Dawidziak's wife, Sara, & friends perform benefit

 
The Largely Literary Theater Company premieres ‘She Stories’ at Books for Africa Benefit

The Largely Literary Theater Company will premiere She Stories, a multi-cultural program of stories about strong women, at the Books for Africa Library Project’s annual fundraising dinner. The event begins at 6 p.m. Saturday, May 19, in the St. Bernard/St. Mary Church Social Hall.

The church is  in downtown Akron at Broadway and State streets. Parking is available at the University of Akron lot opposite the church.

 The Books for Africa Library Project is a non-profit organization that helps communities set up libraries in rural Africa. The project has established libraries in Ghana and Liberia.

She Stories features tales from Sweden, Africa, Russia and Australia. Largely Literary co-founder Sara Showman is joined on stage by local actors Helen McWilliams and Emma Picht.

“As a storyteller, I read many folk tales,” Showman said. “And I began to notice that there are so many stories from all over the world about strong, courageous women. Having been influenced and inspired by so many strong women in my life, I wanted to celebrate them with stories of humor, adventure and courage.”

A Cuyahoga Falls resident, Helen McWilliams is a physical therapist and adjunct faculty member of Kent State University’s Biology Department.  She has performed at community theaters in Ohio and Pennsylvania for 35 years. Favorite roles include the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz and Mary Bailey in It's A Wonderful Life.

Her most recent role was the Duchess in Alice in Wonderland for Antic Theatre, a production that also featured her husband and three children. McWilliams is vice president of the Cuyahoga Falls Library Board. An avid runner, she is currently training for her third marathon.

Emma Picht, also making her Largely Literary debut, recently appeared in Magical Theatre Company's Peter and the Wolf and Weathervane Playhouse's production of The Taming of the Shrew. She performed in Actor's Summit production of Woody Guthrie's American Song and in Ohio Shakespeare Festival's Richard III and Love's Labours Lost.

Picht, a Hudson resident, is a seventh grader at Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts in Akron. She plays classical violin and Irish fiddle and is a member of the Miller South Orchestra and Akron Youth Philharmonic. She sang solo Broadway tunes for Akron's First Night at Actor's Summit.

The May 19 dinner and performance are free, but donations will be collected. This is the fifth consecutive year the Largely Literary Theater Company has appeared at the annual Books for Africa Library Project dinner at the landmark downtown Akron church.

The benefit will begin with dinner at 6 p.m. Books for Africa’s Kirt and Hilda Bromley will describe their recent efforts to build libraries in West Africa.

Specializing in faithful adaptations of great literary works, the Largely Literary Theater Company was founded in 2001 to promote literacy, literature and live theater. The troupe is best known for: Twain By Three, a two-act adaptation of humorous sketches by Mark Twain;  The Tell-Tale Play, a two-act collection of poems and stories by Edgar Allan Poe; and its three-person version of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

Showman performs “Eve’s Diary” and portrays other characters in Twain By Three.  She plays 15 roles in A Christmas Carol, and performs “The Masque of the Red Death,” “The Bells” and “Alone” in The Tell-Tale Play. She also performs various storytelling programs for grades K-2 and 3-5, including Animal Tales, Earth Stories, The Poetry Show and Mother Goose (for pre-schoolers).

She recently added a program for senior citizens titled Stories for the Ages, ideal for Red Hatters, senior church groups, clubs and civic organizations. To book She Stories or any other productions, contact the Largely Literary Theater Company: 330-923-8350 or at hlgrouch@sbcglobal.net

             

For information about Books for Africa Library Project, visit www.forafricalibrary.org.