Appreciate the Drama at Your Library, 8/18/2016
Modern Odyssey in Lakeview
LAKEVIEW, Ore.—August 12, 2016— Literary Arts in association with Hand2Mouth Theatre Company will present a staged reading of “Ithaka,” a play by Andrea Stolowitz, on Wednesday, August 24, 2016 at 7:00 PM at the First Presbyterian Church. A contemporary retelling of Homer’s Odyssey, “Ithaka” won the 2015 Oregon Book Award in drama.
In the play, Lanie has just returned from her latest tour in Afghanistan but this time things are different; home doesn’t feel right and nothing makes sense. After a blow-up fight with her husband propels her to skip town, she undertakes an Odyssean journey through the American landscape, battling her monsters and trying to find her way home.
"Ithaka by Andrea Stolowitz is a bracingly original retelling of Homer’s Odyssey. In Stolowitz’s revisioning of this ancient story, the Odysseus character is a female Marine captain returning from a tour in Afghanistan. Grappling with the effects of PTSD, this returning veteran is having trouble re-entering her life back home. After an explosive fight with her husband, she embarks on a road trip with another female veteran who turns out to be a ghost. The play’s journey is as much figurative as it is literal. “ - Naomi Iizuka, Oregon Book Award judge in drama
Jonathan Walters of Hand2Mouth Theatre Company directs this dramatic reading featuring the talents of Bobby Bermea, Jenni Green Miller, Jaimie Lee, Maesie Speer, and Judson Williams. Hand2Mouth is a Portland-based theatre ensemble committed to creating original work.
Andrea Stolowitz’s plays have been presented nationally and internationally at theaters such as The Long Wharf, The Cherry Lane, and New York Stage and Film. A recipient of Artists Repertory Theater’s $25,000 New Play Commission, Andrea premiered Ithaka at the theatre in 2013. Her play Antarktikos was awarded the 2013 Oregon Book Award for Drama.
This free public program is provided in partnership with Lake County Library District, PLAYA, and Literary Arts as part of the Oregon Book Awards author tour. Both Stolowitz and Hand2Mouth Theatre are previous residents of PLAYA. PLAYA is a nonprofit organization supporting innovative thinking through work in the arts, literature, natural sciences and other fields of creative inquiry. Literary Arts is a community-based nonprofit literary center located in downtown Portland. Oregon Book Awards & Fellowships supports, promotes, and celebrates Oregon's writers and publishers. The Oregon Book Awards Author Tour brings finalists to towns across the state.
For more information about this free program, please contact Library Director Amy Hutchinson at 541-947-6019 or amyh@lakecountylibrary.org. For more information about Literary Arts, contact Susan Moore at 503-227-2538 or susan@literary-arts.org. For more information about PLAYA, contact Deb Ford at deborahford@playasummerlake.org or 541-943-3983. For more information about Hand2Mouth Theatre Company, email mail@hand2mouththeatre.org or call 503-235-5284.
Playwriting Workshop in Summer Lake
LAKEVIEW, Ore.—August 12, 2016— Calling all writers! Playwright Andrea Stolowitz and director Jonathan Walters will present a playwriting workshop on monologues on Thursday, August 25, 2016 from 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM at PLAYA in Summer Lake. The duo will be presenting a staged reading of Stolowitz play “Ithaka” in Lakeview on Wednesday and offered to present the workshop as a gift to area writers.
Stolowitz and Hand2Mouth Theatre Company are past residents of PLAYA. PLAYA is a nonprofit organization supporting innovative thinking through work in the arts, literature, natural sciences and other fields of creative inquiry, located in Summer Lake.
Workshop participants will spend the first hour creating monologues for the stage and the second hour workshopping them on their feet and in groups. Both portions will open and explore the idea and use of live interviews as a starting point for theatre text. Hour one will be led by Oregon Book Award winning playwright Andrea Stolowitz and hour two will be led by Oregon Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship winning director Jonathan Walters.
As Artistic Director of Hand2Mouth Theatre Company, Jonathan Walters has co-conceived, co-created, and directed the bulk of Hand2Mouth shows, and works closely with guest writers and the ensemble to develop original devised theatre work. Under his direction, Hand2Mouth Theatre has premiered over 20 major new works, as well as site-specific and commissioned short pieces in the Portland area, and toured these works regionally, nationally and abroad, presenting at today's leading venues for contemporary theatre performance. He teaches and directs devised theatre at colleges and theatres across the Pacific Northwest, the greater US, as well as in Europe and Latin America.
Andrea Stolowitz’s plays have been presented nationally and internationally at theaters such as The Long Wharf, The Cherry Lane, and New York Stage and Film. A recipient of Artists Repertory Theater’s $25,000 New Play Commission, Andrea premiered Ithaka at the theatre in 2013. Her play “Antarktikos” was awarded the 2013 Oregon Book Award for Drama, and her play “Ithaka” was awarded the 2016 Oregon Book Award for Drama.
This free public program is provided in partnership with Lake County Library District, PLAYA, and Literary Arts. For more information about this free program or PLAYA, please contact Deb Ford at deborahford@playasummerlake.org or 541-943-3983. For more information about Hand2Mouth Theatre Company, email mail@hand2mouththeatre.org or call 503-235-5284. For more information about Literary Arts, contact Susan Moore at 503-227-2538 or susan@literary-arts.org. For more information about the library, contact Amy Hutchinson at amyh@lakecountylibrary.org or 541-947-6019.