William McMillen is a man of many passions. As provost and executive vice president of academic affairs for the University of Toledo he is committed to higher education and in his downtime he is just as passionate about the written word.

McMillen’s personal quest for creativity recently led him to pen a new play for the Glacity Theatre Collective. The play, “Exhibition,” is set to open in the University’s Center for Visual Arts at 8 p.m. Jan. 27.

The production features Brian Purdue, Starr Chellsea Cutino, Ben Pryor, Jennifer Lake, Pamela Tomassetti and Dave DeChristopher (a Toledo Free Press contributor). Cornel Gabara is directing for the company.

According to a news release, “The play is composed of three scenes that focus on a couple, Sharon and Raymond, at key points in their married life: their engagement, in the midst of raising children, and after the children have grown and gone.  Each of the three couples is played by a different pair of actors, and, though the characters at the focus of each scene are not aware of it, their older/younger selves are also onstage, providing depth and nuance to each story as it unfolds in real time under the disinterested eye of a security guard.”

“The set for the piece is extremely simple, just a bench in front of a painting, yet I think this is a very challenging play for the audience, with all of the characters interacting at the same time,” McMillen said.

McMillen, who is originally from Wisconsin, first got his start as a writer while in graduate school at Ohio University in Athens where he majored in English/creative writing and minored in theater. Exhibition marks his debut as a produced playwright.

“One of the reasons why I wrote this particular play is that I’ve always been interested in family relations. I thought Glacity was a good fit for the play because I had been following their productions, and I really admire theater that goes outside the mainstream. This is a different theater experience in a different setting, but that’s a good thing. Theatre can be funny, it can be song and dance, it can be serious; that’s the beauty of it.”

Additional performance dates are Jan. 28, 29 and Feb. 3, 4, 5. Sunday matinees will begin at 2 p.m., Friday and Saturday shows begin at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 at the door and may be purchased at www.glacity.tix.org. Jan. 29 is a “Pay What You Can” matinee. The Center for Visual Arts is located at 620 Grove Place next to the Toledo Museum of Art.

For more information, visit www.glacity.org.

Tags: Ben Pryor, Brian Purdue, Dave DeChristopher, Jennifer Lake, Ohio University, Pamela Tomassetti, Starr Chellsea Cutino, University of Toledo, William McMillen

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 24th, 2012 at 10:59 am and is filed under Uncategorized.
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Fans of best-selling author David Sedaris have two very good reasons to rejoice this holiday season. The Glacity Theatre Collective (GTC) will present not one, but two Sedaris classics this year as part of its annual “A Twisted Holiday Delight” event. The production is set to open at Valentine Theatre’s Studio A on Dec. 2.

“A Twisted Holiday Delight” features Glacity veteran Dave DeChristopher as Crumpet the Elf in “The Santaland Diaries.” The event also showcases the return of Pamela Tomassetti as Jocelyn Dunbar in “Season’s Greetings.” Tomassetti and DeChristopher appeared at Carnegie Hall last spring with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra. Both shows are being directed by GTC Artistic Director Cornel Gabara, with sets by James S. Hill, lighting by Donald Robert Fox and costumes by Holly Monsos.

Dave DeChristopher

“I first came upon David Sedaris via NPR, and then read a lot of his plays and books — this started as a large chunk of one of his books before being adapted to the stage — and was especially intrigued because my first roommate in New York ­ a wild girl ­ worked in Santaland in 1981, and told hilarious stories,” DeChristopher said. “I loved the piece, but never felt that I had the chops to do a one-person show. Then it looked for a while that, because of the crazy schedules of Glacity core members, we’d be forced to do more one-person things to fill a season, so I suggested it.”

Before coming home to his native Toledo in 2004, DeChristopher, who contributes crossword puzzles to Toledo Free Press, worked for 24 years in New York as an actor, director, playwright and teaching artist. Since returning to Toledo, he’s directed at The Village Players, The Toledo Rep and the University of Toledo.

Tomassetti toured with National Players, was a member of the original cast of “Into the Woods” with Stephen Sondheim, and appeared in the debut of “Poet’s Garden,” a musical about the life of Vincent Van Gogh.

“This year, we’re in a good place because there’s more confidence about the piece(s), which provides a firmer platform from which to try some new things. I’m anxious to do it.”

Tickets are $22 plus a $2 facility fee. Additional show dates are Dec. 3, 4, 9, 10 and 11. Friday and Saturday performances begin at 8 p.m., while Sunday matinées kick off at 2 p.m.

For more information, call (419) 242-2787 or visit the web site www.valentinetheatre.com or www.glacity.org.

Tags: Dave DeChristopher, Glacity Theatre Collective, Toledo Symphony Orchestra, Valentine Theatre

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 29th, 2011 at 11:01 am and is filed under Holidays, Star, Theater.
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