Kayla Lian (left) as Laney, Meghan Chambers as Maribel, and Maureen Porter as Elise Waters
Photo Credit Win Goodbody

“Elise Waters is practical, rational, grounded, the sort of woman who responds to stress by making lists. In the midst of Catherine Trieschmann’s “Crooked” – a marvelously observed play about the lives of women and the uneven dividing lines between faith and reason, reality and madness — Elise makes lists of anything from possible new careers to ideal boyfriends among her favorite literary characters.

In that spirit, here’s a list of the main reasons this show, which opened Friday at CoHo Theater, jumps to the top of the must-see list among current Portland productions…” – Marty Hughley

Read the full review here.

New board president Mary Blair and her husband, Nike chief financial officer Don Blair, who is CoHo’s secretary/treasurer, have brought new energy, administrative skills and fundraising resources.

Chamberlain, now Lindsay C. Terrell, recently returned as managing director.

And on Friday night, along with the opening of the Catherine Treischmann play ‘Crooked,’ board member Philip Cuomo announced a slate of upcoming productions which he fittingly characterized as ‘The Past, Present and Future Season.’” – Marty Hughley

Read the full article here.

PortlandTheatreScene.com seems intrigued by our little show.

And don’t miss the great preview article in The Oregonian.

Maureen Porter

Philip Cuomo
Photo credit: Owen Carey

“…when Third Rail Rep members Maureen Porter and Philip Cuomo took an interest in the Catherine Trieschmann play Crooked, they faced an uphill battle in getting their own company to stage the piece. The play has just three characters, two of them teenagers; hence not much work to go around for the Third Rail ensemble.” – Marty Hughley

Read the full article here.

A collection of short works from the writers of Playwrights West

Playwrights West, a professional theatre company composed of nine acclaimed local playwrights, announces its first-ever gala benefit performance. Entitled Sparks, this performance will feature short excerpts of works by all nine member playwrights, culminating in a world premiere excerpt of Playwrights West’s upcoming 2013 season performance, Licking Batteries by Ellen Margolis. In addition to the performance, the evening will feature delicious food and wine and a silent auction.

EVENT INFORMATION

Sparks: A Benefit Performance

By the writers of Playwrights West
Directed by Playwrights West Company Member Andrew Wardenaar
Date: Monday, May 20th
Time: Cocktail Hour & Silent Auction at 6 pm . Performance at 7 pm . Post-show reception at 8:30 pm .
Venue: CoHo Theatre ( 2257 NW Raleigh St )
Cost: $40; tickets at door (cash/check only) subject to availability. Seating is limited.
Featuring excerpts from:

Eating in the Dark by Debbie Lamedman
Consider the Ant by Karin Magaldi
Licking Batteries by Ellen Margolis
Bus Stop by Steve Patterson
Ithaka by Andrea Stolowitz (opening May 28th at Artists Repertory Theatre)
Jeepers by Andrew Wardenaar
Where There Is Darkness, Light by Claire Willett
The Chain and the Gear by Patrick Wohlmut
Forky by Matthew B. Zrebski

About Playwrights West
Founded in 2009, Playwrights West, a professional theatre company composed of nine Portland playwrights known for the high quality of their writing, focuses on presenting top-level productions of its members’ work as well as supporting the development of original work in Portland . The nine member playwrights are: Debbie Lamedman, Karin Magaldi, Ellen Margolis, Steve Patterson,Andrea Stolowitz, Andrew Wardenaar, Claire Willett, Patrick Wohlmut, and Matthew B. Zrebski.

Drawing upon a growing national movement of playwrights taking the reins for productions of their work, Playwrights West seeks to introduce Portland audiences to compelling, innovative theatrical experiences, while engaging in a dialogue with the Portland theatre community about the rewards of presenting vital new plays by gifted local authors. Playwrights West believes staging new work is essential to furthering Portland theatre’s continued relevance to its audiences and the region’s overall culture. New plays provide thrilling, unique evenings at the theatre, while exploring the complex dynamics of the 21st-century human condition.

All originals. All premieres. All Portland.

