10A | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 6, 2018 | SIUSLAW NEWS
Last Resort Players celebrates 25th anniversary
T
he spring of 1993 was an
exciting time in Florence.
There was a new hospital, a new
Siuslaw Library, and, most inter-
esting of all, plans for building
an all-purpose event center were
afoot. Bob Barker, a local res-
ident with years of experience
in theater, had urged that the
building include a full theater
complete with fly loft and full
backstage facilities. Fundraising
was in full swing.
At that time, the only venues
for shows and concerts were
the Siuslaw High School, the
Elks Club and various churches.
There was no place to hold large
expositions and exhibits.
Barker had an idea that a pop-
ular play combined with an ex-
hibit by local artists could help
raise awareness of the need for
a municipal facility and possibly
money as well. Thus was born
the Florence Performing and
Fine Arts Festival.
A large metal truss supported
tent (60’ x 40’) was erected by a
STAR from page 9A
If the primaries were done
away with, and the ballot had
Trump, Clinton, Sanders, Ru-
bio, Ted Cruz and others, per-
haps the election would go be-
yond just tactical voting and
become something more sub-
stantive.
“I think that psychology is a
big part of it,” Roberts said. “By
giving people a new method of
voting that allows them more
expression on each candidate,
I think psychologically it will
break some people out of that
trap where they feel like they
have to vote for that person
because the system is rigged to
elect that person.”
That’s not to say that STAR
would create a Trump loss or
give another candidate like
Sanders a win. The results could
stay the same. But Roberts be-
lieved the process could help
quell the divisive political party
politics that has enveloped the
nation over the years. Instead of
voting for a party, people could
just vote for individuals they
think would just do a good job.
Original cast of the ‘Loggers Lament’
crane, a stage was set up at one
end with seating for about 100
spectators and a juried art show
exhibition area in the rear. There
were only two problems: there
was no heat and no way to se-
cure the tent at night.
The second problem was
more easily solved than the
first. An RV was parked by the
tent and several of us took turns
spending the night in it as se-
curity guards — interrupted at
intervals during the night when
the real Florence police cruised
by. Heat was another issue alto-
gether.
The first annual Florence Per-
how each candidate gets their
name out to the public will
still be based on campaign do-
nations.
“Money will still be a huge
component,” Roberts said. “We
do run into people who say
that the number one problem is
money in politics, and ask why
we aren’t working on that. We
understand that, and we do see
that as a huge problem.
“Because it’s such an enor-
mous task to work on money
and politics that, rather than
redirecting energy into ending
Citizens United, we believe that
this is something that is a small-
er chunk of change that we have
the capacity to effect here local-
ly in our area. Rather than just
being overwhelmed by money
in politics, we believe this is an
achievable goal here locally. It
is a step toward freeing people
to vote for their favorite candi-
dates, which is huge.”
And there are still questions
about how STAR will be im-
plemented in the future. Right
now, it is for non-partisan rac-
es. What will it look like when
it gets into more heated, and
financially backed, races state-
wide?
Will people become confused
in how to use the system? And
will they trust the mathematical
algorithms used in the runoff?
That’s something for the
voters to decide in November,
when STAR is expected to be
placed on the Lane County bal-
lot.
For more information about
the process, or to sign the peti-
tion to get STAR on November’s
ballot, visit www.starlane.us or
www.equal.vote.
Beyond Lane County, STAR
is also running a twin campaign
in Multnomah County.
opened the Florence Events
Center with “Music Man” in
the fall of 1996 and have nev-
er looked back. We became the
center’s resident company, tra-
ditionally performing a musical
on the first two weekends of
November and two plays in the
spring and summer.
Be sure to see the LRP’s latest
offering, “A Nice Family Gath-
ering,” opening at the Florence
Events Center on June 8. Written
by Phil Olsen and directed by
Judy Kaplan, this family comedy
is guaranteed to make you laugh
and maybe even shed a tear or
two. It’s the story of a man who
loved his wife so much, he al-
most told her.
Performances are Friday and
Saturday evenings at 7 p.m. and
Sunday at 2 p.m. June 8 to 10
and 15 to 17.
Tickets are $18 and are avail-
able at www.eventcenter.org or
the FEC box office at 541-997-
1994.
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A First Step
STAR wouldn’t be the end-
all-be-all to fixing voting in
America. It’s just a first step.
“I think it’s a powerful, rev-
olutionary first step,” Roberts
said. “I don’t think it’s a cure-all
patch for everything, but I think
it’s absolutely a step in the right
direction for our voting meth-
od. Whatever changes need to
be made to go along side of it,
we can address those one at a
time.”
Even if money could be
saved by not doing primaries,
forming and Fine Arts Festival
took place in September — and
if you’ve ever camped out on
the Oregon coast at that time of
year, you know what the nights
are like. WE FROZE! Actors and
audience alike. Trying to solve
the problem with generators
only made things worse. The au-
dience could hardly hear us over
the roar.
But all agreed that the first
venture of what was to become
the Last Resort Players was a
success. Our festival was even-
tually able to contribute $5,000
toward the building of the Flor-
ence Events Center, 715 Quince
St. And here we are 25 years later
celebrating a quarter of a centu-
ry run as the Last Resort Players!
We shared the tent during the
day in 1993 with the fourth An-
nual Family Farm Music Festival
and on Sunday morning with an
Ecumenical Church Service and
Gospel Music Fest.
The Last Resort Players
Dan Gilday
Broker
541 554-1844
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