FY 2012 Annual Report - The Seasoned Performers

The
Seasoned
Performers
Alabama’s ONLY Senior Adult Theatre
Annual Report Fiscal Year 2011
A Message from the Executive Director
Dear Friends,
2011 was a banner year in many ways for The Seasoned Performers.
As Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale of Two Cities, “ It was the best of times,
it was the worst of times...” And it was a tale of two cities as we moved from
Vestavia Hills, where we had been for over a dozen years, to our new space
at Artists on the Bluff in Hoover. The change of address has been great in
many ways, and we expect its blessings to continue and grow. We presented
two wonderful readings of Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood, first at the
Hoover Library Theatre in June, and again at Samford University’s Bolding
Studio in September. And we got our first taste of teaching senior adult
theatre classes when we partnered with Episcopal Place and the Virginia
Samford Theatre in a Kresge grant.
The greatest loss of the year was the death of our longtime actor and
supporter, Georgene Gainey in February of 2011 at age 92. Georgene was
rehearsing for our spring tour of Night Call Nurses and was waiting for a
fellow TSP actor to pick her up for an evening at the theatre. She had just
Barbara Sloan, Executive Director, and attended her monthly Speech Arts Club and literary club meetings. She said
Ellise Mayor, Artistic Director at the
being part of TSP made her get up in the morning. Georgene was the poster
child of what TSP represents. Recent studies show that when senior adults
Baby Boomer Birthday Bash
are involved in programs like ours, they stay active, and this helps them
maintain their health and prevent disease. Mostly we miss her strong, steady
voice and her forthright comments.
Our nonprofit company perseveres with grace, producing original
material, providing performance opportunities for older adults, and taking
live theatre to special and often underserved audiences, despite ongoing
funding challenges. At the end of the fiscal year, we were still hoping for
money for a new van and for raising our staff salaries, which have been
frozen over the last three years during the country’s economic turndown.
We are always looking for new board members, supporters, and volunteers.
Please let us know if you have any ideas.
Thank you for encouraging TSP and participating in our joyous
work!
Barbara Sloan
TSP Makes a Difference
A quote from Georgene Gainey’s daughter:
“Mother’s twice-weekly performances were the source of conversation of all
my phone calls, and I was always very impressed when I had the opportunity to attend
a performance. Just as interesting would be the ride to and from the venue in the van.
That group of folks was Mother’s extended family, and I always felt so pleased that she
Motto: “Fire is seen in the eyes of could continue to be part of it all.”
Dorvy Jean and Georgene Gainey at
our 2010 Holiday Luncheon
the young, but it is light that we
see in the eyes of the seasoned.”
Victor Hugo
Mission: To enhance lives of
senior adults through theatre
Maxim: To send a message
of positive aging
The Seasoned Performers
Artists on the Bluff
571 Park Avenue
Birmingham, AL 35226
205/978-5095
[email protected]
www.seasonedperformers.org
A quote from Alan Litsey in a peer review:
“It was such a lift to see the latest production of The Seasoned Performers.
All of the elements come together with grace and clarity: the acting, design, direction
and script. The play has a timely and universal message, gently nudging us to savor each
moment as well as the challenges that face us. Loved the idea that we are ALL of the
ages we have experienced, inspiring us to hold on to our ability to play as well as draw
on the wisdom time presents.
“The Seasoned Performers is doing some of the most important work in our
state, drawing audiences to live theatre, all within the context of warm humor, strong
stories and provocative questions. Providing
opportunities for senior artists is a unique aspect
of your mission. The way in which the Seasoned
Performers brings the generations together is
an important model for other performing arts
organizations.”
A quote from a Performer:
“It has been a ball, more fun that I ever
could have imagined!”
