THEATER ARTICLE

Best Kept Arts & Entertainment Secrets
The Chance Theater - Anaheim Hills
by OCShowbiz.com

February 9, 2004

If you’ve driven through Anaheim Hills and passed Imperial Highway and La Palma Avenue, then you may have driven right by one of the best kept arts and entertainment secrets in Orange County. Since 1999, The Chance Theater has been creating an impassioned selection of theatre productions ranging from contemporary off-Broadway hits to hard-hitting commentaries and innovative interpretations of the classics to progressive original works by emerging playwrights. Since its inception, the press has recognized the Chance through accolades, awards, and numerous “Best of” lists for its high quality productions. More importantly, the continual satisfaction of returning audience members proves that the theatre created by the Chance is not to be missed.

The Chance Theater is home to the Chance Theatre Company, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization whose primary focus is to produce stimulating drama in innovative ways and to be a catalyst for personal transformation. Jocelyn A. Brown, the Chance’s Public Relations Director, asserts that “the Chance strives for theatre that captures the heart and the imagination, establishing a powerful current between artist and audience. There is an intelligent, lively, inquisitive Orange County theatre audience that responds to rich ideas, startling language and compelling visuals. Our audience and artists alike desire to experience moments of chance and discovery produced on stage. Only through risk shall the extraordinary moments of chance be found…”.

Recent highlights from the Chance’s 2003 season include OC Weekly Theater Awards for Best Director and Best Supporting Performance for a collection of Samuel Beckett’s one-acts titled ”That Which Remains” and critical acclaim for the performance and direction of “The Fantasticks”, the longest running musical off-Broadway. In addition, the Chance was commissioned by the Getty Museum to produce the moving biographical play “Lee Miller: The Angel and The Fiend” to coincide with an exhibition of the photographer’s work which was later brought to Orange County for a limited engagement.

“…the Chance group proves theatre is thriving”
        -- Melinda Schupman, Back Stage West

"... bringing passion to the craft of live theater"
        -- Eric Marchese, O.C. Register

"the Chance has emerged as a prolific little theater..."
        -- Mike Boehm, Los Angeles Times

The Chance recently moved into new digs at 5552 E. La Palma Avenue, an end unit at the front of an industrial park that the Chance called home for nearly five years. The larger space - some 3,000 square feet – possesses a much larger lobby and a house of 1,500 square feet. This is a true black box with a full capacity of 100 seats. Intriguingly, the space allows for a flexible seating arrangement; the seating configuration can shift from thrust, to proscenium, to arena, to whatever is conceived by the director and designers for each production.

The Chance Theater’s 2004 repertory season productions include: Anton Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard" (running through Feb. 15); Tony Kushner’s adaptation of “The Illusion” (running through Feb. 15); Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Yeomen of the Guard" (starting March 5); the Chance Theatre Company’s improv show “The Lord of the Screen: The Fellowship of the Pen – The Improv-ical” (starting March 13); Richard Nelson's "Goodnight Children Everywhere" (starting May 7); Sophocles’ “Oedipus at Colonus” (starting May 14); the festival of original works, First Chance Fest (starting July 2); the Sondheim and Furth musical "Company" (starting Sept. 3); Stephen Belber's "Tape" (starting Sept. 10); the stage version of the Frank Capra holiday classic "It's a Wonderful Life" (starting Nov. 12); and Jeff Goode's "The Eight Reindeer Monologues" (starting Nov. 19). Season passes are available for the avid theatre-goer. The deluxe pass of $135, “The Full Monty”, provides admission to the entire season. At $75, the "As You Like It" pass allows one to create a customized season by selecting any six shows.

If you haven’t had the opportunity to partake in an evening or afternoon at the Chance, it is highly recommended. The theater is located at 5552 E. La Palma Avenue, Anaheim Hills. The company's box-office phone number is (714) 777-3033. Check out the Chance’s website at www.chancetheater.com.

Come see why The Chance Theater is "one of the best small theaters in Orange County"! -- Daniel Bernstein, AOL Digital City [top]

THEATER ARTICLE

And the Nominees are...
by Joel Beers, OC Weekly

March 18, 2004

The OC Weekly Theater Awards (which will be held Monday at South Coast Repertory, sponsored by Gelson’s) is our way of thanking theater people for letting us come into your places of work every weekend and write what can often be some pretty hostile shit.

The awards—culled from the collective opinions of our theater staff as well as approximately 20 other well-situated people who watch, produce or otherwise care about local theater—honor some of the best and brightest work over the past 12 months or so. This year, due to deadlines and such, we opted to include shows that ran as far back as January 2003 and as recently as February 2004.

