The Case for Confidence

Posted by Bruce Miller
(This is a re-posting of a previously published blog entry.)

"At Barksdale and Theatre IV we remain cautious but confident." That's what I said at the end of the previous blog posting, and that's how Phil and I respond to queries from national arts leaders who bring up the bad news from Wisconsin. With the demise of great colleague theatres such as TheatreVirginia, Madison Rep, Mill Mountain Playhouse in Roanoke, and Charlotte Rep, we expect to entertain questions about our financial health.

The good news is this. For years, our Boards of Trustees have been working intelligently and strategically to ensure that Barksdale and Theatre IV will not follow in the footsteps of these now defunct nonprofit companies. We have engaged in prudent and responsible business planning.

What follows are the five cornerstones that support our confidence, particularly as it relates to the recent closing of Madison Repertory Theatre.

1. The Greater Richmond metro area population as of 2008 is 1,225,626--more than twice the 555,626 people who comprise the metro area population of Madison, WI. This means our population should be two times more able to sustain both the for-profit "Broadway" series co-produced by CenterStage and a nonprofit major professional theatre like Barksdale.

2. According to IRS forms 990 for the year 2008 (the most recent year available):

Barksdale and Theatre IV had combined annual revenue of $5,049,376; Madison Rep had annual revenue of $2,023,579.

74% of Barksdale and Theatre IV's annual revenue was earned through ticket sales and tour fees, and only 26% came in through contributions. Only 53% of Madison Rep's annual revenue was earned through ticket sales, and 47% was dependent upon contributions.

Barksdale and Theatre IV ended fiscal 2008 with a positive fund balance of $1,761,395; Madison Rep ended fiscal 2008 with a negative fund balance of -$424,688.

3. Theatre IV fully owns and is able to borrow against the multi-million dollar historic Empire Theatre.

4. Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV have developed highly diverse revenue streams, earning significant funds from ticket sales at three major venues and extensive touring throughout Virginia and 32 surrounding states.

5. During all the years when Barksdale and Theatre IV were asked to assist with various efforts to develop Richmond CenterStage, the Richmond leaders of CenterStage pledged not to compete with Theatre IV with regard to our core business--story-based plays and musicals for children and their families. CenterStage pledged not to book in our competitors' productions of major titles in which Theatre IV has invested millions of dollars, the productions we regularly revive from our repertoire. These major titles include Annie, A Christmas Carol, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Disney's High School Musical, Peter Pan, Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Seussical, The Sound of Music, and The Wizard of Oz.

Conversely, Barksdale and Theatre IV have acknowledged CenterStage's need to mount an annual "Broadway" series for adult audiences, and to book in non-competitive, television-based children's programs such as Sesame Street Live, Dora the Explorer, etc.

If CenterStage honors its promises, we believe that Barksdale Theatre, Theatre IV and CenterStage's "Broadway" series will all thrive in our mid-sized market. Surely that is the goal. If CenterStage's leaders are true to their word, we will have a win-win for the entire community.
As I said, we remain confident, but we are not throwing caution to the wind. We continue to do all we can to ensure the success of CenterStage, while working hard also to build up the financial health of Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV, Richmond's major professional theatre.

--Bruce Miller

Chase Kniffen Named Artistic Associate

Posted by Bruce Miller
Beginning today (Monday, July 27), Chase Kniffen rejoins the staff at Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV. His new position will be that of Artistic Associate. As such, he will provide leadership to various projects. Among other things, he will supervise our participation in the Grand Opening performance at CenterStage, and direct our Spring 2010 production of The Sound of Music.

Chase first worked at Theatre IV when he was 9 years old, appearing as a Munchkin in our second production of The Wizard of Oz. Since then, he has performed in numerous shows here, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Tuck Everlasting, The Secret Garden, Sing Down the Moon, and The Big Adventures of Stuart Little (all at Theatre IV), plus Olympus on My Mind, Annie Get Your Gun, Anything Goes, James Joyce's The Dead, and Mame (all at Barksdale).

Chase starred as John Darling in the Broadway production of Peter Pan, with Cathy Rigby. He later attended the professional musical theatre conservatory program at Broadway’s Circle in the Square. After leaving New York, Chase worked on our staff for several years, first as an intern and then as Special Projects Manager.

During that time, Chase began his professional directing career here with a workshop production of Godspell in the Little Theatre. He next directed our revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, followed by our two Greater Richmond High School All Star Musicals--summer productions of Grease and Disney's High School Musical, both coproduced by and performed at Steward School. He tried his hand at several tours, plus the Empire run of The True Story of Pocahontas. In 2007, he directed his last mainstage show with us, A Christmas Story, Theatre IV's holiday offering at the historic Empire Theatre.

Chase left Barksdale and Theatre IV in April 2008 to found Stage 1, the highly acclaimed theatre company that recently completed a successful season producing new American musicals. At Stage 1, he produced and directed tick, tick, ...BOOM, Children's Letters to God, Normal, and The Summer of '42. Throughout his year at Stage 1, Chase’s ties to Barksdale and Theatre IV have remained strong.

