Knowledge Workings Theater Company

Tag: actress

  • Z in RETROSPECTIVE Is Jasmine Dorothy Haefner; So Special, No One Else Would Do

    Jasmine Dorothy Haefner Brings So Much To All She Does
    click here to see JDH as Z in retrospective

    What forces form a fine actor? Experience. Intelligence. Discipline. Feeling. All of these but also the skill and courage to make their own path through not just each work but through ‘the business’, and a capacity for reflecting on each moment in the career (which sometimes careens) and constantly learning. John Gielgud in his 1963 book Stage Directions captures the way this needs to play out:

    “I think an actor has to find his own especial way of working, selecting his effects from what he has found out for himself in all kinds of different experiments at rehearsals and—experiments of movement, experiments of give and take with the other players—in order to gain the necessary flexibility to contribute to and fit in with the director’s intentions as far as possible.”

    Jasmine Dorothy Haefner possesses all of these qualities, a judgment I can make with authority having cast her in three plays and directed her twice.

    Zoom screen of Grudges actors

    She was Candy, the MAGA Cuban-American in Grudges,

    and Micky in The Oracle

    She was a unique Hollywood force in Joe Queenan’s TOP HATE

    And many different people in 2-Faces at Edinburgh Fringe

    How did her ‘especial way of working’ emerge? As one observer put it, “After ten years in the entertainment industry, she’s done almost every job except light fire to the hoop the lion jumps through.” And I can add that neither the lion nor the fire would give her pause with the commitment she applies to everything she does. All that she’s learned, all the experimenting and discovery that she undertakes excitedly and assiduously combines with an innate sensitivity and creativity to make her so valuable especially in the creation of a new work particularly a comedy that dares to imagine an afterlife where a menage a trois — with a ‘plus one’ — tries to sort out who is still attached to whom so they can all get to next, whatever next is

    In writing RETROSPECTIVE and imagining the character of Z, critic of…everything, having the voice of Jasmine in my head was a joyous inspiration. And now that our director, Gifford Elliott, is getting this play up on its feet her embodiment of this wickedly funny character has blossomed into even more than even I envisioned. That’s why you’ll regret it if you miss her performance as part of the Broadway Bound Theater Festival this August 13th (8PM), 15th (5PM with talkback) and 16th (2PM)

    come on, click here now: see jasmine as z

  • Adara Totino astonishes as PIPPA in RETROSPECTIVE — 08/13,15, 16

    Adara Totino is PIPPA in RETROSPECTIVE
    Photo Credits — Bill Wadman

    “Fine acting always hits an audience with the force and oneness of the well made bomb — one is only aware of the blast or series of blasts at the time–afterwards you can study the devastation or think about how a bomb is made.“
    Alan Rickman

    Adara Totino detonates delightfully as PIPPA in the new play RETROSPECTIVE in the leading comedy performance of the summer. (Don’t miss the glorious burst of energy that is her performance; buy your tix now for 08/13-08/16 for BBTF at AMT Theatre 354 West 54th St. )

    Adara (PIPPA) and Jasmine Dorothy Haefner (Z) take in the action in the afterlife

    Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Adara attended the Actor’s Studio MFA Program, studying under luminaries such as Elizabeth Kemp, Susan Aston and Louis Colaianni. You may have been fortunate enough to see Adara in Edward Allan Baker’s DOLORES (ASDS Repertory) or Cyn Cooper’s I WAS A STRANGER TOO produced by Remember the Women Institute. To see Adara on stage is to cherish and never forget her ability to create a character so real and engaging that her story draws you willingly, bewitchingly into another world.

    Air hugs for everyone: Jeremiah Alexander (CLINT), Adara (PIPPA) and Jasmine (Z) are into it

    “The theatre is the place where extraordinary things happen, where you see people behaving, not as they do on the street, but as they might do in your dreams. Or your nightmares.”
    Simon Callow

    Who is Pippa the character that Adara embodies in RETROSPECTIVE?

    • Dead poet, deep-rooted rapturous rhymer
    • Tour guide to the afterlife
    • Feltering (look it up) ex-wife of Rory McGrory, acclaimed painter
    • Putative, but disputed, muse of Rory, now warily encountering her
    • Unclogger of earthly attachments and schmutz

    Rory thinks (and hopes) he’s dreaming; Pippa says he’s dead. To find out who’s right and see Adara Totino in her captivating turn on the Off-Broadway stage come see RETROSPECTIVE

    TIX FOR RETROSPECTIVE August 13-16 ONly
    TIX FOR RETROSPECTIVE AUGUST 13-16 ONLY
    Clockwise from bottom left” Jasmine Dorothy Haefner, Jeremiah Alexander, Mark Thomas McKenna, Adara Totino, our fab cast for RETROSPECTIVE at Broadway Bound Theatre Festival

  • Exploring Reinvention on Unlocked With Madelyn Blair

    Televised discussion on YouTube

    What a great pleasure and privilege to talk to Madelyn Blair about reinvention on her intriguing and insightful video program, UNLOCKED (https://lnkd.in/eicbTx3K) . We ranged from our common interest in knowledge sharing to the ways in which any of us can create a new reality in our lives. And thanks to Madelyn for giving me another chance to talk about my latest play, HONOR, with just four performances left at the Gene Frankel Theatre in lower Manhattan: October 3-5 at 7 PM and Sunday, October 6th at 1 PM. Tix at our.show/honor
    The program is available now on YouTube
    https://lnkd.in/eMi4i6w9

  • In HONOR, “Alinca Hamilton Takes Full Advantage…”

    Ronnee (Alinca Hamilton) turns the tables on Don (Ed Altman) in HONOR

    FULL ADVANTAGE!

