CINDERELLA takes a final bow, our VOLUNTEERS rock, we've got a Raffle Basket WINNER, more AUDITIONS and GOOD PEOPLE is next, right here at the Little Theatre!

That's right. We've reached the final weekend of our magical production of Cinderella. If you haven't seen it yet, you'd best make your reservations soon. There are only a handful of tickets remaining for our 4 shows this weekend. CLICK HERE to make your reservations today.

We've received some wonderful stories in the local press about this delightful Academy of Creative Theatre show. Simply click the links to read the New Times review, a Times-Press-Recorder profile of our talented, young Cinderella, Cali Singleton, and a very nice feature story in the Adobe Press.

The house was packed for our 2014 Open House and Volunteer Appreciation BBQ last Sunday! After noshing and mingling in the lobby, we all sat down in the theatre to enjoy a look back at the 2013-14 Season on the big screens. The highlight of the afternoon was the presentation of the annual Volunteer Awards. We LOVE each and every one of our volunteers but every year there are a few in the crowd who go above and beyond the call of duty. This year's honorees included (clockwise from upper left) Lester Wilson (receiving his award and a hug from Kerry DiMaggio), Ryan Loyd (pictured with Kevin Harris), Carol and Ron Burkhart (pictured with Elaine Fournier and Dave Linfield) and Jamie Foster, (pictured with yours truly, Patty Thayer.)  Thanks to all of our incredible volunteers for helping to make this the best little theatre on the Central Coast!

Speaking of winners, CONGRATULATIONS to Rita Sumabat, the lucky winner of our lovely raffle basket from our July production of Play On!  Rita stopped by to pick up her loot on Thursday and we snapped her picture. The winning ticket for our Cinderella raffle basket will be drawn on Sunday, August 24 following the final performance. Good luck everyone! 

AUDITIONS!!!  Did you hear me? I said AUDITIONS for this lovely, little musical, to be directed by Dana Shaheen, will take place this Sunday and Monday. Click HERE for all the details and come on down and give it a shot. You never know, right? You can also click HERE to get your tickets NOW.

Last, but not least, it's GOOD PEOPLE!  There are just two more weeks until opening night of this award-winning comedy/drama. You can read director David Carey Foster's Director's Notes about the show by clicking HERE, and you can reserve your seats right now by clicking HERE. (Quick tip: our new Thursday evening performances have the best seating still available!)

Enjoy your weekend everyone! And I hope to see you again soon right here at the Little Theatre!

~Patty 

Just 2 more weekends of our magical CINDERELLA, auditions for TAKE ME OUT and SPELLING BEE are coming up and GOOD PEOPLE is on its way!

"Indeed, it is possible for a cast of children to perform a lovely play!" --Adriana Catanzarite, New Times

It seems like we just started our magical journey to the kingdom where dreams come true and it's already almost over. There are just 8 more performances of our summer Academy of Creative Theatre musical CINDERELLA. This is a show for kids of all ages. And yes, I'm talking to you! You're going to love this show, whether you're 5 or 95!  Take a look at what New Times had to say about the show HERE. Then, you'd better hurry and make your reservations HERE because this one is selling out. We had full houses for every show last weekend and we hope to see you here this weekend!

"A funny and troubling look at athletes and identity...Take Me Out is a dynamic, involving play." --Donald Lyons, New York Post

Do you like baseball? Do you like being on stage? Are you a guy? Then, come on down to auditions for Take Me Out next Monday and Tuesday at 6 pm. Director Daniel Freeman is looking for about 10-12 men for this award-winning Ubu's Other Shoe Staged Reading. Not only that, he could really use a couple of guys who can speak Spanish, and even one who can speak Japanese. Click HERE for full descriptions of the cast and more information about auditions, then come on down!

"Putnam County is that rarity of rarities, a super-smart show that is also a bona fide crowd-pleaser." --The Wall Street Journal

Guess what?!! It's time for another musical! Auditions for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, directed by Dana Shaheen will take place on August 24 and 25 right here at the Little Theatre. This delightful musical will hit the Little Theatre stage in November, so check your calendar, warm-up your singing voice and come on down!  Click HERE for more details, character descriptions and other instructions (scroll down the page for information about Spelling Bee.) You can even download the sides you will be asked to read from at auditions, so you can be fully prepared to give it your all.

And while you're on our AUDITIONS PAGE, check out all the dates for auditions for the rest of the season. This is going to be one heckuva year at the Little Theatre, with auditions for shows taking place almost every two weeks! So, go to our website and scope out all the great shows planned for our 2014-15 Season and plan your schedule NOW to participate in at least one show this year. Come on, you know you want to. This is YOUR year!

