Team
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Mill Mountain Theatre
By PHILIP GRECIAN
Based on the motion picture A Christmas Story, © 1983 Turner Entertainment Co., distributed by Warner Bros., written by JEAN SHEPHERD, LEIGH BROWN and BOB CLARK; and on the book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash by JEAN SHEPHERD.
Grantors
Sponsors
Special Thanks
- Rob Bessolo from Roanoke College
- Nicole Fegan
- Bud Grey at Carilion Wellness
- Addie Pawlick
- Travis Viars at Meredith's Salon
Donors
Mill Mountain Theatre would like to thank the generous gifts from our Donors. We would not be here without you!
Donors
The Honorable and Mrs. G. Steven Agee*
Anonymous gifts to Mill Mountain Theatre
Avis Construction Company, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Jason E. Bingham*
Boxley Materials Company
Community Foundation Serving Western Virginia
Davis H. Elliot Company, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Garbee*
Gentry Locke Attorneys
The Sam & Marion Golden Helping Hand Foundation, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Shields Jarrett*
The Louise R. Lester Foundation
Pinnacle Financial Partners
City of Roanoke Arts Commission
Roanoke CARES Act Grant
The Honorable and Mrs. Frank W. Rogers, III*
U.S. Small Business Administration
Virginia Commission for the Arts
BB&T Wealth
Blue Ridge Beverage Company
Brandon Oaks Retirement Community
Center in the Square
Ms. Anne Gordon Downing
The Dunkenberger-Waskey-Nash Group at Morgan Stanley
Ms. Lauren Ellerman*
Ms. Sarah Copenhaver and Mr. G. Franklin Flippin, Esq.
Horace G. Fralin Charitable Trust
Mr. & Mrs. J. Spencer Frantz
The Glebe
Dr. Robyn Hakanson and Mr. Erik Moledor*
The Huntly Foundation
Jewell Machinery
Dr. Anthony-Samuel LaMantia Ph.D.*
Mr. and Mrs. Mark S. Lawrence*
MaryJean and John Levin
Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds G. Lynch lll*
W. E. McGuire Charitable Foundation, Inc.
Member One Federal Credit Union
The Roanoke Star.com
Rutherfoord, a Marsh & McLennan Agency
Skyline National Bank
Mr. and Mrs. Joel Tenzer*
Anstey Hodge Advertising Group
Mr. and Mrs. John T. Avis*
Mr. John D. Batzel
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph S. Berenbaum
Dr. Nathaniel L. Bishop*
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas R. Brock, Jr.
Business Solutions, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. George B. Cartledge, Jr.
Claytor / Wirt Associates
The Convergence Group at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
Mr. and Mrs. Warner Dalhouse
Dixon, Hubard, Feinour, & Brown Inc.
Entre Computer Center
First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.
5 Points Creative
Freedom First Federal Credit Union
Friendship Foundation
Frith, Anderson + Peake, P.C.
GE Foundation
Ms. Nancy O. Gray and Mr. David N. Maxson*
Mr. and Mrs. John Higginbotham
Howell's Motor Freight, Inc.
Innovative Insurance Group
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Janoschka*
Jewell Machinery
Mr. and Mrs. Howard Jones, Jr.
Mr. George A. Kegley
Kiwanis Club of Roanoke
CP & MG Lunsford Charitable Trust
Lunsford, A Trustpoint Company
Mr. and Mrs. Phillip McKeage*
Miller, Long & Associates, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Harry G. Norris*
Oakey's Funeral Service & Crematory
Ms. Yvonne Olson
Mr. & Mrs. J. Lee Osborne*
Ms. Nancy R. Patterson*
Roanoke Gas Company - RGC Resources, Inc.
City of Salem
Mr. and Mrs. Edward M. Smith*
Southeastern Theatre Conference
Mr. and Mrs. Steven S. Strauss
Ms. Lesleigh B. Strauss
Sun Tan City
Dr. and Mrs. John T. Tielking
Wabtec Graham-White
Mr. Charles J. Wehrmeister*
Maxwell and Patricia Wiegard*
Mr. and Mrs. Barton J. Wilner
Mrs. Mary Meade G. Winn
Woods Rogers PLC
Mr. and Mrs. David K. Allen*
Reverend and Mrs. George C. Anderson*
Ms. Karen Beldegreen
Mr. and Mrs. W. Chan Bolling*
Mr. and Mrs. J. Keith Bown
Mr. and Mrs. Jerry W. Cheadle
Elizabeth Chilton & Bryan Collier
Dr. and Mrs. Robert T. Copenhaver
Mr. & Mrs. Grimes W. Creasy
Dr. and Mrs. Antonio T. Donato
Mr. and Mr. Scott Fauber
Dr. and Mrs. Michael Friedlander
Mr. William Gale
Dr. and Mrs. Charles D. Gilliland
Ms. Mary Grekila
Ms. Jennifer Jamison
Mr. Mitchell Kaneff
Dr. and Mrs. David A. Kinsler
Mr. Laurence Kufel*
Dr. and Mrs. Lee Learman
Mr. and Mrs. William L. Lee*
Dr. and Mrs. Neil A. MacDonald
Ms. Martha L. Martin
Ms. Nancy Mastry
Dr. Suzan R. and Dr. John R. Merten
The Newbern Foundation
Mr. and Mrs. Paul W. Nordt, III*
Dr. Sue and Dr. Michael S. Nussbaum
P1 Technologies, Inc.
Mr. & Mrs. Jeffrey A. Perry
Capt. and Mrs. Gary S. Powers*
Dr. Randall R. Rhea
Mr. and Mrs. Rick Riegodedios
Roanoke Valley Orthodontics
Mr. and Dr. John G. Rocovich, Jr.*
Rutherfoord, a Marsh & McLennan Agency
Dr. and Mrs. Donald G. Smith, Jr.
Ms. Leigh Strelka
Ms. Brittany Turman
Mr. and Mrs. Damon W. White
Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Addison
Ms. Katherine Allamong
Mr. Ernest Allred
AmazonSmile Foundation
Mr. and Mrs. Briggs W. Andrews
ARD Properties LLC
Ms. Rhonda Arsenault
Mr. and Mrs. Robert H. Ashwell
Mr. and Ms. Mike Austin
Mr. & Mrs. J. Duke Baldridge, III
E R Bane Trust
Ms. Nancy Barbour
Mr. Ronald Barrett
Dr. and Mrs. Vincent T. Basile
Kelly Bayer Derrick
Ms. Kathy Bibb
Mr. William Biddy
Ms. Shirley J. Biggs
Ms. Mary H. Bivens
Ms. Jacqueline Bledsoe
Ms. Cynthia Blevins
Mr. and Mrs. Alan Bloch
Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Bocock
Dr. and Mrs. John Bouldin
Mr. Alexander Bowman, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Ronald H. Bristol, II
Mr. and Mrs. Carter Brothers*
Ms. Blanche Brower
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel S. Brown
Ms. Mary K. Brown
Mr. Nicholas Burakow
Ms. HelenRuth Burch
Ms. Helen A. Burnett
Ms. Kristen Bush
Ms. Catherine Bush
Teri Byers
Mr. and Mrs. Louis K Campbell
Mr. and Mrs. John P. Carlin
Mr. Randi Carpenter
Mr. and Mrs. Jeremy Carroll
Mr. and Mrs. R. Daniel Carson, Jr.
