​Play Readings

We schedule frequent play readings to help the play selection committee hear a script come to life, but even more importantly, to allow people who may not have the time or the courage to take on a role in our staged productions to have a chance to exercise their voice as an actor. Reading the script in this informal supportive setting provides “safe” opportunities for actors to practice “cold” readings of unfamiliar material. At the end of the reading, we solicit opinions from both readers and listeners about the suitability of the show for the M&M stage.


Next scheduled play reading:
When: POSTPONED [due to coronavirus concerns]
Where: TBD
What: "The Dining Room" by A.R. Gurney

Synopsis:
The play is a comedy of manners, set in a single dining room where 18 scenes from different households overlap and intertwine. Presumably, each story is focused around a different family during different time periods who has in their possession the same dining room furniture set, manufactured in 1898. The stories are about White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP) families. Some scenes are about the furniture itself and the emotional attachment to it, while other scenes simply flesh out the culture of the WASPs. Overall, it tells the story of the dying and relatively short-lived culture of upper-middle class Americans, and the transition into a much more efficient society with less emphasis on tradition and more emphasis on progress. Some characters are made fun of, as is the culture itself, but there is also a genuine longing for the sense of stability, comfort and togetherness that the culture provides. 

The play can be done by 2 or more actors depending on the directors vision.
  • 1st Actor:  - Father, Michael, Brewster, Grandfather, Stuart, Gordon, David, Harvey and Host
  • 2nd Actor: - Client, Howard, Psychiatrist, Ted, Paul, Ben, Chris, Jim, Dick and Guest
  • 3rd Actor:  -Arthur, Boy, Architect, Billy, Nick, Fred, Tony, Standish, and Guest
  • 1st Actress:  - Agent, Mother, Carolyn, Sandra, Dora, Margery, Beth, Kate, Claire, and Ruth
  • 2nd Actress: - Annie, Grace, Peggy, Nancy, Sarah, Harriet, Emily, Annie, and Guest
  • 3rd Actress:  - Sally, Girl, Ellie, Aggie, Winkie, Old Lady, Helen, Meg, Bertha, and Guest

Contact Kathleen Silloway using the address below to register your interest in reading one of the roles. Assigning roles in advance saves us precious time at the reading. If you would like to read a role or have questions, please email us at playreadings@maskandmirror.com or call 503.524.2058.
 
If you do not wish to read, we still need you. You are welcome to watch and listen and take part in a short discussion after the reading.