Martha Haarbauer, Founder, with
longtime Seasoned Performer, Virginia
Mae Schmitt at the Holiday Luncheon
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President: Josh Andrews (Mike Gerrells took over at
Secretary: Nell Richardson
end of term)
Treasurer: Patsy Sawyer
Sandra Lawler
Brad LaMonte
Beth McCord
Barbara Sloan
(Carolyn Newton
and Jim Sturdivant
resigned in the
middle of FY ‘11)
ACTORS
Barbara Blackwood
Boots Carroll
Georgene Gainey
Arlene Hall
Dorvalyn Jean Phyllis Landers
Sally Montgomery Nell Richardson
STAFF
Tommie Willis, Beth McCord (board
Barbara Sloan,
member and actor), and Sally Montgomery
Executive Director
Ellise Mayor, Artistic Director
Martha Haarbauer, Readers Coordinator
Edwin Booth, Technical Associate
ADVISORY COUNCIL
Linda Allison
Jim Anderson
Linda Andrews
Carole Armistead
John Batson
Beverly Brasell
Jean Burford
Boots Carroll
Rod Davis
Charlotte Dominick
Marva Douglas Brenda DuVall
Andrew Duxbury Della Fancher
Sue Ellen Gerrells Cathy Gilmore
Harold Hunt
Rick James
Jeff Johnson
Diane Litsey
Alan Litsey
Jack Mann
Suzanne Mann
Julia Matson
Patty McDonald Dianne Mooney
Carolyn Newton
Rick Rivenbark
Virginia Mae SchmittDebi Strevy Cast of the
Salon’s Under
Martha Moore Sykes Jim Sturdivant
Milk Wood
Cameron Vowell
Nancy Watkins
at Samford
Kay Wilburn
Stanley Woodall
University on
front row: Sam
Chalker, Beverly
Brasell, Robert
Hill, Sandra
Lawler, Bob
Penny, Carole
Armistead, and
Ron Dauphinee.
Back row:
Martha
Haarbauer and
director, Ward
Haarbauer.
READERS
Jim Anderson
Leigh Ann Botters
Frances Cook
Noble Edwards
Leo Hall
Phyllis Landers
Jane McCrary Rick Rivenbark
M.H. Smith
John Wright, Jr.
Linda Barnes
Marva Douglas
Mike Gerrells
Charmian Hain
Lin Kendrick
Beth McCord
Mildred Michoudet
Tommie Willis
What’s In
a Name
performing a
dinner theatre
for Brookdale
Senior Living:
Tommie Willis,
Barbara
Blackwood,
and Georgene
Gainey.
Marsh Adam
Sam Chalker
Inez Donahoo
Gayle Edwards
Nova Lacefield
Jeanette Lincecum
Pauline Neilson
Bert Seaman
Dan Wise
Readers at
Avondale
Elementary
School
SALON
Marsh Adams
Evelyn Allen
Beverly Brasell
Sam Chalker
April Deal
Marva Douglas
Sue Ellen Gerrells
Ward Haarbauer
Frank Kanelos
Sandra Lawler
Shirley McCulloh
Jeannette Stelzenmuller
Sandra Taylor
Nancy Watkins
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Carole Armistead
John Batson
Boots Carroll
Ron Dauphinee
Charlotte Dominick
Mike Gerrells
Martha Haarbauer Robert Hill
Adriana Keathley
Jeanette Lincecum
Bob Penny
Ginger Sharbel Jane Trechsel
John Wright, Jr.
Touring and Attendance
October 1, 2010 - September 30, 2011
Play Tour
Fall of 2010: What’s in a Name? Spring of 2011: Night Call Nurses or What the Health?!
Total Performances
Total Play Audience Members
Total Play Rehearsals
Total Other Rehearsals (Salon and Special Events)
29 performances
26 performances
55 performances
2,132
71
14
Readers Tour
Total Audience Members
Total Readers Workshops
100 readings
3,795
44
Total Acting Workshops
SAASY/Kresge Lecture
4
1
Total Volunteer Hours
Volunteer Performers
3,698
43
Total Audience Members (Play and Readers)
5,313
Audience Percentages
Birmingham
Jefferson County
Jefferson County Seniors Served
Urban Audience
Suburban and Small Town Audience
Rural Audience
54%
91%
3,803
37%
53%
10%
Minority Audience Members
Senior Audience Members
Student Audience Members
Adult Audience Members
21%
72%
13%
15%
Counties Served (8 total) -- Please note:
In Fiscal Year 2010, we visited 14 counties,
but with the price of gas and the economic turndown,
we had to cut back almost in half that number
in 2011:
Chilton Jefferson Marengo St. Clair Elmore
Madison
Shelby
Talladega
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Community Support
October 1, 2010 - September 30, 2011
As has been the reality since 2008, fundraising for TSP was challenging
in 2011. Our earned income totalled $104,482, less even than 2010. As
well, our expenses exceeded our income, and our income did not match
its projected budget of $131,550.
