Lip Dub

I thought some of you might get a kick out of this video which has nothing to do with Imagination Theater, but was certainly filled with lots of imagination and creativity. If you have time check out how they did it and why they did it. Congratulations to those who are graduating soon!

Anne Frank Cast

Come out to support the Anne Frank cast this July. Their cast biographies will be posted in June.

Anne Frank
Sarah Erickson

Mr. Otto Frank
Duane Maracin

Mrs. Edith Frank
Lori Whittle

Margot Frank
Angela Verzello

Mr. Van Daan
Joe Grady

Mrs. Van Daan
Kathleen Mini

Peter Van Daan
Garrett Hernandez

Dr. Dussel
Paul Sobelman

Miep Gies
Kristine Miranda

Mr. Kraler
Bob Steele


Director - Peter Wolfe
Asst. Director - Elizabeth Zangari
Set Designer - Diana Erickson

Summer Enrichment - The Diary of Anne Frank

Read Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl. Compare Anne’s diary describing life in the hiding place with the play adapted from this work. Then write another scene for inclusion in the play. Base your scene on an event that Anne describes and dialogue that she records, if possible.

Conduct research on World War II. Choose any aspect that relates to The Diary of Anne Frank, such as the deportation of Amsterdam’s Jews, the German conquest of Holland, the Allied invasion of the European continent, or the concentration camps.

Imagine that you were directing a stage production of the play. Describe your vision of the production. What would the attic look like? What kinds of mannerisms would define the characters? Describe the types of actors you would want to play Anne and Mr. Frank.

Create an illustration that shows the world as Anne might have seen it while she was in hiding. Illustrations may focus on the attic or anything that she learns about events in the outside world.

Write a poem that Anne might have written about life in the concentration camp.

Conduct research to find out how critics responded to The Diary of Anne Frank when it first appeared on stage in 1955, as well as how critics responded to the revamped version of the play, which was staged in 1997. How have attitudes about the play changed over the decades? How do you explain these changes?

Find out more about Anne Frank. Write a biographical essay about her, including information about how her diary has influenced its worldwide readership.

Theater Box Closes for Fair, but Online Ticketing 24/7

The box office will be closing for the fair this Tuesday (we'll still check the phone), but your best bet to reach us is by email at ITPlacerville@yahoo.com

Also, tickets for our shows can be purchased at www.it-tickets.org.

The IT! Insider looks forward to seeing you at the end of June!

Anne Frank Reserved Seating

The IT! Insider just blocked seats this morning because of obstructed views for The Diary of Anne Frank. When selecting seats, stick toward the very center or house right--which is the right side of the theater as you face toward the stage.

Another call for volunteers!

IT! is looking for volunteers for our 3rd Annual Live and Silent auction, An Affair to Remember. This time, Imagination Theater! is going back to the Fabulous 50s for our FUNdraiser. Find those saddle shoes! Tickets can now be purchased online (for $20. . .what a deal!) The FUNdraiser is Friday, August 20 at 6:00 p.m.

IT! is looking for table hosts, runners, those to help decorate, serve drinks, as well as set up and clean up. If you are interested in being on the committee and just want to learn more, please contact the theater at 530-642-0404. Also, if you are a business or have some thing or some service to donate, please let us know as well. All donated items must be in to the theater by July 1.

The gift of a diary. . .

Since I read Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl for the first time as a schoolgirl, I’ve been inspired by the life and writings of the girl who was my earliest teacher on the atrocities of the Holocaust. While a student in France during college, I was fortunate enough to travel to Amsterdam and visit the Anne Frank House Museum. I remember touring the exhibit with tears in my eyes.

Anne’s words probably inspired many of us to put pen to paper and document our days. I like to think that if she had survived the war and was living today, she likely would have been a blogger!

This year, my Adam read the diary for the first time. His take on the musings of a girl his age was the source of many mother son conversations this spring, as he started to keep his own journal. This week, it was announced that in commemoration of what would have been her 80th birthday, the entire collection of Anne’s original writings will now be on rotating display in the museum that was once her “Secret Annexe”.

With summer upon us, it’s a great time to pick up Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl and share it with our older children. It’s also the perfect time to give them the gift of their own diary or journal and to encourage them to share what’s on their mind. Anne once wrote, “And therefore I am grateful to God for giving me this gift, this possibility of developing myself and of writing, of expressing all that is in me.” Her gift continues to inspire others.

--written by blogger, Lisa Hendey (June 2009)

Imagination Theater and the El Dorado Arts Council (EDAC) will host a preview of selected scenes, Friday, June 11 at the EDAC Art Space at 459 Main Street, Placerville. In addition, Debora Larry-Kearney will lead a journaling workshop on Saturday, July 10 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the EDAC Art Space. Participants can then see the show that afternoon. Limited space is available for the journaling workshop. Please contact them at 530-295-3496.

Diary of Anne Frank - July 9 -24, 2010

Imagination Theater presents the Tony Award winning show, The Diary of Anne Frank July 9-July 24, 2010.

This is the true story of a young Jewish girl, Anne Frank who kept a diary during World War II. As Jews in German-occupied Holland, Anne and her family feared for their lives. For two years, beginning in 1942, Anne, her family, and others hide in a secret attic-annex above a warehouse to avoid capture and deportation to a Nazi concentration camp. The annex was discovered by the Nazi authorities in 1944 and Anne's family and friends were shipped to concentration camps. Anne and her sister perished in Bergen-Belsen. The only survivor of the group, Anne's father Otto, survived and later published his daughter's diary in 1948.

