SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 2020 | 3B
Broadway Costume Challenge winner Landon Peck (above) and Tutu Dads member Mike Smith (above right)
CROW
from 1B
but as time went by, that
became less and less fea-
sible. The annual spring
show, held at the
Florence Events Center,
is performed on the
main stage of the 455-
seat theater. Current
restrictions continue to
limit large gatherings.
“Because of that, we
pushed ‘Mary Poppins’
back to 2021,” Heard
said. “I couldn’t bear the
idea of not doing it. The
kids put in so much
work, and we were less
than a month from
opening. We just had to
polish up the show and
get it ready. Then every-
thing happened.”
“Over quarantine, I
tried to read through my
lines before I went to
bed, until I found out
that it had been moved
to next year,” Waggoner
said.
The CROW Board of
Directors decided to
honor the hard work of
the cast and crew and
save the show for later.
While it might create
difficulty with some
graduating
seniors,
Heard hopes to maintain
the bulk of the cast.
For Owen Harklerode,
playing the role of Mr.
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Banks, “When the econ-
omy reopens, I’d like to
be able to finally per-
form Mary Poppins. It
should’ve happened in
April, but I’m willing to
wait.”
Delaying
“Mary
Poppins” a full season
has caused some further
challenges.
Heard said CROW
had to work with the
show’s licensing group
to move dates of the
show, as well as resched-
uling backdrop rentals
and an aerial flying com-
pany.
“We already picked
our 2021 show, and
already placed a deposit,
so we had to move that
one to 2022,” she said. “It
was a paperwork issue
and a bit of a headache,
but it was doable.
Everyone has been so
understanding and real-
ly supportive.”
Similar changes are
taking place across the
theater industry, where
“there’s a lot of money
invested,” according to
Heard.
People everywhere are
losing deposits, wasting
unused marketing and
advertising materials
and facing reduced
income.
“At CROW Center for
the Performing Arts, we
can’t hold any classes.
We can’t lead workshops
or summer camps. That
funding has evaporated
for us. Plus, Wildflower
Montessori can’t operate
(on our property),” said
Heard.
To fill in some of the
gaps, Heard continues to
write grants, but compe-
tition is stiff with so
many arts nonprofits
facing similar circum-
stances.
“It’s a big challenge
trying to stay alive. We
will, because we’re stub-
born, but it’s hard,” she
FINAL UPDATE
OUNDS LOST TO D
AL P
ATE
TOT
791+
Contestant
Name
said. “If there’s any com-
fort, it’s that we’re all
going through the same
hard stuff.”
As the governor con-
tinues to release details
for gatherings of more
than 25, Heard isn’t
opposed to creating
some outdoor theater
opportunities
for
CROW.
The board also decid-
ed not to do structured
online classes for now.
“Our board discussed
it and feel strongly that
online is not the most
beneficial for our kids in
the arts,” Heard said. “It
just feels impersonal. It’s
not as inspiring. And it’s
hard to connect and for
us to give them what
they need. … Kids, espe-
cially little kids, just
need you. They need to
be in the same room,
they need to feel your
energy, and they need to
know that they are safe
and can be expressive.
“Theater is an expres-
sive art form. In order
for art to be successful,
you need to be in an
environment where you
can express yourself.”
For the time being,
that may be hard to do
with online platforms.
So, what CROW has
been doing is engaging
with CROW kids and
families, and the greater
community, through
social media.
From humorous Tutu
Dads posts about new
“tulles of the trade”
under COVID-19 to fun
contests, CROW is find-
ing ways to connect. The
cast of “Mary Poppins”
got together virtually to
sing and dance to
“Super-cali-fragilistic-
expialidocious,” which
aired on regional TV
stations.
In addition, Oregon
Arts Commission shared
a CROW collage of local
kids being creative while
on lockdown.
CROW also held a
Broadway
Costume
Challenge, with Landon
Peck winning for his
portrayal of Ursula the
Sea Witch from “The
Little Mermaid.”
Other winners were
Eryn Morgan, Kya
Hobin and Grace Dotson
depicting characters
from
“Beetlejuice,”
“ Wa i t r e s s” a n d
“Hairspray.”
