The Update | Selah Offers Timely Drama; Summer Classes at Playhouse; Kent Trumbull Unveils Season

STRUTHERS, Ohio – Selah Dessert Theater will present “A Walk in the Woods,” a tense drama with timely appeal. The story goes behind the scenes of negotiations between two countries that in a heated military standoff.

Performances will be at 8 p.m. May 12-14 and 20-21 in the theater space on the second floor of Selah Restaurant,130 S. Bridge St.

Nominated for both a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, the play by Lee Blessing was inspired by a true event that happened during the Cold War.

The story follows two negotiators trying to work out an arms reduction plan between Russia and the United States.

After long hours of talks, Russian Andrey Botvinnik suggests he and his American counterpart, Joan Honeyman, take a break go for a walk in the woods in Geneva, Switzerland.

The two learn about each other and eventually find mutual respect and friendship.
With war raging in Ukraine, the play offers a ray of hope that people from countries with animosity toward each other can talk through their differences, said Mary Ruth Lynn, director.

Medford Mashburn takes on the role of Andrey Botvinnik, while Molly Galano plays Joan Honeyman.

Tickets are $19.50 and include dessert and coffee at intermission. For reservations, go to SelahRestaurant.com.

The theater is accessible by stairs only. Assistive listening devices are available. All patrons are required to show proof of vaccination at the door.

Kent Trumbull Theatre Unveils 2022-23 Season

WARREN, Ohio – Kent Trumbull Theatre’s 2022-23 season will include the Mahoning Valley premiere of two offbeat plays and the Young Playwrights Festival, which will feature works written by local high school students.

Go to kent.edu/trumbull/theatre for ticket information. Here is the schedule:

“The Impracticality of Modern Day Mastodons” by Rachel Teagle, Oct. 21-23, 28-30: In this unusual comedy, all childhood dreams have suddenly come true, and the world is full of astronauts, ballerinas, cowboys and princesses.

It’s a brave and glorious new world for everyone except Jess, who wanted to be a mastodon when she grew up.

With the help of her friendly vocational adviser and her super-spy boyfriend, Jess embarks on a journey to find her place in the world and discover why it seems to be unraveling.

“Die Mommie Die!” by Charles Busch, March 3-5, 10-12: This comic melodrama evokes the 1960s “Grande Dame Guignol” movie thrillers that featured such aging cinematic icons as Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Lana Turner and Susan Hayward.

 Ex-pop singer Angela Andrews is trapped in a hateful marriage with film producer Sol Sussman. Desperate to find happiness with her younger lover, an out-of-work TV actor named Tony Parker, Angela murders her husband with the aid of a poisoned suppository.

In a plot that reflects Greek tragedy as well as Hollywood kitsch, Angela’s Elektra-like daughter Edith convinces Angela’s emotionally disturbed son Lance that they must avenge their father’s death by killing their mother.

Lance, demanding proof of Angela’s crime, slips some LSD into her after-dinner coffee. Angela is plunged into a wild acid trip that reveals that she killed not only the children’s father but also their mother; she isn’t their mother at all, but rather their Aunt Barbara.

A surprising twist ending has all of the Sussman family’s dirty laundry aired out once and for all.

Young Playwrights Festival by various authors, April 21-23, 28-30: The theater will stage the results of its annual playwriting competition for high school juniors and seniors from Trumbull and neighboring counties. 

The theater will bring back its Sips & Scripts program in collaboration with Modern Methods Brewing Company.  Preliminary reading dates are: Sept. 7, Oct. 5, Nov. 2, Dec. 7, Jan. 18, Feb. 1, March 8 and April 5. Playwrights interested in submitting a script can do so here: https://forms.gle/HoSe3jmpvGNPrnza8.  The deadline is June 15.

Summer Intensives at Playhouse

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Youngstown Playhouse will present a series of summer theater intensives and masterclasses at its theater on Glenwood Avenue. For information on pricing, times and enrollment, go to  youngstownplayhouse.org/classes-workshops or call 330 788 8739. Enrollment will open on May 20 at 10 a.m.

The classes being offered are:

● Reader’s Theatre, June 13-17, for ages 5-8. Students will “perform” by reading scripts created from grade-level books and stories then act them out with costumes and quirky characters.

● Stage Performance Act I, June 13-17, for 9 to 12. Students will rehearse and perform scenes from famous plays like “The 39 Steps” and “Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

● Stage Performance Act II, June 13-17, for ages 13 to 17. Students will rehearse and perform scenes and monologues from famous plays like “The Play That

Goes Wrong” and “Macbeth.”

● Please Clap: Kids Comedy Club, June 20-24, for ages 9-12. Students will create silly sketches and learn to write their own jokes.

● Please Clap: Kids Comedy Club, June 20-24, for ages 13-17. Learn what it takes to get a laugh from the audience by learning the art of comedy through writing and performing your own jokes and silly sketches.

● Broadway Bootcamp, June 27-July 1, for ages 9-12. Students will train for one week to become triple-threat performers in singing, dancing and acting with songs from the musical “All Shook Up.”

● Masterclass: Music Theory: How to Read Music, June 12, for students 18 and up. Strengthen your singing skills by better understanding music theory, how to read rhythm, and feel more confident sight reading music.

● Masterclass: Stand Up Comedy: Write Your Own Jokes, August 7, for students 21 and up. Learn the science of stand up, how to write a punchline, and not get punched because of a punchline.

Taste of the Faiths at St. Charles

BOARDMAN, Ohio – The Mahoning Valley Association of Churches will present Taste of the Faiths on Thursday, May 19, at 5:30 p.m. at St. Charles Parish Hall.

The event will feature food and beverages provided by local, with musical entertainment and a pick-a-prize raffle. Proceeds support the work of MVAC. Admission is $15 per person. Tickets can be purchased at the door. For information, call 330 788 5914, or email execdirectormvac@gmail.com.

Pictured at top: Medford Mashburn and Molly Galano in a scene from Selah Dessert Theater’s “A Walk in the Woods.”

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