HEY, WHY DON’T YOU DO THAT SHOW? PART 1

Recently, in both the Encore newsletter and online I asked for suggestions of productions people may wish to see on TCTA’s 75^th season. (That’s the 2010/11 season, so it’s coming up fast!) I’ve heard from many of you and I really want to encourage you all to keep those titles coming. In September the Play Reading Committee will reconvene and the more we hear from you, the better we’ll be prepared to select a meaningful season for such a banner year.

But even as I ask for suggestions, I’ve already noticed some slight problems creeping up in the many suggestions that are coming forward. So I thought I’d address these issues with this column. I call it; “Hey, Why Don’t You Do That Show?” Part 1 Read the rest of this entry »

REGARDING MR. LOMAN

There once were giants that roamed the American theatre. Playwrights and actors who not only breathed life into the stages most memorable works, but who, by just the sheer force of their talent, transformed the American stage. Principally among the playwrights stood Edward Albee, Arthur Miller, and the great Tennessee Williams. They created a veritable new pantheon of characters that stand as icons on their own. George and Martha from Whose Afraid if Virginia Woolf? Brick and Maggie from Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. But for Arthur Miller the character that became the most indelible of all was and will always be, Willy Loman. And on April 17^th Willy finally comes home to TCT as we present Death of a Salesman. Read the rest of this entry »

SHOULD IT ALL GO AWAY?

My friend Twink Lynch once said; Topeka Civic Theatre is not a dinner theatre. It is a theatre that happens to serve dinner.” Though it may seem like a perplexing statement to some of you, I’ve often quoted that phrase. Simply put, TCT does not offer typical dinner theatre fare. Our offerings are eclectic and range from classical to farce or musical to macabre. I’m proud of that. And so should all of our patrons and volunteers alike.

But honestly, even when Twink made that statement years ago, we both knew that there are some shows that, even though we may want to offer them, we could never do them. Either their appeal was too limited or the subject matter was too difficult for us to present these plays on a simple eight show season in a small theatre north of the river. So when we made the big move from the Warehouse to the Gage School, we turned an old gymnasium into our new Studio Theatre, and suddenly all things seemed possible. Ten years ago we began our regular Studio Series. Three annual shows that we could not possible mount anywhere else. Productions that offer our actors and audiences alike a fresh and invigorating new theatre experience. But now I ask you a difficult question . . . should it all go away? Read the rest of this entry »

Laughing over a game of Balderdash on New Year’s Eve, one of my friends joked to me about how I don’t really work…I just spend my day online.  He said it in a fun way, but it’s pretty true anymore!  It’s interesting how much of my marketing job has moved “online”…and it’s really exciting! Read the rest of this entry »

WHO WANTS MORE COMEDY?

In my last posting I wrote that TCT would soon have a new improvisational company on the Oldfather Stage. And I promised to tell you more about it in a subsequent posting. Well before I do I wanted to tell you about something interesting I noticed about this group. It’s kinda’ funny to me how odd little circumstances can turn up in a person’s life, coincidences that make no sense at first, and then suddenly, there’s a little pattern that seems to emerge that lends a sort of kismet to random happenings. Read the rest of this entry »

Sure, we realize many patrons might not have heard about our upcoming musical Striking 12.  In fact, playbill.com called it the “best new musical that nobody has heard of”. That being said, it’s destined to be well known.  It rocks!

So, to help shed some light on why everyone at TCTA is so crazy about the show, here is a link where you can go check out more info about it!  You can even hear music from the show and watch video footage of the New York production.

http://www.striking12.com/about_striking_12.php

Check out how cool it is, then pick up the phone and call the box office to make your reservations soon!

Now that the cinnamon burn from glueing 110 pieces of Big Red gum to the floor of our project is out of my nose enough to write, I have to give a HUGE thank you to all the people who made our adorable Gingerbread Home to be displayed at TPAC for Gingerbread Homes for the Holidays happening this weekend. Read the rest of this entry »

                It’s been far, far too long since my last post . . . sorry. But I have been meaning to return with a very important message. You see, as the autumn leaves fall, a change of the season isn’t the only change people are seeing around TCT. And a change as big as what we’re going through needs not only explanation, but support! Read the rest of this entry »

Marketing at a theatre is fun.  Of course, I guess you could imagine that.  What I find the most fun is finding new opportunities to reach our ever changing audiences.  It’s interesting creating marketing for TCTA, because I’m really not just trying to put “butts in seats”, I’m trying to find great ways to communicate within our family.  Read the rest of this entry »

A giant THANKS is due to the following Hosts, House Managers, Box Office Volunteers, Dinner-Ticket Takers and Ambassadors from Outlaw… Read the rest of this entry »