"LEGALLY BLONDE" HAS A GREAT STORY TO TELL

Amy Ward, seated, is Elle Woods and Niki Boyer Swatski is Paulette in the Ephrata Performing Arts Center's production of "Legally Blonde: The Musical," opening Thursday at the Sharadin Bigler Theatre.  

On his public radio show, “This American Life,” Ira Glass recently remarked that he learned a lot about storytelling by going to musical theater a lot as a kid.

If you want a great example of what Glass is talking about, then check out “Legally Blonde: The Musical,” opening Thursday (7/24 – tomorrow!) at the Sharadin Bigler Theatre.

A lawyer’s daughter, Amanda Brown wrote the novel “Legally Blonde,” based on her own experiences at Stanford Law School. It told a great story about a young woman who, because of personal heartbreak, works hard to get into law school – a place decidedly outside her comfort zone. Once there, she must defy other people’s stereotypical view of her as a dumb-blonde sorority alumna. And she learns that, once she stops trying to conform and decides to be true to herself and the gifts she recognizes in herself, she can triumph and be useful in ways beyond anything she’d previously imagined.

The 2001 film, “Legally Blonde,” changed some of the details, but kept true to that wonderful story about Elle Woods, a protagonist the audience can’t help falling in love with and rooting for.

The musical takes that great story and layers on songs, dance numbers and extra complexity to some of the other characters we all loved from the movie.

You’ll love the story of Elle Woods; her dog, Bruiser (played at EPAC by an adorable, rescued Chihuahua who’s available for adoption at the end of the run of the show!); her college BFFs; her manicurist buddy, Paulette; the men in her life, and her Harvard Law School frenemies. Director/choreographer Cody Smith, an EPAC veteran (as performer, director and choreographer), has assembled a young, talented cast that fills the stage with energy, great dance moves and clever, catchy songs.

It’s a fun show with a lot of heart and a great message about self-confidence, defying other’s expectations, not judging a book by its cover and being true to oneself.

And, at its core, “Legally Blonde: The Musical” has a great story to tell. Call 733-7966 or visit our website, and get your ticket today (the show runs till Aug. 9). Oh-my-God-you-guys! Let this great cast tell you a wonderful story!

--Merv Wright

  

A PERSONAL NOTE FROM AN EPAC VOLUNTEER

Twenty years ago this week, I was standing in the wings at the sweltering “old” Ephrata Playhouse, waiting to step onstage as part of the ensemble in the musical “The Robber Bridegroom.” Our darling, now-departed Brian Adams, who played Little Harp, was making funny faces at me to help calm my nerves.

 Our rehearsals in an Elizabethtown church basement had been filled with laughter along with the hard work; our cast had bonded into a family. We went out together nearly every night during rehearsals and the run of the show, and had a great time enjoying each other’s company.

While I’d been an audience member at the playhouse for years before those nights in July 1994, “The Robber Bridegroom” marked my first practical involvement with the Ephrata Performing Arts Center.

Here we are, 20 years later. I’m still friends with several people I met while doing that 1994 show. I’ve helped out around the theater, from ushering to working the concession stand, from posting on social media to passing out brochures to helping out during school-day performances.

In those 20 years, I’ve sat in the audience and marveled at the theater being created by this community troupe that rivals professional theaters in the quality of the shows and the talent of the casts and creative teams.

I’ve watched young kids grow up on EPAC’s stage and become wonderful adult performers. I’ve seen EPAC veterans come and go, and watched newbies fill the stage with talent and magic. I’ve laughed my head off; I’ve bawled my eyes out; I’ve scratched my head, and let characters get under my skin.

And, in the last 10 years, I’ve watched creative teams make fabulous use of the beautifully renovated theater space that’s now the (air-conditioned!) Sharadin Bigler Theatre.

Through it all, I’ve remembered that sense of FAMILY I first experienced during the run of “The Robber Bridegroom.”  EPAC is, indeed a family – a family of performers, directors, technical wizards, creative teams, crew members, volunteers, sponsors, patrons, supporters and audience members.

