FEATURED
Hanover Theatre Rep presents ‘Poe Double Header’ in pared-down BrickBox launch RICHARD DUCKET T
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WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM
O C T O B E R 1 - 7 , 2020
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dgar Allen Poe’s “The TellTale Heart” and “The Cask of Amontillado” could be called chilling stories, but it won’t be a stunt when the temperature of attendees gets taken prior to private performances of the two adapted tales in “The Edgar Allen Poe Double Header” put on by new The Hanover Theatre Repertory (THT Rep) at the BrickBox Theater at the Jean McDonough Arts Center, 20 Franklin St., Worcester. The temperature checks are part of the precautions (also including face masks and social distancing) needed to bring back indoor, inperson live professional theater in Worcester for the first time since the March pandemic shutdown. “The Edgar Allen Poe Double Header” starts Oct. 1 and runs Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until Oct. 25. Performances can accommodate a maximum of 20 patrons. The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts has launched THT Rep as a new initiative through which it will produce its own line of plays and other events created in and for the BrickBox Theater. It is the first producer in Massachusetts — and tenth the country — to be approved by the Actors’ Equity Association for an indoor performance, said Lisa K. Condit, director of marketing and PR for The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts. The production is the result of several other firsts — and some hats. “The Edgar Allen Poe Double Header” is the first event in the BrickBox Theater and the first production by THT Rep, said Olivia D’Ambrosio Scanlon. She is both the managing director of the BrickBox Theater and artistic director of THT Rep. The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts manages the BrickBox Theater on behalf of the Worcester Cultural Coalition. “That’s when I’m wearing my manager director hat,” DAmbrosio Scanlon said. As member of the coalition, The Hanover Theatre also wants to use the BrickBox creatively and so formed THT Rep. “That’s when I’m wearing
my artistic director hat,” she said. Furthermore, D’Ambrosio Scanlon is the one-person performer and director of “The Edgar Allen Poe Doubleheader.” In both stories the narrator, keen to stress personal sanity and rightfulness, talks of committing a murder. “The tales are a bit chilling, a bit creepy and lots of fun,” D’Ambrosio Scanlon said. They come with full lighting, full sound and full costume. The production runs for about 45 minutes with no intermission, and people should plan on being at the theater for approximately an hour. “It’s a fully realized if short production. Part of the reason I selected it — it feels satisfying but we don’t have people in the enclosed space for very long,” she said. The 20-seat max is in the light of Massachusetts guidelines for private events, including but not limited to: maintaining occupancy within eight people per 1,000 square feet, up to 25 people total (the BrickBox is 4,200 square feet with a 20 foot ceiling). For “The Edgar Allen Poe Doubleheader” there will be five staff people. Everyone involved will be observing safety measures and undergoing weekly testing for COVID-19. Performances are private and cost $2,500 to book. That can break down to $125 per person if there is a party of 20, D’ Ambrosio Scanlon noted. Any unused seats will be credited as a tax-deductible donation, at the rate of $125 per seat. Seating will be cabaret style with “pods” of two to four seats available at high- and lowtop tables, each pre-set with a bottle of prosecco and individually wrapped dark chocolates. Besides the BrickBox Theater, people can also book “The Edgar Allen Poe Doubleheader” in their own homes. “I’ll work with them to make arrangements. I’ll work it out as best I can — even if it’s a single flashlight against my face, I’ll do that”’ D’Ambrosio Scanlon said. Private bookings in the theater ensure you will be seated with people you know rather than if the show had been advertised for the public and seating assigned randomly, she said. With regard to how bookings have been going, she said the first four performances have been made available to The Hanover Theatre community including the board of
Olivia D’Ambrosio Scanlon in BrickBox Theater. She is preparing for her one-person show. SABRINA GODIN
directors and volunteers. Beyond that, as of last Thursday, at least a couple of shows had been sold, and “I think once people get the hang of what it is, I think people will want to take us up on the opportunity.” Asked if $2,500 wasn’t rather expensive, D’Ambrosio Scanlon said “I think it depends on how you approach that question. It’s a fully fleshed out theater performance that many, many hours have gone into. People are welcome to share the costs and break it down to $125 a seat. I don’t think it’s expensive in terms of the quality of the performance and the unique nature of the event. I do agree it’s not what people are necessarily used to when consuming theater.” Live streaming from the BrickBox Theater is not currently possible because it doesn’t have the equipment yet, although it soon will, she said. “But more than that, we wanted to create a safe way for people to experience live theater at this time.” D’Ambrosio Scanlon has an extensive background in theater as
an award-winning producer, director, actor and teaching artist. She has worked with Nora Theatre Co., New Rep, Commonwealth Shakespeare, Playhouse Creatures, Trinity Rep, Asolo Rep, Hartford Stage, and Bridge Rep, which she founded and helmed for five years. She came on board as managing director of the BrickBox Theater a year ago. “We’ve all had quite a year,” she said. “We were supposed supposed to open May 15 with a lovely lineup of programing. Then, of course, that didn’t happen.” The BrickBox Theater had long been anticipated in the community as a “black box” space for theater, concerts, films and other activities. D’Ambrosio Scanlon said she’s talking with groups who had expressed an interest in the space about possibly using it for live streaming. If the private shows for “The Edgar Allen Poe Doubleheader” are “wildly successful,” such a format might be considered again.
Switching hats, THT Rep plans to present professionally produced classic theater in the BrickBox, D’Ambrosio Scanlon said. “With its raw aesthetic, I think it provides a perfect setting for a stripped-down, intimate presentation of classic works.” THT Rep had been considering a production of “Romeo and Juliet” last June with teenagers from The Hanover Theatre’s summer theater youth conservatory and professional actors playing the adult parts. D’Ambrosio Scanlon is still hoping that the production can go ahead, perhaps in the first part of 2021. “We’re not ready to plan out a season as a company normally would do. ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is something we would like to do. It’s meant to be with real teenagers.” For more information about THT Rep, visit TheHanoverTheatre.org/ ThtRep. To discuss availability of “The Edgar Allen Poe Double Header,” email or call Lisa Condit at Lisa@TheHanoverTheatre.org or (508) 471-1767.
