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Local women combine efforts to offer fun-filled
month of theater
Three Canton
women are combining their efforts to create a fun-filled month
of theater. Julie Beckham, managing director of Riverside
Theatre Works in Hyde Park, and Ellen Orkin and Melissa Mayer,
co-founders of Canton-based e&m promotions (www.eandmpromotions.com),
are collaborating to make March’s Cabaret Month at Riverside
Theatre Works come in like a lion!
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(L-R)
Melissa Mayer, Julie Beckham and Ellen Orkin |
Beckham,
former owner of The Greater Boston Drama Studio in Canton, grew
up in Canton as did e&m promotions co-founder Mayer. The two
have been friends since childhood but never anticipated working
together.
“Basically I
convinced Julie to sing at a Temple Beth Abraham fundraiser,
then she convinced me to come and see a show at Riverside and
here we are,” Mayer said of how this collaboration began.
“I’ve loved
the theater since I was a child,” Orkin added. “So it’s a
perfect match being able to combine my expertise with a passion
of mine and help promote this wonderful institution.”
Mayer and
Orkin are also promoting cabaret artist Lisa Yves, who among
other things, performs a Bette Midler Tribute with a band
complete with back-up singers.
“The show is
so impressive. I thought, ‘This has to be a part of Cabaret
Month at Riverside,’” Beckham said.
Yves’ Bette
Midler Tribute every Thursday in March is only one of many acts
at Riverside Theatre Works this month.
For the whole
month of March, Riverside converts its theater into a cabaret
venue. Round tables, a lounge with a full bar and professional
singers complete the atmosphere. The mainstay of Cabaret Month
each year is a revue of songs from shows that won’t hit the main
stage at Riverside. This year’s cabaret performance, “The Other
Side of Riverside,” is directed by Beckham and features music
from “Avenue Q,” Miss Saigon,” “Phantom of the Opera” and more.
“All of my
friends and family know they won’t see me in March because it’s
Cabaret Month,” Beckham said. “There is just so much going on at
the theater.” Besides the Bette Midler Tribute and “The Other
Side of Riverside,” there are student cabarets, an adult open-mic
night, and a faculty cabaret.
A major part
of this collaboration is e&m promotions’ efforts in reaching an
untapped audience — those who might not typically go to the
theater or to Hyde Park, for that matter. “It’s an amazing
space, full of opportunity,” Mayer said of Riverside. “And the
neighborhood is really developing — there are great restaurants,
it’s safe and so much closer than you imagine it to be — less
than 15 minutes from Canton!”
Riverside
Theatre Works is celebrating its 30th anniversary this fall. In
addition to producing six major shows a year, Riverside offers
theater, music and dance classes to students ages 4 to adult. “I
wish I had known about this place when I was a kid,” Mayer said.
“It really is amazing!”
For tickets
or information call 617-361-5269, visit www.rtwboston.org or
email Julie Beckham at
julieb@rtwboston.org.
March 4, 2010
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