ACT: 71 Years Strong
Contributed by Matt Fernandez
Anchorage Community Theatre’s 71st season has already charged out of the gate with its first live show in late August, but not all things turned out as originally planned. In late 2023, Executive Director Matt Fernandez and his committee of play selectors read and reasoned over what would be the variety of plays for ACT 2024-2025 season. It was finally agreed that ACT would put on 4 mainstage productions that would roll out as such: In September/October, Addams Family the Musical, over the holidays, Little Women the Broadway Musical, for Black History Month, Alabama Story, and ending in April, the sumptuously hilarious dark-comedy Bright Ideas.
When ACT was wrapping up its historical 70th year with last May’s Matilda at the Sydney Laurence Auditorium, there were some other plays that would utilize ACT’s 61-seat, studio theatre while it was not in use. The first play was a long-desired project by two Alaskan acting veterans, Rachel Gregory and Dawson Moore, the theatre classic, Same Time, Next Year. The second production was another independent venture by recently retired Dimond High drama coach, Carrie Smith, California Suite. Carrie has been part of the Dimond High’s Theatre Club since 2015, and once she was done, she immediately became a regular volunteer at ACT. Carrie worked on numerous shows in 2023-2024, from Wait Until Dark, to A Christmas Carol, to Our Town. She was also a constant presence at our monthly Play Reader’s Club. It was at this club-meeting that we read Neil Simon’s comedy classic California Suite, that Carrie mustered up enough gumption to ask if she could produce and direct this comedy-drama on ACT’s stage in August.
Everything was set, notices had gone out – ACT’s four mainstage productions would spell out another ambitious season, and there would be two Second Stage productions in our space as summer developed. However, the best laid plans… (you know how the rest goes).
First Addams Family’s production license became unavailable due to “restrictions in your geographical area.” Which means, some other theatre nearby has obtained the rights before you. But who? Close could mean British Columbia! It turns out that our friends from Homer’s Pier One Theatre, had the same notion, and got Addams Family before us. It seems that the distributors of this musical didn’t understand the “geographical” oddity between Homer and Anchorage. When’s the last time you went all the way out to Homer for an evening at the theatre? Homer’s show was slated for mid-July and ours was in Fall! Pier One’s Jennifer Norton saw the humor in it all too.
Then, Same Time, Next Year received an unavoidable setback, and the show was to be postponed till October at the earliest. With Addams Family out of the roster, the decision was made to incorporate California Suite & Same Time, Next Year into the 71st Season. This was good news for the producers of these shows. It meant that ACT would fit the bill for production expenses, marketing, and would handle box office. This also meant that the shows could not be categorized under the auspice of “mainstage”, but because of ACT’s open auditions policy for Mainstage shows, this meant the two new plays had to under the “Second Stage” moniker. ACT’s Second Stage was a creation by Cyrano’s Artistic Director Teresa Pond in 2000.
Now, ACT had six plays in its season rather than four. All was ready again, tickets online, posters made, 600 season-schedule magnets were ordered. Then… life happened again and Same Time, Next Year was again put on the shelf until further notice.
Rolling with the punches in nothing new to ACT. Live theatre takes a little parry and riposte. In 1964, the Great Alaska Earthquake hit right in the middle of our run of Our Town. The 2018 earthquake cancelled did the same thing to The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, and the Covid-19 pandemic and shutdowns took out the last show of our 66th season, and completely blew-away our plans for 67. You don’t live 71 years without learning how to roll with it. ACT’s tradition is to carry-on. In 2020 and 2021, we reorganized our season to fit within CDC guidelines and kept cranking-out plays for Alaskans.
Things like this happen in theatre as it does in life. What keeps ACT going is our mission of Building Community Through Theatre; and like our 2020-2021 Season’s poster stated boldly, “Building Community Doesn’t Stop.”
ACT will be holding auditions for Little Women: The Broadway Musical on September 20th and 21st and is looking for voice actors for Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde: A Radio Play on October 5th. ACT will also be a featured charity at The Mayor’s Charity Ball on October 12th at the Dena’ina Center. Go to actalaska.org for audition info, and mayorscharity.org for tickets to the ball.