This content was published: October 26, 2011. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
Bad theater makes for a good play at PCC
Photos and story by James Hill
Portland Community College’s Theatre Arts Program students will send their comedic skills into a frenzy this fall term.
The program presents “Footlight Frenzy, written by Ron House, Diz White, Alan Shearman and Bud Slocumb and based on the book “Fleeting Moment,” at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 10, Saturday, Nov. 12, and Friday-Saturday, Nov. 18-19. There will be matinee performances at 11 a.m., Thursday, Nov. 17 and 2 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 20.
A scene from PCC's fall play, 'Footlight Frenzy.' Characters Alex Malone (played by Joel Montgomery) and Laura Becker (Kaija Rayne) are entangled in a mess of a production to save a school, spurred on by an overzealous PTA.
The play centers on an inexperienced PTA group’s ambitious play written by a has-been Broadway director. This desperate attempt to save their bankrupt School for Unusual Children causes near hysterical direction and the group’s questionable talent turn the production into a shambles.
“The scenes shift back and forth from the real tribulations of the performers to the play they are ‘performing,’ and it is hard to tell which is sillier,” said Theatre Arts Director Patrick Tangredi. “This fast moving slapstick farce is theatrical fun of the first order, with us watching the fun from the ‘back’ of the stage.”
All showings are in the 400-seat Performing Arts Center, Sylvania Campus, 12000 S.W. 49th Ave. Tickets are available at the PCC Sylvania Bookstore or a half hour before performances at the center. Tickets are $10 for general admission, $8 for seniors, students, and staff, and $5 for groups of 12 or more.
The poster for 'Footlight Frenzy.'
The student cast includes Andrew Horne (Northwest Portland) as Benny, Corrina D’Annibale (Lake Oswego) as Debbie, Dustin Snyder (Beaverton) as Paul, Joel Montgomery (Northeast Portland) as Alex, John Bruner as Tony and Kaija Rayne (Southwest Portland) as Laura. The crew features director John Duncan, stage manager Charles Thompson, assistant stage manager Julia Meek (Beaverton), lighting designer Nate Zilk (West Linn) and Juniper Wanless (Southwest Portland).
For more information, visit: www.pcc.edu/about/theatre, or call (971) 722-4949.
About James Hill
James G. Hill, an award-winning journalist and public relations writer, is the Director of Public Relations at Portland Community College. A graduate of Portland State University, James has worked as a section editor for the Newberg Graphic... more »