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ABOUT LEARNING
“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.”
You may have noticed the bright lights shining from The Bok Gallery windows at night recently. That's because The Sharon Playhouse has been holding its popular Fall classes. The teen/adult classes are held after dark starting at 6pm.
We'd like to give you some insight about what's been going on in the classes and who the instructors are. We'll start with Playwriting....
“YOU WILL FEEL JOY AND A SENSE OF COMMUNITY IN THE PLAYWRITING COURSE”
Julie Retzlaff is the instructor for Playwriting at The Sharon Playhouse this Fall. Classes are on Nov. 4, 11, 18 and each class is from 6:30-9pm.
Julie is enthusiastic about her course and her students. She says: “It's worth it! You will feel joy and a sense of community.”
Julie is originally from Cambria, a small town on the Central California Coast. Her high school didn't have a theater, but there was one in the town called The Pewter Plough Playhouse. There she took a crash course in learning about writing, lighting, acting, set design, etc.
Julie entered college after high school, but she didn't graduate until 10 years later from The New College of San Francisco with a BA in Creative Writing. She spent the next 10 years working across the country, studying and exploring what she most wanted to do in theater, film, and photography. This included a two-year program at The Rockport Film School in Maine.
“There was an undeniable sense of completion when I got my degree,” she recalls. She discovered that she was most interested in collaborative learning and teaching on a long-term basis, whether she was the instructor or one of the students. While she has also taken online classes, she feels “it's so wonderful to be in a live group with feedback that you don't get online.”
For the past 20 years Julie has been working with playwrights and on new play development coast to coast. creating dynamic writing workshops incorporating breath work, sound, and movement.
As an independent writer, playwright and teacher, Julie has earned support from The Ensemble Studio Theater, Primary Stages, NY Theatre Workshops, as well as The Will Geer Theatricum “Seedlings Play Development Program.”
Students in Julie's class create their own 10-minute masterpieces as they explore the building blocks of theatrical writing. They learn about ideation, character-building and plot mastery: the secret ingredients of captivating plays. They work on their scenes in a supportive environment, receiving expert feedback while honing their craft.
Julie invites experienced writers and newcomers to join her Sharon Playhouse course. “My students want to learn more about each other and they do that through the work that is presented. We have a workshop every week as the class discusses modifications in the work presented and we build a strong collaborative community.”
Next year will mark The Fifth Annual Writers' Playground production at The Playhouse and Julie's students are likely applicants.
STUDYING THE SCENE: PLENTY OF FUN AND LAUGHING
Ricky Oliver is the instructor for Studying the Scene at The Sharon Playhouse this Fall. November classes are on Nov. 5, 12, 19 and each class is from 7-9pm.
“I would describe our classes as a lot of fun. There's plenty of laughing and goofy stuff going on. Keep in mind that the class might be the only pause for creativity that my students have during the day and I want them to make the most of it,” says Ricky.
Originally from Baltimore, Ricky started nurturing his love for the arts at the age of 12 and spent most of his teenage years attending Carver Center for the Arts High School in Baltimore. “I was an artsy kid and performing arts was a natural next step for me,” he notes.
He holds an MFA from Brown University/Trinity Rep Acting Program and a BFA in Music Theatre from the University of Hartford’s Hartt School Theatre Division. As a working actor in his 20s and 30s he performed in two national tours, several regional premieres, and in off-Broadway houses. He taught on a teaching fellowship at Brown University, where his students were not acting majors. This got him thinking about how to reach non-acting students that could still benefit from learning the skills he offered. It was a challenging but valuable lesson for both teacher and students and emphasized that “there is no one way to teach acting.”
Ricky’s first full-time job teaching acting was at the University of Hartford during the pandemic. “We were socially distanced and I realized the importance of bringing the arts to the individual and not the individual to the arts,” he said.
A year ago he moved on to teach acting at Trinity Pawling, a college prep school, which is how he got to know The Sharon Playhouse as it is just down the road from the school. He already knew Andrus Nichols, who taught, acted, and directed there.
Ricky's Sharon Playhouse class has welcomed actors and non-actors from teens to seniors. They study scenes from a variety of plays, whether classical drama, contemporary comedies or thought-provoking new plays. When students find a scene they are comfortable with that aligns with their interests, Ricky helps them focus on it to sharpen their acting, storytelling, research, communication, and community-building skills.
