eaTHE SUNDAY REPUBLICAN SEPTEMBER 12, 2010

ESECTION

rts&ntertainment

SUNDAY REFLECTIONS

Tracey O’Shaughnessy

writes about the New York

City mosque. 8E

Leslie Elias likes to say she is probably the only actress toportray an oil spill for 20 years.

Well, maybe not likes to say. She doesn’t like that there issuch a thing as an oil spill in the first place, never mind thediscomfort of self-promotion.

Like the spill that figures prominently in her most recentplay, an adaptation of a Haitian folktale, Elias is a force ofnature. With mile-a-minute intensity, she flits in stream of

consciousness from her aunt’s inspiring flamingo dancing to herown efforts at working a marine biologist’s whale recordings into aplay. For three decades, Elias’ children’s theater troupe, the Grum-bling Gryphons, has blended cultural and environmental messagesin presentations around Connecticut and beyond.

At libraries and schools — and at New York’s Museum of Natural

GREAT GRYPHONSChildren’s theater troupe

celebrates its 30th birthdaywith swing through the state

Four former cast membersfrom Broadway’s smash musi-cal, “Jersey Boys” will reuniteonce again to bring the soundsof the ‘60s to the Palace Theaterstage in Waterbury Oct. 2.

The 8 p.m. performance fea-tures Tony Award-winnerChristian Hoff, Michael Longo-ria, Daniel Reichard and J.Robert Spencer.

The popular Broadway starsare taking their unique soundand chemistry on the road in aspecial concert, performing hitsfrom The Beatles, The Beach

Boys, The Jackson Five, TheMamas and The Papas, and theFour Seasons. This concert isintended to captivate audiencesof all ages.

As original cast members of“Jersey Boys,” Hoff, Longoria,Reichard and Spencer have en-tertained audiences for morethan 1,000 performances dur-ing their time in the Broadwayhit.

Before the curtain rises, a 6p.m. pre-show dinner cateredby Emily’s Catering Group willbe held in the Palace’s PoliClub, located on the mezzaninelevel of the theater.

Dinner is $40 for members,$50 for non-members, which in-cludes tax, gratuity, coffee andtea. A cash bar will also beavailable. Seating is limited andreservations can be made whenpurchasing tickets through thePalace box office.

Tickets can be purchased byphone at (203) 346-2000, onlineat www.palacetheaterct.org, orin person at the Palace TheaterBox Office, 100 East Main St.,Waterbury.

Groups of 20 or more qualifyfor discounted rates and shouldcall the group sales hotline at(203) 346-2002.

Oh, what a night! ‘Jersey Boys’ torock Palace Oct. 2

Below, GrumblingGryphons, including fromleft, Lucy Fetterman,Jacob Johnson and SarahBrice, take a bow duringthe performance.

PHOTOS BY IRENA PASTORELLO REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

At left, Leslie Elias, founderand artistic director of theGrumbling Gryphons, atraveling children’s theater,narrates during a recentperformance of ‘AntonAntonovich: A GalicianFolktale,’ at Cornwall TownHall on Friday. The theateris celebrating its 30thanniversary this year.

COURTESY OF PALACE THEATER

BY BRYNN MANDEL REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

History and as far away asUkraine — Elias has encour-aged youngsters to stoke theircreative powers through the-atrical expression.

E M P O W E R I N G C H I L D R E N

Her plays encompass variouscultures and myths and fre-quently involve nature. She in-corporates whimsical costumeslike the 12-person black “oilspill” sheath. She enlists maskmakers, a trio of regular actorsand sometimes musicians. Andfor each show, she has accom-panying lesson plans drawn.

“You can have the greatestmasks, music, storyline, but Ithink my true talent involvesempowering children,” saidElias, as her twin 8-year-oldsons and 12 children in a sum-mer program she runs trampedaround her Cornwall home oneAugust day. “It’s giving them avoice, helping them to valuetheir own thoughts.”

