PLAYHOUSE NEWS. What s Up Next. Somerset Valley Players. Somerset Valley Players. Directed by Michael A. Muller

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1 Volume 20 Issue 3 Somerset Valley Players March 2019 PLAYHOUSE NEWS Inside this issue: Calendar of Events 2019 Sponsors Meeting Bites Table Read-The Scam 2 3 Rehearsal for Murder 4 Audition Notice 5 SVP Donates to Good Cause Dinner/Show Special Be an SVP Sponsor AmazonSmile SVP 2019 Season 8 SVP 2019 Subscription Form SVP 2019 Flex Pass Form SVP 2019 Membership Form What s Up Next Directed by Michael A. Muller Runs March 8th through 24th Fridays & Saturdays at 8PM, Sundays at 2PM Adapted for the stage by D.D. Brooke From the television play by Richard Levinson and William Link Tickets: $20 Adults $18 Seniors/Students To purchase tickets: Visit It's opening night and the beautiful leading lady, who was also the playwright's fiancée, dies! As the actors, producer, director and others connected with the show seek the truth the tension grows and reaches the boiling point with surprising revelations, countered by others even more surprising. The dazzling, yet basically logical twists build to a climax and solution that are theatrically stunning! Somerset Valley Players 601 Route 206 Suite Hillsborough, NJ Executive Board: President: Emily M. Windus Vice President of Production: Todd R. Bennington Vice President of Theatre Mgmt.: Ed Hayden Vice President of House Mgmt.: Randy J. Coddington, Sr. Vice President of Sales & Marketing: Roberta Steve Secretary: Paula C. Windus Treasurer: Michael A. Muller

2 Calendar of Events P: SOMERSET VALLEY PLAYHOUSE (U ) R M S D: M 8 24, 2019 S T: 8PM F! " S#!, 2PM S#! M M$ D: M 11, 2019 T: 7:30PM 9:30 PM B G M)* M$ T S S D: M 23, 2019 S T: 1PM T) + *! )! D P A* M$ D: A* 8, 2019 T: 7:30PM 9:30 PM B G M)* M$ A F T H W F S D: A* 26 M! 12, 2019 S T: 8PM F! " S#!, 2PM S#! M! M$ D: M! 13, 2019 T: 7:30PM 9:30 PM B G M)* M$ J D S D: J# 7 23, 2019 S T: 8PM F! " S#!, 2PM S#! J# M$ D: J# 10, 2019 T: 7:30PM 9:30 PM B G M)* M$ SVP is very grateful to our 2019 Season Sponsors The cast of Ada & Francis Savarese In Honor & Loving Memory of Henry E. Bennington and Ralph N. DeMarco JML Landscaping Mailbox Business Center of Hillsborough Petrock s Bar & Grille The Robert W. Pittenger Family State Line Aviation Super Sundaes Page 2

3 Meeting Bites - February 2019 Theater Management Due to low attendance on Superbowl Sunday, future options were discussed, including : Eliminating the Sunday matinee and scheduling 2 performances on Saturday of that weekend. Sponsoring a buy 1 get 1 free promotion for Sunday performance. Ed Hayden investigated having the mobile box office at the Hillsborough Library and gave the application process paperwork to Kyle Hamilton. Ed was thanked for his newsletter article on volunteer Rob Bottone. Roberta Steve and Mike Muller will work on spotlighting volunteers in future newsletters. House Management The playhouse passed the recent fire inspection. Production Karen Abbatiello will be casting and directing the table read of Doris Parmett s play, The Scam, to be presented on March 23. Todd Bennington, CJ Miller, Holly Lessing and Karen have volunteered to clear out the prop room, date to be announced. Sales and Marketing Roberta has reached out to the manager of Space Escapes Escape Room in Flemington, The Scam By Doris Parmett Join us for a table read of National Best Selling author, Doris Parmett s, new play, THE SCAM. March 23, :00 pm Admission is free who is interested in buying an ad in the program. Roberta is pursing a photo opportunity with the Mayor of Hillsborough to recognize SVP being named Best of the Best community theater in Somerset County. Treasurer The 2018 Final Grant paperwork needs to be re-worked because the Somerset County Cultural & Heritage Commission has questions about volunteers working at SVP. Old Business Ed and Suzanne Wengryn will order more tee shirts (not polo shirts). Holly Kowalenko, chair of the By-Laws Review Committee, announced the first meeting of the committee was held on February 6 and will be meeting monthly. The next meeting will be March 7. New Business SVP has purchased ads in the playbills of the Hillsborough and Somerville High Schools spring musicals. Kyle suggested that SVP sponsor workshops, possibly quarterly on Saturdays, for 4 hours. Suzanne suggested parking lot lines be drawn before each show. Doris Parmett is an award-winning and bestselling American author of romance and contemporary women's fiction. Her awards include the Holt Medallion from the Virginia Chapter of Romance Writers for Risk; three awards from the New Jersey Writers Conference, for Unfinished Business, Risk, and Lies; two Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice awards, again for Risk and Lies. Page 3

