(35th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Here to get you in the Festival mood this morning is your Dixieland Jazz alarm clock.
The Greenway was marchin’ and swingin’ Friday night!
—–
click here to get hot links for Tuesday’s events listed above
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
Bethlehem-born writer Hilda Doolittle — H. D. — (1886-1961) is
the “Lehigh Valley’s most important literary figure.”
See it tonight!
“The Secret” plays Monday, October 7 – 7:30-9:00p and Tuesday, October 8 – 7:30-9:00p at Touchstone Theatre: http://festivalunbound.com/the-secret/
Anecdote #7 from Gadfly reminiscences of life in the ‘hood when Bethlehem Steel was still the Big Daddy.
We live in a close neighborhood of houses with porches.
In nice weather, going to work for Gadfly meant going to the front porch. Gadfly’s work was to read and write. He sat. He didn’t use his hands. He didn’t get dirty. He didn’t carry a lunch bucket. To his steelman neighbors, he was “college boy” at age 30. He was “Eddie,” not Ed, still at age 50. He was not quite a man though he bred six athletic sons playing street ball right in front of them as they dodged to get to their cars. Not the kind of men to go to a play.
The attitude lingers in the neighborhood.
Sunday Gadfly went to a play — “The Secret.” “Where ya goin, Eddie?” “To a . . . play?” “Don’t you know the Eagles are on?”
Yes, Gadfly went to a play.
And a play based on a series of poems yet!
A combination designed to ratchet a steelman’s briefs three or four sizes tighter.
Women will readily understand H. D. Men need to.
Hilda Doolittle was a born artist.
She had a gift, a gift little appreciated in the late 19th century Bethlehem of her youth.
Her autobiography virtually begins with the unwittingly brutal choking to death of her mother’s artistic talent by her grandfather.
Take three minutes and listen:
Momma’s voice was low and rich and vibrant. But she never sang again. And all the women felt they had failed.
It’s amazing that H. D. ever got to the equivalency of first base much less world renown in a culture that scorned feminine voices, even unconsciously, as “dreadful noise” and was able to give us her considerable gifts.
So the poem/play has meat, meaning, relevance.
But it is also visually and auditorily stunning. All you need do is go with the flow, as director Jennie Gilrain suggests — just let it wash over you.
The play has beautiful people, but, most of all, it has Doug Roysdon’s fabulous marionettes.
Don’t miss “The Secret”!
Playing tonight and tomorrow night
fabulous photos by fabulous Ed Leskin
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(33rd in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Here is a little bit about Gadfly’s Festival fare Monday evening.
How many of us have been inside Sisters’ House? Gadfly’s wing is not raised. Never been there.
What a wonderful place in our town to get inside a place in our heritage, where, similarly, he has also never been.
Join Gadfly in these dual discoveries?
—–
Seth Moglen is co-author of “Hidden Seed.” Moglen’s play focuses on mid-18th century Bethlehem, as told by the ghosts of three of the city’s female founders: a formerly enslaved West African woman, a Native American woman, and one of the original Moravian immigrants from Europe. “These ghosts have returned to Bethlehem to share the astonishing story of the founders’ egalitarian achievements,” said Moglen. “In the first two decades, the Moravians built a racially integrated city that abolished poverty, shared wealth equally, emancipated women to be leaders, and provided free education, health care, child care, and elder care to all. The ghosts have an urgent message for Bethlehem residents today, but in order to share that message, they must come to terms with painful truths about the city and their relationship to one another.”
“Hidden Seed: Bethlehem’s Forgotten Utopia”
Dive into the hidden history of Bethlehem’s birth— a Moravian Utopia? Multiculturalism and womens’ rights are sown into the soil of our remarkable egalitarian past. Hidden Seed shines light on our forebears’ lessons, and the treasures that grow from our roots.
Arrive a few minutes early to explore the Single Sisters House before the performance– here’s a link to what you’ll experience.
