Curio Theatre's Oleanna

Mamet Brought to Life by Curio Theatre: OLEANNA

Mamet Brought to Life by Curio Theatre: OLEANNA

Next up, The Gong Show!

Twelfth Night ended on a high note for the cast and crew, with the closing weekend completely sold out and a last, glorious performance at The Steampunk World's Fair in Piscataway, NJ on Sunday, May 16th.

The crowd was enthusiastic and recognized us as kindred spirits; we were no longer unusual in our dress and found ourselves surrounded by goggle-wearing, Shakespeare quoting lovers of steam! It was a wonderful day and event.

After the performance, we signed program guides and mingled with the audience as we showed off our costumes and compared goggles.



Next season promises to be an equally exciting one, so please keep an eye out for the season announcement!

On the 22nd of May, we'll be hosting The Gong Show, a fundraiser to help make Curio completely accessible to the public. It's a great cause and wonderful fun, so please come out in support! You can purchase tickets or donate here on the website.

See you all soon!

-- Jennifer Summerfield --

Opening Night and beyond

The first week of previews went beautifully and we're excited for opening night, particularly as there are only three tickets left for that performance! If you come to opening, please stay afterwards for the party hosted by The Gold Standard Cafe, across the street from the theatre. We always have a wonderful time there and love to meet and chat with the audience, so please don't be shy about introducing yourselves!

We're also incredibly excited about the souvenir program guide we have in the works. It may not be available in time for opening night, but it will feature the gorgeous photography of Kyle Cassidy and the otherworldly designs of Kambriel, Peacock Blue Design Studio, Mayfaire Moon and Clockwork Couture. It's been a dream to wear these garments, which lend just the right touch of timelessness and whimsy for the production... and we hope to spread that dreamlike state to you as well, through the images in the guide.

Be sure to ask us about the program guide, which will be available for a nominal fee at some point within the next two weeks. To whet your appetite, Cassidy's production photos will be on view in the lobby of the theatre.

We look forward to seeing you at Twelfth Night!

-Jennifer Summerfield-

Seams and Steam

So many exciting things to tell you as we gear up for our first Preview this Thursday, April 15th!

First, The Nerd Signal covered our production recently in a lovely article and used some of the fantastic publicity photos taken by Kyle Cassidy!

Second, talks are underway for the cast of Twelfth Night to appear at The Steampunk World's Fair in Piscataway, NJ on Sunday May 16th. This is the only event of its kind on the East Coast and our production seems to be tailor made for such a festival! We're all thrilled to collaborate with such an energetic and gifted team of artists.

And finally, not only do we have actual steam helping to create just the right atmosphere, but costumes keep pouring in from unbelievable sources! Take this stunning Mayfaire Moon corset, for example, that was hand delivered on Friday evening, worn here by Chelsea Bulack, our enchanting Viola.



Boxes have arrived from Peacock Blue Design Studio and Kambriel as well!

It's been an amazing journey thus far, and we can't wait to share this production with you!

Stitching a production together

As we move into tech week, we're putting the finishing touches on set and costumes sot that we have the best impression of how the stage lights play on the fabrics and metal piping.

Karen Heenan, one of our valuable costuming crew, sews and creates pieces for the actors as the need arises. The following photos represent costuming in progress as we make sure the garments fit and match other items provided by the designers who have donated key pieces.



Boots and stockings here were provided by Clockwork Couture.

And the back of the costume in progress represents the intended bustle effect which will eventually mirror the sleeves of the amazing jacket that Kambriel is providing.



More pieces will be arriving today and tomorrow and we will post more photos as everything is woven together!

- Jennifer Summerfield -

Collaboration, Steampunk Style

We're at that exciting point in the rehearsal process when set and costumes and character discovery begin to come together and we all breathe a collective sigh and say "Yes, this is what it's about!"

Liz Carlson, our dynamic director, was caught here, in the act of breathing that great theatrical sigh of happiness during this afternoon's rehearsal.



One of the wonderful things about this particular set is that it hangs, suspended, in one of the most beautiful architectural sites of West Philadelphia -- our backdrop is Curio's massive pipe organ, which suddenly looks like the essence of all that is Steampunk . Why, it could belch smoke at any moment!



And boxes of costume donations continue to come in from wonderful sources, like Jared Axelrod, who is the very face of Steampunk, and the wonderful Donna Ricci of Clockwork Couture.

Collaborating with so many creative minds and talents has been an exciting experience, and has helped this production blossom into something quite wonderful and unique.

- Jennifer Summerfield -

Steampunk Shakespeare

On Monday evening, March 15, The Gold Standard Cafe hosted a gallery opening of photographs taken by Kyle Cassidy, documenting Curio's six year history. Please stop by the restaurant, located on the Southwest corner of 48th Street and Baltimore Ave, through May 15th, to wander through the past five seasons at Curio and even catch a glimpse of the next production, Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night."

On display in the dining room of the Gold Standard, next to Cassidy's photographs, are watercolor renderings of Aetna Gallagher's Steampunk costume designs for "Twelfth Night."

Between Gallagher's costumes and Paul Kuhn's multi-tiered set, "Twelfth Night" promises to be the most visually stunning of any Curio production yet!

Adding to the beauty and flavor of the production, celebrated Steampunk designers, Kambriel and Donna Ricci, will be lending some of their beautifully crafted items to Curio, giving just the right touch of Neo-Victorian flair.

I can't wait to see and wear the results!

-Jennifer Summerfield-

Transitioning to Twelfth Night

On Saturday night, we wrapped up our sold out run of Sartre's "No Exit" with a strike party, clearing the stage for designer Paul Kuhn's ambitious, multi-level set of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night", which will be officially opening on April 23 (the Bard's 446th birthday!) Proving that many hands make light the work, we were joined by friends from the community and those who had only recently been audience members, and work was completed in an hour and a half. It was wonderful having so many willing volunteers, and the evening was full of laughter and the forging of new friendships.



For "Twelfth Night," we're going to remain true to the sense of intimacy we began earlier in the season with "The Weir" and "No Exit'; however, because of our new seating arrangement (which involved carefully moving eight of the pews from the sanctuary to the stage), we'll be able to increase the number of tickets available for each performance!

We finished the night with a delicious ziti dinner prepared by managing director, Gay Carducci. It was a perfect way to celebrate the completion of a successful run and launch a brand new production.



Here I am with Paul and fellow actors C.J. Keller and Ken Opdenaker, sharing stories and thoughts about the future season.

And that future is looking bright!

-Jennifer Summerfield-