The Footlight Club—America`s Oldest

THE PROMPTER
NOVEMBER 2012
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Join us in Eliot Hall for a modern re-telling of the biblical
story of Joseph, Jacob's favorite son. This Andrew Lloyd
Webber musical takes place on and around a children's
playground, where the adults (led by Madeline McCord) tell
the story from a 2012 perspective.
Universal themes of dreams, hope, sibling rivalry, betrayal,
forgiveness, and ultimately, love provide something for
everyone in this family-friendly musical. According to Carol
Pyper, one of the show's producers, "This production is an
energetic toe-tapper with music from different genres the
whole audience will enjoy - country western, rock, calypso,
and even a French themed ballad. This show incorporates
lively dance with beautiful harmonies and orchestrations."
A talented mix of Footlight Club regulars and newbies make
up the cast, which includes a large ensemble of men, women,
and children featuring: Nate Haywood (Joseph), Madeline
McCord (Narrator), Dan Goldstone (Reuben), Michael Glicksman (Levi), Jose Merlo (Judah), Sean Benak (Dan/
Pharaoh), Scot Colford (Simeon/Potiphar), Caitlin Gjerdrum (Naphtali), Terry Tamm (Gad/Baker), Rob Harris
(Issachar), Todd Rinehart (Zebulan), Sara Schonour (Asher), Isaac Haber (Benjamin), Martin Thomson (Jacob/
Butler); Women's Ensemble: Jennifer McDonald, Saleia Woodhouse, Lauren Gray, Laura Kandziolka, Kira Lew,
Melody Tang; Children's Chorus: Max Harris, Skyler Goldstone, Felcia Rosen, Chloe Jepsen, Alexeya O'Brien,
Lucy M. Abdow, Max Jepsen, Mia Silvestri, Naomi Michaelson, and Annia Ferdinant.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is directed and
choreographed by Steve Borowka, with musical direction
by Shawn Gelzleichter.
Curtain at 8:00 p.m. November 3, 10, 16 and 17
Curtain at 2:00 p.m. November 4, 10, 11, and 17
Call 617-524-3200
Tickets at www.Footlight.org
The Footlight Club—America’s Oldest Community Theater
Eliot Hall—7A Eliot Street—Jamaica Plain, Mass. 02130
Message from the president—November 2012
Dear Members:
As I write this, scaffolding surrounds our precious Eliot Hall and the roof renovation is well underway. We are
on track to have it completed before winter. Many thanks to those who have been involved in the process,
especially Gaf Condon, Jason Sheehan, Jesse Martin, Kristin MacDougall, Paul O’Shaughnessy, and Brian Crete
for their vigilance in ensuring the renovation goes smoothly, leveraging use of the scaffolding (time to address
the bird nesting in the dressing room bathroom vents), and managing the safety of patrons and neighbors
during the process.
In other building news, Jesse Martin and John Douglass continue to work with the Boston Fire Department and
building inspectors to ensure that the building is safe for our members, volunteers, audiences, and renters.
Once again, Open Studios weekend was a success for the artists who showed their work in the building and for
the Footlight Club. We sold tickets to The Tempest and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, as well as ten
new memberships. On Sunday, Open Studios patrons were able to take a quick look at a “Joseph…” rehearsal
and hear wonderful music from our talented cast.
With our season launched and the roof renovation underway, we had time for relaxed discussion at our Annual
Meeting on October 1. Congratulations to our new active member Svetlana Orlova.
While we are fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated committee in the Trustees of Eliot Hall, it will take
many of our members and friends to repay the funds we used to cover the roof renovation. While donations are
always welcome, there are other ways to help. Currently the majority of our revenue is raised through ticket and
refreshment sales at our main stage productions (including A Carol Christmas). My personal challenge/request of
you is to schedule a night during the run of our shows to bring a friend(s) to the theater. The quality of our
productions is good and hopefully once someone is exposed to the Footlight Club they will return for other
shows. If each of our approximately 300 members brought someone new to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat we could raise more than $7,000!
November is a busy month with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat up and running, auditions for Wait
until Dark and Parade, and rehearsals for A Carol Christmas. The trustees are sponsoring their second postperformance, opening night reception on November 3. I look forward to seeing you at the reception or at Eliot
Hall soon.
Warm regards,
Maria
Two types of Footlight Club history
You can’t miss it when you enter the building - that nice sign welcoming members and guests to Eliot Hall.
Now, thanks to our intrepid historian Paul Campbell, we have documentation of its original use.
This invitation uses the “Once More You are Heartily Welcome” message to welcome theater goers to the
Footlight Club’s 1879 production of She Stoops to Conquer.
Who knew thirty years ago when Paul Campbell first joined the Footlight Club as Juror #4 in Twelve Angry Men,
that in addition to gaining an actor, we would also again a director, editor, board member, greeter, and an avid
collector of Footlight Club history. Many thanks to Paul for collecting another piece of our past and congratulations on thirty years as a member!
The roof over our head…
You may recently have seen the staging or
heard the hammering at Eliot Hall. A new
roof is underway! This is the first stage of
our renovation efforts. For the first time in
seventeen years, major work is being done
on the building exterior. The current roof is
approximately one hundred years old and
long overdue for replacement.
