PAC Winter 2014 Newsletter

COURT HOUSE —
Dance Bookings Spark Revenue for Area Businesses
Managing director Kay Aspell has announced the booking of four out-of-state dance companies that will bring their regional dance competitions to the PAC during 2014. These, as well as three additional national competitions in July, will bring a huge positive economic impact to businesses in Cape May County. Thousands of young dancers, their parents and other relatives will be coming to the area from New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Ohio, Connecticut, and Virginia.
“Some will be visiting as long as a week during the summer and on weekends during the off season. They will be stating at area hotels and motels, dinging at local restaurants, and shopping at area stores,” Aspell said. “They have chosen The PAC because the state-of-the-art facility is especially suitable for this type of event and is close to the seashore,” she added.
The dance companies will bring with them professional judges who have performed on major stages or who have taught dance at the college level.
In addition, The PAC will host six local dance groups for their annual.
“Dance has made a big comeback as an art form in recent years and The Performing Arts Center is pleased to be a part of it,” said Aspell. “Altogether we will be presenting 13 dance events from March and continuing into July. It promises to be an exciting and busy year at The PAC.”
PAC Featuring Prize-Winning Movie Series
The Performing Arts Center has added prize-winning movies to its programming as part of its commitment to provide a wide variety of the arts to the community.
Twice a month the PAC is holding a “Monday Night at the Movies” series at which critically acclaimed documentaries and feature films are accompanied by speakers who discuss the topics with the audiences following the films.
Managing director Kay Aspell said the program, sponsored by the ProMedia advertising organization in Middle Township, offers films not usually seen in theatres in this area.
“We are offering a rare opportunity in this count to see quality films that blend education and entertainment on a huge screen,” Aspell said.
The series, which opened last Oct. and continues into May, will feature on Feb. 10, “When Comedy Went To School,” an entertaining portrait of America’s greatest generation of comics who trained in New York’s Catskill Mountains. Comedians telling stories in the film include Jerry Lewis, Sid Caesar and Jerry Stiller.
Following that, on March 10 will be “The Well Digger’s Daughter,” a heart-warming French drama with English subtitles; March 24, “Pandora’s Promise,” an audience favorite at the Sundance Film Festival about nuclear power; April 7, “Five Broken Cameras,” a Palestinian film which provides a first-hand account of life and non-violent resistance in a West Bank village surrounded by Israeli settlements; April 28, “Fire in The Blood” the story of how Western pharmaceutical companies blocked access to low cost AIDS drugs for Africa and the global south; and on May 12, “Grasso: Beyond the Paint,” a documentary about a local Cape May artist.
All showings begin at 7 p.m. Admission is $8.
Beyond the Footlights, by Kay Aspell
Hello again and welcome back to The PAC. I hope you have enjoyed the holidays and are ready to join us in the new year as we present an interesting array of professional and community-oriented events.
In 2014 the Performing Arts Center, I am pleased to say, will present the full scale of the arts including dance, theatres, art, orchestra, singing and movies. Some of your favorite attractions will return and there will be some new ones too as out planning continues.
We will also strive this year to increase our educational and family programming. Toward that effort, we will continue with our “Monday Night at The Movies” series, which often features speakers with knowledge relevant to the films’ subjects. It is our goal to provide more programming of this type in a marriage of education and entertainment.
Living in this area, of course, we are all familiar with the Miss America Pageant. The PAC has hosted many preliminary pageants, and via its expanded civic programming, is planning a Miss New Jersey Gems pageant for girls with special needs. Every contestant will receive a prize in this pageant.
True to its original mission, about 70 percent of the year The Performing Arts Center is used for school activities. The Parkway Players of Middle Township performed “The Miracle Worker” on the PAC’s stage this past Nov., and in the upcoming months, Middle students will also perform in the musicals “The Secret Garden” and “South Pacific.” Entertainment and education are integrated with opportunities for Middle students and alumni to be joined by professionals. It is a credit to the founders that they had foresight to set this as a goal.
Meanwhile, there will be a big emphasis on dance this year. Six out-of-state dance companies from Connecticut to Virginia to Ohio will be coming to The PAC in the spring and summer for national and regional competitions. Five local dance companies have also agreed to present their annual shows here, bringing the total to thousands of dancing feet on our stage and boosting the local tourism economy substantially with out-of-state visitors.
Returning for four summer concerts will be pianist Linda Gentille and the Jersey Shore Pope as well as Tony Sands’ Rat Pack Together Again show. Interest has also been expressed by a group interested in performing a tribute to Barbra Streisand, and in the PAC hosting the state’s Mrs. New Jersey Pageant.
We are excited about the months ahead and will keep you informed as we work toward bringing entertainment and education together at The PAC.
“South Pacific” and “The Secret Garden” Coming to the PAC
Talented youngsters from Cape May County will take center stage at The PAC soon for performances in two prize-winning Broadway musicals.
Middle Township High School students, under the direction of teacher-singer Debbie Jenkins Dalfonso, will present “The Secret Garden” on Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. and on March 1 and 2 at 7 p.m.
Middle Township Middle School students between the ages of 12 and 14 will revive “South Pacific,” directed by teacher Jay Wynn, on March 21 at 7:30 p.m. and March 22 at 2 and 7:30 p.m.
