The Rep Names Amelia Acosta Powell as New Associate Artistic Director

The Rep Names Amelia Acosta Powell as New Associate Artistic Director

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis is excited to introduce Amelia Acosta Powell as its new associate artistic director.Beginning on June 17, Acosta Powell will join The Rep’s new artistic leadership team headed by Augustin Family Artistic Director Hana S. Sharif.Acosta Powell most recently served as line producer at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, a Tony Award-winning organization that stands as one of the preeminent destinations for American regional theatre. Before that, she worked as the casting director and artistic associate at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. A graduate of Georgetown University (where she dual-majored in theatre and Spanish), Acosta Powell’s wide-ranging artistic career includes producing and directing plays throughout the D.C. area.In 2017, American Theatre magazine named her as a rising star in the industry as part of its “Theatre Workers You Should Know” series.“Amelia is an extraordinary producer and a talented director that is a joyful addition to the artistic team,” Sharif said. “I look forward to collaborating with her in creating captivating theatre that captures the indomitable spirit of St. Louis.”“I’m very humbled and honored,” Acosta Powell said. “Hana is an inspiring and galvanizing leader who is both compassionate and persistent. It was an easy ‘yes’ when she offered me this role. The more that I’ve learned about the work at The Rep, the more excited I am to be a part of this organization and the city of St. Louis. It’s ripe with opportunity.” Acosta Powell will succeed Seth Gordon, The Rep’s associate artistic director of nine years, as he moves on to pursue new opportunities outside the organization.Acosta Powell says that she expects to spend much of her first year in St. Louis on a “listening tour,” learning more about the theatre and the city as she focuses on building The Rep’s outreach into the community. Her day-to-day work will include serving as a facilitator and liaison between The Rep’s artistic leadership, guest artists and staff.She’s most excited about the work that will happen on The Rep’s intimate stages.“What I love about theatre is being live in the room together,” Acosta Powell said. “I love to engage in the dialogue that happens when you’re at a play that doesn’t necessarily happen at a movie or other entertainment events. I love when the story that’s being told on stage is impacting the people in the room. Whether it’s loud laughter or groans of recognition at something cringeworthy, that kind of really visceral response is unique and thrilling.”One of Acosta Powell’s Oregon colleagues can’t wait to see what happens next in her career.“Amelia is a sophisticated artist, intrepid producer, and an exemplary leader who has had an extraordinary impact on the evolution of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival,” said Mica Cole, repertory producer at Oregon Shakespeare Festival. “Her appointment as associate artistic director of The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis makes me not only ecstatic for the future of The Rep, but for the seismic shift Hana and Amelia will undoubtedly bring to the field at large.”

Tender and Touching ‘Nonsense and Beauty’ Is Superbly Acted and Directed in The Rep’s Studio

Tender and Touching ‘Nonsense and Beauty’ Is Superbly Acted and Directed in The Rep’s Studio

By Lynn Venhaus
Managing Editor
“Nonsense and beauty have close connections,” Edward Morgan Forster once wrote.
Playwright Scott Sickles took that phrase as the title of his splendid play,
which the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis helped develop. And oh, what a
starting place it is.

“Nonsense and Beauty,” Sickles’ timeless tale of love and
forgiveness, is set in a very different era where same-sex relationships were mostly
hidden, and famous British author E. M. Forster is caught up in the nonsense
and beauty of a long affair with a man 23 years his junior – who will marry a
woman during this conflicted period.

Not your garden-variety real-life love story, as it
unfolds, we discover a believable love triangle with likable people – no
villains, wrapped in a very complicated forbidden relationship between two complex
men, while on the sidelines, there’s the unrequited love of a dear friend who desires
more. Additionally, there’s the unconditional love of a mother, although a prickly
and miserable woman.

In lesser hands, this would be a turgid soap opera with
starched collars. And while the poignant play unleashes an emotional
rollercoaster, it’s contained in an elegantly rendered production that is
exquisitely acted and sharply directed.
Staged crisply by Seth Gordon downstairs in the Studio Theatre, that intimate
space and the in-the-round format suits the play well. My fondness for the
characters grew with each scene, as their connections with each other were
conveyed so well.