We are pleased to welcome Chase back to the team. As Richmond’s leading professional theatre, we believe it is our responsibility to provide professional opportunities to Greater Richmond’s best and brightest theatrical talents. We are glad that Chase’s artistic vision, energy and leadership abilities will help to shape the future of our nonprofit company.

--Bruce Miller

Lustig

Posted by Billy Christopher Maupin So I just got back from the Byrd Theatre (wait, wait, wait...don't hurt me for blogging about film on the live theatre blog just yet) where they were screening a short film called Lustig, which was filmed in Richmond.

I was told Lustig is a "Holocaust film." I don't know that that label really gives you an idea of what you're in for. The majority of the film takes place a year after the war has ended and all of the camps have been liberated. The rest of the story we see and hear in flashbacks. It is an absolutely stunning film.

I hear that it has been/will be submitted to the Sundance and Tribeca Film Festivals, so you may have a chance to check it out and see it elsewhere. But just in case, you can contact them through their website.

Oh, my point...and I do have one (Ellen...anybody?)...is that Eric Evans is in the film. Eric Evans who is currently featured in Theatre IV's production of A Christmas Story (running through next Sunday, selling out, buy your tickets today by calling the box office at 344-8040 or visit the Theatre IV website)! Eric also appeared in Barksdale Theatre's production of Carson McCuller's The Member of the Wedding and in Theatre IV's production of The Wizard of Oz. (Busy guy.) AND, he was also in 365Days/365Plays by Suzan-Lori Parks produced by Barksdale Theatre, in association with K Dance.

Eric plays the boy whose father died in the last days of the war. His reaction to the news of his father's death is heartbreaking. An incredibly talented actor, this guy. If you get a chance, you should check out his work in Lustig, A Christmas Story, or any time he's on the boards. He's definitely one to look out for.

Also, the Byrd Theatre Foundation is going to be showing a locally produced film at least once a month starting in January. It's so exciting to see the arts scene in Richmond continue to grow!

Harris-Jones Scores at First NYC Audition

Posted by Bruce Miller

I received a Happy Thanksgiving email from Robin Harris-Jones, late of Richmond now of NYC, reporting some great news. After practically just arriving in the Big Apple, Robin has been cast in a leading role at her first audition. No huge surprise there. Here in River City, Robin was definitely a young woman whose star was on the rise.

The photo shows Robin as an Ozian, in case you're wondering.

“Good news on my end,” Robin writes. “I got a theatre job! Off my first audition! I'll be headed down to Ft. Myers, FL in a couple weeks to play Cathy in The Last Five Years for Synergy Productions of SW Florida. Unless something goes terribly awry, I'm supposed to leave NY around Dec 3 with a run, I believe, Dec 17 thru Jan 27 at the Foulds Theatre.

The artistic director, Andrew Kurtz, is a busy bee - artistic director of 2 orchestras in Florida, an opera company in Philly, and a little music theatre company to boot!I can't wait to get back to work … and have a role I've wanted to play for a long time on my resume!!!!”

That's Maestro Kurtz's photo to the right--obviously a man who knows an amazing voice when he hears one.

Robin sends her best wishes to one and all for a happy holiday season.

--Bruce Miller

Broadway Stars with Barksdale Roots

Posted by Bruce Miller

I wrote a couple weeks ago about accompanying my daughter and three of her high school friends on a Broadway weekend, and I promised to return to this topic soon to discuss the shows we saw. Tonight’s blog entry is about the first musical of this fall’s trip – The Phantom of the Opera.

Phantom may be the longest running show in Broadway history, but I’d never seen it before last month. I hadn’t even seen the movie. When I go to New York, I almost always choose plays and musicals that I think we may produce one day in Richmond. Because of Phantom’s reliance on a huge production, it never made my list.

So it was a thrill for me to see it with my daughter and her friends, three of whom were also seeing it for the first time. The arrangements of the music and the relative simplicity of the special effects (by 2007 standards) reminded us that the show originally opened in London in 1986. But the classic story, the haunting melodies and the solid production values still captured our imaginations.

The most exciting aspect of our visit with the Phantom, at least for me, was the chance to point out proudly to my four teenage charges the two Phantom cast members who have strong roots with Barksdale and Theatre IV – Kris Koop (pictured below and to the right) and George Lee Andrews.

Kris moved to Richmond immediately after graduating from Shenandoah Conservatory of Music in 1987 to work as a touring actress with Theatre IV. She couldn’t have been nicer or more talented. In 1988, she starred as Cinderella in our first production of that Rodgers and Hammerstein classic—our first major musical in the historic Empire. Later that year, she joined Barksdale’s cast of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and toured with Joseph when it left the Tavern for other venues around the country.

Since 2001, Kris has understudied Phantom’s female leads, and she's played Christine and Carlotta on several occasions. It’s an ideal, top-of-the-heap Broadway job. When not filling in for one of the two leads, Kris appears in the ensemble.

Kris is perhaps most respected in Broadway circles for the leadership she has provided to the Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS fundraising efforts. She began volunteering for BC/EFA as soon as she moved to NYC. She and her husband, Steve Ouellette, House Manager at the Neil Simon Theatre, live in Queens. When she finally got the call that she was cast in Phantom, she was working fulltime at BC/EFA, and she still works there today. One of her special projects has been pulling together The Phantom Cooks, Part Deux, the charity cookbook that thus far has earned over $80,000 for BC/EFA.

