Blue night (adults only) - Thursday, October 12, 7:30 Pm
hosted by syndi zook
MEET OUR ARTISTS
7:30 PM • Bodies of Water, conceived by Lauren Larken Scuderi, Director: Kathryn Blume. Featuring: The Body Ensouled Ensemble: Anna Ready-Campbell, Pam Salant, Anne Orellana, Molly Leebove and Navah Stein: Autobiographical script and performance collaborated through dancers who met during the Body Ensouled Residency. 8 PM • The History of My Penis, Ethan Bowen: A humorous and moving memoir of Ethan’s life as revealed from the experiences of this key part of his body. Ethan Bowen has been a director, actor and theater artist for 30 years working at some of the great Vermont theaters as well as performance venues across the North East. He is the Artistic Director of Bald Mountain Theater. 8:30 PM • Don’t Mess Up This Séance, Ben Wasserman: Ben wants to speak to his father who died earlier this year. In this chaotic blend of comedy, witchcraft, and grief therapy, Ben will perform a séance with the audience’s help. Ben is a comedian from Brooklyn,NY whose work has been featured by VICE. He was recently named one of the “10 Comedians Who Make Grief Funny” by Paste Magazine. 9 PM • don’t tell me to stop, Steph-Marie Szenasi: A sticky, icky reverse strip tease that explores the complex nature of intergenerational dating. Steph- Marie Szenasi is a barber, beekeeper and performer. She was a co-creator of the Fear Project, which was presented at the Unhinged Fringe Fest in Kitchener, Ontario. She has published poetry in Footnotes, and Spectra Journal. 9:30 PM • QK Enchaine (Queen Kong in Chains), written and performed by Dana Block. Nazi film director Leni Riefenstahl raps with Barbie and Queen Kong, exploring subjects such as orgasms, nosebleeds, gender identity and “Lebensunwertes Leben–life unworthy of life.” She sings and plays accordion. Dana Block is an actress, solo performance artist, singer, writer and teacher. She has done a wide variety of regional stage work, film, and commercial work. 10 PM • Life Heist, Phinneus Sonin and the Facaway collective: written and directed by Phinneus Sonin. A thief in the night brings life to a teddy bear. The bear takes a journey and, through his newfound awareness, discovers what it means to truly live. This original script is being created for the Fringe Festival and will debut fresh Burlington talent in a multi media format. |
Freaky Friday - Friday, October 13, 7:30 PM
hosted by Phinn Sonin
MEET OUR ARTISTS
7:30 PM • Under the Sun Rug: Aminah Ibrahim and Mac Melrose present a sound & dance score collaboration: Experimental electronic soundscape with color and motion. This path a transition unprepared, circumstances salty and crippled, where divination is dealt a rotten hand. In the clouds full of prayers, while I stall the growth of poison, return my mind to the heavens. 8 PM • Stand-up Comedy from 1907, performed by Jim Hogue & his Ukulele: based on the play The Charity that Began at Home by St. John Hankin, whom George Bernard Shaw called “the Mephistopheles of the new (1907!!!) comedy.” Jim is a playwright and actor who has appeared in hundreds of plays and films, and who performs regularly at several VT theaters. He has performed his Ethan Allen show at several venues from California to Boston. 8:30 PM • The UnRaveLing, written, acted, directed and designed by Martin Gil: The UnRaveLing is a monologue created for your entertainment and instruction, motivated by love and concern for your well being. Fran, at lights up, sits at a desk. The meaning of the desk will eventually become known, as Fran discusses his therapy to an intimate degree; vulnerable, beautiful, and strong. 9 PM • Mostly Sad, Kinda Funny, Matt DeCaro: A bunch of songs that are mostly sad and kinda funny. Matt DeCaro is a singer songwriter from Brooklyn, NY. He sings stories, screams anecdotes, and croons, but also jokes. 9:30 PM • Box of Squirrels by Dennis McSorley is a work in progress that features scenes from when Dennis taught in NYC public schools. Dennis grew up and worked in NYC and then moved to Vermont. He’s been a regular at Off Center from the start, as a Board Member and artist; at OC he developed two theater works: Who Made Me? and Typhoon of Tenderness which were selected for the United Solo Festival in NYC and the Prague Fringe two years in a row. 10 PM • Slinky Says Relax, Brian DeLaBruere, Rachel Riendeau Hayes, Caitlin Bayer, Karlie Kauffeld, Devon Ewalt, Keyboard: Adam Woods: Five improvisers along with keyboard accompaniment create a fully improvised musical show based on a single suggestion from the audience. After meeting through the Vermont Comedy Club improv program, Slinky Says Relax has gone on to perform at venues and schools around Vermont and now returns to Off Center for another laugh filled evening. |
