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African Violet Society To Meet November 18
SCOTCH PLAINS – The Union County Chapter of the African Violet Society will meet next Thursday, November 18, at 1 p. m. in the Scotch Plains Library in Scotch Plains.
The program will be “Growing From Seed.” The public is welcome to attend.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
To Begin on November 18 At Westfield High School
PLEASANT DREAM… The fall production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Westfield High School will be held from Thursday, November 18, to Saturday, November 20. Pictured left to right, are: front row, Jack Gordon and Yari Sigal; center, Caroline Moore; back row, J. D. Hyman, Sara Mirsky and Rose Hely. Tickets are $6 and may be purchased from cast members, in advance by calling (908) 7894549.
WESTFIELD – Westfield High School’s (WHS) fall production, A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, will begin a threeday run on Thursday, November 18, at 3: 30 p. m. in the Westfield High School auditorium. Other productions will be held on Friday and Saturday, November 19 and 20, at 8 p. m.
A modern, MTVstyle of staging, song and dance will be applied to the classic production.
Avon Chandler, a 1991 WHS graduate and professional actor choreographed the dance numbers. Music used in the performance comes from modern sing ers such as Ricky Martin, Janet
Jackson, Britney Spears and The Backstreet Boys.
Set in the upper West Side, lower East Side and midtown New York City, the love story of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is also a comedy of mistaken love and a search for love.
The cast includes Yari Sigal as Theseus, Rosy Hely as Hippolyta, Sara Mirsky as Egeus, Caroline Moore as Hermia, Meghan Steinbrecker as Helena, J. D. Hyman as Demetrius, Jack Gordon as Lysander and Adam Sigal as Philostrate.
The cast also features Ian Federgreen as Quince, Sam Fleder as Bottom, John Toriello as Flute, Kevin Buckland as Starveling, Steven Krakauer as Snout, Teddy Alvaro as Snug, Gavin Shulman as Puck, Alex Dupre as Oberon and Lyndsay Ruotolo as Titania.
Titania’s Fairies, who are lead dancers, include Dania Aguero, Erica Cenci, Kathryn Logan, Ginny Paynter, Marian Pomann and Megan Rodd.
Groupie dancers include Margaret Brautigam, Scott Brewster, Dave Connor, Chris Freisen, Shana Golembo, Rachel Klausner, Josh Lieberman, Ryan Maines, Julianne Mandrillo, Cara Matossian, Leanne Meriton, Katie Miller, Tyler Patla, Trevor Putnaky, Meryl Reichbach, Joanna Todaro and Dara Weinberg.
Stage managers for A Midsummer Night’s Dream include Sara Laskow and Bridget Fitzgerald.
Returning after a yearlong sabbatical, Joseph Nierle, WHS Drama Teacher and Production Director, selected A Midsummer Night’s Dream to be creative and challenging vehicle for this veteran cast.
“A comedy was selected because so many of the cast have a great sense of humor and comedic timing,” Mr. Nierle noted. “It is set in present day so we could interpret the play more freely and be able to use today’s music.”
Tickets are $6 and may be purchased from any of the cast members. Tickets may also be reserved by calling (908) 7894549 or at the door on the evening of the performance.
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FANWOOD – The conclusion of KidstArt, a new eightweek program at the Fanwood Memorial Library, will be celebrate on Saturday, November 20, with an art show reception for the kindergarten artists, their families and guests.
The goal of the new program, which was developed by art therapist Vicki Annese, encourages the development of a strong selfconcept and the love of literature in young children, through the use of selected children’s books and art projects.
The KidstArt book list includes over 40 books that were chosen to represent the topics of individuality, selfesteem, family, friendship and emotions. Each week, the children heard one or two of the books and participated in an art project inspired from the book. The project would be based on the theme, a character or illustrations in the literature.
After reading “The Straight Line Wonder” by Mem Fox, children created their own lines on paper with oil pastels and then painted with a watercolor wash.
In the story, “Tacky the Penguin,” by Helen Lester, children crafted penguins to represent the character of “Tacky,” and later created a piece to contribute to the environment.
“Art can be a wonderful tool for encouraging individuality and increasing selfesteem, especially when children are given opportunities to make their own decisions, come up with their own ideas and use their own style,” stated Mrs. Annese.
KidstArt was made possible in part by a 1999 HEART Grant from the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Nicholas P. Scutari, Chairman. The grant also made possible the purchase of several books from the program, which will be permanently available at the Fanwood Library.
The public is invited to view the children’s art show, including the line paintings and Tacky the Penguin display, at the Fanwood Library through Saturday, December 4.
For more information, or to find out about future children’s programs, please call the library at (908) 3224377.
POSING WITH PENGUINS… Inspired by a book, “Tacky the Penguin” by Helen Lester, students created “Tacky” penguins and learned that the character of “Tacky” has his own unique style. Pictured, left to right, are: Adam Carabba, Erin Pierce, Daniel Carabba, Joshua Blackwood and Mariel Mital.
FANWOOD — The second reading in the 19992000 series of the Carriage House Poetry Readings will be held on Thursday, November 18, at 8 p. m. at the Patricia M. Kuran Cultural Arts Center, 129 Watson Road, Fanwood.
According to Adele Kenny, Cultural Arts Director, the Carriage House Series continues to bring the finest contemporary American poets into Union County, presented in Fanwood’s historic Carriage House, a 19th century structure currently under restoration.
The poetry series is part of Fanwood’s comprehensive cultural arts program funded by a HEART Grant from the Union County Board.
The featured readers will be nationally acclaimed poets BJ Ward and Cat Doty.
Mr. Ward, who read to a capacity crowd in last season’s series, is the recipient of Poetry Fellowships from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and the Alliance for Arts Education in New Jersey.
He is widely published in leading literary journals and is the author of two major collections of poetry. He teaches at Warren County Community College, serves as poetry instructor at
Middlesex County College and works in the WritersintheSchools Program.
Ms. Doty, a writer and cartoonist, is the winner of various poetry awards and has received an Academy of American Poets Prize and fellowships from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and the New York Foundation for the Arts.
A longtime poetintheschools, she has been widely published in a range of journals and periodicals, and a recent collection was published earlier this year.
An open reading will follow the featured readers’ performances. Admission is free.
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