“Many of my students have always loved the idea of studying theater, but never had the courage or the time. It's exciting for me and for them to watch what the results are when they decide to take that extra step and give it a try,” notes Ricky.
“I don't believe that I'm the only voice in the room. I believe in engaging everyone so we can all learn from each other how to better communicate. I know that my way isn't the only way and so I ask students to explore, experiment, and share how they feel. You might be surprised at how much trust and security we build together over seven classes. Teaching acting is an ongoing process, a collaboration where we dare to take chances that reveal more of each of us. This makes it endlessly fascinating to all involved.
DEATH OF A SALESMAN IS THE SUBJECT OF A PLAY SOIREE AT THE SHARON PLAYHOUSE ON NOV. 15, 6:30PM WITH HOSTS MICHAEL KEVIN BALDWIN AND ANDRUS NICHOLS
Chances are if you are a fan of The Sharon Playhouse, you've heard the name Michael Kevin Baldwin before. Michael performed at The Playhouse for the first time when he was just 10 years old, and he is now its Education and Associate Artistic Director. Michael’s partner in Play Soiree is Andrus Nichols, an award-winning actress, arts leader, and community builder. (You can read more about Michael and Andrus at www.sharonplayhouse.org and click on Education and then Faculty.)
The idea for Play Soirees emerged in a conversation about creating a class that was community oriented, but more than a table reading. It's different because roles are assigned and shared on the evening of the reading with the goal of bringing new life into a classic. On Nov. 15th the play in question is Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, a Pulitzer Prize winning work written in 1948 and originally produced in 1949.
Death of a Salesman will mark the 11th Play Soiree and the first of this particular work, which reflects Miller's thoughts on the joys, sorrows, and promises of The American Dream. There are usually 25-30 participants, who sit around tables set up in a large, informal square.
As a student, your first role may be that of the lead character, but as the play reading gains momentum you could be assigned a totally different part.
Just as Americans have adapted other aspects of French culture, the original soiree, meaning a formal or refined evening event, attention in Play Soiree is devoted to interpretation of the work of a single play in an informal manner with often rousing and surprising results.
“The reaction we get to these events is unanimously that it was great fun,” says Michael. “They are filled with community bonding, social engagement, and artistic expression. We usually have a mix of students of all ages, ranging from budding thespians to shy introverts. We find that in the end the students want to learn more. It's as if their creative imaginations are suddenly on fire and they want to know how different aspects of live theater, production, casting, etc. work. We often have several students who return class after class.,” says Baldwin.
There is still time to register for Play Soiree. The fee is $20 and includes one drink.
Barbara Gatski: Paving the Way for Sharon Playhouse’s Future
Barbara Gatski’s journey to The Sharon Playhouse might have come by chance, but her commitment to its mission is clear. With a career that spans over a decade in educational fundraising, Barbara brings a wealth of experience and fresh energy to her role as The Sharon Playhouse’s first full-time Development Director.
Barbara spent 13 years building the World Language Department at Millbrook School before transitioning into development at the Head of School’s request, ultimately managing the school’s large annual fund. When she retired from Millbrook, Barbara was introduced to the Sharon Playhouse just before our annual Spotlight Gala. “The gala sealed the deal. It was just fabulous,” she recalls. “I thought, ‘This will be a really nice, exciting moment in my career.’”
Since stepping into her role, Barbara has focused on creating a lasting framework for the Playhouse’s fundraising efforts. One of her first priorities has been revitalizing the Angel Program, a beloved supporter initiative started by Bobbie Olsen. She plans to implement small but meaningful touches to make Angels feel recognized at every turn, from designing lanyards to hand signing hundreds of letters alongside Board President Emily Soell. “A simple ‘thank you’ is so important,” she notes.
Barbara has also been developing consistency in The Sharon Playhouse’s fundraising processes, establishing a regular schedule for donor outreach and aligning the fiscal calendar with broader nonprofit practices. Her goal is to bring a smooth, sustainable rhythm to fundraising, which will give the Playhouse a strong foundation for growth.
In addition to these efforts, Barbara has set her sights on broader initiatives like “Pave the Way,” a campaign focused on improving and expanding campus facilities and infrastructure. Her views are setting the stage for long-term facility needs as crucial to sustaining the Playhouse’s growth and potential.
