In addition to the new faces gracing the Frances Marion Brown stage in Tom Briggs’ upcoming production of “Unnecessary Farce” in July, the cast includes three veteran performers who should be very familiar to recent Oswego Players audiences: Tammy Thompson, Matt Fleming, and Bill Cowham.
Tammy Thompson has been with the Players since 2016, when she appeared alongside fellow veteran Matt Fleming among others in Neil Simon’s “Fools”. Thompson’s theatre experience dates back to her college days at South Dakota State University, where she earned her degree in Communications with an emphasis on Theatre. Prior to her initial turn of the more than a dozen plays she has done with the Players since, however, Thompson shared her love of theatre with her oldest children, which continues today. This love for the arts and the diverse community it creates has made Thompson an ideal President for the Players multiple times, and it is in this capacity that she guides the organization to enrich, educate, and inspire local audiences with the Players’ engaging performances.
Matthew Fleming has been performing consistently on stage for over 30 years, all around New York State. Like Thompson, Fleming began with the Oswego Players in 2016, after which time he has gone on not only to perform in over a dozen plays, but direct three, for which he has earned several awards in both capacities from TANYS (Theatre Association of New York State). The quick pace of theatrical farce is something Fleming enjoys greatly, so when Briggs posted auditions for “Unnecessary Farce”, he was eager to be involved. Fleming’s love for theatre inspires him to carve out time in his busy schedule as the Oswego Democratic Election Commissioner to perform when it is not election season.
Bill Cowham is the most recent addition of the three into the Players family, having joined in 2023, coincidentally under Fleming’s direction in his acclaimed production of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime”, also alongside Thompson. Cowham first discovered a love for acting in his home country of Australia as a teen, but his career prevented him from pursuing it in adulthood beyond his continued appreciation for the craft as an audience member. Upon moving to Oswego with his native-born spouse in 2021, Cowham learned about the Players, and has since performed in half a dozen plays, while also taking on a number of backstage responsibilities including volunteer-work with Ken Snow to help build the sets. Cowham is excited to work with the next generation of performers and craftspeople involved with “Unnecessary Farce”, and hopes that the infusion of new blood will continue to move the Players in new directions.
What all three of these Players mainstays agree upon is that community theatre, particularly the environment created by the Oswego Players, has been an enduring home for artistic expression, where everyone in its diverse community feels valued and empowered to explore their passion for theatre. The joy of spending time collaborating with both old and new friends in creative endeavors, with the common goal of delighting local audiences with the best work everyone involved is capable of producing, is something everyone in the Oswego Players loves most about the experience.
Performance times and dates for “Unnecessary Farce” are 7:30pm on Friday and Saturday July 11th, 12th, 18th and 19th and 2pm Sunday July 13th and 20th. Tickets are $17 for adults, $13 for seniors and $12 for students. Tickets are currently on sale now at oswegoplayers.org/productions or by calling the theatre’s box office at (315) 343-5138.
UNNECESSARY FARCE is presented by special arrangement with Broadway Licensing, LLC, servicing the Dramatists Play Service collection (www.dramatists.com).
This project is made possible through the CNY Arts Grants for Regional Arts and Cultural Engagement regrant program thanks to a New York State Senate Initiative supported by the NYS Legislature, the Office of the Governor and administered by the New York State Council on the Arts.
For more information and ticket sales please go to https://oswegoplayers.org/ or for phone reservations please call the Box Office at 315-343-5138.
Oswego Players veteran performers Bill Cowham (l), Tammy Thompson (c) and Matt Fleming (r) will share the stage with a number of new faces in Tom Briggs’ upcoming production of “Unnecessary Farce.” Performances are July 11th, 12th, 18th, and 19th at 7:30 p.m. and July 13th and 20th at 2:00 p.m. at the Frances Marion Brown Theater. Tickets are currently on sale now at oswegoplayers.org/productions or by calling the theatre’s box office at (315) 343-5138.