Dear Patrons and Members of River Company,
We are excited to begin our 2021 season with an ambitious selection of shows to present over virtual platforms. As the pandemic continues, theater becomes an even more pertinent vehicle for both catharsis and escape. The grief and laughter, blessings and challenges that we have all faced during this time in history echo onto the stage, or for now, the computer screen. We look forward to offering you some moments of laughter and reflection as we move into the second year of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Show Must Go On! Torie Delisle and Allison Eddyblouin River Company Co-Presidents.
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Dear Friends of River Company,
It's here! Nick Azzaretti and I have busily put the finishing touches to A Christmas Carol. Our holiday fundraiser this year is a bit different than usual, however, rest assured I'm still wearing my green holiday sweater with a winking reindeer on it. This year, we have some social-distanced theater to enjoy safely and merrily at anytime. I do recommend setting aside an hour one evening to watch the show. A CHRISTMAS CAROL The performance aims to raise funds for Skidompha Library's children's program. If you enjoy the film, consider giving your usual ticket admission directly to the library. That can be done online: skidompha.org and click on donate, or mailing a donation to: Skidompha Library PO Box 70 Damariscotta, ME 04543 With that, our last eBlast of 2020, I wish you all a happy holidays, and a new year to look forward to! All the best, Mike Lee Dear Friends of River Company,
It's so gloomy I have my desk lamp going. It's nearly noon! But, do not despair. It is now only three weeks till the Winter Solstice, and our Northern Hemisphere will begin to point back to the sun. Something to look forward to. Speaking of; our hotly anticipated production The Witch of Harpswell has been released on the video sharing site, Youtube. If you haven't already watched it, please do set aside 45 minutes and take in what is possible with a set of intrepid actors from around Lincoln County, a hot new script and an assortment of internet connection speeds! The performance was recorded in a single take about a week ago, with Nick Azzaretti at the helm of the recording software and Allison Eddyblouin narrating the imagined action. I'm so proud have been part of the production, complete with authentic costumes and considered back drops. This project is funded in part by a grant from the Maine Arts Commission, an independent state agency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts. Up next, with a release date of December 15th, is A Christmas Carol. This is perhaps our most ambitious Zoom performance yet, with a large cast and scenes filmed over recent weeks to accommodate schedules. This gave us a chance to try multiple takes at the dialogue and capture something uplifting and magical, and true to the spirit of the tale (my favorite Christmas story). Today is Giving Tuesday, and we would be honored if you would consider our theater group in your donations this year. Donations can be made by writing a check to: River Company PO Box 101 Damariscotta 04543 ME Or at this link: www.rivercompany.org/join Dear Friends of River Company,
Bewilderingly, holiday time is almost upon us. For me, the holidays are about attempting to be my best self around friends and family. I turn into a happy-chappy for some reason. While this has led to some disastrous consequences in pub mop cupboards and supermarket shopping trolleys, irresistibly, I raise spirits yearly and cheer the holidays. Dickens is to blame, I reckon. River Company continues doing its upmost to bring fun and joy through theater, and I'm secretly delighted to be apart of it... Just don't tell my mates back in that Invernessian pub, they think of me as a very serious person. River Company is producing three ambitious Internet Video Call performances at the moment. I must give a huge shout out to Nick Azzaretti who has provided tremendous tech support for these undertakings. Hopefully, all of them can be made ready over the holiday period. Keep an eye out for our releases! Allison Eddyblouin's project, The Witch of Harpswell, had its first Zoom rehearsal. What a fabulous cast we have, including some members of the same household family, some lost research scientists, and local actors. It was amazing to have a small window into everyone's homes as we navigate this year more alone. This project is funded in part by a grant from the Maine Arts Commission, an independent state agency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts. Check them out! Please consider a donation to our theater company this holiday season. If you are able to give this year, there are a couple ways to do so. Please send a check to: River Company Theater