The New Thing (Transactors Improv Co., 8 p.m. June 18 and 19 at The ArtsCenter, 300-G E. Main St., Carrboro, NC) is “an evening of improvisational theater combining traditional elements of the company’s work with new techniques and forms to create a… well… a new thing that will include stories, recurring characters, themes, music, movement, commentary, and probably a healthy dose of silliness,” writes Transactors director Greg Hohn. He adds, “All Transactors Improv shows are unique because they’re not scripted or planned and audience suggestions upon which they’re based vary greatly. So, in a way, you could say that every performance is new. Yet the overall shape of shows can be constant. The New Thing is Transactors Improv’s attempt to mix up all the components of its work, including elements of short and long forms, into a single extended piece. As always, the show will be spontaneous and based on ideas from the audience.” In addition to Hohn, the cast for The New Thing includes Regina Bartolone, Joe Brack, Jill Greeson, Nancy Pekar, Steve Scott, and Steven Warnock. Drew Erteschik will provide piano accompaniment, and Mike Beard will improvise technical effects. For more information about Transactors Improv, telephone 919/824-0937 or visit http://transactors.org/. For more information about this performance, visit http://artscenterlive.org/write/calendar.html. For tickets, telephone 919/929-2787.
About The Author
Robert McDowell
Robert W. McDowell is a Raleigh, NC, freelance writer, editor, and theater critic who served as CVNC's theatre editor from September 2002 to May 2010. Since 1973, the Columbia, SC, native and 1970 graduate of East Carolina University in Greenville, NC, has written theater, book, and music previews and reviews for the Raleigh News & Observer, The Raleigh Times, North Carolina Magazine of Raleigh, and Spectator Magazine of Raleigh. In April 2001, Robert McDowell established Robert's Reviews, an e-mail theatrical newsletter, to help fill a growing void in Triangle theater coverage. Triangle Theater Review is an expanded version of the original newsletter, circulated by e-mail. He also co-edited and supervised the production of Jim Valvano's Guide to Great Eating (JTV Enterprises, 1984), a 224-page celebrity cookbook; and he served as a fact checker for Valvano: They Gave Me a Lifetime Contract, and Then They Declared Me Dead (Pocket Books, 1991).