John Perrault
TELL IT SLANT
Leaning Toward The Light in a Dark Time
SEPTEMBER 19 - 21
John Perrault brings his guitar to Pontine to sing poems and songs for difficult times. A few old-time ballads. A few that are new. “A Fair Maid A Walking” for the sake of the heart. “Beyond the River” for the sake of the earth. And lyrics—hopeful lyrics. Emily Dickinson, Whitman, Wright. Some Millay, a little Oliver. A couple of funny stories—good for a laugh. Plus a tune or two of his own making—and best leave it at that.
John Perrault is author of Jefferson’s Dream (Hobblebush Books), Here Comes the Old Man Now (Oyster River Press), Ballad of Louis Wagner (Peter Randall Publisher), and most recently a chapbook, Season of Shagginess, from Finishing Line Press. A Pushcart Nominee, John has published in Blue Unicorn, Christian Science Monitor, Commonweal, Comstock Review, Constellations, Poet Lore and elsewhere. He has recorded nine albums of original songs and ballads. John was Portsmouth Poet Laureate 2003-2005.
Pontine Theatre
A NEW ENGLAND CHRISTMAS
NOVEMBER 28 - 30 (additional performances Dec. 5-7 & Dec. 12-14)
This season’s edition of Pontine’s annual holiday celebration features original stagings of “Christmas Back Home,” a charming, nostalgic reflection on small town Christmas traditions circa 1905, by Eugene Wood and a touching Christmas ghost story by Annie Trumbull Slosson, “A Speakin’ Ghost,” published in 1890. We’ll also have live fiddle music by Ellen Carlson and members of the New England Fiddle Ensemble, plus a post-performance onstage party complete with homemade Christmas cookies.
Sarah Frechette – Puppetkabob
TEMPUS CARNIVEIL
JANUARY 30 – FEBRUARY 1
Something wicked creeps beyond the veil and into this world.
Welcome to the Tempus Vorator CarniVEIL hosted by the Zeit Geist, a Spirit with the ability to freeze a moment or someone’s essence in TIME. Does she keep them for her amusement or devour them? Only Time will tell who is really pulling the strings.
The Tempus CarniVEIL blends poetry and puppetry into a sensory feast that blurs the line between abstraction and nostalgia. Its parasol-centric puppets spin cautionary tales filled with danger, while the curtain is pulled away revealing the secret relationship of puppeteer and puppet, while the tantalizing Lady Mai dances the ancestors home.
Come revel in the bewebbed fairgrounds, see the sights, ride the rides - you never know if this time will be your last… your last… your last…
Sarah Frechette, founder of Puppetkabob, is a graduate of the University of Connecticut’s Puppetry Arts Program. She studied marionettes in Germany with legendary Master Puppeteer Albrecht Roser and has performed across the U.S., Canada, Germany, Austria, France and China.
Pontine Theatre • THE FLAT IRON LOT
MARCH 20 – 22 (addditional performances March 27 – 29)
Pontine Theatre presents an original stage adaptation of Alice Brown’s short story “The Flat Iron Lot,” published in 1899. Set in the fictional town of Tiverton — based on Brown’s home town of Hampton Falls, NH — the story chronicles a rural New England community’s celebration of its 250th birthday. With fits and starts, contention and compromise, the residents organize historical reenactments, a grand parade, and speeches from civic leaders and the town’s beloved, unofficial historian. In the end, the townspeople enjoy a freshly reinvigorated sense of civic pride and appreciation for the shared heritage which binds them as a community. The story is an apt microcosm of the ambitions, struggles and ideals of our upcoming national observance of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.