Mr. Robert Cassell
Mrs. Anne-Marie Castanho
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Cates
Ms. Lori Cauley*
Mrs. Marian Chappelle
Mr. and Mrs. Brian Chisom
Mr. and Mrs. Michael A. Chudina
Ms. Vickie Clarke
Mr. & Mrs. W. R. Clemmer, Jr.
Carl E. Coleman Family Trust
Mr. Randy Conklin
Mr. and Mrs. Chip Conway, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. James G. Cosby
Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Cribbs
Ms. Melanie Crovo
Mr. and Mrs. Edward P. Currin
Ms. Judith S. Curtis
Ms. Ruth Sommer Dailey
Mr. Edward D'Alessandro
Ms. Alice Davis
Seth Davis
Ms. Michelle Davis
Mr. and Mrs. Samuel D. Dean
Ms. Myrona DeLaney
Mr. and Mrs. James Devens
Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence B. Dickenson
Dr. & Mrs. F. Randolph Dickey
Dr. and Mrs. F. Joseph Duckwall
Dr. Elizabeth H. Duckworth and Mr. John M. Duckworth
Ms. Jeanne M. Duddy
Mr. and Mrs. Wade J. Dunford
Ms. Dorothy Earner
Ms. Patricia Ebbett
Ms. Carlyn Ebert
Mr. Charles L. Echols Jr.
Mr. Paul A. Economy
Ms. Barbara T. Epperly
J.D. and G.W. Eure
Mr. and Mrs. Gregory W. Feldmann
Mr. and Mrs. Raphael E. Ferris
Ms. Victoria Ferris
Mr. Robert H. Fetzer
Mr. and Mrs. Gary Fifer
Mr. and Mrs. Broaddus C. Fitzpatrick
Mr. Thomas F. Fitzpatrick
Ms. Cyndi Fletcher
Ms. Lisa Fort
Ms. Jennifer Fraley
Ms. Carol L. Fralin
Mr. and Mrs. John T. Frary
Mr. and Mrs. Gregory L. Freeman
Frontstream
Mrs. Sherry Fuller
FR. Samuel J. Gantt, III
Ms. Amy Geddes
Mr. & Mrs. W. Fred Genheimer, III
Ms. Martha Gierchak
Ms. Carol F. Goad
Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence A. Goldstein
Mr. Francisco Gonzalez
Ms. Katrina Goode and Mr. Robert Skelton
Ms. Megan Goodwin
Mr. and Mrs. Albert C. Gordon
Mr. and Mrs. Fred Greear
Ms. Meg Griffith
Mr. Scott Guebert
Dr. and Mrs. Frank Guilfoyle
Ms. Katherine Hailey
Ms. Hannah P. Hale
Ms. Carrol Hall
Mr. Jack Halpin
Ms. Rebecca L. Harriett
Ms. Thelma T. Haynesworth*
Mr. & Mrs. Eddie F. Hearp
Mr. and Mrs. Scott Hengerer
Ms. Donna Henretty
Ms. Celeste H. Hicks
Mr. and Mrs. Frank F. Hill, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. JB Hodgson
Mr. & Mrs. Joseph M. Hoff
Mr. Richard Hoffman
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel E. Holdgreve
Ms Lisa Kazmierczak
Ms. Donna B Horak
Ms. Mary Hubbard
Mr. and Mrs. Dean D. Humbert
Ms. Carin Hunt
Dr. David Hunt and Mrs. Ellen Aiken
Ms. Phyllis K. Irvine
Ms. Deborah Isemann
Marcia and Lewis Johnson
Mr. and Mrs. Pegram Johnson, III
Drs. James and Janet Johnson
Mr. and Mrs. Fulton C. Johnson
Ms. Erma L. Jones
Ms. Doris Jordan
Christine Jordan
Mrs. Ann M. Journell
Mr. Lars Keeley
Bobi Keenan
Mr. and Mrs. William K. Keesee
Mr. Matthew Kelley
Mr. and Mrs. Herman D. Kemp, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. A. J. Kendrick
Ms. Dianne Kepley
Ms. Victoria Kessler
Mary Kidd and Kelli Cooper
Sara King
Ms. Annette S. Kirby
Mr. and Mrs. Alton L. Knighton, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey H. Krasnow
Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Kreger
The Kroger Company
Mr. Frank Kuhn
Dr. and Mrs. Arthur A. Kunkle
Mr. Richard Kurshan
Mr. Jeffrey Lamirand
Mrs. Susan P. Lancaster
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth C. Laughon
Mr. Terry Lauver
Ms. Jenny Lee
Ms. Christine Lee
Todd and Whitney Leeson
Stephanie Schmitz and Brian Lewis
Ms. Sue Lindsey
Ms. Julie Lord
Mr. and Mrs. Melvin V. Ludovici
Mr. and Mrs. Kirk A. Ludwig
Ms. Tara A. Marciniak
Mr. Gene H. Marrano
Ms. Margaret Marrtin
Dr. Elizabeth Rice Martin and Mr. Eddie Martin
Mrs. Marjorie Mastin
Dr. James D. Matthews and Mr. Joe Cobb
Mr. Lee B. McBride and Ms. Katherine M. Rakes
Mr. Gary McClellanDr. and Mrs. Maston R. McCorkle, Jr.
Ms. Lynda McGarry
Ms. Brittny McGraw
Ms. Patricia McMican
Mr. and Mrs. John D. McMillen
Ms. June L. McNiel
Ms. Constance MetzPaul and Robert Metz
Mrs. Lynn Meyer
Mr. Edward Miskie
Mr David P Mitchell Jr
Ms. Cara E. Modisett
Mr. and Mrs. David Moledor
Ms. Payton Moledor
RaeKwon Moore
Ms. Sharon Moran
Dr. and Mrs. John E. Morgan
Rebecca and Leslie Morrissett
Mr. and Mrs. Raymond W. Mortara
Mr. and Mrs. David Mortlock
Mr. and Mrs. Allan Mower
Mr. & Mrs. G. Marshall Mundy
Ms. Leisa Mundy
Ms. Bethany Murphy
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Myers
Kenneth Nagele
Ms. Rhonda Neely
Ms. Amanda Nelson
Network For Good
Mr. and Mrs. John Nicklo
Dr. and Mrs. James R. Niederlehner
Mr. and Mrs. William B. Nunnally, Jr.