Everyone in the Theatre IV and Barksdale family should be so proud of Kris and her exceptional Broadway accomplishments both onstage and off.

George Lee Andrews (pictured in his Phantom costume to the right) has been in the cast of Phantom since its Broadway opening in 1988, almost 20 years ago. Guinness, literally, is taking note. Today he plays the role of Monsieur Firmin, one of the two new owner-managers of the Opera House.

Ten years before George began his record-breaking run in Phantom, he played Cole Porter himself in the ill-fated Los Angeles professional premiere of Barksdale’s mega-hit, Red Hot and Cole.

And George’s Barksdale connections don’t end there. Hannah Zold (pictured to the left), who appeared at Barksdale and Theatre IV most recently in Into the Woods, The Wizard of Oz, Mame, and The Full Monty, has been close pals with George and his daughter, Shannon Lee, since Hannah and Shannon worked together in The Lost Colony in 2002. Lee is the actual family name; Andrews was added as a stage name. When Shannon Lee married one of Hannah’s best buds from college, Aaron Galligan-Stierle (who will be playing Papa Who in Broadway’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas once the strike allows him to), papa George Lee officiated at the wedding ceremony and Hannah Zold was the soloist.

The photo to the right is of Hannah Zold (leaning in from the right) and Jennings Whiteway in the Barksdale lobby during Hannah’s visit to Richmond a couple weeks ago. The weekend after this photo was taken, Hannah was back in NYC, hanging with the Lee clan, including her Phantom pal George.

It’s great to be able to remind the teens who are forging their first associations with the Barksdale and Theatre IV families in 2007 that many of the major theatre artists in today's national headlines are also a part of the historic Barksdale and Theatre IV clans.

To view a 2004 video of Kris and George and their Phantom cast mates, visit http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Video.aspx?ci=502222.

All of us have reason to be proud and to celebrate the phenomenal success of two great Barksdale and Theatre IV alum – Kris Koop and George Lee Andrews.

--Bruce Miller

Taking Four Young Women to Broadway

Posted by Bruce Miller

The theatre gods (and The League of American Theaters and Pro-ducers) smiled on my daughter Hannah and me in mid-October. For a couple months, Hannah and her friends had been planning a theatre weekend in New York. (Hannah and her friends are in the foreground of the photo shown above, standing with four of the stars of A Chorus Line: Heather Parcells, Katherine Tokarz, Deidre Goodwin and Will Taylor.)

When their high school drama teacher was unable to accompany them on their dream tour of Broadway, they recruited me and another dad, Tony Oates, to serve as drowsy chaperones. Tony is a former Theatre IV Board member and the father of the young Tony Oates who was in our production of The Wizard of Oz last spring.

My daughter and her pals (Lizzie Holland, Rebekah Hupp and Nathalie Oates) are all very responsible young women—juniors at Trinity Episcopal High School. I was looking forward to spending time with them and getting to know my daughter’s friends.

The airfares were paid, the hotel rooms were booked, and the tickets were secured (at a discount via Broadway Box). Then on the Tuesday before our departure, labor negotiations broke down between the stagehands and the producers. For a few days it looked like the producers would call for a lockout, causing most Broadway theatres to shut down just about the time we were scheduled to be taxiing to the gate at JFK.

But fate was on our side. The labor dispute was put on hold, and everything went according to Hoyle.

Upcoming holiday travelers may not be as fortunate. On Oct 21, one week after our return to Richmond, the stagehand members of Local One voted unanimously to empower their leadership to call a strike during the month of December, when Broadway ticket sales are at their peak. Local One has never staged a strike before, and they have promised to give advance notice if they decide to call for one now. In the interim, negotiations are continuing between the stagehands and the producers. Hopefully everything will be resolved.

The last strike to close down Broadway lasted four days in 2003, and was called by the musicians union. Should a strike occur this December, the producers have promised full refunds and/or exchanges for all ticket holders.

Anyway, back to our October theatre weekend. We flew JetBlue, leaving Richmond at 6 a.m. Saturday morning and pulling our chairs up to the table for blueberry pancakes at the Evergreen on 47th Street by 9 a.m. For more info on how to get from JFK into Manhattan, click the label at the foot of this post that says “NYC on a Budget,” then scroll down through this post and you’ll come to “A Broadway Weekend – Part II: NYC on a Budget” (March 29, 2007).

We flew home on Sunday night at around 10 p.m. It was a whirlwind weekend, but we were able to see three shows in two days, spending only one night away from home.

I learned two new things this trip that were not included in my March 29 blog post.

Number One – There is now a $25 MetroCard that gives you twelve rides on the AirTrain (normally $5 each) instead of five. You buy the new $25 card at the appropriate machines just before you exit the AirTrain terminal on your way into Manhattan. Using this card, each of our AirTrain rides cost $2.17 instead of $5, saving the six of us $35 on the arriving and departing AirTrain trips. This $25 MetroCard doesn’t work on the subways, only on the AirTrain. You can still buy the $20 MetroCard for the subways, which actually gives you twelve subway rides instead of ten.