Forster, known to his close friends as Morgan and gay, was
the celebrated novelist (“Howards End,” “A Room with a View,” “Where Angels
Fear to Tread,” “A Passage to India”), a prolific essayist and 16-time nominee
for the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Considered a humanist, the stuffy conventions of the
upper-class British society he lived and worked in were a source of material
for him, as he could not live life out loud in such a universal state of
repression. After all, homosexuality was illegal in the United Kingdom until
1967.

He was an intelligent man of impeccable manners, and
Jeffrey Hayenga excels as showing us his wordly refined side, but also his
yearnings and longing for a life he could only imagine. Hayenga’s absorbing
performance is tender and touching.

After he met London policeman Bob Buckingham, a jolly old
chap of no discernable stature, at the Cambridge-Oxford boat race in 1930, they
began a risky on-and-off relationship that would span 40 years.

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 – This is the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ production of “Nonsense and Beauty” as the Loretto-Hilton Center. ©Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.Their friendship was tested when Bob courted and married smart
and feisty May, a no-nonsense nurse who did not follow up any possible
suspicions about the men spending ‘alone’ time together. She stayed in the
dark, whether it was of her own choosing or she just didn’t go there in her
mind.

Forster was a major presence in their family’s lives.
Nobody meant to hurt each other, but oh, what aching and pain endured.

An engaging pair together, Robbie Simpson as Bob and Lori Vega as May displayed genuine sparks as their relationship grows into matrimony and parenthood. Nevertheless, how confusing for all — neither Bob nor Morgan could quit each other, so therefore, their friendship survived through the ups and downs of their lives.

TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2019 – This is the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ production of “Nonsense and Beauty” as the Loretto-Hilton Center. ©Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.Another constant was longtime friend, the distinguished
writer J.R. Ackerley, wondrously portrayed by John Feltch. He brings more to
the urbane and glib character than tossing off bon mots and smirking about the
confines of society. He pined for more with Morgan, but that was not to be. He
befriends May, something neither expected, and his wit well-serves the
production.

Feltch, so good in “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike” in
2015 (and St. Louis Theater Circle nominee), has a regal stature and is an
erudite sounding board throughout the show. In the movie, his character would
have been played by Clifton Webb or Vincent Price – or even James Mason.

As E.M. Forster’s battle-ax of a widowed mother, Lily, Donna
Weinsting astutely captures the grand dame’s controlling and cantankerous ways.

The entire ensemble is finely calibrated to show the fragility,
disappointment and deep love between the characters. The play’s bittersweet
nature is imparted in multiple ways.

Brian Sidney Bembridge’s minimal set, enhanced by his eloquent lighting design, allows smooth flow of the characters in conversation. Bembridge won the St. Louis Theater Circle Award for “The Royale.” Felia K. Davenport’s costumes defined the periods succinctly, and Rusty Wandall’s sound design provided nifty vintage touches. Leiber and Stoller’s “Is That All There Is?” was a wise choice to open and close the show.

Gordon, The Rep’s Associate Artistic Director, had nurtured
this project even before he further developed it as part of The Rep’s 2018
Ignite! Festival of New Plays, which he started after coming to the Rep. He
directed its first major public reading in 1996 at the Carnegie Mellon Showcase
of New Plays.

This is the sixth play from “Ignite!” to become a full-fledged
production, and this world premiere is a dandy – a lovingly crafted work of
substance, that means something, where the attention to detail is strong, and
the approach thoughtful.

The
Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents “Nonsense and Beauty” March 8 – 24 in
the Emerson Studio Theatre, 130 Edgar Road. For tickets or more information,
visit www.repstl.org. Box Office phone is
314-968-4925.