Thanks to the donors, trustees, directors,
and the John Henry Roofing (JHR) crew, a
new roof has been made possible. “John
Henry Roofing is proud to have taken part
in the exciting project of restoring and reroofing the slate roof at the Footlight Club,” says General Manager
Jim Madden. Not only was the roof replaced, but new copper ridge caps, aluminum gutters, down spouts, and
snow guards were installed. The building should be able to handle whatever New England weather gets blown
at it.
While more work needs to be done on the 181 year-old building,
the roof is nearing completion. As Madden observes, “The job
presented many challenges, such as the historic building’s close
proximity to five neighbors, the tight set up, and the process of
saving and reusing some of the existing slates, but we are nearing
completion - the JHR team is very happy with the results.”
Jamaica Plain has a proud sense of community and has established
itself as a town of the arts. We should be proud that Elliot Hall
and the Footlight Club productions are a huge part of this culture.
Without the efforts of our volunteers and generous donors, we
would not exist. Thanks to all of you for your patronage,
participation, and donations.
Keep an eye out for more information about our future efforts to
update Eliot Hall and ways you can help. Together, we can keep America’s oldest community theater thriving
and entertaining us all.
Footlight Club outreach
Trustees of Eliot Hall celebrate past, present, and future of the Footlight Club’s home
On September 14, on the opening night of The Tempest, more than fifty attendees enjoyed the post-performance
reception sponsored by the Trustees of Eliot Hall. Patrons mingled with cast and crew while noshing on light fare
donated by local business such as When
Pigs Fly and Fiore's Bakery. Libations for
our cash bar were donated by Streetcar
Wine & Beer and Sam Adams Brewery.
Katie Taylor welcomed the crowd and
highlighted the efforts of the trustees to
restore and improve the facilities. Many
other trustees were on hand to answer
questions about the building and posters
were on display to engage visitors with fascinating facts about the rich history of Eliot Hall.
The following Saturday, Footlight Club Historian Paul Campbell entertained an audience of twenty people with
stories and anecdotes of the 181 years since Eliot Hall was built. After the lecture, attendees were invited to explore
the theater and enjoy the work of the artists on exhibit during Jamaica Plain Open Studios.
Upcoming trustee-sponsored events include another opening night reception for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat (Saturday, November 3), the ever-popular A Carol Christmas (Friday, November 30 and Saturday,
December 1), and -- perfect for last-minute gift-buying -- the Holiday Arts and Craft Fair (Saturday, December 22).
Visit the trustees at www.eliothall.org to keep up with events and news about the Footlight Club's beloved home.
Second annual cupcake fundraiser a sweet success
This year's Cupcake Club Fundraiser raised more than $650 and provided an afternoon of tasty fun at Eliot Hall on
September 29. Footlight Club members Elizabeth Bean, Eleza Kort, Brian Moyer, Katie Taylor, Rob Guptill, Karen
Wepsic, and Jesse Martin helped run the event. We had three amazing judges: Chris Helms from the JP Patch, and
members Michael Colford and Paul Campbell.
One professional and nine amateur bakers participated in the competition, baking eleven different kinds of delicious
cupcakes.
Winners included:
Professional - Taste: Matthew Harker for his Carrot Orange Cupcakes with Orange Cream Mascarpone Frosting
Professional - Presentation: Matthew Harker for his Chocolate Graham Cracker Cupcakes with Toasted
Marshmallow Frosting
Amateur - Taste: Rebecca Glucklich for her Sticky Toffee Pudding Cupcakes
Amateur - Presentation: Shari Caplan for her beautiful rendition of Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night
Amateur - Alternative: Elizabeth Bean for her Gluten Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes with Peanut
Butter Oreo Buttercream Frosting.
People's Choice: Kristin Hughes for her Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting
Congratulations to all our winners, and a big thanks to all our bakers and attendees, once again you helped make our
fundraiser a great success!
A Carol Christmas
Join us on November 30 and December 1 when the Trustees of Eliot Hall proudly present A Carol Christmas
with great music, great company, great fun, and a
great way to kick off the holiday season!
The reception starts at 7:00 p.m. and the curtain goes
up at 8:00 p.m.
A Carol Christmas has been raising money for
America’s oldest community theater for
twelve years. Tickets are $25 - get yours today
at www.footlight.org/ehr-christmas.html
THE FOOTLIGHT CLUB
AMERICA’S OLDEST COMMUNITY THEATER
2012/2012 Season
September 14 - September 29, 2012
The Tempest
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Josephine D’Angelo
November 3 - November 17, 2012
Annual Fundraiser
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
By Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber
Direction/choreography by Steve Borowka
Musical direction by Shawn Gelzleichter
February 1 - February 16, 2013
Wait Until Dark
By Frederick Knott
Directed by Brian Moyer
March 29 - April 13, 2013
Parade
Book by Alfred Uhry
Music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Direction/choreography by Mark Usher
Musical direction by Matthew Stern
May 31 – June 15, 2013
Steel Magnolias
By Robert Harling
Directed by Heather Fry Konar