...BEST PERFORMANCE, MUSICAL
Rick Cornette (The Last Five Years, Laguna Playhouse)
Kim Huber (The Last Five Years, Laguna Playhouse)
Mark Palkoner (Sweeney Todd, Hunger Artists)
Jonathan Talmadge (The Mikado, The Chance Theater)

BEST DIRECTION
Loy Arcenas (The Romance of Magno Rubio, The Laguna Playhouse)
Dave Barton (Some Explicit Polaroids, Rude Guerrilla)
Jocelyn Brown (The Cherry Orchard, The Chance Theater)
David Chambers (The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow, South Coast Repertory)
Shannon Flynn (Sweeney Todd, The Hunger Artists)
Patrick Gwaltney (Rube, Stages)

BEST PERFORMANCE, FEMALE
Wendy Braun (The Cherry Orchard, The Chance Theater)
Anne Gee Byrd (All My Sons, McCoy Rigby Entertainment)
Kimberly Fisher (Madame Guignol’s Macabre Theatre, Hunger Artists)
Carmen Thomas (Mr. Shaw Goes to Hollywood, Laguna Playhouse)
Ruby Wendell (Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Chance Theater)

...BEST NEW PLAY
The Hanging of Mary Surratt (Tom Swimm, The Chance Theater)
The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow (Rolin Jones, South Coast Repertory)
Lee Miller: The Angel or the Fiend (Antony Penrose, The Chance Theater)

BEST MUSICAL
The Last Five Years (The Laguna Playhouse)
The Mikado (The Chance Theater)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (The Maverick Theater)
Sweeney Todd (Hunger Artists)

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THEATER ARTICLE

Taking a Chance on young actors
Hills theater has an arrangement with New School of Acting
by Diane Reed, Northern Lights

March 25, 2004 The Chance Theater in Anaheim Hills was named in part because its founders are willing to take a chance on their own talents and those of their friends. Now, they are expanding upon that philosophy by taking a chance on talented teen and child actors.The theater has made an arrangement with Cherie Baker, who has been teaching child actors in Redding thought the Redding School of the Arts, a charter school. As part of the arrangement with the local theater, Orange County students will have an opportunity to study the Meisner Method of acting and to perform live, on stage, for family and friends.Baker has been teaching adults in Orange County at The New School of Acting located in an upstairs loft above the Art Angles Gallery 940 W. Chapman Ave. in Orange. Thanks to the cooperative venture with The Chance, her child students will be studying at the local theater, at 5552 E. La Palma Ave.Baker's students will also share their talents with local audiences on special performance nights. "I've seen what acting classes can do for young children," Baker said. "I've seen what it can do for very shy children who were afraid to even say their names when they came in. They have really blossomed."Baker works with children as young as seven. She offers students professional training using the principles developed by Sanford Meisner, former director of the acting department at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City. While there, Meisner created a step-by-step training process for actors, which enhances their ability to listen and to work in the moment with other actors. It is more about playing off of one another than emoting or reading the words on the page.The New School of Acting is the first in Orange County to use the Meisner method. It is comprised of exercises that help actors create genuine behaviors within the imaginary world of theater. Baker teaches children these skills through improvisational theater games, scene work and through live performances before audiences of parents and friends."The Chance also work with the New School," Baker said. "They have used our space and now we will use theirs. They are really wonderful people." The classes for children and teens build upon the basics of acting and help them develop their skills using movement, improvisation, teamwork and scripted material.Her classes provide New School students with confidence-building, self-awareness and communication skills designed to improve their concentration while strengthening their imaginations. Baker, who was previously affiliated with the Act Now School of Acting, will head the children's acting program for The New School.The Chance Theater is an award-winning company, focusing on producing original and innovative plays and nurturing both actors and playwrights. To date, The Chance has produced 73 plays, 48 of which were world premieres. The theater is frequently included on lists of best entertainment venues in Orange County. In 2003, the acclaimed Getty Museum commissioned the local company to produce Lee Miller: The Angel and The Fiend. The current offerings at the Chance are Gilbert and Sullivan's rarely staged The Yeomen of the Guard, and an original comedy The Lord of the Screen: The Fellowship of the Pen -- The Improv-ical.

Cherie Baker will hold an open workshop for children Tuesday and Wednesday. Parents are asked to call her at (714) 210-6465, so that she can prepare for the number of students who will plan to attend.
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THEATER ARTICLE

The Envelope, Please!
The Eigth Annual OC Weekly Awards
by Joel Beers, OC Weekly

March 25, 2004

If theater truly is dead, then there was one hell of a wake Monday night at South Coast Repertory: the eighth annual OC Weekly Theater Awards. Approximately 200 folks jammed into SCR’s jewel box of a theater, the Julianne Argyros stage, and clapped, laughed and drooled during the award ceremony. Then they got drunk.

