CCMOnStage PLAYS Presents
By Thornton Wilder
Sept. 29-Oct. 3, 2021, Patrcia Corbett Theater
*CCM Student
**Alumni Guest Artist
“Our Town” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
THE VIDEOTAPING OR MAKING OF ELECTONIC OR OTHER AUDIO AND/OR VISUAL RECORDINGS OF THIS PRODUCTION AND DISTRUBUTING RECORDINGS OR STREAMS IN ANY MEDIUM, INCLUDING THE INTERNET, IS STRICKLY PROHIBITED, A VIOLATION OF THE AUTHOR(S)’S RIGHTS AND ACTIONABLE UNDER UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT: https://www.concordtheatricals.com/resources/protecting-artists
By Brant Russell
In a 1938 letter to Alexander Woollcott, Thornton Wilder wrote:
“The subject of the play I wrote is: the trivial details of human life in reference to a vast perspective of time, of social history and of religious ideas.”
Our lives are full of trivial details. Getting to work on time, what to cook for dinner, soccer practice, forgotten emails, phone data, haircuts. But if there is a more perfect time than right now to reflect upon the deep satisfaction that trivial details and brief interactions can provide, I don’t know what it is.
When our lives are circumscribed by our collective duty to each other, and when many of the trivial details that characterize “normal life” are taken away from us, we long for normalcy. When our world becomes only as large as a laptop screen, we long for the breadth of what we once considered routine. Restaurants, shopping, the theater.
Just as the global pandemic has caused us to treasure what we once regarded as trivial, so does the cosmic backdrop of Wilder’s Our Town contextualize the meaning of the trivial in Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire.
As luck would have it, my wife’s parents live in southern New Hampshire, not far from where you would find Grover’s Corners. We visit my in-laws twice per year, sometimes more, and when I was there this past summer, I scoured the landscape for something that I could identify as quintessentially Our Town-ish. I drove the rocky countryside looking for an object or perhaps a vista that I could photograph that was, at its core, Thornton Wilder-esque. I wanted something “authentic” that I could bring back to CCM. I would hold up this rock or floorboard fragment or scrap of turn-of-the-century garment and say, “See? This is what Wilder was writing about.”
I didn’t find what I was looking for. No such object or vista exists. Why? Because Our Town has nothing to do with Grover’s Corners or New Hampshire or New England. Our Town deals in the right here, right now. Our Town is about us.
Later in his later to Woollcott, Wilder wrote:
“At the opening night here a deputation of 41 small-town people from the skirts of Mount Monadnock - from Peterboro and Jeffrey and Keene - came down and presented me with a gavel of Cherry Wood and an eternal membership in the Mt. Monadnock Association. The faces. And they’d seen a play that was about something they knew.”
The New Englanders Wilder describes in that paragraph were viewing the play in Boston in 1938. And while we are 83 years and some 827 miles removed from the original milieu of Wilder’s play, it’s my sincere hope that you’ll look at the stage tonight and see a play about something you know.
Marta Russell, Susan Felder, Tom Frey and Peterborough Players, Bill and Liz Roberts, Eliot Russell
The story takes place between 1901 and 1913 in Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire
Our Town will last 120 minutes, with two intermissions
We will continue to announce our 2021-22 schedule of public performances in two-month intervals — audiences will learn more about our programming for November and December events in October! Performance information and updates will be shared on the CCM website and in our Next OnStage e-newsletter.
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December 4, 2024
Each year, BroadwayWorld recognizes excellence in regional theater through its online awards. This year, CCM students, faculty and productions received a total of 58 nominations across nearly every category for the Cincinnati Awards, once again proving that CCM is a leader in the local arts scene.
November 27, 2024
Show your school spirit this spring with official CCM apparel! New UC College-Conservatory of Music apparel is available for purchase online. CCM's latest quarter zip and crewneck sweatshirt designs can be ordered online now through Dec. 8, 2024. You can preview both items below.
November 26, 2024
For the UC College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) community, Giving Tuesday offers a unique opportunity to make a significant impact by supporting Student Health and Wellness. As our students dedicate themselves to the arts – pursuing rigorous schedules filled with practice, performance, and academic study – their mental and physical well-being is crucial.
CCMpower is a volunteer group of fans, advocates and alumni dedicated to empowering students and fueling the future of the arts through scholarship opportunities and more.
The competitive scholarships CCMpower provides help attract and retain the best and brightest students, nurture professional development opportunities and – in turn – continue CCM’s tradition of excellence for the next generation of student-artists. Join or renew your CCMpower membership today to help provide critical scholarship funds.
Join or renew your CCMpower member today to help provide critical scholarship funds. Visit foundation.uc.edu/ccmpower to learn more.
Sponsors listed as of August 1, 2024
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The health and safety of our community remains our top priority. Based on current conditions, performance venues will be reduced to 50% capacity and all individuals, including audience members and performers, are required to wear facial coverings indoors, following guidelines from the CDC and UC's physician-led COVID response team. Additional measures may be in place as conditions develop based on guidance from the CDC and UC's physician-led COVID response team. Visit the UC Public Health website and CCM's COVID-19 website for additional information and updates.
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The House Manager has been instructed to minimize the disturbance to patrons already seated when accommodating latecomers. The director and producer of each production select times that are least likely to interrupt the performance, and latecomers will be seated only during these times. Latecomers who miss these opportunities will not be admitted until intermission. Children under the age of 6 will not be admitted.
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CCM's faculty and staff and its state-of-the-art facilities make possible the professional training and exceptional education on which CCM believes the future of the arts relies. The school's roster of eminent faculty regularly receives distinguished honors for creative and scholarly work, and its alumni have achieved notable success in the performing and media arts. More than 150 internationally recognized faculty members work with students from around the world, specializing in eight areas of study.
Performance dates and repertoire are subject to change. View CCM's current calendar of events.
The purpose of these performances is educational, and they are part of a University of Cincinnati academic program.
