[NEohioPAL] "Brigadoon" plays at Ashtabula Arts Center

[Pamela Hammond]

(440) 964-3396

Ashtabula Arts Center

2928 West 13th St., Ashtabula, OH 44004

aac at ashartscenter.org

www.ashartscenter.org

www.artscenternews.com





Straw Hat Theatre Opens With A New Look!



Ashtabula's 2010 community theater season opens with Lerner and Loewe's
"Brigadoon" on Friday night and visitors will be greeted with a very
different and much improved setting at the Ashtabula Arts Center's Straw Hat
Theatre.  As one of the recipients of CDC's 2010 campaign, "Building on our
Strengths: Living and Playing in Ashtabula County," Straw Hat Theatre is now
sporting a new concessions stand/box office with a large theater storage
area, low voltage lighted walkways and a large patio complete with picnic
tables and planters in the already lovely wooded setting outside of the
outdoor community theatre.



"CDC has funded so many worthwhile projects over the past 50 years and
continues to make a real impact on the lives of Ashtabula County residents,"
says Rob Schimmelpfennig of the Ashtabula Arts Center's Board of Trustees.
"Everyone at the Arts Center is excited about the improvements and upgrades
that CDC has enabled us to make to our Straw Hat Theatre."



Since 1959, the Civic Development Corp. (CDC) has raised over $17,000,000
with an estimated $27,000,000 brought to the county in matching funds with
which they have funded 162 projects designed to improve our communities and
the lives of its residents.  Every five years, CDC initiates a new campaign
with a different theme that reflects the current needs of the county.  The
improvements at the Ashtabula Arts Center's Straw Hat Theatre are only one
of the CDC's many 2010 projects that focus on tourism. Anyone wanting to
learn more about CDC can visit www.civicdevelopmentcorp.org.



The Straw Hat Theatre project was begun this spring and was completed last
week, just in time for the opening of the theater season.



 "Everyone from the CDC board members to the construction workers with CBC
Construction have gone above and beyond in order for us to get this project
completed in time for our opening show," says Schimmelpfennig. "I hope
everyone will come out this summer and check out the remarkable job that has
been done. I think our patrons will find that the improvements are not only
beautiful but that they also afford numerous benefits.  And with the
fantastic line-up of family-friendly shows we are offering, Straw Hat
Theatre promises to be a great place for families to spend their summer."



Patrons can see the completed project beginning Friday when the theater
season opens with the musical production "Brigadoon," the Scottish fantasy
about a mythical town that disappears into the Highland mist and returns for
only one day every one hundred years.  The show is directed by Douglas
Anderson of Ashtabula.



"Brigadoon is a great show to start off the season," says Public Relations
Coordinator Pamela Hammond. "It's been a favorite of theater goers for years
and it can be enjoyed by everyone in the family.  We've also done our best
to keep our ticket and concession prices as low as possible throughout the
summer so that a family can afford to spend a few summer evenings right here
in Ashtabula watching live theater with us."



"Brigadoon" was written and composed by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe,
creators of the hit musicals "My Fair Lady" and "Camelot."  The score of the
show will be played by a live orchestra directed by Nora Giangola of
Ashtabula. It includes many memorable tunes such as "Almost Like Being in
Love," "The Heather on the Hill," "There but for You Go I," "Come to Me,"
"My Mother's Wedding Day," "I'll Go Home with Bonnie Jean" and "Waitin' for
My Dearie."



Performances of "Brigadoon" will play for three weekends on June 11, 12, 13,
18, 19, 20, 24, 25 and 26.  All shows begin at 8 p.m.



Walk-in ticket prices are $14 patrons, $12 general admission adults and $11
for seniors and students.  Or save $2 per ticket when you purchase tickets
in advance.  Advance sale tickets must be purchased before 4 p.m. on the day
of the show and can be purchased by visiting the box office or by calling
the Arts Center at (440) 964-3396.





Pamela Hammond
Public Relations/Marketing Coordinator
Ashtabula Arts Center
Phone/Fax: 440.964.3396
aac at ashartscenter.org