Fall 2016 Vol*Star Newsletter — PDF

Fall 2016
A newsletter for
the volunteers of
Johnson County
Community
College’s
Performing Arts
Series
jccc.edu/TheSeries – Find the electronic version of this newsletter online
Hello Vol *Stars,
As I’m writing this final
newsletter to you, I’m still in
my office and still counting
down the days until I’m not
pregnant in this sweltering
heat. Of course, by the time this
hits your mailboxes, I will have
cleaned out my office and I’ll be
at home with Henry, Caroline
and the new baby. But, I’m sure
it will still be hot and humid.
To say that it was a difficult
decision to not return to
this position after the baby arrives would be an
understatement. I have so thoroughly enjoyed working
at JCCC with my PAS colleagues and, mostly, you.
It’s been a privilege to work with all of you these
past 5+ years. You are caring, committed, engaged
and enthusiastic. One of my most favorite aspects of
working with this group of volunteers is sitting around in
the coat room before a preshow meeting and chatting
about what’s happening in your lives; your travels, your
family and your work. You’re such a fascinating group
of people. You are the best part about this job, and I
know that the next person in this position is a very lucky
individual.
Thank you for opening up a space in your own hearts to
share with me. Hugs to each of you.
Sincerely,
Christina Wright
Christina Wright
JCCC Academic Performances
All academic performances are free and open to the public.
THEATRE:
O Faculty Room l Bodker Black Box Theatre
Sept. 16-18, 23-25
Friday and Saturday 7:30 p.m. and
Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m.
O
Mary O’ l Polsky Theatre
Nov. 11-13, 18-20
Friday and Saturday 7:30 p.m. and
Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m.
O
One Act Play Festival l Bodker Black Box Theatre
Dec. 8-11
Thursday, Friday and Saturday 7:30 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m.
JCCC CONCERT BAND:
Tuesday, Oct. 4, 7:30 p.m. l Polsky Theatre
Tuesday, Dec. 6, 7:30 p.m. l Yardley Hall
JCCC CHOIR CONCERT:
Thursday, Oct. 6, 7:30 p.m. l Polsky Theatre
Wednesday, Dec. 7, 7:30 p.m. l Polsky Theatre
Reminders:
Ushers should stand when
house lights are up (preshow,
intermission, postshow). Please
wait to take your seats (or
ledges) until the patrons are
seated first.
All ushers, regardless of
assignment, need a flashlight
at all times to help with late
seating, direct patrons and be
prepared in the event of an
emergency.
If you would like to receive
the college’s emergency text
and email notifications, please
send us your cell phone and/
or email addess for this opt-in
service.
Please call the Vol*Star hotline
at 913-469-8500, ext. 4312,
with last-minute cancellations.
Important Dates:
Monday, Aug. 29
Fall sign-ups due to our office
Saturday, Sept. 10
Last available summer
volunteer training
Procedural Change:
Wheelchairs and Walkers
Saturday, Sept. 24
Vol*Star appreciation breakfast
We have changed our
procedures for handling
wheelchairs and walkers at
events. Effective immediately,
wheelchair and walker patrons
are asked to keep their
wheelchair or walker with them
during the event.
companion who can retrieve
it at intermission or after the
event. If no one is available
to assist them, an usher will
help return the device as
expediently as possible.
Saturday, Oct. 15
New volunteer training
The goal of this new procedure
is to remove the responsibility
from the volunteer who, in the
event of an emergency, may or
may not be able to return it to
the patron in a timely manner.
Beginning this fall season, the
times of our arts education
school shows are changing to
10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. You
have the option to sign up for
one or both shows.
If the patron prefers that his
or her wheelchair or walker
be stored in a vestibule, he or
she will be asked if there is a
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Saturday, Oct. 1
Fall season begins
School Show Time
Changes:
Event Captain Spotlight:
Janet Holt
Tell us about yourself.
I came to Kansas City in the early 1980s after college and
have always enjoyed living here, watching the city grow and
change. I am a longtime Royals fan and cheer for the Kansas
City Chiefs, Mizzou Tigers and Kansas Jayhawks. I like to go to the zoo, the arboretum and various museums.
I love live theater and have tickets to the JCCC Performing
Arts Series. I especially like musicals, and try to make the
rounds of the nearby high schools when they produce
shows. (I think they are quite good.) My son introduced
me to opera, so now I have (and enjoy) tickets to the Lyric
Opera of Kansas City. In the summer I love to be outdoors and see Shakespeare in
the Park, musicals at Shawnee Mission Theatre in the Park,
Starlight Theatre and Leawood Stage Company. How did you start volunteering with the Vol*Stars?
