“Hello and welcome to the 2024 Summer Season for Andy’s Summer Playhouse!
This summer’s Theme is “THE TEST KITCHEN” and you will find that every inch of our programming focuses on how we can make new types of theater in new ways.
Working professionally in New York City, I see firsthand how our theater industry struggles to return from the 2020 shutdown. Therefore, I chose to make a season that can provide research around how to expand the idea of what theater is and how we can enjoy it. This is not only a question of content, but of form. I’m thrilled to announce that two of our mainstage productions will be innovating ways to creatively livestream to a global audience.
Andy’s makes original theater with young artists working eye-to-eye with professional artists from all over the country. I cannot imagine a better way to innovate than with these brilliant minds. I am certain this summer will make an impact on not only the Monadnock region, but the entire country. These are the hard questions no one is asking, and our young and inquisitive minds here at The Playhouse are the perfect leaders for the present challenge.”
Below you will find five programs offered this summer. Each focus on very different aspects of theater-making and are intended to offer your young artist the ability to explore their creativity and instincts as a human.
There are no pre-requisites for these programs. We hope every child enters these opportunitiies in hopes to unlock a new part of their mind and spirit.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?
Andy’s Summer Playhouse provides tuition-free programming for young artists between the ages of 8-18.
Do we audition?
No auditions. All children have a place in theater. Therefore, Andy’s Holds an orientation at the beginning of the summer to help families find the perfect roles for their young artists. For musicals, Young Artists will be required to submit video of them singing or sing at first rehearsal in order to be placed in the most successful role for them.
On your enrollment sheet, choose which programs your young artists are available to participate in. Because most main-stage shows are new works, many productions have the ability to create roles that best fit the strengths of the participating artists. Workshops and open-mics will have signups throughout the summer.
How does the schedule work?
The programs are scheduled in 3 to 4 hour blocks between 10am-10pm and rarely overlap. If your young artist wants to participate in just one or two programs, they can. If your young artist wants to participate in as many programs as possible, they can.
WHO ARE THE PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS?
Andy’s is proud to hire nationally acclaimed artists, predominantly from New York City and Washington, D.C. These artists join the Wilton community for the summer and help foster a healthy and inspired environment. Collaborating eye-to-eye with these professional artists shows that a life in the arts is possible. check our website in april to see the list of artists-in-residence that will be joining us for the 2024 season.
WHAT ARE THE SUMMER COSTS?
In 2020, andy’s made a commitment to a tuition-free summer program. prior to this, families paid a fee for every production and workshop they participated in.
now, with just an initial registration fee of $150, your young artist has full access to every aspect of Andy’s Programming all summer long.
AND NOW… OUR 2024 SUMMER SEASON!
PERFORMANCE LAB #1: CABARET PERFORMANCE TROUPE
PERFORMANCE LAB #2: MIME
PERFORMANCE LAB #3: ANDY’S IMPROV TROUPE
PERFORMANCE LAB #4: Storytelling
SEE DESCRIPTIONS BELOW
LAB 1: CABARET PERFORMANCE TROUPE
WEEKDAY REHEARSAL: JUNE 24-28 & July 1-3
10am-2pm
Performances: July 5-6, 7:30pm
(performance call times 5pm)
directed by Meredith Lustig
*RequireMENT: submit a video of young artist singing a few phrases of a song
“How does location affect context?” The classroom, hallway, cafeteria, the guidance counselors office - how does a well known song transform when placed somewhere unexpected.
As examples, Kander and Ebb’s “It’s A Quiet Thing” viewed through the lens of acing your physics exam. “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables” (Les Mis) takes on different political undertones when sung in an empty classroom. “Mr. Cellophane” (Chicago) or “A Change In Me” (Beauty and the Beast) are less familiar to us when delivered by a student exploring gender binaries.
There are more straightforward school centered tunes (Dear Evan Hansen, Mean Girls, etc) that could make an appearance on the program, but the primary goal is to focus on flipping the script through a change in location.
Each performer would have two solos/features (to provide an arch for their character work) and the program would include two to three ensemble numbers.
Why Cabaret at Andy’s? Cabaret is the musical vehicle that unites actors and singers, but more than that it asks the performer: what is important to you?
Cabaret is a safe space to share ideas, explore big feelings, and connect with others.
Singing is the natural extension of speech; the vehicle for expression when an emotion expands beyond the container of our bodies and must evolve. Learning to tell stories through song connects students to their breath, body awareness, and confidence.
LAB 2: MIME WORKSHOP
JUNE 24-28
2pm-6pm
Public performance at end of workshop on June 28
directed by SMJ
WHAT IS MIME? A mime artist, or simply mime, is a person who uses pantomime, the acting out of a story through body motions without the use of speech.
