DTC
TO HOST “DELAWARE GHOST STORIES”First
in a series of three community conversations
WILMINGTON,
DE – September 13, 2006 – Delaware
Theatre Company’s series of
audience enrichment events, Connections:
A Community Conversation,
kicks off for the 2006-2007 season on Saturday, October 28, 2006 with “Delaware Ghost
Stories.” This event is presented in
conjunction
with the theatre’s production of The Turn of
the Screw by
Jeffrey Hatcher from the renowned tale by Henry James.
This entertaining round-table discussion
will examine the folklore of local ghost stories and ask the question,
“Why do
we like to be scared so much?” The Connections
forum will follow the 2:00 p.m. matinee at approximately 4:00 p.m. and
run
about 90 minutes. The
event is free and open to the public and is partly funded
by a
grant from the Delaware Humanities Forum, a state program of the
National
Endowment for the Humanities. For
more information call 302.594.1100.
This
enlightening discussion will feature local artists, folklorists, and
historians, including John Wattenbarger (director of the film The
Stone House), Patricia A. Martinelli (author of Haunted Delaware),
and Lee Jennings (Delaware State Parks historian).
John
Wattenbarger of Rehoboth, DE is a writer, filmmaker, and
producer. The
Stone House is his
first feature film, and Wattenbarger was responsible for the script, as
well as
producing and directing the work. The
film was produced, cast, shot, and edited entirely in Delaware, in and
around
Milton, Milford, Georgetown, and Laurel.
The Stone House
tells a chilling story about Rick Berlinger and
his wife, Joslin, who move from their busy urban life to a small and
quiet
town. Shortly after their arrival,
people begin to disappear. This brings to mind the local legend of the
mental
hospital, which burnt down in the late seventies, leaving the
unaccounted
patients to haunt the woods around the hospital building, the Stone
House. The
Stone House is set for release
this fall.
Patricia
A. Martinelli of Vineland, NJ is an historian,
professional
archivist and freelance author who specializes in American and regional
history
(particularly Delaware and New Jersey).
Her current book is Haunted Delaware: Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of
the First State, which features unexplained phenomena in Delaware and
includes information on ghost tours in the region. Ms.
Martinelli also currently serves as historian and archivist
for the Cumberland County, New Jersey, Division of Archives and Records
Management, charging her with records that date back over 150 years.
Lee
Jennings of Middletown, DE is the founder of the Fort
Delaware Ghost Tours. Joining the
Division of Parks and Recreation in 1993 at Fort Delaware, he designed
and
wrote the living history programs that served as the catalyst for the
massive
preservation efforts of the Division. In 2000, Mr. Jennings received a
Governor’s Tourism award for the African American education
program at Fort
Delaware, the same year in which he became the first State Parks
Historian. Mr. Jennings has published
two works: he co-authored Images of America Fort Miles with Dr. Gary
Wray, which documents the rise and fall of a powerful seacoast
fortification on
the Delaware Shores, and has recently completed a History of Delaware
State
Parks.
“Delaware
Ghost Stories”
will take place at Delaware Theatre Company, 200 Water Street in
Wilmington. The event will follow the 2:00 p.m. matinee
performance on Saturday, October 28, 2006, beginning at approximately
4:00
p.m. Admission
to all Connections
events are free. For more
information, please call 302.594.1100.
Delaware
Theatre Company’s 2006-2007 season is sponsored by
JPMorgan Chase. Corporate Co-Producer for The Turn of the Screw
is Alico, and Media Sponsor is WRTI.
Artist transportation provided by Amtrak. Programs are made possible,
in
part, by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the
Delaware
Division of the Arts, a state agency committed to promoting and
supporting the
arts in Delaware. The Delaware Division
of the Arts provides technical and financial assistance to artists and
arts
programs and serves as a clearinghouse for information on the arts. Delaware Theatre Company,
Delaware's
premier professional theatre, is located at 200 Water Street, on
Wilmington’s exciting Riverfront.
Delaware Theatre Company is a member of the League of Resident
Theatres,
Theatre Communications Group, the Arts Consortium of Delaware, the
Theatre
Alliance of Greater Philadelphia, the Greater Philadelphia Cultural
Alliance,
the Arts & Business Council of Greater Philadelphia, the New
Castle County
Chamber of Commerce, and the Wilmington Convention & Visitors
Bureau.
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