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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (April 24, 2012)
april24 2012 V E R N O N I A’ S reflecting the spirit of our community Vaudeville’s My Home is a Hit! By Seymour Talent Flood of ‘07), but the swindlers really intend to steal the money at the end of the show. The Vernonia Community Theater What ensues is all manner of local presented the play “Vaudeville’s My Home” “talent” auditioning for the show, from the local on April 13 and 14, 2012 on the stage of the ladies of the National Association for Good Washington Grade School. The cast and crew Schools (NAGS), who perform a version of the did a wonderful job, with some great acting, Can Can in an attempt to be showgirls, to opera singing performed by the town’s Italian butcher, to a local redneck family performing hillbilly music. The con men find little talent, but encourage the locals anyway in the hopes of scoring a big payday for themselves. Mackenzie Brown and John Wacker as the two swindlers, Clyde J. Fish and Emmanuel Thorndike Hooker, carry the bulk of the Cathy Meyer, Cheryl McNeill, Mackenzie Brown and DeAnna Pearl of the Verno- show. When young nia Community Theater, during their performance of Vaudeville’s My Home. Fish falls in love clever script adjustments, good lighting and with Emma Jean McDowell, the twenty-two sound, and a few songs mixed in between the years old and single daughter of the hillbilly laughs. The group provided a fun night of family, he doesn’t have the heart to steal the comedy and entertainment and those of us in the towns money. audience didn’t even have to leave town to find The musical numbers in the show added it! a fun twist and a few of the actors displayed The play, written by Ken Bradbury, takes wonderful singing talent, including Brown and place in the 1920’s and features two vaudeville Breanna Gardner, who played Emma Jean, troopers on the run from the law after stealing Jill Hult in the role of Eloise Findley, and the the box office receipts after a show in New York. NAGS—Kinnell Steward, Lee Anne Krause, The two find themselves stranded in the tiny Sarah Wagner, NaTasha Havens, Mary Post and town of Vernonia, Oregon, or “Vernowhere”, Diana Peach. as one of the con artists likes to call it, where Other highlights of the show included the two hatch a plan to host a local vaudeville Daniel Atanacio, Sr.’s as Harvey Zimmerman show using local talent. The show, The Vernonia and his accompaniment on the cowbell to Hult’s Follies, will raise money for the locals to build a poetry reading; Alisa Levenseller and Krystina new school (the old school was destroyed in the Fields as kids Willy Peterson and Margaret Wilson who, encouraged by their match-making mothers, act out the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet, against the wishes of poor Willy; and the antics of the entire McDowell family which included Cheryl McNeill, Coral Pearl, William Scheuerman and Cathy Meyer—Meyer didn’t have a line but her facial expressions and kazoo playing were enough! Co-director Roger Longhenry made a cameo appearance as Sgt. Tim O’Sullivan, almost spoiling the crooks plans when he recognized them as wanted criminals. The show was practically stolen by the Gaglianno’s—DeAnna Pearl as Antonio Giovanni, the Italian butcher and opera “singer,” and Peach as his wife and flamboyant member of the NAGS. Pearl was over the top as the hot tempered butcher and garnered the most laughs; Peach played her role of the outspoken Mrs. Gaglianno with comic grace. Pianist Gienah Cheney added some nice touches to the show and the rest of the crew also did a superb job. Co-directors Post and Longhenry did an amazing job of adjusting the script to give it some local color, received outstanding performances from their cast, and created a great evening of entertainment. It turns out there actually is some real talent in “Vernowhere.” inside 11 everybody reads volume6 issue8 New Vernonia School Could Lack Some Facilities When Opened Community may need to adjust short term expectations By Scott Laird The new Vernonia school campus is on schedule to open in the fall of 2012. But because of fundraising shortfalls, the Ver- nonia School District (VSD) could be forced to open the doors of it’s new building without the completion of all the amenities the community has been expecting. Workers are completing some of the detail work inside the new Vernonia school building, including installation of wood paneling in the small gymnasium. Some parts of the project have been postponed until additional funding can be secured. Right now the budget to complete construction hovers around $40 million. With over $37 million already committed to the project, that leaves a $3 million gap. And with just over three months remaining until the VSD hopes to have its Occupancy Permit to begin working in the building, time is running short to find the funds to complete the entire project. “We’re still going as hard as we can in every possible direction to make sure we can make this project work and be ready for school to start this fall,” says Vernonia Superintendent Dr. Ken Cox. continued on page 8 Vernonia Marathon 12 vhs sports 12 invasive species removal More photos on page 19. free See story on page 14