DATES & TIMES:
Monday, October 7 – 7:00-8:30p | Single Sisters House, Historic Bethlehem
Tuesday, October 8 – 7:00-8:30p | Single Sisters House, Historic Bethlehem
Wednesday, October 9 – 7:00-8:30p | Single Sisters House, Historic Bethlehem
Thursday, October 10 – 8:00-9:30p | PBS39 (Open Captions and Audio Description) *Panel discussion following the show.
VENUES:
Single Sisters House | 50 W. Church Street, Bethlehem, PA
PBS 39 | 839 Sesame Street, Bethlehem, PA – For the Thursday, October 10th show only!
PRICE: $20; limited amount of Pay What You Will tickets for purchase; please call 610-867-1689 to order.
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(32nd in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Bagpipes from the Greenway Friday night will get your blood flowing better than a Dunkin’! Gadfly always thought a bagpipe alarm clock would be a winner. Perfect gift for the sluggard in your life!
—–
click here to get hot links for Monday’s events listed above
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(31st in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Sleepy-eyed Gadfly plans this morning with the students:
“Starry-Eyed”
A roaming group of misfit heroes follows a peculiar star; they find themselves in Bethlehem by accident but stay to fight the monsters that they find there– and face their fears– in this original production, devised and written by teens from Bethlehem high schools.
Directed by Emma Ackerman, coordinator of Touchstone Theatre’s Teen Ensemble.
DATES & TIMES:
Sunday, October 6 – 11:00a-12:30p
VENUE: Payrow Plaza | 10 E. Church Street, Bethlehem, PA
In case of rain, venue will be Nitschmann Middle School. Decision will made by 8am– Check the Festival UnBound Facebook, FestivalUnBound.com or our voicemail to confirm.
PRICE: Pay What You Will: Suggested Donation $15 adults / $10 students and seniors
And then, since Gadfly saw Prometheus/Redux yesterday with the panel, he plans to see The Secret — the H.D. play with the Mock Turtle Marionettes — likewise with panel — today and afterwards walk up to Zoellner to see “A Joyful Noise.”
He likes panels and will post on the Prometheus one in a day or two.
The Secret
DATES & TIMES:
Sunday, October 6 – 1:00-2:30p (Audio Description) | Panel 2:30-3:30p
Monday, October 7 – 7:30-9:00p
Tuesday, October 8 – 7:30-9:00p
VENUE: Touchstone Theatre | 321 E. Fourth Street, Bethlehem, PA
PRICE: $25 adult & $15 student/senior; limited amount of Pay What You Will tickets for purchase; please call 610-867-1689 to order.
“A Joyful Noise” — one time only
The Bach Choir of Bethlehem, in collaboration with Nazareth Area High School Cantus, Camille Armstrong, Greater Shiloh Church Choir, Big Easy Easton Brass, Ysaye Barnwell of Sweet Honey in the Rock, Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts Touring Choir, Bel Canto Youth Chorus, and Jakopa’s Punch, explores how the collective act of choral singing and music making can bring people together and make the world a smaller place. Join us as we give voice to community through song!
DATE: Sunday, October 6
TIME: 4:00 – 6:00 PM
VENUE: Zoellner Arts Center, Baker Hall | 420 E. Packer Avenue, Bethlehem, PA
PRICE: $15 / $10 students; limited amount of Pay What You Will tickets for purchase; please call 610-867-1689 to order.
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(30th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Prometheus/Redux is arguably the heart of “Festival UnBound.”
A wag might say its the liver of the Festival.
The “real” Prometheus was doomed to have his liver eaten every day only to have it grow back every night — an endless cycle of repast and regeneration.
Our Everyman Steelman lies dying in a local hospital with cirrhosis of the liver, most likely from toxic chemicals bequeathed by The Steel.
What will his fate be?