Here are the winners:

... Special Awards

Muchos Huevos
Chance Theater, Lee Miller: The Angel and The Fiend

Our award for the biggest set of collective theater balls this year went to the Chance Theater for The Angel and The Fiend, Anthony Penrose’s play about Lee Miller, the muse of the Surrealist movement. Chance co-founder Erika Ceporius Miller played Miller—who was her grand-aunt. Meanwhile, Miller’s real-life husband, Oanh Nguyen, directed the piece. The play was a hit, and last time we checked, Miller and Nguyen were still married.
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THEATER ARTICLE

A tribute to the best in arts
O.C. Arts Awards recognize annual and lifetime achievements
by Richard Chang, Orange County Register

April 23, 2004

Orange County's Pacific Symphony and Chance Theater of Anaheim Hills won Outstanding Arts Organization honors at the fifth annual Orange County Arts Awards, held Thursday night at the Sutton Place Hotel in Newport Beach.

The Pacific Symphony was recognized for special events and programs it hosted throughout 2003 to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Chance Theater received commendation for a landmark year of artistic accomplishment and growth, including a move to a new space.

Outstanding Individual Artist awards went to Joshua Colover of Corona del Mar, producer of the documentary "Farther Than the Eye Can See," about the first blind man to reach the summit of Mount Everest; and Jerry Rothman, a sculptor and longtime Laguna Beach resident.

More than 400 people were scheduled to attend the awards, presented by nonprofit arts council Arts Orange County. Andrew Barnicle, artistic director of Laguna Playhouse, and Maria Hall Brown, associate producer of KOCE-TV's "Real Orange," served as the evening's hosts.

"In many ways, this event celebrates the cultural progress of our community each year and over time," said Bonnie Brittain Hall, executive director of Arts Orange County. "It's just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the incredible work that's being done throughout the county."

Other annual awards recognized arts educators, patrons and volunteers. JoAnn Fuerbringer of Irvine, Jim Thomas of Costa Mesa and Peter Tiner of Laguna Beach each won Outstanding Arts Educator. The Outstanding Arts Patron trophy went to Henry and Susan Samueli of Corona del Mar for their many contributions.

Janice Johnson, a board member of Pacific Symphony, received an Outstanding Arts Volunteer accolade, as did Gregg Schwenk, executive director of the Newport Beach Film Festival.

Four Helena Modjeska Cultural Legacy awards acknowledged lifetime achievements. Beth Burns, founder and artistic director of St. Joseph Ballet, received an Artistic Visionary honor; and Dorothy and Donald Kennedy, Helen and Edward Shanbrom and David Young received Community Visionary awards.

Each honoree took home a trophy designed by local artist Michael Graham. New this year, each nominee received a recognition pin designed by Graham, and the event included an art auction.
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THEATER ARTICLE

Independence Day celebrated early but well
by Diane Reed, Anaheim Bulletin

July 08, 2004

Members of the Canyon Hills Community Council were up a dawn registering runners in the Firecracker 5- and 10K runs and setting up booths at Peralta Park for a festival and fireworks.

The events got started earlier than usual -- a full day earlier.
The celebration was held July 3. Runners took to the streets at 7:30 a.m. in a cool drizzle, but by the time the race ended at Canyon High School, the sun was shining and Rotary Club members were already flipping flapjacks and pouring orange juice for the weary athletes. Six-year-old Travis Gradijan was among them. He was excited after first 5-K run. "I came in eighth in my age group (ages 6 to 9)," he said with a smile, that dimpled the American Flag tattoo on his cheek. Rotary Club president Nev Roseman was smiling, too. His crew served more than 1,600 pancakes and 800 glasses or orange juice to early birds at the festivities.

John and Ann Tanneyhill supervised the set up and operation of food and game booths at Peralta Park. "We wound up with 22 booths this year," John Tanneyhill said. "That is a few less than usual but we’re happy." The booths were about equally divided between food and games.

A first time entry was a nacho booth sponsored by The Chance Theater.
"It’s a great opportunity for us to let people know about the theater," said Annie Mezzacappa, outreach director. Ann Tanneyhill added that she and her husband were planning to attend the current show at the Chance. "We’ve got our tickets already for ‘It’s a Grand Night for Singing,’ " she said. Although the show had opened the previous night, members of the theater group were at their booth early. Those who took a "Chance" on Chuck Alderson’s nachos weren’t disappointed. Oanh Nguyen and Erica C. Miller, two of the founders of the theater, rode in the parade. "We have our own car this year," Nguyen said. It was a treat for spectators. He is currently starring in the film "Two Brothers."

