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It’s just a typical summer day in Professor Dennis Russo’s Raritan Valley Community College Theatre Production class, and the students are rehearsing for an upcoming show. “Good, strong accent,” praises Russo of actress Cheryl Chapin’s delivery of her lines.

Chapin is a cast member of Personal Care Assistant, a one-act play reading that will be staged August 15, at 7 p.m., in the Welpe Theatre at the College’s Branchburg campus. The performance is free of charge and open to the public.

Chapin is joined in the production by seven of the College’s Theatre majors as well as two of her fellow performers from Matheny in Peapack, which serves children and adults with severe disabilities. The one-act play reading was created by Russo with input from students.

Russo, a member of the Actors Studio since 2002, also is directing and performing in the one-act, which he describes as a “sitcom for the stage.” The plot revolves around a Personal Care Assistant who is leaving his current assignment to take a new job.

The laughs continue throughout the rehearsal, with the Matheny actors getting many of the best chuckles. In one scene, communicating via a recorded voice on an iPad, non-verbal actor Chester (Chet) Cheesman, in character as Frankie, asks, “Anna, can you apply the aftershave to my incredibly handsome face?”

This is the third summer in a row that adult actors from Matheny—Cheesman of Franklin, Chapin of Basking Ridge, and Natalia Manning of Hillsborough—are taking part in an RVCC class and production. The Matheny actors are participating as part of Matheny’s Arts Access program, which empowers individuals with disabilities to create art without boundaries.

The relationship between Matheny and RVCC first began in fall 2015, when Matheny staff reached out to the College’s administration in hopes of creating more community-based programs for their clients. According to Russo, the College’s weekly summer Theatre Production class seemed like the right opportunity.

“I remember thinking back to the first year of the program when it was brand new territory being in a creative environment with people with disabilities. I think everyone, including Professor Russo, was so afraid that they would say or do something ‘wrong’ or ‘offensive.’ It was a learning curve to make the realization that our three artists are creative, inspired adults, just like them, and added great value, wit and substance to the work,” says Heather Williams, Performing Arts and Outreach Coordinator, Matheny Arts Access Program. “Fast forward three years, Chet, Cheryl and Nat are just one of the gang. In the first five minutes they were engaged in conversation about old movies and video games and that discomfort had disappeared.”

The Personal Care Assistant “gang” from RVCC includes Theatre majors John Duensing (Basking Ridge), Fred Lopatosky (North Plainfield), Joshua Blankman (Clinton), Allyson DeMarco (Flemington), Jack Leichter (Bedminster), Morgan Hope (Bridgewater) and Sean Bodine (Lambertville). Aubrey Holzman of Washington is acting as stage manager.

Noting the benefits all of the performers gain from working together, Russo says, “It’s about exposure to a group of people who they don’t interact with every day. And because it’s ‘acting’ it’s more than just exposure, it’s an immersive experience that I’d like to think helps everyone grow on so many levels.”

As a result of this experience, adds Russo, “I’d like to think my students have developed a confidence in themselves that will help them interact with all types of individuals. It’s an acting phrase, but they should be ‘in the moment’ with people. Really listen—and don’t judge. It’s funny how acting lessons can translate into life lessons. Even if someone has difficulty speaking or speaks through an iPad, be present and listen to them. Don’t try to move on to someone else just because you’re uncomfortable. As playwright David Mamet says, ‘Acting is being comfortable being uncomfortable.’”

For the Matheny actors, says Williams, “I also think there is a certain pride in being able to show the other class participants that people with disabilities are capable of everything they are.”

For additional information about Personal Care Assistant, contact the Visual and Performing Arts Department, 908-218-8876.

About the Matheny Arts Access Program
The Arts Access Program at Matheny was founded to support our guiding belief: that each person is unique and valuable and should have access to enjoyable, rewarding life experiences, regardless of ability. Through Arts Access' novel communication and choice systems, under the guidance of highly trained facilitators, participants with severe developmental disabilities, many of whom are non-verbal, can participate fully in the visual, literary, and performing arts. The resulting work includes paintings, sculptures, poetry, plays, and choreographed dances born of the imaginations of Arts Access artists, finally free of limitations imposed by their disabilities to express their voices and visions. Arts Access also provides opportunities for exhibition and income for our clients. Their works have beautified public spaces throughout the state. Their performances have inspired and educated the public about the talents and perspectives of artists with disabilities. In 2018, the Arts Access program celebrates 25 years of creating art without boundaries.

About RVCC
Raritan Valley Community College’s main campus is located at 118 Lamington Road in Branchburg, NJ. Serving Somerset and Hunterdon County residents, RVCC is an educational and cultural center that is nationally recognized for its innovative programming, service to the community and environmental leadership. The College offers more than 90 associate degrees and certificates, as well as career training, professional development, and adult and youth personal enrichment courses. The College also has a performing arts center and planetarium. RVCC is committed to offering a quality and affordable education through effective teaching, liaisons with the community’s businesses, and state-of-the-art technology. For further information, visit www.raritanval.edu.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 24, 2018

Media contact: Donna Stolzer, 908-526-1200, ext. 8383

PR #5