Ready for another festival? Vashon Theatre Fest opens this week

The festival includes Shakespeare, a New York-bound new musical, a one-man show celebrating the famed folksinger Pete Seeger, a series of readings of new plays, and a debut presentation of short works of theater.

By Elizabeth Shepherd • July 20, 2022 1:30 am
Grammy-winning Broadway orchestrator Steve Orich (second from right) presents his band arrangements to the cast of “Somewhere Between,” a jazz-pop musical by islander Alan Becker. Company members, from left, include Chris Serface, Cassi Q Kohl, Maria Valenzuela, Timothy Wilds, Casey Raiha, Orich, and Paul Linnes. (Alan Becker Photo)
Grammy-winning Broadway orchestrator Steve Orich (second from right) presents his band arrangements to the cast of “Somewhere Between,” a jazz-pop musical by islander Alan Becker. Company members, from left, include Chris Serface, Cassi Q Kohl, Maria Valenzuela, Timothy Wilds, Casey Raiha, Orich, and Paul Linnes. (Alan Becker Photo)

Local and regional theater artists have been hard at work in recent weeks, preparing to offer two weekends of immersive theater in the second annual Vashon Theatre Fest, presented by Vashon Repertory Theatre starting this Thursday and continuing through July 31.

Shows will take place both indoors and out, at Vashon Center for the Arts, Open Space for Arts & Community, and Snapdragon’s Black Cat Cabaret.

This year’s festival lineup will include Shakespeare, a New York-bound new musical, a one-man show celebrating the famed folksinger Pete Seeger, a series of readings of new plays, and a debut presentation of short works of theater curated and created by an array of island performers.

Organizers hope to attract even bigger audiences to this year’s festival than during the festival’s debut in 2021 when attendance clocked in at 2,000.

“We expect even more this year,” said Charlotte Tiencken, VRT’s producing artistic director, who launched the theater company in 2020, at first offering only virtual productions before going big in the summer of 2021 with the company’s first theater festival.

Here’s what’s on tap for the 2022 fest:

“Somewhere Between,” a new musical bound for off-Broadway, tells the story of small-town sweethearts whose plans for living happily ever after are interrupted by a roguish interloper. Performances will take place at Vashon Center for the Arts at 7 p.m. on July 21 and July 22; 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on July 23; 7 p.m. on July 29; and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on July 30.

“Much Ado About Nothing,” the Bard’s comedic romp filled with multiple misidentifications and misunderstandings, will be presented at 6 p.m. on July 21, 23, 29, 30 and 31, and 3 p.m. July 24, in the meadow of Open Space for Arts & Community.

“Seeger,” about the life and times of the iconic folksinger and social activist, is a one-man multimedia show written, directed and performed by Randy Noojin. It will be presented at the Bruce Black Box Theatre of Open Space for Arts & Community, at 7:30 p.m. July 22, 29, and 30; 4 p.m. July 23; and 2 p.m. July 24 and 31, at Open Space for Arts & Community.

“5-Minute Wonders,” to be staged outdoors at Open Space, will consist of a collection of five-minute pieces by performance artists, street performance artists — veterans, and newcomers alike. Performances will take place at 6 p.m. July 22 and 28; 3 p.m. on July 23, 30, and 31; and 6:30 p.m. on July 24.

“Plays in a Snap,” a well-attended and lively component of last year’s festival, will reprise with a new batch of staged readings of freshly minted plays, all written by regional playwrights. Readings will take place at 3 p.m. on July 22, 23, 24, 29, 30, and 31, at Snapdragon Bakery & Café’s Black Cat Cabaret.

Tickets for all shows range from $15 to $30, with no one turned away for lack of ability to pay. Also, new to the Fest this year is the online sale of original poster art created by local impressionist painter, Pam Ingalls.

To find out more about purchasing both posters and tickets, visit vashonrepertorytheatre.org.