Greetings, Players!

The cast of Little Women has been set, after 95 people auditioned. The show, directed by Dorothy Schecter, boasts the following Concord Players' members: Judith Broggi, Susan Ellsworth, Fritz Kussin, Bill Maxwell, Eric Ruben, and Charles Streff. Also cast are Stephen Barrett, Kathryn Lynch, Tracy MacKenzie, Sheryl Peters, Meg Streff, Webb Tilney, and Jan Turnquist. In an interesting twist, the role of Marmee was double-cast, with two talented actresses sharing the role. Mark your calendars, the show opens April 19 and runs through May 5, and even with 12 shows, it WILL sell out. Call 978-369-2990 for tickets.

The Concord Players Annual Meeting will take place on Sunday, March 17, at 7:00 PM. At 8:00 PM, following the business portion of the meeting and refreshments, The Concord Players' Shakespeare Workshop will present "10 Vignettes from Hamlet", featuring Zor Attias, Catherine Epstein, Harold Hector, Jeanne Hannum, Carol Mitchell, Webb Tilney, Stephanie Schlie, and directed by Thomas Caron. Come find out what the Players will be up to in the coming year, and stay to be entertained by scenes from the Bard.

We are pleased to announce the shows for our 2002 - 2003 season. Fall starts off with Maxwell Anderson's Bad Seed, a thriller about a sweet little girl who may not be so sweet after all! Our winter production will be the hilarious family comedy, Over the River and Through the Woods, by Joe DiPietro. In the spring we'll be treated to the dazzling musical Chicago, by John Kander and Fred Ebb. This promises to be a great mix of drama, comedy, music, and dancing.

Rik Pierce sends this about the next informal play reading: "I've been rooting around for the next play we might enjoy reading, and have come up with G.B. Shaw's You Never Can Tell. It is quite a delightful read, but it is long and filled with author's notes and comments, many of which I think should be read also. We might not get through it all, so we'll just go until we get tired! There are 7 or 8 characters, all of whom have nice parts and great room for characterizations by us. I'm setting this one up for Sunday, March 3 at 3:00 PM in the greenroom." Let Rik know (978-371-7491 or <rikp@pobox.com>) if you plan to attend.

As mentioned last month, Orchard House, The Concord Players, The Wright Tavern Center, and Concord/Carlisle Adult Education are sponsoring a panel discussion series about Little Women, which will be held on three Tuesday evenings in the parlor at First Parish in Concord at 7:30 pm. The first one, on April 9th, is on the influence of Little Women on the characters of the panelists. The panel includes Corey Atkins, Kate Clarke, Lucille Daniel, Barbara Powell, and Marion Thornton. The second one, on April 30th, will examine the influence of Emerson, Thoreau, et al on Louisa May Alcott, and will be moderated by Jane Gordon and Melissa Pennell. On May 7 Kate Henchman will present a film lecture concerning the different views of women and their role in society in each of the Little Women films. This one is a change from what was reported last month; this event will not take place on March 20, as previously stated. In another change, the $15 fee will cover all three evenings, instead of being $15 apiece. All proceeds will go to Orchard House. You may register for the series through Concord/Carlisle Adult Education; look for details in their spring brochure.

Congratulations and best wishes to Betsy and Mark Connelly on their 50th wedding anniversary!

Here's some news from Shana Dirik: "I just got cast in the Acme Theater group's production of Butterflies Are Free in the role of Mrs. Baker, Don's mother. I'm excited about this opportunity to play a role very different than the ones I usually play. The added bonus is that this production will be taken to the EMACT Festival on May 29th, so I am absolutely thrilled to go back to the festival! The show opens at Acme on April 5th, and runs for four weekends through the weekend of the 26th."

Samantha Stein (Lucy from The Rivals) will be appearing as Rapunzel in the Acton-Boxboro High School production of Into The Woods. Performances will be April 25, 26, and 27th in the evening and April 28th as a matinee. Please call 978-263-1584 for ticket information. Samantha will also be performing at Symphony Hall in Boston on March 16th with the All State District Chorus.

Joseph Zamparelli Jr. is directing Barrymore at the Lyric West Theater in Wellesly Hills. Jerry Robbins stars in this production, which runs March 1 - 17. Call 781-235-0488 for tickets.

Stefanie Cloutier will be performing in the premiere of The MOMologues, a comedy about motherhood. This original piece, which Stefanie also co-wrote, will be performed at the theater at the Institute for Contemporary Art on May 3, 4, 10, 11, 12, 17, and 18. For tickets and information, check out <www.momologues.com> or call 978-369-5776.

Please add this new member to your membership book: Kathleen Dalton, e-mail <wivell1@mediaone.net>. Welcome, Kathleen!

Please send your news to me at <sara@sb.org>. The next newsletter deadline is March 22.