Please plan to attend the Playhouse Booster Meeting Tuesday evening at 7:00 pm.  There will be a sneak peek performance by Steel Pier cast members and very important Playhouse news and business to be discussed.

Cast and Crew members should have a parent representative at the meeting (sign in!) unless other arrangements have been made in advance with CeCe.

Reminder to bring your Gala donations, raffle tickets and RSVPs as well as orders for Playbill ads.

Costume fees are now due. (original $100 plus additional $50)

Break a Leg stars may be purchased in advance and there are a FEW Playhouse polos left for purchase.

yard signs may be picke up at the meeting as well.

Hello and Happy New Year!
 
We are anxiously planning a busy January, which includes many activities.  If you attended the Holiday party at the Reilley’s you know, it was a huge success!  Thanks to the Reilley’s for opening their lovely home.  
 
Planning Meeting
We are having a Steel Pier Planning meeting tomorrow afternoon, 3:00pm, in the auditorium.  I know the notice is short and many of you may not be able to attend.  We just want to check signals prior to next week’s Box Office opening and Booster Club Meeting.  If you are on the Board, chair costumes, BoxOfBox Officehirts, yard signs, publicity, videos, Green Room, concessions, cast and crew meals, cast party, photography, heads shots, Gala, Break a Leg stars, Playbill and Playbill advertising, please let me know if you can attend.  In addition to checking signals, we are going to discuss ways to enroll more help this year from orchestra and some new crew and cast parents.  If you are unable to attend, I will be happy to coordinate your report to this group.  Please, just let me know.
 
Booster Club Meeting
Our next Booster Club meeting is next Tuesday, January 12, 7:00 pm.  We hope to host it in the auditorium.  Regardless, in the Black Box or the auditorium, we will see an exerpt from Steel Pier.  I can hardly wait!  Please plan to attend.  
 
Box Office Opens!
The Box Office opens, January 11. Scheduled work times have been sent out and we are on our way to a second round of on-line ticket sales.   Preseason Cast and Crew ticket instructions went out yesterday.  Thanks, Marlene!  Please remember to keep the link to cast and crew ticket orders private as a courtesy to other cast and crew members.
 
GALA…
Our gala planning is coming along very smoothly and scheduled for you to say “I DO” on January 22.  Thanks to the Gala committee lead so capably by Lindy Tennet and Teresa Canon.  
 
I wanted to remind everyone, THIS GALA will be a little different than Gala’s past.  We have committed to Chris Juntti, that once our students are there to perform, we will cease selling and consuming alchohol.  Lindy and Teresa will share details of timing, etc., when we get together next week.  However, we have had a few requests to fill tables with non-performing students.  For example, a friend of Marcie’s wants to come and watch.  She is not a performer.  Marcie thought I could add her to our table.  or Annie is home for the weekend, Judy could add her to her table to watch Lizzie.  My communications with Mr. Juntti have been very clear.  No one under 21 will be admitted during the time we have predinner bidding, dinner, or the auction.  These are the times we will be serving alcohol.  Lindy, Teresa, and I have agreed, we LOVE sharing our children, so if you have a student, sibling, or student’s friend, under 21, who’d like to watch the performance, they may arrive when the performing kids arrive.  Let Lindy and Teresa know and there will be seating for them along side the dinner tables.  Mr Juntti indicated to me in a recent email, “this is a school event” and while there is anyone under 21 in the room, he expects no alcohol.  Far be it from me to disagree with the principal.. but  as I have told you before, I support his stand.   
 
Happy New Year and REMEMBER there are lots of ways to say, “I do” to support our kids, our directors, and our theater. 

Jennie Baker
mbaker14@sbcglobal.net
Stratford Playhouse Booster President



Don’t Be  Ding Dong!(as CeCe would say!), but Come help us “Ring in” the Season!!

Thursday Dec. 10th at 7PM
13406 Pinerock Ln (Jim & Aileen Reilly’s Home)

Booster Club Officers bring either an appetizer or Dessert for 10-12
All other Members bring your choice of Beverage

There will be a brief but important booster meeting prior to celebrating the season.
All Booster members are urged to attend as well as parents of Steel Pier Cast and Crew.
More info for our months to come, lots of details about the upcoming show and gala preparations that you will not want to miss.

Speaking of gala, if you have a donation or wish to turn in your raffle tickets, bring them along!! And if you have yet to turn in yoru costume fee for either Wedding Singer ($75) or Steel Pier ($100), please do so as well.

 Thursday Dec. 10th at 7PM
13406 Pinerock Ln (Jim & Aileen Reilly’s Home)

Booster Club Officers bring either an appetizer or Dessert for 10-12
All other Members bring your choice of Beverage

RSVP: jreilly6@comcast.net by Wed. Dec 8th


Every bride knows at least two things…
1) Honeymoons should be happening the week following the wedding AND
2) you have six months to write your thank you notes.
 
It has been a number of years since I was a bride AND as The Wedding Singer alluded, I am now the “mother of the mother of the bride”.  So with such distinction, I was clearly NOT thinking when I scheduled both the Steer Pier Planning and the Booster Club meetings for the week following the closing weekend of The Wedding Singer.  Better sense has hit me AND I am canceling both the Planning meeting on the calendar for this afternoon AND the Booster Club meeting in the Black Box for tonight. 
 
Enjoy your “honeymoon” but ONLY until tomorrow night… The Joann’s event Karla distributed yesterday should be lots of fun.  It is a come and go event, refreshments will be served.  Debbie Slack and Joann’s have offered this incredible opportunity to help the Playhouse.  Remember we have had an unplanned expense of $5000 for a new lift.  Come select an outfit for Gala, new shoes, new belts, etc.  AND do a little Christmas Shopping.   After stopping by Joann’s, you may continue the Honeymoon.
 
We will reschedule the planning meeting for after Thanksgiving.  Our next Booster meeting will be December 10th at the Holiday Event (details will follow).
 
AND “as the mother of the mother of the bride”, I would like to say an AWESOME thanks!  Wedding Singer was fabulous.  When we have our final tally for tickets, we will communicate, but it was an amazing run. 
 
A huge thanks to Jan Goss and Pam Lundell.  Their eye for 80’s wear and color didn’t go unnoticed by a single Patron.  Fabulous Job.  Leslie Stackhouse helped with the costumes and picked up accountability for props along the way.  Thanks, Leslie!  A collection of artists, including Lindy Tennet, Kim Ehlinger, Lauri Cragg, and Danna Lynde helped with Set Painting…. And the sets were super!  As always, Dana Ghorashy did an amazing job with Break a Leg…must have set a record!  Robin Hunter was selling Gala Raffle tickets, reaching out to patrons that may not attend the Gala.  Thanks, Robin!  The head shots and lobby décor were the cutest!  Thanks, Lindy Tennet.  Concessions were well staffed with both fun personnel and a very fun assortment of delicacies.  Thanks to new Chairmen, Michelle Eggert and Charlie Dunn.  The Green Room was a favorite Wedding Reception haunt thanks to Chairmen Susan Swank and Paula Davis.   The cast and crew were well-fed, rehearsal dinner style, thanks to the coordination of Susan Wilson.
———-And the Box Office ran like a top with the new online system!  Marlene Stirl making process improvements every day, supported and enabled by her able bodied co-chairs, Susan Mitchell and Mary Beth Bourgeous.  Our website (thanks to Karla) is updated and now in constant use as it provides the link to tickets.  The Playbill was a huge success, thanks to Lindy Tennet, Joe Elliot, and Judy Wild.  The after party was a big success, thanks to chair Aileen Reilly.  And thanks to Leslie Stackhouse for opening her house for a parent’s after event.

Finally, we love our Directors… Thank you CeCe, Christian, and David. They bring out so much in our kids.  And it is our kids that are really the stars.  As the black clad crew arrived on stage, Saturday night, you could really see “the full effect” of what SHS Playhouse is to the community.  So many kids with a safe place to be themselves.  Kudos to you as parents and patrons. 

Now, we remain in New Jersey, travel back in time, to another wedding, and lots of dancing! 

Jennie Baker