Amanda O'dell
Mrs. Phyllis A. Olin
Ms. Sarah Orrick
Ms. Mary W. Osgood
Mr. and Mrs. Gary A. Oshida
Mr. Jeffrey Pasciak
Ms. Christal Pearson
Ms. Janna Perry
Mr. Timothy Pickering
Mr. William A Pilat
Ms. Karen Pillis
Dr. and Mrs. Jackson L. Pittman*
Ms. Sue Porterfield
Mr. and Mrs. William Powell Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Pratt
Ms. Lila Reddan
Dr. and Mrs. Wayne G. Reilly
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Richardson
Mr. Daniel Robb
Mr. and Mrs. Alan E. Ronk
Ms. Kaitlyn Rosin
Mr. and Mrs. Truman J. Ross, Jr.
Ms. Janet Ross
Mr. Carl Milton Rowan
Mr. James Royalty
Mr. and Mrs. William B. Russell Sr.
Ms. Darla Salin
Dr. and Mrs. Robert H. Sandel
Ms. Jenny Saxton
Mr. and Mrs. Edward Schaffer
Mr. Michael Schmitt and Mr. George Getz*
Mr. and Mrs. Harry N. Schwarz
Ms. Penny Schwarz
Ms. Judith Scott
Mr. Paul R. Scott
Mr. James Sehen
Mr. and Mrs. James W. Selvey
Mr. James W. Settle
Mr. and Mrs. Patrick N. Shaffner
Mr. and Mrs. James D. Sheahan
Mr. and Mrs. Barry L. Shelor
Ms. Susan Shullman
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Slawson
Mrs. Gene H. Smallwood
Ms. Kylene Smith
Ms. Janna E. Snyder
Ms. Harriet W. Stanley
Ms. Patricia L. Stanley
Dr. John W. Steffe and Dr. Lee Anne Steffe
Ms. Gari D. Stephenson
Mr. and Mrs. Bruce C. Stockburger, Esq.
Mr. Steven Sutphen and Ms. Yvonne Clark
Mr. Mark G. Swope
Mr. and Mrs. William B. Symonds
Mr. and Mrs. Julian Taylor
Alexandra F. Thacker
Ms. Betsy Thomas
Ms. Martha Thompson
Ms. Paula P. Thompson
Mr. and Mrs. Michael C. Thorell, Jr.
Ms. Barbara Thurman
Ms. Anne T. Tiffany
Mrs. Veronica Tingle
Will Trinkle and Juan Granados*
Ms. Patricia Tryal
Ms. Vicki L. Tuke
Ms. Ann Penny Tully
Ms. Sheila Umberger
Ms. Yvette Van Hise
Ms. Julia VanderVeen
Mr. and Mrs. Zachary Vernon
Ms. Karen Vietmeier
Ms. Susan Wade
Ms. Donna Walker
Ms. Jennifer Waller
Mr. & Mrs. J. Robert Walton
Mr. and Mrs. Lilburn E. Ward, III
Ms. Betty Gill Ware
Mr. Robert Warren
Hugh and Jaye Harvey Wellons
Ms. Virginia West
Ms. Lois West
Mr. and Mrs. James Whitney
Mrs. Pamela H. Wiegandt
Mr. and Mrs. Spencer Wiegard
Mr. Jeffrey N. Williams
Mr. Adam Williams
Mr. and Mrs. James Williamson, III
Robin Williamson
Mr. and Mrs. J. David Wine
Mr. and Mrs. Barry E. Wirt, Sr.
Mr. and Mrs. Donald R. Witt
Ms. Gidget Woodward
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Wright
Ms. Lynn Yates
Mrs. Lynn D. Avis
Mr. and Mrs. Steve Barber
Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Brailsford
Ms. Janet Byrne
Ms. Dorothy S. Clifton
Mr. and Mrs. W. Patton Coles, IV*
Mr. & Mrs. H. Lawrence Davidson
Ms. Elizabeth G. Deisher
The Rev. Dr. and Mrs. David Dixon, III
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L. Eckert
Kelly T. Farber
Mr. and Mrs. Mike Fitzpatrick
Mrs. Marianne E. Gandee
Mr. and Mrs. Harford W. Gardner
Mr. & Mrs. J. Randolph Garrett, III
GE Foundation
The Honorable and Mrs. Robert W. Goodlatte
Mr. and Mrs. Keith Haley
Donna Hancock
Dr. and Mrs. Daniel P. Harrington
Mr. and Mrs. Edmund Harvey
Mr. H. Brent Stevens & Ms. Jill Hufnagel
Mr. and Mrs. John Jackson
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Jernigan Jr.
Robyn and David Johnsen
Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies
Mr. and Mrs. James F. Johnson
Mr. Talfourd H. Kemper
Souha Khawam
Anna and Tom Lawson
Mr. and Mrs. Sam Lionberger, III
Dr. and Mrs. George Luedke
Mr. and Mrs. Edward J. Machado
Mr. Russell Macmullan
Mr. and Mrs. Charles J. Meidlinger
John T. Morgan Roofing Sheet Metal Co., Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Mullen, Jr.
Ms. Leisa Mundy
The Muse Family Foundation
Ms. Amanda Nelson
Mr. and Mrs. Robert O. Nordt, Sr.
Mr. and Mrs. Mike O'Brochta
Dr. and Mrs. Ronald B. Overstreet
Mr. amd Mrs. Cyrus Pace
Mr. and Mrs. John Powell
Mrs. B. J. Preas*
Mr. William Rakes and Mrs. Carolyn Warner Rakes
Mr. and Mrs. Theodore H. Ritter
Ms. Ellen Servidea
Ms. Katherine Shaver
Dr. and Mrs. Bertram Spetzler
Ms. Harriet W. Stanley
Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Swanson
Mr. and Mrs. Paul C. Timmermann
Mr. and Mrs. Raphael M. Traen
Mr. and Mrs. John P. Whittle
Mr. & Mrs. W. Lee Wilhelm, III
Mr. and Mrs. Scott W. Winter
Tributes
Mill Mountain Theatre is honored to acknowledge gifts made in tribute or memory of special friends. To make such a gift please contact John Levin at (540) 342-5761 or development@millmountain.org.
Tributes
In honor of Nancy Agee and on her birthday by Dr. Nathaniel L. Bishop
In honor of the Rev. George Anderson by Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Kreger
In honor of Ginger Poole Avis by Mr. and Mrs. J. Duke Baldridge, III and by Mr. and Mrs. Bruce C. Stockburger, Esq.
