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New ‘Stage Manager’ Is Your Virtual Theater Arts Bulletin Board

Introducing a new face and a new feature on A News Café! It’s the Café Stage Manager — your schedule of locally focused theater, dance, storytelling and more — compiled by North State actor and director Dean Williams. Dean has been standing either onstage or backstage in Shasta County for over 25 years. He has “walked the boards” in the guise of nearly a hundred different characters, in comedies, dramas and musicals.

The Stage Manager will serve as a virtual “café bulletin board”; a place to post and promote our area’s very lively theater arts scene. If you know of a show, share it with A News Cafe readers by e-mailing Dean Williams at cafestagemanager@gmail.com, and watch for Dean’s accompanying column as well. Thanks for reading — and on(line) with the show!

THE BOHEMIAN ART LOFT – 3304B Bechelli Ln. Redding, 229-7818

Spoken Word Night at the Loft An evening for serious poets, writers, playwrights, storytellers, comedians, and actors of all genres. No censorship. Audience welcome. Wednesday (June 8) at 7 pm. Donations, refreshments, repeats every second Wednesday.

The Arranged Marriages, an improvisational comedy about the old ways and modern times, presented by Stars Theater Company, Adults with Disabilities presents. May 13 & 14 at 7:30 pm. Cast reception and raffle follows. Limited seating. Admission $10, students $6. Call 229-7818.

Three One Act Comedies, presented by the Theater Lab Avant Garde Theater: The Apollo of Bellac, by Jean Giraudoux, revealing the secret to worldly success, Twelve Titles, Abstract Theater by Lou Drew, and Welcome to Hell, a satire by Rowan Atkinson. Complimentary refreshments. Friday May 20 at 8 p.m. $15, students $10; group rates & discounts available. Reserve tickets at 530-229-7818. Repeats May 21 at 8 p.m., May 22 at 2 p.m.

RIVERFRONT PLAYHOUSE 1620 E. Cypress Ave., Redding

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, a musical comedy. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. Directed by Jonessa Brittan. There’ll be ‘comedy tonight’ when this 1962 musical comedy classic hits the stage. Vaudeville meets ancient Rome in this farcical and madcap plot of love and freedom with hapless slave Pseudolus at its tangled center. Featuring Jon Narducci on the piano. Runs weekends, May 21 through June 18. Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30, Sunday matinees at 2 p.m. Tickets sold at Collectibles, Etc., 1525 Pine St. 241-4278. www.riverfrontplayhouse.net for more information.

THE ROOT THEATRE COMPANY

Circle Mirror Transformation, the 2010 Obie Award winner for best American play, presented at the 1078 Gallery in Chico. The Root tours this contemporary comedy-drama to its Chico premiere. By bright young playwright Annie Baker. Playing for three days only, May 25, 26, and 27. Director Robert Soffian has assembled a smart, experienced cast to present this insightful work with The Root’s innovative approach to theatre. The 1078 Gallery is at 820 Broadway in Chico. Showtime is 7:30. Tickets are $7 or ‘roll the dice.’ For more, go to: www.1078gallery.org or www.theroottheatre.com.

POETIC JUSTICE PROJECT

Off the Hook, an original musical drama set in prison, featuring a cast of formerly incarcerated actors. A talk-back with the cast follows the performance. May 26, 7 p.m. First United Methodist Church, 1825 East St. $7 adults, $5 students/seniors/groups of 10 or more. Scholarships available. Tickets available at First Methodist Church, Holiday Market on Placer Street or at the door. For more: http://www.poeticjusticeproject.org/

WE MULTIMEDIA THEATRE GROUP

True West, a play by Sam Shepard. June 16-18; June 24, 25. Shepard’s 1980 signature piece about two brothers, one successful, the other a loser, whose worlds are literally turned upside down when their paths cross after many years. Mature language. Plays at the Bohemian Art Loft. Doors open at 7 p.m., shows start at 7:30. Tickets $15, available through www.wemultimedia.com or at Enjoy the Store, 1475 Placer St. Redding. Produced in cooperation with the Shasta County Arts Council. Information: 530-247-1925.

An actor, director, and artist, Dean Williams has appeared on Shasta County stages for over 25 years in nearly 100 different roles. He has collaborated with many theater groups and is co-founder of The Root Theatre Company. He has also voiced characters for Sega and Playstation video games, and acted for a number of radio, televison and independent film projects.

A News Cafe, founded in Shasta County by Redding, CA journalist Doni Greenberg, is the place for people craving local Northern California news, commentary, food, arts and entertainment. Views and opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of anewscafe.com.

Dean Williams

An actor, director, and artist, Dean Williams has appeared on Shasta County stages for over 25 years in nearly 100 different roles. He has collaborated with many theatre groups and is co-founder of The Root Theatre Company. He has also voiced characters for Sega and Playstation video games, and acted for a number of radio, televison and independent film projects. Ever since the first stories were acted out around ancient fires, theatre has held the power to move audiences like no other art form. It remains Williams's focus because live theatre has the potential to tell us every human story, intimately and impactfully. It becomes a magic mirror in which we see our own stories.

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