Number Two – When traveling with parties larger than four, and using either of the above mentioned MetroCards for the AirTrain or the subway, you can let four people through the turnstile on one card, but then you have to wait 18 minutes before using the card at this same stop for persons number five and six or more. It’s a crazy rule, because if you go to the clerk to explain the problem, they immediately issue you a new MetroCard that allows the remaining people to go through. Clearly they don’t mind you using one card for groups larger than four, but the turnstile computer won’t let you until you trade your MetroCard in with the clerk.

We arrived at the Millennium Broadway Hotel at around 10 a.m. The Millennium can be accessed from both 45th Street and 44th Street, and is located mid-block between Broadway (7th) and Avenue of the Americas (6th). They let us check our bags and suggested that we return at noon for an early check-in. The regular check-in time is 4 p.m., but we were able to check-in to three of our four rooms by 12:15.

The Millennium is a terrific bargain right now. It is a relatively new and very comfortable hotel (downright Ritzy by my standards), and currently offers some great deals that you can discover at http://www.millenniumhotels.com/millenniumnewyork/index.html. I recommend it highly.

In future posts, I’ll talk about the shows we saw, the street festival we visited, and some of the Barksdale/Theatre IV alum who are now starring on the Great White Way.

And if and when I hear any news about the possible strike, I’ll be sure to pass it along via this blog.

--Bruce Miller

(Added Sat. 11/10 - The Stagehand's union went on strike today, shutting down over 2 dozen Broadway productions. See this MSNBC article for details.)

Staff Spotlight - Amy Gethins Sullivan

Posted by Billy Christopher Maupin
At Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV we are very fortunate to have an incredibly talented and dedicated production staff. One of the wonderful individuals who works on this staff is Amy Gethins Sullivan. She is our Master Scenic Artist and has been since 2005, when this Richmond native returned to accept the call from Barksdale/TIV. She began her tour of duty with the dual setting of Barksdale's The Drawer Boy and Theatre IV's Bunnicula--on the same stage--AT THE SAME TIME! Now that is a task!

This is after Amy was "overhire" as a scenic painter for TIV's 1999 production of The Wizard of Oz and the 2001 production of Peter Pan. Greig Leach was Scenic Designer. Even after working on those ginormous shows, she came back!

Going back in time a bit (think of the Wayne's World doodle oodle time warp-not to be confused with The Rocky Horror Picture Show, mind you), Amy graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University (sotto voce) in 1984 in Painting and Printmaking. She then did what any college graduate with an art degree would do: waited tables (at Strawberry Street Cafe), worked at the Video Fan, and took classes at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

Incidentally, the owner of the Video Fan while Amy was the store manager there, is now a co-owner of Artworks, where Amy just had a nice, month-long run displaying her children's portraits. That show ended this past Sunday. A large part of Amy's work outside of the theatre is painting these strikingly beautiful children's portraits (see one to the right). It kinda makes me want to run out and adopt a kid right now, just so Amy can paint a portrait of him being he or her being she.

OK, so back on the timeline (think again of Wayne's World doodle oodle time warp, still not to be confused with The Rocky Horror Show, mind you): after doing these "jobby-job" things moved to Northern Virginia, where she heard about Scena Studios needing a painter. So she hopped into her red Volkswagen Bug with paintings in tow, not even having a proper portfolio at this point (I love this image...actually...I love it so much, I think I'll say it again:) She hopped into her red Volkswagen Bug with paintings in tow, not even having a proper portfolio at this point and landed herself a job painting with a brilliant group of artists ("the best," Amy calls them), led by Diane Hackler. With Scena she painted for the Boston Ballet, the Washington Opera, and Disney on Ice (among others)! Oh, and my favorite: she painted the King Kong ride/exhibit for Universal Studios in 1990 that retired just last year. It was up for 15 years! It was a 3/4 scale set that was built and painted in NOVA and then shipped down to Florida. How cool is that!

Then Amy decided to be a stay-at-home mom with her four children until that call from Barksdale/Theatre IV! And we are so glad she came back!!!

So come on down for First Friday's next week where you can see Amy's artwork on display in the lobby of the Empire Theatre!

--Billy Christopher Maupin

Another Ten Bop to the Top in "DHSM"

My daughter and I just returned from seeing SPARC’s summer production of Little Shop of Horrors at the Firehouse Theatre. A large group from Disney’s High School Musical went to today’s matinee and had a terrific time. SPARC has pulled together a GREAT cast—9 impressive actors with exceptional talent! Five are VCU students, two are current or recent students at Meadowbrook H S, and two are adults. These great actors deserve their own blog post, and I’ll try to write one in the next few days.

In this entry, let me continue recognizing the exceptional high school students who sing and dance their hearts out in Disney’s High School Musical.

Alex Godschalk just graduated from Steward, so in DHSM he has the home court advantage. He makes the most of it. Alex plays one of the "brainiacs," and he has a great moment when the character of Chad congratulates him with a high five, compelling Alex's character to transform from an up-tight academician to a hip-hop savvy homeboy. It’s one of the biggest laughs of the evening. Next fall Alex will be beginning his tenure as a theatre major at Elon.

