GTT Website Gets A Facelift!

GTT's website has a new look and new address. The recently completed site features a colorful format that allows surfers to navigate through the site with ease. We'd really love your feedback so please check it out today at http://www.gtt.ontheweb.com. Of course you can always use the original longer URL http://www.grouptheatretoo.ontheweb.com.

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Hi-Concept-Lo Tech: Theatre for Everyone in Any Place

Broadway Luminaries Support GTT

This week Nicole Fosse and Chita Rivera agreed to be on GTT's Honorary Board of Artistic Advisors. Joining them Broadway director and co-founder of Circle In The Square, Theodore Mann and Broadway performers and International Dance Masters Bettye Morrow and Mallory Graham.

Broadway actress and dancer Nicole Fosse has had an extensive performing and teaching career. Most recently she teamed with her mother Gwen Verdon to create the Broadway musical "Fosse" in tribute to her late father, Bob Fosse. Performing credits include stints with the Cincinatti Ballet and on Broadway she appeared in the original company of Andrew Lloyd Webber's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. Film credits include Kristin in Sir Richard Attenborough's film A CHORUS LINE and a cameo apearance in her father's semi-autobiographical ALL THAT JAZZ. She also receives a special thanks for her help with FOSSE in 2002. She appeared on TV's famed MIAMI VICE, too. A long-time eudcator in the arts she has taught dance all over the world.

Currently appearing on Broadway in the musical Nine, Chita Rivera is an accomplished and versatile actress/singer/dancer. Universally regarded as an American national treasure, Chita is a recipient of the prestigious Kennedy Center honor presented by the President of the United States. She has won two Tony Awards as Best Leading Actress in a Musical and received six additional Tony Award nominations. Chita's first Broadway performance was at the age of 17 when she was cast in Call Me Madam. Other roles quickly followed in such shows as Guys and Dolls, Can-Can, Seventh Heaven, and Mr. Wonderful with Sammy Davis Jr. Then in 1957, Broadway history was made when Chita’s electric performance as Anita in the Broadway premiere of West Side Story brought her stardom. Chita's talent enabled the brilliant Jerome Robbins to realize his groundbreaking choreographic vision for the production. Rosie, the starring role in Bye Bye Birdie followed, and Chita returned to the West End in 1960 to reprise her performance in that role as well. Chita also played Nicky in the film version of Sweet Charity with Shirley MacLaine. In a wry tribute to Nicky, Chita's character for her most recent screen appearance, a cameo in the film version of Chicago, is also named "Nicky."

Theodore Mann, presently Artistic Director of Circle In The Square Theatre School has presented over 200 productions including Tennessee Williams' Summer and Smoke with Geraldine Page that is recognized today as being responsible for the birth of the Off-Broadway theatre movement. Among many other theatrical achievements he directed Mourning becomes Electra with Colleen Dewhurst, The Iceman Cometh with James Earl Jones, A Moon for the Misbegotten with Salome Jens, Ah, Wilderness! with Geraldine Fitzgerald, The Glass Menagerie with Maureen Stapleton and Rip Torn, The Night of the Iguana with Jane Alexander, John and Abigail with Salome Jens, Pal Joey with Marilu Henner and Dixie Carter, Romeo and Juliet with Pamela Payton Wright, The Boys in Autumn with George C. Scott and John Cullum, Where's Charley? with Raul Julia, and Awake and Sing with Nancy Marchand and Harry Hamlin. Mr. Mann received the 1999 Tao House Award from the Eugene O'Neill Foundation for his distinguished career in theatre and for his championing the works of O'Neill.

The legendary Bettye Morrow began performing at nine years of age in USO shows and continued with extensive performing credits on Broadway, at Radio City Music Hall, in film and New York City night clubs. Bettye has worked with noted choreographers Hanya Holm, Eugene Loring, and Robert Alton to name a few. She has worked with film great Gene Kelly and has danced and performed with Sammy Davis, Jr. before becoming a protégé of "Bubba" Gains, famed Copacetics member. Bettye resides in New York City and continues her long-time position handing down the trade of tap through her weekly classes at Broadway Dance Center in Manhattan.