Anne could never have imagined the impact her words would have on generations of readers. More than sixteen million copies of her diary have been sold worldwide, and it remains the most read primary account of the Holocaust. On July 15, 1944, Anne wrote, ‘‘I feel the suffering of millions.'' Anne had no idea that her story would become the unlikely testament of those millions.

Directed by Peter Wolfe and produced by Lanny Langston, evening performances are at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday matinees are at 2:00 p.m. All seats are $10.00. Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.it-tickets.org/ or contacting the box office at (530)642-0404.

Dracula Tickets Now Available

Tickets are now available for Imagination Theater! and Porter Media Group’s multi media, haunting tale, Dracula.

Richard Sharp’s version of Bram Stoker’s Dracula is brought to life with film footage intertwined with the stage play for a visual feast. The high definition digital process was shot in several locations, the historical Central Pacific Railroad Passenger Station in Old Town Sacramento, the Preston School of Industry (also known as The Castle) in Ione, a private residence in Cedar Grove, and a private ranch in Pleasant Valley. The total amount of film time is about 25 minutes and is laced throughout the play carefully to enhance the story and give the audience a new look at an old tale. The show is two hours with NO intermission and is rated PG 13+. All tickets are $15 and can be purchased here.

Quilters Audition Information

Imagination Theater

(in association with Ensemble Theatre Company)

announce auditions for

Quilters
October 23 and 24, 2010

A mother and her six daughters portray this popular and moving comedic/dramatic story of pioneer life taken from the handwritten diaries of women traveling westward in covered wagon days. The scenes capture the beauty, terror and joy, the harsh challenges and heartfelt rewards of frontier life. Scenes depict the lot of women on the frontier: girlhood, marriage, childbirth, parties, twisters, fire, illness and death. Along the way there is love, warmth and lively humor. The music and dances have a country or folk flavor. This musical has been called “a theatrical masterstoke which will linger in the mind and memory long after the house lights have dimmed.”

Audition Date: Saturday October 23rd, 2010 12:00 noon – 4:00 pm.
Plan on 60 to 90 minute audition from the time you arrive.
Auditioners will be seen in the order in which they arrive.

Callbacks: Sunday October 24th, 2010 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Plan on 2 to 3 hours for callbacks on Sunday. (Bring calendars to go over rehearsal schedule)

Rehearsal Dates:
Jan 11 – 26 (Tuesday, Wednesday 6:45 – 9:00 vocals/dance)
February 1 – 28 (Tues, Wed, Thurs, one Sat. 6:45 – 9:00 vocals/dance/blocking)
March (Mon – Thurs, two Sat 6:30 – 9:30 blocking/run thrus/dress)

Show Dates: March 25 – April 17, 2011

Bring a resume and mug/head shot and wear comfortable clothing. Be prepared to sing a short folk song or a hymn (no broadway, jazz or pop). Bring sheet music in a key that works for you.

Roles: Six daughters between 17 and 40ish will be cast. All ages welcome.

This being an ensemble, all daughters and the mother have equal parts and appear in 12 – 14 of the 16 scenes. The stage will be “in the round”. The more individual and vivid each daughter is the better. True, legitimate voices are required. Very little vibrato works best. Harmonies are rich and dances will be lively. Belt voices not necessary, but sufficient vocal power, confidence and clarity a must. The mother (Sarah – 60’s) has been pre-cast.

Director: Chrissie Addison; foothillsinger@comcast.net (530) 626-4464
Assistant Director: Rick Gaylord
Musical/Band Directors: Dale Wallerstein and Jeri Myers
Choreographers: Nolan T’Sani and LeeAnn Flickenger-Hamblen

How to Order Tickets Online

Tickets are now available for The Diary of Anne Frank (coming in July) and Bram Stoker's Dracula (a multi-media production coming to IT! in October). To puchase your tickets online, please follow these steps:

BIG HINT: You can look at the seating chart, but can't order tickets if you aren't logged in!

1- Go to http://www.it-tickets.org/ (our ticketing website)
2- LOG IN (create account first if you don’t have an account)
3- Click Anne Frank or Dracula image or that show's name
4- Select show date
5- Select seats (they will be blue until purchased or removed from cart)
6- Click on “View cart”
7- Click “Go to Check Out”
8- Click “Continue”
9- Click "pay with PayPal" button and pay for the tickets
10- Don’t forget to print your receipt. This is your ticket to the show! (no tickets are mailed!)

If you have any questions, we'd be happy to walk through the process with you.

Miep Gies

I just finished reading Anne Frank, Remembered The Story of the Woman Who Helped to HIde the Frank Family by Miep Gies. I could not put the book down from when I picked it up this morning. It certainly gives the reader a personal account of how the war impacted those in Holland and the people who went into hiding.

Ms. Gies passed away this past January, at 100 years old.

Here is an interview with her answering questions about her life asked by schoolchildren in 1997.

Bye Bye Birdie at El Dorado High School

Performance dates: April 29, 30, May 1, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 8pm

An updated Bye Bye Birdie revival has opened on Broadway and Studio 81 at El Dorado High School has secured the rights to this new version to be performed outdoors at the Carl Borelli Amphitheater. Purchase tickets online here.

Bye Bye Birdie tells the story of a rock-musical star in the 1960s who gets drafted into the army and decides to sing a song to one lucky girl before going off to serve his country. With hit songs like "Put On A Happy Face," this beloved musical will add an interesting twist to the current rock musicals on Broadway.