The Music of MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM

Learn more about the music of MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM and playwright August Wilson's obsession with the blues from director Liesl Tommy and members of the cast, including Jason Bowen, Yvette Freeman, and G. Valmont Thomas. For more information, visit huntingtontheatre.org/marainey.

We've Received 39 IRNE Award Nominations!

We've received 39 IRNE Award nominations from the Independent Reviewers of New England, which recognized each our 2011 productions. The 39 nominations are five more than we received for our 2010 productions and more than twice as many as any other company in New England.



The cast of Candide, photo: T. Charles Erickson

Our September-October 2011 production of Leonard Bernstein’s glorious musical Candide received 13 nominations, more than any other production of 2011, and was nominated in every category in which it is eligible: 

23 High School Students Advance to this Sunday's Finals of Poetry Out Loud

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Rebecca Curtiss, rcurtiss@huntingtontheatre.bu.edu / 617 273 1537

23 HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS ADVANCE TO THIS SUNDAY’S FINALS OF SPOKEN WORD COMPETITION

HUNTINGTON THEATRE COMPANY FACILITATES SEVENTH YEAR

OF THE NATIONAL “POETRY OUT LOUD”

(Boston) – Twenty-three students from the 72 semi-finalists that competed last weekend have advanced to Sunday’s State Finals in the national Poetry Out Loud (POL) spoken word competition. Sunday’s winner will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, DC to compete in the National Finals May 13-15. The Huntington facilitates the Massachusetts competition with support from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

The State Finals, to be held Sunday, March 11, will begin at 9:30am at the Old South Meeting House (301 Washington Street, Boston), site of the historic meeting of colonists that led to the Boston Tea Party and a continued haven of free speech today. The competition is free and open to the public.

Competing students include:

Haley Berube, Doherty Memorial High School (Worcester)
Molly Brennan, Sturgis Charter Public School East (Hyannis)
Ashly Brun, Malden High School (Malden)
Christa Celestin, Revere High School (Revere)
Liliana Costa-Smith, Meridian Academy (Brookline)
Meredith Derecho, Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School (Sudbury)
Rebekah Dowdell, Springfield Central High School (Springfield)
Noelani Gabriel, Springfield High School of Science and Technology (Springfield)
Micaela Garrison-Desany, Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter School (Marlborough)
Nicholas Gilfor, Wilbraham and Monson Academy (Wilbraham)
Dariana Guerrero, Math, Science & Technology High School at Lawrence High (Lawrence)
Stephanie Igharosa, Randolph High School (Randolph)
Ezra Marcus, Monument Mountain Regional High School (Great Barrington)
Diana Milkey, Sturgis Charter Public School West (Hyannis)
Michaela Murray, John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics & Science (Roxbury)
Meredith Omer, Acton-Boxborough Regional High School (Acton)
Aurelia Paquette, Boston Latin School (Boston)
Sarah Pizzano, Stoneham High School (Stoneham)
Chelsea Rivera, Global Learning Charter Public School (New Bedford)
Danielle Robbins, Algonquin Regional High School (Northborough)
Emma Rogalewski, Falmouth Academy (Falmouth)
Jessica Seng, Dracut Senior High School (Dracut)
Ariana Yates, Worcester Technical High School (Worcester)

Poetry Out Loud (POL) is a national recitation competition that celebrates the power of the spoken word and a mastery of public speaking skills while cultivating self-confidence and an appreciation of students’ literary heritage as they take poetry from the page to the stage. Since its inception seven years ago, Poetry Out Loud has inspired hundreds of thousands of high school students to discover and appreciate both classic and contemporary poetry.

A record 20,000 students from 81 Huntington-supported high schools across the Commonwealth competed in recent months in classroom and school-wide competitions. A complete list can be found at the end of this release.

The Finals will be hosted by playwright, filmmaker, and performing artist Mwalim, who will also perform, along with poet Dr. Daniel Thomas Moran. Massachusetts Representative Alice Peisch, House Chair of Joint Committee on Education, will speak. The Finals will be judged by Huntington Playwriting Fellow Rosanna Yamagiwa Alfaro (Before I Leave You); Michael Curry, attorney and president of the Boston NAACP; teacher and dancer Mayra Hernandez; and poet and professor of dentistry Moran. Huntington Overseer Katherine Jones will serve as Prompter.

“Poetry Out Loud creates an incredibly powerful sense of community in our school,” says Burlington High School English teacher Benjamin Lalley. “For weeks after the competition, I still hear students telling each other, ‘You did a great job. You really knocked that one out.’ From performers to student athletes to ESL students, everyone gets engaged in our school-wide celebration of poetry.”

“The Huntington is proud to lead Massachusetts’ support of Poetry Out Loud,” says Huntington Theatre Company Artistic Director Peter DuBois. “Its growth over the years speaks to its success. Poetry Out Loud provides a forum for the next generation of orators and creative voices to be heard.”

About Poetry Out Loud: poetryoutloud.org
Recitation and performance are major new trends in poetry. There has been a recent resurgence of poetry as an oral art form, as seen in the slam poetry movement and the immense popularity of hip-hop music. Poetry Out Loud builds on that momentum by inviting the dynamic aspects of slam poetry, spoken word, and theatre into the English class. The NEA and the Poetry Foundation have partnered with state arts agencies to support the expansion of Poetry Out Loud, which encourages the nation's youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and performance. This exciting program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage. The Massachusetts Cultural Council and the Huntington sponsor the Massachusetts contest; the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the Poetry Foundation sponsor the competition on the national level.

Learn more about Poetry Out Loud at huntingtontheatre.org/pol.

