“Silkworms,” a new play in production at Lamplighters Community Theatre in La Mesa, is very personal for San Diego playwright Connie Terwilliger.
Terwilliger based “Silkworms” on three generations of women on her own family, herself included.
“My mother was a strong teaching mom. My grandmother, a warm nurturing woman. I suppose I would like to think I got the best of both,” Terwilliger said.
Connie Terwilliger, left, with her grandmother, Alfea Pasquini, in an undated photo.
(Courtesy of Connie Terwilliger)
“Silkworms,” which continues through Sunday at Lamplighters, is the story of three generations of strong women whose struggles for love and the beauty of life play out in different ways. The grandmother, an Italian immigrant, brings the wisdom of age. Her daughter is driven to achieve perfection at the expense of love and happiness. And her granddaughter, much like her mother, is striving to find balance.
Terwilliger said she began writing the play many years ago as a sort of informal therapy during a time in her life that she felt like all she did was work.
“After regaining my balance, I put the play away for several years and pulled it back out and realized that it had some legs,” she said. “And after finishing it, John Tessmer (producing artistic director of La Jolla Theatre Ensemble) did a staged reading in 2017. I then removed a character so that the main theme of finding ways to mend old hurts, make better choices and find the beauty in life wasn’t muddied up.”
Terwilliger said some of the grandmother’s lines in “Silkworms” came directly from tape recordings her mom made of her grandmother, “Nonnie,” sharing old memories. Terwilliger’s grandparents immigrated separately to America from Italy in the early 1900s. They met and married in Massachusetts.
“One of the stories (she told) was about raising silkworms. You have to kill the worm to get the beautiful silk. Is that the same with us? Hearing my Nonnie’s voice takes me back to her little house with its warm kitchen with lovely Italian treats hidden in the cupboards. The play is a very personal take on my relationship with my mother, grandmother, and life in general,” Terwilliger said.
“Silkworms” plays at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Lamplighters Communiy Theatre, 5915 Severin Drive, La Mesa. Tickets are $20-$25. Call (619) 303-5092, lamplighterslamesa.com
Cygnet takes theater into city libraries
Cygnet Theatre is launching From the Page to the Stage, a new education program this weekend that will present 20 free, 45-minute theater performances at several San Diego Public Library branches through July 15.
Designed for all ages, From the Page to the Stage will feature “mini shows” of selected songs from popular musicals based on famous and classic literary works, such as “Big River,” “Man of La Mancha,” “Seussical the Musical,” “Wicked” and “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” The shows will be performed by professional theater actors.
From the Page to the Stage is headed up by Carlos Mendoza, Cygnet Theatre’s new education and outreach director. The show’s cast includes Krista Feallock, Cody Ingram, Kimberly Moller and DeAndre Simmons.
“From the Page to the Stage was performed at the Long Beach Summer Reading series in 2013 and I must say that I have never, in over 10 years of working in education and outreach, heard such unanimously rave reviews of this kind of program,” Mendoza said in a statement. “It’s fun, colorful, engaging, stimulating, stirring and immersive, a great way to take live theater to the next level, as I believe every young person deserves the opportunity to thrive.”
From the Page to the Stage is being presented as part of San Diego Public Library’s 2023 Summer Reading Program: Find Your Voice.
The dates and schedule for the performances can be found at cygnettheatre.com/pagetostage.
Mark Vigeant performs his solo show “Mark Pleases You” at the 2023 San Diego International Fringe Festival.
(Courtesy of Michael Prine)
Fringe fest winners
San Diego International Fringe Festival wrapped up a few weeks ago and the winners — chosen by Fringe staff, Fringe performers, theater critics and audience members — have been announced. Here are the top results:
Critics’ Pick: “Normal Heights” by Loud Fridge Theatre Group
Artists’ Pick: “Arson 101: A Choose Your Own Adventure” — Levani Korganashvili and Kaylin Saur
Best of the Fest: “Mark Pleases You” by Mark Vigeant
Spirit of the Fringe: “Arson 101: A Choose Your Own Adventure” — Levani Korganashvili and Kaylin Saur
Outstanding Solo Show: “Juno and the Jetpacks” by Lindsey Woods, Fizz and Chips Productions
Outstanding Ensemble: “79 Ways to Die” by Veronica Rosas
Fringe of the Fringe: “Censored Heart” by Golden Corpse Theater
Social Awareness: “105 Miles from Home” by Lex Hernandez