The Meaningful Action Theatre Company Presents A Workshop Reading of “Muffed: A Recounting of Farmington, Maine’s 43rd Annual Chester Greenwood Day Devised by the Members of the Meaningful Action Theatre Company and Produced by David New”

Co-Produced by The Factory Theater and Unheard Of Company, be the first to witness this new devised piece of documentary theater from The Meaningful Action Theatre Company in their debut reading! Despite past rumors of being “unorganized”, “pretentious”, and “Who?”, we have been assured that this New Institution To Watch (2011) will deliver an evening of theatre about Chester Greenwood Day unlike any you’ve seen before. Join us at The Factory Theater for 20 one-night-only presentations that will make you cherish the earmuffs in your life.

Info

$ 99

Per MonthWritten by: Zack Peercy

Directed by: Kayla Menz

Previews: Aug 15-17, Friday & Saturday @ 7:30pm, Sunday @ 3:00pm

Show dates: Aug 18 – Sept 20, Thursday, Friday & Saturday @ 7:30pm, Sunday @ 3:00pm

Plus Monday August 18 @ 7:30

Tickets $30

Cast

$ 99

Per Month
Company Leader
(Wendy Simmons/Andy Sezzler/
Auntie Eustice)		 Reginald Hemphill (he/him)
Company Member 2
(Ukulele Player/Randy Sezzler/Sam Buchanan)		 Karly Solon (she/her)
Company Member 3
(Abe McGuinn/Tara Meiser)		 Alex George (they/them)
Company Member 4
(Poodle Walker/Gary Lumbard/Brett Crum)		 Josh Philoon (he/him)
Company Member 5
(Dunkin’ Guy/Deb in Accounting)		 Adelaide Corbo (she/they)
Company Member 6
(Sue Tinney/Tour Guide/Dan Lumbard)		 Jaycey Carlson (she/they)
Company Member 7
(Willy DuChamp/Dakota Vasser)		 Asa Wallace (she/they)
Company Member 8
(Lady Nordica/McDonalds Lady)		 Liz Falstreau (she/they)
Swing 1 Caitlin Dooks (she/her)
Swing 2 Antonio Cruz (they/he/she)

Crew

$ 99

Per Month
Production Manager Zack Peercy (he/him)
Stage Manager Nole Beran (he/him)
Playwright Zack Peercy (he/him)
Director Kayla Menz (she/they)
Assistant Director/ Dramaturg Ethan Smith (they/them)
Set Designer Marcus Klein (he/him)
Costume Designer Valerie Cambron (she/her)
Lighting Designer James Arakas (he/him)
Sound Designer River Cy Denman (he/him)
Accessibility  Jordan Rawlings (they/she)

Dramaturg’s Note

Welcome to Factory Theater’s 2025 production of THE MEANINGFUL ACTION THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS A WORKSHOP READING OF “MUFFED: A RECOUNTING OF FARMINGTON, MAINE’S 43RD ANNUAL CHESTER GREENWOOD DAY DEVISED BY THE MEMBERS OF THE MEANINGFUL ACTION THEATRE COMPANY AND PRODUCED BY DAVID NEW.
This is a fictionalized play within a play following the company members of a fake theatre company (The Meaningful Action Theatre Company) performing the first reading of their devised show about Chester Greenwood Day, a very real holiday celebrated annually in Farmington, Maine. The design choices of this production are intentionally made to reflect a typical storefront theatre’s budget and resources. For example, the set is designed to communicate that this fake theatre company is having to share the performance space with another group and even have to the other show’s set design. This results in a set design that at first glance might not match the plot of the fictional play being performed, but instead projects the struggling fiscal reality of this fictional theatre company.
Despite past rumors of being “unorganized” and “pretentious”, this fake theater company will take you on a journey behind the curtain to discover what it’s like to perform a reading of a new play for an audience.
Make sure to stop by the Dramaturgy Wall in the lobby to learn more about the Company Members of The Meaningful Action Theatre Company, fun facts about Chester Greenwood Day, and more. Enjoy the show!

Director’s Note

Muffed always seems to come around when I need it most, and this time is no different. This show brings us joy and silliness, while reminding us to focus on our own vibrant communities.

Over the years, a strong community has been invaluable to me, and going forward, we all need to think about our place in our communities and how we can connect on a deeper level with the people around us. As exhibited here by our friends at The Meaningful Action Theatre Company, creating theatre together is an inherently communal act. It is work and we might not all get along all of the time, but the bonds forged and the stories expressed are worth it. As you are swept away into Farmington, enjoy the authenticity of life in a small college town and the efforts of a theatre troupe trying their best.

I hope this show brings you as much joy as it brings me with side splitting laughter, goofy yet relatable characters, theatre inside jokes, and so many vagina puns. I am sure I am not the only one who has been searching for lightness and silliness lately. Here is a chance to giggle at adults playing 5 year-olds, groan at puns, and smile at the sincerity and heart exhibited by these characters.

Thank you to the Chicago theatre community, especially those supporting and championing new work. Thank you to the Muffed team that brought a little bit of Farmington to Chicago. And, finally, thank you to Zack for your story, your trust, and your endless work on making all of this happen.

Welcome to Farmington!

Playwright’s Note

Most people I went to college with at The University of Maine at Farmington mocked Chester Greenwood Day, but none of them sat down to write an entire full length play mocking it.

However, the longer I worked on the project, the more I realized that this level of dedication to a joke meant it was coming from a place of deep love.
In sharing this work with this group of theater-makers, the passion was multiplied ten-fold. We were all, at one point, the cringy actors making bold choices. We all had ambitions that outweighed our budgets. We were all very serious artists.

With hindsight and a more nuanced artistry, we’re able to portray exactly what cringy, overly ambitious, self-serious choices The Meaningful Action Theatre Company would make because we’ve all made those same choices. I couldn’t have written this show, no one would have produced this show, and nobody could have presented this show without a deep love for theatre. Through that love, we are able to pull off the greatest joke of all: making you aware of, and maybe even fall in love with, Chester Greenwood Day.