Events:
English & Comparative Literature: “Town-Gown” Collaboration Between Stage Company and SJSU Tests New Works
A new play, The Repeating Arms of Sarah Winchester, will be given a staged reading for one night only on Monday, December 4, at 7 pm in the Hammer Theatre Center (formerly home of the San José Rep).
Tickets are required, but free, and can be reserved at the San José Stage Company website. Free tickets will also be available at the Hammer box office before the reading.
The reading features a cast that mixes SJSU student actors with professionals, and was written by San José State University Professor Scott Winfield Sublett.
The play explores Sarah Winchester’s exposure to the new and progressive religion of Spiritualism while she is still a young widow residing in New Haven, Connecticut. The reading will be produced by San José Stage Company, in partnership with San José State’s Dept. of Film and Theatre.
The performance will take place in the Hammer’s exciting new “black box” space: the Hammer4, Hammer Theatre Center. “Formerly a large rehearsal hall, the room is being transformed to accommodate events such as small, experimental theatrical productions,” said Chris Burrill, the Executive Director of the Hammer.
In the spring, another depiction of Sarah Winchester will go public when the new feature film Winchester: The House That Ghosts Built starring Helen Mirren, is released.
“This is not the fictional, kooky Sarah of the tourist attraction house,” said the play’s author, Scott Winfield Sublett, a professor in the SJSU Dept. of Film and Theatre. “At this point in her life, Mrs. Winchester is a rational, well-read, progressive suffragette, searching, like many Americans were in the late 1800s, for a new religion to replace the harsh Calvinism of her youth. But never fear, there will be not one but two séances on stage.”
Film and Theatre: “Shirley Valentine” with Center Repertory Theatre in Walnut Creek
Andrea Bechert’s scenic design for “Shirley Valentine” with Center Repertory Theatre can be seen at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek from March 30 to April 29, 2018. Kerri Shawn stars as Shirley Valentine, a house wife from Liverpool, England who is feeling trapped in a world of domesticity and needs a change in her life before she has another conversation with the walls. When her friend invites her on a trip to a Greek island, Shirley must make an important decision. For more information, go to http://www.centerrep.org/season1718/shirleyvalentine.php
Hammer Theatre: First Friday Night Market at the Hammer
Student artists and creators will be displaying their creations in the Hammer Theatre Cafe for anyone to check out on December 1st from 6-10pm. Art will range from glass creations and ceramic constructs to the latest fashion pieces. You get the chance to get started early on your holiday shopping, check out the latest in local art, as well as support your fellow students! All for free!
Just a couple of steps away from Christmas in the Park, it will be held as part of the First Friday Art Walk throughout downtown San Jose. The Hammer Theatre, Print Making Club, Ceramics Guild, Glass Blowers Guild, Jewelry and Small Metals Guild, and more will be involved.
Faculty News:
Film and Theatre: Sarah Winchester to Haunt Hammer Theatre
Prof. Scott Sublett’s new play “The Repeating Arms of Sarah Winchester,” will be the subject of a staged reading for one night only on December 4 at the Hammer Theatre Center’s new “black box” space: the Hammer 4. The play explores Winchester’s exposure to the new and progressive religion of Spiritualism while still a young widow residing in New Haven, Connecticut, and is produced by the Dept. of Film and Theatre in partnership with The San José Stage Company.
Film and Theatre: Fool for Love at San José Stage
Faculty member Joshua Marx will be playing the role of Martin in the upcoming production of Fool for Love at San José Stage alongside artistic director Randy King.
In addition, he was just nominated for best featured actor in a musical for his work in Toxic Avenger by the TBA (Theatre Bay Area) awards.
Film and Theatre: “Charleston Harbor” Sails to Manhattan
Prof. Scott Sublett’s new play “The Repeating Arms of Sarah Winchester,” will be the subject of a staged reading for one night only on December 4 in the Hammer Theatre’s new “black box” space: the Hammer 4. The play explores Sarah Winchester’s exposure to the new and progressive religion of Spiritualism while still a young widow residing in New Haven, Connecticut, and is produced in partnership with The San José Stage Company.
Meanwhile, new musical, “Charleston Harbor,” will be given a staged reading at Manhattan’s legendary Amas Musical Theatre in Manhattan on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1. Amas is noted for having invented “non-tradition casting” before the term was invented. The play is about Robert Smalls, the slave who became the greatest black hero of the Civil War.
The great 19th century intellectual Frederick Douglass accompanied Captain Smalls to a meeting with President Lincoln, who was so impressed with Smalls’s exploits he was persuaded to allow blacks to enlist in the Union Army.
Subtitled “A True Civil War Adventure with Historical Music,” the new play integrates authentic spirituals of 1800s into the dramatic action. For more information, visit https://www.amasmusical.org/copy-of-dare-to-be-different
Film and Theatre: Andrea Bechert garners multiple award nominations for designs
Andrea Bechert’s scenic designs have garnered several award nominations. She received a Theatre Bay Area nomination for her designs of “Outside Mullingar” at TheatreWorks, as well as a Shellie Award nomination for her design of “Sisters Matsumoto” at Center Repertory Theatre. She also received 4 Broadway World nominations for her scenic designs of “Constellations”, “Crimes of the Heart”, and “Outside Mullingar” at TheatreWorks, as well as for “Arsenic & Old Lace” at the Douglas Morrison Theatre.
Film and Theatre: Theatre arts professor’s latest feature film releases
Leomark Studios, is releasing Kepler’s Dream directed by Amy Glazer, in a ten-city day-and-date release starting December 1st. The initial list of cities where the film opens include New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Chicago, Detroit, Albuquerque and Sacramento, and on “InDemand” for the month of December. Several former SJSU students have credits on the film including writing and producing credits.
For more information, check out these articles.
http://occhimagazine.com/juliet-bells-acclaimed-ya-novel-keplers-dream-on-big-screen-december-1st/
https://moviesreview101.com/2017/10/30/keplers-dream-2017/
http://thatmomentin.com/2017/10/31/keplers-dream/
http://www.movie-blogger.com/juliet-bells-acclaimed-ya-novel-keplers-dream-comes-big-screen/
http://www.thisfunktional.com/2017/10/juliet-bells-young-adult-novel-keplers.html
http://www.spoilerfreemoviesleuth.com/2017/10/trailers-adaptation-of-juliet-bells-ya.html
https://indieactivity.com/amy-glazer-director-of-kepler-dream-on-bringing-her-film-to-screen/
English and Comparative Literature: AALDP Journal now in 8th year of publication
Volume 8 of Asian American Literature: Discourses & Pedagogies, a peer reviewed annual journal focused on the teaching of Asian American Literature, was published October 31, 2017. This year’s volume contains an interview with MacArthur-winning author Yiyun Li as well as six new articles about teaching and analyzing Asian American literature, including pieces on works by Karen Tei Yamashita, Chang-rae Lee, and Ha Jin. Read the latest volume or browse all eight years of the journal here.
