“A Crucible: a puritanical celebration of Witches and Turkeys”
is a new devised play coming to the New York City Fringe Festival!
What happens when a group of local well meaning idiots decide to rehearse a great American classic? A mix of holidays and a splash of stupid. Don't miss this unique blend of entertainment and social commentary!
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WE NEED YOUR HELP!Our story is one of ignorance. Of silliness. Of assumptions. Of deception. And ultimately, witch hunts. Lots and lots of witch hunts.
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It’s Thanksgiving and The Danvers Onion Town Community Players are back and ready for their bi-annual production of Arthur Miller’s great American Classic The Crucible. A very merry, happy spooky thanksgiving day celebration of women, food, villainous men and why America loves a good argument. A Crucible.
The story of witch hunts has never been more relevant, and we would love to simultaneously make you laugh and think and maybe even cry, just a little bit. Come on down for a wild, Puritanical turkey romp at A Crucible.
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New York City Fringe FestivalThe New York City Fringe (formally the FRIGID Fringe Festival) is a theater festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in an environment that values freedom of expression and artistic determination. In true support of the Indie Theater Community. FRIGID New York is an independent, non-profit theater company operating UNDER St Marks Theater, an off-off-Broadway venue in the East Village. |
What Is Devised Theatre?Devising a play can mean many things depending on who you ask. For the ensemble of A Crucible: A Puritanical Celebration of Witches and Turkeys, it begins with an image of the Danvers Onions - 6 clowns from Danvers Massachusets - getting together to put up their annual production of “A Crucible” written by Bart Miller.
With this image in mind, we start playing games. We build this world through an exploration of images and improv games. We use flashcards and write down “provocations” (suggestions, ideas or offers from the ensemble). These provocations can range from relevant historical facts, references to pop culture, images, comedic moments, character relationships, dramatic moments, and even dream sequences. Some cards will make it into the final piece, many will not. We research fervently (and constantly), write scenes, and storyboard the plot until we have a working script. Then we put our “fearless editor” hats on and make many tough choices and painful edits to help strengthen the script. We will stage the entire show while continuing to edit and create. The ideas typically do not stop flowing until hours before curtain on opening night. It is an extremely exciting and creative process, and we can’t wait to share the outcome! |
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Michael F. Toomey is a neurodivergent performer and Theater creator. He is the Artistic Director of The Humanist Project based in Brooklyn. Founding member of Split Knuckle Theatre, which devises new works, that has toured from Bangkok to Buenos Aires. He has directed, devised and choreographed numerous shows including The Comedy of Errors, Titus Andronicus, Julius Caesar and Alice In Wonderland. Michael has been a company member at the internationally renowned Shakespeare & Company in Lenox MA for over 20 years where he has performed roles including: Serg (ART), Puck (Midsummer), Poet (An Iliad), Bassinet (Ladies Man), Scapan (Scapan), Walter (Split Knuckle’s Endurance). Various Roles NYC: Francis (Francis Goes To War), Francis (H.U.P Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle). Michael’s childhood passion for The Muppets and Looney Tunes has served as the basis of his adult obsession with Clowning and comic structure. He teaches Clowning to professional performers in NYC and throughout the county. He studied with Clown masters Philippe Gaulier and Giovanni Fusetti. Graduated from Naropa University in cooperation with LISPA and holds an MFA in Lecoq-based Actor Created Theatre. His career goal: to recenter play, pleasure and laughter in a world that takes itself very seriously.
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Meg Meschino is a theatre artist born and raised in New York City, and the production stage manager/co-producer for MAD MAD MAD. She graduated from Marymount Manhattan College with a degree in Producing and Management. Meg frequently stage manages for the American Academy of Dramatic Arts through their company seasons, as well as for their second year graduation series. Other recent projects include How to Steal an Election with the York Theatre Company (ASM), Travels with Ars Nova (PA), the New York Philharmonic Concerts in the Parks (PA), and Self Tape (PSM) at the Downtown Urban Arts Festival.
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ENSEMBLE
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Mia Alexandra (She/Her)
Mia Alexandra is an Israeli actor, writer and producer. She got her start in acting through devised and movement-based theater and graduated with an AFA from The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Her recent credits include: Olga (Three Sisters), Y (Passage), Shakespeare (Emilia), and she originated the role of Colonel Meowski in MAD MAD MAD. Mis is thrilled to create new and thought-provoking art, and would also like everyone to know she hosts the best dinner parties. www.miaalexandra.com |
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Jon-Mykul Bowen (He/Him)
Jon-Mykul Bowen is (required to tell you that) he’s an actor from St. James, Barbados. He (maybe) worked with Operation Triple Threat in Barbados and (definitely) graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Selected credits include Stuff/Senses (Everybody), Tuzenbach (Three Sisters), and he originated the role of the clown Andreas Pina in MAD MAD MAD. He also became a member of Personal Pizza Party's 2024 actor cohort. He legally only has 90 words for this bio or else, so visit jm-bowen.com. Seriously silly, professionally playful. |
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Fernando Zermeno Garavito (He/They)
Born in Tucson, raised in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, Fernando spent his childhood looking up to people who made him feel hopeful; comedians, song-and-dance men and women, actors and actresses, people who made him smile. As time passed, he found himself on stage, and has since searched for what his heroes did for him, made him feel happy. His credits include: Chicago, In The Heights, The Antelope Party, Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters, and Dancing At Lughnasa. He would like to dedicate this and every performance to his parents and his Chata. “Enjoy Every Sandwich.” @fazg1996 |
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Evan James Keopnick (He/Him)
Evan is a founding member of OutLawArtists. He is a 2012 Graduate of UW-Milwaukee's Bachelor of Fine Arts Acting program. He has worked with Theatre Companies in Milwaukee, WI such as Theatre RED, All In Productions, Milwaukee Entertainment Group, Theatre Gigante, Youngblood Theatre, Optimist Theatre, Quasimondo and at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, MA. His film credits included One Week Vacation with Jonesinfilm, a mini web series titled Mediocracy with Schlock Productions and Deliver This with Schmaus Productions. Evan currently teaches Clown with The Humanist Project. "Without experimentation, a willingness to ask questions and try new things, we shall surely become static, repetitive, and moribund." - Anthony Bourdain. |
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Peter Julien Lane (He/Him)
Peter Julien Lane started out as an English major. In college, he further developed as an improv comedian, dancer, mime, clown, and new-fledged musician. He is a graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts’ conservatory program as well as an alum of the school’s company program. He would like to deeply thank his family and friends for supporting him in his creative work. |
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Madeleine Maggio (She/Her)
Shakespeare & Co: Adriana, Comedy of Errors; Hippolyta/Snout, A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Don John, Much Ado About Nothing; Robert Shallow/Bardolph: Merry Wives; Longaville/Jaquenetta, Love’s Labor’s Lost; Helena, A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Ensemble: Shakespeare and the Language that Shaped a World; Elizabeth Bennet, Pride & Prejudice; Marianne Dashwood, Sense & Sensibility; Cassie, The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley; Elizabeth Darcy, Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley; S&Co Regional Tour: Lady Capulet/ Benvolio, Romeo & Juliet; The Humanist Project: Lavinia, Titus Andronicus. Madeleine attended the two-year professional course at L’École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq in Paris, studied at The Second City in Chicago and is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. |