Mountain Play

3 – Mountain Play 2019 Thursday, May 2, 2019 Letter from the Executive Director & Artistic Producer For 30 seasons James Dunn guided designers, actors, crew and musicians through play aer play on the mountain stage with artistry, and grace. As director, he created a space for artists to thrive, musicals to come alive, and his respect for Mount Tamalpais to shine through his art. You may have known him as the director who knew how make the moun- tain a part of the play with plane flyovers, livestock, and wagons, while never straying from the im- portance of the story. Or, maybe you knew him as an educator at the College of Marin or a gied scholar and director of Shake- speare. Either way, you were a little smarter and filled with empathy each time you le the room or theatre. Jim, as we knew him, was the father of the "modern Moun- tain Play." Because of his vision and excellent story-telling, we are still here today. In every mountain breeze, we can still hear him call- ing out "bigger, faster, funnier!" So, as you sit upon the Cushing Amphitheatre rocks this season to enjoy GREASE, please give him a moment of thanks. We do. HOW CAN YOU HELP TO CELEBRATE JAMES DUNN'S LEGACY? JAMES DUNN Commemorative Campaign – College of Marin Founded in 1964 by faculty mem- ber and award-winning director James Dunn, the College of Marin Drama Program has been providing educational opportunities in Marin County for over 50 years. Become a member of the James Dunn Commemorative Campaign: Make a charitable contribution to the Drama Program through the advancement.marin.edu website and specify the recipient as the Drama Program or contact Linda P. Frank, Executive Director of Development at 415-485-9528 or LFrank@marin.edu JAMES DUNN Artistic Fund – Mountain Play Association Established in 2012 to honor Jim's 30 Year Legacy, this fund supports the ongoing artistic ex- cellence of the Mountain Play as established by James Dunn. Make a charitable contribution to the fund at www.MountainPlay. org or contact Sara Pearson, Di- rector of Leadership & Develop- ment at 415-383-1100 or Sara@ MountainPlay.org JAMES DUNN – In Memory 1933 – 2018 Eileen Grady Executive Director & Artistic Producer As soon as I stepped into the role of Executive Director last September, one of the first questions people asked me was "What will you change?" My answer is this: I seek to stay on the course laid out in our 5-year Strategic Plan, deepening our com- mitment to who we are, building our relationships with businesses, artists and all members of our community, and continu- ing to expand our year- round programming off the mountain. Like any other theatre, we face the challenge of selecting plays that audi- ences want to see. Like any other nonprofit, as we ride the ups and downs of the economy, our goal is to inspire others to sup- port our vision. I truly believe in the power of bringing people together in a shared experience – a time to share a view, a meal and a story. In the theatre world, musicals oen get treated like the insubstantial "cotton can- dy" of the genre. In real- ity, they are more like the "spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down." eir stories represent universal hardships but with the sugar that allows us to absorb the difficul- ties life delivers, and to find hope among them. Written in 1971, GREASE gives us a look at 1959 working class teen- agers, struggling to rede- fine themselves on the eve of the social revolution of the 1960s. Here, the false charms of the 50s still ex- ist, but in the vernacular and rebellious actions of the greasers, we see them poised to break out of the stifling molds of the past. Following WWII, the economy allowed teens to have more free time and income they controlled. With the new empower- ing soundtrack of rock and roll, they now had the space to think within a culture of their own. It was time to stop pre- tending and aspiring for things that weren't real- istic. When Sandy says "goodbye to Sandra Dee," she says goodbye to a lie; not to her morals. Sandy represents an entire gen- eration of women who began to say no to the roles previously forced upon them. Mountain Play is known for revisiting classic musicals, and we work with material that oen presents outdated representations of people – especially women. e- atres are not afforded the opportunity to rewrite the script to modernize its language or story, but owners of the play may consider a request for limited edits to the script. anks to the owners of GREASE, we were granted some critical edits that kept the essential story without distracting us with dated language. Our goal is to use these mo- ments to converse about how certain behaviors would not "fly" today and recognize how much more needs to change. e 1978 film made changes to the play that some construe as taking away moments of strength and clarity from the char- acters' journeys. Our ver- sion hopes to both include the film's iconic songs and, more importantly, empower these characters to find themselves. I am honored to be part of the second century of leadership of an organiza- tion that has enriched the community and empow- ered women for its entire history. We are a glori- ously unique community organization that seeks to educate and inspire. We hope that you create memories and conversa- tions that exhilarate you. As the new execu- tive director, I say "yes" to stories that generate empathy, foster dialogue, and inspire us all to be the change that we long to see. Keep talking! Please visit the Parents Place and About Us sec- tions of our website for a view at our complete Strategic Plan & further resources. Please continue the conversation.

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