Conway’s 250th anniversary celebration will kick off this week with “Six By Six By Six” — a series of six 10-minute plays presented in association with Silverthorne Theater Company, interspersed with musical acts.
“It expands the 250th celebration, and we’re really happy to help out doing that. It’s a lead-in, and hopefully it’ll get people energized about the following weekend,” said Lucinda Kidder, managing director of the Franklin County theater company.
The music and theater festival will be held in the Conway Sportsman’s Club’s new pavilion at 193 Elmer Road starting at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, June 9 and 10. A 2 p.m. Saturday matinee will be held June 10.
Because of the variety of plays, Conway resident and event organizer Michael Haley said, “there will be something for everyone.”
“They are definitely family-friendly. That was one of the things we wanted to make sure — we’re hoping for a lot of kids, a lot of people who don’t normally come to theater,” Kidder continued.
Admission is free. Food and refreshments will be available preceding the event. The event is funded by the town’s 250th anniversary celebration committee. Silverthorne Theater recruited directors and actors, and provided technical and public relations assistance to the project. John Iverson, from the theater company, donated lighting instruments.
Organizers advise those who wish to attend to come early because seating is limited, and to contact Joan Haley beforehand at 413-369-4301 or jzinnie@comcast.net.
Musicians slated to perform between acts include Chris Devine, TJ and the Peepers, Janet Ryan, Sugarloaf String Band, Rosie Caine and her Trine Cheile Irish Group, Justus Conant, the Cripps Puppets and more.
A brief synopsis of each play, in the order they’ll be performed, is as follows:
“Six By Six By Six” is introduced by “Mrs. Sorken,” a fictitious character charged with relaying theater protocol and discussing technical aspects of theater in general. There’s a comedic twist, however: Mrs. Sorken has lost her notes. As a result, she relies on a very scattered memory to impart a lengthy dialogue about the history of theater interjected by discombobulated and extraneous thoughts.
“Mrs. Sorken is a society lady who wants to sound like she knows everything about culture. She wants to instruct the audience about theater, but gets things mixed up, and doesn’t have any idea how funny she is,” Kidder said.
The short play, written by Christopher Durang, is directed by Turners Falls resident Rebecca Daniels, featuring Carmela Lanza of Shelburne Falls as Mrs. Sorken.
By Worcester playwright Ann Marie Shea, “Best in Class” is about a dog show — with a surprise and funny ending. The play is directed by Northampton resident Brianna Sloane and features Pioneer Valley actors and actresses Moe McElligot, Andrew Roberts, Linda Tardif, and Troy David Mercier.
This humorous two-person short play, written by Shel Silverstein, is directed by Michael Haley and features two Conway residents, Bud Ware and Pioneer Valley Performing Arts 14-year-old student, Claire Conklin.
It’s centered around a birthday gift that a father gives to his daughter, which turns out to be more bitter than sweet.
A hyper-localized, short comedy, “B-5,” is written and directed by Michael Haley with a large cast of local actors. The play takes place in a fictionalized Baker’s Country Store and captures the heart of Conway’s small-town community.
The play features Ann Steinhauser, Mike Currie, Marvin Shedd, Loraine Boyden, Joan Haley, Justus Conant, Chris Devine, John Reese and Troy David Mercier.
This play is simple and charming, a homage to memory loss, directed by Gill resident David Rowland. Along with directing, Rowland plays Herbert alongside Murial, played by Gill resident Sheila Heffernon. In the play, written by Robert Anderson, an elderly couple, who’ve each been married and divorced a few times, sit on a porch reminiscing about the past. Their memories mingle, though, and soon they don’t remember which are their own.
“It encourages us to be compassionate and see the humor in old folks,” Rowland said during a recent rehearsal at Northfield Mount Hermon School’s theater, where he worked with Heffernon in the theater department for decades. Heffernon said the play shows “the richness of (Herbert and Murial’s) lives. They can still love past people.”
Rounding out the six plays is a more serious meditation on patriotism and mentorship from an older, 65-year old, man to an 18-year old Somali refugee who wants to enlist in the Army. The play is set in the break room of L.L. Bean’s Vermont headquarters.
“They’re two black men. One’s an older man whose been working there for a long time,” Kidder explained. “It’s a very human approach. This is a human problem, an older guy trying to mentor a younger guy.”
The play, by Donetta Lavinia Grays, is directed by Hannah Simms of Hartford’s Heartbeat Theater. The two men, Ali and Jerome, are played by Tang Sauce and Olusanya Bey.