In honor of Suzanne Avis and of Jack and Ginger Avis by Mrs. B. J. Preas
In honor of Tom and Irene Brock by Dr. and Mrs. John E.Morgan
In memory of Mervin Brower by Ms. Blanche Brower
In honor of Christopher Castanho by Ms. June L. McNiel
In memory of John M. Chaney by Mrs. Betty Gill Ware
In honor of Jim and Kat Hakanson by Robyn Hakanson
In honor of Kenny Holley by Ms. Gidget Woodward
In memory of Willeyne McCune Clemens and Dorothy Meyer Hannaford by Nancy Ruth Patterson
In memory of Timothy A. Kelly by Mrs. Dorothy S. Clifton, Talfourd H. Kemper, Linda and Charles Lunsford, W. David McCoy, Sydney and Paul Nordt, Mr. and Mrs. William N. Powell, Mary and James Robertson, The Barton J. and Jacqueline B. Wilner Family Fund
In honor of Charles and Juliana Meidlinger by Mary Grekila
In honor of David and Edna Moledor by Robyn Hakanson
In honor of Nick and Cathy Powell by Mr. and Mrs. William Powell, Jr.
In honor of B. J. Preas by Jane Cheadle
In memory of Katy Reed by Ms. Darla Sain
In memory of Thomas M. Robertson, Jr., by Mr. and Mrs. Barry E. Wirt, Sr.
In honor of Maury Lee Strauss by Lesleigh B. Strauss
Performers
Timothy Booth
*
Ralph
Drew D'Alessandro
*
Schwartz
Calan Johnson
*
Ralphie
Eve McLoney
*
Randy
Will McLoney
*
Scut Farkus
Belle McNamara
*
Esther Jane
Emily Mower
*
Helen
Kayla Ryan Walsh
*
Miss Shields
Griffin Shaver
*
Jr. Associate Director/ Male Swing
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Jack Swank
*
Flick
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Julia VanderVeen
*
Mother
Scott Watson
*
Old Man
Setting
1940s in Hohman, Indiana
Songs & Scenes
*Appearing through an Agreement between this theatre and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
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“Actors’ Equity Association (“Equity”), founded in 1913, is the U.S. labor union that represents more than 51,000 actors and stage managers, Equity fosters the art of live theatre as an essential component of society and advances the careers of its members by negotiating wages, improving working conditions and providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Actors’ Equity is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an International organization of performing arts unions. www.actorsequity.org
Production Staff
Venue Staff
School Administration Staff
Musicians
Board of Directors
President
Macel H. Janoschka
Vice President
J. Lee E. Osborne
Treasurer
Lori D. Cauley
Secretary
Nathaniel L. Bishop
Board Members
David K. Allen, Lauren Ellerman, Linda Garbee<, Nancy O. Gray, Dr. Robyn Hakanson, Laurence E. Kufel, Dr. Anthony-Samuel LaMantia, Cynthia Lawrence, William L. Lee, Reynolds Lynch III, Dr. Elizabeth Rice Martin, Laura McKeage, Nancy Ruth Patterson, Gary S. Powers, Doris Rogers, Edward M. Smith, Judy Tenzer, Will Trinkle, Maxwell Huddleston Wiegard
Student Advisory Board
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A Message from Ginger Poole
Meet the Cast
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Timothy Booth
*
Timothy is extremely happy to reprise his role from the 2017 production of A Christmas Story which brought him back to Mill Mountain after a lengthy 26-year hiatus. Since 2017 MMT audiences have seen him in Mamma Mia as Sam Carmichel and the Captain in The Sound Of Music. Prior to his return, he was seen in Jesus Christ Superstar, Me And My Girl and Tomfoolery at MMT. He was also a cast member in the National Tour and Broadway companies of Mamma Mia for nearly ten years. Notable shows are: Atticus in To Kill A Mockingbird, California Suite, London Suite, It’s Only A Play, and Disney Cruise Line’s Aladdin, Believe and Villains Tonight! He’s toured nationally and internationally, been seen on TV and in numerous commercials. Tim is truly happy to be back in Roanoke and working with the incomparable Mill Mt. Theatre family. Member Actors’ Equity since 1991.
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Drew D'Alessandro
*
Drew is very excited to be part of A Christmas Story and to once again perform on the Trinkle stage with Mill Mountain Theatre. He most recently worked with Virginia Children’s Theatre on The Addams Family New Musical as Pugsley Addams, The Wizard of Oz Staged Concert as a Lollipop Guild Munchkin, as well as, Mary Poppins Jr. as Michael Banks. Drew is in the 6th grade at CSMS and his favorite subject is math. When he is not on the stage you can usually find Drew singing or dancing around. Somehow he has also found the time to earn a First Degree Senior Black Belt in Taekwondo in his spare time. Drew would like to thank everyone for coming and hopes you enjoy the show!
Calan Johnson
*
Calan Johnson is honored to be a part of A Christmas Story in this iconic role of a lifetime. Playing Ralphie is a dream come true! Favorite past credits include: Addam’s Family (Pugsley), Matilda (Eric), You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown (Woodstock) at VCT and Disney’s Little Mermaid Jr (Seahorse) at MMT. Calan is a 6th grader at James Madison Middle School and loves all things involving theatre and Broadway. You can see Calan in James Madison Middle’s production of Matilda Jr. as Bruce this March. Special thanks to his family, friends, teachers and everyone at Mill Mountain Theatre for this incredible experience.
Eve McLoney
*
Eve McLoney is thrilled to make her MMT Trinkle Mainstage debut in A Christmas Story! Eve is in 4th grade at Clearbrook Elementary School. She couldn’t wait to join her brother in his theatre classes and started studying at age 5. She loves taking classes at MMT including Elementary Acting and Musical Theatre. Past credits include Mary Poppins Jr., Gretl Von Trapp (The Sound of Music), and Jill (Babes in Toyland). When home, Eve spends her time playing the piano, singing and working on art. She enjoys swimming and playing soccer. Eve is so grateful for this opportunity. She would like to thank her teachers at MMT including Victoria, and her parents for encouraging her to chase her dreams.
Will McLoney
*
Will McLoney is honored to make his MMT Trinkle Mainstage debut in A Christmas Story! Will is in 7th grade at Cave Spring Middle School. He has enjoyed a variety of classes at MMT since Fall 2020, including Acting Conservatory and Godspell Production Camp. Past roles include Munchkin Barrister (OZ), George Banks (Mary Poppins Jr.), Friedrich Von Trapp (The Sound of Music), and Little Boy Blue (Babes in Toyland). He plays piano, trumpet, French horn and loves singing. Will also enjoys playing soccer, swimming, and Scouting. Will is very grateful to MMT for this opportunity and would like to thank his teachers at MMT, Michelle Cha his voice and acting coach, and his family for their love and support.