Media Release
For immediate release
Media Contact:
Eleanor O’Brien
eleanor@eleanorobrien.com

5 weekends, 5 artists, 5 phenomenal solo shows!

PORTLAND, OR – Coho Productions is proud to bring you the cream of the crop! See five of Portland’s finest solo artists perform their smash hits. From the drammy-award winning My Mind Is Like an Open Meadow to the sold-out GGG:Dominatrix for Dummies to the critically acclaimed Mr. Darcy Dreamboat, every one of these shows is a proven success and every one of these artists is a tour de force. Now they are all gathered together in one curated festival that celebrates the brilliance and creativity of these exceptional women. If you missed any of these shows the first time around, now is your chance to see what everyone was raving about.

Coho Theater
2257 NW Raleigh St. Portland, OR 97210
Thursday – Sunday, June 13th-July 14th (no show on July 4th)
All shows start at 7:30pm
Tickets – $15/ per show, festival pass $50
(advance tickets available www.cohoproductions.org)

June 13th -16th GGG: Dominatrix for Dummies – Eleanor O’Brien
June 20th – 23rd Threads – Tonya Jone Miller
June 27th – 30th My Mind Is Like An Open Meadow – Erin Leddy
July 5th – 7th Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII – Tara Travis
July 11th – 14th Mr. Darcy Dreamboat – Camille Cettina

June 13th – 16th GGG: Dominatrix For Dummies – The legendary show returns! Don’t miss Eleanor O’Brien’s hilarious tale of training to be a dominatrix in NYC. Far from a simple guide to whips and chains,
there is a love story woven into the fabric of the S&M adventure. From the agony of junior high dances to the inner sanctum of a professional dungeon, enemas to ecstatic dance, GGG: D4D explores what it means
to fall in love with yourself, and how everyone wants to be wanted.
“Quite a remarkable bit of theatre…it’s a captivating, wholly uplifting experience” (Edmonton Sun) “Surprisingly touching…beautifully tender and erotic” (Edmonton Journal)
Find out more at www.dancenakedproductions.com

June 20th – 23rd Threads – In August of 1968, Donna Miller, a farm girl from rural Indiana stepped off a plane in Saigon. The people and events that led her there, and her ensuing adventures, make for “a wondrous ride” (Vue Weekly) that “quietly and effectively builds to a truly emotional conclusion.” (Orlando Sentinel). Based on a series of interviews with her mother, Tonya Jone Miller’s beautiful solo show Threads celebrates the humor, hope, love and courage that get us through tragedy. The story is a haunting reminder of how connected we are, how we never know the influence a seemingly small action might have, and how in the span of an instant, some people change our lives forever. “Miller has created a true object of beauty – don’t miss the chance to witness it.” (Winnipeg Free Press). Find out more at www.threadstheplay.com

Photo credit: Katie Kiehl

June 27th – 30th My Mind Is Like An Open Meadow – The winner of the 2010-11 Portland Drammy for Outstanding Production of the Year, Erin Leddy’s solo show has been called “something quite
extraordinary” (Seattle PI) and “an oddity to be treasured” (New York Post). In 2001, Erin lived with her grandmother for a year and recorded her memories. These tapes form the bones for this solo performance, a sonic-driven meditation on consciousness, memory and things passed down through generations. Erin has toured to New Orleans, Vancouver BC, Seattle, Massachusetts and New York City, and is delighted to bring
the show back to Portland. Find out more at hand2mouththeatre.org

July 5th – 7th Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII- Tara Travis wowed the Canadian fringe festival circuit with her extraordinary show in which she portrays ALL of Henry VIII’s 6 wives. Lauded as “…one of the most impressive acting feats in the festival!” (Winnipeg Free Press), this show sold-out city after city. In this highly comedic historical romp, the action takes place in the afterlife. One by one, the wives of Henry VIII arrive, much to the shock and dismay of each previous wife. What culminates is the heated frenzy of an ex-wives club where these women swap stories, toss Anne Boleyn’s head around, and fight for the right to be acknowledged as Henry’s true bride and eternal partner. But when Henry arrives…everything changes. “The idea is as brilliant as the execution is funny!” (CBC). Find
out more at www.monstertheatre.com

