A Note from the Artistic DirectorWelcome to the Newton Theatre Company!
Since our first show in 2013, we've been very busy! Over the past five years, we have been working diligently to achieve our mission statement of creating high-quality, accessible stagings of classical, contemporary, and adapted pieces of theater. We are always on the lookout for more creative involvement. Whether you are a local actor, a prospective audience member, or a member of a local nonprofit, please be in touch! Currently, we're in the midst of a busy 2018-2019 season! Junie B. Jones Smells Something Fishy starts off our season this September with a festive outdoor performance for our youngest audience members. Our cast, comprised entirely of NTC veterans, brings Barbara Park's beloved characters to life with just the right blend of humor and sincerity. In October, we return to Washington Street for a stunning reimagining of the Trojan War in Jon Lipsky's Living in Exile. Featuring two NTC favorites, this play explores the heroism, horror, and finally compassion found in Homer's The Iliad. Our first fundraiser as a newly incorporated nonprofit, this intimate affair will touch classical scholars and contemporary viewers alike. Then, in early February, we have our first-ever world premier production with Jon Jory's adaptation of Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. Fanny Price's search for love and independence is given a new twist as our ensemble-style production creates an intimate, inventive, and surprising staging of this classic tale. Next, it's Christmas-- in May? It sure feels like it with our production of It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play. One of the most famous Christmas stories of the twentieth century gets turned on its head as a diverse group of radio actors bring George Bailey and his fellow citizens to life. With a cast featuring up to 100 members of the Newton community, this show truly embodies the idea of a community coming together to create something wonderful. In June, Kids Day returns for the second year in a row! Complete with live music, activities, a used book sale, and a staging of a Junie B. Jones story, this event is the highlight of our summer. Finally, in July, we return to the steps of City Hall for one of our most beloved traditions: outdoor Greek tragedy. This summer, with Euripides' Helen, we examine the infamous Helen with fresh eyes-- not as a captive in Troy, but as a guest in Egypt, removed from the decade-long war. After she is finally reunited with her husband, the pair will have to learn to trust each other again if they want to make it home alive. We hope that you'll continue to enjoy our work throughout the season. With new authors and classic themes, it's sure to be one for the books. For more information, like our Facebook page, or subscribe to our email list! Hope to see you at our next show! Melissa Bernstein |
Melissa Bernstein (Artistic Director) founded the Newton Theatre Company (NTC) in 2013 and has directed all NTC shows including Wonder, Our Town, The Song of Achilles: Parts I and II, The Imaginary Invalid, Junie B. Jones and That Yucky Blucky Fruitcake, The Importance of Being Earnest, Agamemnon, Junie B. Jones and that Meanie Jim's Birthday, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, The Bourgeois Gentleman (or The Would-Be Hipster), The Oresteia, Junie B. Jones Sneaky Peaky Spying, Ethan Frome, Natural Shocks, Ada and the Engine and Iphigenia at Aulis. She is founder and Executive Director of the Newton Youth Players, housed in the Newton Cultural Center at City Hall. Since beginning the program in 2006, she has directed over 50 productions involving close to one thousand youth actors. From 2005-2007 she founded and led the Fingerpaint Players, a traveling children’s theatre troupe housed at Newton North High School. Other shows directed include Iphigenia at Aulis and The Boys Next Door in Boulder, Colorado. Melissa holds a Ph.D. in Theatre from the University of Colorado at Boulder, an MFA in Playwriting/ Theatre Education from Emerson College and a BA in Theatre from SUNY-Binghamton.
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