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When college professor Rebecca's husband is suddenly killed in an accident, everyone pitches in to help. But her crystal-wearing best friend, brittle younger sister and high-powered banking executive ex-stepmother all have very different ideas about what's best for her. It takes a silent but sexy house painter to solve the conflicts and teach them that laughter is the best medicine. Ellen Simon (daughter of playwright Neil Simon) based her play loosely on the experience of losing her own husband.
Dinah Watts (who has directed short plays for the New Ideas Festival and performed in productions including Tremblay's The Real World? and Pinter's Ashes to Ashes) makes her mainstage directing debut with Moonlight & Valentino. “The play appealed to me immediately because it is true,” she says. “Not only is it based on a real-life event, but the language and situations and the struggles these women go through are true. Many of us spend an awful lot of time and energy struggling against the wrong things. We work very hard to resist doing the very things we need to do to release ourselves and soar! This play is about finding some of those blocks and ties and ripping them away. It's a release - a lesson in pushing through tragedy to the loveliness beyond.”
“I have been very fortunate in my relationship with Alumnae Theatre,” she continues. “I've played lots of juicy roles and worked with many wonderful directors here, including Diana Kolpak, Margaret Gobie, Jane Carnwath, David Savoy and Barbara Larose. Now I am stealing without shame, and with plenty of gratitude to them and many other directors I've worked with before.”
Alumnae Theatre's production of Moonlight & Valentino stars Natalie Forcier as Lucy (the sister), Andy Fraser as Alberta (the stepmother), Andrea Irwin as Sylvie (the best friend), Chris Lang as Valentino (the painter), and Rachel Wilson as Rebecca.
Liz McDonnell produces; Margot Devlin is the stage manager. Set design is by Yulia Shtern, lighting by Paul Hardy, sound by Shaun Devlin and costumes by Mary Claire Thompson.
“We each get pushed off little cliffs every day.” - ALBERTA
“Does anyone mind if I smoke while were falling?” - LUCY
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| Performance Dates | April 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29, 30, May 4, 5, 6, 2006 |
| Performance Times | Thursday - Saturday at 8 pm Sunday matinees at 2 pm |
| Location | Alumnae Theatre 70 Berkeley Street at Adelaide, Toronto |
| Ticket Prices | Thursdays: 2 for 1 • Friday & Sat: $18 Sundays: PWYC |
| Reservations | Box Office: 416-364-4170 or email reservations@alumnaetheatre.com |
NATALIE FORCIER
(Lucy)
Natalie started acting in Dinner Theatre productions in her home town of Hinton, Alberta. A graduate of Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts, her home and career is taking root in Toronto. Past credits include the roles of Dabby Bryant in Our Country's Good, Diana Barry in Anne of Green Gables, musical theatre for young audiences and a touch of work in television and independent film. She is overwhelmed with joy to be working with such a talented cast and crew on such a great script.
ANDY FRASER
(Alberta)
After the distinct pleasure of sharing the stage with Dinah Watts in the Alumnae production of The Real World? Andy is thrilled to be directed by Dinah in Moonlight and Valentino. Previous Alumnae Theatre credits include Criminal Genius, Absurd Person Singular, Woman in Mind and The Real Thing. Other favourites outside of the Alumnae walls include The Uninvited Guest (also produced); Office Hours; Semi-Private ; Rumors; I Hate Hamlet; and Death Defying Acts. Andy had absolutely nothing to do with Cinderella Man, Slings & Arrows, This is Wonderland or any of the other great stuff that has been filmed here in the last few years. She is hoping to rectify this blatant lack of participation in Toronto productions ASAP. Watch for her in Global Televisions docudrama about the Final 24 hours in the life of Sid Vicious.
ANDREA IRWIN
(Sylvie)
This is Andrea's firstshow with Alumnae Theatre. After playing in several recent productions for young audiences, she is very pleased to be performing for grown-ups. For their unwavering support and belief in me, much love and thanks to the Irwins, the Browns and especially my husband, Patrick. Andrea is a graduate of Queen's University and George Brown Theatre School.
CHRIS LANG
(Valentino)
An aspiring new actor, Chris is Montreal-born, with Vanier theatre training and numerous classes from Equity Showcase Theatre under his belt. He was recently seen in one of Alumnaes New Ideas Festival plays, The Girls Do Brunch; on an episode of The Morgan Waters Show on CBC-TV, and heard in From The Beyond on CBC Radio. Contact Chris at y_cwlang@yahoo.com.
RACHEL WILSON*
(Rebecca)
Alumnae Theatre's Moonlight and Valentino marks Rachel's return to the stage after having divided her time between Los Angeles, Toronto and Vancouver. She has appeared in such films as The Glass House and Mystery, Alaska and in lead roles in hit TV series such as Gideon's Crossing for ABC and Showcase's Show Me Yours. Rachel also recently completed work on the independent film Hooked on Speedman. A stage actor since the age of nine and a student at U of T's University College Drama Program, Rachel's current incarnation of Rebecca adds itself to a long list of memorable stage performances including Gila in Harold Pinter's One for the Road, Lyalya in Dear Elena and Lucifer in The Devil Plays. She is delighted to once again be performing in front of a live audience.
*Appears with the permission of the Canadian Actors Equity Association.
