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Scene from "Come Blow Your Horn" October 4, 2006, the first live play at Newtown Theatre since 1934.
At the gala marking the return of live theatre after 72 years, Camilla Akers (an actress from the final show in 1934) is greeted b...
Luisa DiCapua greets onlookers at the red carpet as she arrives to light up the stage in the groups first show at Newtown Theatre,...
The cast of "Our Town," the group's first show of the inaugural 2007 Newtown Theatre season, stands on the stage which dates back ...
The cast of "Our Town" on the steps leading into Newtown Theatre, the oldest movie theatre in the USA, now seeing plays as well as...
Karen Nash (Beth Michener) looks on warily as her husband Sam (Tony Ruggieri) does business with his beautiful, young secretary (D...
Muriel Tate (Jennifer Newby) is captivated by the Hollywood producer who was once her high school boyfriend, Jesse Kiplinger (Gary...
Roy Hubley (Jim Banar) and wife Norma (Susan Burnham) blame each other for their daughter Mimsey locking herself in the bathroom b...
In a scene from "Oklahoma!" presented April 2008, Curley sings to Laurie about their future life, hopes and dreams together.
Bringing back a story of a large family in the 1920s, the "Cheaper by the Dozen" cast visits the Newtown Theatre in a 1920 convert...
Newtown Arts Company
120 N. State Street , performing at the Newtown Theatre,
Newtown
PA
18940
Now presenting six shows a year in a classic theatre building that dates back to 1883, Newtown Arts brings quality theatre into the community with style, class and heart. A nonprofit theatre company formed in 1983, their proceeds fund scholarships to students pursuing higher education in the arts. In 2006 they presented the first live plays since 1934 at the historic Newtown Theatre, re-energizing the stage and reconnecting the community with live theatre. Newtown Arts Company takes pride in giving audiences great shows in this wonderful theatre showplace. Each year audiences have asked them to come back with even more shows the following year. They're proud to have been named among the top five theatre groups in the Delaware Valley (and the highest ranked in Bucks County) in myfoxphilly's HOT LIST. The final three shows of their expanded 2008 Season feature the delightful family comedy "Cheaper by the Dozen" August 7-13, Agatha Christie's "The Hollow" Oct 9-15 and the musical "Nuncrackers" December 4-10. Come see some entertaining theatre on the stage of the oldest movie theatre in the U.S.A.! (That's a fact!!!)
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Newtown Arts halways presents a wonderful selection of family-friendly, interesting and well-produced shows. They have fast-become my favorite theater group! Plus they are a friendly group besides.
What a great local theatre group!
I've seen all the shows that Newtown Arts Company has done at the Newtown Theatre starting in 2006. The quality of the shows has always been first rate, and they select shows the audiences enjoy.
They also demonstrate a flair for making the plays touch the audiences, whether tickling their funny bones or making them cry -- and amazingly they've been able to do both well in a single show, Over the River and Through the Woods. The Trivial Pursuit scene was a real hoot, as the grandparents tried to come up with a right answer by remembering who was the actor with the nose who was married to the woman with the face... no that's was the woman with the feet. And then later making us cry with the monologue about whether to tell their grandson that one of them had cancer or to keep it to themselves to let him live his life. Really moving.
But when they do a comedy, they hit all the notes, like when they did Come Blow Your Horn by Neil Simon and the mother got us laughing in answering four quick phone calls that became a comedy of errors!
This season so far has been a delight -- Plaza Suite was so well done and the voices and music for Oklahoma were really terrific. Love Sex and the IRS was a farce that just had you wondering what could go wrong next.
And being able to see it in a really nice historic old theatre that has been restored beautifully is a bonus.
Thanks!
I saw Oklahoma and was impressed! It was a liely show, and the woman who played Laurie had an amazing voice. The cast had a ton of energy and it was clear they enjoyed what they were doing.
The guy who played Ali Hakim made me laugh so hard! Even his curtain call was hilarious as he tried to dance when they did a reprise of the song Oklahoma.
I was amazed I could see such a well done show without having to travel far away. The theatre is a great place to see a show (hint: if you need extra legroom, pay a bit more for the seats in the 8th row).
I'll be going to see lots more of their shows.
Sometimes you don't realize how great a show is until you see it done by a different company and compare the two.
I saw "Our Town" presented by Newtown Arts Company in 2007 and was THOROUGHLY IMPRESSED. It was a first-rate production that really captured the feel of the play and the message for audiences to take away: realizing how lucky we are to have each other and to cherish it while we have it (and to show each other).
I recently saw the Arden Theatre's production and expected to be blown away -- but I walked away disappointed from their show and even MORE IMPRESSED with what Newtown Arts was able to do.
At the Newtown show, the characters were well defined and the members of each family related well -- the Gibbs family and the Webb family felt like a real mother-father-son-daughter connection. You believed the couples had been married a long time and that there was a real family history. At the Arden's it felt like there were 4 actors in each family all just saying their lines without connection.
The narrator at Newtown Arts came across like he was engaging the audience and was a friendly voice who cared that the message and importance of the story got conveyed. At the Arden, the narrator did a good job but it felt like he was telling a story for the sake of telling the story.
Even the minor characters at Newtown Arts stood out. The drunk choir director at Newtown's show was memorable and made the most of his brief time on stage; the two newspaper boys were brothers played by two different actors and each had his own personality; at the Arden they had the same person play both and just turn his cap around to play the second brother!
