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<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#800000>Weathervane
Playhouse’s<BR>‘Crumbs from the Table of Joy’<BR>a ‘Memory Play’ that Looks Back
at a Blended Family in Transition on the Eve of the Civil Rights
Era<BR></FONT> <BR>Drama by Pulitzer Prize-Winner Lynn Nottage’ to be
Staged<BR>in Weathervane’s Intimate John L. Dietz Theater<BR> <BR>A family
copes with grief and prejudice but perseveres through love in Weathervane
Playhouse’s production of <EM><STRONG>Crumbs from the Table of
Joy</STRONG></EM>, the celebrated drama by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright
Lynn Nottage – live on stage in Weathervane’s intimate Dietz Theater from Jan.
13 to 29, 2011.<BR> <BR>The play is set in Brooklyn, New York, in 1950, and
is narrated chiefly by 17-year-old Ernestine Crump, a young woman dealing with
grief and displacement. Ernestine and her family – stern father, Godfrey, and
sassy younger sister, Ermina – have recently moved to Brooklyn from Florida
after the death of their mother. As a black family in Brooklyn, the transplanted
Crumps find themselves strangers in a strange land.<BR> <BR>Faced with
grief and prejudice, each of the Crumps finds solace in his or her own way. The
strict-but-loving Godfrey gravitates to a charismatic religious leader named
Father Divine, whose dictums against “almost everything fun” confound the young
girls. Ermina discovers boys while older-sister Ernestine revels in the alluring
escape of movie stars, knowing that “something better is always on the horizon.”
Added into the household chaos is the free-thinking and free-wheeling Aunt Lily,
the sister of the late Mrs. Crump, who loves to antagonize her brother-in-law.
With her avowed Communist leanings and “fast ways,” Lily poses a threat to
Godfrey’s church-directed efforts to protect his young girls.<BR> <BR>But
even Godfrey finds himself open to new ideas when one day he meets a woman on
the train and decides almost immediately to marry her. Not only is she white,
but Gerte is also a German immigrant. Tenderhearted and desperate for approval,
Gerte challenges the Crumps to confront their own prejudices and beliefs.
<BR> <BR><FONT color=#800000><EM><STRONG>Crumbs from the Table of
Joy</STRONG></EM> is directed by Yvonne Oliver. The production is sponsored by
Margaret J. Dietz.<BR></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#800000><EM><STRONG>The
Crumbs from the Table of Joy</STRONG></EM> Cast and their Ohio
Hometowns<BR> <BR></FONT>VICTORIA CARTHORN of Clinton … Ernestine
Crump<BR> <BR>SHAMARA COSTA of Akron … Ermina Crump<BR> <BR>MICHAEL
HEAD of Stow … Godfrey Crump<BR> <BR>DR. GINA GLENN of Akron … Lily Ann
Green<BR> <BR>ROBYN COOPER of Uniontown … Gerte Schulte<BR> <BR><FONT
color=#800000>About the Director of Crumbs from the Table of
Joy<BR></FONT> <BR>YVONNE OLIVER most recently appeared on stage as Mrs.
Jefferson in Weathervane Playhouse's 2010 production of The Great White Hope.
Elsewhere, her last stage role was in Jar the Floor. Yvonne's other performances
include Coming Home and Legacy (African Community Theatre) and Weaving Rainbows
(Cleveland Public Theatre). Yvonne has appeared in infomercials and
instructional training videos. She played Sharon Morgan in a television show,
Such Is Life, and appeared in the movie And the Winner Is with Jerry Springer.
