Tag Archives: Lorraine Brooks

Fires in the Mirror at Laurel Mill Playhouse, Feb 7-23

Fires in the Mirror at Laurel Mill Playhouse, Feb 7-23

Laurel Mill Playhouse presents:
FIRES IN THE MIRROR
Written by Anna Deavere Smith
Directed by Lorraine Brooks
Produced by Maureen Rogers

Performances February 7, 2025 – February 23, 2025. Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm.

Location: Laurel Mill Playhouse

The play is a compilation of interviews and headlines dealing with the Crown Heights race riots in Brooklyn New York in 1991. The riots stemmed from the death of Gavin Cato, a Black boy who was killed when a vehicle driven by a Hasidic Jew allegedly ran a stop light and careened onto a sidewalk where Gavin Cato was playing. The incident set off a series of angry reactions on both sides, and culminated in the stabbing death of Rabbinical student Yankel Rosenbaum. The circumstances and aftermath reflected long-standing tensions between the Black and Jewish communities, and highlighted the (often similar) struggles of each group against discrimination and bias.

Themes include race relations, press coverage bias, perceptions of disparate treatment in health care, law enforcement, and political representation.

Ticket prices are as follows:
Adults: $20, Children 18 and under, Seniors 65 and over, and active duty military: $15

For further information, please call 301-617-9906, or contact Maureen Rogers at maureencrogers@gmail.com or 301-452-2557.

Out of the Blue at Laurel Mill Playhouse, Sep 11

Out of the Blue at Laurel Mill Playhouse, Sep 11

Laurel Mill Playhouse presents:
OUT OF THE BLUE – Reflections from Ground Zero
Written and Directed by Lorraine Brooks
Produced by Maureen Rogers

Wednesday, September 11, 2024 – 8PM

Join us for a moving presentation in the form of a staged reading of quotes from First Responders to the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. These quotes are taken from interviews with men and women who were part of the rescue and recovery mission after the attacks and subsequent collapse of the Twin Towers and surrounding buildings. A group of talented and dedicated actors will recreate the words of police, firefighters, and volunteers, as they navigated the overwhelming and dangerous tasks of searching for survivors, putting out fires, and evacuating Lower Manhattan to get citizens to safety.

Tickets are $20 General Admission and must be prepurchaed online. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Gear Up Foundation, founded by a retired NY Firefighter. Gear Up Foundation supplies fire and emergency equipment to underserved communities and third world countries.

For further information, please call 301-617-9906, or contact Maureen Rogers at maureencrogers@gmail.com or 301-452-2557.

The Old Settler by the Bowie Community Theatre at the Bowie Playhouse, Nov 10-Dec 10

The Old Settler by the Bowie Community Theatre at the Bowie Playhouse, Nov 10-Dec 10

The Old Settler
by John Henry Redwoods
directed by Lorraine Brooks

November 10 – December 10, 2023, excluding November 24-26
Fridays and Saturdays at 8PM, Sunday matinees at 2PM

Location: Bowie Community Theatre at the Bowie Playhouse

General Admission – $25.00, Seniors (62+) & Students – $20.00.

In World War II Harlem, New York, a fifty-five-year-old spinster (or as they were called in those days—an Old Settler), Elizabeth Borny, takes in a young male roomer, Husband Witherspoon, to help her with the rent. Husband has come to Harlem from South Carolina to search for his girlfriend, Lou Bessie Preston. Also living with Elizabeth is her sister, Quilly McGrath, fifty-three. There is an ominous cloud of tension that hangs over Elizabeth and Quilly’s relationship. This tension is further exacerbated when Elizabeth and Husband take to liking each other. Quilly, who doesn’t like Husband living with them in the first place, surely doesn’t approve of their “carrying on,” especially since Elizabeth is old enough to be Husband’s mother. It is this “carrying on” that exposes a thirty-year-old wound which, until now, only had a bandage—now the wound can heal for the sisters.

To buy tickets, click here.

Auditions for The Old Settler by the Bowie Community Theatre, Aug 18 & 19

Auditions for The Old Settler by the Bowie Community Theatre, Aug 18 & 19

Bowie Community Theatre announces auditions for:
The Old Settler
by John Henry Redwoods
directed by Lorraine Brooks

Audition Dates/Times:
August 18, 2023 – 7 PM – 9 PM
August 19, 2023 – 1 PM – 3 PM
Callback (if needed) – August 31. 2023 – 7 PM

Audition location: Grace Lutheran Church, 2503 Belair Drive, Bowie, MD

Performance location: Bowie Community Theatre at the Bowie Playhouse

Performances: November 10 – December 10, 2023, excluding November 24-26
Fridays and Saturdays at 8PM, Sunday matinees at 2PM

In World War II Harlem, New York, a fifty-five-year-old spinster (or as they were called in those days—an Old Settler), Elizabeth Borny, takes in a young male roomer, Husband Witherspoon, to help her with the rent. Husband has come to Harlem from South Carolina to search for his girlfriend, Lou Bessie Preston. Also living with Elizabeth is her sister, Quilly McGrath, fifty-three. There is an ominous cloud of tension that hangs over Elizabeth and Quilly’s relationship. This tension is further exacerbated when Elizabeth and Husband take to liking each other. Quilly, who doesn’t like Husband living with them in the first place, surely doesn’t approve of their “carrying on,” especially since Elizabeth is old enough to be Husband’s mother. It is this “carrying on” that exposes a thirty-year-old wound which, until now, only had a bandage—now the wound can heal for the sisters.

For more information, including roles to be cast, click here.

Consecrated Ground at Laurel Mill Playhouse, Mar 24-Apr 8

Consecrated Ground at Laurel Mill Playhouse, Mar 24-Apr 8

Laurel Mill Playhouse presents
Consecrated Ground
By George Boyd
Directed by Lorraine Brooks
Produced by Maureen Rogers

March 24 – April 8, 2023
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays

Location: Laurel Mill Playhouse

In Consecrated Ground, Nova Scotian playwright George Boyd retells the struggle of Africville’s residents to save their homes and their dignity. With tremendous wit and gravity, George Boyd takes us back to Africville on the verge of extinction, making us a gift of characters believable in their vulnerabilities, their courage and their outrage.

Ticket prices: $20 general, $15 students/military/seniors

LMP strongly urges that all patrons that come to LMP be vaccinated and wear masks. At this time, we will not require vaccination cards and masks in LMP but reserve the right to change the guidelines should the positivity rate rise significantly.

Buy tickets here.

For further information, please call 301-617-9906, or contact Maureen Rogers at maureencrogers@gmail.com or 301-452-2557.