Great Opening Weekend!

This cast doesn't need to wait till "Tomorrow" to hear the ringing in their ears from the applause of a packed house! Annie opened this weekend to sold out houses. The phone was ringing off the hook and ticket sales for next weekend are going fast!

But the real news is the hard work by cast and orchestra, costume and set committee made this a real showstopper! The raves didn't stop in the lobby. Before I could get out of the office last night, there were phone calls to congratulate us on the work at Upstart Crow Studios. Congratulations to all of the dedicated volunteers to make this show a success.

Backstage the tension is high. Most cast members were focused on picking up their props, being ready on cue and helpful to newbies in the cast. The Entr'Actes were so precious and filled the night with their smiles and delightful performance. Without them, the scene changes would seem endless and the costume changes would be impossible.

The long and short of it - it takes MANY hands to cook this soup! Thank you for making Annie such a huge success!

The Best Kept Secret Is Out!

When visitors come to Upstart Crow Studios there is always a familiar refrain, "We never knew you were here. This must be the best kept secret in Eugene". If that be true, Suzi Steffen of the Eugene Weekly, has single handedly "twittered" and "blogged" the secret all over town.

Thursday, March 4th, marked the first time in Upstart Crow Studios 10 year history, that print media has sat up and taken notice of the work done at the Studios. Perhaps it is fitting that the Eugene Weekly has been the rumor monger that spread the word about an organization that embraces diversity and the talents of the individual. One who breaks molds rather than fits into them.

Along with a cover story on the current production of Annie, Upstart Crow is also in contention for the Pepsi Refresh Project. A voting booth was set up for opening night and inserts placed in all the programs to get the word spread farther than the borders of Eugene and Springfield to vote for Curtain Call in this month's Pepsi Refresh selection. The people will speak out and hopefully be heard. We may be a small community but each of us has the power to be heard.

Thank you to the Suzi Steffen, Todd Johnson (the photos were outstanding!) and to all of you who have supported and are now voting (everyday, remember!) to get this best kept secret out there!

Rehearsals Are Over!

Sets and props at the ready. Costumes neatly lined up backstage. Final clean-up rehearsal last night. We are in countdown mode.

Opening night is always a wild card. Jitters, butterflies, tech glitches and just plain nerves sometimes cloud the landscape of the stage as we approach the opening overture. From here there is no turning back and perhaps that is the most exciting challenge of all. No matter what happens, as they say, the show must go on.

Coaching cast members to pick up lines, look to the audience, stay in character...all come into play in but a single moment. You hope that everything they have worked on for the past 3 months is in the queue and ready to burst out on stage with confidence and resolve. With so many being in and out with sickness, I think everybody in the almost 90 member cast for Annie could pick up anybody's line and move on.

The Eugene Weekly did an outstanding job of reporting the truth and nothing but the truth as they covered the show from audition to final curtain. That along with our entry into the Pepsi Refresh Project, hopes are riding high that the best kept secret in town (Upstart Crow Studios) is finally going to burst out and be heard!

Doors open at 6:00 pm, we "Green Room" at 6:30 and the virtual curtain for Annie goes up at 7:00. With community support, we hope that next year, there is an actual curtain to go up in the Crows Nest Theatre and demonstrate what creative expression is really all about!

If you are reading this...stop and go vote for Upstart Crow Studios Curtain Call at the Pepsi Refresh Project for Arts and Culture. Make a difference without spending a dime! Set computer alerts - you can vote everyday!

Break A Leg!

Rags to Riches

The challenges of creating a dark dennison and moving into a swank 5th Avenue mansion, is taken on by our set designer, Laura Stowe Emery. Her magic never ceases to impress as she designs a back drop for the Warbucks mansion. Hanging the canvas drop after penciling out the marble columns and floor to ceiling windows, she paints in the details.

Lisan Mowry paints in the details of the Oval Office where FDR and his cabinet will make decisions to get the country back to work with his famous New Deal. Lisan works on the blue and off white seal and side windows on a tri-fold set that will also double as the back drop for the Oxydent Hour Radio show with Bert Healy and the lovely Boylan Sisters. Bringing these sets to life, is all part of the magic that continues to unfold behind the scenes on The Road To Annie!