a deliciously "wicked" play by Joe Orton called ENTERTAINING MR. SLOANE; Buffalo favorite Mary Kate O'Connell stars in a two hander - MEMORIES AND MARTINIS - while there's a very different two person play at the New Phoenix Theatre, THE SEAT NEXT TO THE KING, described as follows: In 1964 a white man walks into a public restroom in a Washington, DC, park looking for sex. The next man who enters is a black man. They are two of the most influential men of the 1960s: Walter Jenkins, a close aide to Lyndon Johnson, and Bayard Rustin, who served in a similar capacity for Martin Luther King Jr. The liaison is imagined by Toronto-based playwright Steven Elliott Jackson.
OPENING THIS WEEK
ENTERTAINING MR. SLOANE, play by Joe Orton presented by the Irish Classical Theatre Company, directed by Greg Natale, starring Kelli Bocock-Natale, Anthony J. Grande, Stan Klimecko, Gerry Maher. Jun 7-30, Thu & Fri at 7:30, Sat at 3 & 7:30, Sun at 2. Andrews Theatre, 625 Main St. (853-ICTC). www.irishclassicaltheatre.com
GIRLS WHO WALKED ON GLASS, immersive play project by Gordon Farrell, directed by Neal Radice, starring Jamie Nablo, Emily Yancey, Ember Tate, Daniel Greer, John Panepinto, James Cichocki, Trevor Dugan, Gayle Petri, Betsy Bittar, Niki Nowak, Lillian Reszel, Sandra Roberts. Jun 6- 22, Thu-Sat at 7:30. Alleyway Theatre, One Curtain Up Alley (852-2600). www.alleyway.com
LAYLA'S ROOM, play by Sabrina Mahfouz presented by Subversive Theatre as part of Subversive Youth series, directed by Kelly Beuth, starring emerging actors of Buffalo's Performing Arts High School . Jun 6-15, Thu-Sat at 7:30. The Manny Fried Playhouse, 255 Great Arrow Ave., third floor (462-5549). www.subversivetheatre.org
MEMORIES & MARTINIS, cabaret-styled memoir presented by O'Connell & Company, directed by Joey Bucheker, starring Mary Kate O’Connell, Charles Basil. Jun 6-23, Thu-Sat at 7:30, Sun at 2:30. The Park School, 4625 Harlem Road, Snyder (848-0800). www.oconnellandcompany.com
THE SEAT NEXT TO THE KING, play by Steven Elliot Jackson, directed by Todd Fuller, starring Robert Cooke, Xavier Harris. Jun 7-29, Thu-Sat at 8. New Phoenix Theatre, 95 Johnson Park (853-1334). www.newphoenixtheatre.org
ONGOING
DEARLY DEPARTED, play by David Bottrell and Jessie Jones, presented by Aurora Players, directed by Chris Fire. May 31-Jun 16, Fri & Sat at 8, Sun at 2:30. The Roycroft Pavilion, in Hamlin Park. South Grove St., East Aurora (687-6727). www.auroraplayers.org
SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS
THE ILLUSION & THE AFTERMATH, experiential performance by Temporary Distortion, presented by Torn Space. Jun 7 & 8, ongoing installation runs from 7pm-11pm with rolling entry. Adam Mickiewicz Library and Dramatic Circle, 612 Fillmore Ave. www.tornspacetheater.com
A TIME TO KILL, courtroom drama adapted for the stage by Rupert Holmes, presented by Desiderio’s Dinner Theatre, directed by Jay Desiderio, starring Kinzy Brown, Peter Horn, Marc Ruffino, Sandra Gilliam, Larry Smith, Elizabeth Oddy, Bob Lohr, Jeremy Catania, Michael David O'Hear, Ronald Hicks, Kenneth Leman, Justin Chortie, Jacob Sauer, Nathanial Higgins.
May 9-Jun 30, evening shows arrival at 6, show at 7:30; matinee shows arrival at 1, show at 2:30. Bobby J’s Italian American Grille, 204 Como Park Blvd., Cheektowaga (395-3207). www.mybobbyjs.com
UPCOMING
NINE, musical by Arthur Kopit and Maury Yeston presented by Second Generation Theatre, directed by Victoria Pérez, starring Ben Michael Moran, Aimee Walker, Arianne Davidow, Kelly Copps, Lisa Ludwig, Mary Gjurich, Sabrina Kahwaty, Nicole Cimato, Charmagne Chi, Leah Berst, Cassidy Kreuzer, Bethany Burrows, Jessie Miller, Anna Fernandez, Stevie Jackson, Julia Murphy, Max Goldhirsch. Jun 14-30, Thu at 7:30, Fri at 8, Sat at 2 & 8, Sun at 2. Shea’s Smith Theatre, 658 Main St. (508-7480). www.secondgenerationtheatre.com
AT THE SHAW FESTIVAL 10 Queen’s Parade, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON, Canada 905-468-2172 / 1-800-511-7429
BRIGADOON, a musical, by Lerner and Loewe, at the Festival Theatre, through October 13
GETTING MARRIED, a comedy by George Bernard Shaw, at the Shaw's Royal George Theatre, through October 13.
ROPE, a thriller by Patrick Hamilton (after Hitchcock) at The Royal George Theatre, through October 12
THE HORSE AND HIS BOY, adapted from C.S. Lewis's Narnia books by Anna Chatterton, at the Festival Theatre, through June 26
Listings adapted from Javier Bustillos
