February 15, 2019 -- Volume VI, Issue 4

We talked last week about how Virginia Rep’s historic November Theatre is VA’s only Theatre Museum. We provided a description of our current exhibit, “Raise Your Hopeful Voice: Irish Plays at Virginia Rep,” running in conjunction with Once. This exhibit fills our museum corridor to the east of our lobbies. Currently under design for a more permanent exhibit to the west of our lobbies is a collection illuminating the historic facility itself, featuring, among other things, memorabilia found beneath the seating platforms that were adjusted during our recent re-configuration of balcony seating. Our favorite item is a playbill from “The Week of Sept. 29, 1924” featuring Honey Girl, the “Musical Gem of the Season,” which had had a four-month run on Broadway in 1920. Our theatre was known as The Strand in ’24, and apparently our phone number was Madison 5797. The tour of Honey Girl starred Broadway actor Don Lanning (he and his wife, torch singer Roberta Sherwood, later produced a son, Jerry Lanning, who starred with Angela Lansbury as Older Patrick in Broadway’s Mame). Honey Girl ran one week, followed by Mary, George M. Cohan’s “greatest musical comedy.” Cohan was the legendary American playwright, composer, lyricist, actor, singer, dancer, and producer, known as “the father of American musical comedy.” Now, if only someone had left a rolled-up playbill of that!

As RVA schools and nonprofits celebrate Black History Month each February, it’s increasingly likely that their observances will connect them with Virginia Rep. For decades, we have been the nation’s leading producer of touring assembly programs related to African American history. This year we are proudly presenting tours of Buffalo Soldier, I Have a Dream, and Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. We’re also offering a mainstage run of Huck and Tom and the Mighty Mississippi and runouts of Bruce’s speech outlining RVA theatre’s history of racial reconciliation, entitled A Single Garment of Destiny. As of yesterday’s halfway point (Feb 14), 54 RVA schools and/or groups (just shy of 12,000 individuals) have attended and/or booked one of these programs during the first two weeks of February. As always, we’re privileged to be able to serve our community by helping to honor and celebrate the legacies of great African American individuals, stories, and events. And our impact extends way beyond RVA. This photo was used recently to promote a Harriet Tubman performance next week in Minnesota. Our next public performance of one of these shows here in RVA will be next Monday at 6 pm. Buffalo Soldier will be performed at the N. Courthouse Road Public Library in Chesterfield County. The show is free-of-charge, with no reservations required.  

Shortly before Good News Friday went on hiatus last fall, we had begun a series of postings recapping Virginia Rep’s comprehensive Access Virginia Rep program. Promising a series of seven postings, we began in week one with a brief history of Barksdale and Theatre IV’s commitments to access. In week two, we talked about the importance we place on multi-cultural play selection and casting. In week three, we proudly reported on our commitment to diverse leadership and the importance of budgeting for diverse marketing. Last week we reported on our hiring of a community organizer, Neci Hill, who is helping us to develop familiarity and trust with RVA’s public housing tenant councils. Next week we will pick-up the series again with posting #4 – economic access. This will be followed in subsequent weeks by #5 – disability access, #6 – geographic access and touring, and finally #7 – transportation access. We hope you will be as proud as we are of Virginia Rep’s decades-long commitment to serving the entirety of the RVA community.  

Should you happen to be driving along Old Bon Air Road one Monday evening and hear the joyful sound of young voices coming from the pines, the vocal ensemble sweetening the evening air will most likely be the Voices of Jubilee, the new gospel choir formed last November at Bon Air Juvenile Correction Center. When asked what support would benefit the children at the center the most, the recreation director immediately responded with the suggestion of a gospel choir. Joining forces to meet this need, Bon Air Presbyterian Church, East End Fellowship (Church Hill), and River Road Church Baptist provided funding to hire a music director (Makeda McCreary) and an accompanist (Stephen Roach), and rehearsals began on the 2^nd and 3^rd Monday of each month. Twenty young men and four young women, age 15 to 21, most of whom have never sung before, began meeting regularly to prepare for their first concert at the BAJCC Volunteer Recognition Banquet in April. Through our CHW program, Virginia Rep has been pleased to provide initial budgeting and administrative support. The Chesterfield Cultural Arts Foundation has agreed to serve as fiscal agent. Contributions of any size from individuals are still needed and most appreciated. If you would like to support this vital new arts and rehabilitation effort, you can let us know by replying to this email. 

Lots of good feedback came in regarding our efforts as a museum, including one friend who is “almost sure” he saved his playbill from James Joyce’s The Dead. “Is it the one with Jack Parrish and Kelly Kennedy dancing, Robyn O’Neill clapping, and Chase Kniffen playing a bodhran?” he asked. “Yes,” we emailed back. “You’ve described it exactly.” “Then I’m pretty sure I have one,” he said. Well, he of the extraordinary memory hasn’t found it yet, so please keep those home searches going. Subscriber Gina Turner wrote, “Is GNF available on line? I don’t always have time to read when checking email and I’d like to be able to read them later at leisure.” Well, Gina, we think that’s a great idea, and we’re going to get on it. Expect news in about two weeks that past and future editions are available on our website. A final note from a fellow staff member who was pleased to read about Neci reaching out to community health workers. “I work here, and I had no idea,” she said. She suggested adding our good friends at Peter Paul Development Center to the list of Neci contacts—particularly those who work with their afterschool and summer programs. Again, excellent input. We’ll be forging ahead with our colleagues at Peter Paul ASAP. If anyone knows of other organizations that help to serve low socioeconomic status families, please let us know. We’re always thankful for the input!