Janesville, WI—Janesville Little Theatre, one of JPAC’s resident groups, announce its cast for Social Security, the last drama of the 2012-2013 Janesville Little Theatre Season.

CAST:

Rebecca Vanderheyden as Barbra Kahn

Josh Finley as David Kahn

Rhonda Nelson as Trudy Heyman

Paul Casler as Martin Heyman

Linda Hennrich as Sophie Greengrass

Ed Skwarlo as Maurice Koenig

Directed by Steve Shaw and Misty Lantz

Social Security, written by Andrew Bergman focuses on trendy Manhattan art gallery owners Barbara and David Kahn, whose life is upended when her Mineola housewife sister Trudy deposits their eccentric mother Sophie on the couple’s doorstep while she and her husband Martin head to Buffalo to rescue their devious college student daughter from trouble. Barbara and David introduce Sophie to suave nonagenarian artist Maurice Koenig, who offers to paint her portrait and soon begins to brighten her life in ways she never expected in her twilight years.

Social Security will be held in the JPAC Gallery June 20-23 at 7:30pm and 2pm.  Advance tickets are available for $12 for adults and $6 for students. A pre-performance dinner is available on June 22 by reservation for $16.

Janesville, WI—Theatre Unlimited, Inc., one of the Janesville Performing Arts Center’s resident groups, announces open auditions for their September production of Oliver!

Auditions will be held at the Janesville Performing Arts Center, 408 S. Main Street, Janesville, WI 5354,5 on May 20^th & 21^st from 6pm-8:30pm.  Adults and students welcome to audition, ages 9 and up.  No reservation or appointment necessary.

Potential callbacks are scheduled for Thursday, May 23^rd.

To audition, please prepare one entire song from a Broadway musical and wear appropriate shoes for learning a short dance.  No prepared dance audition necessary.

No reservations or RSVP required.

The production of Oliver! will be held at JPAC September 6-15.  Rehearsals start the week of June 24^th.

The Janesville Performing Arts Center serves the greater Rock County area through performances and events produced by 15 local non-profit arts groups. The center’s 633 seat theatre, lobby, art gallery, box office, and administrative office are located in the historic Janesville High School/Marshall Junior High School building in downtown Janesville.

The ultimate game of cat-and-mouse is played out in a cozy English country house owned by celebrated mystery writer, Andrew Wyke. Invited guest Milo Tindle, a young rival who shares not only Wyke’s love of the game but also his wife, has come to lay claim. Revenge is devised and murders plotted as the two plan the ultimate “whodunnit.”

Because the plot of Sleuth – like all good mysteries – is a bit dependent on its surprises, it’s difficult to describe the show in detail without giving away too much and risk spoiling the fun. Suffice it to say that Sleuth is a highly suspenseful murder-mystery that twists and turns it’s way entertainingly and engagingly – and often insightfully and quite humorously – through the struggle of wills of the three main characters who attempt to resolve the issues surrounding that seemingly eternal dilemma, the love triangle.

While it was first performed in 1970, Sleuth is as smart and fresh today as it was then, and it is the work by which it’s author, Anthony Shaffer (who also wrote the screen-play for Hitchcock’s 1972 thriller, Frenzy), remains famous. Sleuth skillfully weaves in and out of the murder-mystery genre, using the traditional format of that style of story while simultaneously poking great fun at it as well.

Sleuth is a wonderfully crafted play, having three great principal roles that any actor (myself included) would relish performing. Indeed, the play has been filmed twice, with the original 1972 film version of the play including the lofty talents of Sir Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine, and the 2006 version featuring a returning Michael Caine along with Jude Law. Janesville Little Theatre’s present production of the play features performances by Bob Pohlman of Janesville, Patrick Lane of Madison, and Paul Casler of Janesville. It is directed by Michael Mugnani and Michelle Dennis, with Megan Kunz of Janesville as stage manager.

Sleuth is playing at the Janesville Performing Arts Center on Thursday through Saturday, May 2-4, at 7:30 PM, with a 2:00 PM matinee on Sunday, May 5. Adult tickets are $12 plus JPAC ticketing fees. A 6:00 PM pre-show dinner is available by reservation only for $16.00 on Saturday night. Please come by and enjoy this wonderful thriller!

Michael Mugnani
Director

Steve Van Dinter (The Gadget Guy) to host the Alzheimer’s Support Center’s Dancing with the Stars.

