Berkshire Theater Festival October 2007
October 6, 2007
Berkshire Theater Festival presents a reading of Sharon’s Circle by Diane Pearlman and Jeffrey Diamond
Work-in-progress is a tribute to former Berkshire Museum director Sharon Blume
who died of breast cancer in 2005
Stockbridge, MA—Berkshire Theatre Festival will present a reading of Diane Pearlman and Jeffrey Diamond’s new one-act play, Sharon’s Circle, directed by Marc Geller on Saturday, October 27, 7:30pm at the Unicorn Theatre. A reception with the artists will follow the reading.
Sharon’s Circle is based upon the experiences of Sharon Blume and the community of friends that blossomed in the face of her terminal illness. Blume was a shoot from the hip, creative non-profit director who knew how to get things done with style, knew how to party, and knew how to pick friends. Of all the collections she curated during her museum career, none was done with more finesse or purpose than her selection of friends—she not only chose them carefully, but also grouped them, as one would group an exhibition.
Playwrights Diane Pearlman and Jeffrey Diamond were honored to be part of Blume’s circle, as was BTF Artistic Director Kate Maguire. Pearlman and Diamond interviewed 24 of Blume’s close friends, asking about stories, feelings, and personal thoughts and then set about writing a play that would speak not just to their community, but to everyone who has lost a loved one to cancer.
Diane Pearlman and Jeffrey Diamond are long-time collaborators who have written and produced content for film, television, and theatre. Their current work includes a family comedy genre feature film script, Max Art, several children’s television projects, including Maddie’s World, Franice’s Toy Box Theatre, and Stink Monkeys, an adaptation of James Thurber’s Many Moons, and a science fiction thriller series titled Dreamwatcher.
Marc Geller most recently directed Two-Headed at BTF and the world premiere of the critically-acclaimed play Ascension at the Lion Theatre on Theatre Row in New York. His other New York directing credits include productions at Judith Anderson Theatre, Harold Clurman Theatre, Samuel Beckett Theatre, INTAR, and Hudson Guild Theatre.
Patricia Buckley will play the title character, Sharon. Buckley appeared in The Heidi Chronicles at BTF in 2006. Her Off-Broadway and regional credits include productions at New York Theatre Workshop, Westbeth, Actors Shakespeare Company, Coconut Grove Playhouse, and La Jolla Playhouse.
