WELCOME TO THE READERS THEATRE PROJECT

The Readers Theatre Project presents its first exciting season at The Barn Loft, with readings of some of the world’s great plays performed by a group of the region’s finest actors. Kimberly Daniel conceived of and serves as the Artistic Director of the series.

Kimberly remarks, "What separates a playwright from other writers is that a playwright is "writing talking".  When judging a writer’s ability, we often hear how important it is to hear the writer’s voice.  But, a playwright must allow us to hear the characters’ voices. That is a very unique task for a writer, and whether an actor is speaking or singing, it is all about the words.  Through those words, we are communicating the character and the story on so many levels. A play reading is a great way to experience that. It is also a great way to share plays that audiences might not have an opportunity to experience in a staged version, or at least experience them in a new light."

Everyone involved with the Readers Theatre Project is donating their services for these readings, and we hope you will support the series with your donations, which will help the Barn’s many wonderful projects that contribute so much to our community throughout the year.

July 10  @7pm: Painting Churches - REGISTER HERE

About Painting Churches*:

This finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama presents Gardner and Fanny Church as they are preparing to move out of their Beacon Hill house to their summer cottage on Cape Cod. Gardner, once a famous poet and Nobel Prize winner, is now retired. They have asked their daughter Mags to come home and help them move. Mags, their daughter—and a recognized painter, beginning to achieve her own celebrity as an artist—agrees, planning to finally paint their portrait during her stay. By painting her parents, she hopes to finally come to terms with them and they with her. Mags triumphs in the end as Fanny and Gardner actually step through the frame and become an ineffable and timeless work of art. You’ll laugh and maybe shed a tear or two as you enjoy this loveable and recognizable family.

Reviews:

"Beautifully written. . . . A theatrical family portrait that has the shimmer and depth of Renoir portraits." - The New York Times

"A radiant, loving and zestfully humorous play . . . distinctly Chekhovian. Howe captures the same edgy surface of false hilarity” . . . . . . “and the indomitable valor beneath both." - Time Magazine  

 About the Playwright:
Tina Howe is an celebrated American playwright whose first play was written in the l950’s when she was a student at Sarah Lawrence College. Her career has spanned decades, with plays that are considered masterpieces in their genre. She has been awarded a Rockefeller Grant, two National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, a Guggenheim fellowship, an American Academy of Arts and Letters Award for Literature, two Pulitzer Nominations for Drama, and a Tony Award. In 2017, Howe was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame, introduced by her long-time friend, Jane Alexander, who welcomed her with, “She has passion wit and absurdity” . . . . [her plays are] “an operatic dive into the depths” . . . . “She writes as no one else about women.”

Our Artists:

Performing Fanny Church, The Readers Theatre Project is thrilled to welcome Cincinnati’s own Broadway Star, Pamela Myers,**who has the distinction of Stephen Sondheim composing “Another Hundred People” just for her, which garnered a Tony nomination for her performance in the original production of Sondheim’s Company.

Gifted young actress, Lisa DeRoberts ** is known to Cincinnati theatre goers for her many performances with Ensemble Theatre the Know Theatre, and others. Lisa will be performing Mags.

And, “Man-of-the-Theatre", Mike Roberts will round at the cast, performing Nobel Prize winning poet, Gardner Church. Mike has worked in the theatre for decades as a director/actor/and artistic director of his own theatre group.

The Readers Theatre Project is thrilled to welcome these gifted actors to the Loft Stage.

*Painting Churches is licensed through Samuel French, Inc.

** Pamela Myers and Lisa DeRoberts are performing with permission from Actors Equity Association

Future Performances: September 18th - Art by Yasmina Reza, translated by Christopher Hampton)

& November 6th