July 11th – 14th Mr. Darcy Dreamboat – Catch a ride on the Dreamboat with all your literary crushes in Camille Cettina’s original one-woman show.  A visceral celebration of the joy of reading books, this literary frolic is a mash up of books and characters – from Nancy Drew to JD Salinger, T.S Elliot and the romance and fantasy of Jane Austen. Audiences embark on a journey through literary worlds they have known and loved, guided by “the kind of instantly charming performer that any theatergoer might be happy to watch”. (The Oregonian) Find out more at www.pushleg.com

PlayWrite, Inc.  will enjoy performances of original works written during its first collaboration with Youth Progress.  Youth Progress is an Oregon non-profit dedicated to empowering alternative youth with resources, programming, skills, and structure to successfully transition into society.  The performance is free, general seating, and open to the public.  If you would like to reserve seats for a guest or guests, or to suit your mobility needs, please email lyndsay@playwriteinc.org.

In February 2005, Third Rail Repertory Theatre staged its first production, Craig Wright’s tragi-comic 9/11 response “Recent Tragic Events,” at Northwest Portland’s CoHo Theatre. The show won five Drammy Awards and put Third Rail on the map as a prominent part of the Portland theater scene. The company settled into the Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center for a few years, then moved to bigger halls downtown.

But with the production of Annie Baker’s “The Aliens” that opens Friday, Third Rail returns at last to its CoHo spawning grounds. Though it mounts most of its work these days in the Winningstad Theatre, amid the Portland Center for the Performing Arts, the company added a fourth show to its season for the first time and chose to get up close and personal again.

“It does feel like an old friend,” says director Tim True, a founding member of Third Rail. “It’s a fabulous 99-seat space, just three rows and everything really close to the action.

“We’ve really tried to maximize the space in terms of having some really strong designers coming in to make the most of it. What we’re seeing is how the space limitation can spur creativity. It limits your choices, but it also focuses your choices.”

Luckily, “The Aliens” doesn’t exactly call for grand scenery. The third of Baker’s so-called “Vermont plays” to be staged in Portland (following “Circle Mirror Transformation” a year ago at Artists Rep and “Body Awareness” by CoHo Productions last fall), it’s set amid the Dumpsters on the back patio of a small town coffee shop.

That’s the chosen hangout of KJ (played by Isaac Lamb) and Jasper (Chris Murray), a pair of 30-something lost souls and would-be artists who while away their time there doing … well, as The New York Times’ Charles Isherwood wrote of a 2010 production at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, “The gently whirring exhaust fan spied through the back wall provides the only significant action … At times ‘The Aliens’ resembles a Beckett play recast as a mumblecore movie.”

While there isn’t much in the way of whiz-bang action, there is something happening in the play.

“She’s interested in change in this play,” True says of the playwright. “How people grow over a period of time, whether that’s a short or long period. She has placed a pretty significant event in the characters’ lives in there as sort of a place marker for change. But change itself doesn’t happen instantly … It’s more like the tide, going in and out, gradually.”

True relishes the deceptive, almost awkwardly authentic realism of Baker’s approach. “She has such finesse in the way she drops in points of exposition,” he says. “They don’t really land with the audience so much as just come along with the flow of the dialogue. She’s playing with how you can have a dramatic arc within a real sense of conversation, a real sense of time. It’s done in a very non-theatrical way and feels very real-life.”

Adding to the authenticity of True’s production is the 16-year-old actor Bryce Earhart, who plays 17-year-old coffee-shop employee Evan Shelmerdine, the uneasy third wheel to the KJ/Jasper friendship.

“We love him,” True says. “We had some great actors audition for the part, but to have someone who doesn’t have to try to step backward into the part is a real bonus.”

Even though the production puts Third Rail back in touch with its roots, it really is a sign of the company’s continued growth — including the development of company actors such as True into directors. This will be just the second show True has directed, following “Bingo With the Indians” a few seasons ago for Portland Playhouse. It continues a move away from the mode of Third Rail’s first several seasons, in which artistic director Scott Yarbrough handled all the stage direction.

