I’m having a great time directing Robert Macadaeg and Eliot Johnston in Caryl Churchill’s A Number, a tight little thriller about cloning with gorgeous, spare language and unforgettable characters. It’s part of ACT ONE’s Beyond Festival. These guys are fabulous actors and each is a joy to work with in his own way. Eliot seems pure sweetness, with an amazing emotional transparency to his characterizations, but his hidden superpower is his spot-on Hannibal Lecter impression. Robert is usually smooth, sarcastic and intellectual, and then he slips into character and hands you his heart. Both are smart and bold with the choices they…
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What a fantastic spring for ACT ONE and MSIM! In March, we gave a great presentation at the Red River Theatres in Concord, NH. In April I traveled to Greenfield, MA to lead the student veterans of Greenfield Community College in their own reading from Make Sure It’s Me. Then, in early May, I received a call from Ron Snow of the Brain Injury Association of NH, inviting Stephanie Nugent and I to their annual conference the following week. Why? To be presented with the Ellen Hayes Award! BIANH’s Ellen Hayes Award is granted each year to the individual or…
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Hey, all! The snow is not yet gone and I’m hitting the road already, sharing ACT ONE’s traveling presentation based on Kate Wenner’s MAKE SURE IT’S ME. This Wednesday, March 19th, we’ll be at the Red River Theatres in Concord, NH. Click here for an article from yesterday’s Concord Monitor about how we’re raising awareness about Traumatic Brain Injury affecting combat veterans and their families. My Executive Director Steph Nugent and I will be joined for this presentation by retired Navy Corpsman Nick Tolentino, former Marine Angela Molihan, and actor and MSIM supporter Paul Yarborough. Register to attend by writing to…
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Phew, where did the end of 2013 go? Like many folks, I spent the holiday season rushing about between blizzards, visiting with family while dodging second and third helpings of dessert. Also, there’s the issue of a new, boisterous voice in the house: But, in addition to such chaotic fun, I do have a few exciting theatre accomplishments and upcoming events to report. My trip to the Emerson Umbrella Center for the Arts in Concord, MA reunited me with my former student Brian Boruta, who is now doing a marvelous job directing the Performing Arts department of this impressive organization.…
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My Spotlight Award-winning solo show, Clean Room, opened yesterday afternoon at WEST and I just want to say, PHEW! It’s always nerve-wracking to perform, and it’s particularly strange to remount a successful show, because you ask yourself: will it work this time? Will they like it as much as they did before? Have I still “got it,” whatever that elusive “it” may be? Well, I guess I still have the required amount of the Elusive It, because yesterday’s performance went extremely well and was received with open arms by old friends and new audience members alike! Thanks so much to…
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Wow, August just blew by as ACT ONE rolled out the first four weeks of Festival 2013! As Associate Director, I’ve had only administrative duties behind the scenes so far, helping my “boss” Steph Nugent to promote the shows and serving as cheerleader while she produced On Golden Pond and directed Last Train to Nibroc. I did some curtain speeches, too, which gave me the chance to meet some more of ACT ONE’s loyal audience members. Both of these shows received stellar reviews and I could not be more proud of the casts and crews! More shows are coming down the…
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Eric St. Cyr as LCpl Kevin Daniels in ACT ONE’s Make Sure It’s Me Well, it’s finally here, the moment when I can say MISSION ACCOMPLISHED after the successful conclusion of MAKE SURE IT’S ME/nh–part 1! ACT ONE’s 2012-2013 season included TWENTY-TWO events inspired by and based on Kate Wenner’s play about Traumatic Brain Injury in the military: a meet-the-playwright teaser event last October at WEST a full reading of the script at Portsmouth Public Library last November FIVE library presentations in March and April and FIFTEEN performances of the world premiere production at WEST in June! Angela Molihan as…
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ACT ONE’s June production of Kate Wenner’s Make Sure It’s Me was a huge success! I’m still writing thank yous, while madly drawing up plans for future MSIM events in New Hampshire in the coming year. I promise you more details soon, but for now, here is a glimpse of how it all played out . . . thank you all, Leslie
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Angela Molihan & Sally Nutt in ACT ONE’s Make Sure It’s Me. Photo: Shay WIllard Join us at the West End Studio Theatre in Portsmouth this weekend for the final performances of ACT ONE’s world premiere production of Kate Wenner’s Make Sure It’s Me! Four out of five performances are packed to the rafters, but we have a few seats left for Sunday night, June 23, at 7:30! See you there for this powerful story of five brain injured Iraq War veterans and the doctor working to help them heal.
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ACT ONE’s final weekend of performances of Kate Wenner’s Make Sure It’s Me approaches! There are just a few tickets left for June 21 at 8, June 22 at 8, and June 23 at 2 and 7:30. Call (603) 300-2986 to reserve your seat. Here’s what audiences have been saying: “Amazing experience. Amazing cast. Amazing direction. Amazing choice.” “I really loved the play. The actors’ portrayals were all “dead-on” whether they were playing soldiers, family members or caregivers. I thought it was such an emotionally accurate depiction of life after brain injury.” “What a home run the performance it is .…