Julia Greer is one of our wonderful cheerleaders. Chase, K and Sherri have done a great job creating a cheerleading unit that functions as a team, not as a group of individuals. So it’s hard for me to help you pick out Julia from the rest of her clique, all of whom pretty much dress, move and smile alike, just like they're supposed to. Julia is a rising freshman at Collegiate, and appeared with SPARC last summer in Dear Edwina.

B J Gruber is our heartthrob skater dude who secretly longs to play the cello. He participates in the drama program at Godwin H S, and is the only cast member to start the show off on wheels.

Christie Jackson just graduated from high school and is looking forward to beginning her theatre studies next fall at Madison. If you take note of the skilled acrobat with red hair, you’re noting Christie.

Charles Johnson is a rising senior at Highland Springs H S and received his vocal training with The Greater Richmond Children’s Choir. He’s on our basketball team in DHSM, and enjoying all that dribbling in Getcha Head in the Game.

Kouryn Lupino is a rising senior at Godwin H S, and attended the Center for the Arts at Henrico H S for two years in the musical theatre program. She’s pretty irresistible on stage, and you’ll recognize her as the one who wears a knit cap over her long dark hair.

Hannah Miller is a rising junior at Trinity H S and a returnee from our cast of Grease last summer. She recently appeared in The Wizard of Oz at Theatre IV, and takes dance at the Richmond Dance Center. You’ll spot her in DHSM as the one who is directed to “be the bear” in drama class, and has a beaming smile throughout the ensemble numbers.

Dylan Moon is a proud member of our second pair of siblings, a distinction he shares with his big brother Zac. Last summer, Dylan played the son, Nathan, in The Full Monty at Barksdale Willow Lawn. Last winter he was a floating head in Flowers for Algernon at Swift Creek Mill.

Na’imah Nelson spent her freshman year at the Center for the Arts at Henrico H S, and will soon be a sophomore at Hermitage H S. She received additional training from the Richmond City Dance Theatre, and is pleased to have joined the cheer squad in DHSM.

Paul Newell is a rising junior at Deep Run H S and is a proud alum of Christian Youth Theatre. You can identify Paul as the referee in the climactic basketball game at the end of our show.

And that brings me to the end of this entry. There’s more to come soon regarding the final ten talented teens in our High School Musical entourage. Each one is worth applauding, and we're blessed that all of them have agreed to be in the show.

--Bruce Miller

One Less Koch in our Kitchen

We bid a fond farewell to Richard Koch, our Production Manager and all ‘round great guy. Richard has worked on and off for Theatre IV and Barksdale pretty much since his college graduation in the late 80s. We could never have asked for a more faithful and hard working employee. Or a more steadfast friend.

But now dear Richard has moved onward and upward to a similar position at the Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, where he’ll be working for Henrico County, earning more money and better benefits while tackling a much more manageable work load. It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.

To say that we will miss Richard would be the understatement of the century. But hopefully we won’t have much time to miss him, because rumor has it that Richard will now have many more opportunities to appear as an actor in our various productions.

In fact, negotiations have just been completed to have Richard fill in for Scottie Wichmann as Felix Unger for a week in August during the run of The Odd Couple. So we're happy to say "Farewell" and "Welcome Home" both at the same time.

--Bruce Miller

First Fridays at the Empire

First Fridays June 1 at Theatre IV's Empire Theatre! The groundbreaking for CenterStage Richmond, the exciting new performing arts complex, started off the evening. The facilities will be ready to welcome the public in 2009. CenterStage Richmond will incorporate:

* the renovated 1760 seat Carpenter Theatre (formerly the Carpenter Center, home to the Richmond Ballet, the Richmond Symphony, the Virginia Opera and an occasional touring show),

* the new 176-seat Libby Gottwald Community Playhouse (home to African American Repertory Theatre and Richmond Shakespeare),

* the wide open Rhythm Hall (with full catering facilities, casual seating and intimate acoustics, a major rehearsal space for the Richmond Symphony), and

* the Genworth BrightLights Education Center (giving local students the chance to see, participate in and learn through the performing arts).

Our own Tony Foley (star of Barefoot in the Park and Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap at Hanover Tavern) served as Master of Ceremonies for the groundbreaking. And our own Alia Bisharat, (Dorothy in Theatre IV’s The Wizard of Oz) sang "Over the Rainbow" while the groundbreaking began. The crowd then set off for the First Fridays Artwalk, most on foot following a brass band and others by trolley.

Rosanna Bencoach and Catherine Dudley, two true theatre enthusiasts, share their perspectives on the Empire’s most recent First Friday.

Rosie –

The afternoon had kicked off with the ceremonial groundbreaking
for Richmond CenterStage, which will incorporate a renovated Carpenter Center and other, new performance spaces.

Alia Bisharat, wearing the blue gingham dress and ruby slippers from her role as Dorothy in Theatre IV’s The Wizard of Oz, capped the ceremony with a lovely performance of “Over the Rainbow.”

