From the Director . . . In addition to thanking our generous friends at The Country Fair White Elephant for lending us all sorts of things and for all those friends of Shoestring who donated their old Christmas trees, there are just so many people deserving of shout-outs for supporting this production; however, since this program is already more pages than usual, here is just a smattering of the many "thank you"s going out to all those who have contributed to making this challenging show a reality:
Chris Ashcraft & the CPAC Foundation Board - THANK YOU for your continuous support of the Santa Cruz Shoestring Players. We are humbled and honored to be your resident community theatre company, and we hope to continue celebrating the arts with you in the Green Valley/Sahuarita area long into the future!
The CPAC Staff & Volunteers - THANK YOU for selling the tickets, staffing the house, cleaning the facility, lighting the stage, giving us sound, printing our programs, and just generally putting up with our theatre people shenanigans. You are the BEST support we could ever ask for in creative partners.
Marijane Milton - THANK YOU for lending us so many of the gorgeous costumes from your collection for this production of Into the Woods. With our shoestring budget and time limitations, we never would have DREAMED in a million years that so many of our actors could grace the stage in such intricate pieces. Thank you for your generousity and continuous support of the Santa Cruz Shoestring Players and for being part of our community theatre. We appreciate you so much!
Jodie Gillespie - Doctor G, thanks so much for going above and beyond, each and every rehearsal. When we quickly figured out just how challenging the MTI Player tracks were going to be throughout the rehearsal and production process, you jumped in with both feet to help us find placeholders, request that MTI fix some errors in the tracks, and to work with actors to find cues in the tracks to help with the timing. Like a theatre superhero, you have the ability to jump just about anywhere in the tracks while simultaneously balancing two iPads, connecting to Pyle and navigating through Qlab -- all with a huge smile. Thank you for your patience and generous spirit. We love you!
Kevin Hansen - Actor, choreographer, music coach, leader of the cast - your gentle and kind spirit partnered with your brilliance and professionalism make you an absolute joy to collaborate with on any show, but especially a HUGE project like Into the Woods. Thank you for somehow knowing all the gaps that need filling and jumping in to help. You have been a life-saver in so many ways, but your choreography expertise was especially helpful this time around! You are a gift to Shoestring, and we are so thankful you are a part of our theatre family! You're the BEST!
Production Team - As the saying goes, without the expertise and work of the crew, actors would be wandering around empty-handed and naked on a dark, silent, and empty stage. So many are involved . . . here are a few: Ray Hebert & the DREAM TEAM - Thanks so much for a beautiful and functional set! You transported us to the Black Forest, and I'm so thankful! Mikayla Ottley & your costume, hair & makeup assistants - Thanks so much for your exceptional attention to detail, beautiful costume design, and for providing the final touches needed to bring these delightful characters to life. Bonnie Vadnais & Judylynn Jensen - Thanks so much for sourcing our props, creating gorgeous, creative items, baking delicious things for Little Red, and for helping out backstage! Steve, Josue & Jodie - Thanks for your patience and willingness to jump into the woods with us! Your technical expertise is much appreciated. Mike Manolakes - Thanks for willingly jumping into the Stage Manager role when the vacancy remained. You are a source of calmness and strength backstage.
. . . and finally, THANK YOU, Marie Valade & Mike Manolakes - We couldn't have done this without you! Thank you for bringing your wealth of experience and expertise to our production team and for just digging in, filling gaps, and persevering through the difficult times so that we can celebrate the achievements of the amazing cast we've spent hours of our lives with over the past four months. We have a show, and it's GLORIOUS!