P.O. Box 101 Damariscotta, ME 04543 Alternatively, you can go online to www.rivercompany.org and click the link at the bottom of the page. This year more than ever we need the arts, not only for their ability to transport us, but also to remind us how to be human, how to create a better world – together. Your support makes community creativity possible. We whole-heartedly thank you for being part of our community theater and can't wait to share our productions with you soon. ![]() Dear Friends of River Company, My favorite month! Reach for those neatly folded sweaters at the back of the drawer and witness the foliage blush from the touch of Autumn, then anticipate nervously Winter's cold embrace... At River Company, we just had an exciting Zoom meeting (such a thing still exists I assure you) and I have some noteworthy news to share with you. No in-person performances yet, but read on! First, we're looking for actors to audition for a Zoom performance of A Christmas Carol for our Holidays Fundraiser this year. Please email Nick, at admin@rivercompanytheater.org for more information. We've got a handle on online performance thanks to our recent internet shows, The Spooky House and How He Lied to Her Husband. These shows are available to watch on our YouTube Channel. Following on from that, we have our third YouTube performance in production. Nick Azzaretti, Soren Barker and Emily Randel take on Anton Chekhov's The Boor. First performed in October 1888, this looks like a hot and happening hoot..., but how does one stage a duel over Zoom, I wonder? Next, River Company board member Allison Eddyblouin reports some great progress on her project, The Witch of Harpswell. River Company was awarded a grant from the Maine Arts Commission to create a new play based on the folk-tale of the same name. Together with local historical fiction author and Harpswell resident, James L. Nelson, Allison has put together a script and has begun the careful process of fine-tuning it to perfection. "It stays true to the folk-tale as much as possible," said Allison, "But we've made a few artistic choices to add real depth to the characters and setting. It's been a wonderful and inspired journey for me, and working Jim is just terrific!" I hope we continue to bump into each other outside the Post Office, if not the theater. Now, enjoy the cooler weather. ![]() Dear Friends of River Company, Theater has been knocked for six in the past few months. For us, our 2020 season has been turned on its head, then turned inside out, and then thrown out the window! Back in March, we had just had our first rehearsal of Karmo Sanders' Homer Bound at Skidompha Library's Porter Hall. I remember the energy being really positive. Later that week, we got news that the Library was to cancel all programming until further notice – a decision taken early, and in hindsight it was exceptionally prudent and well done. We're hoping to revisit Homer Bound in 2021. Rather than let this year slip by, we're doing our best to keep our theater active. To that end, we have some absolutely excellent news to share: River Company has won a grant from the Maine Arts Commission! Our project is to create a new play set in Maine, titled, The Witch of Harpswell. It is a collaborative project between director, actor, and River Company Board Secretary, Allison Eddyblouin, and James L. Nelson, award-winning author of historical maritime fiction and nonfiction and South Harpswell resident. “The play is based on the local folktale,” says Eddyblouin, “which is currently only available as a photocopied pamphlet at a Cundy’s Harbor gift shop.” Allison and James have been engaged in social distanced scripting and dramatrugy over recent weeks. The plan is to craft a show performed entirely by children, as and when it is safe to do so. The project is funded in part by Maine Arts Commission, an independent state agency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts. A lot of theater has appeared online. Myself, I've been really inspired by Scenes for Survival, which is a collaboration between BBC Scotland and the National Theatre for Scotland. These shows are quirky vignettes, about 10 minutes in length, and well worth exploring. Here at River Company, we thought we'd continue our monthly YouTube video in a similar vein. The Spooky House was written by myself and I was lucky enough to have Christine Andersen perform the piece. It's about a woman who moves out of the city to a spooky new house. The performance can be viewed below, or on our YouTube Channel. Please give us a "Like" and "Subscribe", if you are familiar with YouTube! Instead of a ticket for this performance, you may wish to donate to River Company to continue to support community theater here. If you'd like to be involved in future River Company YouTube performances, please get in touch via our website!
