AACTFest 09 Report

I am back in Midland after 10 days in the Northwest where the highest temperature was in the upper 70s and it even got down to the 40s some nights - it was nice!

First off, I was the facilitator of the AACT Management Conference. 28 people participated in this class, and for three days we discussed various ideas, frustrations, thoughts and suggestions for areas such as Financing the Organization, Administrative Functions, Board of Directors, Marketing, Selecting a Season, Outreach Activities and Professional Development. It was a group of Managing Directors, Artistic Directors, Development Directors, Board Presidents and lead volunteers at mostly smaller community theatres. We had people from many states, and I made new friends from all over the USA that share a passion for community theatre. This conference took place on Monday afternoon and evening, all day Tuesday and Wednesday morning.

On Wednesday afternoon, the AACT festival started with shows. Through Saturday afternoon, there were 12 one-hour productions from 10 regions across the USA and even one from the US army bases in Europe. There was a mixture of musicals - How to Talk Minnesotan, Nine and John and Jen; comedies - Gornischt, Catfish Moon, Lemonade, Hold Me; and dramas - How I Learned to Drive, Intimate Apparel, Eleemosynary, Scooter Thomas Makes It to the Top of the World, Minnesota Moon. Awards from the 2009 AACTFest can be found at this site

Overall, it was a great festival, and the organizers should be proud of their work. It was great to have a festival on the West Coast and include some theatres that don't normally travel too far east. In addition, Tracy Alexander from MCT was also able to attend the festival, and long-time supporters Neal and Marilyn Allen were also in Tacoma. It was a great week of theatre!

Report from Tacoma

I am currently in Tacoma, Washington attending the AAACFest 09 - the national festival of plays for community theatre. Prior to the festival, I facilitated a conference for managers of community theatres that wrapped up on Wednesday morning. We worked Monday afternoon and evening, all day Tuesday and Wednesday morning - the plays started Wednesday afternoon.

The participants were mostly from smaller community theatres - they were board members, founders, first staff members of their theatre. They came with a list of problems and a desire to learn more from each other. There were 28 participants in the class. I think that the workshop went very well as each person had the opportunity to speak and share their thoughts and frustrations and provide insights and ideas to each other. Several people told me - "I thought I had problems at my theatre and now I know that these problems are everywhere". Overall, I hope that everyone gained something from our discussions - I know that I have a list of ideas to take back to MCT and share with the staff.

There are shows Thursday afternoon, Friday afternoon and evening and Saturday afternoon here at the festival - two shows in each time slot - and then a wrap up dinner and award show on Saturday night. I will update the blog again when the festival is over.

AACTFest 2009

The AACT (American Association of Community Theatre) festival will take place on June 24-27, 2009 in Tacoma, Washington. I am headed to the northwest on Wednesday and will be facilitating a managing conference prior to the festival. There will be twelve performances from theatres from around the USA - including a production from the US Army bases in Europe. I will try to find some time and provide my thoughts on the shows while I am in Tacoma. I have already seen two of the shows as I was the adjudicator for Region I and the AACT rep for Region II.

Summer Mummers is now open and running every Friday and Saturday night through Labor Day weekend. We had a great opening weekend - including an outstanding (and rowdy) crowd for opening night. Shows are filling up, so make your reservations soon - call 570-4111 or visit the website.

It's Summer Mummer time!

For sixty-one years, the Mummers have been entertaining the Permian Basin all summer long. This year's theme is big time wrestling - West Texas Fighting (WTF - get it?). Our outstanding volunteers have been working hard to prepare the melodrama and olio, film the movie and edit it in time for opening night and prepare the Yucca Theatre and fill it with mugs, popcorn, beer, novelities and t-shirts. The show opens on Friday night (June 12th) and runs through Labor Day weekend.

Last year, Summer Mummers grossed over $400,000 for our community theatre. It's a wonderful fundraiser, and we couldn't put the show on without our great volunteers onstage, backstage and in the house. Only two groups get paid to work Summer Mummers - the police officers and the people who clean up. Everyone else is a volunteer - show your support for our volunteers and for MCT and put together a group and come see the show!

For more details on the show, visit the Summer Mummer website

Tickets - (432) 570-4111 or the MCT website

Special Theatre Event

There's going to be a special theatre event at local movie theatres:

"Forever Plaid," one of Off-Broadway’s most popular and critically acclaimed musicals will return for only one night, not to the stage, but to the big screen! NCM Fathom and Forever Plaid Productions partner to present a hilarious and irresistible event featuring a LIVE red carpet appearance by the original cast followed by a pre-taped performance of the musical, Forever Plaid. The exclusive event will conclude with a LIVE performance by “The Plaids” and sing-a-long where theatre audiences can even join in the fun! Buy your tickets early for this sensational musical event on Thursday, July 9th at 8:00pmET / 7:00pmCT / 6:00pmMT and 8:00pmPT (tape delay).

LINK

June is busting out all over

June means summer and that means that it's time for Mummers! The Yucca Theatre has been busy with activities - dance, melodrama and olio rehearsals have been down at the Yucca since mid-May, and the building is still being worked on. Tonight, the popcorn arrives for the summer! We also have the new Mule Train sign installed in the lobby - check it out when you come to see the show.

Summer Mummers opens on Friday, June 12th and runs through September 5th. Tickets are $20 for the pit, $15 for the floor, $10 for the balcony and $5 for the "peanut gallery" - remember, there's no popcorn throwing in the balcony. The Box Office is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday to assist you with your ticket purchase - (432) 570-4111 or visit us online and check out the Summer Mummer page.

This is the final weekend for KNOCK KNOCK, the 2008 McLaren winner. There are performances on Friday and Saturday night - come see the show and support our great volunteers and this wonderful new comedy!