Belle McNamara
*
Belle McNamara is a fourth-grader at North Cross School. Belle has always loved theatre and has been performing since she was very little. She has been honored to be a part of Virginia Children’s Theatre’s The Little Mermaid, Jr., Songs of the Past, Into the Woods, Jr., and most recently, Oz: A Staged Concert. Belle is absolutely tickled to be starring as Esther Jane in A Christmas Story with Mill Mountain Theatre. “I love being a part of the show. It makes me feel great, and, what really amazes me is how the show makes the audience feel. I love sharing what my cast and I have created together!” Thank you MMT for this opportunity- a dream come true for me!
Emily Mower
*
Emily is so excited to be back on stage this holiday season! She is currently a sixth grader at Roanoke Catholic School. Past credits include The Little Mermaid Jr (Sea Creature), Annie (Molly), and Matilda (Alice). In her spare time she enjoys drawing and horseback riding. She would like to thank Payton and Ginger for this wonderful opportunity and much love to my Mom and Dad for all their support! Happy Holidays! Enjoy the show!!
Kayla Ryan Walsh
*
Kayla is thrilled to return to MMT this holiday season, having last been seen in The Sound of Music. Favorite credits include: The Pilot (Grounded), The Narrator (Fly By Night), The Baker’s Wife (Into the Woods), Poppy (Noises Off) and Bottom (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) to name a few. Kayla is an actor based out of NYC and received a Fulbright Scholarship to study Shakespeare at The Globe in London, as well as was an Acting Apprentice at The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. Go to www.kaylaryanwalsh.com or @kaylaryanwalsh for more! Happy holidays!
Griffin Shaver
*
Griffin Shaver is an 8th grader at Hidden Valley Middle, who has been involved with theatre since he was seven. He enjoys cracking jokes with his mom, reading and discussing comic books and movies with his dad, and playing the French horn in HVMS’s band. He loves to cook, write, and watch TV. Some of his favorite credits include: The Boy in The Velveteen Rabbit (2016), Kurt in The Sound of Music (2019), and Young Shrek/Baby Bear in Shrek: The Musical (2018), and Schwartz in A Christmas Story in 2017. He is super excited to return as the Assistant Director in this year's winter production! Griffin would like to thank his family, friends, and the amazing staff at MMT.
Jack Swank
*
Jack Swank is a fifth grader at Oak Grove Elementary. He was most recently seen as theMunchkin Mayor in Oz: A Staged Concert. His favorite roles with the Virginia Children’sTheatre have been Iago (Aladdin Jr.), Flounder (Songs of the Past), and Bob the Builder (TheVelveteen Rabbit). He also starred in his first film, Omega and Sparks, a Grandin Film LabProduction. In his spare time, he enjoys playing classic rock songs on his guitar. He also loves to play baseball and spending time at the lake, swimming and kneeboarding. Jack would like to thank Mill Mountain Theatre for giving him this opportunity and he triple dog dares you to enjoy the show!
Julia VanderVeen
*
Julia VanderVeen is beyond thrilled to be back at Mill Mountain to get to play with this fabulous cast again! She has traveled a lot of the world performing, from Alaska to the Mediterranean and many places in between. Favorite roles include Prudy Pingleton in Hairspray, Annelle in Steel Magnolias, and Honey in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Julia is also in the process of remounting her one woman comedy show entitled My Grandmother's Eyepatch. She gives a huge thank you to Ginger and the entire team at Mill Mountain for their continued support and hard work for the arts, and a huge thank you to YOU for being here! We can't wait to tell this story for you.
Scott Watson
*
Scott is delighted to return to the stage for the sixth time at one of his favorite theatrical homes, Mill Mountain! Thank you to Ginger and the rest of this hard-working, passionate, and fearless team of artists who have weathered an unprecedented storm and made live performances at Mill Mountain possible again. Previous shows at Mill Mountain: Mamma Mia!, A Christmas Story, The Christians, Putnam County Spelling Bee, The Odd Couple. Off-Broadway: Drunk Shakespeare (Brass Jar Prod), Taming of the Shrew & Henry V (New York Classical Theatre), Going Once, Laughing Twice (St Luke’s Theatre) Regional: Othello, Much Ado About Nothing (Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival), Twelfth Night, Hamlet, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Midsummer Night’s Dream (Shakespeare on the Sound) Julius Caesar (Teatro Delle Due, prod in Italy.) Other Credits: Scott can be spotted in many national commercials, including campaigns for Ray-Ban, Billie, Bluehost, Morgan Stanley, Zenni, Hopper, the NFL and more. Much love to his family, Amanda, and his lazy bunny Dali. BA Grand Valley State University, MI
Meet the Team
Ginger Poole
*
Ginger Poole is a proud member of Actor’s Equity Association and an Associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Union. She has studied, taught, choreographed, and performed throughout the U.S. She has worked in GA, HI, FL, MS, SC and VA with, Theatre in the Square, The Alliance City Series, Theatre Gael, Synchronicity Performance Group-GA, Mill Mountain Theatre-VA and SC Children’s Theatre. Originally from Atlanta, she has worked with the N.F.L. and The Atlanta Falcons as their director and choreographer and The Atlanta Opera. Prior to coming to Mill Mountain Theatre, she was based out of North Carolina where she has worked with Flat Rock Playhouse, the State Theatre of North Carolina, in over 25 productions. She was a part of the Education program at Flat Rock Playhouse for 5 years where she taught for their Apprentice Companies and their Conservatory Program in Acting, Dance, and Musical Theatre. Ginger has taught at The University of Southern Mississippi, Western Carolina University, William Carey College, Mississippi University for Women, and currently teaches at Hollins University. With Ginger’s strong background in dance she finds herself not only acting and dancing on stage but also directing the choreography and classroom skills for her students. Ginger holds her M.F.A. in Acting Performance from the University of Southern Mississippi and continues to teach acting and dance. She has worked with students that range in age from kindergarten through professionals.
Ginger has worked in commercials, voice-overs, film, stage, and the classroom, and was profiled in the book FIRESTARTERS as “the actor”.
Ginger serves on the following Board of Directors: South Eastern Theatre Conference (SETC Secretary, Second Term), Junior League of the Roanoke Valley (Past President and Current Nominating Committee, Second Term), Burton Performing Arts Advisory Board, The Roanoke City Public Schools Education Foundation, and she has served on the Review Panel for theVirginia Commission for the Arts. She was the recipient of the DePaul’s Women of Achievement Award in the Arts in 2013 and was named the 2016 Kendig Award recipient for Individual Artist. Ginger is also a guest host with WSLS, the NBC affiliate, Daytime Blue Ridge television show, and is the host of the new Mill Mountain Theatre Podcast, Meet Me at Mill Mountain. She is very proud to be a member of the Mill Mountain Theatre team and looks forward to its continued growth, success, and artistic influence in the region.