And that family comes together dozens of times every year to create evenings of THEATER THAT MATTERS – plays and musicals that are thought-provoking, joyous, heart-rending, toe-tapping and glorious – sometimes all at the same time.

Whether you move set pieces, direct the pit orchestra, act, direct, throw the opening-night party, show people to their chairs or buy tickets and sit in those seats, you, too, are a part of the EPAC FAMILY.

With the delightful, high-energy musical, “Legally Blonde,” opening next Thursday, we’re about halfway through EPAC’s 2014 season. We’ve experienced great theater so far, and have plenty more to see through the end of the year.

Welcome, family, and thanks for your continued support. It’s been a great 20 years!

-- Merv Wright, proud EPAC volunteer

HAPPY RE-BIRTH-DAY TO EPAC!

More than 10 years ago, the old Ephtata Playhouse was stripped to its essentials and rebuilt as the lovely Sharadin Bigler Theatre space you enjoy today. 

Ten years ago tonight, the Ephrata Performing Arts Center’s theater space reopened – bigger, taller, cooler and better equipped – after extensive renovations.

Hundreds of seats had been added in the theater, rehearsal and dressing rooms had been installed downstairs, the roof had been raised 9 feet – and the place finally had indoor restrooms!! 

The venue was eventually renamed the Sharadin Bigler Theatre in honor of the decades of generous financial support EPAC has received from Terry Bigler and the late Michael Sharadin.

 Here's a snippet from one of the Lancaster Newspaper accounts of how that evening began for the audience 10 years ago – just before the start of the first show of the 2004 season, “1776”:

"Before the show got under way Thursday night, Ephrata Performing Arts Center artistic director Ed Fernandez bounced onto the stage and said with open arms and a grin, 'What a dump!' "The audience, laughing, erupted in thunderous applause, and looked around the revamped theater with a sense of pride. " 'Welcome to our new home,' Fernandez said. 'Isn’t she beautiful?' " “Though the new Ephrata Performing Arts Center, formerly Ephrata Playhouse, looks shiny and new, its history – with its numerous transformations – runs deep, as far back as the 1700s. "Fittingly, the theater’s debut production is '1776: A Musical,' a hilarious show about the signing of the Declaration of Independence. "... Fernandez calls the building’s architecture 'techno–rustic.' " 'It’s very modern,' he said. 'But yet there is a 200-year-old wood beam running through the ceiling. … Tonight is when theater really starts to happen here again.'
“... The spacious 23,400-foot facility has 300 seats – 200 more than the old pavilion. The roof also was raised 9 feet.  'Lights used to sometimes hit actors on their heads,' Fernandez said. There are dressing rooms, classrooms, laundry rooms and a kitchen downstairs now. ..."

For 10 years since that night, the EPAC family has continued to celebrate the creation of “theater that matters” here at EPAC.

The psychological thriller “Agnes of God” continues in this lovely, air-conditioned theater space Wednesday through Saturday this week. Call 733-7966 for tickets, and help celebrate the anniversary of this theater’s rebirth.

'Sunday in the Park' connects with audiences

Have you ever had a bright, bold new idea that no one else at the office understood or embraced? Have you ever had to make a difficult choice between two important things – or people – in your life?

Have you ever felt like your creative energy was at a low ebb, or that you can’t find a new voice or vision in your work? Have you ever felt like you don’t live up to the standards of your ancestors who went before you? 

If you’ve experienced at least one of these feelings – and who among us hasn’t? – you’ll find something to connect deeply with in EPAC’s production of “Sunday in the Park with George,” playing now through Saturday at the Sharadin Bigler Theatre.

The musical presents a version of what composer Stephen Sondheim and writer (and Franklin & Marshall College alumnus) James Lapine imagined artist Georges Seurat’s life might have been like – along with the lives of the characters in his paintings, and those of Seurat’s descendants, if he’d had any.

The show also explores how Seurat rebelled against the French art establishment by using pointillist techniques – replacing the Impressionists’ brush strokes with dots of pure color arranged in such a way that the human eye would “combine” the dots to see blended colors and shimmering light in his painting. The show is also about the heart-rending sacrifices an artist must sometimes make in his personal life.

