No, the Community Theatre of Emporia is not dying. Its members are alive and well, and still highly mobile, organizers say.
The 2006-07 season, which ended on a positive note, brought changes to the CTE and the upcoming season promises even more, said CTE president Dan Boyce and board member Nancy Boyce, but the group is definitely not dying.
“The rumors of (our) death are highly exaggerated,” Dan Boyce said.
With that said, the Boyces look back at the last season and ahead to a brand new season, which includes a performance at Americus Days in October.
This past season, which ended with the Mid-Summer Fair, was a positive one, Nancy Boyce said. Last year, theatergoers saw the production “Slaughterhouse,” the Holiday Road Show, the Gershwin Review and the Mid-Summer Fair.
Slaughterhouse was a murder mystery spoof. One highlight of the Holiday Road Show was that the group had the opportunity to perform at Burlington’s Carnegie library. Nancy Boyce said the acoustics in that venue were “really good.”
“That was a nice place to perform,” she said.
The Gershwin Musical Review was done as a salute to Gershwin. The group had the opportunity to work with the Emporia Country Club on that production.
“We got to sing and dance on their new floor,” Nancy Boyce said, adding that the production was done in a musical, dinner-theatre format.
The Mid-Summer Fair was pushed back so it would be at the same time as the Greater Emporia BBQ Festival.
“We were happy to provide activities and entertainment,” said Nancy Boyce, who directed the children’s production of “Puss in Boots” at the Fair. “It was neat.”
She said that despite some changes, the 2006-07 season was a success.
“It ended on a very positive note,” she said. “Teaming up with the Country Club and the barbecue people was really neat. I feel like we did really well.”
The addition of Audra Jenkins, who is interning at CTE, has been another positive change, she said. Jenkins recently graduated from The University of Kansas and worked four years in the university’s costume shop.
Jenkins, heavily involved in the Mid-Summer Fair, has been with the group for at least five years. Now, she is volunteering her time to help the CTE grow.
“She’s young and has fresh ideas,” Nancy Boyce said, adding that many other people make CTE work. “We have so many people that are stepping up to the plate and saying they want to be involved.”
This past season, CTE decided not to use the Emporia Arts Council as their venue. This year, they are looking for new venues.
“We’re looking for a location so we can move out of storage and into a more permanent location,” Nancy Boyce said, adding that they need space that’s workable and includes storage, rehearsal and performance space and a scene shop.
Nancy Boyce said the need for another venue has sparked new ideas.
“It afforded us to really look at the community and see what other possibilities are out there,” she said. “In some ways it’s good for us to do.”
Members of CTE are looking forward to using the renovated Granada as one of their performance venues, although they won’t make it a permanent home.
Several CTE performances will be staged before the end of 2007. In September, there’s the annual Community Theater of Emporia Follies. This year’s Follies, which is CTE’s annual fundraiser and membership drive, will be Sept. 28-29.
CTE teams with Americus Days on Oct. 6 to present “The Great Seat Robbery.” The production will be a dramatization of events surrounding the relocation of the Lyon County seat from its original location in Americus.
“It’s going to be kind of fun,” Dan Boyce said.
The third weekend in October will feature a Tennessee Williams’ series of one-acts.
“That’s gonna be a lot of fun,” Dan Boyce said. “We’ll be doing two to four one-acts with as many as four directors. We’ll keep things moving fast and furious!”
The CTE annual Holiday Road Show will stop in Cottonwood Falls, Burlington, Emporia and likely Americus, he said. Locations will be announced later.
The road show is done in a reader’s theatre format and will offer renditions of John Erickson’s popular book series “Hank the Cow Dog.”
“We have a very talented group that’s gonna be helping us out,” Dan Boyce said. “It’s gonna be fun.”
F Contact the Community Theatre of Emporia:
On the Web: www.cteks.com
Phone: 341-9283
Mail: P.O. Box 962, Emporia, KS 66801