LAB 3: ANDY’S IMPROV TROUPE
REHEARSALS weekdays July 8-25
11am-2pm
PERFORMANCES July 26, 27, and 28 at 7:00pm (6pm call)
directed by Matt Reckeweg
improvisation is a skill that not only creates comedy, but is for all live theater-making. While we may know it best in the short form sketch-comedies, the skills of improvisational performance are rooted in being able to listen and respond. this responsiveness leads to an innate ability to tell stories in real-time.
Andy’s improv troupe will focus on all of the skills that make a performer be as responsive and present in the moment as possible.
LAB 4: “IN YOUR SHOES” Storytelling workshop
July 9, 10, and 11th
6pm-9pm
NO PUBLIC PERFORMANCE
directed by Derek Goldman & Jared Mezzocchi
“In Your Shoes” harnesses the power of theatrical performance, dialogue, and deep listening to surface and celebrate the rich life experiences that shape who we are and how we interact.
The “In Your Shoes” signature process (see: Our Process) centers on scripts devised verbatim from robust participant dialogues and group conversations. Participants dwell “in each other’s shoes” by performing each other’s words back to one another with exquisite care and creativity.
MAINSTAGE #1:
The 24hr Play festival
MAINSTAGE #2:
The digital renaissance project presents:
dispatches from the hilltop
MAINSTAGE #3:
A Very Puppet Musical (Title TBD)
SEE DESCRIPTIONS BELOW
MAINSTAGE 1: THE 24hr PLAY FESTIVAL
July 12-13, 2024
FOR A SECOND SUMMER, Andy’s is partnering with the Brooklyn-based company “The 24-hour plays” to create a one-day extravaganza in which young artists collaborate with professional artists to generate short plays that are written, rehearsed, and performed in just 24 hours!
July 12th
7:30pm Festival Begins
6pm-10am Overnight schedules TBD, both in-person and digital writing sessions will be available. Not all young artists need to participate in this session.
July 13th
8:30am In-person breakfast
10am-1pm rehearsals begin
1pm-2pm Lunch
2pm-6pm tech rehearsals
6pm-7pm dinner
7:30pm performance!
MAINSTAGE #2: DISPATCHES FROM THE HILLTOP
TIME COMMITMENT: July 1-july 27
The stage is filled with desks, ring lights, cameras, microphones and computers. every young performer sits at their own station. from a separate table, a live video mixer composites all of the images and sounds into one cinematic product, projected large above the stage on a movie screen. a live cinema experience that will also be live-streamed to a global audience.
the stories performed will be a mix of sci-fi short stories mixed with stories made by the ensemble. these are tales of survival, technology, isolation, and relationships in the 21st century.
dispatches from the hilltop is a radio-play-meets-live-tv-studio, but its actually theater. really cool theater.
FIRST REHEARSAL: July 1, 2pm-6pm
WEEKDAY REHEARSALS: July 2- july 12, 2pm-6pm
TECH REHEARSALS: july 14-18, 6pm-10pm
Performances: july 19-27
EXCITING NEWS FOR THIS SHOW!
A VERY SPECIAL ARTIST AND PRODUCTION COMPANY WILL BE JOINING ANDY’S
FROM JULY 29, 2024 - AUGUST 6, 2024!
With two public performances August 5th and August 6th at 7:30pm
Pulitzer Prize Winning Playwright PAULA VOGEL and her organization “BARD AT THE GATE” will join for a one-week production that utilizes the format of our production to create a secondary piece for a live-stream. This show will incorporate young artists from Andy’s both in the production and off-stage to help with the operation of the show.
MAINSTAGE #3: A very Puppet Musical (TITLE TBD)
TIME COMMITMENT: July 15-August 17
A children’s choir fills the stage and tells the harrowing story of surviving a storm. the piece will blend survival stories from NH together in a tale as old as time. from surviving the winter at the summit of mt. washington to losing A/C in blistering heat of the summer, this is a human-vs.-nature mosaic of new england.
oh, and center stage taking full spotlight? a tiny puppet theater, operated by young artists who step out from the choir. with a mini camera at the helm, the tiny theater will be projected above the performance as well as live streamed to a global audience.
FIRST REHEARSAL: July 15, 2pm-6pm
WEEKDAY REHEARSALS: July 16- August 2, 2pm-6pm
TECH REHEARSALS: AUGUST 3-8, 6pm-10pm
Performances: AUGUST 9-17
THE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM
Work behind the scenes with our technicians and designers and get hands-on experience in scenery, lighting, video/multimedia, costumes and props. You can choose the areas you are most interested in, or learn about and experience them all! The Apprenticeship Program also provides you with an opportunity to serve as stage crew/board operators during technical rehearsals and performances for OUR MAIN-STAGE productionS.
