Kevin Ryan, vice president of Island Theatre Workshop, had one more round of auditions to do. The principals had been cast, as had most of the other roles for ITW’s upcoming production of The Wizard of Oz. Just one group remained: the munchkins.
A group of five children varying in age from second to sixth grade gathered around an out-of-tune piano to rehearse the chorus from Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead. Learning to pronounce the right words and follow the melody is key for the part. Some bravely belted out the tune while others sang shyly looking at the floorboard.
Calling all Island thespians: it’s audition weekend and time to strut your inner scarecrow, mad monkey or one of Shakespeare’s finest.
The Island Theatre Workshop will be putting on a late summer production of The Wizard of Oz and they are currently on the prowl for principal actors. Auditions began on Thursday and continue on Saturday, May 18, from 4 to 7 p.m. and Sunday, May 19, from 4 to 7 p.m. at 12 Music street in West Tisbury. For more information, call 508-627-2456 or 508-737-8550.
The Island Theatre Workshop is headed to Pooh Corner. Well, Pooh Bear himself won’t be the main attraction but A. A. Milne is the man of the weekend. The woman of the weekend is Taffy McCarthy who directs this play based on works by Mr. Milne.
This weekend and next the Island Theatre Workshop is presenting its annual Pick of the Crop play series. As its name declares ITW is a community theatre group of and for the Island. All of its playwrights, directors and actors are amateurs. By this we mean not paid, rather than unskilled or inexperienced. Most players have appeared in numerous Island productions throughout the years and are familiar presences on stage.
The late great star of the stage, Katharine Cornell, who lies buried behind the theatre she bequeathed to the town of Tisbury, would approve of the choice of The Turn of the Screw for the Island Theatre Workshop’s Halloween presentation.
The story is admittedly odd, but the musical I Sent a Letter to My Love (lyrics and music by Melissa Manchester and Jeffrey Sweet) now running at the Katharine Cornell Theatre, has been stylishly packaged by Island Theatre Workshop. The storyline was adapted from a novel of the same name by Bernice Rubens, so perhaps the oddness may be laid at the feet of the author.