Last month Elias’ troupe cel-ebrated its 30th anniversary intrademark fantastical form.The crowd at Cornwall TownHall was at standing room only.The eyeballs of the dozen or soanxious amateur young actorsappraising their audience ap-peared in the gap between thebottom of a curtain and thestage.

A tribal, bongo-infused songby the group Sirius Coyotebounced off the walls. The au-dience clapped in unison. Instrode a juggler, followed by awoman draped in white andwalking on stilts. The stiltedwoman shimmied as much as

she could on the stilts. Later, aneven taller costumed creature— a green monster with threesets of feet poking out at its bot-tom — would lead the audienceoutside to close the eveningwith a circle of song and dance.

“What is imparted here isjust magical,” said LouiseCoogan, a mother whose chil-dren attended the nonprofittroupe’s programs.

S TA R T E D I NC E N T R A L PA R K

A Long Island native whospent her childhood attendingavant garde plays and honingher performance skills aroundNew York, Elias studied move-ment at Sarah Lawrence Col-lege in the mid-1970s. Shebecame a drama instructor anddirected her first children’splay at Saint John the Divine inManhattan, joining a feministtheater group along the way.She landed in Connecticut afterreceiving a grant and helpedlaunch the Magic Box Playersin Danbury.

After a year-and-a-half inDanbury, Elias, her formerpartner, Nicholas Jacobs, andacquaintances founded theGrumbling Gryphons. Theirfirst performance, “The Mythof Persephone,” about the sea-sons, was staged in CentralPark. The troupe emerged asan ardent proponent of partici-patory theater, from the startencouraging children to dothings like chant and sing to“help” gods and goddesses res-cue Persephone. The Gryphonsincreasingly landed gigs acrossthe region and, eventually, theworld.

As Elias researched each

piece, her passion for environ-mental themes heightened. Sheworked with a marine biologistto create a show inspired by aship that conducted humpbackwhale research. “The GhostNet,” about an errant so-calleddrift net, was one of four pri-mary plays in the Gryphons’repertoire. Used by fishermenin sizes that can be miles long,sections of drift net have beenknown to break free. In Elias’play, one such net haunts theocean. The net ensnares fish, isweighed down by their bodiesand sinks. Bottom-feeders nib-ble on the sea life trapped inthe net, allowing it to rise againand repeat the cycle.

“I once was a fish, swimmingfree, now I have nothing butbones circling me. Stop the waron the sea, live in harmony,we’re all one family,” Eliaschants in a guttural tone, mim-icking the words childrenchant.

A female protagonist ulti-mately slays the ghost net.Elias writes life lessons be-tween the lines.

“Ultimately, (the heroine) re-alizes that the ghost was only anet, and fear and ignorancecouldn’t let her see it,” saidElias, whose productions haveincorporated Jewish traditions,Hopi Native American lore andGreek mythology.

A G L O B A L I N F L U E N C E

Elias wants to translate thework and perform it worldwideto inspire children to take careof the oceans. It’s not her onlylofty goal. She dreams of mak-ing her children’s theater a na-tional model.

“I would love to train allthese out-of-work actors how towork in schools in this partici-patory way,” she said, reflect-ing on the rewards ofinfluencing children instead ofbecoming another actor “spin-ning my wheels and going onauditions.”

Her play may not yet be inmultiple languages, but her in-fluence has already encircledthe globe. In the mid-1990s, theGrumbling Gryphons workedwith Ukranian children impact-ed by Chernobyl.

“On behalf of all the children... I thank you for bringing thema sense of imagination, goodwilland peace,” Inya Bonacorsa,field director of the Children ofChernobyl Relief Fund wroteElias. “They will never forgetthe ‘fire dance’ or the ‘keynotesong.’”

Never forgetting soundscliched, but in Elias’ case, herdistinctive plays really haveleft impressions.

Sabrina Leifert attended aGryphons presentation atGoshen Center School 15 yearsago. This summer, she shuttledher own children, Sean, 4, andHaley, 8, to the Gryphons’ sum-mer program.