    “Alinca Hamilton takes full advantage of this space and, acting with her body and face as well as with her words, letting the audience see her reactions, is quite funny…, showing us the ridiculousness of the situation.”

    Roberta Pikser, Theater-Wire.Net

    We knew that about Alinca as Ronnee Emerson but seeing Roberta Pikser’s review of HONOR in Theater-Wire.Net proved a gratifying confirmation and commendation of our colleague’s superb talent. Come to the Gene Frankel Theatre in lively NoHo neighborhood of Manhattan and see for yourself but you’ll have to do so before October 6th when this run where Alinca is joined by her two partners in corporate comedy, John Blaylock and Ed Altman ends.

     

    Click here now to get your Tix for HONOR

    “The play suggests that such a thing as honor is all but impossible, at least in a corporate setting, or perhaps that the concept is totally subjective, that no one really knows what it is. White male privilege is touched upon as one aspect of the elusiveness of the concept. Perhaps, as suggested by the insistence of the two men not to listen to each other, but to try to prevail, the idea of honor comes down to dominance. “

    You have to see HONOR the play that Andrew Cortes of 

    Stage Whisper Podcast called ‘FANTASTIC! ’

  • Wonder if Reviews Recommending HONOR Are Accurate? Come Judge for Yourself!

    Ed Altman, Alinca Hamilton, and John Blaylock make the story sizzle

    Okay, one more plea to see HONOR at The Gene Frankel Theatre before it closes on October 6th, but this time the recommendation comes from reviews for which we are SOOOO grateful

    Tix at  our.show/honor

    1) “Written and superbly directed by T.J. Elliott…All of these actors are first-rate in their performances.”


    2)  “The play masterfully takes what appears to be an apparent disagreement over a value interpretation of an issue to a place that reveals the complexity of not only the interpretation of the issue but also each of the participant’s values. The ending provides an excellent explication of the complexity of human character in the interpretation of what constitutes personal honor, leaving one with intriguing ideas to contemplate.”from Scotty Bennett, TheaterScene.Net
    Did that work? 

    Click here for Tix

    No? Then read this one…


    3)    “Eloquently and dramatically skewers the current business culture… provocative entertainment.” “Elliott also directed and his physical staging is crisp, well-paced and contains momentum. The personable and talented cast of Ed Altman as Don, and Alinca Hamilton and John Blaylock,as the lawyers, all deliver energetic and authentic performances. This trio shines in the concluding sequence… “


    4)    “Technical and artistic director Gifford Elliott contributes smoothness to the production with balanced lighting and sound. The realistic,simple scenic design consists of a long table, wheelie chairs, a white board on an easel, and a large running wall clock which add a cool real-time dimension to the stated 45-minute proceeding.”from  Darryl Reilly, Encore!      
    Come on, you like theater and this is a well-reviewed relevant piece.

    Click here for tickets to a show that is rollicking and relevant
    Not good enough? How about what…TimeOut says
    “In this dark corporate comedy by writer-director T.J. Elliott, three executives chew over—and perhaps spit out—the results of an investigation into a case of harassment that has been brought against by one of them. Alinca Hamilton, John Blaylock and Ed Altman play the compromised trio.”You need a night out so go to this link for those tickets
    70 minutes of fast-paced fun that surfaces realities all too familiar for many of us in a grand historic theatre in the lively NoHo neighborhood at 7 PM (Sunday at 1 PM)

    Tix at  our.show/honor

    BONUS: Tell us this post persuaded you and we’ll give you a FREE wine or beer in the lobby of the Gene Frankel Theatre

  • Alinca Hamilton: Not to be Missed in HONOR

    Alinca Hamilton — Photo by David Goddard

    Bold assertion: you should go see Alinca Hamilton in HONOR at the Gene Frankel Theatre  running now through October 6th ONLY at the Gene Frankel Theater 24 Bond Street in the NoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. Tix at our.show/honor

    Ronnee (Alinca Hamilton) attempts to referee the constant conflict of Don (Ed Altman) and Ludwig (John Blaylock, seated)

    Why? Her performance compels, charms, and cheers in this comedy of corporate culture in ways that you won’t want to miss. You can read more about Alinca here and you can actually hear her via the Stage Whisper podcast of Andrew Cortes, but what would really be to your advantage is to see and listen to Alinca in this play: she’s terrific! We believe in her so much that we are offering you two (2) complimentary tickets to any of our performances of HONOR. Alinca has to be seen. Just reply to this email with your preferred performance date for your free tickets. Her performance is worth a lot more than that.

    Oh, what’s the play about, the comedy by T.J. Elliott that actress Sean Young called “hilarious and very clever“? In HONOR, three executives (John Blaylock, Alinca Hamilton, and Ed Altman) meet to review the results of an investigation into a charge of bullying against one of them. In the course of a raucous and rollicking meeting, a free-for-all ensues that tests the outer limits of propriety and procedure. With sharp humor and witty tactics, each brings their own concept of “honor” to the table for debate, only to be left wondering what constitutes honor in our present world. The running time of HONOR is just over an hour, which leaves you plenty of time to enjoy the fine restaurants and nightlife in this lively neighborhood.

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