All posts by Doug Bechtel

ATOI news

Learn About Our New Lighting

It has been many years since the Actors Theater has raised funds for a project. In 2017 we received two significant donations that let us purchase a number of state-of-the-art LED theater lights. We spent most of 2017 trying the available fixtures and finally narrowed our list down to two fixture types. In early 2018 we purchased a total of six of these new LED fixtures to gain some experience.

For those who had the opportunity to see our production of “Barefoot In The Park” got to see the difference the few new lights made. First, a single LED theater light can replace several incandescent lights. LED Theater lights can generate several light colors while incandescent lights are limited to a single color. Most importantly, LED Lights are FAR more energy efficient than incandescent fixtures exceeding in some cases 90% or 95% savings.

Our original plan was to purchase additional LED fixtures as funds became available but the savings are so significant that we decided not to wait. We applied to the Orcas Island Community Foundation for a $12,000 grant which was approved.   It is now up to The Actors Theater to raise the money with the help of OICF.

OICF will accept donations for this project between May 1st and May 18th.   OICF accept cash or checks (made out to OICF)  or by credit card by clicking on this link.

https://oicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create?grant_id=5109

For more information on our LED Lighting program click here:

2018 Grant Application To OICF

Playfest 2018

Playfest 2018 opens this Friday

The 13th Annual PlayFest opens Friday, May 4 on The Grange stage. The following seven short plays will be brought to life—the culmination of local Orcas playwrights, Orcas directors, and Orcas actors. This year brings several new faces out to share their talent.

Nonviolent Gulch  by Evan Wagoner-Lynch
Director: Melinda Milligan
Cast: Travis King, Larry Hampel, Liz Doane, Rick Markov, and Lisa Spesard
What happens when Gunstone, the gunslinging desperado, the devil of Nevada, wanders into his favorite bar in Rattlesnake Gulch and finds that the town has renamed itself  Nonviolent Gulch, the bar is the Namaste Saloon, and they don’t serve whisky anymore… ?

Camelot by Nancy Reas
Director: Carie Lou Gottschaldt
Cast: John Mazzarella and Annette Mazzarella
Through foggy recollections of the past, Fred struggles to make sense of the present as Nancy ponders the end of a dream.

Dust by Mary Bayley
Director: Lisa Spesard and Isabella Schermerhorn
Cast: Leslie Liddle, Don Yerly and Hayley Thompson
A family drama set in the 1930’s. From Philadelphia ballrooms to dusty country farming.. a family relocates with hopes of innovation, but it’s a rougher business than expected.

Moira by Kat Blucker
Director: Madeline Olson
Cast: Susie Shipman
For 25 years, Moira’s life has been consumed by the whims of her violent husband. But one night, everything changes. With startling imagery, clarity, and sensory detail, she recalls the many experiences that have led her to this moment.

Thirteen This Way by Miguel Villarreal
Director: Evan Wagoner-Lynch
Cast: Kevin Doyle, Jessie Gonzalez, Frank Michels, Travis King, Stephanie Wright
Two buddies find themselves working a neverending job with a difficult client, a fellow named Thomas Jefferson. Just when it seems the end is in reach, Jefferson and his friends come up with a new job for the duo–something that will send them down a very perilous path, indeed.

Coming Out by Heather Thomas
Director: Lynda Sanders
Cast: Stephanie Wright, Gus Klueber , and Isabella Schermerhorn
It’s all well and good to raise your kids to be independent and think for themselves, until they do…

The Adventures of Jack Armstrong by Hank Pollard
Director: Frank Michels
Cast: Larry Hampel, Rick Markov, Margot Van Gelder, Alia Hynek, Lesley Liddle
and Frank Michels
Presented in the genre of a 50’s radio drama, the play follows a family on an action adventure archeological roller coaster ride through jungle habitat and ferocious animals, including the natives.

Tickets are $10 and all performances begin at 7:30 p.m., with doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the door, at Darvill’s Bookstore, or online at BrownPaperTickets. No one is ever turned away from an Actors Theater performance at the Grange for inability to pay.

Barefoot in the Park

Coming Up Next: Barefoot In The Park

The Actors Theater of Orcas Island will present seven performances of one of Neil Simon’s most famous comedies, “Barefoot In The Park.” This Tony Award winning play is still one of his most popular plays.

Corie (played by Danica Coffman) and Paul Bratter (Kevin Hauschild) are newlyweds in every sense of the word. He’s a straight-as-an-arrow lawyer and she’s a free spirit, always finding the fun in life. Their new apartment is too expensive with bad plumbing and in need of repairs. After a six-day honeymoon, Corie gets a surprise visit from her mother (Luann Pamatian) and decides to play matchmaker during a dinner with their neighbor-in-the-attic, Victor Velasco (Tony Lee). Paul doesn’t understand the free spirited Corie, and as Corie sees it, Paul is too staid, too boring, and she just wants him to be a little more spontaneous. Running “barefoot in the park” would be a start. Larry Hampel as the overworked telephone repairman and Miguel Villarreal as the delivery man round out the cast.

Performances of “Barefoot In The Park” are at 7:30 pm at the Grange with opening night Friday, February 16. Other performances will be February 17, 23, 24 and March 2, 3 and 4. Tickets are $10 and are available at Darvill’s Book Store, on-line  at Brown Paper Tickets  and at the door.

This play is suitable for all ages.

For additional information, contact the Director, Doug Bechtel, at 360-317-5601.

Playfest 2018

Coming up: Playfest 2018 – Time to submit your entries.

CALLING PLAYWRIGHTS, SEASONED AND BRAND NEW!

The13th Annual Ten-Minute PlayFest is underway!

Please put your pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard and submit a short play based on the theme, THIRTEEN.   We’re looking for short play submissions from local writers.  Whether you are a seasoned playwright or a brand new writer, we’d love to consider your work.   We’ll consider your work even if it isn’t about the number 13.

We’ll choose seven plays for a full production in May 2018 at The Grange.

For guidelines, please contact Michele Griskey at mmgriskey@rockisland.com or 376-3848.

You can submit anytime between now and January 31, 2018.