Mallory Graham, is a former Broadway dancer and internationally known dance instructor. Many of his students have gone on to dance and appear on Broadway (Evita, A Chorus Line, Little Me, Barnum, Meet Me in St. Louis, Cats), Radio City Music Hall, Film (Chaplin, A Chorus Line, Xanadu) and Television (Loveboat, Country Music Awards) to name a few. Michael Blevins, GTT Artistic Director, is a protégé of Mr. Graham having studied with him in North Carolina before coming to New York. A long time North Carolina arts educator Mallory is currently the Artistic Director for Dance South. Mr. Graham also continues to teach through out the country and abroad.

Boccitto and Blevins are honored to have these fine industry individuals backing the GTT effort. Having these well-known artists associated wtih GTT will certainly lend credibility to the company and help it gain recognition and a place in the industry.

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The Fervent Years: The Group Theatre & the Thirties

Social Awareness Theatre in Great Neck, NY

GTT's Social Awareness Theatre program will give it's inagural performance at Great Neck North High School in Long Island this fall. Blevins and Boccitto are finalizing plans with high school principal, Bernard Kaplan. GTT is scheduled to appear as part of the school-wide "Respect Your Body" day on November 13th 2003. This year "Time" magazine listed Great Neck North as the 17th best High School in the Nation and as a point of interest Gold Medalist, Sarah Hughes, is currently enrolled at the Great Neck facility. It will be quite an opening for the Social Awareness Theatre program with over 950 students attending the SAT performance. Plus, Great Neck North's visibility in the area as an exemplerary institution will help generate exposure for the Social Awareness Theatre program and interest in the productions.

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The Show Makers: Great Directors of the American Musical Theatre

GENERATION TAP: - NYC Engagement

GTT's Resident Tap Company, Generation Tap, will be performing their dance-short "A Buck & A Wing" at the Trilogy Theatre in Manhattan. The Trilogy is located in the theatre district at 341 West 44th Street and will begin at 7:30 pm on Monday, October 13th Columbus Day.

"A Buck & A Wing" will be presented along with several other "works-in-progress". The evening is part of Paden Fallis', monthly "Rocketship Theatre" that features American Academy of Dramatic Arts graduates and New York performers. Boccitto, group member, is especially excited about the upcoming event as "The venue is designed for artists to 'showcase' and try-out new works and works-in-progress. Plus, all four company members will be appearing in New York together for the first time." stated Boccitto.

This past spring Boccitto appeared in a solo performance of "Bus Stop Tap" that featured a tap dancing mono-drama set against cell phone beeps. Blevins provided "tap sounds" for an invisible girl that Romaniello meets on a train in a day dream on his way to boarding school in this summer's presentation of "Dream Girl". These original tap pieces were "tried-out" at the Trilogy theatre and were well received. Eddy Franciso, the company's youngest member, could not make any of the New York showings to date but did appear with the group in New Jersey this past summer. Boccitto and company members have been reshaping and expanding their current piece so for those of you who saw "A Buck & A Wing" featured in GTT's cabaret night Old Friends expect to see a few changes.

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Theatre for Children: A Guide to Writing, Adapting, Directing, and Acting

"Generation Tap" Gets Mention on Broadway Dance Center Site

This week Generatin Tap appreared on BwyDance.com in a blurb about Bettye Morrow serving as Senior Artistic Advisor to the new tap ensemble that produces "Tap Theatre" and celebrates the hand-me-down tradition of the trade.

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Tap Dancing

"Home for the Holidays" - Seeking New Theatre Site

GTT had great success with Old Friends presented this summer at the Centenary Performing Arts Guild facility and loved being in that space. GTT hoped to return to that venue for their sequel performance Home for the Holidays but unfortunatley the college is "Closed for the Holidays" on Dec, 22-23 (the projected dates for the event) which leaves the theatre facility unavailable. GTT leaders have begun discussions with Stan Barber, Administrative Director of the Pax Amicus Theatre located in Budd Lake, NJ but are also considering other area theatre spaces. It's important that the location of the facility be in Warren County and/or surronding areas.

GTT plans to upgrade production values for the holiday cabaret show so the new theatre facility will need to be comparable to the Centenary stage in terms of seating, playing area, lighting & sound, backstage area and box office/lobby facility. "Lobby and box office facility are of prime importance", says Boccitto, "afterall Old Friends was well-received so Home for the Holidays is sure to be well attended, too."