Oversized versions of Dorothy’s ruby slippers were still perched atop the Empire marquee, immediately drawing the visitor’s attention. The display window by the main doors featured posters from Barksdale Theatre's upcoming production of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods and brand-new color publicity photos from the show.

Inside, all the photos on the walls and cast board had been replaced with photos from outstanding Theatre IV and Barksdale Theatre productions from recent seasons. The newly framed color photos down the hallway brightened the space, and led to numerous “I remember that!” comments. Labels below the photos helped those who didn’t immediately recall the show or year, or hadn’t caught that production.

Visitors streamed into the auditorium for a better look at the 1911 theater, and helpful staff answered questions about the building (Virginia’s oldest extant theater) and productions. Large set pieces from The Wizard of Oz (including Dorothy’s house and parts of the Emerald City) were arranged on the stage, and the yellow brick road was still in place. (They looked much different without stage lighting.) Staff explained that they don’t have room to store set pieces for reuse, so they create them individually for each show. They’re presently busy building Into the Woods sets for Barksdale Theatre at Willow Lawn.

At one end of the lobby, a video about 10 minutes long looped continuously on a wall-size screen, showing highlights from recent Theatre IV musicals. My compliments to whoever selected and edited the clips they did a great job, capturing some the spirit -- and sheer joy -- of those shows.

But the highlight of the evening was the opportunity to see a collection of costumes from various Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV productions, up close. The display included costumes from Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Seussical The Musical, The Magic Flute, Intimate Apparel and others, gowns to hats, elegant to comical, with photos of the actors wearing the outfits in the shows. The detail in the costumes was amazing, and showed beautiful workmanship. Great care had obviously been taken in selecting the costumes and properly arranging the display. I hope that such displays will become at least a semi-regular feature of First Fridays at the Empire. (I hear that they have a treasure trove of shoes in the Empire’s attic!)

-- Rosanna B.

Blog editor’s note: Rosie is one of Barksdale Theatre/Theatre IV’s fantastic volunteer ushers. For information on volunteer opportunities, visit the Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV websites. Many thanks, Rosie, for the generous and passionate personality you share with everyone you meet!

And now, an additional note from Catherine Dudley, the staff member who coordinates Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV's First Friday participation.

Catherine -

I just wanted to let you guys all know… if you’re not coming downtown on the first Friday of every month- you’re missing out! Every event the streets are swarming with people and the energy is amazing. The restaurants are packed, the art galleries are filled to max capacity, the music is spilling out into the streets from numerous storefronts and we, here at the Empire Theatre, are proud to show off our beautiful and historic building. Some months our lobby presents live music from awesome bands around the Richmond area, and some months we have a video montage of several of our past productions playing on a large screen in the lobby. Every month there is a gallery display of some kind- photography, artwork, sculpture, costume display, etc…, but there is always a ton to be seen. The bar is ready to serve and the theatre space itself is ready to be admired. So come on down and join us every first Friday night and see what you’ve been missing! The theatre beckons…

From Over the Rainbow to An Nasiriyah

As Wizard 2007 closes, we are honored to hear from Corporal P.
J. Whiteway IV, who played a Munchkin 17 years ago in Wizard 1990, and is now serving in Iraq with the Virginia National Guard, A Company, 116th BSTB, out of Fredericksburg. P. J. was deployed in March of this year, and will be spending at least a year in service to his country. P. J. is the eldest son of Phil Whiteway, our Managing Director, and the brother of Jennings Whiteway, our Special Events, Access and Food Services Manager. I hope we'll all continue to keep P. J. and all of the men and women in Iraq in our thoughts and prayers.

May 22, 2007

Dear Barksdale Blog Readers,

Bruce invited me to write a few words from Iraq. He said the Barksdale Buzz, which I keep up with here on base, wants to receive letters from members of the Barksdale/Theatre IV family who are now working in other cities. Well, I guess you can't get much more “other” than here. I'm writing from Camp Cedar II in Taleel, Iraq, just a little ways outside of An Nasiriyah.

Originally I had hand written a letter, but I missed the send out date because I was working. It takes longer to send things out of base than it does to receive them. We can only send out on Monday and Friday, and we receive mail on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

My squad’s schedule and my job assignments are constantly changing. Last month we were tasked out to provide a quick reaction force to anything that might interrupt base security around the perimeter. Basically my squad of 14 was on standby for 24 hours waiting for a call over the radio to go and do something. We were equipped with 3 up-armored (equipped with heavy armor) hummvees, and we would often have to escort another humvee with VIPs to another nearby base (Taleel—Camp Adder). Sometimes we would actually have to go and chase off a herd of animals or Bedouins who lived in the area but were getting too close to the wire.

This month my squad is in charge of maintaining security and running the main entrance of the base. This involves checking IDs of incoming convoy drivers, sending them through an x-ray machine, and often searching the insides of their vehicles and the personnel inside them. These convoys are escorted by other military unit vehicles and they are usually just passing through our base—we are the largest refueling point in southern Iraq. We have upwards of 700-800 vehicles (semi trucks) coming in and often out throughout the course of a day. Sounds exciting, but it really just stirs up a lot of dust. We also have to deal with important local nationals coming to the front gate on foot ( i.e. a sheik of a local tribe who needs to meet with a commander).
The shifts are 12 hours long and are from midnight to noon for 2 days in a row and then we have a 24 hour break. Then the next two days we work noon to midnight and have 48 hours off. We have three squads that rotate on this schedule, thereby covering every hour of the day to allow us to maintain the security at the front entrance. The long hours are sometimes exciting but more often boring. We have to wear all 50 lbs of our body armor any time we are on duty, along with gloves and protective eye wear. And all you guys in Wizard thought the flying monkey and Winkie costumes were hot and sweaty.