The Alzheimer’s Support Center of Rock County is very pleased to announce that Steve Van Dinter (the Gadget Guy) will be hosting the Dancing with the Stars event at the Janesville Performing Arts Center, Saturday, April 27th, 2013.
This year’s dance competitors are: Cindy Giese, Tom Woodward, Jamie Murray, Andy Murray, Steve Dean and Kathy Dean, Dr. Morgan Fife and Kristin Fife, Kirke (Bo) Plank and Elaine Plank, Cameron and Stephen Pickering. The dance competitors will perform a 90 second dance routine for the audience and guest judges. The couples have been collecting sponsorship donations to give them extra “bonus points” that will give them an edge over points the judges award. To Sponsor a favorite dancer with a credit card, please visit the website www.alzheimerssupportcenter.org and click on Special Events, then dancing with the stars 2013 tab.

The “Voter’s Choice” award is given to the couple that the audience votes for as being their favorite team.

A dinner option is available, catered by the Milwaukee Grill The dinner will begin at 5:30 and run till 6:30. The Auditorium doors will open at 6:30 with the dance competition starting promptly at 7 p.m.
Dinner/Show tickets are $60.00 each and show tickets only are $20.00. Box office phone number is 608-758-0297, or you can order tickets online at www.janesvillepac.org.

This performance benefits Hope Institute of Uganda

Thirty years young in 2010-11, the Grammy Award-winning LAGQ is one of the most multifaceted groups in any genre. The LAGQ is comprised of four uniquely accomplished musicians bringing a new energy to the concert stage with programs ranging from Bluegrass to Bach. They consistently play to sold-out houses world-wide. Their inventive, critically acclaimed transcriptions of concert masterworks provide a fresh look at the music of the past, while their interpretations of works from the contemporary and world-music realms continually break new ground. Programs including Latin, African, Far East, Irish, Folk and American Classics transport listeners around the world in a single concert experience. Their ‘Don Quixote’ collaboration with Firesign Theater veteran, actor Philip Proctor, continues to expand and delight audiences.

Winner of a 2005 Grammy Award, their Guitar Heroes CD released on Telarc is a brilliant follow-up to their Grammy nominated LAGQ Latin. Spin (Telarc, Spring 2006) continues their explorations of jazz and contemporary music. LAGQ Brazil (2007), including collaborations with vocalist Luciana Souza, was released to rave reviews, and their newest recording of the Rodrigo “Concierto Andaluz” and Sergio Assad’s “Interchange”, written specifically for them, was released on Telarc in Spring 2010, and quickly climbed to top spot on the Billboard charts.

John Dearman

Originally from Minneapolis, John Dearman is a versatile guitarist whose repertoire ranges from samba to bluegrass, and from flamenco to classical. He enriches the sound of the LAGQ by performing on a unique seven-string guitar with extended upper and lower registers. John is currently director of the Guitar Chamber Music program at California State University, Northridge, in Los Angeles.

Matthew Greif

Matthew Greif is the newest member of the Quartet. In addition to being a classical guitarist, he has an extensive background playing in other styles, such as jazz, rock, flamenco, and bluegrass. Matthew’s recordings include Permanent Transition, which features duo improvisations with Andrew York and Dusan Bogdanovic. Matthew was named Outstanding Graduate of the U.S.C. guitar department, where he studied with William Kanengiser, James Smith, and Scott Tennant. He also studied jazz with Joe Diorio and Frank Potenza. Matthew currently teaches classical and jazz guitar at Cal State University, Dominguez Hills, in the Los Angeles area.

• Matt’s home page

William Kanengiser

Acclaimed soloist, recording artist and professor at the USC Thornton School of Music, William Kanengiser is one of the few guitarists to have won the Concert Artists Guild New York Competition. His solo recordings on the GSP label display his unique approach to programming, ranging from the music of the Old World to the Caribbean to his latest disc Classical Cool, an exploration of jazz currents for classical guitar. He has earned critical acclaim for his imaginative arrangements for solo guitar and guitar quartet, and for producing two instructional videos for Hot Licks. Kanengiser may be best known as the classical guitarist in the 1986 film Crossroads.

