Welcome to the SEVENTH week of
Masquers on Demand
This week, we bring you more exciting music from Birches Bend and Sing for America! Carlos-Manuel Chavarria shares some thoughts about sheltering in place. Enjoy another Four Eyed Jacks Productions radio play. Under the direction of Bill Chessman, you are invited deep into the jungle, but please be on your best behavior. Enrico Banson shares a trailer for his film. And, while definitely not entertaining, we invite you to honor and remember two Masquers giants we lost this last week- Loralee Windsor and Julie Nelson. Be encouraged with some photos and share your own reflections for our community to read.
Music
Down to Tampa – The Berkeley Old Time Music Convention
In our final weeks of Masquers on Demand, we wanted to highlight an amazing event that happens every year in Berkeley – the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention. Our dear friends, Birches Bend, have participated for a couple of years now and will be joining the event again in 2020. The event will be entirely online this year. The online event will be September 21-27. Learn more about the line up, find out when Birches Bend is performing, and learn about workshops and tickets at www.berkeleyoldtimemusic.org.
SFA Chorus performs “Take Care of this House”
This is from the 2014 Sing for America Concert. This is their self-proclaimed theme song – “Take Care of This House.” The Sing for America Foundation of San Francisco combines your love of the arts with social media skills to help you fund your charitable interests – arts, health, welfare – whatever social good you serve. Learn more about Sing for America.
A HUGE THANKS to Sing for America for their generous support in 2020!
PERFORMANCE
“Darkness” performed by Carlos-Manuel Chavarria
Carlos-Manuel Chavarria is an accomplished playwright, actor, and director. He is the chair of the drama department at Contra Costa College and one of the Masquers Playhouse’s newest board members. Enjoy this original monologue written to process some of the loneliness we are experiencing during our shelter-in-place life.
JUNGLE GEM: A RADIO PLAY
Jungle Gem:
An expedition, lost in the jungle, seeking the legendary jewel, “The Eye of Kow-to-foo-zay,” finally finds the temple and the savages to whom it belongs. But who is the more civilized? The explorers or the savages themselves?
The cast for Jungle Gem:
David Mills – Buzz
Ken Möller – Dirk
Anne Collins – Lauren
Mary Kidwell – Natalie
Burl Lampert – Pinky
John Chapin – Kowasahkay
Carl Smith – Atlinlay (son of Kowasahkay & Eastobay)
Laura Martin-Chapin – Eastobay
Jo Lusk and Simon Patton provide live SFX.
Jungle Gem was recorded LIVE at Hotel Mac in April 2019.
FILM BY ENRICO BANSON
Masquers member Enrico Banson is a filmmaker. His current film Some Night is making the rounds at film festivals this summer. Enjoy this fun teaser trailer and remember what it was like to go out with friends and have a wild and crazy adventure. You can learn more about Lumos Films and Some Night here.
REMEMBERING LORALEE & JULIE
Loralee Windsor
Julie Nelson
Masquers lost two of its own last week. These two women were pillars in our community. Loralee Windsor was always performing on the Masquers stage. Julie Nelson had a servant’s heart and was always willing to jump in wholeheartedly with any project.
Please share your love and thoughts for our community to read:
Loralee’s Memorial Wall
Julie’s Memorial Wall