Twenty years later, our Prometheus, though no longer chained to the huge Steel monolith where we first encountered him in Steelbound, is much the same man spiritually while much the more decayed man physically.
The play almost literally opens with the familiar beautifully haunting choric plea for Prometheus to now cut his ties with his Bethlehem Steel past as he earlier had cut his ties with the Bethlehem Steel place.
For the man hasn’t changed. Age has not improved his vocabulary.
He’s a man who hasn’t moved on from the closing of The Steel.
“I used to be somebody, not any more.”
“I just want to count for something. I can’t bear fading away.”
“You don’t ask a man to build a country and then leave him useless.”
“I was part of the process, now I’m not so sure.”
“Don’t know what I’m supposed to do anymore.”
“I need a place to stand.
“A man needs a purpose.”
“I need a job, a man’s job.”
So, yes, what will his fate be?
Gadfly saw the play yesterday.
You must do likewise.
Today is your last chance.
Sunday, October 6 – 7:00-9:00p (Open Captions and Audio Description)
VENUE: Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts | 321 E. Third Street, Bethlehem, PA
PRICE: $25 adult & $15 student/senior/steelworkers; limited amount of Pay What You Will tickets for purchase; please call 610-867-1689 to order.
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(29th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
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click here to get hot links for Saturday’s events listed above
—–
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(28th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(27th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(26th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
(abitididibitdidbit, That’s all, Folks!)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(25th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(24th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(23rd in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(22nd in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(21st in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Gadfly:
My 18 years in Bethlehem qualify me as “just barely” past newcomer status, so I did not live through the closing of the Steel years. But I am more than grateful for those who have worked to recreate Bethlehem into the place I gladly call home. Sure there are challenges but there are plenty of good people committed to continuously improving it. Last night’s opening was a testament to that commitment.
Carol Burns
(20th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(19th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
—–
click here to get hot links for Saturday’s events listed above
—–
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(18th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Gadfly is so sorry — Anne Hills — he misheard her name on the video
And sorry that the video is chunky and incomplete, but there is a full audio
So a dinosaur falls sooner or later,
Shakes the ground, leaves a crater,
A town to fall in, be torn apart
Leavin’ nothin’ but bones and a broken heart.
. . . . .
Now bones of steel they still are there,
Fossilized in the Lehigh air,
But time is short, it hurries on,
We look ahead as a new day dawns.
When the dinosaur fell, we felt the thunder,
It tried to push this whole town under.
But dreamers work and workers dream,
What may seem lost was soon redeemed,
Both sides of the river, new life is growing.
. . . . .
This valley sings of the men, the women,
Everything once made and all been given,
by those long here or immigrant hands,
we regenerate and restore these lands.
And where the steelstacks stood, there’s music ringin’,
Through the old mill walls, you’ll hear children singin,’
While the old men talk and recall the ways
That the dinosaur lived in the dinosaur days.
. . . .
Yeah, we look ahead as a new day dawns.
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(17th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
We have gathered today in the spirit of community to rise up and embrace the possibilities of our future.
And what amazing possibilities they are.
They shine like a piece of polished Bethlehem steel.
They shine like our lights at Christmas time.
They shine like the Star of Bethlehem itself.
You see, for generations, Bethlehem defined itself through its pride of industry through Bethlehem Steel,
But for the last twenty years we have found so many new ways to define ourselves.
We can be anything we want to be.
We are free to dream.
We are unBound!
In this “Festival UnBound,” we will come together for a week of celebration and exploration.
Celebration of this wonderful community,
And exploration of just what kind of a future we want for ourselves.
Throughout the week we will share our dreams of the future,
and then like. like a message in a balloon,
we will send our dreams out into the world,
because those dreams, our dreams, make a difference!
And now I hereby declare,
LET THE FESTIVAL BEGIN!
(stay tuned for more audio and video)
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(16th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
—–
(32nd in a series of posts on H.D.)
