"Addams Family" Star John Astin Headlines Three-Day Theatre Festival at SUNY Delhi

DELHI, NY (07/02/2013)(readMedia)-- SUNY Delhi and the New York State Summer School of the Arts (NYSSSA), in association with Circle East Theatre Company, will present three unique theater experiences for the community July 13, 14 and 15 in the college's Okun Theatre in the Farrell Student and Community Center.

Broadway, television star and Academy Award® nominee John Astin will perform "An Evening with John Astin: Gomez, Poe and The Usual Suspects" Saturday, July 13 at 7 p.m. "Hard Travelin' with Woody" will be performed by Randy Noojin on Sunday, July 14 at 7 p.m. Professional actors from New York City will read David DeWitt's new play, "All for the New Man Band," on Monday, July 15, at 7 p.m., followed by a discussion with the playwright.

Astin's performance will be an eclectic collection of excerpts from well-known works by Edgar Allan Poe, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Shakespeare, Kurt Weill, Thomas Wolfe, E.E. Cummings, Ezra Pound and others combined with anecdotes and film clips from the popular TV series "The Addams Family" in which he portrayed the eccentric patriarch Gomez.

Writer-performer Randy Noojin will present a one-man show that brings to life the spirit, stories and songs of Wood Guthrie, America's greatest poet-of-the-people. Based on Guthrie's vast writings, Noojin will create an intimate visit with the spirit of Woody.

NYSSSA and Circle East Theatre have a history helping playwrights develop their work. Lanford Wilson's Broadway hit, "Burn This," began as a reading at NYSSSA. David DeWitt, this year's playwright, is also an arts editor at The New York Times.

The performances are part of partnership between SUNY Delhi and the New York State Summer School of the Arts. During the month of July, 30 of the top high school theater students from across New York State will study with members of the Circle East Theatre Company of New York City on the SUNY Delhi campus.

While at SUNY Delhi, the high school students will receive intensive, pre-professional conservatory training in a wide spectrum of theater arts, taking daily classes in acting, movement, voice, scene study, and improvisation/imagination. They will also experience a number of other specific disciplines, including stage combat, comedy, mask, playwriting, and directing.

The July 13-15 community performances are free and open to the public.