Total individual donors to TSP numbered 147 -- and 163 separate donations, because
some patrons donated multiple times. This number included over 20 first time
contributors and several people who pledged monthly or quarterly amounts. We also
received a number of memorials to Georgene Gainey, a longtime TSP member who
died in February 2011.
Our biggest community supporter remained the Jefferson County Office of Senior
Citizen Services. Other funding came from the Alabama State Council on the Arts,
The Daniel Foundation of Alabama, The Kresge Foundation, The Blue Cross Blue Patty McDonald was the first
honorary chair of our Red Hot
Shield Caring Foundation, and the Wells Fargo Foundation.
Holiday Party held at The Club
Our Corporate Partnerships gained us more money than we have
ever had in the past -- raising over $21,300 (counting big company
foundations listed above). Several sponsors got involved in the Baby
Boomer Birthday Bash, as well as other programs and projects.
Corporate support came from Lynn Campisi (Elder Law), Jack’s Family
Restaurants, HealthSouth, Town Village, Danberry, Brookdale, ChickFil-A, AT&T Matching Funds, and Southlake Orthopaedics.
The Seasoned Performers continued our annual Red Hot Holiday
Norton Dill and the Dill Pickers performed
at the Baby Boomer Birthday Bash
Party on December 13, 2010. The event was held at The Club and Patty
McDonald was our first honorary chair, raising several thousand dollars
for TSP. On March 27, 2011, Norton Dill and the Dill Pickers were the
headliners at our Baby Boomer Birthday Bash, an event at the Virginia
Samford Theatre that honored Cousin Cliff Holman with a posthumous
Silver Pepper, which his wife Ann and son Kyle accepted. Jack’s Family
Restaurants not only assisted the event financially, but they also served
hamburgers and milk shakes at the reception. The event was fun, and put
a few thousand more dollars into our bank account. In our new space, we
held “A Yard Act to Follow” yard sale, which may become an annual event.
Yard Sale in August at our new
location at Artists on the Bluff
Mike and Mary Anne Freeman, along with AT&T’s matching fund,
sponsored the Salon Readers at Samford University’s Bonnie Bolding
Studio Theatre in a second run last year of Under Milk Wood.
For more information on donating funds or services
to The Seasoned Performers, please
contact Barbara Sloan, Executive
Director 205-978-5095 or barbara@
seasonedperformers.org.
Andy Duxbury, Tim Holder,
Barbara Sloan, Beverly Brasell,
Cathy Gilmore, and Bonner
Wagnon at Andy’s lecture kicking
off the Kresge Grant project.
5
Ann Holman accepted the Silver Pepper
Award on behalf of Cousin Cliff
Individual Support
Totaling: $17,362.00
Community & Corporate Support
Totaling: $84,500.00
Red Hot Tamale
Boots Carroll***
Victor Fichtner
Michael Hall
Ms. Dorvalyn Jean*** +
Patty McDonald**
Jane S. Webb
Highly Seasoned
Miche and Sam Boles
Rachel Ferguson
Mike & Mary Anne Freeman
James Gordy
Arlene and Leo Hall***
Sandra Lawler*
Rick Rivenbark*** & Nova Lacefield***
M.H. Smith***
Fergus Tuohy
Cameron Vowell** X +
Hot & Spicy
Betty Goldstein X
Lancaster Family
Rose M. Lee
Robert Listerman and
Jason Turner
Charles “Scotty” McCallum
Jean Pierce
Mr. & Mrs. Joe T. Roberson
Patricia Sawyer*
Virginia Mae Schmitt
Richard and Frances Scholl
William and Jean Shanks X
Garland Smith
Lucille R. Thompson
Caron Thornton
Mr. & Mrs. Charles Vawter
Bill & Linda Voigt
Paul & Joanna Ware
Norman and Macky Warren
Pat Weitnauer
Louise and Edgar Welden
William Lindsay Williams X
Tommie Willis***
Dr. Richard Allman
Carole Armistead** X
Beverly Brasell**
Jim*** & Dot Anderson
Andy Duxbury**
Robert & Kathleen Angus
Michael Jean Lancaster
Alys Stephens Center +
Julia Matson**
Sara Bahner +
Ellise Mayor (in memory of Ken Jo Ballard +
Pruitt)
Catherine Benefield
Ella Byrd McCain +
Joyce Benington
Dianne & Bill Mooney X
Mr. and Mrs. Adrian Bewley
