Audition for ‘Applause’ in Easthampton
Easthampton Theater Company invites local actors to sign up for audition slots for its upcoming production of “Applause.”
Auditions will be by appointment only on Sunday, Jan. 25 and Tuesday, Jan. 27 at Easthampton Congregational Church. Actors must prepare a short contemporary monologue showing dramatic skills and comedic timing, plus one of the songs from the show, with an accompanist.
The show is based on the 1950 movie “All About Eve,” about a young woman named Eve who befriends the aging actress Margo Channing under false pretenses.
All roles are available, and actors of all gender identities and ethnicities are encouraged to audition.
The production will be at the Williston Theater in Easthampton on June 5, 7 and 11-14, 2026. Rehearsals will begin in March 2025.
For more information or to sign up for an audition slot, visit easthamptontheater.com/applause. If you have any questions or concerns, email info@easthamptontheater.com.
‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ screening in Amherst
Amherst Cinema will screen the classic Christmas movie “It’s a Wonderful Life,” starring Jimmy Stewart, on Sunday, Dec. 21 at 1:30 p.m. and Tuesday, Dec. 23 at 7 p.m.
The movie is about George Bailey, a man on the brink of suicide on Christmas Eve, whose guardian angel shows him how much worse life would be if he’d never been born.
Tickets to the Sunday screening are $12.25 for adults and $11.25 for seniors (age 65 and up) and students; tickets to the Tuesday screening are one dollar higher per category. To buy tickets, visit amherstcinema.org.
SCDT to present ‘Echoes’ dance performance
The School for Contemporary Dance & Thought in Northampton will present “Echoes: Explorations in Dance, Humanity and Interconnections” at 33 Hawley’s Workroom Theater on Friday, Dec. 19 at 6 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 20 at 2 and 7 p.m.
The show, created by more than 20 teen artists in SCDT’s Hatchery Young Artist Project, will feature live dance, music, theater and film.
“This year’s showcase celebrates the power of youth voices and the creative spirit that connects us through movement, imagination and community,” according to a press release. “Audiences will experience a dynamic fusion of dance, music and visual art — a living conversation about humanity, interconnection, and the shared pulse that unites us all. This event offers a rare opportunity to witness the creative potential of Western Massachusetts youth artists and the innovative mentorship model that defines SCDT’s community.”
Tickets are to $17.85 to $39.19, sliding scale, via Eventbrite.
Audition for ‘The Tempest’
Audition slots are now available for Valley Players’ summer 2026 production of “The Tempest.”
Auditions will be held on Monday, Feb. 23 and Tuesday, Feb. 24 at the Bangs Community Center in Amherst.
Auditioning performers must bring a prepared monologue of 14 to 20 lines from any Shakespeare play. Memorization is recommended, but not required.
Performers who want to be considered for a singing role, including Caliban, Ariel, Stephano and the goddesses, should prepare a short song in any style. Performers who want to dance and sing but not act can be considered to play nymphs, goddesses and reapers/mariners.
Rehearsals will be held on Monday and Thursday evenings from late March through June, with occasional rehearsals on Sunday afternoons.
The production will be in June 2026 at Black Birch Vineyard and will benefit the Northampton-based English language school, Center for New Americans.
For more information or to sign up for an audition slot, visit valleyplayers.org.
A ‘crafternoon’ of painting macarons
Tweens, teens and adults are invited to join local macaron artist Sara Cochran (@sarahsbookishmacarons on TikTok and Instagram) for a “crafternoon” of hand-decorating their own macarons to enjoy or gift at High Five Books in Florence on Sunday, Dec. 21, from 3 to 5 p.m.
Each participant will decorate six holiday-themed macarons to take home. Cochran will offer decorating tips and share her favorite “cozy fantasy” books from the past year.
Admission is $25 via highfivebooks.org.
The Center to perform a modern adaptation of ‘The Nutcracker’
The Center, a dance studio in Amherst, will present its annual modern adaptation of “The Nutcracker” at Bowker Auditorium at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on Sunday, Dec. 21 at 1 and 5 p.m.
The show will feature more than 125 dancers from the community, from toddlers to seniors. As a modern and multicultural adaptation, the show will feature classical Indian dance, a hip-hop “Sugarplum Squad;” West African dancing and drumming; Chinese ribbon dance; ballet; and more.
Tickets at the door are $29 general admission and $24 for seniors and children 12 and under; advance tickets are $24 general admission and $19 for seniors and children 12 and under via thecenterdance.com/nutcracker. Children 2 and under are free if sitting on an adult’s lap.
TV and movie scenes adapted for the stage
Local actor and stand-up comedian Tom Roché will present “Tom Roché’s Theater Arts Showcase” at Hope Center for the Arts in Springfield multiple showtimes between Thursday, Dec. 18 through Sunday, Dec. 21.
The show, an “intimate black box performance that highlights the raw craft of acting and adaptation,” according to a press release, will present scenes from popular television shows and movies as theatrical performances, “revealing what changes — and what becomes more alive — when stories written for the screen move to the stage,” according to a press release.
“At the Hope Center, we emphasize the process of making art over the product,” Roché said in a statement. “The most fulfilling work happens in the space where humility and risk meet. This showcase is exactly that: an exercise, an experiment, a celebration of the art. Instead of waiting for the perfect conditions, I chose to work with scenes I love and see what remains when scenes from film and television are stripped to their essence: actors, a black box and the imagination.”
The show is the first production from Richport Theatre Group, a local theater group focusing on underrepresented theater artists, especially Latinx artists. The cast includes Tom Roché, Miles Dean Borges and Alexandra Wallace.
Admission is $10 suggested donation at the door.