Rivertown Theater hosts party to announce new season and show ...

Theater is a live event and a live moment that you can never recreate.

Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts? is only halfway through its 2012-13, but the new artistic directors say it is not too soon to call the season a success. The theater is hosting a party on Friday, Jan. 4, to announce its 2013-14 season and show off renovations at the venue in Kenner.

?Things are going great,? said Kelly Fouchi, who, with Gary Rucker, took over as the theater?s co-artistic director in April. ?We are offering a lot and there seems to be a lot of enthusiasm and interest from the patrons.?

The hit of the season so far has been ?Legally Blonde: The Musical,? but the lesser-known comedy ?Boeing, Boeing? and the ?Nutcracker?-derived ?Pecan Cracker? also have drawn healthy audiences, she said.

?We kind of knew the ebb and flow of the musicals and non-musicals with Rivertown (audiences) in general and we feel that 'Boeing, Boeing? did exceed what they had done in the past for sure,? she said. ?But we have really high expectations and we set the bar really high, so we want everything to sell out!?

Fouchi said that she has been encouraged by the demographics of the attendees of recent shows.

?We?ve definitely had a younger audience,? she said. ?A group of maybe five or six girls that want to get together for a girls? night out and come see a show? We?re seeing families coming.?

The current season will be rounded out by ?Class of ?70 Something? (Jan. 11-27), ?Noises Off? (March 8-24), ?Gypsy? (May 10-26), ?Monty Python?s Spamalot? (June 14-30), and ?When Ya Smilin?? (July 19-Aug. 4). It is not a coincidence that many of the shows are meant to tickle the funny bone.

?We?ll always offer something that?s just high comedy and a great night out to forget about everything and physically laugh out loud with a big group of people,? Fouchi said. ?It really is infections and gets those endorphins going.?

Theatergoers will have a chance to see what Rivertown has in store for 2013-14 at a season announcement party. The Jan. 4 party will be from 7 to 10 p.m at the theater at 325 Minor St. Reservations are required and admission is $40 per person. And, rather than simply revealing the shows of the 2013-14 season, guests will get sneak-peek performances from the works.

?We?re so blessed and lucky that we have such great relationships with the top talent in the city and they?re all very excited to do this with us,? Fouchi said. ?They?re all working on numbers from the upcoming shows and they?re all going to present something.?

Rivertown Theater?s Season Announcement Party

• What: An evening of preview performances from ?Class of 70 Something? as well as the slate of as-yet-unannounced shows for the 2013-14 season, with food, an open bar and a silent auction.
• Where: Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts, 325 Minor St. in Kenner.
• When: Saturday, Jan. 4, from 7 to 10 p.m.
• Admission: $40. Reservations are required by calling 504.461.9457 or by visiting the theater?s website.

Food will be provided by Twelve Seasons Catering. There will also be a silent auction, with a decidedly theatrical bent: ?We?re going to offer a walk-on role in ?Spamalot,?? she said.

Fouchi got the idea for the party from the noted Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, N.J., but she said that ?every theater does it across the country. You just see all these major community theaters that have a lot of support and a lot of sponsorships having season announcement parties.?

The party is not Fouchi and Rucker?s only innovation since they took the reins at Rivertown. The theater is substantial renovations, which are being funded in large part by ticket sales.

?The lobby is completely done,? Fouchi said. ?It?s one of the biggest facelifts that the patrons notice.? The bar and bathrooms have also been updated, she said, along with the offices and backstage.

Next on the list is upgraded seating for the Lagniappe children?s stage.

?Right now, for the children?s shows, it?s great because we have the benches and they can sit children?s theater-style, where the kids sit on the benches in the front and the parents have seats in the back,? Fouchi said. ?But we would eventually like to get some risers and some multi-use seating so we can reconfigure the space in different ways, depending on what show it is.?

While the main theater could use a fresh paint job and new carpet, Fouchi said it would be a mistake to toy with the classic feel of the venue.

?When people walk in who have never been there before, usually their first reaction is, ?Wow, this is so nice,?? she said.

Fouchi is hoping that the same ?old-world theater? charm makes Rivertown?s offerings appealing to audiences accustomed to being entertained by electronic means.

?Theater is a live event and a live moment that you can never recreate,? she said. ?That relationship with the audience and the actors is a one-time experience that can?t be duplicated. There?s no way to fabricate that kind of emotion from a computer screen.?

Source: http://www.nola.com/arts/index.ssf/2012/12/rivertown_theater_hosts_party.html

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