Jackson Community College

Performance, master class planned Friday, Oct. 17

Get set for thrills and chills as the award-winning radio theater company, LA Theatre Works, brings an exciting stage adaptation of two science fiction favorites to the Potter Center Stage at Jackson Community College, War of the Worlds and The Lost World. Well-known stars of stage and screen, including many science fiction favorites, will perform in this upcoming presentation at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17. 

Actors will also present a pre-performance theatrical workshop at 12:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17. (See attached information).

JCC has been selected to receive funding from the 2008–2009 Performing Arts Fund, a program of Arts Midwest funded by the National Endowment for the Arts with additional contributions from General Mills Foundation, Land O’Lakes Foundation, and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

Arts Midwest Executive Director David J. Fraher says, “Arts Midwest is delighted to support Jackson Community College in their upcoming presentation of LA Theatre Works:  War of the Worlds and The Lost World. We believe the arts enrich lives, and that audiences in Jackson will enjoy and benefit from this performance.”

War of the Worldsand The Lost World will feature actors from the Sci-Fi Channel, “Star Trek,” “X-Files” and more. Jerry Hardin (“X-Files”), a veteran of dozens of films and television programs and fine stage actor Kenneth Alan Williams will join television star Kyle Colerider-Krugh (“E.R.,” “Third Rock From the Sun” and “Seinfeld”) and Josh Clark (“Heroes,” “Star Trek Voyager,” “E.R.” and “LA Law”), previously announced.  Rounding out the cast will be Jen Dede (“E.R.”, “Gilmore Girls”) and Peter McDonald (“Becker,” “Wings,” “E.R.” as well as many starring roles on stage in Los Angeles).

Star Trek alum John de Lancie is directing this fine cast and is available for interviews along with the actors.

About the performance

Recreating the breathless pace of Orson Welles’ infamous radio broadcast, LA Theatre Works makes it clear why H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds is truly the mother of all space invasions. Originally performed by Welles’ Mercury Theatre of the Air, the 1938 live 60-minute broadcast of an “eyewitness report” of an invasion from Mars caused a nationwide panic. The broadcast used an updated adaptation of the original 1898 book authored by one of Welles’ writers, Howard Koch, who changed the time and location from Victorian England to a small town on the East Coast of the United States in 1938 making the story more personal for listeners. This fascinating piece still resonates today as concerns swirl around our environment, protecting our borders, etc.

Scorned by his colleagues after making the extraordinary claim that prehistoric animals exist and that he has seen them, Professor Challenger leads a harrowing four-person expedition through the remote jungles of South America to settle once and for all the validity of his claim. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s campy adventure The Lost World follows this scientific expedition deep into the Amazon jungle -- and back in time. Cut off from the outside world on a primeval plateau, the fearless explorers discover a place where dinosaurs have evolved beside ape-men and the fate of the human race hangs in the balance. From riding the rapids to dodging whizzing arrows, The Lost World will take you on a ride you won't soon forget!

For more information, contact the George E. Potter Center at Jackson Community College, call 517.796.8600 or visit www.jccmi.edu. Tickets are $29, $26 and $22.

Theatrical workshop planned

A theatrical workshop will be available at 12:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17 in the Potter Center’s Federer Rooms B & C (located on the first floor). This is a great opportunity for students and community members to learn about pursuing a career in theatre, film and television from cast members of the professional radio theatre company, LA Theatre Works. This free workshop is an exciting event designed to share with actors, both student and professional, some of the techniques that are invaluable in pursuing these careers.

The workshop will be taught by one or more members of the L.A. Theatre Works company -- professionals with impressive resumes and plenty of audition war stories. They will cover topics such as getting rid of audition fears, selection of material, how to prepare for an audition with dress and manner, and the audition /callback process itself. There will be active demonstrations of ways to deal with audition anxieties, etiquette with casting directors and directors, and many other related topics.

The Performing Arts Fund supports the touring of professional performing artists specializing in the fine arts of dance, theater, music, and family entertainment throughout Arts Midwest’s nine-state region. These engagements include public performances and in-depth educational activities, reaching audiences that lack access to the performing arts.

· Arts Midwest: Based in Minneapolis, Arts Midwest connects people throughout the Midwest and the world to meaningful arts opportunities, sharing creativity, knowledge, and understanding across boundaries. A non-profit regional arts organization headquartered in Minneapolis, Arts Midwest serves audiences, arts organizations, and artists throughout the nine states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and beyond. One of six non-profit regional arts organizations in the United States, Arts Midwest’s history spans more than 25 years. (Arts Midwest, call 612.341.0755 or visit www.artsmidwest.org.)

· National Endowment for the Arts: The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established; bringing the arts to all Americans; and providing leadership in arts education. Established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government, the Endowment is the nation’s largest annual funder of the arts, bringing great art to all 50 states, including rural areas, inner cities, and military bases.