The Garfield Center for the Arts is preparing to present a full season of plays performed live on our stage for a streaming online audience. The first production of the season teams up two associated one-act plays by James McLure. Laundry and Bourbon and Lone Star are the individual one-act titles, but they are frequently presented together under the title 1959 Pink Thunderbird in reference to a car that is mentioned prominently in both plays. The remaining season will be announced in the near future.
The production is slated for performances on 2 weekends, Friday and Saturday evenings only, on April 30, May 1, May 7 and May 8. Auditions will be held by appointment, and a description of the process and appointment procedures are below.
In Laundry and Bourbon, Elizabeth and her friend Hattie are whiling away the time folding laundry, watching TV, sipping bourbon and Coke, and gossiping about the many open secrets that are a part of their small-town life. They are joined by the self-righteous Amy Lee who, among other tidbits, can’t resist blurting out that Roy, Elizabeth’s husband, has been seen around town with another woman. The ensuing conversation is increasingly edged with bitter humor, but from it emerges Elizabeth’s inner strength and a quiet understanding of the turmoil that her husband has endured since his return from Vietnam. The Director is Jennifer Kafka Smith.
In Lone Star, the scene shifts to the backyard of Angel’s, a local bar, where we finally meet Roy. Once a local high-school hero, he’s now a moody, macho type trying to reestablish his position in the community after his hitch in Vietnam. Joined by his younger brother, Ray (who worships him), Roy sets about consuming a case of beer while gradually revealing that he cherishes three things above all; his country, his wife, and his 1959 pink Thunderbird. When Cletis, the son of the local hardware store owner, arrives on the scene, the underpinnings of Roy’s world are threatened as unexpected and potentially devastating conflicts are revealed. The Director is Steven Arnold.
Needed for Laundry and Bourbon are three women, age 30s to 40s, and needed for Lone Star are three men of the same approximate age range.
For health considerations, the directors are requiring actors to audition individually and by appointment only. Face masks or face shields are required. Auditions will be held at the Garfield Center for the Arts, 210 High Street in Chestertown, on Saturday and Sunday, March 20 and 21. There are half hour appointment slots available between 1 PM and 7 PM on both days.
To make an appointment, please send an email to [email protected]. Use the subject header “Auditions Appointment.” In the email, please give GCA your name, age, your phone number, indicate which date you want to audition, and give a range of time in which you can be available on your preferred date. GCA will respond with a confirmation on the specific time for your audition and give you further instructions.
If you cannot attend either audition date and would like to make a special appointment, or if you have any additional questions, you may also address them via [email protected] and use “Auditions Question” as your subject header. Do not call the theatre.
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