In the Wings
T he Newsletter of The Concord Players
April 2020                         Amanda Casale, Editor 
CONCORD PLAYERS UPDATES
My Fellow Players,

As you all know, we are in the most unusual of times with more than enough stress and anxiety than any of us had ever expected to have to weather. However, we will all persevere and as a performing arts organization are looking to provide our community with some respite through various on-line programming, links to streaming professional performances and plans to get back onto the boards as soon as we can. 

In the meantime, we are continuing with some business at hand and through a video conference on Sunday March 22, with a quorum of the Board of Directors voting unanimously to approve the following slate, we have a very solid board coming in this next year.

Officers serving a 1-year term (July 2020-2021):
Jay Newlon -- President
Tom Sullivan -- Vice President
Andrea Roessler -- Vice President
Kathy Lague -- Treasurer
Amanda Casale -- Secretary

Board Members serving a 2-year term (July 2020-2022):
Kathleen O'Connor -- Special Events
Nadine Sa -- PDSC Chair
Paul Murphy -- EMACT Rep 

The following board members will continue through their term into next year as well: Charlie Atherton (Finance/51 Walden Rep), Craig Howard (PDSC member), Nick Miller, Tracy Wall, Susan Tucker (Members-at-Large), Corinne Kinsman (Membership). 

I cannot begin to thank my fellow board members enough for their hard work and dedication throughout this last year. Although Brian Kelly, Connie Benn, Carol Antos, Paula McNabb, Linda McConchie, and Meg Spring are stepping down after June, they are all continuing to provide the Players with their respective talents and will still be close to the organization going forward. While our primary season is a bit truncated, we have done well so far with the most recent shows Funny Girl and Barefoot in the Park turning profits and keeping the organization in the black. We are as solvent today as we ever have been and well positioned to handle any financial contingency as needed. 

Despite the fact that our Travelling Troupe has had to suspend its performances at senior centers, assisted living and nursing facilities for the interim, a hearty "Bravo" goes out to its leader Sandy Armstrong and John Hutchins, Bill Maxwell, Joanne Hines, Katie Blair and the rest of the troupe who provide much needed light theater to those who can't come to us. 

The building may be dark for now, but the Players Shakespeare troupe, now known as The World's a Stage Players, soldiers on and after having another successful run this last summer of The Winter's Tale, is making plans to present As You Like It directed by Nicholas Meunier on the lawn of the Concord Free Public Library in July/August. Our hope is that with an outdoor venue and with sensible social distancing, we will be able to bring you live theater soon. 

We do want to experiment with other theatrical experiences, and despite the success of our Princess Reviews during the holidays, are looking into other programs to entertain you in 2021. Our 100 th Anniversary Committee is still plugging away and although we've had to make some scheduling adjustments, are still planning on providing you with several more events before we look forward to our next 100 years! 

Again, from our family to yours, we wish you a healthy year and look forward to bringing you the best that community theater can offer. 

See you at the theater!
--Jay Newlon
President
SOCIAL DISTANCING EVENTS
 
A note of positivity.  

We are the theatre.  We are the ultimate survivor.  We are the oldest of institutions. We are older than the church. We are older than the state.

We have survived every plague; although we may had to close for a bit.  We have survived conservative regimes and institutional religious oppression, which are worse than most plagues.

We are the Phoenix and we will rise again.

Wash your hands. Drink your juice, (Shelby)
Sleep. Enjoy time with the loved ones that normally we lament not having because "we have rehearsal".

Use technology to stay connected. Use this moment to evolve our art both on/back stage and in classroom.

Write that scene/play. Rehearse that monologue. Design that dream set/costumes/lights. Learn CAD, or a new accent.

We are not lost, only deterred.  The muses are with us.  They hang with Apollo, who hands with Asclepius and Hygeia. 

So be a good Bacchant Priest or Priestess and pour yourself a glass of wine as our Lord Dionysus would suggest. 

We are the Theatre and we are survivors (and Thrivers)!

--Steven Barker
Lecturer, Theatre Design and Technology
McDaniel College

Bored with Netflix and Hulu?? Bring Broadway (and the West End) into your own living room with live recordings of such favorites as Rent, Cats, Company, Falsettos, Kiss Me Kate, and Sunday in the Park with George -- 15 treasures in all! 

The Metropolitan Opera is featuring nightly encore "Live in HD" performances of some of the world's greatest operas as recorded over the past 14 years. 

The Opera National de Paris has made some of its "emblematic productions" accessible online including Swan Lake (available March 30 beginning at 7:30 through April 5) with choreography by Rudolph Nureyev, Rossini's Barber of Seville (April 6 at 7:30 through April 12), and A Tribute to Jerome Robbins (April 13 at 7:30 through April 19).

Check out the Concord Players website for more online performance events!
 
Our " Spellbound: A Conversation with Gregory Maguire" event, originally scheduled for April 5th, will be rescheduled for later this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic .  
CONCORD PLAYERS' 2020-2021 SEASON
It has a been a rough end of the year for all of us and community theaters across the country have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, but Concord Players will continue to bring quality theater to our community as soon as it is safe to do so once again. This year, you joined us for Funny Girl, the witty and charming story of the life of famed Vaudeville actress Fanny Brice and you laughed with us in the 5th floor walk-up of Corie and Paul Bratter in Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park. Although we are forced to stop there for now, and we may be down, we will not be beaten. We are working hard to reopen the salon this fall and finish off our 100th Season with Steel Magnolias. We hope you will join us when we make a triumphant return and urge you to show your support for community theater by becoming a subscriber to next year's season!

Sense and Sensibility
Directed by Michelle Aguillon
November 6-21, 2020


Harvey
Directed by Mark Baumhardt
February 12-27, 2021


Titanic
Directed by Doug Hodge
April 30-May 15, 2021
DISCOVER CONCORD!  

As our community faces the COVID-19 crisis, we are trying to do our small part to support our fellow Concordians who are spending a lot more time at home, as well as the many businesses who support our publication and help make Discover Concord possible. 

We normally make Discover Concord available free, through a fantastic network that includes 51 Walden, the Visitor Center, museums, parks, shops, hotels, and restaurants all around Concord. With people at home - and many businesses temporarily closing - the publication would not reach people through our normal channels. 

So we have decided to absorb the cost of direct mailing a physical copy of the Spring 2020 edition of Discover Concord to each and every household in Concord. We hope to provide our friends and neighbors with interesting reading - and maybe even a way to virtually experience the amazing history around Patriot's Day during this most unusual time. 

It's a small thing, but it's something. We look forward to life going back to normal...to our friends being able to re-open their shops, restaurants, and visitor attractions...to seeing friendly faces around town once more. Until then, stay safe...stay healthy...and maybe discover a little something new about Concord in our Spring issue, with our compliments.

Interested in learning more about Discover Concord?  Visit our website.
CONCORD PLAYERS MEMBER NEWS
All membership books for 2019-2020 have been mailed.  If you did not receive yours, please contact Corinne at corinne.kinsman@gmail.com so she can help rectify this issue .

UPCOMING EVENTS AT 51 WALDEN
In compliance with the Governor's order, 51 Walden will be closed through noon on Tuesday, April 7.  At this point all events have been cancelled through April.

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