The Rep Announces Line-Up for its Ignite Festival of New Plays

The Rep Announces Line-Up for its Ignite Festival of New Plays

A group of nationally renowned playwrights will present public readings of their newest scripts at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ Ignite! Festival of New Plays, running March 27 – April 4 in The Rep’s Emerson Studio Theatre.Launched in 2012, the festival offers St. Louis theatre lovers the chance to see in-development scripts performed by professional actors, and then offer their feedback directly to the playwrights in post-performance talkbacks.This year’s festival features:Quiz Out by Margot ConnollyDirected by Shelley Butler7:30 p.m. March 27High school junior Harper and her best friend Hannah join their church’s Bible Quiz team. The more time they spend together, the more they learn about themselves, their faith, their sexual identities, and the intense and occasionally claustrophobic world of Bible Quiz. A crazy, heartwarming comedy by an exciting new voice in the American theatre. 

Frankenstein by Eric Schmiedl, adapted from the novel by Mary ShelleyDirected by Seth Gordon7:30 p.m. March 30

What does it mean to be human? In 1783, the lives of four outsiders come crashing together: Victor, a brilliant young student, Elizabeth, the love of his life, Henry, his best friend, and the Creature – a force that can unite them, or tear them all to pieces. This new adaptation celebrates the insight, passion and youthful exuberance of Mary Shelley’s seminal novel on the 200th anniversary of its publication. 

Frida Book and lyrics by Michael Aman, music by Dana P. RoweDirected by Gustavo Zajac7:30 p.m. April 4After an injury that should have killed her, the renowned artist Frida Kahlo finds relief from her pain through paintings that would change the rules of art forever. Despite a complicated relationship with her husband – the great painter Diego Rivera – and multiple surgeries, she never succumbs to self-pity. Frida is a new musical about a woman’s indomitable creative spirit and love for her husband, as told through the music, movement and art of her country. 

Tickets are now on sale and cost $10 for single performances or $25 to see all three readings.Notable Ignite! alumni include Dael Orlandersmith’s Until the Flood, which world premiered at The Rep in 2016 and played at theatres throughout the nation in 2018, The Invisible Hand by Ayad Akhtar, Gidion’s Knot by Johnna Adams and Soups, Stews and Casseroles: 1976 by Rebecca Gilman.Nonsense and Beauty, presented at the 2018 Ignite! festival, will make its world premiere in The Rep’s Studio Theatre this March.For more information on Ignite!, visit repstl.org/ignite.

Jolly ‘A Christmas Story’ Travels Heartwarming Memory Lane at The Rep

Jolly ‘A Christmas Story’ Travels Heartwarming Memory Lane at The Rep

By Lynn Venhaus
Managing Editor
As comforting as a cup of cocoa, “A Christmas Story” is bathed in the golden glow of nostalgia, evoking warm and amusing childhood memories of Christmases past.
The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis is staging a merry and bright new version of the play by Philip Grecian, which is based on the 1983 perennial holiday film favorite. The film’s narrator, Jean Shepherd, co-wrote the screenplay with director Bob Clark and Leigh Brown, and for the past 45 years, has struck a multi-generational chord with folks happy to remember what it was like to be a kid at Christmas.
A popular American humorist, Shepherd grew up in Hammond, Indiana, in the 1920s – 30s, and the Parker Family’s story was shaped from his 1966 semi-autobiographical anecdotal book, “In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash.”
A storyteller, writer, radio host and actor, Shepherd was known for his astute observations on ordinary life. The Rep’s sentimental production capitalizes on the shared connections we have about our families, our neighborhoods, school days and the moments that shape our lives.

