NJ Pride, June 3rd

The JTMF will have a booth at the New Jersey Pride Festival this coming Sunday, June 3rd in Asbury Park, NJ. We will have some fun give-aways and the opportunity to purchase advance tickets to our Fifth Anniversay Gala AIDS Fundraising Event, featuring Charles Busch's hilarious Beach Blanket spoof, Psycho Beach Party.

Join us as we celebrate the GLBT community and raise funds for The Open Arms Foundation, Graffiti Productions and The James Tolin Memorial Scholarship.

Look for the green canopied booth with the grass-skirted table manned by the folks in Hawaiian shirts and leis. Stop by to pick up a free magnet, buy tickets or just to say "Hello" and learn what we are all about. Our booth will be located among the many other Non-Profit Organizations. Meet cast and crew members, donate to our cause or just hang out with us. A good time is guaranteed for all.

Rehearsal Update

Blocking for the entire show is finally completed. There is plenty of hilarity already taking place and director Brian Bara says he can't wait until the cast "gets the books out of their hands and really goes to town." He says this is one of the funniest shows he has ever had the pleasure to direct, and the cast continues to surprise and delight him with their creativity and fearless commitment to physical comedy.

Remember, it's never too early to order your tickets to what is sure to be the wildest show you will see all year, not to mention the fabulous Opening Night Red Carpet Gala, Luau reception and Silent Auction. Use either of the links to the right to order your tickets to the 5th Anniversary James Tolin Memorial Fund AIDS fundraising event featuring Charles Busch's Psycho Beach Party.

And don't forget to join us on Sunday, June 3rd for NJ Pride in Asbury Park. Be there - Aloha!

Join Us at NJ Pride

Sunday, June 3rd, the JTMF will have a booth at NJ Pride in Asbury Park. We'll have some fun give-aways; you'll be able to purchase advance tickets to our Fifth Anniversary Gala; meet members of the cast and find out all about who we are and what we do. The JTMF booth will be located near all of the other non-profit organizations. Look for the grass-skirted table manned by the folks in Hawaiian shirts and leis. Pride is always an interesting and fun time with loads of vendors, lots of great food and even a Family Fun area with kids' rides and activities. We hope to see you there.

More Rehearsal Photos

(Click photos to enlarge)
Nicole Patrick as Chicklet, Melanie Britten as Bettina Barnes and Tina Henderson as Berdine
Tina Henderson; Damian Gaeta; Josiah DeAndrea; Josh Minton; Nicole Patrick and Mark Violi do the Twist.
An artsy blur of dancing cast members doing the Jerk.

Our Latest Donation

A fabulous gift package from Broadway Cares: Equity Fights AIDS, which includes a tote-bag; t-shirt; Christmas ornament; Broadway beach towel and Broadway show posters signed by the current casts.

(Click photo to enlarge)

2007 Silent Auction

Items continue to arrive for our annual Silent Auction with donations varying from Hollywood memorabilia to baskets of toys; restaurant gift certificates to health and beauty products. This promises to be our most exciting Silent Auction ever, as you can see from the partial list of donors below:

Ms Carol Burnett * Mr. Marc Cherry and the Cast of "Desperate Housewives" * Silver Decoy Winery * Discovery Toys * Triumph Brewery * Mr. Robin Williams * Marcello's Restaurant * Broadway Cares * Miss Coco Peru * Shoppe 202 * The Home Shopping Network * Mr. Stephen Fry * Lypsinka * Kelsey Theatre * Mr. Tim DeKay * The Edmunton Oilers * Cruise One * Logo * Comcast * Bravo

And that's just the beginning. Bidding starts at 7:00 PM and continues through intermission at each performance. Get there early and get your bids in - these items are sure to be on everyone's "must-have" list.

Order your tickets for the Fifth Annual JTMF AIDS Benefit now, using either of the convenient links to the right. Your tax-deductible ticket includes admission to the performance of Charles Busch's hilarious Beach Blanket spoof, Psycho Beach Party; the Luau reception featuring live music by Chuck Easter and New Atlantis and the chance to bid on a bevy of fabulous gifts. This is one event that will be talked about for a long time, and you do not want to miss it!

Rehearsal Update

Well into our second week of rehearsals for Psycho Beach Party, Brian tells us he couldn't be happier with his cast. He says that the smart, funny and talented (not to mention gorgeous - see photos below) group are helping to make his job very easy. Blocking rehearsals continue this week and after the holiday break, they will get into what Brian calls "the nitty-gritty."

