It Takes a Little Courage

Eastern States Festival is a Big Pond for Small Fish

In a few weeks, my community theatre group, Rochester's Black Sheep Theatre will participate in a theatre festival competition alongside eight other groups from NY, MD, PA, DE and DC. From our humble beginnings to our most recent successes and recognition, competing and even performing at a venue such as this to an audience of this size and nature is a very big deal for us.

As many of you know, we perform in a space of less than 1000 square feet that seats fewer than 50 patrons, and operate on a very thin shoe-string budget. We all have day jobs and everyone is a volunteer. Most people in community theatre have similar stories and similar situations.

But we're different.

Quite Literally the Black Sheep 

What makes us so unique is, let's face it, we're really small fish. In a city that includes theatres like Geva, Blackfriars, JCC Centerstage, The Downstairs Cabaret; venues like Dazzle Theatre and the Multiuse Community Cultural Center (MuCCC); and countless suburban community groups, we have always felt like (and perhaps been regarded as) the black sheep of the family. Hence, yes, the organization's name. Even as the Artistic Director, I don't have initials after my name (like MFA or even BFA). I have no formal training. Our space is in a residential hallway in what used to be a warehouse and is besieged by structural, cosmetic, and electrical issues. We struggle to pay our rent each month. I'm not complaining, mind you. I'm just laying out the facts as I see them to put the whole ESTA Fest in perspective.

Because despite all these things, we do damn good work. Really damn good.

We will be representing not only Rochester, but the entirety of New York State at the festival later this month. The pride and admiration I have for the artists who will accompany me to La Plata is boundless. I'm not saying we should be regarded as "hometown heroes make it big." 

But it sure feels like it. 

News from AACT

Anyways. The press release prepared by the American Association of Community Theatre, who puts on the festival, is printed below. I wanted to take this opportunity on this particular personal soapbox (i.e. my blog) to do a bit of bragging. 

Because I'm just so damn tickled to be going.

[By the way, we are still raising much needed funds to help us get to La Plata and back, and could sure use your help. Information about a couple of our programs is included in the press release. Please consider participating by lending your support. You'll be glad you did. :-)]

ROCHESTER’S BLACK SHEEP THEATRE TO APPEAR
AT REGIONAL AACT FESTIVAL

Rochester’s Black Sheep Theatre of Rochester, New York is proud to announce that its production of Feeding the Moonfish has won the honor of performing at Eastern States Theatre Association (ESTA) AACTFest 2015 Region II festival to be held at The Port Tobacco Players, Inc. in La Plata, Maryland April 17-19, 2015.

To be eligible to perform at the ESTA AACTFest 2015 Region II festival, Rochester’s Black Sheep Theatre performed at the Theatre Association of New York State (TANYS) state festival in November 2014. In addition to winning the 2014 TANYS state festival, the production was honored with Festival Adjudicator Awards for Best Ensemble Acting to Jared Lee Morgan and Colleen Divincenzo, and Best Overall Design of the Festival.

Rochester’s Black Sheep Theatre is hoping to receive top honors at the ESTA AACTFest Region II festival so it may perform at the national community theatre festival this summer in Grand Rapids, Michigan. AACTFest 2015 will take place June 23 - 28 and will showcase 12 community theatre productions from across the United States and the U.S. Military Overseas.

AACTFest 2015 details are available at aactfest.org/15. The public is invited to attend both the regional and national festivals.

The group, who normally operates in a theater venue of fewer than 50 seats, will now perform in an auditorium that seats several hundred. “The production translated very well from our space to the theatre at Cayuga Community College for the state Festival,” says Diane Mashia, Artistic Director of Rochester’s Black Sheep Theatre, who also directed Feeding the Moonfish. “We are confident we can bring it now to an even larger venue. This is a tremendous opportunity for our cast and crew,” Mashia continues. “Considering most of them have no formal training,” as many working in community theatre do.

To raise much-needed funding, the group is holding a gala fundraising event, “Moonfish at the Festival: The Start of Something Big!” on Sunday, April 12 at the Bachelor Forum, 670 University Avenue, Rochester, NY, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. There will be a silent auction, 50-50 raffle, door prizes, and lots of other fun. They are also running a crowd funding campaign through IndieGoGo [https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/feeding-the-moonfish-at-the-esta-festival].

AACTFest is a program of the American Association of Community Theatre. It is a biennial event that has been held since 1969.

The American Association of Community Theatre (AACT) is the resource connection for America’s theatres. AACT represents the interests of more than 7,000 theatres across the United States and its territories, as well as theatre companies with the armed services overseas.

Colleen DiVincenzo and Jared Lee Morgan in Feeding the Moonfish.
Photo by Marty Nott. 

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[Diane Mashia has been recognized four times by the Theatre Association of New York State for Excellence in Directing: Later Life (2015); Feeding the Moonfish (2014); The Sisters Rosensweig (2014); Vincent (2013). This will be her first trip to ESTA Fest.]