News Detail

Summer Stage presents LEGALLY BLONDE - 7/21-7/23

By Alexa Colas ‘13
Summer Connections Communications Intern

“The production is very exciting and has a fantastic cast,” Ms. Moriarty shares enthusiastically while the sound of the stage crew hard at work fills the background.  Carla Moriarty is an instrumental figure in Dwight-Englewood’s Performing Arts Department and is currently serving as the Summer Stage director.  Having led a multitude of performances at D-E each school year, Ms. Moriarty is more than just excited to be working on Legally Blonde: The Musical, a production that has never been done at D-E, in partnership with Teaneck-based Black Box Studios [BBS].  Initially, Summer Stage was a D-E program from 1979-1989 that has now been reinstated as a summer theater in residence program 26 years later. The rebirth of Summer Stage prompted an invitation to the Black Box theater company to conduct their Rock Theater Intensive Program at D-E Summer Connections.

Leora Hyman, who “embodies that perky Elle Woods personality that the part requires” according to Ms. Moriarty, has been a participant in the theater company for six years and was enthused to follow Black Box to D-E.  Experiencing this change of setting, Leora has welcomed and found comfort in an environment new to her acting career.  Previously having camp days confined to one big space or an auditorium, Leora embraces not just the facilities but also the atmosphere that Summer Connections at D-E provides. “It’s really exciting that it's happening at Dwight-Englewood because we get a whole new space to work in, and we have access to the costumes and all the different special effects and different things that D-E has.  It’s also really nice, I feel, being able to be in an environment around other campers in different programs, and so you get to meet different people and be a part of a program.”

Dwight-Englewood student and Summer Stage attendee Charlie Spitzley ‘22 was recommended to Black Box by his singing teacher.  Not initially knowing that the theater intensive would be hosted on the campus at which he attends school, Charlie was excited to dive into an unfamiliar project in a very familiar place.  “It was a coincidence that it was here and I love it because there is a choir room we can work in, a place we can meet up, it’s a big campus so I like it a lot”.  Playing a total of three roles for the Legally Blonde production, Charlie has been experiencing Matt Okin’s directing methods to the fullest.  Both he and Leora speak highly of the practice of collaborative theater that Matt implements to create a dynamic rehearsal that encourages the influence of an the actor on the character they or their castmates play.  Additionally, both Leora and Charlie describe Matt as fun and enthusiastic.

Since his founding of Black Box Studios in 2007, Matt Okin and his colleagues have worked to establish the company as one that supports collaborative theater.  Since his undergrad days at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, Matt has honed his skills as a writer/director in this specific type of theater.  The mission of Black Box Studios, he states, is to “create an environment where every actor feels comfortable enough to contribute to the process and confident enough to realize that their contribution can be valuable.”  While executing this on and off the stage, Matt attributes the facilities here at D-E to making his job a little easier than it has been in previous years.  “Here at D-E/Summer Connections, the facilities are top-notch, and this combined with the incredible support of everyone here - [Summer Connections Director] Shakeh [Tashjian] and everyone in her office, Summer Stage Director Carla, Leon [DiLeone] and his remarkable tech team, Julia, etc. - has made it a smooth, wonderful experience from day one. We can concentrate on what we do best and do not have to worry about the space/place at all.  We were asked to come in and create exciting summer teen theater, and the entire program and staff is making it a great place to do just that.”

Providing Matt and his cast with what he states as a “diverse and massive enrichment program” and an opportunity to feel a part of something larger, BBS is giving D-E Summer Connections a performance to look forward to.  Carving out a space between the hallways of Klein Campus Center, the classrooms in which Enrichment campers learn, Black Box Studios has brought a certain type of creative energy to the D-E Summer Connections program.  See it come alive at the Khubani Performing Arts Center on Tuesday, July 21; Wednesday, July 22; and Thursday, July 23 at 7:30 PM each night. Tickets are $10 and can be ordered online by visiting www.d-e.org/summer or https://www.d-e.org/podium/default.aspx?t=36644&rid=10271&rc=1.
 
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Mailing Address: 315 East Palisade Avenue Englewood, NJ 07631
gps: 81 Lincoln Street, Englewood, NJ 07631
201-569-9500 Email: d-e@d-e.org
Located in Englewood, New Jersey, Dwight-Englewood is a greater New York City area private school with a rigorous college prep curriculum for boys and girls in preschool through grade 12.