The Scarsdale Inquirer – Hometown newspaper of Scarsdale, New York 10583
Playwrights debut new work in GCT’s ‘Fourplay’
By DEBRA BANERJEE 
SCARSDALE INQUIRER/JIM MACLEAN
Playwrights debut new work in GCT’s ‘Fourplay’
The play’s the thing this week for Greenville Community Theater. The winning entries in Greenville Community Theater’s first play writing contest will be presented on stage in “Fourplay” through Saturday, June 16, at Edgemont High School Theater.
The winning plays are “Happy Days Are Here Again,” written by Bruce Bloom, former theater critic for The Scarsdale Inquirer, directed by Stewart Hanges; “Fallen Angels,” written by Jean Eifert, directed by Frank Rakas; “Getting Played,” written by Judy Klass, directed by Michael Ferrara; and “Waiting,” written by Michael Ferrara, directed by Jean Eifert.
Hanges, longtime GCT member and president of the community theater group this year, said the contest drew only 11 plays instead of the expected 20 or so. “We didn’t have as good a response as we would have liked,” Hanges told the Inquirer.
The requirements were that the play had to be 20 minutes in length, easy to stage and with a maximum of four roles.
The plays were submitted blind to a team of four readers who graded the plays on a 0-4 scale. The points were tallied and the plays with the top points went before the GCT board who then decided the winners.
“We wanted to do four plays,” Hanges said. Two are comedies, one is a funny play with a serious story, and the other is a drama.
Bloom’s play “Happy Days Are Here Again” is “a kind of political spoof,” Bloom told the Inquirer. Bloom, who now lives on Long Island with his wife Sara, a writer and former features editor for the Inquirer, didn’t want to reveal much of the story because it’s essential for the audience to be surprised, he said. But very briefly, a Jewish comedian and his wife flying down to Florida to do a show get diverted to Washington, D.C., at the request of a VIP.
Bloom, who’s had plays produced in Israel, New Zealand and London, wrote “Happy Days” very quickly. “Once I had the concept, it came to me in a flash of insight. I once heard a playwright who said that he had written the play between tea and dinner. I don’t think I could do that. I’m fast, but I’m not that fast.”
“Fourplay” will be at the Edgemont High School Theater, 200 White Oak Lane. Tickets are $15 with discounts for students and groups. For reservations, call 636-2863 or email contact@gctstage.org. Visit www.GCTSTAGE.org for a calendar of monthly workshops ranging from staged readings to full one-act plays.
Hanges and Bloom did discuss some ideas, but Hanges, as director, has the last word, Bloom said: “It’s a collaborative effort. Everybody brings something to the table. If the script has merit, it should be able to be interpreted properly by the director and cast. I know Stewart knows the subtext of the play.”
New GCT member Frank Rakas, who has directed shows around the county, is directing “Fallen Angels,” written by CGT member Jean Eifert.
Remaining performances are Friday, June 15, 8 p.m. and Saturday, June 16, 2 and 8 p.m.
The June 16 matinee concludes with a one-hour adjudication discussion and feedback by the Theater Association of New York State (TANYS), a community theater organization that hosts competitive theater festivals, to which the audience is invited to stay and observe. If invited, CGT will participate in a regional TANYS festival in the fall.
“I think what we’re doing is very exciting,” Hanges said. “They’re plays that literally have never been done before. The audience will experience something no one has ever seen. The program is very well rounded and very strong. We’ll be soliciting comments from the audience about their interest in our programs, about the plays and productions.”
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JUNE 15, 2012
The Scarsdale Inquirer • P.O. Box 418, 14 Harwood Court, Scarsdale, NY 10583 • (914) 725-2500 Fax (914) 725-1552 • www.scarsdalenews.com
©2012 S.I. Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is forbidden without the Publisher’s written permission.
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