|
Sponsored by
|
DINING ROOM: JUNE. 2009 |
| S |
M |
T |
W |
T |
F |
S |
| |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
| 7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
13 |
| 14 |
15 |
16 |
17 |
18 |
19 |
20 |
| 21 |
22 |
23 |
24 |
25 |
26 |
27 |
| 28 |
29 |
30 |
|
|
|
|
|
Production staff
Benjamin P. Robinson, Director
Elyse Middlebrooks, Costume Designer
Leslie Preston, Scenic Designer
Guy Perticone, Lighting Designer
JeanE Bartlett, Stage Manager |
"... terrific actors ... savor each succulent role and episode ... a tasty feast ... everything works ..."
- Greenville News
 The play is set in the dining room of a typical well-to-do household, the place where the family assembled daily for breakfast and dinner and for any and all special occasions. The action is comprised of a mosaic of interrelated scenes—some funny, some touching, some rueful—which, taken together, create an in-depth portrait of a vanishing species: the upper-middle-class WASP. Six actors—three men and three women—change roles, personalities and ages with virtuoso skill as they portray almost 60 different characters, from little boys to stern grandfathers, and from giggling teenage girls to Irish housemaids. Each vignette introduces a new set of people and events; a father lectures his son on grammar and politics; a boy returns from boarding school to discover his mother's infidelity; a senile grandmother doesn't recognize her own sons at Christmas dinner; a daughter, her marriage a shambles, pleads futilely to return home, etc. Dovetailing swiftly and smoothly, the varied scenes coalesce, ultimately, into a theatrical experience of exceptional range, compassionate humor and abundant humanity.
 Read Greenville News review (pdf)
Read Uberati.com review (pdf)
Watch a slide show video (wmv)
Download press kit. (doc)
 Read Greenville News feature, "'The Dining Room' offers tasty slice of life." (pdf)
Who's Who
 Anne Elizabeth Butler makes her Centre Stage debut in this production. A Virginia native, she graduated from Duke University in 2004 with a B.A. in Theater. She has since pursued a career in professional theater, acting, singing, teaching, training, and touring in multiple places. Credits include roles in over fifteen productions at The Barter Theatre (VA); an education internship at Flat Rock Playhouse (NC); acting training opportunities with The American Conservatory Theater (CA) and The Duke in London Drama Program; a teaching gig with SC Children's Theatre's KnowWay Program; a performance tour with Hampstead Stage Company (NH); an acting/opera-singing contract with Moore County OnStage (NC); and, most recently, performances of the roles of Ophelia in Hamlet and Beth March in Little Women, The Musical, both at Temple Theatre (NC). Additional favorite roles have included Maria in West Side Story, Mrs. Beaver in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, and Sophie De Palma in Master Class. In the fall, she plans to begin a three-year graduate (MFA) Theater/Acting program at UCLA.
 Katy Beth Cassell is making her Centre Stage debut in The Dining Room. She is a senior theatre performance major at North Greenville University. Some of her theatrical credits include: Anton in Show Business (Ralph/Wikewitch/Joe Bob), Romeo and Juliet (Nurse), All My Sons (Lydia Lubey), Riders to the Sea (Maurya), Sorry Wrong Number (Mrs. Stevenson), The Seagull (Polina), and Cinderella (Joy). In addition to frequently being on the NGU stage, Katy Beth has also been seen with Studio 444, The Distracted Globe, and Upstate Shakespeare Festival.
 Allen Evans was last seen at Centre Stage as David O. Selznick in Moonlight and Magnolias. Other theatrical credits include: Yale Repertory Theatre- Chopin in Space (World Premiere), Tartuffe, What the Butler Saw, Richard II; Actors Theatre of Louisville- The Boy Who Ate The Moon (World Premiere), The Grapes of Wrath; Greenville Little Theatre- Black Coffee, Hound of the Baskervilles, Guys and Dolls, Tintypes. Training: Yale School of Drama (MFA), Actors Theatre of Louisville (Apprentice Progam).
 Christopher M. Evans recently made his debut at Spartanburg Little Theatre in Noises Off as Garry LeJeune. Prior to that, he played Cleante in the Upstate Shakespeare Festival's production of Moliere's The Miser, preceeded by Tom in Reckless at The Warehouse Theatre. His last show at Centre Stage was Greetings!, where Christopher played Mickey/Lucius.
 Cindy Mixon most recently appeared in F.I.R.E.’s production of Songs for a New World. She has appeared in numerous productions with Fountain Inn Repertory Experience, South Carolina Children’s Theatre, Greenville Little Theatre, Centre Stage, Warehouse Theatre and The Distracted Globe. She is a founding company member of Fountain Inn Repertory Experience (F.I.R.E.). Favorite roles include “Mrs. Potts” in Beauty and the Beast at SCCT, “Mrs. Strakosh” in Funny Girl and “Delilah Strict” in Zombie Prom The Musical at F.I.R.E, “Lana Sherwood” in It’s a Wonderful Life a Live Radio Play at CSSC, “Jack’s Mother” in Into the Woods and “Golde” in Fiddler on the Roof at GLT.
 Jeff Warren returns to Centre Stage after a long absence. He appeared in several productions at the old Centre Stage theatre on Academy Street. Favorite roles include Arnold in The Boys Next Door, Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet, Cletus in Lonestar, Melvin P. Thorpe in The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas, David in The Spectator Sport, Mr. Bardolph in Lettice and Lovage, and Eddie in Lost In Yonkers. His last Centre Stage role was that of Barry, the Best Man in Tony and Tina’s Wedding. As a radio broadcasting veteran, Jeff worked several years as an announcer for various area radio stations including WSSL-100, WSPA-FM, and Talk Radio WPEK (the Peak).
Benjamin P. Robinson (Director) earned his MFA from Bob Jones University where he also taught theatre. He’s listed in Who’s Who in Arts and Entertainment in the South and Southwest. He has 50 years of experience as director, actor, writer, designer, and educator. At Centre Stage, Ben has directed The Edith Whartons, Beehive, Sophie Tucker: Last of the Red Hot Mamas (which he also wrote), The Fantasticks, Moonlight and Magnolias, Oxygen, and Crimes of the Heart. Ben was recently seen at Centre Stage as “Nathan” in The Legacy.
 View a seating chart.
Get directions to the theater.
Video: After-hours at Centre Stage
|