Jimmy Ray Ward
*
With an MFA in Design from UNC-Greensboro, his credits include work at many theatre companies along the East coast such as Spoleto Festival USA, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Seaside Music Theatre, Flatrock Playhouse, and the Gainesville Theatre Alliance. Locally, Jimmy designs for Opera Roanoke, Roanoke Children's Theatre, and Mill Mountain Theatre, where he worked as resident designer for its last nine seasons. Some favorite designs over the years include scenery for Il Trovatore, The Flying Dutchman, The Adventures of Frog and Toad, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Seussical, and Grease, costumes for Hamlet, Beauty and the Beast, Joseph…Technicolor Dreamcoat, and lighting for Driving Miss Daisy, Wit, and Rapunzel, among many others. Despite years of working in a field he loves, Jimmy feels that his best productions to date are his children, Henry and Lily, Gracie and Frank.
Bill Webb
*
Bill is thrilled to be returning to Mill Mountain Theatre as the Lighting Designer for Million Dollar Quartet. Bill is a native of Alfred, NY, where he received his Bachelor of the Arts in Theatre from Alfred University in 1988. He continued training at The University of North Carolina School of the Arts where he earned his Master of Fine Arts in Scenic Technology in 1994. Since 1996 Bill has been on faculty at Elon University in North Carolina where he serves as the Lighting Designer/Production Manager for the Performing Arts Department. Bill has been designing lights at Mill Mountain since the MMT production of Swing in 2014 with 30 MMT Lighting design credits. In addition to his work at Mill Mountain Theatre, Bill has worked throughout the United States for companies such as Cirque Du Soliel, I Weiss, Bungalow Scenic Studios and Arkansas Repertory Theatre.
Matt Shields
*
Matt Shields is a native of Virginia. Having grown up in Loudoun County, he first moved to the region in 2013 to attend school at Radford University where he graduated with a BS in theatre. After working for a few other companies, Matt is happy to call MMT his artistic home. In the past few years Matt has served in a variety of jobs around Mill Mountain, including Props Master, Costumes Manager, Teaching Artist, Scenic Designer, and Company Manager. Matt is very happy to now be serving MMT as the Production Manager and is grateful to MMT for all the faith they have put in him over the years.
Bill Muñoz
*
Bill Muñoz – Production Stage Manager Feeling so grateful to once again return to the ‘Noke! He was in rehearsals here in March of 2020 for Dream Girls, when everything shut down due to the pandemic. Words cannot be found to express the thrill to be back doing live theatre. Past productions at MMT, The Marvelous Wonderettes, A Christmas Story, Mamma Mia and The Sound of Music. Beginning at Flat Rock Playhouse, in Western NC, (30 seasons, over 130 productions) and working in theatres in the southeast, he has also worked as an Actor and Fight Choreographer. Thank you for supporting the Arts!
Kailey Absher
*
Kailey Absher is so excited for live theatre to be back! She was seen most recently at Mill Mountain as Assistant Stage Manager for Million Dollar Quartet and Production Stage Manager for Tomás and the Library Lady. She is a Virginia native, growing up nearby in the New River Valley and is a 2020 graduate of Radford University. Kailey is a member of the Southeastern Theatre Conference as well as the Stage Managers’ Association.
Savannah Woodruff
*
Savannah Woodruff was born and raised in Southern Pines, North Carolina, where she was encouraged to become involved in technical theatre in high school. Savannah is a graduate of The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and received a BFA in Technical Production. Prior to joining the Mill Mountain Theatre staff, she worked as a member of Weston Playhouse Theatre Company’s Intern Company. Savannah is grateful for the support of her family (and especially her cats) in her endeavors, and is thrilled to be able to continue working and growing with Mill Mountain Theatre.
Marquee Digital
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Marquee Digital is a New York-based tech startup innovating the theatre industry with ground-breaking digital program solutions. The Marquee is a paperless program for the 21st century, employing contactless, eco-friendly, and ADA-compliant technology to create an interactive and highly intuitive experience for audiences at the theatre, opera, art fairs, conferences, and concerts. In the company’s first year, Marquees had been opened in venues across the United States and in more than 80 countries around the globe.
Pre-Show Snack or
Post-Show Dinner?
Don’t let the evening end when the curtain comes down. With The Marquee Local, you can find the perfect place for a pre-show snack, an evening meal, or a post-show cocktail. Enjoy exclusive deals from our local partners as you catch up, discuss the show, and create memories to last a lifetime.
Grab a Bite
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Fortunato
Located in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Roanoke, Virginia, Fortunato is the region's only traditional Italian kitchen & Neapolitan style pizzeria.
Fortunato
Located in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Roanoke, Virginia, Fortunato is the region's only traditional Italian kitchen & Neapolitan style pizzeria.
Marquee Deal!
Have a group ticket? Show your MMT Ticket stub to receive 10% off your meal! Valid for one-time use only at participating restaurants.
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Martin's
Casual dining on burgers, BBQ & other bar food in an open tavern setting with live music & a patio.
Martin's
Casual dining on burgers, BBQ & other bar food in an open tavern setting with live music & a patio.
Marquee Deal!
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The Pine Room
From the snack n' share options and hearth flatbreads to the farmland offerings and signature items, The Pine Room features American Rustic cuisine that presents simplistic, sustainable, and high-quality ingredients in an inviting presentation.
The Pine Room
From the snack n' share options and hearth flatbreads to the farmland offerings and signature items, The Pine Room features American Rustic cuisine that presents simplistic, sustainable, and high-quality ingredients in an inviting presentation.
Marquee Deal!
Have a group ticket? Show your MMT Ticket stub to receive 10% off your meal! Valid for one-time use only at participating restaurants.
The Regency Room
Enjoy dining al fresco! Spring is here and it's patio season! The Regency Room and The Pine Room Pub are the perfect place to enjoy dinner or drinks on the patio with spring in the air!
The Regency Room
Enjoy dining al fresco! Spring is here and it's patio season! The Regency Room and The Pine Room Pub are the perfect place to enjoy dinner or drinks on the patio with spring in the air!
Marquee Deal!
Have a group ticket? Show your MMT Ticket stub to receive 10% off your meal! Valid for one-time use only at participating restaurants.
Awful Arthur's
Modern tavern offering varied seafood, bar bites & a raw bar plus sports on TV & live music.
Awful Arthur's
Modern tavern offering varied seafood, bar bites & a raw bar plus sports on TV & live music.
Marquee Deal!
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Corned Beef & Co
Sports bar serves sandwiches & pub grub in expansive digs equipped with pool tables & countless TVs.
Corned Beef & Co
Sports bar serves sandwiches & pub grub in expansive digs equipped with pool tables & countless TVs.
Marquee Deal!
Crescent City Bourbon and Barbecue
The smoked meat is made with care and passion in a stick burner smoker and indoor wood burning smoker.
Crescent City Bourbon and Barbecue
The smoked meat is made with care and passion in a stick burner smoker and indoor wood burning smoker.
Marquee Deal!