"A masterwork of the comedy-drama genre." --Backstage
"Enthralling...utterly gripping...Remarkable." --LA Times

Rehearsals are in full swing for this amazing comedy-drama written by award-winning author David Lindsey-Abaire. If you're a fan of Ubu's Other Shoe Staged Readings, you may remember seeing this show on our stage as a staged reading in 2012. It was so successful and such a moving show as a reading, that the artistic team included it in our mainstage season this year. The show is directed by David Carey Foster, an experienced actor and director who you may have seen onstage a few years ago at PCPA or The Great American Melodrama. Now, you're more likely to catch him on The Mentalist or Dexter. We're thrilled to welcome him as director of our season opening show for our 68th Season here at the Little Theatre.

If you're NOT a season ticket holder (and you still can be by clicking HERE!) we recommend getting your tickets early for GOOD PEOPLE, opening on September 5th. Click HERE for more information and tickets. (Please note: Good People includes strong language and is suggested for mature audiences.)

And now, just because I love it so much, I'll leave you with a clip from the Broadway musical version of Rodgers & Hammerstein's CINDERELLA.  One of my favorite moments in our production features Fairy Godmother Bella Yaguda and Cinderella Cali Singleton singing IMPOSSIBLE, complete with pumpkin carriage, dancing horses, an adorable footman carrying glass slippers and best of all, a magical dress transformation.  Click HERE to see it happen on Broadway and I hope you'll join us this weekend for our delightful young actors' version of this delightful tale of dreams-come-true. Have a wonderful weekend!

It's Possible! CINDERELLA opens Friday Night, AUDITIONS on Sunday, Subscriptions are SELLING OUT, and so much MORE -- this week ONLY at the Little Theatre!

Photos by Jamie Foster Photography

"Impossible! For a plain, yellow pumpkin to become a golden carriage. Impossible! For a plain, country bumpkin and a prince to join in marriage....Impossible! Things are happening every day!"

The classic story of dreams-come-true will light up the Little Theatre stage this weekend, as our Academy of Creative Theatre students present Rodgers & Hammerstein's CINDERELLA! This delightful production has been adapted specifically for young actors, but it still includes all your favorite tunes from the original, beloved musical. It's the perfect show to share with your kids, your grand-kids, nephews, nieces, and kids of all ages, from the very young, to the young at heart!

August 8-24

Fridays & Saturdays @ 7 pm
Saturdays & Sundays @ 2 pm

Directed by Shelagh Garren
Musical Direction by Lacey McNamara
Choreography by Kelly Fidopiastis

Featuring:

Cali Singleton, Conner Allen, Alexx Ascencio, Jed Authier, Kaylee Beardsley, Isaac Capp, Penny DellaPelle, Abby Dorman, Isabella Grznar, Riley Hutcheson, Sophia Lea, Zoe Piette, Serafina Regusci, Maddie Smith, Elizabeth Tharp, Bella Yaguda and Veda Yaguda.

Tickets: $13 Students / $20 Adults

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR SEATS TODAY

Just one more reminder that if you've been waiting for just the right time to come on down to the theatre and audition for a play?  THIS IS IT! There are auditions happening almost every two weeks this year in our most ambitious season to date. This weekend, it's the hilarious Steve Martin comedy, PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE. Next week, we're in a need of a few good men for Richard Greenberg's TAKE ME OUT. But there's more! CLICK HERE to see details about auditions for these two shows, PLUS future audition dates. It's going to be an exciting season here at the Little Theatre and you need to play a part in it!

Subscriptions are still available for these five awesome shows, but if you want to guarantee the BEST SEATS, at the BEST PRICE, with the MOST FLEXIBILITY on exchanges?  You'd best hurry on down to the box office to get yours now! We have already sold more season tickets than we sold for the 2013-14 Season (which was also a record breaker) and we're approaching that magical number where we'll have to cut off our subscription sales in order to ensure there are enough seats to meet the demand for individual tickets throughout the year. Don't be left outside standing in line for tickets when we inevitably sell out your favorite show. Come on in out of the cold and become a member of our subscriber family! CLICK HERE for more information and to order your season tickets online.

Got kids? We've got GREAT CLASSES for them!  The Academy of Creative Theatre is now registering for Fall After School Theatre Classes for children ages 5-18. From our beginning "Drama Kids" class to our advanced "Improv II" and "Acting" classes, all ACT programs are taught by experienced, professional teaching artists and take place in a lively, nurturing and FUN environment. Worried about tuition costs? Don't be. Thanks to a generous grant from the Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County, we have generous scholarships available for your child. CLICK HERE for more information about classes and to register online.

Courtesy of Jamie Foster Photography

Whatever you do this weekend, enjoy it! And remember that nothing is impossible...things are happening every day!

Come see Cinderella - you'll love it!

So many shows, so many AUDITIONS! And don't look now, but it's time for CINDERELLA!!

Did you know that when you're producing 25 plays, 225 performances on 45 out of 52 weekends, you end up having auditions almost every two weeks?  It's true. So if you've been toying with the idea of getting back on stage again but just haven't made the leap yet? This is YOUR year!!

