On with the Show!
“The last time the theater industry opened from a pandemic, Shakespeare was still writing new plays.”
CULTURAL CALENDAR
By Keith Martin
V
ictoria Bailey is executive director of the nonprofit Theatre Development Fund in New York City and a leader in the cultural sector. She brilliantly summed up the complexities that her beloved performing arts industry is facing as it resumes operations after COVID-19: “The last time the theater industry opened from a pandemic, Shakespeare was still writing new plays.” This year, performing arts organizations have announced their 2021 summer seasons with equal parts optimism and uncertainty, knowing that the guidelines and restrictions change with each gubernatorial proclamation. Still, the mountains are a favorite destination for tourists and seasonal residents whose generous patronage and support have enabled professional summer arts to flourish here in the High Country for the last 70 years, providing hundreds of performances May through September. Here is an overview of offerings on the current schedule for summer 2021, but PLEASE NOTE that all performances, dates and times are subject to change; you are strongly encouraged to contact the box office for the most current information. See you at the theatre! The expansive schedule for the annual AN APPALACHIAN SUMMER FESTIVAL is featured elsewhere in this issue, including a listing of all 28 events being produced and presented in July. Don’t miss it… or them. AppSummer.org THE APPALACHIAN THEATRE OF THE HIGH COUNTRY (for the second year in a row!) has been selected for the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers, a program of South Arts in Atlanta. Since its inception in 1975, Southern Circuit has brought some of the best independent filmmakers and their films from around the country to communities throughout the South. The program is supported by
26 — Summer 2021 CAROLINA MOUNTAIN LIFE
ENSEMBLE STAGE
LEES-MCRAE SUMMER THEATRE
the National Endowment for the Arts. The Southern Circuit Tour will be a part of the Appalachian Theatre’s popular BOONE DOCS documentary film festival. Dates, times, and titles for each film will soon be available on the theatre’s website: AppTheatre.org
ENSEMBLE STAGE, in their now-familiar home at the Historic Banner Elk School, has announced a summer slate of three productions, plus two popular children’s theatre offerings, a staged radio play, and a cabaret concert. On July 17 and 18, a special benefit concert features South Florida’s Carbonell Award winner Laura Hodos in a cabaret tribute to four musical theatre icons of Broadway, Julie and Mary and Ethel and Babs! The theatre promises “songs that you know, and some you don’t, along with anecdotes and fun trivia tidbits” about Julie Andrews, Mary Martin, Ethel Merman, and Barbra Streisand. Their subscription season begins on July 30 with Sean Grennan’s comedy Beer for Breakfast, running through August 7. The plot follows four middle-aged buddies who reunite for a “guys’ weekend” complete with old music, cheap beer and enough cholesterol to stop Superman’s heart. These guys are out to prove they’ve still got it and party like it’s 1979. From August 20 through 28, The Business of Murder, a suspensethriller by Richard Harris, centers on the interlocking triangular relationship between a successful television playwright, a detective superintendent, and a humorless dour man. Founding Artistic Director Gary Smith is adapting L. Frank Baum’s The Wizard of Oz into a staged radio play which will have a three-performance run from September 10 through 12. Smith and his theatre company deserve credit for keeping the historic radio drama genre alive and well here in the High Country. The summer concludes with Wendy MacLeod’s “delicious comedy” Slow Food with performances from September 24 through October 3. Developed at the prestigious National Playwrights Conference at the O’Neill Theater Center, the plot follows a vacationing couple celebrating their anniversary at a Greek restaurant in
Over in the quaint town of Abingdon, Virginia, the venerable BARTER THEATRE acquired the abandoned Moonlite Drive-In theater during the pandemic and has lovingly converted it into a live, outdoor performance venue. This successful endeavor has been reported nationwide, including a feature article in American Theatre. They are producing four shows on their summer “Barter at the Moonlight” series, with Ted Swindley’s Always… Patsy Cline running from now through July 10. Starring the dynamic Kim Morgan Dean in the title role, the musical is based on the true story of the legendary singer’s friendship with a Houston, TX, housewife, and features nearly all of Cline’s hit songs. From July 16 through 24, Doo-Wop at the Moonlight Drive In features “hit songs from the 1950s, ‘60s, and beyond, combined with laughter and nostalgia!” Barter invites you to “tap your toes and honk your horn as they transport you back to the golden age of girl groups.” The series concludes with Barter Sings Broadway from July 30 through August 7 showcasing Barter’s favorite performers singing their favorite hits from some of the best known musicals of all time. The line-up features songs from Grease, The King and I, The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, and Guys & Dolls, as well as more recent shows like Wicked and Frozen. For more information, and to take a virtual tour of the historic “State Theatre of Virginia,” visit Barter’s website at BarterTheatre.com.