Yvonne graduated from Kent State University and the University of Akron with
degrees in communication. She has been training and performing for the past five
years. She lives in Akron with her husband, Nathan. They have two sons, Nicholas
and Nelson, and a granddaughter, Nia.<BR><BR><BR><FONT color=#800000>The Crumbs
from the Table of Joy Backstage Team<BR>and their Ohio
Hometowns<BR></FONT> <BR>Stage Manager – John S. Catlos (of
Akron)<BR> <BR>Dialect and Acting Coach – Katherine Burke (of
Kent)<BR> <BR>Costume Designer – Jasen J. Smith (of
Akron)<BR> <BR>Sound Designer – David Ruggles (of Cuyahoga
Falls)<BR> <BR>Properties Designer – Joel Kirk (of
Uniontown)<BR> <BR>Lighting Designer – Bob Schaefer (of Cuyahoga
Falls)<BR> <BR>Costume Co-Designer – Suzanne Abernathy (of
Akron)<BR> <BR>Costume Co-Designer – Jasen J. Smith (of
Akron)<BR> <BR>Scenic Designer and Technical Director – Alan Scott Ferrall
(of Cuyahoga Falls)<BR> <BR>Assistant Technical Director – Kathy Kohl (of
Akron)<BR> <BR>Ticket and Performance
Information<BR> <BR><STRONG><EM>Crumbs from the Table of Joy</EM></STRONG>
plays in Weathervane Playhouse’s John L. Dietz Theater between Jan. 13 and 29,
2011. (The Dietz Theater is Weathervane Playhouse’s intimate, 50-seat “second
stage” within its Weathervane Lane facility.)<BR> <BR>The preview
performance is Thursday, Jan. 13 at 7:30 p.m.; the official opening-night
performance is Friday, Jan. 14 at 8 p.m. <BR> <BR>Between Jan. 13 and 29,
2011, performance days and times are Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and
Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. with one Saturday matinee at 2:30
p.m. on Jan. 29 only.<BR> <BR>Tickets for all performances of the play are
$18 each. The 50-seat Dietz Theater features general-admission seating
only.<BR> <BR><EM><STRONG>Crumbs from the Table of Joy</STRONG></EM> is
recommended for ages 13 and older. For tickets, call the Weathervane Box Office
at (330) 836-2626 or connect online to
www.weathervaneplayhouse.com.<BR> <BR><FONT color=#800000>About the Play
and the Playwright<BR> <BR>About the Play’s Production
History<BR></FONT> <BR>Crumbs from the Table of Joy received its world
premiere at Second Stage Theatre in New York City, where it opened on May 9,
1995 and played through July 1, 1995. It was directed by Joe Morton. The show
received its West Coast premiere at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa,
California, in a production that opened Sept. 17, 1996, under the direction of
Seret Scott. Since then, Crumbs from the Table of Joy has been staged by dozens
of regional theaters as well as many colleges and amateur-theater
organizations.<BR> <BR><FONT color=#800000>About the
Playwright<BR></FONT> <BR>LYNN NOTTAGE was born in Brooklyn, New York, in
1964. She began writing plays as a child and furthered her education by
attending Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing
Arts in Harlem, from which she graduated in 1982. She spent her undergraduate
years at Brown University, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 1986, and went
on to earn an M.F.A. in playwriting in 1989 from the Yale School of Drama. Her
first job after completing her pursuit of higher education was in the press
office of Amnesty International, where she worked for nearly four years. After
her stint with the human-rights organization, Nottage then turned to playwriting
as a full-time pursuit. In addition to <EM><STRONG>Crumbs from the Table of
Joy</STRONG></EM>, her plays include <EM>Poof; Mud, River, Stone; Por’Knockers;
Las Meninas; Intimate Apparel</EM> (which Weathervane Playhouse staged in 2009);
and <EM>Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine</EM>. In 2009, she received
the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play <EM>Ruined</EM>, which examines the
impact of the crimes of rape and violence against women in the civil war-torn
Democratic Republic of Congo in central Africa. Among her other awards, she
received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2005, the National Black Theatre Festival’s
August Wilson Playwriting Award, the 2004 PEN/Laura Pels Award for Drama and a
MacArthur Fellowship (commonly known as a “Genius Award”) in 2007. Her next play
– <EM>By the Way, Meet Vera Stark</EM> – will receive its world premiere at
Second Stage Theatre in New York City in April.<BR> <BR>* *
*<BR> <BR>Weathervane Playhouse and its dedicated volunteers offer vital
performing arts resources for the people of Northeastern Ohio. We create
exciting and thought-provoking shows with impressive production values. Through
educational programs and volunteer opportunities for people of all ages and
backgrounds, Weathervane serves the theater community, our patrons and our
volunteers.<BR> <BR>The Ohio Arts Council helped fund this program with
state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, education excellence and
cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.<BR> <BR>Additional 2010-2011 season
sponsors<BR>89.7 WSKU-FM<BR>The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company<BR>OMNOVA
Solutions Foundation<BR>Sisler McFawn Foundation<BR>Akron Community
Foundation<BR>Kenneth L. Calhoun Charitable Trust<BR>The Margaret Clark Morgan
Foundation<BR>Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation<BR>Janis Harcar<BR>Director
of Advancement<BR>Weathervane Playhouse<BR>330-836-2323
X16<BR>www.weathervaneplayhouse.com</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>