• William Kanengiser’s home page

Scott Tennant

Celebrated as a world-class performer, author and teacher, Detroit-born Scott Tennant has been concertizing since the age of twelve. Much in demand as a solo artist, Scott has recorded for Delos International and is currently completing a recording project of the complete solo guitar works of Joaquin Rodrigo for GHA, Belgium. He is the author of the best-selling book and video Pumping Nylon, a technical handbook for the classical guitarist, and the five-part series Scott Tennant’s Basic Classical Guitar Method. He has taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and is now on the faculty at the USC Thornton School of Music.

• Scott’s home page

I remember the first Town Hall Christmas I attended in the early 1980s. Gary Lenox and Gerry Mosher, two founding members of Stage One, opened up their not-quite-renovated old church to their theatre friends to celebrate Christmas. Surrounded by performers of all kinds, the parties were quite festive and entertaining. It wasn’t a show – people just got up to sing, or play music, or tell a story or two. And from those humble beginnings, Town Hall Christmas was born and became an annual event for the Stage One “family” for many years.
Gary, unfortunately is no longer with us, and we’ve moved from the church to JPAC, but the spirit of Town Hall remains: our hearts are full of the joy that only a good song, a delightful piece of music, or a well-spun tale can bring.
Where else will you be able to hear Pastor Bruce Gray recite ‘Twas the Night After Christmas by Jeff Foxworthy? Have you heard the tale about the three poor girls who stole the smell of Hanukkah latkes? How about the sounds of a Celtic harp and two hammer dulcimers? Amazing things happen on JPAC’s stage!
Give yourself a treat and see and hear the delightful talents of over 50 area musicians, singers, and storytellers as they send you glad tidings from their hearts to yours.

Edie Baran, producer, storyteller

In 1984 Craig and Lea Culver, along with Craig’s parents George and Ruth, opened the very first Culver’s in the family’s beloved hometown of Sauk City, Wisconsin.

In a sense it was destiny.

The son of a cheesemaker and grandson of a Wisconsin farmer, George Culver spent the early part of his career inspecting and grading dairy farms for the Wisconsin Dairies Cooperative. While George was out calling on area dairy farms, Ruth Culver was home joyfully raising their three children, instilling in them the small-town, Midwest values she herself had come to know growing up in Sauk City.

In 1961, George and Ruth seized an opportunity to buy their first restaurant. With no formal training, only Ruth’s warm and gracious hospitality and George’s natural command of the kitchen, the two proved a great team. With their kids growing up serving guests and learning firsthand about hospitality and delicious food cooked to order, the Culver family’s team approach became the model of many successful restaurants and supper clubs to come.

Then, in 1984 came an idea for a restaurant no one could resist. Craig combined a love for his mom’s homemade hamburgers with his favorite childhood vacation treat, fresh frozen custard, creating our signature combination: Culver’s ButterBurgers and Fresh Frozen Custard.

Now, the Culver’s of Janesville, Newville & Beloit sponsor JPAC’s first family series during the 2012-2013 season– the Culver’s Family Series.

All events marked with a Culver’s logo are family-friendly and kid approved!

Stage One, Inc. CONTACT: Producer, Edie Baran PHONE: 608-931-5705 EMAIL: info@stageonewi.org WEB: www.stageonewi.org ADDRESS: PO Box 607 Janesville WI  53547-0607

How I Learned to Drive, a Pulitzer Prize winning play

by Paula Vogel

Producer Edie Baran says, “The story is not about the absolutes of right vs wrong, but rather about all the shades of grays that we encounter in life. Uncle Peck does use his age and status in the family to wield power over Lil’ Bit, and even though he takes advantage of her trust and innocence, he is not an absolute monster. This play is a fascinating study of the complex layers that make us who we are. The production, itself, is worth seeing for numerous reasons: the actors are doing a fantastic job interpreting Michael Stalsberg’s vision of the show; it’s interesting to see minimalistic and symbolic  staging, rather than the realism we usually see on stage. And the use of the ‘Greek Chorus’ to represent people from Lil’ Bit’s life is ingeneous.  It’s a show that will make you think while watching it, and keep you talking about it for days after.

The talkback we had last Friday drew very interesting and introspective comments and questions from the audience. Beth Tallon of the YWCA started the talkback with a brief history of the YWCA CareHouse and its mission, supporting children of abuse. The audience asked questions of the actors regarding their interpretations of their characters.

On Saturday, we had an informal discussion in the lobby after the show. People just wanted to talk about the show. In my opinion, the best live theatre is when it is entertaining and educational. Food for thought!”