Alan Murray and Patricia Karen Blatter +
Buckler
Winnie Boles
Angela Pruitt
Beverly Brasell
Bill and Nell Richardson*
Lawrence & Louise Brasher +
Kay Wilburn**
Bert Brouwer
Jeannie Brown
Kristina Callahan +
Marsh Adams***
Shannon Champion +
Margaret Alexander
Cosmos Club +
Linda Barnes +
Robert& Jan Collins
Sue Ann Bates-Watson X
Glen Conn
Janie Berry
Roger Conville
Amanda & Lee Borden
Dr. Kim Crockard +
Dr. Loretta Brown +
Susan Davenport
Antoinette and Theodis Buggs Judith Deegan
Celeste Burnum
Michael Ellerbusch & Gerda Carmichael
Southlake Orthopaedics
Christopher Cook
Joyce Fancher
Frances Cook***
John Featheringill
Linda David +
David * Ann Fraley +
Inez Donahoo***
Lisa Paden Gaines
Scott Downs***
Joel & Gayle Gilbert
Dr. Andrew Duxbury** and Alfred & Nancy Guido
Tommy Thompson
Ward*** &
Scott Wells Ford
Martha Haarbauer****
Pat Fresk
Jean & Bill Hardekopf
Mike*** & Sue Ellen Gerrells +
Susan & Wyatt Haskell +
Sal Griffis +
Elizabeth Haun
Christopher Hall
Frances Johnson
Tallulah Hargrove
Ann Johnson
Mrs. Shirley Hess/
Billie Kelly
Hess Foundation
Karen Kelly
Sandy Hines
Dr. & Mrs. Robert Koehler
Catherine Hodges
Mr. Yue Li
Henry Holton +
David Loper
Dolores Hydock +
John & Charlotte Lusco +
Leo Kayser and
Beth* & Wallace McCord
Shirley McCulloh
Karolyn Mersmann
Phyllis Murell
George & Emily Omura
Belle Prosser
Kathie & Pringle Ramsey
Nina Reeves
Phyllis Rickart
Jim Sisson X
Grady Smith
Speech Arts Club +
Cynthia Sproull
Deborah Strevy
Sherry Towers
Don Turnbull +
Albert & Arlene White +
George & Marcy Ann Williams
Mr. Gordon Wood
Stanley Woodall**
Cherie Woods
David & Nancy Wright
* Board of Directors
** Advisory Council
*** Performer/Reader
**** Staff
Zippy
Individuals
Honored
Frances Cook
by Winnie Boles and
by Janie Berry
Patty McDonald
Marked by X
In Memory
Zesty
Georgene Gainey
Marked by +
In-Kind
Contributions
Reception support is from:
Jack’s Family Restaurants,
International Wine, and
Dreamcakes Bakery
In-kind support is from:
Cil Frazier, Jerry Tracey
and WVTM Alabama’s
13, Don Dailey and Cox
Radio, Ben Burford of
Davis Denny, Vestavia Hills
United Methodist Church,
Southminster Presbyterian,
The Unitarian Universalist
Church, Samford
University Theatre,
Vestavia Hills High School,
Kwik Kopy Vestavia,
Alpha Graphics, and our
volunteer performers.
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Corporate Matching
Programs: AT&T and IBM.
Community
Sponsors
The Jefferson County Office of Senior Citizen Services
The Alabama State Council on the Arts
Corporate and
Foundation
Sponsors
The Daniel Foundation of Alabama
The Alabama Power Foundation
The Wells Fargo Foundation
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Caring
Foundation
Jack’s Family Restaurants
HealthSouth
Lynn Campisi honoring Dr. Andrew Duxbury
Town Village
Danberry
Brookdale
Southlake Orthopaedics
Community
Partnerships
TSP values its relationships
with other organizations in our
community including:
Alabama Association of Nonprofits
Birmingham Area Theatre Alliance
Virginia Samford Theatre
Year in Review: 2010 - 2011
The year 2011 marked the 28th year of touring for The Seasoned Performers.
During this season (October 2010 - September 2011), our associates and members
totaled ninety-five (95) active individuals. The staff remains at four part-time
members, including Barbara Sloan, Executive Director; Ellise Mayor, Artistic
Director; Martha Haarbauer, Readers Coordinator; and Edwin Booth, Technical
Advisor. In 2011, we had a record 16 actors for the touring play, 19 readers -- and also
20 salon performers not counted already in the other categories. We performed for
5,313 audience members for a total of 156 presentations. We have thirty-six members
on the Advisory Council, and Beverly Brasell continues as head of the AC Steering
Committee, which has done quite well with fundraising events as its mission. The
Seasoned Performers Board dropped to seven with some resignations.