Saturday Fever - Saturday, October 14, 7:30 PM
hosted by Alexander Dostie
MEET OUR ARTISTS
7:30 PM • Hail Mary by Monica Callan, produced by Moxie Productions, featuring Emer Feeney, Esse Luna, Daphne Ostle, Vince Rossano and Billy Weaver: Excerpt from a full-length play. A woman returns to a small New England town for her estranged father’s funeral and finds that nothing has changed while everything’s different, and everyone is praying for a miracle. 8 PM • Coming to America, Abow Ibrahim: Burlington-Somali comic, Abow Ibraham bathes a serious family situation in humor; after years in one of the largest refugee camps in the world, Abow and family are relocated to Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. “We all had an idea of how America was like the imaginary world we built in our heads, but as soon as we got here it was time for a reality check. This is a true story of how America saved us but humbled us at the same time.” 8:30 PM • Nothing Stays, by Jeanne Beckwith, featuring Monica Callan and Jeffrey Tolbert as Hannah and Harry. A very short play in which a man and a woman grapple with loss and memory. Jeanne Beckwith is an award winning Vermont Playwright whose work has been performed from San Francisco to Istanbul. 9 PM • Queen City Songs, David Schein: Sweet and cruel story-songs set in Burlington in the 50s and early 60s, when on Friday nights, teens in cars would cruise Church Street and “when the mills closed down the Roules were out of luck—but they were just Canucks.” Songs include Skag Table, The Ballad of Francis Roule, Dancing School, and Spring Time Church Street. 9:30 PM • Suspension, presented by Vermont Playwrights Circle, by F. Brett Cox, Director: Jeanne Beckwith, Performer: Macey Mayfield: In 1943, in a small town near the Southern coast, 18-year-old Caroline does her part for the war effort by serving as an airplane spotter. She has much more on her mind than the German Air Force. 9:45 PM • Kamikaze Comedy, featuring Matt Saltus, Mourning Fox, Heather Caldera, and Rick Peck: Get ready for “short-form” improv comedy in the vein of “Whose Line is it Anyway” from this 22-year-old troupe. The Kamikazes spontaneously weave lively scenes from audience suggestions. Watch out! KC is unleashing a brand new Fringe-only stage show for the Festival. Hop on for a ride that will surprise spectators and actors alike! |
Family Fringe - Sunday, October 15, 4:00 PM
hosted by penelope derosset and verity thomson
MEET OUR ARTISTS
4 PM • One Day in Gotham City by Make ’Em Laugh, featuring Verity Thomson (age 9) and Penelope DeRosset (age 11): This play is a clash of the Shakespeare play Antony and Cleopatra with the movie, Lego Batman, and is chock full of jokes for the whole family. WARNING: Jokes may be cheesy! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!! 4:15 PM • The Tale of the Wooden Sword, told by Peter Snow: A tale of a shoemaker who has to live by his wits to overcome the whims of an unscrupulous king. Peter Snow has been a storyteller in Scotland for many years. He has performed in several countries, mostly in Scots accented English, but also in French on local Scottish radio (!). 4:45 PM • Don Quixote’s Solo Show, by Anthony Apodaca: A long-form solo-improvised show based on an audience member’s favorite book. Anthony Apodaca recently moved to Burlington after having been a regular cast member at Comedy Sportz in Seattle. Before that he lived in NYC, where he directed and produced shows at the Annoyance Theater. He also runs a monthly improv mixer, The Log Jam, at Off Center in addition to teaching classes and workshops in the US and internationally. 5:15 PM • Medicine Songs and Animal Totem Stories w/ Mickey Western: Renditions of Native American Tales, including: How Rabbit Stole the Fire, Sweet Grass and Sister and her Seven Brothers. 5:45 PM • Journey of A Note, a collaboration between Steve Goldberg and Paul Schnabel: Where does inspiration come from? Maybe there’s an answer in the journey of a note. Steve and Paul are both co-founders of Off Center, Steve a well-known playwright and jazz musician and Paul an actor and theater teacher. |
Off Center for the Dramatic Arts is supported in part by the Vermont Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts