BACKSTAGE
With the Chatham Community Players
July 2002

Kudos to Steve and Kathy Ruskin
The Ruskins presented a colorful, lively, and amusing Cirque du Fishawaque on Fishawack Day (June 8) with clowns, jugglers, animals, and more! In response to the Outreach performance the night before, the following letter was received:

"Thank you...Our children had a wonderful time...Due to your generosity, the Neighborhood House offered our families a wonderful evening...We deeply appreciate your thoughtfulness in providing transportation. We hope your kindness will continue in years to come."

Neighborhood House is just one of many groups to whom we give free tickets to our productions, enabling many to see live theater for the first time ever.

Arts Award Presented to Players
On June 11, at the Annual Meeting and Awards Ceremony of the Arts Council of the Morris Area, Chatham Community Players was given the Outstanding Arts Organization award. Co-winner was the New Jersey Shakespeare Festival. Also honored was a Chatham Players "alumna," Dee Billia (Dames at Sea, Peter Pan, A Christmas Carol), who was named the Outstanding Arts Advocate.

Chatham Community Players Scholarship to Anne Walbridge
Talented theater intern Anne Walbridge, who has worked backstage and onstage for us, and who performed onstage in several shows at Chatham High School, is the recipient of the Chatham Community Players Scholarship for her outstanding contribution to theater arts at CHS. Anne, who is a member of the National Honor Society and president of the Speech and Theater Club at the high school, also won the departmental award in Mathematics, the Chatham Jaycees Scholarship, the Chatham Music Boosters Scholarship, the Woman's Club of Chatham Scholarship, and the Principal's Cup as Valedictorian of her class. We have enjoyed Anne's presence and her many contributions to Players, and wish her well as she goes off to college.

Here and There
Julia Sann (A Christmas Carol) played Amaryllis in New Providence High School's The Music Man in February, and is having a busy summer. She's attending Paper Mill Playhouse's Summer Musical Conservatory, appearing in Paper Mill's New Voices of 2002 in July, and will be a soloist in New Providence's Broadway by the Book in July. June found her appearing in The Merry Wives of Windsor with the Actor's Shakespeare Company in Hoboken.

Performing outside the Chatham Playhouse? Let us know!

Special Thanks to Anna Cave and Valerie Clark for their generous donations of make-up to Players!

Read our previous Newsletters:
June 2002
April 2002
January 2002
November 2001
September 2001