We started off the year attempting to create a Salon Series, and offered
An Afternoon with Eudora Welty, given by the Salon at the Martha Moore Sykes
Studio Theatre at the Virginia Samford Theatre. Also in that series we presented
in December, A Cajun Celtic Christmas at the Unitarian Universalist Church, and
Reflections of a Mind’s Eye: Arts and Aging Lecture, an intriguing talk by Dr. Andrew
Duxbury of the UAB Center for Aging. A February offering was abandoned in
favor of presenting a Staged Concert Reading of Under Milk Wood directed by Ward
Dorvy Jean, Arlene Hall, and Boots Carroll
Haarbauer, and performed in June at the Hoover Library Theatre and in September at
the Bonnie Bolding Studio Theatre on the Samford University campus, sponsored by
Michael J. and Mary Anne Freeman. The reading featured Carole Armistead, Beverly
Brasell, Sam Chalker, Ron Dauphinee, Martha Haarbauer, Ward Haarbauer, Robert
Hill, Sandra Lawler, and Bob Penny. We cannot continue such an ambitious series
without proper funding, though it was successful and well-attended.
In the fall, we presented What’s in a Name? three short plays by Bonnie
Merriman, Dona Hardy, and Don Bishop as the touring production, including a
dinner theatre presentation at Brookdale. In the spring, we mounted a new play by
Andy Duxbury, Night Call Nurses or What the Health?! the last funded play we have
been able to create from scratch.
The Readers presented over 15 different pieces, including the new “Workin’
Life,” “Are We There Yet?” and “How Does Your Garden Grow?” Interesting venues
included the Vestavia Hills Civitan Club, a large group of Energizers (retired Alabama Carole Armistead in Under Milk Wood
Power employees), and over 250 people at a diversity function at HealthSouth.
December was busy with not only the Salon reading at the Unitarian Church
but also our second annual Red Hot Holiday Party at The Club with honorary chair
Patty McDonald, and a company holiday luncheon provided generously by Brookdale
Senior Living. In March, a lot of energy went into the Baby Boomer Birthday Bash
and salute to Cousin Cliff Holman, who received a posthumous Silver Pepper Award.
The biggest news in 2011 was the move to new office, workshop, and
rehearsal space at Artists on the Bluff, a new artist community in Bluff Park. We had
a Yard Sale to assist with the move, and also had a spring luncheon at Dale’s Southern
Grill in Vestavia Hills. During the summer, Martha Haarbauer repeated her acting
workshop for seniors called “Keeping Your Act Together” and it drew around 15
participants this year.
Sue Ellen and Mike Gerrells
Probably our biggest accomplishment of the year was a partnership with
the Virginia Samford Theatre and Episcopal Place using a Kresge Grant to create a
SAASY theatre arts workshop for older adults. It was taught by Beverly Brasell and
Jan Hunter, and also pulled in some residents from Greenbriar close by. The class
enthusiastically gave a final presentation at both Episcopal Place and Greenbriar. Dr.
Hon Yuen of the UAB Center for Aging and Occupational Therapy departments
helped us assess the participants at the end of the class, with amazing results. As a
consequence of this program, we gained a new actor, Lin Hendrick.
At the very end of the fiscal year, our president, Josh Andrews resigned. With
two other board departures, Sandra Lawler stepped up to the plate and invited two
former board members to re-join and build the group back up. These individuals were
Julia Matson and Rick Rivenbark, who was elected Vice President. She also asked
performer Mike Gerrells to come on board to be President, a role which he accepted
with great honor. We also added Bill Voigt, retired Executive Director of the Office of
Senior Citizen Services to the group to end up with ten members to start Fiscal Year
2012. 7
Afternoon with Eudora Welty cast
Financial Statements
Income and Expenses 2007 - 2011 - Income still needs to catch up and exceed expenses
Individual Donors fell significantly in
2010 with the Economic Recession
and began to rise again in 2011
Income Sources for 2011 compared to 2010
- categories evened out some
ANNUAL REPORT GENEROUSLY
PRINTED BY KWIK KOPY IN
VESTAVIA HILLS