Charlestown Theater To Celebrate Directors' 20 Years

The Charlestown Working Theater Board of Directors will celebrate 20 years of inspired service by directors Jennifer Johnson, Kristin Johnson and John Peitso at and event to be held Sunday, April 28 from 4-7 p.m. at the Warren Tavern.

Professional actors and lifelong Charlestown residents, Jennifer and Kristin Johnson, along with Jennifer's husband, John Peitso, also a professional actor as well as a composer and multi-instrumentalist, took stewardship of the Charlestown Working Theater at a time when it was in danger of closing.  Learning the management side of the business as they went, they established ongoing successful and innovative educational and community programming at Charlestown Working Theater.

They also established The Resident Artist Series, a performance series featuring the original work of Boston and Massachusetts area theater artists. 

In addition, over the past 20 years, Charlestown Working Theater has produced theatre companies from the United States and abroad in the theater's intimate 80-seat space, offering audiences the opportunity to attend performances, participate in workshops, and engage with the dynamic work of distinguished theatre companies in an immediate and personal way. 

The CWT artistic mandate is to offer affordable quality arts programming to the youth of Charlestown. The theater's educational programming brings the community together in a creative enterprise, including ongoing partnerships with several Charlestown organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club and the Warren Prescott School. 

Earlier this month, Charlestown Working Theater presented the puppet show "Squirrel Stole My Underpants," a recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation family grant.

Charlestown Working Theater's impact is not limited to the children of Charlestown. The theater also plays an important role in the greater Boston theater community.

The theater received a Special Citation at the Elliot Norton Critic Awards for "adventurous collaborations that provide unique insights into theater from around the world." 

This spring, the CWT Resident Artist Program presented Whistler In The Dark's productions of George Farquhar’s Restoration comedy "The Recruiting Officer" alongside "Our Country’s Good," a play set in the penal colony of 18th-century Australia, in which the hero attempts to mount a production of The Recruiting Officer, despite the fact that he only has two scripts, a largely illiterate cast of convicts and a leading lady who’s headed for the gallows.  

In May, the CWT Resident Artist Program will present Theater On Fire's "Almost Blue." A modern noir thriller set in a seedy rooming house, "Almost Blue" assembles a classic quartet of characters: a man just out of prison trying to stay straight, a strange loner down the hall who writes pornographic greeting cards, a violent ex-con who wants to settle old scores, and of course, the beautiful woman in trouble. Brutal yet funny, "Almost Blue" is a taut journey into the dark night, full of plot twists and sultry exchanges, with the tour-de-force acting you've come to expect from TOF.

CWT's Core Artists Jennifer Johnson and John Peitso recently traveled to Moscow with the Double Edge Theater Company's production of "The Grand Parade." "The Grand Parade" blends the mundane and the monumental into an audacious Technicolor journey through 100 years of American history, seen through the eyes of their inspired ensemble and designers.  The show thrives on the juxtaposition of 20th century events both uplifting and horrifying with the cultural movements that accompanied them. 

Jennifer and John also conducted a seminar at Roger Williams University in the beginning of April, teaching classes and presenting their critically acclaimed performance of "The Odyssey."

The CWT Board of Directors invites you to stop by to congratulate Jennifer, John and Kristin on their work and learn about CWT's future plans during a celebration on Sunday, April 28 at the Warren Tavern. Tickets are $30 and are available online at www.charlestownworkingtheater.org or at the door.