This Week in Masquerdom (03/21/09)

First Tuesdays on Tuesday (03/24)
This Tuesday will be the third installment of First Tuesdays. It will be in Peter Mills Theater from 4:30-6:00pm. We shall be reading Georg Buchner's Danton's Death. Georg Buchner is considered by some to be the first modern playwright. Come enjoy and engage in his French Revolution drama! Viva la revolution!

Into the Woods (03/26-28)
Spotlight Musical Theatre Company is bringing Stephen Sondheim's vision of your favorite fairy tales to life in their spring show Into the Woods this weekend. All shows start at 7:30 in Peter Mills Theater. Student tickets are $5, adult tickets are $10. Come see Spotlight finish out their "musicals with prepositional phrases as titles" season!

Carbomb Crew (03/29)
Wouldn't "Carbomb Crew" be a great band name? Our first crew will be starting at noon next Sunday. We plan on getting a lot of work done on this day. All are welcome to come; cast is required to come. Remember, crew points help your eligibility for the Keenan-Lane Scholarship and Red Masquers Honorary Card!

Upcoming Information
You will be receiving a very important email soon concerning end-of-semester events and information. All of this will of course be available on the announcement board.

Revisions and Reminders

First Tuesdays Moved to 03/24/09
Due to a continuing string of conflicts, this month's First Tuesday play reading has been moved to Tuesday March 24th in Peter Mills Theater from 4:30-6:00pm. We shall be reading Georg Buchner's Danton's Death. Georg Buchner is considered by some to be the first modern playwright. Come enjoy and engage in his French Revolution drama! Viva la revolution!

One Acts Directors
If you are interested in directing for One Acts for Charity, you MUST email Katherine Flaherty at flahertyk@duq.edu TODAY! Go! Mach snell meinen Freunden!

Spotlight Light Board Operator
Spotlight is looking for a substitute light board operator for one or two nights of their upcoming Into the Woods. Unlike substitute high school teachers, substitute board operators are treated with the utmost respect and not responsible for taking attendance. Interested parties who did not abuse their temporary secondary instructors during their adolescence should contact Jake George at george569@duq.edu.

Actors for Film Project
AJ Minotti is looking for a few good Masquers to help out as actors with his Advanced Digital Video production class. Information is available here.

This LARGE Week in Masquerdom

Two Actors Needed Soon for Small Roles
Leah Cassella is looking for three bodies to fill walk-on roles in a St. Patrick's Day one-act as part of the Desmond Egan reading (exciting details below!). These two actors need to be available for Saturday-Monday rehearsals, but the times are very flexible. The performance is Tuesday at 7pm. If you are interested, contact Leah Cassella at cassellal1772@duq.edu.

Amish Monkeys Show (03/14/09)
This month the Amish Monkeys offer a new improv game or two, some favorite games, and at least one we haven't tried in a looooong time! The next performance of the Amish Monkeys, improvisational comedy troupe, is this Saturday, March 14. The troupe performs a series of outrageous sketches and games based on audience suggestion. Location is the Gemini Theater, part of the Factory, a building at 7501 Penn Ave. in Point Breeze (near the South Braddock Ave. intersection). Content is generally PG-13. For reservations, call the Gemini at (412)243-5201. Showtime is 8pm. Admission is $8--cash only, please.
Visit their REDESIGNED website at http://www.amishmonkeys.com

One Acts Directors (03/16/09)
If you are interested in directing for One Acts for Charity, you MUST email Katherine Flaherty at flahertyk@duq.edu before Monday March 16th. If you don't participate, then you hate charity.

Desmond Egan and Red Masquers Performances (03/17/09)
Come enjoy a poetry reading by Irish poet Desmond Egan and a performance of "Bedtime Story" by Sean O'Casey presented by the Red Masquers. It promises to be a perfect beginning to your St. Patrick's day celebration! Refreshments will be provided! (Not those kinds of St. Patrick's Day refreshments. Naughty, naughty, naughty!

In "Bedtime Story," John Jo Mulligan finds himself in a situation with which his pious conscience cannot cope: more or less against his will, he has spent a night with the cunning seductress Angela. Full of remorse, and dreading the ruin of his reputation, he tries to get rid of her, fearing that his pal Daniel or his landlady Miss Mossie might get to know.

First Tuesdays (03/17/09)
Due to spring break and other conflicts, this month's First Tuesday play reading has been moved to this Tuesday March 17th in Peter Mills Theater from 4:30-6:00pm. We shall be reading Georg Buchner's Danton's Death. Georg Buchner is considered by some to be the first modern playwright. Come enjoy and engage in his French Revolution drama! Viva la revolution!

Actors for Film Project (03/21/09)
Good day, Masquer folk. It's your old pal, AJ [secretary's note: this is Armand Minotti, Masquer alumnus for those of you who are sadly unfamiliar with AJ]. How would you like to be in an exciting movie film production? We're filming a short film for our Adv. Digital Video production class, and we need actors. I'm looking for 4 males and 2 females. Filming will take place on March 21 from 9am till whenever at the Beehive on the South Side [secretary's note: great place to get coffee]. The 22nd is open as a possible day of filming if we don't get everything done, but I don't see that happening (knock on wood).

