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Brighton Beach Memoirs, Brooklyn Memories
Max Samuels’ grandfather grew up in Brooklyn. The Staples senior heard his stories of that place and time. Until a couple of weeks ago, though, he’d never really heard them. But Max is president of...
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This Is Not A Broadway Trailer. It’s Better.
Still on the fence about seeing “Brighton Beach Memoirs,” Staples Players’ current Black Box Theater production? This trailer will push you over that fence, and send you hustling for tickets. The video...
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Once On This Island
Leave it to Staples Players to produce “Romeo and Juliet” — with a Caribbean twist. “Once on This Island”takes over Toquet Hall this Friday (8 p.m.) and Saturday (5 and 8 p.m.). It’s an intriguing show...
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Ages And Stages
In a modern version of “let’s put on a show!” Staples Players’ final production of 2011 is an original revue. How else did fit dozens of talented performers — including many graduating seniors — onto...
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Gina Rattan And Her 4 Billy Elliots
When you or I watch “Billy Elliot” we marvel at the dancing, the energy, the predictable but uplifting story line. Gina Rattan watches actors’ entrances and exits. She listens to decibel levels. And...
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We (Heart) For The Heart
If you were near the cannons at Westport’s 4th 1st of July fireworks — or clicked a link on “06880″ — you were entertained by For the Heart, Westport’s fresh-faced, energetic and mega-talented teenage...
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Jesus Christ Comes To Westport
“Jesus Christ Superstar” bursts upon the Westport stage this week. The Broadway blockbuster is this season’s Staples Players Summer Theatre/Westport Continuing Education show. Following in the...
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Staples Players Save The Children
The audience at last night’s opening of Staples Players’ “Jesus Christ Superstar” received a special treat. Gregg Bonti and Max Samuels present Save the Children representatives with a $3,000 check....
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The Last Dance For Joanne Kahn
When Joanne Kahn’s parents took her to the New York City Ballet — she thinks it was “The Nutcracker” — she fell in love with the beauty and grace of dance. “It was a chance to leave yourself behind,...
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Broadway Boys Are Back In Town
For Broadway music, you can go to Broadway. Or Broadway can come to you. This Sunday (February 12, 4 p.m., Staples High School), the Broadway Boys — “the hottest male voices currently working on the...
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Taking Teen Actors “Into The Woods”
David Roth is a Stephen Sondheim aficionado. In the spring of 2002 Roth was in his 2nd year as director of Staples Players. In the aftermath of 9/11 — with Americans still shell-shocked and saddened —...
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David Marshall Grant’s Latest “Smash”
Westporters know David Marshall Grant from his starring roles with Staples Players back in the early 1970s. Television viewers remember him for his groundbreaking role as Russell Weller in...
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Gwen Beal: From Almost Nothing To “Almost, Maine”
On her 1st day of school 4 years ago, Gwen Beal auditioned for Staples Players’ fall show, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” She didn’t get a role. But instead of marking the end of...
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Gina Rattan’s Sweet Tooth
Staples Players — the award-winning high school theater troupe — teaches teenagers how to act, sing, dance, direct, run lights, and do a thousand other putting-on-a-show-related things. Including how...
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Matt Van Gessel’s Mysterious “Willy Wonka”
Lots of people like “Willy Wonka.” Matt Van Gessel loves “Willy Wonka.” The 2011 Staples grad — now a rising sophomore at North Carolina School of the Arts — has vast experience playing...
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“Oklahoma!”: The Show Goes On!
On Broadway, there’s a venerable tradition that “the show must go on.” At Staples — where Players productions have long been compared to Broadway shows — the same tradition holds true. Which is why —...
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Extra, Extra! Adam Kaplan Joins “Newsies”!
When Adam Kaplan was 6 years old, his parents took him to see Staples Players‘ production of “West Side Story.” The high school troupe is often praised for its “Broadway-quality” work. As a toddler,...
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Ben Zawacki: Professional Draper
For over 50 years, Staples Players has served as a pre-professional launching pad. Hundreds of alums have gone on to rewarding, highly regarded — and sometimes even lucrative — careers in acting,...
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Baayork Lee Helps Staples Players At The Ballet
Staples Players strives to offer audiences Broadway-quality productions. To do that, director David Roth gives his actors Broadway-quality experiences. Two years ago, before “Curtains,” Tony...
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Staples Players’“Chorus Line” Heads To New York
Staples Players has a 55-year tradition of wowing audiences with professional-style productions. But it was Players’ turn to be stunned tonight. At the end of the final performance of “A Chorus Line” —...
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