“The Secret Garden,” which played 709 performances on Broadway from 1991 to 1993, won Tony awards for Best Book of a Musical, Best Featured Actress in a Musical, and Best Scenic Design. Daisy Eagan, in the role of an 11-year-old orphan sent to England from India to lead a new life, was the youngest female to receive a Tony award.
“South Pacific” opened on Broadway in 1949 and ran for 1,925 performances, winning ten Tony awards including Best Musical. The performance here by the middle school drama club under the direction of Jay Wynn will have a déjà vu feeling. The show was first presented by the same drama club as part of its annual musical theater series 20 years aho in 1993. The original actors, now in their thirties, will be invited to come back for their performances and meet their younger successors.
PAC managing director Kay Aspell, who directed the earlier production of “South Pacific,” said the two plays will be a showcase for the talents of local youngsters.
“We are pleased at the Performing Arts Center that we are able to offer students our modern state-of-the-art theater, not only for their educational experiences but for the entertainment and enlightenment of the community,” she added.
Advance tickets for “The Secret Garden” are available for $10 for adults, $11 for seniors and $10 for students. For “South Pacific,” they are $10 for the general public and $8 for senior citizens and students.
A Grand Time for Singing Coming to the Performing Arts Center
It will be a grand time for singing at The PAC March 2 at 5 p.m. when 105 specially selected Cape May County singers from fourth to eighth grades will showcase their talents in the 21st annual Cape May County Honor’s Choir concert.
To qualify for this choir and concert, sponsored by the Cape Music Educators, the singers must be county residents, nominated by their choir director, have an unchanged soprano or alto voice, with the ability to match pitch and hold their own part. They also must be very reliable and responsible and able to memorize and learn the music on their own time.
Each year the choir director changes, and this year’s director is Sue Kosturko of the Upper Township Middle School faculty. As an added attraction, Honor’s Choir alumni who are graduating from high school this year and pursuing a music education in college will perform. For the finale, adult alumni in the audience will be invited to come on stage and join the choir in singing “Over the Rainbow.” Tickets are $7 general admission.
Volunteer Spotlight: Arline and Frank Angelone
If you’ve some to a show at the PAC over the past 10 years, chances are you’ve met either Arline or Frank Angelone, volunteer ushers at the PAC since 1999. This warm, gregarious couple moved to Cape May Court House in 1997 from Philadelphia, and have been giving back to their new community ever since. They volunteer at Our Lady of the Angels Church, AARP, the hospital and Red Cross as well as the PAC. Philadelphia’s loss is both the PAC’s and Cape May Court House’s gain!
The Angelones met in high school in Philadelphia, and have been married for over 50 years, they have four children, 11 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Jersey Shore Pops: Returning to PAC This Summer
Pianist Linda Gentille and her Jersey Shore Pops will be returning to The Performing Arts Center this summer with four concerts.
They open on July 12 with a performance starring Mark Preston, formerly of The Letterman, followed on July 19 with a show titled “Sinatra Sizzles” starring Claude Eric, a top act on the Princess Cruises line; Aug. 9 with the dance show “Broadway on Tap,” and Aug. 23 with “Great Balls of Fire.”
All performances are on Sat. nights at 7 p.m., and special advanced ticket prices are available. Call 1-800-838-3006 or 609-628-4544. Online orders may be made at www.JerseyShorePops.org
PAC Chosen South Jersey Volunteer Training Site for Special Olympics 2014
The Performing Arts Center has been honored by being selected as the only South Jersey training site for volunteers for the national Special Olympics USA games which will be held in New Jersey this year.
Volunteers from South Jersey will come to The PAC on March 3 and 15 for special training in preparation for the national competition, which will take place from June 14 to 21 in the Princeton area. Some 3,500 athletes from all volunteers will be needed for the big event.
Other sites designed for training include: Centenary State in Hackettstown; McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton; Premiere Stages at Kean University in Union; and Playwrights Theatre in Madison. PAC managing director, Kay Aspell said she is pleased that The PAC has been chosen for this event.
“We are a multi-purpose, state-of-the-art facility and welcome such diversified and community-oriented events or national prominence such as this,” Aspell said. “For us to be the only performing arts center in South Jersey to participate in the hands-on planning for this national event is an honor for The PAC.”
Think Summer as Cold Winds Blow and the Snow Falls
Though we are still in the heart of winter, it is time to think summer as registration opens for the third annual summer theater camp at The Performing Arts Center for youngsters between the ages of seven and 17.
The camp, presented by Shore (Sure) Productions, runs from June 30 to Aug. 16 and covers all phases of the theater. It will climax with a full-scale production of “The Little Mermaid” in which all the students will be assigned roles. Also, the participants will travel to New York to attend a Broadway play to get the feeling of a professional production.
In its first year, the camp, which presented “Krazy Kamp,” attracted 30 students and was so popular that last year’s total increased to 64 campers, according to Kay Aspell, its director. Last summer’s production was “Shrek, The Musical.”
“Our staff (Bud Morey, Jay Wynn, and Andrew Bongiovanni) are available to the campers to assist in a learning experience which ranges from the box office to backstage,” said Aspell. “It’s also a fun time for all the campers as they have a rare opportunity to spend part of their summer at our state-of-the-art facility.”
For further information, call 609-463-1924 or visit www.shoreproductionscamp.com