Amy P Debuts as A.D. in A.C.C.

Amy Poirier

To those who remember seeing Amy Poirier onstage, it might be a little hard at first to take her seriously as assistant director of A Christmas Carol.  Amy debuted with the Farmington Players as the sassy stripper Mazeppa in Gypsy and most recently played Shirley (“Keep It Gay”) Markowitz and other hilarious roles in The Producers.  Amy’s willingness to throw herself into new and edgy roles makes her well-suited to the challenges of assistant director.  Plus, as a technical training project manager for GM and a very busy mom to three kids, Amy is a natural at teaching and organizing.

While Amy is quickly finding her own “voice” as assistant director, she credits director Nancy Cooper with being a strong mentor: “Not only have I have learned a lot about production and directing from Nancy, we have had so much fun working together.  Nancy is continually looking at each of the characters and coming up with different ways to help make them more interesting to the audience.  … Nancy reinforced to me how important character development is, especially in this play where everyone plays so many different roles.”

What does Amy see as the main difference between directing and acting? “With directing you feel more pressure upfront to put an entire show together – you are responsible for more than just yourself and it can be a little daunting, but also more rewarding.    I’ve also really enjoyed being able to watch the show at each rehearsal from the audience’s viewpoint, something as an actor you’re not able to do when you’re actually in the show.”

Amy believes that the lessons of A Christmas Carol still ring true today: “This story allows us to still have that hope that people who seem mean will change.  The notion of the holiday spirit being a redemptive one and everyone being able to surrender to it is something that can appeal to most individuals. … And isn't that what Christmas is all about – at least one day of the year when all is right with the world, and God has blessed us "every one"!”

To win free tickets to opening night of A Christmas Carol for a friend or family member, send an email (deadline extended to November 27th) to AChristmasCarol@farmingtonplayers.org and tell us why they are deserving. (Scroll down to my November 1st blog entry for full details.)  But don’t wait to buy your own tickets, which are going fast.  Go to www.farmingtonplayers.org or call the box office at 248-553-2955. Find us on Facebook under "Farmington Players".