For Barbara, building a successful development strategy is all about relationships. “The success of a Development Director is being a good listener,” she explains. “I want to know why they want to give to Sharon Playhouse—what attracts them.” She believes that strong relationships and genuine interest in donor motivations are the keys to building trust and lasting support.
Her enthusiasm for The Playhouse’s potential is clear. Referencing a recent mention in the New York Times, Barbara comments, “We’re being recognized… I think as much more than just a small summer stock theater. The Sharon Playhouse has so much to offer, and I believe we’re just at the beginning of an incredible journey.”
As to what supporters of The Playhouse can do to help her efforts, Barbara says “donate at whatever level you’re comfortable with. If financial support isn’t possible, we always need volunteers for ushering, helping with parking, or joining the YouthStage parent organization Michael and I are working on. Lastly, share the good word! Tell friends and family about the incredible work happening here.”
CHARLES DICKENS’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL: THE YOUTHSTAGE LIGHTS UP THE HOLIDAY SEASON
Everyone knows the inspiring story of A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens’ iconic, heartwarming and apparently timeless tale of greed, redemption, and family love. The Sharon Playhouse YouthStage is taking a somewhat different approach to this oft-told tale. A novel version, adapted by Doris Baizley and co-directed by Andrus Nichols and Drew Ledbetter, will be the winter YouthStage production at The Sharon Playhouse. The show plays for six performances December 18-22 in The Bok Gallery.
In this version, we encounter a company of traveling players about to enact the Dickens story. The troupe soon discovers that the actors playing Scrooge and Tiny Tim have abandoned the tour, but the show must go on! The prop boy eagerly volunteers for the part of Tim, while the cynical stage manager is drafted to play the old miser. The rag tag players quickly become the characters of the story, and we are pulled into the life of Ebenezer Scrooge.
With a trunk full of props and a stage brimming with vivid imagination, “the 12 young actors will be doubling and even tripling to cover all 38 roles in this play,” shared Andrus, the production’s co-director with husband Drew. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to be back in The Bok together with the kids this holiday season.”
What makes this production so innovative?
“Doris Baizley adapted it with the help of a professional adult improv troupe at The Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in the late 1970s. It was so popular that they did it there for over 5 years in a row,” commented Drew Ledbetter, co-director.
He continued: “After directing last year's YouthStage holiday show with Andrus (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) – and absolutely loving it – we (along with Michael Baldwin and Sarah Cuoco) were on the hunt for something to do this year. I came across this adaptation. It's a show meant for adults to perform; it is fast-paced and highly theatrical. We thought the Playhouse teens would be up for the challenge.”
“As Andrus shared, this will be A Christmas Carol that is made out of a trunk of props, and a merry band of traveling players. It will be actor-driven and stripped down and absolutely full of imagination, music, and dancing and so much Christmas spirit that you won't be able to contain yourself with sheer joy by the end!” explained Drew.
“The script is a blend of music, dance, and really great acting scenes. It allows the teens to incorporate everything that the summer camps and classes here offer them – all in one show! Also, we have over six weeks of rehearsal time, so they get to work more with a process than the summer YouthStage shows.”
Andrus and Drew are not new to the Sharon Playhouse, or to the process of directing, although this production marks their first co-directing credit. Last year, Nichols directed the Playhouse production of Our Town, with Ledbetter as her associate director. Ledbetter directed last year’s The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe for the YouthStage holiday production with Nichols as his “second.”
“We never stop talking about designing and building a world of theater when we are at home, but when we are in the rehearsal room we are usually both focused on the acting and storytelling from the ensemble. We find ourselves solving the same problems at the same time. We like problem-solving together,” concluded Drew.
To get you in the holiday spirit, we are sharing Ten Things To Know About Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, with credit to author Paulette Beete. See how many you know.
A Christmas Carol was just one of several Christmas-themed stories written by Charles Dickens. The novella’s full title is A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas.
Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol in just six weeks, under financial pressure. Reportedly Dickens wrote the story while taking hours-long nighttime walks around London.
A Christmas Carol was first published on December 19, 1843, with the first edition sold out by Christmas Eve. By 1844, the novella had gone through 13 printings and continues to be a robust seller more than 175 years later.
Dickens didn't make very much money from early editions of A Christmas Carol. Though it was a runaway best seller, Dickens was very fastidious about the endpapers and how the book was bound, and the price of materials took a big chunk out of his potential profits.