“We wanted to establish our voice as a company at the outset and we went to what we knew were our strong suits — our acting and Scott’s directing,” True says. “But as we’ve grown, we’ve wanted to expand that and play with it. Now we can say, ‘This also is Third Rail.’”

– Marty Hughley

MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT
Lindsay C. Terrell
Theatre Management Consultant
CoHo Productions, Ltd
lindsay@cohoproductions.org
Main: 503-220-2646
Direct: 503-421-4425

THE SECRET LIVES OF TEENAGE GIRLS
Crooked by Catherine Trieschmann captures the angst and delight of adolescence and a
multi-dimensional mother-daughter relationship in this funny and heart-wrenching story

March 4th, 2013 – PORTLAND, OR.
In Crooked, life sucks for fourteen year old Laney who, besides dealing with typical teenage angst is afflicted by a muscle disorder called dystonia, which causes her posture to angle to one side as her back muscles fight with themselves even while at rest. Her mother Elise is recently divorced, in crisis, and has moved herself and her daughter to Oxford, Mississippi where the question “Have you found a church?” is considered polite conversation. Laney has a burning desire to be a writer and she uses her active imagination to write vividly violent short stories. When she befriends Maribel, the open-hearted daughter of an evangelical preacher, Laney uses her penchant for fiction to reinvent herself with actions as rebellious as they are cries for acceptance. This sensitive story of sexual and spiritual awakening follows Laney as she battles her inner demons in her quest to be loved.

A distinctive new voice in American Theatre, Treischmann’s work is quickly becoming known for its smart, humorous dialogue and intriguing female characters set against the backdrop of the Deep South. In Crooked, she creates three full and diverse roles for women exploring themes of spirituality, sexuality, alienation and identity.

“I think Portland needs to see more theatrical stories with a female perspective. Catherine’s play is about the aspirations of women and I am ecstatic to spend several months living with it.”
director Philip Cuomo, fresh off the critical and popular success of A Noble Failure by Susan Mach.

CoHo’s offering features a well-crafted story centered on the multi-dimensional needs and desires of women of different ages. This female-driven story is presented in a time when cries for increased opportunities for female artists are growing louder. However, this play’s characters, events and language succeed in providing insight into larger social and spiritual issues recognizable to all audiences regardless of gender: issues of family, friendship, grief, and finding a place to belong.

Recieving its debut at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Crooked is the first professionally produced play by Trieschmann in Portland and it has garnered international acclaim:

“Trieschmann shows a precise understanding of the female heart…A play of immense psychological shrewdness.” – The Guardian

“fluent, funny and sometimes fearlessly cruel dialogue…” – NY Times

“fiercely idiosyncratic, funny and touching play“ – The Daily Telegraph

“Crooked provides an unflinching dissection of the terrors that shadow so many teenage girls but are seldom depicted honestly in the theater or onscreen.” – Chicago Reader

“Gloriously funny, Crooked takes on serious issues of religion, mental health and Sapphic sexual awakening…” – OMH London

Director and co-producer Philip Cuomo is the Executive Director of Portland Actors Conservatory (PAC) overseeing a nationally accredited institution. He is an award winning director, theatre teacher and actor and was last month appointed the newest member of CoHo Productions’ Board of Directors. Maureen Porter, co-producer and playing the role of Elise, is an award winning actor, gracing all of the major Portland stages and is one of our city’s most decorated and respected performers. Kayla Lian won over ArtistsRep’s audiences in And So it Goes… and she will melt your heart as Laney. Meghan Chambers plays Laney’s love interest, Maribel, and has recently completed the Portland Playhouse Acting Apprenticeship program.

Production Team

Show times are 7:30pm Thursday through Saturday, with 2pm matinees on Sundays. Talkbacks with the director and cast will follow the performances on May 19th and 26th and June 2nd. Tickets may be purchased online at www.cohoproductions.org or by phone at 503.220.2646. CoHo Theatre is located at 2257 NW Raleigh Street.

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