Search this site Welcome to ARTFARM! Shakespeare in the Grove Touring Performances Educational Programs Community Engagement Water For Women Get Involved! Contact Us Welcome to ARTFARM! ARTFARM is a non-profit, professional theater organization, based in Middletown, CT. It was created and is being led by long-time local artistic leaders Dic Wheeler and Marcella Trowbridge. Every summer, ARTFARM brings outdoor Shakespeare to residents in Connecticut and beyond through its signature event, Shakespeare in the Grove. Throughout the year, ARTFARM continues to have touring shows, teaching residencies in local schools and arts centers, and a circus arts training program. Help ARTFARM grow--quick & easy online donations Click above! Like us on Facebook! Follow us on Twitter @ARTFARMpresents For ARTFARM video samples, scroll down to the bottom of this page! _______________________________________________________________________ Circophony Fall Circus Training for Teens starts September 12! Circus training for young people is alive and well in Middletown, the self-styled circus capital of Connecticut. Starting September 12, young people ages 12 to 19 will have the opportunity to receive professional training in circus arts through a unique program with a nearly thirty-year history. Circophony meets Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6:30 to 9 pm, from September 12 through November 16. The program culminates with a “Fall Circus Showcase” on Friday, November 17, and Circophony members will then have the chance to audition for Circophony’s Spring Production. All classes take place at Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater at 128 Washington Street in Middletown. The Fall Training program is open to all teens, regardless of circus experience, who are willing to commit to the ten-week, five-hour per week program. Training will include many aspects of circus and performance, including acrobatics, tumbling, juggling & object manipulation, balancing & equilibristics, unicycling, stilting, strength & flexibility, physical comedy, clowning and ensemble performance. The program does not include aerial training, but Circophony members are regularly provided with opportunities to enroll in specialized workshops, take field trips to professional circus performances, and participate in Regional and National Youth Circus Festivals through the American Youth Circus Organization. Circophony is a collaboration between ARTFARM and Oddfellows Playhouse. The program is directed by ARTFARM Executive Director Dic Wheeler, who started the Children’s Circus of Middletown in 1988 and has been teaching, directing and performing circus and theater around the United States, Europe and South Asia since 1980. “Circus provides incredible opportunities for young people,” says Wheeler. “It offers the physical training of sports without the competition, but also is a collaborative art form in which uniqueness and personal quirks are seen as assets. By working together in circus, kids can do things that at first seem totally impossible. And once you have performed the impossible, you can do anything.” Wheeler leads the program with Assistant Director and Head Coach Allison McDermott, a life-long circus performer and a graduate of the Professional Training Program at the New England Center for Circus Arts. The two will be joined by guest artists throughout the Fall program, and will create an original Circus Theater performance with the Company which will premiere in March. Tuition for the ten-week program is $250. To enroll, go to www.oddfellows.org. For more details about the training structure and content, contact Dic Wheeler at info@art-farm.org, or visit www.art-farm.org. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Thank you, Everyone who joined us for Hamlet this summer. In case you missed it, here is some of the unsolicited audience response: "A magically directed Hamlet, timely and timeless." "It's fabulous folks! Don't miss it!" "The performers made Shakespeare's language accessible and meaningful." "WHAT AN EVENING! Thank you for bringing Shakespeare to Middletown." "It's a brave, smart, energetic performance." "Excellent show. High-caliber acting all around. The show held the interest of my nine year old!" "I've seen many performances of Hamlet...I can say, handily, that Marcella Trowbridge pours every ounce of herself into Hamlet, and the result is nothing less than extraordinary. The performance was wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed it." "This is a most thought-provoking production. Highly recommended." Bill DeKine photo of Alice Wilkinson as Marcellus, Marcella Trowbridge as Hamlet and Nathan Tracy as Horatio. To see photos by Bill De Kine of this summer's Hamlet production, link to Shakespeare in the Grove 2017. _____________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ARTFARM 2016 -2017 Newsletter: DONATE NOW HERE Thank you! ARTFARM Videos More videos on our YouTube channel! Join Our E-Mail List! Be the first to know what's going on at ARTFARM! Subscribe to posts Facebook | Twitter | Donate | Contact Report Abuse|Powered By Google Sites