Bethlehem-born writer Hilda Doolittle — H. D. — (1886-1961) is
the “Lehigh Valley’s most important literary figure.”
Gadfly calls your attention especially to the Sunday showing of the play — see bottom of page for all showings — because of the panel that will follow. A panel that includes our Councilwoman Van Wirt, my Lehigh colleague Mary Foltz, and a Gadfly former student, the wonderful Emily Santana.
“The Secret: A New Play About Hilda Doolittle”
part of Festival UnBound
The premiere of a new play by Mock Turtle Marionette Theater on the Lehigh Valley’s most influential artist, the celebrated feminist writer and LGBTQ icon Hilda Doolittle, featuring narrative, song, and puppetry.
Post-Show Panel Discussion, Sun., Oct. 6, 2019, Play 1:00-2:30, Panel Discussion 2:30-3:30
“Who will follow the music?” WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP: Inspirations and Obstacles
Festival UnBound at Touchstone Theatre, 321 East 4th Street, Bethlehem, PA, 18015
Panelists’ Biographies:
Phyllis Alexander has been a champion for social justice for several decades, and civil rights professional for over twenty years working for both corporate America and city government. Phyllis is an experienced coalition builder and trainer and credits her skills to her 28-year affiliation as senior trainer and board president with the National Coalition Building Institute, an international social justice/ social change organization. Currently, Phyllis is a consultant with the Promise Neighborhood of the Lehigh Valley, and is the Project Director for the Leadership Without Limits Leadership Institute. Phyllis retired as the City of Allentown’s Neighborhood Coordinator. Prior to this role, Phyllis worked as the city’s Director of the Bureau of Human Relations & Equal Opportunity.
Yalitza Corcino-Davis is a Learning Specialist and Assistant Professor at Lehigh Carbon Community College. As a young child, she moved with her family from Puerto Rico to New Jersey. As one of the first women in her family to go to college, she understands the barriers some people experience to achieve their goals. Yalitza is now in her second year of a doctoral program in education at Lehigh University. Her passion is helping students, traditional and returning adults, achieve their academic goals so they can achieve their life goals. Yalitza is especially committed to the empowerment of underserved and marginalized populations.
Abriana Ferrari is 15 years old and in the 10th grade. She’s been homeschooled for 10 years and hopes to become an environmental lawyer when she is older. She loves the sciences (especially physics!) and aims to assist in the battle to conserve our environment. As for performance experience, she has been among the cast of many theatrical productions (including three Wizard of Oz’s, two Lion King’s, and two Beauty and the Beast’s in the span of three years). One of her favorite experiences was singing in Canterbury Cathedral in England. Outside of performing, she loves to write, compose, and play Dungeons and Dragons in the basement with her nerdy theatre friends. Abriana is a cast member and composer for “The Secret.”
Mary C. Foltz is an Associate Professor of English at Lehigh University; she also offers classes in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies as well as American Studies. For the past years, she has served as the Director of the South Side Initiative, a program at Lehigh that brings community members and Lehigh faculty and students to engage in research that benefits our communities and inspires increased civic engagement. With South Side Initiative, Mary has developed an LGBT oral history project, LGBT community reading group, and an online newspaper to highlight issues of import for residents of South Bethlehem as well as participating in a variety of public arts and humanities projects.
Nancy Matos Gonzalez, Magisterial District Judge, was elected to office in 1991, when at the age of 25 she became the first Hispanic Magisterial District Judge in the State of Pennsylvania. She has since continued to preside in South Bethlehem, attaining commendable audit compliance standard reports at both the State and County level. She has also served as President of her County Judge’s Association. Judge Gonzalez and her husband support varying youth athletic organizations in South Bethlehem. She also partners with multiple schools in and around her district to encourage the educational and personal advancement of youth.
