Theater festival took major strides in '04
Nicole Edwards
Poughkeepsie Journal, August 2, 2004
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/today/lifeentertainment/stories/li080204s2.shtml
The theatrical rock band The Petersons teamed up with director Trip Cullman for
"The Petersons Project" as part of the Powerhouse season.
The 20th anniversary summer theater festival presented by Vassar College and New York Stage and Film certainly tried living up to the word ''powerhouse'' this year.
The 2004 Powerhouse Theater season presented 23 shows, including a mainstage
production with Academy Award-nominated actor Amy Irving, two reading festivals
with presentations of Zach Helm's ''Good Canary'' with Lucy Liu, eight
workshops, three musicals and world premiere productions.
Vassar College in Poughkeepsie hosts the six-week festival each year where
professional actors, writers, directors and theater apprentices come to work on
scripts and learn the ropes of the stage.
It was a summer of firsts as Powerhouse presented work in Vassar's new 315-seat
Martel Theater and two other theaters. With an estimated 10,000 in attendance,
Powerhouse executive producer Beth Fargis-Lancaster didn't seem to have any
complaints.
''It was a whirlwind operating three theaters, which we've never done before,''
Fargis-Lancaster said. ''We were not surprised, but we were very gratified to
the audience response to all the work this summer.''
Past plays presented on Powerhouse stages have been found later on Broadway or
at other theaters across the country. Other star-studded appearances this year
included the reading of ''Painted from Memory'' by Stuart Spencer with Rob
Morrow; Mia Farrow in ''Fran's Bed'' by James Lapine; and David Marshall Grant's
''Pen'' with Marcia Gay Harden.
Guarini part of cast
It all came to an end Sunday night with the musical ''Good Vibrations,''
directed by John Carrafa, which celebrates the music of Brian Wilson and the
Beach Boys. Justin Guarini, runner-up in the first "American Idol,"
had a role in the musical. Theatrical rock band The Petersons and director
Trip Cullman teamed up on another musical, ''The Petersons Project,'' about an
unorthodox family that is into rock music and faces the closing of a legendary
music emporium. It, too, closed Sunday.
''This has been about one of the most wonderful seasons ever,'' said
Poughkeepsie resident Deborah Golomb, who has seen four summers of Powerhouse
theater. ''Some of the plays were some of the most powerful that I've seen and
the acting was superb. I'm sorry to see it end. ... This is one of the best
reasons to be in Poughkeepsie during the summer.''
Nicole Edwards can be reached at nredward@poughkeepsiejournal.com.