And the musical is about Seurat’s (fictional) artist great-grandson in America, also named George, who has lost his unique vision amid his mad scramble to woo patrons and attract commissions. 

Sondheim’s music is glorious, and Lapine’s book is emotional and thought-provoking. Many audience members have regretted leaving their Kleenex at home!

And EPAC has pulled out all the stops to make this a memorable production of a wonderful musical. You’ll be delighted with the show’s creative vision, the acting, the singing, the musicianship, the set and the costumes. Kudos to the cast, crew, creative team and musicians who have been “Putting it Together” for weeks, to the delight of audiences and critics.

The show only runs through this Saturday, May 17^th. You do NOT want to miss your chance to see this show that EPAC audiences will be talking about for years.

Thanks to EPAC’s season sponsor, BlueRidge Communications, and “Sunday’s” show co-sponsors, Lily’s on Main and SugarArts at Donecker's. When you patronize these sponsors, or run into their employees, please give them a huge "THANK YOU!!" for supporting “theater that matters” at Ephrata Performing Arts Center.

Order your tickets to “Sunday in the Park …” online, or call the box office at (717) 733-7966.

-       -- Merv Wright 

Auditions fill EPAC's May calendar

Welcome back to the EPAC blog! The blog has been on hiatus for a few months, but we're firing it back up for our busy spring, as we celebrate 10 years since the old Ephrata Playhouse was renovated into the marvelous Sharadin Bigler Theatre performing arts space it is today!

May brings a few audition dates you'll want to know about.

Saturday, May 3, is the audition date for EPAC's YOUNG ARTISTS CABARET, which will celebrate the talents of the younger members of our EPAC family with a performance Sunday, June 22.. The May 3 audition involves both dance and vocal auditions for children ages 6-16. Ages 6-10 should arrive at 1 p.m., and those 11-16 at 3 p.m. Parents or guardians get more information, and can sign up their children for auditions by visiting the auditions section of our website.

Saturday, May 10, brings a 3 p.m. audition for the roles of Willy Loman's sons, Biff and Happy, in EPAC's September production of "DEATH OF A SALESMAN." The audition is open to men between the ages of 20 and 40, including anyone who tried out during the general auditions in January and/or the callbacks in March. Performances are Sept. 4-20. For information, contact director Michael Swanson at 717-361-1160 or email swansonm@etown.edu.

Finally, on Monday, May 12, at 6:30 p.m., EPAC will hold an open audition for the role of one Cabaret Girl for its production of "CABARET" (Oct. 16-Nov. 1). The audition, which will take place in the downstairs rehearsal room of the Sharadin Bigler Theatre, will involve both a vocal and dance audition. For more information, email EPAC's Artistic Director, Edward R. Fernandez, at epac@ptd.net.

Click the "Auditions" tab on the EPAC website to find out all the details.

Funny, poignant 'Fiddler' balances faith, family, philosophy

Tevye has a lot on his plate.

Beyond keeping up with his job as a milkman and striving to maintain a good reputation in his little Russian village of Anatevka, Tevye must face a world that is rapidly changing.

He strives to adhere to his Jewish faith and take care of his family, which includes a wife with a mind of her own, and five daughters – three of marriageable age.

Tevye hopes his daughters will be paired with suitable husbands through the local matchmaker – as tradition dictates. But the heart wants what it wants; his daughters fall in love with men Tevye would never choose for them, and insist on defying their dad.

In addition to all that, he and his family are living in early-20^th-century Czarist Russia, where Jews are facing increasing discrimination – and even threats of violence and expulsion.

What’s a man with all these problems to do? Sing about them, of course!

And sing he does. Tevye is a big-hearted, funny philosopher who is devoted to God, family and community. As a musical-theater character, he has a lot to puzzle out in front of the audience, and a lot to get off his chest. He sings about his dreams, his fears and his attempt to balance all his challenges – like a fiddler perching on a roof.