Emily Webb is the character who most lives the message of the play -- at Newtown the young lady in the role had the depth to play the girl at all the ages in the three acts. She was able to play the nervousness of a young girl hoping to be asked out, but who can play the depth of a woman who has married, had a child and then died in childbirth of her second. What was impressive was the third act, where her performance wasn't morose about having died; rather, she was inquisitive and wondering why people didn't realize what they had in life. Her gentle realization and delivery of those lines made the message of the play get heard, and not get lost in some regrets about her death.
At the Arden, their Emily couldn't get the nervousness of the young girl, and it became painfully apparent at a moment when she criticizes George Gibbs and immediately regrets it and tries to take it back. She delivered the lines about being sorry she said those things so passively that there was no sense that George asked her out for a soda to help her calm down. Then when they walked into the soda shop and the proprietor said "Emily Webb, why you've been crying!" I had to wonder, because not only hadn't she cried, she hadn't even been that upset! So the lines weren't even making sense.
And in Act 3, the contrast of the tones of the play was clear. Newtown Arts was contemplative and wistful, not morbid. Yes, Emily had died, but the story was in the realization that the people still alive could wake up and appreciate their blessings. The Arden focused on Emily being upset she had died and getting almost angry. I don't think that was the message Thornton Wilder was tring to convey.
Besides the acting, Newtown Arts also did a superior job when it came to costumes (by far!), and also did great lighting and stage effects. As far as the costumes, it looked like research had been done into exactly what people would have worn in the early 1900s, and they gave a true sense of the time period. The Arden's had me scratching my head, as the undertaker and the businessman in Act 3 were dressed in 1990s business suits. (?)
When it came to the lights, Newtown Arts found a way to convey an other-worldliness in Act 3, bathing the cemetery inhabitants in a blue light while keeping the live part of the stage in regular white light. It gave a clear sense that the people in the graves were dead. And at a time when Emily Webb was considering going back to her life on Earth for a day, they used the footlights to bathe her in a ghostly appearance that made the moment visually impactful. The work at the Arden was nothing memorable.
Probably the most impressive thing at the Arden were the guest choirs -- who weren't even really performers from the Arden.
These people at Newtown Arts Company showed they really know how to take a play and make it memorable. They did everything they could to make the story real and to get the message across in a positive way that audiences could deal with and maybe take to heart. I think that shows they really respect the play, respect their craft and most important, respect their audience.
I wish I could go back and see Newtown Arts Company's show again -- I know I'd love it even more!
I had the pleasure of seeing their production of "Plaza Suite" by Neil Simon in February.
Not only was it the best presentation of this comedy that I've seen on stage, it was much more fun and "real" than the movie!
In Newtown Arts' production, even Act 1 had some of the humor necessary to keep the audience from getting weighed down by the subject matter of a couple on the verge of breaking up. Yet the humor never interfered with the connection between the characters or with the degree of difficulty they were facing. It was much better than in the film, where it becomes two people just sniping at each other -- this happened at another stage show I saw, and not only did it bring the audience down for Act 1, it kept the audience from feeling lively enough to enjoy Act 2.
On the contrary, Newtown Arts Company's Act 2 was a delight -- the Muriel character had all the scaterbrained nervousness to make her loveable, and the Hollywood producer was not simply portrayed as a caicature smarmy playboy. Newtown Arts made the production more enjoyable by showing that the producer was a blend of both good and bad -- we saw not just the Hollywood producer but still a touch of the High School boyfriend who might have preferred winning the girl back then. It was very humorous and yet very real and almost touching.
Their Act 3 with the Hubleys trying to get the daughter out of the locked bathroom was hilarious! The scene with Roy re-entering the hotel room after being out on the ledge in the rain was a riot! He was drenched!!!
Altogether, this presentation of "Plaza Suite" was what theatre should be -- not just an easy 'on-the-surface' simplistic portrayal of characters but fully-rounded characters who connect with each other and with the audience. BRAVO!
We have seen the first three shows of the 2008 season. Loved the classic "Oklahoma!", laughed ourselves silly at "Love, Sex and the IRS" and really enjoyed "Plaza Suite." Can't wait to see how the family works out in "Cheaper by the Dozen" in August. Two thumbs up for this hard working theater company!
They are a good, local community theater group and donate scholarships to local high school seniors who want to continue the study of art and theater.
Amazing work! They've put on great shows in a historic and beautiful theatre, and succeeded despite not being able to build sets till the day before they open. The productions are always first-rate and you can really see and feel the real relationships between all the characters. This is not run-of-the-mill community theatre! Nice to be able to see such professional caliber work so close to home.
They are a great hometown theater company.
The greatest group of people on the planet
Love "Our Town"
They put on quality shows and give profits to kids for scholarships.
Community, commitment, scholarships, consistent quality of production and selection of shows.
Newtown Arts always presents the plays that have real meaning and significance to the community. The Cast is always professional and Director Rasiej is as talented as he is a leader in the community. Newtown Arts has given patrons a reason to go back to the roots of the theatre Experience. I highly recommend their commitment to bringing the best shows with the best local talent in the region....Bravo!
They are terrific!
Newtown Arts Company is an intimate community of theatrical performers and technicians who are dedicated to enriching the artistic atmosphere of Bucks County.
local non profit theater company, all show proceeds benefit a scholarship fund to support the Arts
A great production in a wonderful "old fashioned" theater!
Think it is great they have revisited the theatre....it's hard to find such a treasure now days. I wish them a huge success.
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Now presenting six shows a year in a classic theatre building that dates back to 1883, Newtown Arts brings quality theatre into the community with style, class and heart. A nonprofit theatre company formed in 1983, their...
Newtown Arts Company
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