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Jack Brown's Beer & Burger Joint
Bar chain serving creative burgers & a lengthy list of beers in a casual, funky space.
Jack Brown's Beer & Burger Joint
Bar chain serving creative burgers & a lengthy list of beers in a casual, funky space.
Marquee Deal!
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Nawab Indian Cuisine
Indian classics & all-you-can-eat buffet lunches, served in a low-key traditional dining room.
Nawab Indian Cuisine
Indian classics & all-you-can-eat buffet lunches, served in a low-key traditional dining room.
Marquee Deal!
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Raise a Glass
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Sidecar
Casual dining on burgers, BBQ & other bar food in an open tavern setting with live music & a patio.
Sidecar
Casual dining on burgers, BBQ & other bar food in an open tavern setting with live music & a patio.
Marquee Deal!
Have a group ticket? Show your MMT Ticket stub to receive 10% off your meal! Valid for one-time use only at participating restaurants.
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Three Notch'd Brewing Co.
The food menu features traditional European foods like handmade sausages in traditional German, Polish, and English styles, as well as Belgian hand-cut fries, mussels, steak frites, and Polish pierogies.
Three Notch'd Brewing Co.
The food menu features traditional European foods like handmade sausages in traditional German, Polish, and English styles, as well as Belgian hand-cut fries, mussels, steak frites, and Polish pierogies.
Marquee Deal!
Have a group ticket? Show your MMT Ticket stub to receive 10% off your meal! Valid for one-time use only at participating restaurants.
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Twisted Track Brewpub
In addition to hand crafted beer, we offer pub fare with yet another twist and a selection of wines, ciders and soft drinks – something for everyone.
Twisted Track Brewpub
In addition to hand crafted beer, we offer pub fare with yet another twist and a selection of wines, ciders and soft drinks – something for everyone.
Marquee Deal!
Have a group ticket? Show your MMT Ticket stub to receive 10% off your meal! Valid for one-time use only at participating restaurants.
Benny Marconi's
Serving huge slices of pizza in downtown Roanoke, VA. Established in 2012.
Benny Marconi's
Serving huge slices of pizza in downtown Roanoke, VA. Established in 2012.
Marquee Deal!
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Billy's
Buzzy dining room with a full wooden bar plating refined American cuisine such as lobster Alfredo.
Billy's
Buzzy dining room with a full wooden bar plating refined American cuisine such as lobster Alfredo.
Marquee Deal!
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Fork in the Market
Quirky, independent eatery offering updated comfort food, a full bar, a patio & live music nightly.
Fork in the Market
Quirky, independent eatery offering updated comfort food, a full bar, a patio & live music nightly.
Marquee Deal!
Texas Tavern
Family-owned since 1930, this 24/7 diner offers breakfast, burgers, sandwiches & its popular chili.
Texas Tavern
Family-owned since 1930, this 24/7 diner offers breakfast, burgers, sandwiches & its popular chili.
Marquee Deal!
While You Wait
With the help of our friends at Theatrely.com, Marquee Digital has you covered with exclusive content while you wait for the curtain to rise.
EXCLUSIVE: Watch A Clip From THEATER CAMP Starring Ben Platt, Noah Galvin, and Molly Gordon
Finally, summer has arrived, which can only mean one thing: it's time for camp! Theater Camp, that is. Theatrely has a sneak peak at the new film which hits select theaters today.
The new original comedy starring Tony Award winner Ben Platt and Molly Gordon we guarantee will have you laughing non-stop. The AdirondACTS, a run-down theater camp in upstate New York, is attended by theater-loving children who must work hard to keep their beloved theater camp afloat after the founder, Joan, falls into a coma.
The film stars Ben Platt and Molly Gordon as Amos Klobuchar and Rebecca-Diane, respectively, as well as Noah Galvin as Glenn Wintrop, Jimmy Tatro as Troy Rubinsky, Patti Harrison as Caroline Krauss, Nathan Lee Graham as Clive DeWitt, Ayo Edebiri as Janet Walch, Owen Thiele as Gigi Charbonier, Caroline Aaron as Rita Cohen, Amy Sedaris as Joan Rubinsky, and Alan Kim as Alan Park.
Theater Camp was directed by Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman and written by Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman & Ben Platt. Music is by James McAlister and Mark Sonnenblick. On January 21, 2023, Theater Camp had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.
You can purchase tickets to the new film from our friends at Hollywood.com here.
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READ: An Excerpt From Sean Hayes Debut YA Novel TIME OUT
Actor Sean Hayes is what we in the biz call booked and blessed. On top of his Tony-nominated performance as Oscar Levant in Good Night, Oscar, Hayes has partnered with Todd Milliner and Carlyn Greenwald for the release of their new YA novel Time Out.
Heralded by many as Heartstopper meets Friday Night Lights, Time Out follows hometown basketball hero Barclay Elliot who decides to use a pep rally to come out to his school. When the response is not what he had hoped and the hostility continually growing, he turns to his best friend Amy who brings him to her voting rights group at school. There he finds Christopher and… you will just have to grab a copy and find out what happens next. Luckily for you, Time Out hits shelves on May 30 and to hold you over until then we have a special except from the book just for Theatrely:
The good thing about not being on the team the past two weeks has been that I’ve had time to start picking up shifts again at Beau’s diner and save up a little for college now that my scholarship dreams are over.
The bad part is it’s the perfect place to see how my actions at the pep rally have rotted the townspeople’s brains too.
During Amy’s very intense musical theater phase in middle school, her parents took her to New York City. And of course she came back home buzzing about Broadway and how beautiful the piss smell was and everything artsy people say about New York. But she also vividly described some diner she waited three hours to get into where the waitstaff would all perform songs for the customers as a way to practice for auditions. The regulars would have favorite staff members and stan them the way Amy stans all her emo musicians.
Working at Beau’s used to feel kind of like that, like I was part of a performance team I didn’t know I signed up for. The job started off pretty basic over the summer—I wanted to save up for basketball supplies, and Amy worked there and said it was boring ever since her e-girl coworker friend graduated. But I couldn’t get through a single lunch rush table without someone calling me over and wanting the inside scoop on the Wildcats and how we were preparing for the home opener, wanting me to sign an article in the paper or take a photo. Every friendly face just made the resolve grow inside me. People love and support the Wildcats; they would do the same for me.
Yeah, right.
Now just like school, customers have been glaring at me, making comments about letting everyone down, about being selfish, about my actions being “unfortunate,” and the tips have been essentially nonexistent. The Wildcats have been obliterated in half their games since I quit, carrying a 2–3 record when last year we were 5–0, and the comments make my feet feel like lead weights I have to drag through every shift.
Today is no different. It’s Thursday, the usual dinner rush at Beau’s, and I try to stay focused on the stress of balancing seven milkshakes on one platter. A group of regulars, some construction workers, keep loudly wondering why I won’t come back to the team while I refuse proper eye contact.
