News

Ridgefield Theater Barn Receives 2013 Best of Ridgefield Award

U.S. Commerce Association’s Award Plaque Honors the Achievement

NEW YORK, NY, May 7, 2013 -- For the fifth consecutive year, Ridgefield Theater Barn has been selected for the 2013 Best of Ridgefield Award in the Theater Building Ownership & Operation category by the U.S. Commerce Association (USCA).

The USCA "Best of Local Business" Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USCA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.

Nationwide, only 1 in 1000 (less than one-tenth of 1%) 2013 Award recipients qualified as Five-Time Award Winners. Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2013 USCA Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the USCA and data provided by third parties.

About U.S. Commerce Association (USCA)

U.S. Commerce Association (USCA) is a New York City based organization funded by local businesses operating in towns, large and small, across America. The purpose of USCA is to promote local business through public relations, marketing and advertising.

The USCA was established to recognize the best of local businesses in their community. Our organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations, chambers of commerce and other business advertising and marketing groups. Our mission is to be an advocate for small and medium size businesses and business entrepreneurs across America.

SOURCE: U.S. Commerce Association

CONTACT:U.S. Commerce Association
Email: PublicRelations@uscaaward.com
URL: http://www.uscaaward.com

The Ridgefield Theater Barn

is thrilled to present their 2013-2014 Season!

Starting things off in September we visit August: Osage County. This darkly comic play by Tracy Letts won both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play in 2008, as well as countless other awards. When it opened at the Imperial Theater in 2007, Charles Sherwood of the New York Times wrote, "All happy families are alike, Tolstoy told us, and each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. But I'd bet the farm that no family has ever been as unhappy in as many ways - and to such sensationally entertaining effect - as the Westons of August: Osage County."

Then in November, we stumble into a comic and touching case of mistaken identity with Becky's New Car by Steven Dietz. According to Variety, the play, "takes the audience on a smart, comic cruise through the perils of middle-aged longing and regret." Becky's New Car was a finalist for the prestigious Steinberg New Play Award.

We follow that up with The Clean House, by Sarah Ruhl, in March. This whimsical romantic comedy takes place in "metaphysical Connecticut" where Matilde, a Brazilian cleaning woman with aspirations to comedy, spends her time crafting her jokes, rather than cleaning house.

And finally, we close our season in June with the wild western rock musical Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson, by Michael Friedman and Alex Timbers. Forget everything you thought you knew about the 7th President. This comedic musical explores the life and career of "Old Hickory" in hilariously entertaining ways, musing that he may just have been an "emo" rock star.

War of the Worlds

A 75th Anniversary Event!
October 30th and November 2nd, 2013

In honor of the 75th Anniversary of its initial broadcasting, The Ridgefield Theater Barn presents a staged reading of the radio play, War of the Worlds. Originally an episode of the American radio drama anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air, War of the Worlds was performed as a Halloween episode of the series on October 30, 1938, and aired on CBS radio network.

Directed and narrated by actor and future filmmaker Orson Welles, the episode was an adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel The War of the Worlds (1898).

Using a series of simulated news bulletins throughout most of the show, the play, which was a bit too real at the time for the audience's peace of mind, suggested to listeners that an actual alien invasion by Martians was taking place. Adding to the program's realism was the fact that Mercury Theater on the Air was a show that usually ran without any commercial breaks, therefore the interruptions in broadcast were unsettling and audiences weren't quite sure what to make of them. It was a historic piece of drama for theater, broadcasting and for the rising star, Orson Welles. The reading will be directed by Jeff Howard

Interns in the spotlight!

As with years in the past, the Theater Barn had the privilege of participating in the intern program with Ridgefield High School this year and hosting two graduating seniors, Melody Curran and Nell Kessler. We couldn’t let them leave without giving them a huge thanks and singing their many praises.

Nell and Melody joined us mid-May and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect as we were just starting to get into the nitty gritty of our production of Nuts, the final mainstage offering of our 2011-2012 season. However, it quickly became clear that these young women would not only be valuable members of the production team, but also contribute greatly to longstanding projects at the theater in general. Melody and Nell were always enthusiastic, helpful, creative resources and lent a wonderfully positive energy to whatever task was at hand.

Cleaning and cataloguing the prop room – a project initiated and overseen by our new Property Master Jenny Gantwerker – is a monstrous undertaking, and Jenny was thrilled to have the assistance of the two eager young women, who not only made a huge dent in the overflowing prop room, but also found ways to make it fun (see pictures).

Barb Norman, our resident costumer, could not say enough about their help organizing the costume room. Likewise, José Helú and Myles Gansfried both lauded their enthusiasm for lighting and set construction. Sherry Asch and I, the director and producer of Nuts, respectively, uttered the words, “thank God for our interns!” countless times. And as publicist, I’m grateful for their creative brainstorming and execution of ideas – perhaps some of you sampled the cookies they baked for our subscription raffle?

We were incredibly grateful to always have an extra pair of hands no matter what the task – sets, costumes, lighting, props, running lines, etc... Both were generous with their time and energy and consistently went above and beyond whatever was asked of them. If they approach their future endeavors with the same ambition and spirit, they are sure to be incredibly successful.

We hope to see them back at the Barn, onstage or backstage – or in the audience! Thank you, ladies, and best wishes in all you pursue.

Our Letter to the Editor of the Ridgefield Press!

THE RIDGEFIELD THEATER BARN

37 Halpin Lane • Ridgefield, CT 06877

ridgefieldtheaterbarn.org

November 28, 2011

Jack Sanders

Executive Editor

The Ridgefield Press

16 Bailey Avenue

Ridgefield, CT 06877

The Ridgefield Theater Barn would like to thank First Selectman Rudy Marconi and the Town of Ridgefield for making Prospect Ridge, up to Halpin Lane, a two-way street.

The Theater Barn used to refer to itself as the “hidden gem” of Ridgefield, in part because, despite the fact we are now in our 46^th season, many in Ridgefield are not aware of our lovely little theater. This is largely due to our location off the beaten path. We are so pleased that as of November 21^st, Halpin Lane (via Prospect Ridge) is now accessible from both Governor Street and Prospect Street. This not only makes finding the Theater Barn easier, but it will also relieve the Ridgefield Playhouse from having to redirect some of our first-time patrons who inadvertently found themselves at the incorrect box office.

We are very grateful to Rudy Marconi and wish to thank him publicly for his efforts on our behalf. And we invite everyone to find their way to our theater (which is now much easier!) for one of our upcoming productions. For more information, please visit www.ridgefieldtheaterbarn.org, or find us on Facebook.

With sincere thanks to The Honorable Rudy Marconi,

Wayne Leiss

President

Ridgefield Theater Barn