“Fiddler on the Roof,” which opened in 1964, won nine Tony Awards. It was the first Broadway run of a musical to hit the 3,000-performance mark. For many years, it was the longest-running musical on Broadway. Since then, it has had four Broadway revivals and countless tours, and has become a favorite of high school, community and professional theater groups.

This is all a testament to the staying power of this popular, poignant, funny musical that’s full of memorable showtunes from “If I Were a Rich Man” to “Sunrise, Sunset” and “Matchmaker, Matchmaker.”

Pat Kautter, a veteran director and choreographer in local theater, has assembled a cast of EPAC veterans and new faces for the “Fiddler” production opening tonight at the Sharadin Bigler Theatre.

 And starring in the show is EPAC’s own artistic director, Edward Fernandez, who moves from his usual spot in the director’s chair to the stage, bringing Tevye’s unique view of the world to life. Those of you who know Ed know he has a personality every bit as big as Tevye’s – so his portrayal of the milkman is a match made in heaven.

“Fiddler” tickets are selling briskly, and some performances are selling out. So if you want to experience this final show of the 2013 season, be sure to visit the EPAC website right away to find showtimes and order tickets, or call the box office at (717) 733-7966. Tickets to the show, which runs through Dec. 21, would make a great holiday gift for a loved one! Don’t miss it!

Merv Wright

Extraordinary Give: Increase impact of your EPAC donation Friday

Lancaster County’s Extraordinary Give event takes place this Friday. It’s an EXTREMELY important day for the Ephrata Performing Arts Center, and it’s easy to understand why.

A recent editorial in the Intelligencer Journal/LancasterNew Era called the Ephrata Performing Arts Center “a theater that consistently punches far above its weight.” In other words, EPAC may be a nonprofit, community theater, but it presents high-quality, visionary work that always has audiences buzzing.

That editorial writer knows what everyone who comes to see the musicals and plays presented at the Sharadin Bigler Theatre knows: EPAC truly lives its mission of producing “THEATER THAT MATTERS,” show after show, year in and year out.

Producing theater you can’t see anywhere else in the area takes the kind of creativity that burns in the staff, creative teams, actors, stage managers, crew members, technical artists and various volunteers who put it all together and place it before the audience year-round.

But it also takes money. Frankly, it’s hard for artists to talk about money, and to ask for money. But the fact is that EPAC needs funds to continue to entertain you, to move you, to make you laugh and to make you think with the plays and musicals the EPAC family works so hard to bring to you.

Through the Extraordinary Give, the Lancaster County Foundation offers a date and place for hundreds of area nonprofits to earn donations, from midnight to 11:59 a.m. on November 22. As one of those nonprofits, EPAC is then eligible to receive part of an ADDITIONAL POOL OF MATCHING FUNDS, BASED ON HOW MUCH IS DONATED TO US ON FRIDAY.  If we earn 1 percent of the total donations given to all organizations that day, we’ll receive an additional 1 percent of that pool of matching money.

So, on that day of days, the more money you give, the more money EPAC gets toward fulfilling its mission as an arts organization.

Do you see why that day is SO VERY IMPORTANT to this theater? It’s not often that your donation to EPAC can be instantly multiplied in its impact! The Extraordinary Give offers you that opportunity.

So, please set aside a few moments this Friday, Nov. 22 – you have 24 hours in which to schedule those moments! – to make at least the minimum donation of $25 to EPAC through the Extraordinary Give. We need your help, and EPAC will be so thankful, blessed and appreciative to have your support that day!!

Please bookmark the EPAC donation page, so you’ll be all ready for the event on Friday.

After you make your donation, please follow our progress on the Extraordinary Give leaderboard all day long, and follow our progress on Facebook, Twitter and other social media that day.

In the end, YOU will be the beneficiary, since the money EPAC earns will go toward producing all the shows you’ll enjoy here, and maintaining the Sharadin Bigler Theatre so you can watch those shows in comfort.

Thank you, in advance, from the whole EPAC family!

-- by Merv Wright, EPAC fan and volunteer