Briefly in Datebook

Orange Coast College’s 2000-01 theater season will feature more

than 40 performances of student- and faculty-directed plays.

Opening the productions will be “Jesse and the Bandit Queen,” a comedy

by playwright David Freeman depicting life on the run in the American

West. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays from Sept. 16 through

24.

OCC theater professor John Ferzacca will direct “Picasso at the Lapin

Agile,” actor/comedian Steve Martin’s offbeatplay involving art and

intelligence. Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursdays through Sunday from

Oct. 5 to 15, plus a 2 p.m. matinee Oct. 15.

“The Ten or Less Festival,” written, directed and acted by students,

will be a collection of plays that take 10 minutes or less to perform.

They will be staged at 8 p.m. Fridays through Sundays from Oct. 20 until

29.

“Bullshot Crummond” parodies British pulp fiction and detective

movies--think of Michael Caine in “Jack the Ripper”--with a crime-solving

plot. The play will be staged at 8 p.m. Fridays through Sundays from Nov.

10 to 19.

Theater professor Alex Golson will direct “The Hostage,” a story about

a British soldier who befriends his Irish captor. It will be performed at

8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays from Nov. 30 through Dec. 10. The play is

intended for mature audiences.

Golson will also direct two dramas: Jason Miller’s “Lou Gehrig Did Not

Die of Cancer” and George Rothman’s “Where Were You on Your Ninth

Birthday?” Both shows will be performed at 8 p.m. Fridays through Sundays

from Jan. 26 until Feb. 4.

A selections of plays by British playwright Harold Pinter will be

performed Saturdays and Sundays from Feb. 17 through 25.

From Feb. 21 through 24, the college will present a children’s play

titled “Wish I Could Meet Lewis and Clark and Sacajawea.” Showtimes are

10 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. Friday, 8 p.m.

Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday in the campus Robert B. Moore Theatre.

Playwright Shelagh Stevenson’s “The Memory of Water” reunites three

sisters for their mother’s funeral. The show, directed by John Ferzacca,

will be performed at 8 p.m Thursdays through Sundays from March 8 through

18.

OCC’s annual “Spring One-Act Play Festival” will spotlight modern

pieces, as well as some original works by students from April 20 through

29. The festival will have performances at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays,

plus 2 p.m. Sunday matinees.

And finally, William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” will be staged in the

Robert B. Moore Theatre at 10 a.m. Wednesday through Friday, 8 p.m.

Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday from May 16 through 20.

Unless otherwise indicated, all shows will take place in the campus

Drama Lab Studio.

Tickets for all faculty-directed shows are $7 for adults and $6 for

seniors/students and children with advance purchase or $9 at the door.

Student-directed shows are $5 in advance, $6 at the door.

OCC is at 2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa. Information: (714) 432-5640.

‘Ragtime’ to hold auditions for two boy roles

An open audition will be held for the part of Little Coalhouse in the

Sept. 12 through 24 performances of “Ragtime--The Musical” at the Orange

County Performing Arts Center.

Auditions will be held at 6 p.m. Sept. 11 at the center. Sign-in is at

5:30 p.m.

The part calls for two African American boys ages 4 to 6 who are

shorter than 40 inches (3 feet, 4 inches).

Children must be accompanied by a parent/guardian and may register in

person on the day of the auditions at 5:30 p.m. only. No advance

appointments will be made.

No formal preparation is necessary. Each child must bring a current

snapshot or photo with a note outlining contact information, age, height

and experience. The candidate may not be a member of Actors’ Equity.

However, this is a paying role through an Actor’s Equity Production

Contract.

The young actors will be needed for rehearsals beginning that evening.

Children should plan to be present three to five hours each day of

rehearsal. The young actors will be needed for four performances a week.

A chaperon will be assigned to assist children during rehearsals and

performances.

“Ragtime” is based on the classic E.L. Doctorow novel depicting

turn-of-the-century American life intertwined with pivotal historical

events.

Children and parents/guardians should enter through the Founders Hall

entrance to the left of the main building, off Avenue of the Arts between

Sunflower Street and Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa. Parking is

available in the structure behind the center, on the corner of Avenue of

the Arts and Sunflower Street.