From a "Miracle on 34th Street" production. Photos courtesy Peter Tavino.
The Rural Intelligence region excels in community spirit, and in Litchfield, some of the spookiest spirits are coming to life in Halloween Radio Plays being produced at the Oliver Wolcott Library on Oct. 27 and 28. The library has been home to radio plays for a few years, using existing scripts of 1930s broadcasts that are available online. The productions are volunteer driven and popular enough to fill up the community room for each performance. The shows are free, but registration is a must.
“We’ve usually done them during the winter holidays," said Peter Tavino, a civil engineer and volunteer who now manages the operation. “We’ve done A Christmas Carol, It’s a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, but this is the first time we’ve done a Halloween theme. Since both of the plays — Frankenstein and Count Dracula — have similar characters, we’re able to cast just about seven actors." Playing the title characters in both plays is “veteran actor" Judge Charles D. Gill, a former judge for the Litchfield District Superior Court in Connecticut, who’s as comfortable on a stage as he was in his courtroom. Even though it’s a radio play, it’s a live performance in front of an audience, so there are costumes, sets, music and, of course, sound effects, all of which Tavino handles. When we reached him, he was preparing for that evening’s rehearsal. "I’m trying to get the smoke machine going," he said. Halloween Radio PlaysWith Peter Tavino & Friends(Best for Adults) Oct. 27-28 at 7 p.m. Oliver Wolcott Library160 South St., Litchfield, Conn. (860) 567-8030
