Moonbox Productions Presents The House of Roman Iglesia at the Mosesian Center for the Arts

The following announcement was provided by Moonbox Productions:

Moonbox Productions is thrilled to present The House of Ramon Iglesia by Jose Rivera at the Mosesian Center for the Arts in Watertown, MA. Directed by Arthur Gomez, The House of Ramon Iglesia opens on April 14th and runs through April 30th. Tickets are $55 general admission/$45 seniors and $20 student rush ½ hour prior to performance and are available at https://bit.ly/HouseofRamon. Pay-What-You-Can tickets are available at the door (Box Office fees may apply). It’s 1983, and the Iglesia family is caught between two worlds. Aging and ailing, parents Ramon and Dolores are eager to leave their rickety house in New Jersey and return to their native Puerto Rico – but their three sons, all raised in America, are deeply divided on whether or not to go.

Watertown Ballet School Wins Awards at Prestigious Competition

Koltun Ballet Boston dancers won awards at the recent Youth America Grand Prix in Worcester. (Photo courtesy of KBB)

The following announcement was provided by Koltun Ballet Boston:

More than two dozen young Massachusetts dancers, most from the Greater Boston area, comprise a team from Koltun Ballet Boston (KBB) that won several Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) awards and accolades last month including the Outstanding School Award. This is the fourth time in five years the Watertown-based organization has been recognized as the region’s top school. The regional leg of this ongoing international competition was held last month in Worcester. Two KBB ensembles that participated last month have been invited to the YAGP Finals in Tampa, Florida from April 3-9, 2023.

Musicians Wanted for Friends of Watertown Music MusicFest

Friends of Watertown Music is excited to announce the return of MusicFest! Come see local musicians and enjoy the musical instrument petting zoo on Friday April 28 from 5:30 pm to 9:00 pm at the Watertown Middle School. All proceeds benefit music programs in Watertown schools. MUSICIANS! Please sign up to participate using the QR code or go to https://watertownmusic.org/ to sign up.

Watertown Gallery Features Paintings Focusing on Relationship Between Humans and Nature

Watertown’s Storefront Art Projects will host a reception for the opening of its latest show, “On the Edge” featuring the artworks of Anne Sargent Walker, on March 4 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The gallery provided the following announcement:

Anne Sargent Walker’s luminous paintings are about nature and crisis and the fraught and fragile relationship between humans and the planet. There are birds and lush foliage and often the outline of a helpful or intervening human hand.  

She says, “My work is about the beauty, complexity, and fragility of nature and our complicated relationship with it. The surface of my paintings, with birds, flora or other creatures, often peels back, dissolves or drips to reveal layers underneath, suggesting the loss of habitats, species, the earth itself and of course us. “I want my paintings to be beautiful – to inspire the kind of love for nature that I feel.  And yet I want them to have some elements that are ugly, or out of place, or out of sync – something that makes people wonder- what is going on?

YardArt Returns in 2023, Two Upcoming Events to Help Inspire You

YardArt Watertown”PaTRASHia” was one of the pieces made for Watertown’s YardArt. The following information was provided by YardArt Watertown:

YardArt Watertown, the popular outdoor public art exhibition featuring the work of residents, artists and art enthusiasts who live or work in Watertown, returns this year for the entire month of April. The town-wide exhibit begins Saturday, April 1st and runs through Sunday, April 30th, and features a variety of artful and whimsical projects displayed on residents’ front yards and porches. All Watertown residents, families, organizations, clubs, classes, artists, and businesses are invited to create something to be viewed from the street or sidewalk. It can be an assemblage, a sculpture, an art project, a lighting arrangement—let your imagination run free!

Mosesian Center Hosts Heart Truth: Mental Health Stories from the Deaf Community

The following announcement was provided by DEAFinitely, Inc.:

The Dorothy and Charles Mosesian Center for the Arts — DEAFinitely, Inc. and This Is My Brave (TIMB) present the groundbreaking show “This Is My Brave – Heart Truth: Mental Health Stories from the Deaf Community.” For one night only, 13 Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing storytellers will share their personal stories of mental illness and recovery to break down stigma, uncover access barriers in the mental health system and celebrate the resilience of the Deaf community using American Sign Language storytelling, art, and dance. Featuring storytellers not only from New England, but from across the US, Canada and Nigeria, this live stage production will center on the storytellers, their stories and the deep understanding that there is a significant need for an evening like this in the Deaf community. To achieve this production, the Heart Truth Production Team, led by DEAFinitely, Inc. Executive Director, Jamie Robinson and show Director, Shira Grabelsky, are working with The Mosesian Center for the Arts to design a theater experience for storytellers that is seamless in communication and accessibility. The show will be primarily in American Sign Language, with Deaf and Deafblind interpreting to ensure full access for the cast and audience members. Captioning and spoken language interpretation will also be available in English and Spanish.

Group Seeks to Create Cultural District in Town, Likely in Watertown Square

Watertown Square could become part of the City’s proposed cultural district. The center of Watertown may become a cultural district, which would allow the area’s arts and culture groups, restaurants and businesses to be promoted as a destination for people in and around the city, and even for tourists. Receiving approval to be a cultural district is a multi-step application process, concluding with approval by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, said Liz Helfer, the City’s Public Arts & Culture Planner. The application must include a partnership of representatives from arts and culture institutions, artists, and someone from the City. Helfer is part of the group putting together the proposal for the Cultural District.

New Rep Holding Tryouts for Three Plays in 2023 Season

New Repertory Theatre will hold auditions for Local Equity actors for roles in New Rep’s 2023 Season: The Normal Heart, June 21 – July 9, and A Raisin in the Sun, September 6 – October 1 in repertory with DIASPORA! September 13 – October 15, at Watertown’s Mosesian Center for the Arts in Watertown, MA.  

The audition dates are:  

Sunday, March 5: 11 am-7 pm, lunch 2:30-3:30pm 

Monday, March 6: 1 pm-9 pm, dinner 4:30-5:30 pm (Union Members Only) 

Sunday, March 12: 11 am-7 pm, lunch 2:30-3:30 pm (Union Members Only)

Call backs will be held on Sunday, April 2nd and/or Monday, April 3rd 

DIASPORA! Director: Pascale Florestal 

A Raisin in the Sun Director: Lois Roach 

The Normal Heart Director: TBA 

The auditions will be held at the Black Box Theater at the Mosesian Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown.  Free parking is available in the garage next to the facility.  

Detailed information regarding the roles and a sign up available at: 

2023 Season Auditions

New Rep welcome Actors of all races and all gender identities, abilities, and body types. Please take this into consideration when auditioning. In addition to genders listed in character breakdowns, New Rep is ACTIVELY SEEKING TRANS AND NON-BINARY PERFORMERS for all roles. 

New Rep cannot provide local accommodations at this time, so performers must live within commuting distance of the theater.  

“We believe the themes of these works are as timely as they are powerful, and offer a beautiful reminder that history has given us plenty of answers on how to build our future. Addressing activism in the time of an epidemic, and an exploration of home and displacement, these plays enlighten us in how to love in the face of terror, how to forgive in the face of betrayal, and how to connect in a time of isolation.” 

      - Artistic Directors Michael Hisamoto, Lois Roach, Maria Hendricks 

New Repertory Theatre (New Rep) has been an award-winning professional theatre company for 39 years, staging productions and events that speak to the vital ideas of our time. New Rep has emerged from the pandemic with a renewed commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity, accessibility, and accountability (IDEAA) infusing every aspect of the company’s work as it seeks to build community collaborations and give voice to the diverse interests of those communities. 

More information on New Repertory Theatre at www.newrep.org.