Look for more updates and rehearsal photos as we continue towards the Opening Night Red Carpet Gala on Friday, June 22nd.

Don't forget, tickets will go quickly for this special event, so visit our website (conveniently linked to the right) to order your tickets today!

We Have a Winner (For Real!)

Mr. Leonard Moore has correctly identified next year's play as What the Butler Saw by Joe Orton. Mr. Moore has won a special Psycho Beach Party Prize Package, which he can claim at the box-office during either performance. Congratulations!

Beach Party Photos

Nicole Patrick & Freind enjoy the Bordentown Beach Party
Damina Gaeta kisses a puppy (Aw....)
Some folks enjoying a drink at the Beach Party
Doug Edelson trying to look cool...
(Click Photos to enlarge)

Rehearsal Photos

Adam Fitting as Kanaka; Nicole Patrick as Chicklet, Joasiah DeAndrea as YoYo; Damian Gaeta as Provoloney and Mark Viloi as Star Cat
Josiah, Mark, Damian & Nicole
Tina Henderson as Berdine and Nicole Patrick as Chicket; BFFs

Surf's up!

(Click Photos to enlarge)

All 3 Clues

As promised, here are all three Clues in the "Guess Next Year's Play" Contest:

1.This prominent 20th Century British playwright, known for his acerbic wit, once wrote a screenplay for a Beatles movie which was never produced.

2. This play's misleading title often fools audiences into believing they are about to see a mystery.

3. Set in an asylum, this six-character comedy involves mistaken identities, cross-dressing, potted underwear and psychiatrists who are crazier than their patients.

Submit your answer as a comment to the blog or email it directly to: JTMFBlogQuery@aol.com

Good luck!

Question of the Week (5/16)

We usually post the Question of the Week on Friday, but because we've been away, we're doing it today.

This week, Barbara asks:

"Why does each night of this year's benefit have a different price?"

Another excellent question. Thanks, Barbara.

Because this is our Fifth Anniversary, the opening night of the show on June 22nd includes our "Red Carpet Gala" which features past JTMF participants, special guests and a VIP pre-show reception. There will be all kinds of extras and excitement on Friday. Saturday night's show still includes the regular reception, live music and silent auction, but with a bit less of Friday night's extra 'glitz and glamor.'

As always, if you have a question for the JTMF staff, please leave it as a comment here on the blog, or emial us directly at JTMFBlogQuery@aol.com

And don't forget our "Guess Next Year's Play" contest. Our third and final clue has been posted. We'll post all three clues tomorrow, just in case you missed any. The first eligible person to guess the title of next year's show will recieve a special Psycho Beach Party prize package, so send us your answers ASAP.

Contest Clue #3

This is the third and final clue in our "Guess Next Year's Play" contest.

Clue #3 - Set in an asylum, this six-character comedy involves mistaken identities, cross-dressing, potted underwear and psychiatrists who are crazier than their patients.

The first person (who is not already a JTMF participant) to correctly identify the name of next year's play will recieve a special Psycho Beach Party prize package. Submit your answer as a comment below, or email it directly to: JTMFBlogQuery@aol.com

We Have a Winner (Sort of)

Someone has managed to guess both the author and title of next year's play - only one problem - she's a cast member of this year's Psycho Beach Party and ineligible to win (sorry, T.H.).

We have deleted her comments so the rest of you can't cheat and will be posting our third and final clue tomorrow. There's still a Psycho Beach Party prize to be won, so check back tomorrow for the final clue!

We're Back!

The Bordentown Beach Party was so successful, we just had to take some time off to recuperate. We saw nearly 500 attendees, gave out just as many flyers, had almost as many drinks and played with a cute puppy all afternoon! There was a photographer from Packet Publications and a great time was had by all.

Rehearsals for Psycho Beach Party officially started last night, and diretcor Brian Bara says the show is off to a great start. All of the "boys only" scenes have been blocked and tomorrow we add the girls.

We are still looking for several "gender illusionists" to take part in our Red Carpet Gala, so if you or someone you know is interested in volunteering, please drop us a line. Volunteers receive free admission to the show, access to the luau reception, a "Special Thanks" in our program and the opportunity for professional entertainers to hand out business cards and advertising literature to potential clients in our audience. As always, you can respond by leaving us a reply here on the blog or email us directly at: JTMFBlogQuery@aol.com.