Gala Benefit Committee and Sponsors gear up for 10th Anniversary Celebration at Dragone (clockwise from George Dragone, Nancy Diamond, Juliet Harker (Get in Shape for Women), Pauline Teoh (Matsu Sushi), Ellen Bregman, Diana Sussman, Leslie Greene, Alyson Angus (Tito's Handmade Vodka), Carole Schweid
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Fairfield County’s popular lunchtime theatre series, Play With Your Food (PWYF), opens its 10th Westport season at Toquet Hall on Tuesday, January 10. Two for the Road, a gala evening celebrating the 10th anniversary, is set for Saturday, January 28 at Dragone Classic Motorcar Company in Westport.
When PWYF first launched in January 2003, there was no social media; internet and cell phone use were not pervasive. Once a month, from January to April, PWYF connected Westporters with what was then a novel concept: socialize over a pre-performance gourmet lunch, then enjoy professional readings of award-winning one-act plays and a stimulating post-performance discussion. Now ten years later, this daytime answer to ‘live’ social media can be found in Westport, Fairfield and Greenwich, with 22 lunchtime programs annually.
PWYF’s 10th Anniversary Season schedule begins in Westport at Toquet Hall on January 10, 11 and 12, in Fairfield at the Fairfield Theatre Company on Tuesday, January 17th and in Greenwich at the Greenwich Arts Council on Wednesday, January 18th. Lunch begins at 12noon; plays and discussions run from 12:30 – 1:30pm.
“The plays we present have evolved over the years,” said Artistic Director and PWYF co-founder Carole Schweid. “We’ll start our 10th season with Agatha Christie’s mystery The Rats, end it with George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, and throw in quirky comedies, music and romance along the way.” Schweid, whose Broadway credits include the original cast of A Chorus Line, generally selects three shorts plays ranging from 10 – 20 minutes for each PWYF programs.
The January Westport/Fairfield program, in addition to Rats, includes two comedies: Airborne, a gem by Gib Johnson about a delightfully misguided airline employee, and John Bishop’s Arizona Anniversaries, a surprisingly haunting comedy about taken and missed opportunity. Before the readings, a buffet lunch of sandwiches and salads will be catered by Blue Lemon Restaurant in Westport and The Dressing Room in Fairfield.
A selection of love letters and music from the Broadway show 1776, comedies, theatrical, funny and touching plays comprise the remainder of the 2012 season. The Loop, originally played by Desperate Housewives’ star Edie Falco, and written by Pulitzer Prize winner Warren Leight, is a fun comedy about a married man caught, literally, with his pants down. The cornerstone of April’s program is an excerpt from George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, featuring British born West End and Broadway actor Norman Allen as the irascible Doolittle.
In addition to quenching audiences’ thirst for theatre at Play With Your Food, sophisticated epicurean appetites will be treated to lunches by, in Westport: Blue Lemon, Da Pietro’s, Matsu Sushi, Garelick and Herbs; and in Fairfield, by The Dressing Room, Layla’s, Tuckers and The Pantry.
2012 Westport performances, at Toquet Hall, 62 Post Road East, are Tuesdays through Thursdays, January 10th, 11th, 12th; February 7th, 8th, 9th; March 6th, 7th, 8th and April 10th, 11th and 12th.
The series will also be shown at the Fairfield Theatre Company, 70 Sanford Street, on Tuesdays, January 17th, February 14th, March 13th and April 3th. Shows at the Greenwich Arts Council, 299 Greenwich Avenue, are on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Jan 18th and 19th, March 14th and 15th and April 18th and 19th.
Tickets, $43, can be ordered online at www.jibproductions.org or by calling the box office at 203.293.8831 (Mon - Fri, 10am – 4pm). Advanced reservations are required.
10th Anniversary Gala, January 28th:
To honor PWYF’s 10th anniversary season, long-time Play With Your Food devotees have organized a Gala Celebration, Two For the Road, at Dragone Classic Motor Cars on Saturday, January 28 at 6:30pm.
Two For the Road combines the backdrop of the trendy classic car showroom with what Play With Your Food does best: serve up tasty food and good theatre. Hearty hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and wine begin the evening. Catering sponsors include Blue Lemon, Garelick and Herbs, Matsu Sushi, Tito’s Handmade Vodka and more than 15 other of the area’s finest restaurants.
Gala guests then will be treated to a rousing show created by Schweid. Among other surprises, a distinguished lineup of professional stage actors will perform scenes from My Fair Lady, 42nd Street, Mack & Mabel and PWYF comedy favorites Signs of Life by Fred Stroppel and Baby Food by Pulitzer Prize winning author David Lindsay-Abaire. “Our audience is accustomed to enjoying a variety of classic and original work by terrific performers. We won’t disappoint!” promises Schweid.
“Two For the Road celebrates PWYF’s success and longevity with a fabulous party, while simultaneously providing the financial support necessary for it to sustain itself,” said Paula Argosh, Gala Co-Chair. Play With Your Food is a program of the not-for-profit JIB Productions, which also produces the Seasons Readings holiday program on December 15. Benefit Committee members include Argosh, Dina Upton and Deborah Herbertson (co-chairs); Ellen Bowen, Ellen Bregman, Marianne Goodell, Leslie Greene, Jill Greenberg, Joyce Laitman, Chris Smith and Diana Sussman.
PWYF Producer Nancy Diamond continued, “The response from the community in support of PWYF, the Gala, and our mission to provide uplifting cultural programming has been heartwarming. The generosity of both private and corporate sponsors enables us to present a memorable event.” Sponsors include Get In Shape for Women, Shelly and Michael Kassen, Pat Kery Fine Arts, Inc., Ann Sheffer and Bill Scheffler and Westport Resources, Inc.
Two for the Road will be held on Saturday, January 28. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres begin at 6:30 pm. The show begins at 8pm. Dragone Classic Motorcars is located at 176 Post Road West in Westport.
Tickets are $100 and can be ordered online at jibproductions.org or by calling the box office at 203-293-8831, Mon–Fri 10am–4pm.
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