DramaRama: Thank You!

We're still waiting for the final numbers to come in, but we wanted to send out a huge thank you to everyone who participated or volunteered to help make DramaRama a success.  Thank you all for being the "community" in our theatre -

Thanks to:

Eric Mills, Daniel Hensley, Jackie Canney, Jeff Catanese, Garrett Funk, MK Penley, Carol Duermit, Brad Curtioff, Morgen Cobb, Carole Saich, Lilly Mills, Maggie Harvin, Madison Smith, Jeff Neese, Sara Fields, Kelly Rowland, Aaron Michael, Caitie Sellers, Tawnya Watts, Amy Sawyer, Simone Bernhard, Sheila Thibodeaux, Carly Robbins, Christina Andersen, Grace Gouin, Kristina Benshoff, Luck McElreath of Flower Gallery, Melissa Thomas of Flora, Tiffany Saini, Juniper Cooper, Joti Marra, Melissa Gough, Amy Kispert, Leah McCall, Colby West, Amy Holtvedt, Amy Spedden, Luc Clerici, Lotus Caristo, Susan Sertain, Diane Gardner, Charles Josef Kamper, Aurora Moulin, Parker J. Photography, Jocelyn Mathewes - Studio Mathewes, Morgan Ford - Morgan Ford Photography, LeeAnn Donnelly - Purple Goat Photography, Audrey Goforth - Audrey Goforth Photography, Rodney Smith - Tempus Fugit Design, JameyKay Young - Jameykay Young Photography, Mignon Petrini, Hannah Silberman, Scott Thompson - Makeup at the Grove Arcade, Serenity Eyre - Makeup at the Grove Arcade, Zack Russell - Makeup at the Grove Arcade, Heather Smith, Amanda Anderson - Dollbox Productions, Wendy Ballance - Blush by Wendy Ballance, Kristen Davis - Blush by Wendy Ballance, Emily Wells, Lalena Settlemeyer - Bari Salon, Amy Day Doherty - Pi Salon and Spa, Joanne Bolet Cafarro - Pi Salon and Spa, Nicole Bohanon - Lola Salon, Wesley Bolden of Eclipse Salon, Dena Snyder, Market Connections, Molly Kummerle, Amanda Swafford, Beth Kearney, Rikki Walker, Valerie Phillips, Alisha Jenna, Cady Barrett, Patrice Wilson, Rachel Suero, Kelsey Anne Carter, Jacqueline Franquez, Mary Bell, Kimberly Turley, Tess Miller, Malana Green, Olivia Baronowski, Lisette Marie Kamper, Amanda Joyce, Laura Schoolhouse, Caroline Miller, Brianna Cross, Gretchen Elizabeth, Sarah Merrell, Angelyn Montemayor, Jessica Neilson, Liz Spillars, Tristan Vitrol, Thomas Propest, Carson Fox, Hannah Bruce, David Fine, Jessica Savitt, Kathi Ballard, Greg Mayer, Kerry Shannon, Marcos Cunha, Waylon Wood, Jerry Crouch, Anne Wolf, Shari Smith, Carol Mills, Tom Chalmers, Charlie David, Charlie Flynn-McIver, Michael Lilly, Deborah Austin, Joey Wilton, Michael McMurtrey, Mark Lavin, Susan Maley, Sara LeDonne, Aaron Price, Grant Cuthbertson, Justin Watt, Mondy Carter, Tina Pisano-Foor, Liam Kelley Black, Keturah Dickerson, Shannon Phillips, Jerome Guesne, Emma Hammond, Eleanor Conner, Ameena Hinchliffe, Spencer Anderson, Ryan "Slim" Dixon, Vanessa DeLarca, Devyn Arroyo, Claire Amon, Liza Rain, Beth Mayo, Dave Bortle, Adam Cohen, Suzanne Williams, Trena Parker, Mike Burk, Andrew Huska, Mae Score, CJ Breland, Beth Kowalski, Dayle Purington, Sharon Sandel, Lindsay Salvati, Chip Leslie, Meridith Miller, Ed Wright, Elizabeth Cheesborough, P. Diane Chambers, Steve Riedesel, Jane Stanhope, Myrna Acevedo, Betty Doll, Linda Vickery, Alex and Terry McPherson, Sandy Davis, Suanne Faber, Hannah Parks, Shirley Cohen, David and Nadine Lloyd, Debbie Wood, Mike Vaniman, Craig Justus, Jeff Messer, Carol Motsinger, Richard Handy, Elizabeth Sheppard, Cassidy Robbins, Cary Nichols, Jill Summers, Ed Loder, Cordell Nichols, John Menkes, Peter Kanipe, and McRae Hilliard

If we have inadvertently missed your name, please let us know so that we can amend the list - and please accept our apology (we're finishing this up after 7 straight nights of events and aren't thinking as clearly as usual...)

And, of course, thank you to everyone who supported ACT and DramaRama by attending and donating throughout the week!  

What I Love About Coming to Work

Actually, it's a lot of different things. This morning, it was getting to talk with Tamara, our business manager, before anyone else had arrived.  Then, it was hearing the syncopated rhythms of Tina and Jacob's feet (our choreographer and dance captain for Chicago) as they worked through a new bit. And then it was having lunch with Waylon, one of my dearest friends, who I met when he wandered in to volunteer.

