The agenda for the meeting will include announcements and action on reports from officers of the corporation and from committees. The Board does not anticipate any other business, but questions and suggestions from members of the VLO are always in order.
The Board of Directors
Barbara Davis, President
But read on . . .
One of the things that make our Annual Meetings different is that they are usually very short. This leaves time for entertainment. The program at this year’s meeting will be special. Last year we previewed a concert we gave the next night as a benefit for the University Women’s scholarship fund. It included a musical glimpse of the upcoming fall production and some new musical adventures for us -- music by P. D. Q. Bach and Anna Russell. The concert was so popular that we were almost immediately asked to do it again, this time as a benefit for the Town of Amherst’s Kanegasaki Sister City Committee. The Annual Meeting, for members only, is a dress rehearsal for the benefit concert on Saturday night, February 27.
| Next, look for the Audition Edition of the VLO News in March, which will contain information about auditions for next fall’s production, The Pirates of Penzance, which will be our twenty-fifth anniversary show. In addition to singing, though, there are lots of jobs in the VLO, and we’re looking for volunteers, folks who have interest, time and energy and want to learn more about how a community theater really works. For most jobs experience is not required and you decide how much time you are able to give! |
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Fay and Gordon need to get a handle on how much "stuff" is out there which might be of value for VLO’s organizational memory, and ask if you have something of interest to let them know what you have and why it is of interest (if that is not readily apparent). They are in the assessment phase, gathering information to help them set up shop, and ask that you contact them at 413-367-9573 or P.O. Box 177, Leverett, MA 01054. If you prefer, you may also use e-mail: gordon.fretwell@library.umass.edu.
The Board of Directors has also set up a committee to plan for the Twenty-fifth Anniversary Season. It seems such a short time ago that the VLO presented its very first production, H.M.S. Pinafore, but that was in the fall of 1975! Since then we’ve presented Pinafore twice more and in addition have presented all of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas -- including Thespis -- at least once! We’ve also wandered into Friml (The Vagabond King) and Offenbach (Orpheus in the Underworld). In November, 2000, by the way, we will wander again when we present the new work we previewed at the Annual Meeting in 1997 -- The Foundling, or, A Basket of Ham, a Gilbert and Sullivan parody by Mary A. Finn and Robert Weingart, on a double bill with Trial by Jury. We’ve got a lot to celebrate next year. If you have any ideas you’d like us to consider, please bring them to the Annual Meeting on February 25 or call Barbara Davis at 549-0410 or e-mail her at mrkthill@aol.com.
Thanks to the efforts of Kurt Gordon, who set up our original Web site at UMass and who remains as our Webmaster, and Michael D. Bathrick, President of BerkshireNet, who donates space on internet service provider BerkshireNet, the VLO now has a Web site. Check us out at www.vlo.org! You will find information about the VLO and, in addition, links to other G&S Web sites throughout the nation. Plans are afoot to use our Web site as an educational tool, too, another part of our 25th Anniversary planning!
SavoyNet-- Another note about the Internet and Gilbert and Sullivan --Here’s another G&S resource. Originated at UMass, SavoyNet is the international Gilbert and Sullivan Bulletin Board. It offers a chance to communicate with G&S lovers all over the world. To subscribe, without obligation, send an e-mail message to list-serv@bridgewater.edu (leaving the "Subject" line blank) that says only subscribe savoynet [your full name] and instructions will follow. |
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Messiah SingMost other groups schedule their Messiah sing-alongs at what has become the "traditional" time of year -- the Christmas season. Few realize that Messiah was originally performed in Dublin during the Easter season. Last year we had our first Eastertide Messiah sing, conducted by David Kidwell. We’re going to do it again this year on Palm Sunday, March 28, 1999, at 3 p.m. at the First Congregational Church, 165 Main Street in Amherst. Bring your own vocal score if you have one! |
Finally--it’s Membership Time. If you haven’t become a member of the VLO before, why not consider it now? Membership provides valuable support for the Valley Light Opera, which gets all of its income from members, friends and patrons. None comes from advertising! Almost everyone in the VLO is a volunteer. At $10 for individuals and $15 for families, annual dues for the Valley Light Opera are among the best deals in town. Membership puts you in a special category of VLO supporters. We send you advance notification by first class mail of ticket sales for the annual fall production and you get a vote at the Annual Meeting. Just fill in the form below and mail it with your check (or bring them to the Annual Meeting). That's all there is to it!
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Cut off and mail to: |
Valley Light Opera, Inc. P. O. Box 2143 Amherst, MA 01004-2143 |
| Individual membership: | $10 _____ |
| Family membership: | $15 _____ |
| Name: | ______________________________________________________________________ |
| Address: | ______________________________________________________________________ |
| _________________________________________________ZIP__________________ | |
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Send Questions/Comments to: info@vlo.org