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About the Huntington Theatre Company: huntingtontheatre.org
Since its founding in 1982, the Huntington Theatre Company has developed into Boston’s leading theatre company. Bringing together superb local and national talent, the Huntington produces a mix of groundbreaking new works and classics made current. Led by Artistic Director Peter DuBois and Managing Director Michael Maso, the Huntington creates award-winning productions, runs nationally renowned programs in education and new play development, and serves the local theatre community through its operation of the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA. The Huntington is in residence at Boston University. For more information, visit huntingtontheatre.org.

About the Massachusetts Cultural Council: massculturalcouncil.org
The Massachusetts Cultural Council is a state agency that promotes excellence, access, education, and diversity in the arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences, in order to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and contribute to the economic vitality of our communities. The MCC is committed to building a central place for arts and culture in the everyday lives of communities across the Commonwealth. The Council pursues this mission through a combination of grants, services, and advocacy for cultural organizations, schools, communities, and artists.

2012 Participating High Schools:
Acton Boxborough Regional High School
Algonquin Regional High School
Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter School
Amherst Regional High School
Artovotion/Teen Empowerment
Avon Middle High School
Barnstable High School
Berkshire School
Boston Adult Technical Academy
Boston College High School
Boston Latin School
Brookline High School
Burlington High School
Claremont Academy
Codman Academy Public Charter School
Covenant Christian Academy
Dartmouth High School
Dennis Yarmouth Regional High School
Dexter School
Doherty Memorial High School
Dracut Senior High School
East Boston High School
Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers
Everett High School
Fairhaven High School
Falmouth Academy
Fitchburg High School
Framingham High School
Francis W Parker Charter Essential School
Global Learning Charter Public School
Groton-Dunstable Regional High School
Harwich High School
Haverhill High School
Hingham High School
Humanities and Leadership Development High School at Lawrence High School
The John Dewey Academy
John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science
Leominster High School
Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School
Malden High School
Masconomet Regional High School
Math, Science & Technology High School at Lawrence High
Melrose High School
Meridian High School
Minnechaug Regional High School
Monument Mountain Regional High School
Mt. Everett Regional High School
Needham High School
Newburyport High School
Newton North High School
New Mission High School
Old Rochester Regional High School
Peabody Veterans Memorial High School
Pittsfield High School
Presentation of Mary Academy
Prospect Hill Academy Charter School
Provincetown High School
Putnam Vocational Technical High School
Randolph High School
Revere High School
Rockland High School
Salem Academy Charter School
Saugus High School
South Hadley High School
South Shore Charter Public School
Southfield School
Sparhawk School
Springfield Central High School
Springfield High School of Science & Technology
Stoneham High School
Sturgis Charter Public School East
Sturgis Charter Public School West
Swampscott High School
Tyngsborough High School
Waltham High School
West Springfield High School
Westfield High School
Whitman-Hanson Regional High School
Wilbraham and Monson Academy
Wilmington High School

Worcester Technical High School

My Experience with August Wilson

"This is where I was when I wrote it, and I have to move on now to something else."

-- August Wilson

August Wilson Monologue Competition Boston Finalists

This past Saturday, student representatives from nine Boston Public Schools took to the Boston University Theatre stage for the second annual August Wilson Monologue Competition. There were monologue performances from Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Fences, and The Piano Lesson. After it was all said and done, the nine competitors stood center stage nervously anticipating the announcement of the 3 winners that will travel to New York to compete in the national finals on the August Wilson stage on Broadway! Tyrel Joseph, from Codman Academy won the competition with his fabulous portrayal of Boy Willie, from The Piano Lesson. Coming in, as the First Runner Up was Halima Ibrahim, from Snowden International School at Copley and the Second Runner Up was Reanna Johnson, from Dorchester Academy, with their portrayals of Levee, from Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. All three will be moving on to the national finals in New York City. During their New York visit, they will also attend theatre performances, talkbacks, and workshops with theatre professionals.

Created by Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company (some may remember Kenny Leon as the Huntington Theatre Company director of Fences and Stick Fly, which recently opened on Broadway), the August Wilson Monologue Competition involves high school students in city schools from all around the US: Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Boston. This year marks the second year the Huntington’s Education Department has facilitated the in-class collaboration and the final competition in Boston Public Schools. This year’s schools were Another Course to College, Boston Adult Technical Academy, Brighton High School, Codman Academy Charter Public School, Dorchester Academy, Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers, English High School, Fenway High School, and Snowden International School at Copley.

Although I normally serve as the Huntington’s Marketing Professional Intern, I recently participated as a teaching artist for this competition in Brighton High School. This experience has been one of the highlights of my post-undergraduate career. I visited Brighton High School’s 10th Grade Honors English Class eight times to introduce the students to August Wilson and his plays, focusing on his play, The Piano Lesson. I provided script analysis, character development and acting coaching for 20 students and their selected monologues. Many of my students were taken by Berniece’s strong persona, Boy Willie’s antics, and Wining Boy’s comical disposition. We held an in-school competition to determine the student who would represent Brighton High School at the Boston Finals. Let me say that my students made it very challenging to pick a finalist! Chevaun Richards was the chosen winner. He was among some of the best of the best of Boston Public School’s talent. As an audience favorite, he definitely gave the contestants and the judges a run for their money.

Regardless of the final decision, the August Wilson Monologue Competition gave Chevaun, his classmates and all the students who participated in all nine Boston Public Schools a rare opportunity to delve into the world of theatre and the works of one of the most influential American contemporary playwrights. Being asked to memorize, act and speak in front of an audience is unheard of for some of these students. The experience alone is one that will stick with them for many years to come.