Now 27, Leifert received aflier about the summer pro-grams and remembered watch-ing “The Trickster Spider.”

“I knew exactly who she was,I remembered the songs veryclearly,” said Leifert, now ofSharon. She said she’s gratefulher children experiencedsomething so ingrained in herown memories, praising Elias:“She just had the kids feel sogood about themselves. All thekids were just enthralled.”

SEPTEMBER 12, 2010THE SUNDAY REPUBLICAN L W2E

Continued from 1E

IRENA PASTORELLO REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

Daniel Saed, right, of the Grumbling Gryphons dances during an encore called ‘The Worst Band in the Universe’ in Cornwall.

The Bushnell, 166 CapitolAve., Hartford. (860) 987-6000, (888) 824-2874. IrvingBerlin’s “White Christmas,”Nov. 16-21. “Three Cups ofTea,” Dec. 7. “The Wizard OfOz,” Jan. 18-23. “Shrek TheMusical,” Feb. 12-20. “Next toNormal,” March 29-April 3.“The Brief Wondrous Life ofOscar Wao,” April 4. “Hair,”April 26-May 1. “West Side Sto-ry,” May 24-29.Cheshire Community The-ater, Cheshire High School,Route 10. (203) 250-8313. “INever Sang for My Father,” Fri-day-Sept. 19.Connecticut Cabaret The-atre, 31-33 Webster Mill Plaza,Berlin. (860) 829-1248.“Breaking Legs,” to Sept. 25.Downtown Cabaret Theatre,263 Golden Hill St., Bridge-port. (203) 576-1636. “Josephand the Amazing TechnicolorDreamcoat,” Nov. 19-Dec. 31.Goodspeed Opera House, 6Main St., East Haddam. (860)873-8668. “Carnival!” to Satur-day. “Radio Girl,” Thursday-Aug. 22, Norma Terris Theatre.“How to Succeed in BusinessWithout Really Trying,” Sept.24-Nov. 28.Goshen Players, Inc., The OldGoshen Town Hall, Route 63,Goshen. (860) 491-9988. “The25th Annual Putnam CountySpelling Bee,” Sept. 24-Oct. 9.“Lenny’s Dan,” Nov. 12-13. “Cu-pid 2.0: A Valentine Cabaretfrom the Goshen Players,” Feb.11-12. “Dancing at Lughnasa,”May 6-21.Hartford Stage, 50 ChurchSt., Hartford. (860) 527-5151.William Shakespeare’s “Antoy& Cleopatra,” Oct. 7-Nov. 7.“Snow Falling On Cedars,” Jan.13-Feb. 6. “Divine Rivalry,”Feb. 24-March 20. August Wil-son’s “Gem of the Ocean,”March 31-April 24. AlfredHitchcock’s “The 39 Steps,”May 12-June 5.Hole in the Wall Theater, 116Main St., New Britain. (203)229-3049. “Insignificance,”Sept. 24-Oct. 16.Little Theatre of Manchesterat Cheney Hall, 177 HartfordRoad, Manchester. (860) 647-9824. “Brooks,” Nov. 5-21.Phoenix Stage Company,686 Rubber Ave., Naugatuck.(203) 632-8456 “BleacherBums,” today. The Repertory Theatre ofNew Britain, 23 Norden St.,New Britain. (860) 223-3147.“Rumors,” by Neil Simon, toSaturday. “Fool for Love,” bySam Shepherd, Oct. 22-Nov. 6.“The Foreigner,” by LarryShue,” Jan. 7-24. “Play It AgainSam” by Woody Allen, Feb.25-March 12. “Come Blow YourHorn,” by Neil Simon, April 8-23.Seven Angels Theatre, PlankRoad, Waterbury. (203) 757-4676. “Nunsense,” Jan. 8-24.“My Fair Lady,” to Sept. 19.The Sherman Playhouse, 5Route 39, Sherman. (860)354-3622. www.shermanplay-ers.org. “Dancing at Lugh-nasa,” by Brian Friel, Sept.24-Oct. 16.Shubert Theater, 247 CollegeSt., New Haven. (203) 562-5666. “A Chorus Line,” Oct. 1-3. “Hair,” Oct. 22-24. “AChristmas Carol,” Nov. 26-28.Monty Python’s “Spamalot,”Dec. 29-Jan. 2. “Mamma Mia!,”Jan. 11-16. “Cats,” March 4-6.“All Shook Up,” March 18-20.“Legally Blonde: The Musical,”May 13-15.