Becky Hill, GTT company member, who so adeptly handled the box-office and house for Old Friends has agreed to continue in her role as Box-Office and House Manager. GTT plans to work with Alisa Schiff, Christopher Hoyt, Paul Gregorio, and Jonathan Lightcap in their roles as Musical Director/Performer, Lighting Designer/Performer, Technical Director, Drummer and/or Performer, respectively. Likewise, GTT plans to engage all the performers who made Old Friends such a great success. GTT also hopes to step-up and intensify rehearsals for the event with 1-2 days of full-company rehearsals, member schedules permitting.

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Actors on Acting

Greenberg to Administrate - School for Young Performers

GTT plans to implement it's proposed School for Young Performers (SYP) in 2004. The proposed curriculum for SYP is an 8 week musical theatre intensive that features 9 hours of class each week for a total of 72 hours of training in the disciplines of acting, singing/voice, theatre dance, tap, and ballet aimed at students age 8-15. GTT company member, Juli Greenberg will undertake the responsibilities of Administrator for the SYP program. It was Greenberg that brought it to the attention of Blevins and Boccitto that the upper west side lacked any comprehensive musical theatre programs for young people. Having been a long time educator in the performing arts with many engagements at several upper west side public schools she is familiar with the market area and it's residence.

It is undecided if the program will culminate in a production or presentation of some kind. GTT leaders feel a performance based hands-on program will compliment the proposed formal classroom training and is a big draw for young performers. Greenberg and GTT leaders plan to hammer out and finalize the curriculum within the next few weeks. Interest in the program from the Corlears School in Manhattan has also prompted discussion of in-school programs as well. Projected opening of the school is early rather than later in 2004 at New York Spaces on the upper west side of Manhattan.

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Juggling

GTT Member Research

Many thanks to our hard working company members who sent out phone calls to selected schools and theatre spaces. GTT has had several meetings with schools interested in the Social Awareness Theatre program and in-school performing arts training. In keeping with GTT's ultimate goal of finding a permanent theatre home for the company several appointments have been arranged with potential performance spaces in New York City through leads generated by GTT members.

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Broadway Musicals 1

GTT Member Updates/News

Alisa Schiff is currently developing her one-woman cabaret show through brief performances at noted NYC hot spot The Duplex. After the positive response to the number "I Got You" from Joe Harrington's new musical Where Are You Going? it's no surprise that he's directing a workshop production of his show at Emerson College in Boston. Michael Blevin's Count To Ten has had several requests via the internet for two different productions of Count To Ten in England, one in Canada and another in upstate New York. GTT hopes to assist the Count To Ten authors with the distribution of rights and publication of rehearsal material.

Welcome back to Alex Tejero who returned to the city following a hiatus in Miami. Phoebe Lehr is headed for the west coast before she leaves for an extensive tour of Europe next March. Filmaker, Victor Avila will be departing New York too with plans to take up residence in Portugal while he finishes work on his latest screenplay.

Paul Gregorio has recently been appointed the new Technical Director for the Centenary Stage Company an Equity theatre in residence at Centenary College. Gregorio also joins the faculty of the Theatre Department at the college. The Centenary Stage Company has also enlisted Christopher Hoyt as Technical Designer for the upcoming Equity production of Another Antigone scheduled to open in November. In the film world, Jennifer Avila is currently working as a wadrobe assistant for an upcoming studio release. Ryan DeFoe continues in his new position as Musical Director for the Centenary Stage Company's Young Performers' Workshop.

Cristina Vivenzio was most recently Production Stage Manager for Sylvia at the Phil Bosakowski Theatre in Manhattan. In Washington D.C. Marybeth Fritzky is performing in Titus, The Musical at the Source Theatre [visit www.sourcetheatre.com]. Nicky Romaniello takes on several new roles at Centenary YPW portraying Harry Roat in Wait Until Dark, Scrooge in Christmas Comin' Uptown, and will dance the sexy "I've Got Your Number" role in Little Me. Curtain goes up on Noah at the Storm Theatre, NYC [tickets: 866-468-7619] and will showcase staging directed by Dawne Swearingen. In addition she performs and provides choreography for a Vegas-style review that features Peter Romaniello and Justin Boccitto and is scheduled to open in Ohio next month.

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American Theatre: A Chronicle of Comedy & Drama, 1930-1969

The GTT Press is published by Group Theatre Too, with J. Boccitto and M. Blevins as Editors & Contributing Authors; published monthly.

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