There must have been a day when I realized I could see more shows (or parts of shows) if I
ushered, and so I started ushering. First in midtown, and now at JCCC. I really like ushering
– our coordinators are top-notch and they help us to be professional, the other ushers are
very friendly, and the patrons are fun. Why do you volunteer?
My mom was a civic activist, which is a volunteer job. People said she made Columbia,
Missouri, a better town with her “persistent encouragement” of the local politicians. I grew
up volunteering, trying to make the world a better place.
What is your favorite event to volunteer for in the Carlsen Center?
School shows are my favorite – it takes me back to the days when my kids were in school
and I would volunteer for field trips. I think it is a lot easier to usher than to chaperone a field
trip! So far the highlight of my ushering career has been The Blue Man Group performance
last January.
What keeps you busy when you’re not volunteering at the Carlsen Center?
I also volunteer at church, and have recently signed up to work at a local community garden. All of the produce goes to a food bank, and they have bees! In my garden at home I planted
milkweed for the Monarch butterflies, and a whole variety of native plants for the pollinators. So I am excited to see what I can learn about bees and bee keeping.
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Fall Event
Sign-Up
Fall 2016 Events:
Did You Know . . .?
In 2015, the Plaza Arts Fair brought together 240 artists,
23 restaurants and three live stages with 50 different
acts. More than 300,000 people experience this weekend,
making the Performing Arts Series’ reach long and wide.
Volunteer with us at our booth September 23 to 25, 2016.
◆◆◆
BASETRACK LIVE is a documentary theatre piece
produced about the impact of war on veterans, and their
families. Photographs and videos shot by embedded
journalists bring to light the stories of other Marines and
their feelings about deploying and their hopes and dreams
of coming home. See it in Yardley Hall on Sunday, Oct. 9.
◆◆◆
Heartland Men’s Chorus provides excellence in
performance while advancing men’s choral music, building
community and reaching out to diverse audiences. The
volunteer chorus of gay and gay-sensitive people make a
positive cultural contribution to the entire community. See
them in concert in Yardley Hall Saturday, Dec. 10.
You have two options to sign
up for events:
1.(Preferred method) Visit
www.myvolunteerpage.
com and use your online
volunteer account to sign
up online. Online sign-up
instructions are available
at www.jccc.edu/TheSeries
(click on the “volunteer”
tab).
Or
2.Return the enclosed sign-up
page by mail.
Regardless of how you sign
up, ensure we receive your
requests by Monday, Aug.
29, 2016. Online sign-ups
are handled exactly the
same way mailed sign-ups
are handled. Volunteers
are encouraged to sign up
online.
2016-2017 Performing Arts Series
Program Line-Up
BASETRACK LIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 9
Wichita Grand Opera – La Bohème . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 15
Will Matthews B-3 Organ Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 16
An Evening with Garrison Keillor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 21
Art of Time Ensemble performs
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 22
Havana Cuba All-Stars – Cuban Nights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 28
Gingger Shankar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OCT. 29
Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOV. 4
The Official Blues BrothersTM Revue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOV. 6
Foreigner – The Hits Unplugged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOV. 18
ANNIE the Musical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEC. 1
TEN Tenors – Home for the Holidays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEC. 3
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEC. 9
David Basse/Joe Cartwright Septet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEC. 18
Koresh Dance Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JAN. 21
Sons of Brasil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JAN. 22
Everybody’s Hero: The Jackie Robinson Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JAN. 27
Richter Uzur Duo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 3
Classic Albums LIVE – Led Zeppelin II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 4
Marriage is Funny . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 10
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The Five Irish Tenors – A Tribute to John McCormack . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 17
Bach Aria Soloists – L’Histoire du Soldat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 18
ETHEL String Quartet and Robert Mirabal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 24
BODYTRAFFIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 25
Alaturka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 26
The Odd Squad LIVE! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FEB. 28
The Triplets of Belleville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 3
DakhaBrakha (from Kiev, Ukraine) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 10
Seven Fingers of the Hand – Cuisine & Confessions . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 11
Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 18
Jazz 100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 19
Heart of America Shakespeare Festival
The Tempest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 23-26
Paragon Ragtime Orchestra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARCH 31
Trio Virado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APRIL 7
Bobby McFerrin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APRIL 21
it gets better . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APRIL 22
Sing Along with the Muppet Movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . APRIL 30
Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MAY 13
Joey Alexander (jazz piano) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MAY 20