TheaterWorks, 233 Pearl St.,Hartford. (860) 527-7838.“Broke-Ology, by Nathan LouisJackson, to Oct. 17.TheatreWorks New Milford,5 Brookside Ave., New Milford.(860) 350-6863. “Exit TheKing,” by Eugene Ionesco,” Fri-day-Oct. 9. “Almost, Maine,” byJohn Cariani,” Dec. 3-21.Thomaston Opera House,158 Main St., Thomaston. (860)283-6250. “Dirty RottenScoundrels,” Saturday-Oct. 3.“A Night In The Theater,” Oct.29-Nov. 7. “Joseph And TheAmazing Technicolor Dream-coat,” Nov. 20-Dec. 5.Warner Theatre, 68 MainStreet, Torrington. (860) 489-7180. “The Rocky HorrorShow,” Oct. 16-30. “Bye ByeBirdie,” Nov. 6-14. “Rent,” Feb.5-12. “The Mousetrap,” April 2-10. “Jesus Christ Superstar,”May 14-22. “Babes in Holly-wood: The Music of Garland &Rooney,” June 11-19.Westport Country Play-house, 25 Powers Court,Westport. (203) 227-4177.“The Diary of Anne Frank,”Sept. 28-Oct. 30.Yale Repertory Theatre, YaleUniversity Theatre, 222 YorkSt., New Haven. (203) 432-1234. “We Have Always Livedin the Castle,” Friday-Oct. 9. “ADelicate Balance,” by EdwardAlbee,” Oct. 22-Nov. 13. “BossaNova,” Nov. 26-Dec. 18. “ThePiano Lesson,” by August Wil-son,” Jan. 28-Feb. 19. “Romeoand Juliet,” by William Shake-speare,” March 11-April 2. “Au-tumn Sonata,” by IngmarBergman, April 15-May 7.

A U D I T I O N S , E T C .

Auditions for ages 5 to 12, with orwithout dance experience, forBrassCity Ballet’s “The Nut-cracker” will be at 1 p.m. todayat Brass City Ballet, 1255 Mid-dlebury Road, The MiddleburyHamlet, Middlebury. Auditionfee is $20. Alternate auditiondate is 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 25.Telephone (203) 598-0186. Broadway Tony award-winningactress Debbie Gravitte will starin the Ridgefield Playhouse’sHoliday Spectacular on Satur-day, Dec. 11. Open auditions forsingers and dancers will be from6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday and 3 to 6p.m. Wednesday at the Play-house, 80 East Ridge St., Ridge-field. For information, call (203)438-5795 or visit ridgefieldplay-house.org.Playhouse Theatre Group isseeking equity and non-equityactors and singers for the up-coming season of productions.Pay is provided for most roles. Alist of shows and breakdown ofcharacters and requirements isavailable by emailing info@play-houseonpark.org, on CTcall-board.com or atwww.playhouseonpark.org. Au-ditions will be held by appoint-ment Sept. 20 from 7 to 10 p.m.,both nights, at Playhouse onPark, 244 Park Road, West Hart-ford. Bring a headshot and re-sume. For an appointment, call(860) 523-5900, ext. 10.Auditions for the farce, “Christ-mas Belles,” will be from noon to4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 18 at theClockwork Repertory Theatre,133 Main St., Oakville. The castcalls for seven women and fourmen. Actors will be paid a fee toassist with expenses. For infor-mation, call (860) 274-7247.

ON STAGE

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MOVIE TIMES

GRYPHONS: Promoting participatory theater