4 Empty Stage Creates Mystery at Somerset Valley Players Rehearsal for Murder When audience members enter the Somerset Valley Players theater to see their latest production, Rehearsal for Murder, and see a bare stage, they may think they missed the show. But they d be wrong. The dark, empty stage is what sets this mystery apart. Rehearsal for Murder is a unique mystery. It s not a typical Agatha Christie style play with the dead body laying on the floor, explains Director Mike Muller. The setting of the show is a darkened Broadway theater stage. Simple right? Instead, Rehearsal for Murder makes you question if a murder has even taken place. The bare bones set will help keep audiences engaged throughout; the focus is on the story. Rehearsal for Murder began as a 1982 television movie scripted by Richard Levenson and William Link, the prolific writes who created classic television mysteries like Columbo and Murder, She Wrote. The movie was adapted for the stage by D. D. Brooke. The play version Page 4 is a terrific adaptation and has an esteemed pedigree. Instead of Detective Columbo or Jessica Fletcher, the audience becomes the detective, states Producer Emily Windus. The best part about directing mysteries is that both the audiences and the actors are committed to the story, adds Muller. I love it when I hear the audience say I knew it or it s him not her. And I love it when the actors want the audience to be surprised. They all want the audience to think they re the villain! Produced by Emily M. Windus and stage managed by Shannen Rivers, Rehearsal for Murder runs March 8-24 at the Somerset Valley Players theater on 689 Amwell Road (Rout 514) in Hillsborough. Friday and Saturday performances begin at 8 p.m. Sunday matinees start at 2 p.m. The theater is air conditioned, barrier free and wheelchair accessible. For tickets and show times go to

5 AUDITION NOTICE Date/Time: Monday, March 18 at 7 PM Wednesday, March 20 at 7 PM Place: Somerset Valley Players, 689 Amwell Road, Hillsborough, NJ Synopsis: Unbeknownst to 4 retirement home friends, the man to whom they've entrusted their life savings - a smooth-talking financial advisor named Barney Effward - has been arrested for bilking his clients out of their savings through a Ponzi scheme. Pandemonium ensues as the four retirees try to find a way to exact their revenge, recoup their losses, and keep the authorities from discovering their plans for revenge. Director Emily Windus is seeking: 3-5 adult males 4 adult females There will be no callbacks. SPECIAL NOTES FOR AUDITIONERS: Readings will be from the script. Wear comfortable clothing. Please bring a headshot or recent photo, if possible, and your acting resume, if available. Please bring potential rehearsal conflict dates to auditions. Rehearsals will be on weekday evenings, 2-3x per week, beginning the week of March 25th. Not all actors will be called to all rehearsals in the beginning. Attendance for Tech Week is mandatory: Sunday, June 2 Thursday, June 6. Attendance for ALL performances is also mandatory. Performance dates run weekends, June 7 through 23, 2019 (Friday, Saturday & Sunday). Performers interested in auditioning should go to for a complete breakdown of characters and other information. Page 5