Charlie Mathis and Ted Deasy in the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ production of “A Christmas Story” at the Loretto-Hilton Center. ©Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.Who doesn’t remember yearning for a gift one year that you were ecstatic to get above all others? We could relate to 9-year-old Ralphie’s desire for a Red Ryder BB gun, and how exasperating his traditional nuclear family was to him.
No matter how familiar you are with this story, the resonating moments remain as plentiful as the first few times you saw the film. The movie went nowhere in 1983 – and I was one of those rare viewers who saw it then at the cinema – but it didn’t catch fire until its VHS release, then cable television elevated it to exalted classic status.
The memorable highlights received hearty reactions on stage – the pink bunny pajamas, the frozen tongue on the flagpole, the department store Santa visit, the roasted turkey for the Christmas feast and the prize “leg” lamp.
We expect to laugh. You’re smiling right now reading this, aren’t you?
And the cast solidly immerses us into that corner of small-town America. Yet, even though the story is beloved, The Rep doesn’t take your interest for granted – director Seth Gordon earns it. After all, he knows this material well – he helped Grecian develop the play between 2005 and 2010, with the playwright sharpening the characters and tightening the story. He has directed the show six times (but not the one first here in 2009), and still has a twinkle in his eye.
The jolly ensemble fully creates a believable working-class Midwestern family and townsfolk, crisply delivering this well-worn memory piece with an enthusiastic freshness.
The narrator is now the adult Ralphie, and Ted Deasy, who was a cynical lawyer in last spring’s “Born Yesterday,” is bursting with excitement to share the vivid details of his boyhood. It’s through his wide eyes we see these daffy misadventures, as he glides through their modest home.
Jerry Naunheim Jr. PhotoLaurel Casillo brings some spunk and cheeriness as Mother and Brad Fraizer is funny as the grumpy Old Man, full of bark and bluster but really a softie. They are affectionate portraits with roots in reality.
Endearing Charlie Mathis, quite memorable as Dill in last year’s “To Kill a Mockingbird,” is delightful as young Ralphie, getting in one jam after another, but also disappearing into a robust fantasy life, whether he’s confronting Black Bart or imagining he’s dead.
Mathis’ timing is impeccable, and he interacts nicely with his best buddies (Dan Wolfe as Flick, Rhadi Smith as Schwartz), his parents and goofy brother Randy (Spencer Slavik).
Tanner Gilbertson makes an impressive debut as the dreaded bully Scut Farkus, while Gigi Koster and Ana McAlister are sweet as the schoolgirls Helen and Esther Jane. Jo Twiss is the feared elementary teacher Miss Shields.
Gordon has worked very well with the youngsters, fluidly guiding them and creating room to play — not too sweet or artificial, not trying too hard, and without any nerves showing.
Their ease helps us stroll memory lane in the neighborhood. Scenic Designer Michael Ganio’s exquisitely detailed home uses an effective brown color palette for a typical two-story home, but when the department store is revealed, he has pulled out all the stops. It’s a shimmering winter wonderland, benefitting from Peter Sargent’s outstanding lighting design, and Rusty Wandall’s sound.
Costume Designer David Kay Mickelson has fashioned vintage outfits that accurately reflect the time and season. And oh, what fun to recall those layers of wool, knits and outdoorswear that every kid was forced to bundle up in back in the day.
Tapping into childlike wonder and celebrating cherished special-occasion memories is enjoyable. The Rep’s “A Christmas Story” allows us to pause and reflect on the magic of the season from a child’s perspective. It’s up to us to keep it in our hearts when the season’s long over.
“A Christmas Story” will be presented at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ mainstage from Nov. 30 to Dec. 22. Tickets are on sale at the www.repstl.org or by phone at 314-968-4925 or in-person at The Rep box office, which is located at 130 Edgar Road, on the campus of Webster University. For more information about the show, visit www.repstl.org/a-christmas-story
TUESDAY, NOV. 27, 2018 -This is the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ production of “A Christmas Story” at the Loretto-Hilton Center. ©Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.