The Cast & Crew: Amy Krebs, of Clinton, will play Lil’ Bit; Patrick Lane, of Madison, plays Peck; the Greek Chorus members are Naomi Houser and David Graham of Janesville, and Donna Browne of Milton. Michael Stalsberg directs and Kristin Loudon is the Stage Manager, both of Janesville. Dustin James, of Madison, is the Costume Designer. Edie Baran, of Hanover, is the Producer. The Executive Producer is Stage One, Inc.

When:  Final performances of How I Learned to Drive are October 19, & 20 at 7:30 PM

and Oct 21 at 2 PM. A talk-back with Beth Tallon of the YWCA is scheduled for Saturday, Oct 20.

Where: The Janesville Performing Arts Center, 408 S Main St, Janesville, WI.

Tickets: Adults $15; students $8. Call the Janesville Performing Arts Center at 608-758-0297 or go on-line: www.janesvillepac.org  Please note: this show contains adult themes.

The play is a potent and convincing comment on a taboo subject, and its impact sneaks up on its audience.” —Variety. “…HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE turns out to be a most compelling ride. —BackStage.

How I Learned to Drive is noteworthy for the many awards that it won, including the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for drama. Its initial off-Broadway run lasted for fourteen months. In addition to the Pulitzer, the play also was awarded an Obie, a Drama Desk Award, a New York Drama Critics’ Award, an Outer Circle Critics Award, and the Lucille Lortel Award.

About the director: Michael Stalsberg is the vice president of Stage One, Inc. and the technical director for the Janesville Performing Arts Center.  Recent directing credits include: Stage One’s Proof by David Auburn, Jonathan Larson’s tick, tick… BOOM! and The Frogs by Stephen Sondheim, Burt Shevelove, and Nathan Lane for the Janesville Performing Arts Center.  Area theatre affiliations include Janesville Presents!, Theatre Unlimited, Janesville Schools, The JPAC Radio Players, New Court Theatre, and JLT, to name a few.

ABOUT STAGE ONE: Stage One’s mission is to entertain, educate, and creatively challenge its audience and crew by producing high-quality, thought-provoking plays, such as Pulitzer Prize winning dramas, American theater classics, Shakespeare, and other important pieces of theatre.  Stage One’s 2011 – 2012 season consisted of Pulitzer Prize winners Rabbit Hole by David Lindsay-Abaire, directed by Michael Chase (Oct 2011); Proof, by David Auburn, directed by Michael Stalsberg (Jan. 2012), and the highly-acclaimed parody, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged), directed by Edie Baran (May 2012). This non-profit theatre company is based in Janesville, WI. For more information, go to www.stageonewi.org, email: info@stageonewi.org, or call Edie Baran, producer, at 608-931-5705. Stage One representatives are available to speak to community service clubs, book clubs, and other interested organizations.

The event was a HUGE success largely in part to our sponsors.  Here are some statistics from this weekend’s festivities:

800 people in attendance

16 sponsors

2 great musicians

$35,000 towards JAPC’s operating fund

The Janesville Performing Arts Center relies on sponsors to make great performances like these happen.  As Presenting Sponsors, BMO Harris Bank and Blain’s Farm & Fleet were the major contributors to this year’s success.  We thank both of them for their continued dedication to what JPAC does for Rock County.

Pete Huttlinger has become widely known as one of the most awe-inspiring acoustic guitar players in the world. His unique arrangements and spell-binding musicality and precision have entertained audiences all from Los Angeles to Milan.

As a recording artist Huttlinger has released numerous albums and received wide-acceptance ranging from his critically acclaimed Naked Pop continuing to his current instrumental tour de force, The Black Swan.
Praise from the media has been overwhelmingly positive and Huttlinger continues to expand his musical breadth.

In 2007, Huttlinger made his debut at New York City’s Carnegie Hall. He was invited back in 2008 and made his first appearance there as a solo artist demonstrating what audiences around the world know him best for – his fantastic sense of humor and mind-blowing chops all combined to make a full-on, entertaining 90 minutes of laughter and chin-dropping, and performed there again in 2010. In 2004, 2007 and 2010, he was invited to participate in Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Festivals.

Huttlinger also makes appearances as a side-man. Country/pop superstar LeAnn Rimes often requests him for her acoustic performances. Some of the most recent ones include the filming of “Live From Abbey Road” a BBC TV series taped at the famous London studios. It aired in America on BRAVO! Huttlinger also appeared with Rimes on ABC’s “Dancing With The Stars” and made an acoustic recording with her that was sold as an exclusive download through Kellogg’s. He toured with John Denver for the last four years of John’s life and often tours with pop icon John Oates of Hall & Oates.