If you're interested, please email me at ajguy711@gmail.com. I can email a script to you and let you know other details. And if you need a ride to the South Side on the day, that can be provided. Thanks in advance, everyone!
- AJ

Dr. Al Labriola
I must regretfully conclude this email with a message concerning Dr. Al Labriola. Dr. Labriola was a great friend of the Red Masquers and indeed all of Duquesne University. The following is the official statement from the university:
I regret to inform you that Dr. Al Labriola, Acting Dean of the McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts, has died. Our prayers are with Dr. Labriola, his wife Regina and his family, as well as his many friends in the College, University, and throughout academia. He was one of Duquesne's leading teachers and an internationally recognized scholar. We are indebted to him for his leadership in the College and his dedication to our students.

First Tuesday Reminder

February's First Tuesday Play Reading is today at 4:30 in Peter Mils Theater!

The Drama Program will hold its second cold play reading on Tuesday, Feb. 3 in the Peter Mills Theater (Rockwell Hall) from 4:30to 6:00 PM.

South African playwright Athol Fugard's My Children! My Africa! is set in the apartheid-era turmoil of the mid-1980s, it is the story of an unlikely friendship between a privileged young White woman, a brilliant Black student-activist, and the teacher who chooses them to train together for a national scholastic competition. It is a play of strong ideas, compelling characters and beautiful language. We will read this play as part of the play reading series' interest in the power of drama to engage the legitimate preoccupations and needs of the audience it serves.

All are invited to come and read and listen. Roles will be divided up, and we will take turns so that everyone who wishes will have a chance to read. This is an opportunity to develop your cold reading skills, to make the acquaintance of a wonderful play that you may not know, to hear the words spoken on the human voice . . . and to keep warm in this weather.

While it is expected that this cold play-reading series will be of special interest to drama and English majors, it is open to all members of the DU community.

This (Pretty Awesome) Week in Masquerdom

Hello all!
Most of you know that Simpleton is coming along swimmingly (island joke) and set to open on February 12. Here are some other announcements that are coming up this week.

First Tuesday 2!
The Drama Program will hold its second cold play reading on Tuesday, Feb. 3 in the Peter Mills Theater (Rockwell Hall) from 4:30to 6:00 PM.

South African playwright Athol Fugard's My Children! My Africa! is set in the apartheid-era turmoil of the mid-1980s, it is the story of an unlikely friendship between a privileged young White woman, a brilliant Black student-activist, and the teacher who chooses them to train together for a national scholastic competition. It is a play of strong ideas, compelling characters and beautiful language. We will read this play as part of the play reading series' interest in the power of drama to engage the legitimate preoccupations and needs of the audience it serves.

All are invited to come and read and listen. Roles will be divided up, and we will take turns so that everyone who wishes will have a chance to read. This is an opportunity to develop your cold reading skills, to make the acquaintance of a wonderful play that you may not know, to hear the words spoken on the human voice . . . and to keep warm in this weather.

While it is expected that this cold play-reading series will be of special interest to drama and English majors, it is open to all members of the DU community.

Weekend Crews
Crews for lighting and finishing work will be this Saturday and Sunday starting at noon and ending at Super Bowl. Listen, if you think a half dozen PARcans are high on Sunday's priority list, you are sadly mistaken.

Ushers, Yeah!
House Chair Gail Hofbauer is still looking for some ushers to...ush. Contact her at hofbauerg@duq.edu.

Future Tenant Space Available
Monsieur Eric Frankenberg recently passed along this notice about the Future Tenant performance space in the Cultural District becoming available for student groups.
"Got a band? A solo show? A circus act? You name it, we want it."
Hear that? They want you. They want you so bad. And you take home part of your profits.
http://www.futuretenant.org/programs_trespass.html

Upcoming Events Start Tuesday

"First Tuesdays"
Drama Program to begin a series of cold-readings of plays.

The Drama Program announces the beginning of "First Tuesdays," a series
of cold play readings. This is expected to be of special interest to
theatre majors and to English majors, but all members of the Duquesne
University community are invited to come and participate.

On Tuesday Jan.13 from 4:30 to 6:00 PM in the Peter Mills Theater, Rockwell Hall
you are invited to read and discuss Peter Weiss' play "The Persecution
and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the
Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade,"
otherwise known as "Marat/Sade."

Come . . . it will be fun. It's a marvellous, exciting play. For you
actors, it's an opportunity to work at the cold reading skill which we
need to cultivate. See you there.

Encore Auditions
If you enjoy singing and dancing, come audition for ENCORE SHOW CHOIR!

Auditions are Tuesday, January 13th @ 6pm. Please prepare up to 32 bars of a song of your choice. Also wear something you can dance in because you will be learning a short routine in small groups.

Encore rehearses Tuesdays and Thursdays 5:45-7:15. We preform about 5 times a semester for events such as Dukes for CFF, ISO Night, St. Barnabus Nursing Home, Canteburry Nursing Home, Breakfast with Santa, Homecoming/Autumnfest, Freshman Parent Weekend, and our own Friends and Family Night!

Email encoreshowchoir@gmail.com if you have any questions!

Spotlight Auditions

Spotlight Musical Theater Company's Into the Woods

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 beginning at 7:30pm
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 beginning at 7:30pm

Sign up for an audition time on the Spotlight Office Door (Room 325 Union). You will also learn more details about your audition location and requirements.

See you there!