In The Spotlight ...
On Stage And Off

SUZANNE CHESSLER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

offee House Confes-
sions, a one-act play
written for the Ridge-
dale Players, features
Selma Cohen, Lori Jacobs
and Madeline Maline with
eight other actresses.
Set in a coffeehouse, the play
explores the problems facing
each of the women, revealing
them through monologues. Some
of them have serious tales to tell,
while others offer comic relief.

THE DETROIT J EWIS H NE WS

C

expresses lessons from the point maker struggling to help him. It
of view of youngsters. Ari Lip- runs March 26-29 and April 2-5
shaw and Amanda Newman and 9-12.
Roth, author of Goodnight
were part of the cast.
Irene, also has written Oh, The
Zehra Berkman, a former Innocents and Born Guilty.
film script supervisor who moved
Another noted area play-
to Ann Arbor from San Francis-
co, stars in Brilliant Traces for wright, Kitty Dubin, will be
teaching her craft at Oakland
the Performance Network.
The play is about the roman- University in the fall and winter
tic relationship that develops be- semesters. The first course will
tween a bride-to-be who leaves be for those just starting out, and
the groom at the altar the second will be for students at
and a recluse who more advanced levels.
shelters her after she
Offered through the universi-
runs away to the ty's music, theater and dance de-
wilderness.
partment, both courses will cover
Berkman, who has structure, character and dia-
done a staged reading logue.
for the Jewish Ensem-
Both also will require that
ble Theatre as well as each student write a play — one
other roles for the Per- act for the first class and a
formance Network, lengthier one for the second. The
finds the play very drafts will be read out loud for
sweet and fast-paced. class critiques and rewrite sug-
The show runs gestions.
through July 27 with
Dubin, an award-winning
performances at 8 p.m. writer, has seen her work pro-
Thursdays-Saturdays duced by Jeff Daniels' Purple
and 2 p.m. Sundays. Rose Theatre in Chelsea and the
The theater is at 408 Jewish Ensemble Theatre.
W. Washington, Ann
For more information about
Arbor. (313) 663-0681. the university program, call (248)
Next season, the 370-2030.
Performance Network
Ari Lipshaw and Amanda Newman appeared In a
will present the world * Edith Covensky, who teach-
Ridgedale Players young people's production.
premiere of Ari es Hebrew language and litera-
For the play — 8 p.m. Friday Roth's Refused. Based on a true ture at Wayne State University,
and Saturday, July 18 and 19 — story, the play tells the wrench- is busy reading selections from
the Ridgedale Playhouse in Troy ing tale of a Russian Jewish re- her latest book, Jerusalem Po-
ems. The collection probes the
turns into a coffeehouse. Coffee
city's evolution from innocence
and desserts will be served after
to unrest.
each performance. Call (248)
Covensky recently traveled to
988-7049 for tickets and infor-
mation.
New York to do some readings
Also, for the first time in many
before a convention of the He-
brew Union of America, which
years, Ridgedale will hold open
auditions for a nonmusical show:
promotes the study of the He-
brew culture.
Neil Simon's Rumors, a wild
Jerusalem Poems was just put
farce involving a 10th anniver-
on the market by Eked Publish-
sary party. Auditions will be held
7:30 p.m. Monday, July 28, at the
ers in Tel Aviv. Written in both
Ridgedale Playhouse, 205 W.
Hebrew and English, it is avail-
Long Lake Road, Troy. There are
able at Jewish bookstores around
the city.
parts for five men and five
women. Show dates are Sept. 19-
Marshall Zweig, who has
20, 25-28 and Oct. 3-5. For in-
written and produced short films
formation, call Gene Ewald at Zehra Berkman appears in Brilliant
Traces in Ann Arbor.
and acted in plays staged by the
(248) 879-7402.
Jewish Ensemble Theatre, is
Ridgedale recently completed
its production for young people, fusnik held in Russia during the looking for investors to help fund
How to Eat Like a Child, which 1980s and an American film- a full-length film, The Subject.

Marshall Zweig, Tom McPhee and Russ Orlando: Looking for investors for a new
Zweig-written film project.

Working with Tom McPhee
and Russ Orlando, Zweig is
promoting a film about a middle-
aged man who becomes a volun-
teer subject for scientific
experiments and finds the expe-
rience disturbingly to his liking.
The film has co-production offers

Kitty Dubin: Teaching her craft.

from both Miramax and Fine
Line.
For information, call First
Light at (248) 548-0005.

Mark Silberstein, former
Detroiter and son of Rabbi and
Mrs. Noah Gamze, recently ap-
peared in the Providence, R.I.,
City Nights Theater presenta-
tion of Come Blow Your Horn.
Silberstein, assignment editor

.

of News Channel 10 in Provi-
dence, has also performed with
the Warwick Players, Trinity
Arts Center and the Newport
Playhouse.

tz Choreographer Harriet

Berg, founder and director of the

Madame Cadillac Dancers, is one
of the presenters in a Michigan
Opera Theatre series of lectures,
demonstrations and workshops
— "Learning at the Detroit
Opera House."
There will be three levels of
programming during the rest of
the month — "The Learning
Family," "The Learning Teen"
and "The Learning Adult."
Planned by Karen Van-
derldoot DiChiera, director of
the company's Department of
Community Programs, the
events include a musical theater
workshop, conversations about
jazz, informational sessions
about copyrights in the arts and
education and an architectural
scavenger hunt.
For information, call (313) 874
7894.
Know someone in profession -
al, community or academic
performing arts who should
take a bow? Please let us
know by dropping a line to
Take A Bow, The Detroit Jew-
ish News, 27676 Franklin
Road, Southfield, MI 48034.