Ryan Adair and Mark Hazard rehearse a scene for our upcoming production of "Prelude to a Kiss"
CLT bids a fond farewell to one of its own. Long-time member Ryan Adair will be making his last CLT appearance (for a while) as "Peter" in Prelude To A Kiss in June. Ryan received “an offer he couldn’t refuse,” so he and his wife Jen will be moving to Fort Myers, Florida where he will the Executive Producer for the local NBC affiliate.
The cast & crew of "Inspecting Carol"
Ryan has been a CLT member for over 27 years and has been seen in numerous productions, including but not limited to Deathtrap, Inspecting Carol, Rabbit Hole, The Mousetrap and 1940s Radio Hour.
Ryan and castmates in our production of "Rabbit Hole"
All the best, Ryan and Jen – and visit often!
Glen Thibault, Building Manager
What does being the building manager entail?
We have a building committee - Bill Hamilton, Phil Vampatella, Carole Hodgkins, Brandon Chaloux, Karen Mayo and myself. This group of dedicated volunteers (along with a lot of help from many others) work diligently to take care of the day to day and long term needs of our great facility, as well as envision and bring to light improvements to the space. Sometimes these upgrades are noticeable and sometimes not. As the chair of this committee, I’m in charge of managing building related initiatives, but the work is truly accomplished by the committee and many, many other friends of CLT.
How did you come to be in this position?
My oldest daughter Amber was Gate Guard #1 in her seventh grade's production of The Wizard of Oz. After eight years of boosting the various groups both of my drama/band geek and cheerleader/lacrosse daughters were involved in throughout their high school careers, I found myself with unused volunteer time. CLT seemed like a worthy place to spend it.
What do you do when you aren't at the theatre?
I take care of Pizza Huts for a nice gentleman from Wichita, Kansas.
If you had to be an actor for a day, which role would you want to play?
Third understudy, under the second understudy for someone who never gets sick or hurt.
What are some building initatives that you've been working on?
We recently started our Community Days program to give all of the CLT community an opportunity to help us accomplish some of the major upkeep projects that are beyond the time our little committee has to give. We get together on the second Saturday of the month in the spring and fall from 9-2. So far we have made terrific strides getting our lesser seen areas cleaned up and on their way back to a repaired state (thank you volunteers). Our last one of the spring season will be June 10th and will be focused on our exterior landscaping and graffiti. If you have ever thought, "what can I do?" we look forward to seeing you there with your loppers, weed whackers, paint rollers, or just you.
What are some of the challenges associated with your duties at the theatre?
With so many needs and so few resources, it is all about leveraging connections to get the most for every dollar and hour we spend. My fellow committee members really shine in this area.
Do you attend many of the productions at CLT? If so, what have been some of your favorites?
I'd like to say I get to all of them but I cannot. Our musicals are always so amazing. Oliver, Into the Woods, and of course Chicago come to mind. But I think it's the straight shows that really stick out in my memory. Productions like The Crucible and Osage County seem to really allow the talent of our actors to come to the front and make for some very powerful art.
Are there any projects for the building coming up this year that you're excited about?
We are currently working on reconstructing our lighting system in front of the stage. I know it doesn't sound that glamorous, but it's one of those "must do" projects that have been on our priority list forever but the funds just haven't been there. There still may not be enough funds, but I have faith in our ability to leverage what we have and get it done as we have with other projects like the west side beautification, entry ramp artwork, and our new front doors.
If I were to come into the theatre on any given day, where would I find you?
If I am in the building, just wait in the gym. If I am not already there, I will be at some point.
Why do you think it's important to have theatre in our communities?
If someone has not been to a live theatre production then it may be hard to answer this question, and if you have then it doesn't even occur to you to ask the question. I would encourage both kinds to attend our next show so we can move on to a question like, "How do we make sure we *always* have theatre in our community?"
We were thrilled to see that 8 of our CLT family members were nominated for Uplift L.A.'s 40 Under 40 Awards. Uplift L.A. is the Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce's young professionals group. Each year they recognize 40 individuals who are making a difference professionally in their communities within the Androscoggin area. The 8 individuals have made an impact right here at Community Little Theatre included:
Grady Burns
Danielle Eaton
Tanya Estabrook
Megan Guynes
Adam Lee
Megan Parks
Joe Philippon
Courtney McMunn Schlaster
We're so excited to see that Danielle Eaton, Megan Guynes and Joe Philippon have all received an award!
Danielle has been performing with CLT since she was 9 years old, first taking the stage as an orphan boy in our production of "Oliver!". Since then she's performed in many more shows, as well as working behind the scenes. Danielle was most recently seen on stage in our production of "Chicago". Danielle also serves as our Marketing
& Publicity Chairperson.
Megan has been performing with our theatre for a number of years now, you may recognize her from our productions of "The Wiz", "Aida", "Hairspray" or most recently as Tituba in "The Crucible". Megan is a phenomenal actor and an amazing singer. We are so pleased she chooses to share her talents with our community.
Joe Philippon has been a CLT member for many years, having grown up in the theater. He is best remembered for running the spotlight and for having a great instinct for being able to catch the actors the first time, every time, in that perfect sphere of light. Work and fatherhood have made it difficult for Joe to be as involved, but we are always hopeful that he will have the opportunity to share more time with us again soon.
We're incredibly proud to call these three individuals members of our community and our CLT family!
There will be an awards ceremony for all the award winners on June 9th at the Agora Grand Event Center. Tickets can be purchased through the Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.
