It was my turn to write the "program letter" – the note to the audience from the theatre staff that appears in the playbill for each production – and I thought I’d repost it here!
Here we are, at the final production of our 5th Season here at the Williamston Theatre!
Thank you for making the last five years possible.
This beautiful production of "And The Creek Don’t Rise" is about people making a new home for themselves. In the play, Rob and Maddie find themselves starting over, hoping to build a family of friends and colleagues. Back in 2006, with our first production, we opened the doors to this building with the same goals and hopes.
Since then we’ve been incredibly blessed to have the Williamston Theatre become not just our home, but yours as well. It’s been a miracle, watching our family grow in so many ways – audiences, actors, designers, students, volunteers, and so many more people becoming a part of this theatre.
YOU are a part of this family – a part of who we are – thank you for supporting us! And not just financially! (Although that’s always helpful! Wilbur the Donation Pig will be sitting on the display case in the foyer on your way out– don’t hesitate to drop spare change into him!) No, it’s more than that – it’s being here and participating by seeing a show. It’s telling us what shows you like and what you want more of. It’s bringing friends to share in the magic of a live performance. It’s volunteering to strike the set, or label postcards – it’s all of those things, but it’s even more than that…
What makes us a family is the shared belief that our lives are worth exploring! When it works, theatre provides us not with a distraction FROM life, but with an explosion OF life! Together, with each play, we build a moving, exhilarating new experience – a new lens to see our world through – our own private worlds, and the worlds of those around us. Whether we laugh, or cry, or praise or condemn – when it’s done right, what happens in this space launches us one step closer to understanding our world and the people in it.
We, like the people in the play you’ll see here today, come away with a stronger foundation for our ever changing, ever growing home.
Things have changed a lot in five seasons. It’s been an honor to be here with all of you, and we’re looking forward to our next five years. So, please – when you leave here today, keep participating. See shows. See them here, see them elsewhere. Volunteer, advocate, explore, toss spare change into donation piggy banks, and follow your heart. But keep coming home – you’ll always have family here.
Sincerely,
Tony Caselli
Artistic Director
The Williamston Theatre
Tony Caselli 