Junior Prom by Mary Charles Griffin. Oil on canvas. 6 panels. 108 x 96

But the first thing that struck me this morning, this beautiful, sunny, non-February-in-the-mountains morning, was the artwork that's currently hanging in our lobby.

Excuse my photo, because it doesn't do justice to the incredible blast of vividity that is this painting. The painting is 9 feet tall and 8 feet wide - 72 square feet of pulsating color (and, incidentally, the approximate size of my 2 bathrooms put together).

The artist is Mary Charles Griffin, called "Charlie" by most everyone who knows her.  Her studio is based in the River Arts District, and I am profoundly grateful to have a job where I am greeted by 10 of her gorgeous paintings. This show will be up through the end of March. And then I will be lucky enough to be greeted by a new show featuring the work of a local painter, or photographer, or jewelry maker.  Who knows?

Sara LeDonne does.  A long-time volunteer at ACT, she curates the Lobby Gallery (she also builds and paints sets, designs and decorates for fundraising events, creates frames and shadowboxes for displaying theatre memories, runs light boards and sound boards, and gives out kooky socks for Christmas).  She is dedicated to featuring the work of Asheville-based artists, sharing and showcasing their work with patrons who buy tickets at our Box Office, with parents dropping their children off for after-school classes, with casts who rehearse in the lobby while the stage is being painted.

She shares this work with me. And I am thankful!

Meet Chris Martin, ACT's volunteer coordinator

Today we get back to featuring a prime player at ACT who is working to create a great theatre experience for our guests. Chris Martin has long been an active member of the ACT community. This season he took over as Volunteer Coordinator, a big, fun, messy job. Chris, who has done a bit of everything at ACT, is more than up for the job. In our Q and A Chris dishes on how he got started at ACT, and how you can as well.

Part of your job is getting people involved with ACT? How did you get started with ACT?

In the spring of 2000 I was working as an interim 1st grade teacher at Claxton Elementary School. I met Cindy Baldwin, a fellow colleague and well-known director and stage manager at ACT. She encouraged me to audition for the musical Robber Bridegroom. I was cast in the ensemble and thus began my journey at ACT. It wasn't until I received a volunteer insert from Jenny Bunn in the playbill of Deathtrap that I really began my commitment to ACT as a volunteer. Her enthusiasm and positive relationship with other volunteers contributed to my high level of involvement with ACT. From that moment on I went on to act in four other shows and began volunteering and working in almost every capacity, including stage manager, box office manager, house manager, Tanglewood Assistant Director and drama teacher, light board operator, sound board operator, costume assistant/dresser, props/running crew, props designer, and director.

Talk about some different roles that volunteers play at ACT?

Well, volunteers are utilized in the front of the house as ushers, house managers, and box office volunteers; backstage in productions as assistant stage managers, dressers, running crew, props crew; on stage as actors, in the technical booth as follow spot, light board, and sound board operators; and behind the scenes on our build crew as set builders and painters and the costume crew as stitchers and sewers. We are in need of volunteers for special events as well, including the Diva Cabaret, Divalicious, costume sale, Bele Chere parking, and many others. As you can see, there are many ways for our volunteers to become involved at ACT that fit their individual skill levels and needs.

What if you have absolutely no experience with the theatre. Can you still volunteer?

Of course. We encourage anyone who wants to be involved at ACT to learn different volunteer roles. We provide training for each volunteer role, so our volunteers gain valuable theatre experience and feel comfortable in their volunteer positions. Some of our volunteers keep the same position as an usher or light board operator for each show, while others try out other positions on different shows. I did this as a volunteer in order to learn more about the theatre and to find roles that best suited me. So anyone willing to try new things, meet new people, and have fun while doing it should volunteer at ACT.

Along with your volunteer coordinator duties, you served as the Stage Manager for Peter Pan. You must have been a busy man during that time. How did you get it all done?

Well, it was busy, but it gave me an opportunity to multi-task and get to know our many volunteers on that production. I had such a positive experience with Peter Pan because of the very organized and efficient creative team and the outstanding cast. It made my job very pleasant as well as manageable with everyone on the cast and crew pitching in and doing their jobs to their best abilities. The technical aspects of this show were challenging with everything from flying, pulling curtains, costume changes, crocodile wrangling, moving multiple scenery pieces many times for lots of scene changes, plentiful lighting cues, and yes -- live animals on stage. However, we had a successful run of this show due to the dedication of everyone involved.

You've got many years of teaching experience, yes? How does running a classroom compare to running a volunteer program?

They are very similar as both jobs require a high level of organization, people skills, multi-tasking, excellent customer service, delegating, patience, and flexibility. Both of these tasks require positive recognition of jobs well done, which is one of my favorite parts of this job -- not to mention getting to work with people of various backgrounds, talents, and unique contributions to ACT. I love planning volunteer events just like I plan classroom special events that involve as many people as possible.

Tell us about some important volunteer dates we should be aware of?

What: New Volunteer Orientation

When: Tuesday, October 13th at 6:30pm

Where: ACT Lobby

Why: Take a tour of ACT and learn what every volunteer role entails as well as meet other volunteers and find a role that fits your interests!

How: Just show up -- and call me at 254-1320 ext. 21 with any questions!