Margaret Kavanagh, head custodian at Freemansburg Elementary is married and lives in Bethlehem with her three dogs. In her 20’s, she worked enough to travel to every state (all but Alaska). In her 30s, she was a massage therapist and house painter. In her 60’s, she and her wife will retire to South Carolina and travel in their RV, transporting rescue dogs to their adopted homes. Kavanagh has been working for the Bethlehem Area School District for 11 yrs. When not working, she volunteers with local animal rescues, plays djembe and recently joined the volunteer committee for Celtic Classic! Kavanagh founded an advocacy group for pitbulls, Mispits. She is passionate about truth, kindness and recycling!
Emily Santana is your friendly neighborhood waitress having worked at Jenny’s Kuali, in South Side Bethlehem, for over 6 years. She always knew she wanted to work for and with under-served families and worked in that capacity as a community resource coordinator for the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley for three years. She has now embarked on a new journey as an ER Tech in St. Luke’s Sacred Heart campus located in the heart of Allentown. She believes she is one step closer to melding her dream of working in the medical field, being a social justice advocate, and teacher, in her community.
Dr. Paige Van Wirt is a physician who co-founded a mobile medical practice that cares for Lehigh Valley seniors in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. She is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Care; her practice cares for over 2500 elders and now employs 23 people. She is a former urban planner with the City of New York, and is currently on Bethlehem City Council. She lives in Bethlehem with her husband Tim and 15 year old twins. She believes passionately in the power of local government and in an activist city council which truly represents the people.
——
DATES & TIMES:
Saturday, October 5 – 5:00-6:30p | Talkback 6:30-7:00p
Sunday, October 6 – 1:00-2:30p (Audio Description) | Panel 2:30-3:30p
Monday, October 7 – 7:30-9:00p
Tuesday, October 8 – 7:30-9:00p
VENUE: Touchstone Theatre | 321 E. Fourth Street, Bethlehem, PA
PRICE: $25 adult & $15 student/senior; limited amount of Pay What You Will tickets for purchase; please call 610-867-1689 to order.
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(15th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
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Added attraction is seeing how magnificently Bill George has aged!
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(13th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
—–
click here to get working links for Friday’s events listed above
—–
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(12th in a series of posts on Touchstone Theatre)
Gadfly made a pitch for “Festival UnBound” at City Council Sept 17 that you can see on the meeting video (min. 1:07:25) or hear below:
In that pitch you will hear him say that Gadfly was so excited that you might even see him dance.
And he was so flustered that, if you listen carefully, you will hear him call Touchstone Theatre “Touchdown Theatre” at the end of his pitch.
Lol
So that was September 17.
Today is October 3.
And his excitement runs even higher.
The Festival starts tomorrow with the opening ceremony on the Greenway 5:30.
And the opening of the original play Prometheus / Redux at 8.
And other events.
Their web site — How to Festival UnBound — has lots and lots on information.
Time to get with it!
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
(31st in a series of posts on H.D.)
Finding H.D.:
A Community Exploration of the Life and Work of Hilda Doolittle
Bethlehem-born writer Hilda Doolittle — H. D. — (1886-1961) is
the “Lehigh Valley’s most important literary figure.”
Come on, now, it’s time to get your tickets for the original play on H.D.’s life, The Secret, by Bethlehem’s own fabulous Mock Turtle Marionette Theater.
DATES & TIMES:
Saturday, October 5 – 5:00-6:30p | Talkback 6:30-7:00p
Sunday, October 6 – 1:00-2:30p | Panel 2:30-3:30p
Monday, October 7 – 7:30-9:00p
Tuesday, October 8 – 7:30-9:00p
VENUE: Touchstone Theatre | 321 E. Fourth Street, Bethlehem, PA
PRICE: $25 adult & $15 student/senior; limited amount of Pay What You Will tickets for purchase; please call 610-867-1689 to order.
http://festivalunbound.com/the-secret/
Lehigh University photo
Festival UnBound
Ten days of original theatre, dance, music, art and conversation designed to celebrate and imagine our future together!
October 4-13