6 Somerset Valley Players Donate to a Good Cause Early in February, Super Sundaes, one of SVP s valued business sponsors, put out notice that their shop would be a drop off site for a month-long Hillsborough-based effort to collect 1,000 socks for donation to the Goodwill Rescue Mission in Newark. Emily Imbimbo and her brother, Andy, are leading the drive. It started when my brother had a dream that he was locked out of his house in the cold and he watched his feet turn black from frostbite, Emily explains. He couldn t shake the feeling of fear and helplessness the dream gave him. That s what inspired him to want to do something for the homeless who are at risk in the winter. When they contacted the Goodwill Rescue Mission in Newark, the experts there told them the #1 year-round need is socks. They said giving out clean, dry socks has the biggest impact for those they serve, adds Emily. The actors literally only wore the socks about 14 times between rehearsals and performances, so they were very gently used, Roberta continues. After the closing performance, we gave the actors the choice of keeping their socks if they wanted them or having them donated. They all chose to give them to a good cause. I laundered them and set up a time for Todd to make the donation. We so appreciate SVP s thoughtfulness, Emily states. The drive has been so successful, we ve extended it for another 2 weeks. SVP counts itself lucky to be part of the Hillsborough community, Roberta concludes. Partnering with a terrific business like Super Sundaes even in this small way reflects our desire to be not just a cultural asset in Hillsborough, but an all around good citizen too. We look forward to more opportunities in the future. Emily and Andy soon put their idea into action. Emily, a 2 nd grade teacher in Hillsborough, reached out to Super Sundaes to ask them for help. Jayne Mochnacz, owner of Super Sundaes, agreed to let the shop be a drop off site. Super Sundaes, THE place for ice cream treats in Hillsborough, and the sponsor of last year s production of Cheaper By The Dozen, put out the word on social media that gently used socks were needed. That s how SVP got involved. Roberta Steve, VP of Sales & Marketing for SVP, saw Super Sundaes appeal and approached Todd Bennington, VP of Production, about how SVP could get involved. I was directing Biloxi Blues, the first show in our 2019 season, Todd relates. The show took place in a WWII boot camp. The actors in the cast all played soldiers. Our costumer, Steve Sizer, had bought them all military green socks as part of their costumes. Roberta wondered if the socks could be repurposed after the show. VP of Production, Todd Bennington, donates the socks worn by the cast of SVP s Biloxi Blues, to Emily Imbimbo, leader of a drive collecting 1,000 socks for distribution at Newark s Goodwill Rescue Mission. The donation was made at Super Sundaes, an SVP business sponsor and Amwell Road neighbor. Page 6

7 Dinner and a Show Special SVP s popular Dinner & Show partnership with Caffé Piazza is BACK! Bring your ticket* to Caffé Piazza before the show on Friday or Saturday and receive a 10% discount towards your dinner. When you finish dinner bring your dinner receipt to SVP and receive a $2 per ticket* refund. Dinner and show must be on same date to receive discounts. A valid SVP ticket* must be presented at Caffé Piazza. Valid dinner receipt must be presented at SVP box office. SVP ticket discount offer valid Friday and Saturday only. Dinner discount valid on Sunday after the show. 609 Route 206 North Hillsborough, NJ (Located in Stop & Shop complex) (908) *NOTE: Ticket must be a nondiscounted ticket ($18+). Become an SVP Sponsor! A Show Sponsorship delivers you direct marketing to the SVP family and patrons. Your company will become the headline sponsor of a SVP production. Your company name and logo will appear: On the cover of the Show Program for the sponsored production. In all Audition Notices sent for the production. In all Membership Notices and Newsletters for the next 12 months. In all Press Releases sent to local print and broadcast media for the production. On all Inside and Outside Signage during the run of the production. On the SVP Website for the next 12 months. In the production pre-show announcements speech prior to each performance. Plus you will receive passes for 10 free tickets to the sponsored SVP production. Please contact vp_marketing@svptheatre.org or call for more information! AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support your favorite charitable organization every time you shop, at no cost to you. When you shop at smile.amazon.com, you ll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to your favorite charitable organization - SVP! When you shop at AmazonSmile, Amazon donates 0.5% of the purchase price to Somerset Valley Players! Please keep us in mind the next time you are shopping on Amazon. Bookmark this link: support us every time you shop! Page 7

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