Like many of Dickens’ other works, A Christmas Carol was written as a work of social commentary. Dickens had a lifelong devotion to helping the underserved due to his own family’s experiences with debtors' prison, which forced him to drop out of school as a boy and work at a factory. As Dickens’ biographer Michael Slater described, the author thought of A Christmas Carol as a way to, “help open the hearts of the prosperous and powerful towards the poor and powerless."
Upon publishing the first edition of A Christmas Carol, Dickens had his 66-page heavily revised handwritten manuscript bound in crimson leather and decorated in gilt before gifting it to his friend—and creditor—Thomas Mitton, whose name was also inscribed on the cover in gilt. You can see a digital copy of the manuscript at the Morgan Library and Museum.
In the original editions published in 1843, Dickens called each section a stave instead of a chapter. A stave is the five lines that music is written on. This is Dickens’ way of playing with the novella form and reminding us that this is a Christmas story, rather like the carols sung at Christmas time. It contains a message of new life and possibilities. Through these five staves Dickens hoped that his story and its moral lesson would be repeated each Christmas, like the same old carols, until we knew them by heart.
The Internet Movie Database lists more than 100 versions of A Christmas Carol. Arguably the most famous version is the classic British 1951 film starring Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge. Other well-known versions include Albert Finney’s musicalization (1970), A Christmas Story (1983), and Bill Murray’s Scrooged (1988).
There are more than 20 TV shows that have used Dickens’ classic as fodder for episodes, including Sanford and Son, The Six Million Dollar Man, Family Ties, Suite Life on Deck, The Jetsons, and Duck Tales.
There are two ballet and four opera versions: Christmas Carol, Passion of Scrooge, a chamber opera for one baritone and chamber orchestra.
While A Christmas Carol was received favorably by many of Dickens’ author peers, a 32-year-old Mark Twain was not a fan. Credited as the first writer to do reading tours of his work, Dickens read A Christmas Carol to American audiences during his second visit to the U.S. Twain’s review of the now-iconic book stated, “There is no heart. No feeling—it is nothing but glittering frostwork.”
Do plan to join and support our local YouthStage teens in this rollicking holiday production of A Christmas Carol, playing at The Bok Gallery December 18-22.
YOUNG AT HEART ON DECEMBER 6TH IN THE BOK
Join us on Friday, December 6 at 7:00 PM for a one-night-only celebration of the Sharon Playhouse Education Department's boundless creativity and impact. Headlining the evening is Young at Heart, a brand-new play written by Education & Associate Artistic Director Michael Kevin Baldwin and inspired by the imaginative voices of local elementary school students. This staged reading brings together a talented cast of local youth, educators, and seasoned actors to present a heartwarming story that promises to resonate with all ages. Funds raised will go towards the Playhouse’s newly commissioned risers, a crucial upgrade to The Bok that enhances our community’s shared experiences.
Under Baldwin's direction, the esteemed cast of Young at Heart includes Darcy Boynton, Ricky Oliver, Sienna Brann, Macey Levin, Katherine Almquist, Jim Flaherty, Susie Hackel, Callan Scott, Ivan Howe, Wild Handel, andLyra Wilder. The evening will kick off with a special performance by members of our YouthStage Company, delivering three moving musical numbers:“Heart”fromDamn Yankees,“Happiness”fromYou’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, and“Consider Yourself”fromOliver!Featuring the young talents ofIvan Howe, C.C. Stevenson, Sylvie Stevenson, Lyra Wilder, Avery Morrissey, Mira Norbet, Sam Norbet, Kate Drury, andGilvey Barnett-Zunino, these musical highlights set the stage for a night filled with inspiration, connection, and community spirit. Don’t miss this extraordinary event onFriday, December 6 at 7:00 p.m. in The Bok at the Sharon Playhouse. The program will run approximately one hour. All seats are $30 General Admission.
MEET THE TEAM BEHIND CURTAIN UP!
Publisher: The Sharon Playhouse Editor-in-Chief: Emily Soell, President of the Board of Directors*
Editor/Reporter: Jacqueline Markham-Priaulx*
Managing Editor: Rod Christensen
Design Director: Justin Boccitto
Reporters: Lee Davies,* John Christian Lange*
Advisors: Carl Andress, Artistic Director; Michael Kevin Baldwin, Associate Artistic Director/Director of Education; Sarah Cuoco, Education & Company Manager & Wendy Prause, Business Manager
*Members of the Board of Directors
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