I'm sure you can imagine that it gets hot here. How hot?? I measured a temp of 111 the other day in the shade, and it's very dry heat, not like VA—and windy too, so it feels like you’re standing in front of a huge hot blow dryer most of the day.

Time off is a great thing here…though you’re not actually "off" per se. At anytime you can be called on to go help out and fill in the blanks of any one of the many activities that are being completed around the base. Whether its re-dispatching humvees or filling sandbags or moving equipment, there is always something extra to be done at the last minute.

When I actually get a full day off, I spend my time cooling off in the 12 x 12 room that I share with my roommate, or I walk up to the MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation Center). That’s where we can access the internet and phones, or work out in the gym. The place is usually pretty packed so you have to wait in line to get to a phone or computer.
Thanks to all of you who are remembering me and the rest of the troops and wishing us well. It means a lot to have people back home thinking about you. We all love to keep in touch with folks back home. It’s the best way to keep our minds away from dusty Iraq.

Hope this reaches you all soon and I hope that everyone has a great summer! And if you go to the beach, ride a wave for all of us guys too.

CPL P.J. Whiteway

If you would like to contact CPL Whiteway, you can reach him at:

CPL Whiteway, P.J.
A/116th BSTB
Cedar II

APO AE 09331

P.J.WhitewayIV@gmail.com

Photo captions: The top two photos are P. J. now and then. The photo of the camels was taken by P. J. just outside of his base. In the photo of the six soldiers in P. J.'s unit, P. J. stands to the left. The bottom shot from Wizard 1990 includes Donna Whiteway (P. J.'s mom, who played Glenda), P. J. himself, Jennings Whiteway (P. J.'s sister and fellow Munchkin); and Phil Whiteway III (P. J.'s dad, who played the Tin Man).

Hiatus in Hanover

The question I’m being asked most frequently this week is, “Why is Barksdale taking such a long break at the Tavern.” And every time someone asks it, it’s easy to hear the concern in their voice.

Please be assured that nothing is going wrong. In fact, everything is going right. It’s quite true that Smoke on the Mountain closed this past Saturday, April 28, and that The Odd Couple will not open until Friday, June 29. That’s a break of two months—pretty unusual for a resident theatre.

But the reason for the hiatus could not be more “usual” in the nonprofit sector. We’re taking a two-month break from Hanover Tavern because of money.

You see, Hanover Tavern is itself a nonprofit organization, and Barksdale Theatre is a separate nonprofit organization. From 1953 until 1990, Hanover Tavern was owned by Pete and Nancy Kilgore and Muriel McAuley. The Tavern was their home, both literally and artistically. They raised their children and their pets there, and they worked tirelessly and selflessly to save the historic Tavern for future generations.

In 1990 they made a difficult decision. They realized that the 18th Century Tavern that they loved needed millions of dollars of work if it was to remain standing into the 21st Century. They also realized that their job was making great theatre, and that they wanted to turn the responsibility of raising the millions that were needed over to a broad-based community foundation.

And so they sold their beloved Tavern to the Historic Hanover Tavern Foundation. They used the proceeds of the sale to fund a meager retirement account—the only pension they ever received from their lifetime of work at Barksdale Theatre. In 1993, Pete, Nancy and Muriel retired after 40 years of exemplary service. And in 1996, they lent their support as Barksdale Theatre, under the staff leadership of new artistic director John Glenn and the Board leadership of Carrie Galeski, Ted Linhart and Neil November, moved theatrical operations to the beautiful new space at Willow Lawn that we occupy today.

When Barksdale returned to the Tavern in January 2006, we did so as a rent-paying tenant. We are one of three major tenants of the Tavern. The other two (our partners, so to speak) are:
· the Historic Hanover Tavern Foundation, which not only owns the Tavern but also presents numerous historical programs and interpretations year round, and
· Michelle’s Restaurant.

As the Historic Hanover Tavern Foundation seeks to fulfill it’s fiduciary responsibilities for the Tavern’s finances and future, it works with its two partners (Barksdale Theatre and Michelle’s) in an attempt to maximize earned revenues. Let’s face it, 18th Century Taverns may be cool, but they're not inexpensive to maintain.

One of the things that the Foundation has learned is that a major revenue source for the Foundation and Michelle’s is the income received from weddings and wedding receptions held at the Tavern during the months of May and June. Due to sound issues, plays cannot be presented in the theatre at the same time that weddings or wedding receptions are taking place elsewhere on the property.

And so the Tavern has asked Barksdale Theatre to forego theatrical programming during the months of May and June, so that they and Michelle’s can maximize the revenue they receive from springtime weddings. We are happy to oblige.

