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originally published: 05/08/2023 

(MIDDLETOWN, NJ) -- The Middletown Arts Center is excited to present the fourth edition of The MAC ONE-ACTS Play-Reading Festival, featuring original, one-act works by New Jersey playwrights read theatrically by local actors. The festival will be held in the MAC’s spacious theater on Thursday, May 25 at 7:00pm. The plays include Crossing The Line by Rachel Rubin Ladutke; Saint Rocco in Repose by Lisa Ellex; On A Wire by Barry M. Putt, Jr.; Colony 53 by Evan Krachman; and Mary, Mary by Felicia Russell. Some of these pieces contain adult content and language, so parental discretion is advised. 

There is a $5 suggested donation for the festival to be paid at the door. For more information, call 732.706.4110. The Middletown Arts Center is located at 36 Church Street in Middletown, NJ (next to the Middletown train station). Free parking is available onsite with additional free parking available in the train station metered lot on weekday evenings after 6:00pm and weekends.

MEET THE PLAYWRIGHTS

RACHEL RUBIN LADUTKE is a produced and published playwright and director who has written over a dozen plays, musicals and monologues. Excerpts from her work have been included in numerous anthologies. She is currently putting the finishing touches on The Way Home, the concluding play of the “Wickham-verse” trilogy, which is preceded by The Wickham Way and The Way Forward.

Rachel teaches Theatre at Passaic Preparatory Academy. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild, the Playwrights’ Center, New Play Exchange and New York P.A.G.E.S., and serves on the Board of the International Centre for Women Playwrights. She is excited that Crossing the Line will be having its first in-person performance at MAC. Enjoy the show!

 

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LISA ELLEX is an actress, vocalist, voice artist, playwright, columnist and creator of the early childhood music program, BABY RUBATO). After selecting programming for the launch of HBO’s COMEDY CHANNEL, Lisa wrote and produced numerous junkets there before moving to COMEDY CENTRAL where she wrote guest segments for comedian Allan Havey’s talk show, Night After Night. Other TV production credits include The Cosby Show, The Ellen Burstyn Show, CBS Movie of the Week, Top Cops, and Night Music with David Sanborn & Jools Holland.

Today, Lisa is a columnist and features writer for PrimeCrush (a weekly publication focusing on friendship, love, sex, and all things mid-life), and is currently writing the third book in the Mr. Pen Gween children’s book series. When she’s not writing, Lisa enjoys singing in big bands and small jazz ensembles.

BARRY M. PUTT, JR.’s plays have been performed throughout the U.S. and in France, Canada and the UAE. His comedy, A Different Blend of Friendship, won the New Jersey Wordsmiths Award. Barry’s play, Equal, was a finalist in the Woodward International Playwriting Prize Competition. His high school play, Inside Out, is published by Next Stage Press. Barry is also an audio-dramatist with more than 50 production credits and the author of several books including Stories Told through Sound: The Craft of Writing Audio Dramas for Podcasts, Streaming, and Radio and Alice: Life Behind the Counter in Mel’s Greasy Spoon (A Guide to the Feature Film, the TV Series, and More).

EVAN KRACHMAN, a playwright based in New Jersey is very excited to be a Finalist at the MAC One-Acts Play-Reading Festival, with Colony 53. Evan continues to hone his writing skills and since 2012 he has written 70 plays. His plays have been produced in New Jersey, New York and California. Evan created PlaywrightsSpeak.com where he produces, directs and writes live staged readings. The podcasts, which are up to 50 episodes, include other local playwrights which can be heard on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and on the PlaywrightsSpeak.com website.

FELICIA RUSSEL is a 22-year-old Middletown native, born and raised, whose life has been devoted to theater for the past 14 years, whether that be onstage or behind the scenes. Mary, Mary marks her third original theatrical work. She began playwriting during lockdown in 2020 with her first full-length play, And at the Hour, a look into the final months of the lives of the Romanov family. In 2021, her short play, Our Day Will Come was a part of the MAC One-Acts Festival. She would like to thank her cast and of course, Kathy, for helping to bring this piece to life.

The Middletown Arts Center (MAC) is an award-winning, state-of-the-art facility in Middletown, New Jersey that offers performances, exhibits, classes, demonstrations and camps centering on the arts. Its convenient location across from the Middletown train station on Church Street enables easy access and its expanded MAC Annex is minutes away at the Middletown Reformed Church’s Education Building. The MAC is operated by a non-profit 501c3, the Middletown Township Cultural and Arts Council which is dedicated to bringing quality arts programming and events to Middletown and surrounding communities.

The Middletown Township Cultural and Arts Council’s Mission is to celebrate and promote the arts while enriching the community through arts programming, education, entertainment and cultural connection for individuals of all ages and abilities.