Take care out there, and enjoy the summer! Mike Lee
​Dear Friends of River Company,
It's Mike here from River Company. Mallory has asked me to write the eblast this month. I will do my best to give it it's usual freshness and positivity that Mallory always imbues it with! Well, welcome to July! How on earth did that happen?! Midsummer months are always unpredictable: there's so much energy in the air, whether that's literally thunder storms and drought busting deluges, or the many things folk are up to. Myself, I've taken to Saturday fishing on Damariscotta lake at 4am. It's so beautiful at that time of day, quiet and still. Then, when the heat hits in the afternoon, I nap. July promises one great theater moment with the release of Hamilton on Disney+ this weekend. Like a lot of people, I'm so excited to see it for the first time and put some action to the fantastic soundtrack. Second to that is River Company's own video-call-based performance being released today! Some members of our board have acted out a socially distanced version of George Bernard Shaw's one act play, "How He Lied To Her Husband." The cast is Allison Eddyblouin, Nick Azzaretti, and myself (Mike Lee) while Mallory Adams directing over Zoom. The four of us had a blast adapting the play to Lincoln County and the present day, while retaining most of the original dialogue. My favorite line is the perfectly absurd, "That's not a very nice thing to say after wasting my pet hand sanitizer."
We're asking folk to consider donating to the food pantry in lieu of a ticket, here: newcastlefoodpantry.org/
We really appreciate everyone who continues to support our theater group through membership and donation. Your invaluable help is even more gratefully received at the moment with the prospect of an actual play to go see seeming a long way off. But with your help, we'll be there for you when the time comes. You can support River Company, here: www.rivercompany.org/contact-us.html#join Finally, the board would like to say a big "Thank you," to Lucy Smith who left the board last month. Your work and friendliness were very welcome and appreciated! Thanks for reading, take care of yourselves and be well! Mike Lee, River Company Hello Friends of River Company and Happy 1st of June. Every June I can't help but sing the lyrics "June is bustin' out all over" from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel. Only recently did I learn that the scene in which the song was sung, in addition to many others, was filmed on location in Boothbay Harbor, Maine!
This June eblast is River Company's first in two months; the last eblast was sent in March. And needless to say, these past two months have been incredibly difficult in a variety of ways. And like all of you, the board of River Company is doing its best to navigate these strange new times. A few weeks ago River Company held its bimonthly board meeting via zoom. Right now, so much is still unknown concerning our season and we plan to reevaluate at our next meeting in July whether having any kind of performance, whether it be outside or not, will be possible and safe. But we have decided to do a zoom live performance! Stay tuned for another email with performance times and access information. We also decided to postpone mailing our newsletter and membership and plan to send it out in the fall, with hopefully a clearer plan for the holiday season and for 2021. Thank you all who have donated and renewed their membership in 2020. It is greatly appreciated. We now have a donate button and a membership subscription button on our website and if in the meantime you are so inclined to donate or join us, we humbly thank you. "Fresh and alive and gay and young, June is a love song, sweetly sung." It's a new month, a new day, and singing those lyrics fills me with positivity - that there's always rebirth, new possibilities, and a chance for things to get better. Wishing you all safety, health and happiness. Mallory Adams, River Company President Dear Friends and Members of River Company,
We began 2020 very excited to bring you a season full of delightful, Maine-themed shows, but due to the spread of the Coronavirus, or COVID-19, we feel it is best to modify our season in order to protect our wonderful community. It is with a heavy heart that we postpone our spring production of “Homer Bound” by Karmo Sanders. Rather than do another Summer Shakespeare, we will instead focus on producing “Homer Bound” for an early fall production. Right now, everything is very fluid and we are doing our best to monitor the situation and follow CDC recommendations and will continue to do so into the future. We still plan to send out our annual newsletter, just later this spring than usual. We still plan to have a children’s workshop in the fall and a holiday fundraiser in December. River Company is so thankful for all our members, fans and supporters. Please stay tuned for more information going forward. We will try to keep everyone as up to date, via social media and email, as much as possible. The Show Will Go On. Mallory Adams - President of River Company River Company will hold Open Auditions for its spring production, "Homer Bound," by Karmo Sanders. Auditions will be Friday March 6th and Saturday March 7th at 6-9 PM in Porter Hall at Skidompha Library. Audition forms will be provided along with character descriptions and sides. For more information, email the director at eleanorcadebusby@hotmail.com
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