Posts Tagged 'carolyn holding'

Bratton Late Night Cabaret weds irreverence with talent in final CTC performance
Theater

Bratton Late Night Cabaret weds irreverence with talent in final CTC performance

·Comments closed

Ranging from slam poetry and drum performances to songs and skits, Chautauqua Theater Company’s one-night-only Bratton Late Night Cabaret is always a surprise. All 14 conservatory actors perform together for the last time on one stage.

Bratton Late Night debuts at 10:30 p.m. tonight in Bratton Theater, and it is CTC’s final event of the season. The whole show is thrown together betwixt rehearsals for the final production, As You Like It, which closes at 4 p.m. today in Bratton Theater.

Directing fellow Sash Bischoff, the conservatory actors and the four design fellows organize the entire show. All of the senior staff is kept in the dark about the events of the evening, so each year lends itself to new surprises.

CTC’s ‘Philadelphia Story’ is ‘staging at the highest level’
Guest Critic Reviews

CTC’s ‘Philadelphia Story’ is ‘staging at the highest level’

·Comments closed

Identify the two characters that appear to have stepped out of a pose in the pages of the old Vanity Fair, and you’ll know the outcome of the American classic comedy The Philadelphia Story.

It is in the thrust of the chin, don’t you know, and in the arch of the back, and how one handles one’s wrist. It is in the genes, the well-borne genes, which make the grade and open the doors of high society, Philadelphia style. And there is no getting away from it, come either hell or high heaven or a variety of other topic sentences at work in this nutty play — topics such as blackmail, philandering, alcoholism and the moving target of marriage.

The marriage game — whether one is in it or out of it, and by the way, with whom? — is the core topic of The Philadelphia Story, written for Katharine Hepburn by Philip Barry, first on stage in 1939 and then on the screen in late 1940. It is hard to imagine the incredible circumstances that swirl around the nubile Tracy Lord, heiress to millions.

CTC ’fore-Play delves into historical context
Theater

CTC ’fore-Play delves into historical context

·Comments closed

It’s 1939 and Tracy Lord is wearing pants.

The leading character of The Philadelphia Story, which officially opens Saturday at 6 p.m. and runs through July 8, touts a bold fashion choice from the first scene of the play.

“This is the beginning of the time when women were wearing pants in public,” said Tracy Christensen, costume designer for Chautauqua Theater Company. “You have this character who is a very modern young woman and has, for better or worse, really opinionated thoughts, and putting her in pants right from the beginning instantly says something about who she is.”

The historical significance behind the seemingly simple choice of pants or skirt is but one example of the history impacting the production decisions of The Philadelphia Story. At 7 p.m. Sunday in McKnight Hall, the ’fore-Play discusses the history surrounding the play and its effect on the finished product.

‘Becoming first-class human beings’
Theater

‘Becoming first-class human beings’

·Comments closed

Carolyn Holding is about to have her brown hair dyed a deep auburn.

She is understandably nervous, but willing to take the plunge to further immerse herself in her character, Tracy Lord, the leading lady affectionately known as “Red” throughout The Philadelphia Story.

“It’s a really well-written play. It’s funny and sweet,” Holding said. “Everyone in it is so honest, which is just a wonderful thing. The main goal of everyone is to be a human being. That’s just beautiful.”

Chautauqua Theater Company’s The Philadelphia Story previews at 8 p.m. tonight in Bratton Theater and officially opens at 6 p.m. tomorrow. It runs through July 8.