One of the guys looks up at me as I drop the bill off. “So, what’s the deal? Does being queer keep ya from physically being able to play?”
They all snicker as they pull out crumpled bills. I stuff my hands into my pockets, holding my tongue.
When they leave, I hold my breath as I take their bill.
Sure enough, no tip.
“What the fuck?” I mutter under my breath.
“Language,” Amy says as she glides past me, imitating the way Richard says it to her every shift, and adds, “even though they are dicks.” At least Amy’s been ranting about it every free chance she gets. It was one thing when the student body was being shitty about me leaving the team, but the town being like this is even more infuriating. She doesn’t understand how these fully grown adults can really care that much about high school basketball and thinks they need a new fucking hobby. I finally agree with her.
[She’s wearing red lipstick to go with her raccoon-adjacent eyeliner as she rushes off to prepare milkshakes for a pack of middle schoolers. I catch her mid–death glare as all three of the kids rotate in their chairs, making the old things squeal. My anger fades a bit as I can’t help but chuckle; Amy’s pissed-off reaction to Richard telling her to smile more was said raccoon makeup, and her tolerance for buffoonery has been at a negative five to start and declining fast.
I rest my arms on the counter and try not to look as exhausted as I feel.
“Excuse me!” an old lady screeches, making me jump.
Amy covers up a laugh as I head to the old lady and her husband’s table. They’ve got finished plates, full waters. Not sure what the problem is. Or I do, which is worse.
“Yes?” I say trying to suppress my annoyance.
“Could you be bothered to serve us?”
Only five more hours on shift. I have a break in three minutes. I’ll be with Devin at Georgia Tech tomorrow. “I’m sorry, ma’am,” I say, so careful to keep my words even, but I can feel my hands balling into fists. “What would you—?”
And suddenly Amy swoops in, dropping two mugs of coffee down. “Sorry about that, you two,” she says, her voice extra high. “The machine was conking out on us, but it’s fine now.”
Once the coffee is down, she hooks onto a chunk of my shirt, steering us back to the bar.
“Thanks,” I mutter, embarrassed to have forgotten something so basic. Again.
“Just keep it together, man,” she says. “Maybe you’d be better off with that creepy night shift where all the truckers and serial killers come in.”
Honestly, at least the serial killers wouldn’t care about my jump shot.
It’s a few minutes before my break, but clearly I need it. “I’ll be in the back room.”
Right before I can head that way though, someone straight-up bursts into the diner and rushes over to me at the bar. It’s a middle-aged dad type, sunburned skin, beer belly, and stained T-shirt.
“Pickup order?” I ask.
“You should be ashamed,” he sneers at me. He has a really strong Southern accent, but it’s not Georgian. “Think you’re so high and mighty, that nothing’ll ever affect you? My kid’ll never go to college because of you and your lifestyle. Fuck you, Barclay Ell—”
And before this man can finish cursing my name, Pat of all people runs in, wide-eyed in humiliation. “Jesus, Dad, please don’t—”
I pin my gaze on him, remembering how he cowered on the bench as Ostrowski went off, how he didn’t even try to approach me. “Don’t even bother,” I snap.
I shove a to-go bag into his dad’s arms, relieved it’s prepaid, and storm off to the break room.]
Amy finds me head in my arms a minute or two later. I look up, rubbing my eyes. “Please spare me the pity.”
She snorts and hands me a milkshake. Mint chocolate chip. “Wouldn’t dare.” She takes a seat and rolls her shoulders and neck, cracks sounding through the tiny room. “Do you want a distraction or a shoulder to cry on?”
For more information, and to purchase your copy of Time Out, click here.
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Reframing the COVID-19 Pandemic Through a Stage Manager’s Eyes
When the COVID-19 pandemic was declared a national emergency in the United States in March 2020, Broadway veteran stage manager Richard Hester watched the nation’s anxiety unfold on social media.
“No one knew what the virus was going to do,” Hester said. Some people were “losing their minds in abject terror, and then there were some people who were completely denying the whole thing.”
For Hester, the reaction at times felt like something out of a movie. “It was like the Black Plague,” he said. “Some people thought it was going to be like that Monty Python sketch: ‘bring out your dead, bring out your dead.’”
While Hester was also unsure about how the virus would unfold, he felt that his “job as a stage manager is to naturally defuse drama.” Hester brought this approach off the stage and onto social media in the wake of the pandemic.
“I just sort of synthesized everything that was happening into what I thought was a manageable bite, so people could get it,” Hester said. This became a daily exercise for a year. Over two years after the beginning of the pandemic, Hester’s accounts are compiled in the book, Hold Please: Stage Managing A Pandemic. Released earlier this year, the book documents the events of the past two years, filtering national events and day-to-day occurrences through a stage manager’s eyes and storytelling.
When Hester started this project, he had no intention of writing a book. He was originally writing every day because there was nothing else to do. “I am somebody who needs a job or needs a structure,” Hester said.
Surprised to find that people began expecting his daily posts, he began publishing his daily writing to his followers through a Substack newsletter. As his following grew, Hester had to get used to writing for an audience. “I started second guessing myself a lot of the time,” Hester said. “It just sort of put a weird pressure on it.”
Hester said he got especially nervous before publishing posts in which he wrote about more personal topics. For example, some of his posts focused on his experiences growing up in South Africa while others centered on potentially divisive topics, such as the 2020 election and the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Despite some of this discomfort, Hester’s more personal posts were often the ones that got the most response. The experience offered him a writing lesson. “I stopped worrying about the audience and just wrote what I wanted to write about,” Hester said. “All of that pressure that I think as artists we put on ourselves, I got used to it.”
One of Hester’s favorite anecdotes featured in the book centers on a woman who dances in Washington Square Park on a canvas, rain or shine. He said he was “mesmerized by her,” which inspired him to write about her. “It was literally snowing and she was barefoot on her canvas dancing, and that seems to me just a spectacularly beautiful metaphor for everything that we all try and do, and she was living that to the fullest.”
During the creation of Hold Please, Hester got the unique opportunity to reflect in-depth on the first year of the pandemic by looking back at his accounts. He realized that post people would not remember the details of the lockdown; people would “remember it as a gap in their lives, but they weren’t going to remember it beat by beat.”
“Reliving each of those moments made me realize just how full a year it was, even though none of us were doing anything outside,” he adds. “We were all on our couches.” Readers will use the book as a way to relive moments of the pandemic’s first year “without having to wallow in the misery of it,” he hopes.
“I talk about the misery of it, but that’s not the focus of what I wrote... it was about hope and moving forward,” Hester said. “In these times when everything is so difficult, we will figure out a way to get through and we will move forward.”
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Let's Connect
Theatre is all about connection. Follow us to keep in touch and stay up to date on all the latest news!
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