ELLEN SIMON
(Playwright)
Born in New York, 1957; daughter of playwright Neil Simon. Moonlight And Valentino is apparently her only stage play, and is loosely based on the experience of losing her own husband. She adapted it into a screenplay - the resulting 1995 movie starred Elizabeth Perkins, Whoopi Goldberg, Kathleen Turner, Gwyneth Paltrow, and rocker Jon Bon Jovi in his acting debut. “Poetically poignant and fall-down funny”, raved The Hollywood Reporter. The character of Alberta the stepmother is likely modeled on actress Marsha Mason, who was married to Neil Simon (1973 - 1981). Ellen Simon's other screenplay credits include the George Clooney/Michelle Pfeiffer comedy One Fine Day (1996), and co-writer on Nora Ephron's big-screen remake of the 1960s TV series Bewitched (2003). Moonlight And Valentino (the play) had its pre-Broadway world premiere in 1989 as part of Duke University's prestigious Theater Previews program in North Carolina.
DINAH WATTS
(Director)
Past directing credits include two New Ideas: As I The Shards Examine by Chris Wind and Drew Carnwath's La Chance. Dinah has also acted in several Alumnae productions over the years including Cloud 9, On the Verge, The Rivals, The Sea, Heretics, The Real World? and most recently, Harold Pinter's Ashes to Ashes. Other acting ventures include Audience/Unveiling/Protest (The Co.); Ines de Castro (Whetstone Productions at the Tarragon); Sparta (SummerWorks); Babes not Bombs, the Lysistrata Project (Belltower Productions at Lula Lounge); Titus Andronicus and King John (Shakespeare in the Rough); Romeo and Juliet (CanStage Dream in High Park); The Case of the Wandering Corpse (Edinburgh Festival, Solar Stage); The American Dream, The Revengers Tragedy and Forensic Tables (Fringe of Toronto).
Dinah is very grateful to the Alumnae Theatre for giving her this opportunity to make her main-stage directing debut with Moonlight and Valentino.
MARGOT DEVLIN
(Stage Manager)
Recent highlights include stage managing Homeward Bound and She Stoops to Conquer (Alumnae Theatre), Little Shop of Horrors (Fallen Rock Productions), Goodnight Disgrace (Postscript Productions), The Real World? (Alumnae Theatre); assistant stage managing The Two Gentlemen of Verona (Shakespeare in the Rough), Platinum Travel Club (By the Word and Theatre Passe Muraille co-production), After the Fall (Equity Showcase), A Lie of the Mind (Alumnae Theatre) and production assistant on Urinetown (CanStage).
SHAUN DEVLIN
(Sound Designer)
Shaun was very pleased when his wife Margot volunteered him for this assignment. His previous experiences at Alumnae Theatre have included sound design (for Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?) sound operator (The Real World?), stage crew (Absurd Person Singular) and actor (The Death of Honour). Shaun is happy to be working with the talented cast and crew of Moonlight and Valentino. When he's not practicing law (until he gets it right) or hiding out at the theatre, Shaun plays bass for The Country Friends. They will be performing at Roy Thomson Hall at the Royal Bank Jubilee in the summer.
PAUL HARDY
(Lighting Designer)
Paul has designed lighting for Lovesick Productions' Hank Williams: The Show He Never Gave, Toronto Masque Theatres' Masques for a Reaney Day, Praxis Theatre's Eugene and Steel, Gizmette for Theatreworks, Portrait for Allegoria Productions, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, A Lie of the Mind, The Real World? Amy's View and Collected Stories for Alumnae Theatre. Paul has also been Technical Director of the Alumnae Theatre's New Ideas Festival for the past four seasons, and directed Sam Shepard's A Lie of the Mind for Alumnae's 2003/2004 season. Acting credits include She Stoops to Conquer and Criminal Hearts at Alumnae Theatre; Macbeth (Classical Theatre Project), Showdown/How Can You Tell (Mixed Co.), A Midsummer's Night Dream (Allegoria Productions), and Marvin's Room and 1949 for Amicus Productions.
LIZ McDONNELL
(Producer)
Liz helped out with the New Ideas Festival in 2002, and makes her debut as producer on Moonlight & Valentino. Her education includes an undergraduate degree in Drama from the University of Toronto, where she studied both acting and theory. Amongst her other varied pursuits in the publishing world, Liz hopes to further pursue increased activity with Alumnae Theatre.
YULIA SHTERN
(Set Designer)
Moonlight and Valentino is the third production Yulia has designed for Alumnae Theatre this season. It has been a great year, and she is pleased that many of her recent creative projects involved Alumnae or at least the Alumnae stage! Yulia would like to take this opportunity and extend a very special thank you to Michael Spence and his magical carpentry crew, as well as to her ever hard-working assistant Emily - it would have not been possible without you!
MARY CLAIRE (MC) THOMPSON
(Costume Designer)
MC, a Beach resident, has been actively involved in the Toronto theatre scene for what seems like decades - and loving it! She's been a board member of Cabbagetown Theatre Company (CTC) for over ten years, and has performed in over 35 comedies, dramas and musicals with groups such as CTC, Alumnae, On Kew, Nags Players, Scarborough Choral Society, to name but a few. MC has found herself taking on the role of costume designer for most shows she's been involved with, although now she will actually get the billing! MC has written and directed six short plays and hosts a monthly radio program on CKLN 88.1 FM (Stage Left). She is actively involved in doing/seeing improv (at Bad Dog Theatre on the Danforth).
ALUMNAE THEATRE COMPANY
70 Berkeley Street
Toronto, Ontario • M5A 2W6
Phone: 416-364-4170
Email: contactus@alumnaetheatre.com