Lasting for one more
day is the “Dress Up
Your Pet” Challenge,
where
people
are
encouraged to dress up
their dog, cat or other
pets as characters from
any of the shows CROW
has performed.
“There’s all these fun
things we’re doing to
keep the kids connected
to us as much as we can,”
Heard said.
While many people
have been home on
lockdown, they have
been watching TV
shows, listening to pod-
casts and reading books.
“There’s been a lot of
rallying from people in
the arts. I see it not just
here in Florence, but I
see it across the nation. I
see a lot of resilience,”
Heard said. “The idea
that the arts matter —”
she paused to repeat
CROW’s motto, “The
Arts Really Do Matter”
— “and we need them. I
hope that when all the
dust settles and the virus
goes away, that maybe
people will show that
new appreciation.”
CROW kids, too, are
keeping the arts alive at
home. Both Harklerode
and Norton performed
in Jason Wood’s virtual
“Sleepy Time Showcase.”
Waggoner sang with the
school choir and plays
guitar. Norton practices
piano, and she and Fuller
keep up stretching and
strength training for
dance.
“I still dance like crazy
at home,” Fuller said.
Heard also expressed
regret for the dance
classes CROW held for
all ages, the canceled
Spring Dance Showcase
and the Flight Dance
Team.
“All my Flight kids are
so sad. For dancers, it’s
how they express them-
selves, it’s how they get
their emotions out, their
frustration and joy, and
how they become com-
fortable with their bod-
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Season
%Lost
RESULTS
Patricia Ann Timothy*
Nancy Robinson*
Guadalupe Galvan*
Samantha Milbrett*
Robyn Barrett*
Vickie Hunt*
Matt Danielsson*
James McKinney*
Tyrell Hunt*
Brad Koehn*
Dustin Williams*
Jim Hecker*
Ed Wasco*
17.63%
11.69%
9.19%
7.86%
5.07%
3.63%
18.43%
12.15%
9.21%
7.75%
7.49%
5.05%
-2.52%
Patricia Ann Timothy*
TOTAL loss 17.63%
First Place
Nancy Robinson*
TOTAL loss 11.69%
Second Place
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TOTAL loss 12.15%
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ies,” she said. “And the
teenagers
especially
need that.”
According to Heard,
dance falls under sports
requirements, so any
practices or future try-
outs will wait on regula-
tions released from the
government.
“Dance is such a con-
tact support. It involves
lifting and getting all
sweaty, and dancers are
such athletes,” she said.
“I look forward to when
we can get back to work.”
CROW also has plans
to bring some choreog-
raphy to the community
with future challenges.
“We hope to just uplift
the community,” Heard
said.
She acknowledged the
difficult times that
everyone is facing now
and the complicated
emotions that can bring
up.
“Not only is COVID-
19 not gone, we don’t
know when it will be
gone. For me personally,
as an artist, that’s the
scariest thing. I’m very
project oriented and I
like to work on one proj-
ect and think about the
next project. We plan a
year and a half ahead of
time — and right now,
it’s like everything has
been erased. We just
don’t have any concept
of when we can get back
to work,” she said.
However, that’s not to
say that CROW has
dimmed the stage lights.
The board is still plan-
ning future shows, mov-
ing storage units and
making plans to contin-
ue supporting the arts
for youth in Florence.
This could include some
outdoor classes, get
togethers or perfor-
mances for CROW, all of
which would be easier
with an amphitheater or
other outdoor perfor-
mance space.
“I am still optimistic
about the future, because
I know that the families,
the community, the
audiences all love what
we do and are going to
be there when we come
back,” Heard said. “I
think it’s going to estab-
lish a new appreciation
for the arts. Those are
good things. When you
don’t have something,
it’s the whole ‘absence
makes the heart fonder’
concept. We’re hoping
the community will
come back and go, ‘Oh,
I really missed that.’
And maybe they’ll buy
a ticket, send in a dona-
tion or come in and
volunteer.”
For more informa-
tion about CROW, or
to donate go to crowk-
ids.com.
