| Are you a horse person who can act or sing or dance? Are you an actor or singer who can ride or always wanted to learn? Are you a musician who loves horses? Are you a genius with costumes or a lighting expert or a whiz with a hammer or just someone who loves the excitement of live theatre and also happens to love horses? Then you should join The Six Legged Theater Company, the new Equine Theater group forming in Morriston, central to Williston, Ocala, Dunnellon and Gainesville.
Horses and Theater? That's right! The art of EquiTheater was created a few years ago by Lara Wyant in Oregon and has fast become more and more popular nationwide as an equestrian activity. EquiTheater is now recognized as a competitive sport by the Independent Horse Show Judges Association and was recently featured at the National Pleasure Walking Horse Show in St. Louis, Missouri. According to the National EquiTheater website (www.equitheater.com), this exciting one-of-a-kind sport gives exhibitors the opportunity to present an entertaining routine to an audience using: costumes, choreography, music, props, storytelling and acting. Routines may be serious, dramatic, elegant or funny. EquiTheater is not like any other musical horse sport, because it has fewer required elements, and the main emphasis of a routine is on it's ENTERTAINMENT value, not on how well a horse performs. Perhaps the best way to describe EquiTheater is to point out what it is not: It's not horses stepping, prancing or dancing to music. It's not a horse(s) at liberty act, nor a trick horse(s) act. It is not riding a musical dressage or reining pattern, nor is it riding around an arena in a costume with background music. The idea for the Six Legged Theater Company came about when local horse farm manager Jim Russell, a former professional actor and director, saw a small equitheater competition and thought about the possibility of expanding the concept of short routines into actual full length theatrical productions on horseback (or driven or in-hand or combinations thereof). Though EquiTheater has usually been performed to recorded music, according to Russell: "I envision a full length live broadway musical revue with actors singing on horseback to live music performed by live musicians! Russell added that his vision for the new theatre group includes plenty of opportunities for non-horse people both as ground-based ensemble cast members, ensemble singers and as backstage helpers and volunteers. "Imagine combining live music with live horses with live singing and acting and the magic of live theatre. Now that's entertainment!", he added. Russell, the General Manager of Amik Run Equestrian Center in Morriston, where the new group will be hosted, has performed in and/or directed more than 100 live stage productions and appeared in several television commercials and music videos in the early 1980's. He studied acting under Bernice Pepke, John James and Peter Ivanov. His television credits include appearing with Barry Bostwick, James Mason, Lloyd Bridges and Patty Duke in the 1984 CBS Mini-Series, George Washington. He will serve as the Artistic Director of The Six Legged Theater Company, but noted that many volunteers will be needed to help with everything from publicity to choreography to costumes and props, ticket sales, horse helpers and backstage crew, set builders and more. Participants of all ages and backgrounds are welcome, including area residents with no equine or acting experience. The group is intended to be a community club, rather than a for-profit venture. The first performance by The Six Legged Theatre Company, a revue of songs from broadway musicals called "Broadway in the Barn," is scheduled for Saturday, March 4th, 2006 at 7 p.m. at Amik Run Equestrian Center in Morriston. Tickets are $8 per person and include a sunset cookout dinner featuring hamburgers, hot dogs, BBQ Chicken and all the fixins. If you are interested in being part of the March performance, joining the group, or volunteering, please call 352-528-5298 or email amikrunfl@aol.com. |
| The Six Legged Theater Company |
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Mini-Horse and Girl: Recent EquiTheater Stars at Amik Run |
| CONTACT: Jim Russell
General Manager Amik Run Equestrian Center 2561 SE 168th Ave. Morriston, FL 32668 (352) 528-5298 amikrunfl@aol.com |