Mrs. Smith Goes to Washington Saturday, October 2, at 7:30 pm

The show is a one-woman play about Maine's famous politician, Margaret Chase Smith, who served in the U.S. House from 1940 to 1949 and then in the U.S. Senate from 1949 to 1973. She was the first woman elected to both houses. Out of the Box Theatre presents actress Sally Jones, who portrays the moderate Republican, known for her opposition to Senator Joseph McCarthy and being the first woman to chair the Senate Republican Conference. The fascinating performance reveals Smith's life from childhood through her lengthy political career and her later awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Part of the Center Stage Series--Sponsor: Kennebec Savings Bank

Tickets: $18, Johnson Hall member $16, Child under 14, $10.
Call for reservations: 582-7144

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The Open Book Players will hold auditions for their fall production of The Laramie Project, a play by Moises Kaufman, on August 29 at 6 p.m. at Johnson Hall. Parts are available for male and female actors, ages varying from late teens to late 60's.
Contact for info:lucyrioux@gmail.com
Performance dates are October 23-24, 2010.

*THE STORY:* In October 1998 a 21-year-old student at the University of Wyoming was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die, tied to a fence in the middle of the prairie outside Laramie, Wyoming. His bloody, bruised and battered body was not discovered until the next day, and he died several days later in an area hospital. His name was Matthew Shepard, and he was the victim of this assault because he was gay. Moisés Kaufman and fellow members of the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the course of a year and a half in the aftermath of the beating and during the trial of the two young men accused of killing Shepard. They conducted more than 200 interviews with the people of the town. Some people interviewed were directly connected to the case, and others were citizens of Laramie, and the breadth of their reactions to the crime is fascinating. Kaufman and Tectonic Theater members have constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience from these interviews and their own experiences. The Laramie Project is a breathtaking theatrical collage that explores the depths to which humanity can sink and the heights of compassion of which we are capable.

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Swing Into the Holidays with the Edith Jones Project
Sunday, December 12, 3 PM matinee

The Edith Jones Project, Maine's all-women 17-piece big band, presents Swing into the Holidays, one of the most festive, exhilarating holiday concerts of the season, on Sunday, December 12, 2010. This group of ladies always put on a riveting show. The band will be up to their usual antics, jokes, and festive props, all with a holiday twist. The concert and "swing-a-long" will feature selections from five decades of big-band music, and includes several new pieces including exciting improvisation work and masterful arrangements of holiday classics. There's nothing quite like a band of this caliber and energy to stir the holiday spirit!

Tickets: $15, Johnson Hall member $13 (bring a non-member free), Student, $6.
Call for reservations: 582-7144