When signing up for Apprenticeships, Staff will build your SCHEDULE AROUND YOUR NEEDS. If you want to be on crew FOR A PRODUCTION, you will need to attend all technical rehearsals and performances FOR THAT SHOW.
*NEW* There are three levels of Apprenticing
“BUILDER & DESIGNER” APPRENTICESHIP (Ages 10 and up)
THIS IS SCHEDULED DURING OFF-TIME FROM REHEARSALS AND WEEKENDS. This IS A CASE BY CASE NEED TO HELP BUILDING SETS, PROPS, HANGING LIGHTS AND PREPPING FOR TECH REHEARSALS. It IS ALSO AN OPPORTUNITY TO ASSIST THE DESIGNERS.
“THE SHOW OPERATOR” APPRENTICESHIP (Ages 13 and up)
This will be scheduled during tech rehearsals and performances. Learn TO OPERATE LIGHTS, SOUND, VIDEO AND BACKSTAGE DURING A LIVE PERFORMANCE.
“THE PROFESSIONAL” APPRENTICESHIP (AGES 15 and up)
This is a work-study / internship opportunity ALL SUMMER LONG to work with the administrative staff on the professional side of running a theater. From Box Office to ASSISTiNG LEADERSHIP to General OPERATIONS Of DAY-To-DAY Work. If you are interested in how to run a theater, this is a great opportunity for you.
“THE GREENHOUSE INITIATIVE”
Since 2016, “The Greenhouse Initiative” has invited artists from all over the country to join us at Andy’s in a weeklong residency to create a workshop performance of a new idea. The Greenhouse has served as an incubator for artists needing development time to “grow their ideas.” This summer, the Greenhouse will become a summer-long residency program that invites professional artists to join the community at Andy’s for approximately one week.
the 2024 GREENHOUSE INITIATIVE WILL BE
“THE SELFISH GIANT”
A puppet and Live Music Performance adapted from the short story by Oscar Wilde
Six REHEARSAL Days
JULY 29, 2024 - August 3, 2024
2:00pm - 6:00pm
One Performance
August 3 at 7:30pm
2024 GREENHOUSE artists
Matt Reckeweg
Jenna Murphy
Aaron Bliden
Nicholas Wilby
SCHEDULE TBD ONCE ALL YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS HAVE ENROLLED.
THIS WILL MEET THROUGHOUT THE SUMMER
THE PLAYWRITING LAB is A chance for aspiring writers to be mentored by theater professionals and produce their own short scripts to be performed by Andy’s kids at the end of the season. Over the series of several writing intensives, these emerging writers learn about narrative structure, action and objective, and how to express ideas theatrically.
Who is John C. Russell?
John C. Russell first came to Andy’s when he was in residence at The MacDowell Colony. He was a member of the Andy's Family in the early 1990s, writing many beloved plays including Peter Pan, Godzilla, and Barbie and Ken: The Untold Story. In addition to his work with Andy's, John C. had many shows that appeared off-Broadway in New York. With his death in 1994, the artistic community lost a treasured member. The Playwriting Labs were one of John's favorite aspects of Andy's and so we honor his memory every year with something he loved most: watching children being taken seriously and supported as developing artists.
EXCITED TO ENROLL? YOU CAN DO IT RIGHT NOW!
Enrollment is open! Click the link below to select the programs of your choice. you can register for orientation on this form, as well!
we are pleased to offer our summer programming for a registration fee of $150, which gives you full access to Everything, all summer long.
STILL HAVE QUESTIONS?
We are providing two zoom info sessions for new and returning families. These are for parents and guardians to ask questions about the programming and get a better understanding of the experience.
OPTION 1: APRIL 24, 2024 at 5:00pm EST
OPTION 2: May 22, 2024 at 5:00pm EST
ALSO COME JOIN US AT THE IN-PERSON ORIENTATION THIS JUNE!
THis is mandatory for all participating families
sunday, june 23, 2024
4pm-6pm
THis is a family meet-and-greet alongside the season Orientation for all enrolled Young Artists!
WHAT TO EXPECT AT ORIENTATION:
It’s MANDATORY for all young artists and families enrolled in the summer season. If. you cannot make this, please let us know at info@andyssummerplayhouse.org
even if you haven’t enrolled, this is a great opportunity to come experience andy’s!
parents will meet at the same time as the young artists to discuss the logistics of the summer (car pools, schedules, volunteer opportunities, season tickets, etc)
while the parents meet, the young artists get to experience a physical and vocal warm up with staff. Then they will play theater games and experience scene work with the scripts this summer.