So, during the next 60 days, please come visit us at Willow Lawn for Intimate Apparel, or visit our sister company, Theatre IV, for The Wizard of Oz at the Historic Empire Theatre. And plan now to join us on or after June 29 for The Odd Couple at Hanover Tavern.

A Second Great Year at Ettrick Elementary

Many theatres are arts-for-art’s-sake organizations. Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV, from their inceptions, have been arts-for-the-community’s-sake organizations. Those who knew Muriel, Pete and Nancy often tell stories about their amazing community interactions. Having worked with Bruce and Phil for the last 15 years, I’ve learned first-hand that their commitment to community impacts every decision they make.

At B’dale and TIV, we spend hours working tirelessly to find new, often non-traditional ways to serve our region, and even more hours implementing those ideas. We strive to provide not only national-caliber mainstage productions, but also exemplary service initiatives that reach out to hundreds of thousands of Virginians who never make it inside the walls of our theatres.

Last week, Brad Tuggle (Assistant to the Managing Director) and I completed a 12-week stint at Ettrick Elementary in Chesterfield County. Audra Honaker and Jen Meharg will soon complete a sister program at Beulah Elementary. At Ettrick, Brad and I have been working with about 40 students who are part of the After School Achievement Program (ASAP). Created by Chesterfield County Public Schools, this excellent program gives students an opportunity for continued instructional support in a fun after-school setting. David Leath and Antoinette House head up the ASAP program at Ettrick, and both have done extraordinary work with their students. Our theatres have been privileged to be involved in this program for the past two years, and plans are now underway for year three.

As part of this program, Brad and I worked with students to create and produce four one acts dealing directly with Virginia Standards of Learning, reinforcing what the students are working on in school. For twelve weeks, we worked with students on basic principles of theatre: public speaking, blocking, costumes, props and, above all, self-confidence. Throughout this period we saw students come out of their shells and grow into assured and accomplished young people who braved getting up in front of their teachers, parents and fellow students to bring to life the social studies “facts” they’d been learning in class. The results were remarkable.

It’s of great importance to me to foster a new generation that appreciates theatre and the many roles that the arts play in our lives. Programs such as this certainly pave the way. Just as important, programs like this help to teach the 21st Century workplace skills that these students will need to succeed on the job in the years ahead.

On May 18th, our new friends from Ettrick will be our guests-of-honor at The Wizard of Oz, and we’ll treat them to an in-depth backstage tour. I hope this will reinforce the interest and excitement about the performing arts that they developed over our twelve weeks together. There’s nothing more important than that.

--Chase Kniffen
Special Projects Manager
Barksdale Theatre/Theatre IV

The Show Must Go On! Well ...

There’s a familiar slogan in our business that literally everyone knows and almost everyone subscribes to. “The show must go on!” This slogan is helpful when a performer or technician is feeling under the weather and needs an extra boost to rally the energy needed to perform. It also serves well when there is great sadness in the company or the world, and we need an injection of commitment and good will to fortify our hearts before we can bare them before an audience.

But there are instances, in my opinion, when the show must not go on if the more responsible decision is to delay an opening or cancel a particular performance.

Ticket holders, understandably, hate it when a performance is cancelled. They’ve gone to a lot of trouble to set up their schedules around a particular evening in the theatre, and then they’re asked to go back to their calendars to select a different date and plan their lives all over again. The decision to cancel a performance should always be a last resort.

So when is cancellation the best policy? I believe that a performance should be cancelled when the producer believes that:
A. doing the performance under existing circumstances would create an unsafe environment for either performer or audience member, and/or
B. the performance that could be mustered under existing circumstances falls significantly short of the artistic standards that the theatre has led the audience to expect.

This past weekend I made the tough decision to cancel the Friday student matinee and the Friday Opening Night of The Wizard of Oz at Theatre IV. As much as I am aware of and sorry for the inconvenience that the cancellation caused valued members of our audience, I still believe I made the right call.

Wizard is a huge show, and despite everyone’s best efforts, we simply weren’t ready. We faced technical difficulties that posed a significant threat to the physical safety of our cast and crew of approximately 70 theatre artists. We desperately needed several hours of additional rehearsal time to operate a show of this size safely, and the only way to get that rehearsal time was to postpone opening by one day.

Within 24 hours of my decision, our wonderful box office staff worked its hardest to personally contact every one of the 800 or so audience members affected. Most audience members were understanding; a few were furious.

The request I make of audience members is this. When informed by a reputable theatre that a particular performance has been cancelled, please know that the decision was not made lightly. And consider that being offered the opportunity to switch dates or accept a refund will always be preferable to seeing someone seriously injured on stage, or seeing a show that is simply no good because it isn’t ready to open.

When facing these difficult decisions (which I have to do once every 15 or so productions), I will always err on the side of safety and artistic quality. I think that’s the best way to serve our audience responsibly. Only when I know that the workplace is safe and that artistic standards are being respected and maintained will I insist that the show must go on.

The good news is that the extra rehearsals we had this morning and this evening for The Wizard of Oz made all the difference in the world. I'm now confident that we'll have a terrific show. And in the end, that's what everyone wants the most.