The Rep Announces Two of Three Shows for Studio Theatre Season

The Rep Announces Two of Three Shows for Studio Theatre Season

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis (The Rep) has announced two of the three shows for its 2018-2019 Studio Theatre season: Admissions(October 24 – November 11, 2018), the 2018 Drama Desk Award winner for Outstanding Play, and the world premiere of Nonsense and Beauty (March 6 – 24, 2019).
Admissions, by Joshua Harmon and directed by The Rep’s Augustin Family Artistic Director Steven Woolf, opens the season. Prep school admissions director Sherri Rosen-Mason lives according to staunchly progressive values. Her daily battles include diversifying both the school’s student body and the photos in its brochures. But when her teenage son claims that those same values have denied him opportunities as a white student, it creates an explosive conflict that exposes their family’s hypocrisies and privileges. This biting play’s acidic humor goes straight for the throat.
The Studio Theatre series will conclude withNonsense and Beauty, by Scott C. Sickles and directed by The Rep’s Associate Artistic Director Seth Gordon. In 1930, the writer E.M. Forster met and fell in love with a policeman 23 years his junior. Their relationship, very risky for its time, evolved into a 40-year love triangle that was both turbulent and unique. Based on a true story, Nonsense and Beauty captures the wit and wisdom of one of the last century’s great writers. This world premiere, developed as part of The Rep’s 2018 Ignite! Festival of New Plays, explores the power of love and forgiveness.
Details for the Studio Theatre production that will run January 16 – February 3, 2019 are currently being finalized, and a title will be announced soon.
The Rep’s 2018-2019 Studio Theatre season is sponsored by The Fischer Family.
Season ticket packages for the Studio season are on sale now. By purchasing season tickets, subscribers can save substantially over the cost of purchasing individual show tickets and enjoy exclusive benefits. Studio Theatresubscription packages range from $111-$172 for all three shows.
Studio Theatre single tickets will go on sale Tuesday, September 4.
For more information about The Rep’s 2018-2019 season or to purchase subscriptions, visit repstl.org, call The Rep Box Office at 314-968-4925 or drop by the box office in person at the Loretto-Hilton Center for Performing Arts, 130 Edgar Road (on the campus of Webster University), Webster Groves.

Lynn Zipfel Venhaus

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis (The Rep) has announced two of the three shows for its 2018-2019 Studio Theatre season: Admissions(October 24 – November 11, 2018), the 2018 Drama Desk Award winner for Outstanding Play, and the world premiere of Nonsense and Beauty (March 6 – 24, 2019).
Admissions, by Joshua Harmon and directed by The Rep’s Augustin Family Artistic Director Steven Woolf, opens the season. Prep school admissions director Sherri Rosen-Mason lives according to staunchly progressive values. Her daily battles include diversifying both the school’s student body and the photos in its brochures. But when her teenage son claims that those same values have denied him opportunities as a white student, it creates an explosive conflict that exposes their family’s hypocrisies and privileges. This biting play’s acidic humor goes straight for the throat.
The Studio Theatre series will conclude withNonsense and Beauty, by Scott C. Sickles and directed by The Rep’s Associate Artistic Director Seth Gordon. In 1930, the writer E.M. Forster met and fell in love with a policeman 23 years his junior. Their relationship, very risky for its time, evolved into a 40-year love triangle that was both turbulent and unique. Based on a true story, Nonsense and Beauty captures the wit and wisdom of one of the last century’s great writers. This world premiere, developed as part of The Rep’s 2018 Ignite! Festival of New Plays, explores the power of love and forgiveness.
Details for the Studio Theatre production that will run January 16 – February 3, 2019 are currently being finalized, and a title will be announced soon.
The Rep’s 2018-2019 Studio Theatre season is sponsored by The Fischer Family.
Season ticket packages for the Studio season are on sale now. By purchasing season tickets, subscribers can save substantially over the cost of purchasing individual show tickets and enjoy exclusive benefits. Studio Theatresubscription packages range from $111-$172 for all three shows.
Studio Theatre single tickets will go on sale Tuesday, September 4.
For more information about The Rep’s 2018-2019 season or to purchase subscriptions, visit repstl.org, call The Rep Box Office at 314-968-4925 or drop by the box office in person at the Loretto-Hilton Center for Performing Arts, 130 Edgar Road (on the campus of Webster University), Webster Groves.