The parade was coordinated by former councilwoman Lucille Kring and Joan Coy. "It is an exciting day," Kring said, as she slipped into a convertible to take a ride down the parade route, with other local dignitaries like Mayor Curt Pringle, Councilwoman Shirley McCracken, Community Council Chairwoman Karen Schoenherz and Supervisor Todd Spitzer. The parade was much more than celebrities in shiny cars, however. This year there were some new and unexpected entries. The Funny Business Clowns, drill team -- complete with red power drills -- elicited chuckles from the crowd. The Segue Drill team presented by the Orange County Segue Enthusiasts Club drew the greatest rounds of applause. Each member wore an oversized Uncle Sam hat he rode one of the space-aged scooters down the street, spinning and circling to the delight of spectators.

Perhaps the most unusual entry in the parade was from Santa Ana River Lakes. It consisted of a Hummer pulling a trailer carrying a huge aquarium filled with trout and huge catfish. Lending to the family-oriented atmosphere was a team of Trader Joe’s employees from Yorba Linda. They pushed their babies in strollers the length the parade route.

Later an estimated 35,000 people gathered in Peralta Park to enjoy food, games, music and a 28-minute fireworks show.

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THEATER ARTICLE

Hidden Gem
Orange County Register: 11th Annual Best of Orange County 2004September 17, 2004 When Oanh Nguyen and Chris Ceballos decided to form their own theater company in 1998, they chose to name it The Chance because, as Nguyen has said, "those moments of chance onstage are when real arts happens."Dedicated to developing and producing original plays, the troupe has converted a space in an industrial/commercial area of Anaheim Hills into a theater. The Chance produces six Main Stage and six Evolving Stage shows each year and has an annual festival of one-act plays. Whether intimate dramas or full-scale musicals are onstage, this hidden theater gem delivers outstanding productions well worth taking a chance on.

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THEATER ARTICLE

Arts Preview: Non-Equity Theater
Storefronts are keeping the scene vital.
Eric Marchese, Special to the Register

September 19, 2004

Of the county's many non-Equity houses, the independent storefront theaters continue their cutting-edge ways by programming material antithetical to that of the community theaters. WHile the latter have built-in audiences for their tried-and-true properties, it's the scarcely performed shows -- many of them regional or even U.S. premieres -- put up by the storefronts that have proved most rewarding.

... The Chance Theater has formulated a new mission statement focusing on its growing repertory troupe. "We're redefining our voice as a company," said artistic director Oanh Nguyen, "and we want to explore the visual nature of theater." Exploiting that goal will be plays such Chay Yew's "Porcelain," a complex drama that won the 1992 London Fringe award for Best Play, and "The Laramie Project," which examines the life and death of Matthew Shepherd, a young gay man murdered in Wyoming in 1998. The troupe's "opera deconstruction project" should please lovers of grand opera while educating those uninitiated into the art form.

Ten Not To Miss

... 5. "Porcelain." Chinese playwright Chay Yew's drama examines the alienation felt by a young Asian homosexual accused of murdering a prominent Caucasian. March 19 - April 17. The Chance Theater.

... 8. The Opera Deconstruction Project. This experimental venture uses live actors and singers, multimedia and audio tracks to "deconstruct," then re-build, a famous opera. May 5 - June 12. The Chance Theater

9. "The Laramie Project." Moises Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project document the hate-crime murder of Matthew Shepherd, a young gay man. Sept. 10 - Oct. 16. The Chance Theater

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THEATER ARTICLE

2004 Best Of OC
Eleven Reasons to Be Thankful for A Lively Storefront Theater Scene
O.C. Weekly

October 22, 2004

1. Good acting. There's a bunch of people who are very good at what they do. Here's a short list off the top of the proverbial noodle. If your favorite's name isn't on the list don't bitch: scottbarberjessicabeanejonathantalmadgepatticumbymikemartinkimberlyadairdarrikristin
cheykennedy CASEY LONGrobertnunezmarkcoyanjonbeanevivianvanderward-billlandsmanchrisfowlertracyperdueseanheskethstephaniewilliamsonandanyone-wehaveevertriedto- makeamoveonorwilltrytomakeamoveon.

...9. Good directors. If there's anything the storefront theater movement in this county needs - along with really good business managers who are adept at raising money - it's better directors. It's the hardest gig in theater to master. That doesn't mean we don't have them out there. Like Shannon C.M. Flynn, Patrick Gwaltney, Brian Kojac, Kelly Flynn, Dave Barton, OANH NGUYEN, Amanda DeMaio, Kristina Leach, Michael Serna, Sharyn Case, Todd Kulcyzk, Slappy White, Russ Marchand and lots of others that we're too far gacked-up at the moment to even try to remember. No, we haven't like every single choice the aforementioned have ever made, but at least they make choices, and there's been enough inspiration at work to make us list them. And, really, isn't that what's important?

10. Musicals! The Chance does stellar musicals, like A History of the American Film, Nine and Company. ... [top]