Peter Cooper: Heart failure slows Pete Huttlinger down, but not for long

They call Pete Huttlinger a musician, but really he’s in the delight and amazement business.

Nice work to have, tough job to get. It’s hard enough to surprise folks these days, much less amaze them. And “delight” is a tough mark to hit, too. People are cynical. They stand at the edge of a glorious marvel like the Grand Canyon, frowning distractedly at their cellphones. As David Olney sang, “Earth, that’s one tough town.”

Huttlinger’s ticket into the business was his ability to engage, stagger and ultimately uplift audiences by making his six-string guitar sound like no one else’s. He won the 2000 National Fingerpick Guitar Championship, proving his mastery of the acoustic guitar’s most difficult playing style. (Actually, it’s even harder if you use your feet.)

He headlines at Carnegie Hall, he plays in a manner that has moved the jaws of Eric Clapton and Vince Gill in a downward trajectory, and he makes instructional DVDs that explain his logic and technique, so that any serious guitar student can learn to play like he does (so long as we’re willing to settle for doing it at about half-speed). He tells jokes that loosen the audience up for showcase pieces like a flying-fingers version of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” that would leave even Wonder to wonder.

“He’s wickedly gifted, in the way he plays and the way his mind works,” Gill says. “He plays circles around me. I hear Pete play the guitar and it makes me glad I can write songs and I’m kind of funny and can play golf.”

Huttlinger’s wing of the delight and amazement business, though, is suffering. The economy’s rough on many of us these days, but the economy is a gnat’s worth of trouble compared to the circumstances confronting this guitar man.

Last November’s massive stroke was a bother, though by late winter he’d completely recovered, having dodged what seemed like the big bullet. But then his congenitally defective heart failed in March, and on April 29 he was life-flighted to St. Luke’s Texas Heart Institute in Houston. Doctors installed a battery-powered heart pump on May 4, and now Huttlinger is trying to get well enough to receive a heart transplant at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

It’s not good when you’re so sick that you have to get better before an operation.

It’s also not good when you have to deal with such turmoil without the aid of your oldest friend, which in Huttlinger’s case is a guitar.

Moving in the right direction

“I’d never gone more than a few days without playing since I was 14 years old,” he relays in an email. “Going cold turkey hasn’t been easy. I’m normally a really positive guy, but it’s been tough at times. But I see daily progress, and having (wife) Erin here day in and day out to point out my progress is a huge help. I’ve lived with this heart problem my entire life, but I had no idea exactly what I was in for when it finally wore out.”

He’s is finally back to playing a little bit of guitar in the confines of his room, but not even Pete Huttlinger can return to Pete Huttlinger levels of brilliance immediately after months of draining, often debilitating medical procedures.

“Of course, it’s burning him up inside,” says friend and collaborator John Oates, who came to popular attention as half of pop duo Hall & Oates and who recently has been recording roots music in Nashville. “After his stroke, he couldn’t play initially, but then three weeks or so after that, he performed for his doctors and they were shocked. A month after the stroke, he played electric guitar with me on a CMT show. I know that no matter what I do, I sound better when Pete’s playing. I think the world of him as a human being, and as a musician.”

Oates’ “I sound better when Pete’s playing” sentiment has been roundly echoed. In addition to releasing seven acclaimed solo albums, Huttlinger has contributed to recordings by John Denver, LeAnn Rimes, Jimmy Buffett, Faith Hill, the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and many others. He was also on Dancing With the Stars, backing Rimes rather than competing. (There are limits to his talent.)

Tuesday, at 8 p.m., Oates, Gill, John Jorgenson, The Long Players and others will play a Huttlinger benefit at Mercy Lounge to defray the extraordinary costs of Huttlinger’s surgeries and treatments. It’ll be an evening of joy, banter and virtuoso collaborations, and hopefully they’ll raise enough money to keep Huttlinger and his family from worrying about finances. Huttlinger is planning to be at the show, though these days his schedule is always written in pencil. Then it’s back to Houston for more treatment, and hopefully more progress.

The guitarist has no timeline in mind for his return to stages, but he’s positive that things are moving in the right direction. If he’s back at Carnegie by this time next year, Pete Huttlinger will be delighted, not amazed.