"Picasso at the Lapin Agile is Martin's poker-faced-and very funny-riff on the birth of the modern century." -- New York Magazine

Our second main stage show of the year will offer plenty of laughs and lots of fun for nine talented actors and actresses in Steve Martin's PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE, directed by Suzy Newman. All roles are open! The show will run October 10-26.

AUDITIONS: Picasso at the Lapin Agile

Sunday, August 10 @ 4pm

Monday, August 11 @ 6pm

CLICK HERE for audition information

CLICK HERE for tickets!

"An enchanting and enchanted take on baseball... passionately personal and lyrically analytical... an unconditional, all-American epiphany." -- NY Times

Our first Ubu's Other Shoe Staged Reading of the season will offer a great opportunity for 12 talented actors to flex their acting chops. Director Daniel Freeman is looking for some talented guys to take the stage and talk about baseball in Richard Greenberg's Tony Award winning TAKE ME OUT. The show will run September 26-27.

AUDITIONS: Take me Out

Monday, August 18 @ 6pm

Tuesday, August 19 @ 6pm

CLICK HERE for audition information

CLICK HERE for tickets!

Who remembers watching Lesley Ann Warren in the television version of Rodgers & Hammerstein's CINDERELLA? Or maybe your Cinderella was Julie Andrews or even Brandy! Whatever version of this delightful musical you've enjoyed before, you're going to LOVE this one right here on the Little Theatre stage! Directed by Shelagh Garren, with musical direction by Lacey McNamara and choreography by Kelly Fidopiastis, this is a show meant to be shared with the entire family. Our Academy of Creative Theatre students have been rehearsing for two months and they're just about ready to take the stage. Bring your children, bring your grandchildren, or just bring your little ol' self. I promise, you'll leave the theatre smiling, with a song on your lips.

CINDERELLA

August 8-24

Fridays & Saturdays @ 7pm

Saturdays & Sundays @ 2pm

CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS!

Many Thanks to our Show Sponsors
Wilda Rosene, Jockey Person to Person
Craig & Rosemary Canfield

Just for fun, here's one last link, this time from the Broadway version of Rodgers & Hammerstein's CINDERELLA. Click HERE to sing along. 

See you next weekend for glass slippers, pumpkin carriages, fairy godmothers, a handsome prince and impossible things happening everyday. 

Have a great weekend! 

~Patty

ART INSPIRES! The Community Foundation SLO County Funds Scholarships for ACT Students

Janice Fong Wolf of The Community Foundation presenting the check to Education Director Kerry DiMaggio and Managing Artistic Director Kevin Harris with Little Theatre Board members Bryce Engstrom, Wilda Rosene, Michael Simkins and Matthew Cottle. 

Last week, the Little Theatre was thrilled to receive a generous $7,000 grant to fund tuition scholarships for students participating in our Academy of Creative Theatre (ACT) educational programs throughout the 2014-2015 Season. The grant was provided through Art Inspires!, a program of The Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County, funded by the Holser Educational Fund for the Performing Arts.

This generous grant will underwrite need-based tuition scholarships for students participating in our extensive ACT education program, including four summer theatre camps, after-school theatre classes in the spring and fall, a spring break camp and two production classes which offer students the opportunity to participate in professionally-directed full length theatrical productions.

Kerry DiMaggio, Education Director (Photo by Jamie Foster)

All of these programs are managed under the very capable hands of Education Director Kerry DiMaggio. Kerry has been running our ACT programs since 2008. Not only is she a very talented singer and actress herself (She played Maria in The Sound of Music in 2013) but she manages an amazing program. In addition to four summer camps being offered in June and July (sign up HERE!) ACT students will also be spending June, July and part of August rehearsing the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Cinderella as part of our summer ACT production class.The show is directed by Shelagh Garren, with musical direction by Lacey McNamara and choreography by Kelly Fidopiastis. The show runs August 8-24 and we recommend getting your tickets early for this one! (Tickets go on sale June 22.)

ACT Teachers, Directors & Choreographers 2014/15 Season: (L to R) Danielle Dutro McNamara, Lacey McNamara, Kelly Fidopiastis, Shelagh Garren, Kerry DiMaggio, Zach Johnson and Taylor Peters (Not pictured: Lester Wilson; photo by Jamie Foster)

“Participating in theatre encourages creativity and builds self-confidence” says Kerry. “ACT provides a creative, artistic, educational and FUN outlet for children who might not otherwise be engaged with their peers or other important adult role models. This generous grant from the Community Foundation will allow us to expand our programs and our reach in the community. We will be able to offer any child with a desire to participate in our programs the chance to do so, without regard to our costs.”

Many thanks to the Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County for this generous gift to our ACT program and to the talented young actors of the Central Coast!

AUGUST 8-24

TICKETS ON SALE JUNE 22