30 Oak Street, Bloomfield NJ 07003 
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A sculptor, who tries to become divine by bringing his statue to life;a muse, who desires to become human–ye Gods the stage is set for trouble as mischievous muses stir a brew meant to frustrate everyone’s dreams. J. D. Newman's Awakening Galatia is a witty retelling of the classic Pymalion and  explores what beauty is 
and where its inspiration lies. It will take the intervention of Venus to show all that:  
“Ideal forms obscure the eye’s affection/Love all that’s human and you’ll find perfection.  

 New Jersey teachers now have resource for performances of contemporary verse dramas and revivals of 20th century verse plays. Mystic Theatre, a Bloomfield based company, is expanding its audience base to New Jersey after staging dramas in New York since 1995.
Husband and wife directing team, Mark and Pamela Bloom, whose resumes include off-Broadway productions, opened their New Jersey effort with a series of staged readings in development. Among the works performed at Kean University’s Murphy Dunn Theatre from July 18th through July 28th were Awakening Galatia, based on the Pygmalion myth; Three Parts Whitman, poetic interweaving of Whitman works; and Tortoise Shout, a multi-media exploration of human sexuality via D. H. Lawrence’s poem.
Mark Bloom’s desire is to find a 21st century William Shakespeare who will “explore  heightened language, and transport audiences to peaks and valleys of human emotion.” He seems to have found one candidate, J.D. Newman, a Salt Lake City drama teacher and author of Awakening Galatia. In this verse drama the Greek Muses cooperate with the goddess, Venus, to grant the gifts
of life (speech, movement, hearing, sight, sensation/emotion to the perfect female statue, Galatia, but only after her sculptor, Pygmalion, learns some hard lessons about the nature of love and human freedom. Fine iambic pentameter versing, sensitive and humourous insights into human relationships, and strong acting brought this play, destined eventually for off-Broadway to vivid and
enjoyable life.
The reading series will be restaged throughout the tri-state area this fall. In addition, the  Blooms plan to tour the state and (perhaps schools) with Tortoise Shout. Mystic Theatre is committed to nurturing poet-dramatists and welcomes submissions of new verse dramas.