Little Theatre Group offers new play, Monday night workshops

The Little Theatre group has been enjoying a brief respite since the closing night of its very popular evening of short plays, “My Life as a Crazy Quilt.” “Historically, August and September are slow months for us, so we use the time to consolidate the upcoming season, which is looking very exciting,” said Little Theatre Group President Annette Hallett.

The group has always held an open house on the first Monday of the month, but for the 2012/2013 season the group plans to hold special events every Monday evening. Designated as LTG Mondays, these events will include scene study, improv group sessions and the Monday night showcase – an expanded version of the open house event in which an actor or a writer’s work will be featured.

“We want to encourage our members to practice their skills as actors and performers even when they are not cast in a specific production,” Hallett said. “It’s not so easy to learn how to go about creating a character, to learn how to tell its story, when you have a director moving you around the stage like a walking prop!”

Our Monday nights are designed to provide a safe environment in which to explore the art of acting with friends and mentors, Hallett explained. Anyone wishing to know more about these events should visit the LTG website www.littletheatregroup.org or check them out on Facebook; http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Little-Theatre-Group-of-Costa-Rica/107944405912643

The next production, “Looking for the Pony” by Andrea Lepcio, is scheduled to open Friday Oct. 12. The play was first presented in a “Rolling World Premiere” off-Broadway at Vital Theatre Company in New York City in 2009. Since then, it has been performed across the United States, always receiving excellent reviews.

Described by reviewer Martin Denton as a “wise, gorgeous and moving play,” it tells the story of two smart, loving women and the (sometimes metaphorical) places they go during three impossible years in which one of them battles cancer, while the other shifts from a well-paying career in finance to her true vocation as a writer.

It is a tale of two life journeys, characterized by hope and fear, pain and passion. This production, directed by Annette Hallett, will showcase the talents of two young women, Silvia Schneegans and Bethany Skipper, as Eloise and Bethany. Everyone else in “Looking for the Pony” – doctors, nurses, cancer patients, rabbis, etc. – will be portrayed by a small team of dedicated actors who will change costume and personality throughout the play, with remarkable agility.

Come to this play prepared to laugh and to maybe cry a little. Either way, do not forget your tissues. Reservations can be made on the website www.littletheatregroup.org or by phone at 8858-1446 from Oct. 1.

Details of these and all our upcoming events can be viewed on our website www.littletheatregroup.org, or on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Little-Theatre-Group-of-Costa-Rica/107944405912643.