Cassville Arts Council bringing fine arts to the forefront
The cast of The Pirates of Penzance held their first rehearsal in the Cassville Event Center in preparation of the opening night of their performance on June 27. Pictured above, from left to right: Cole Stringer starring as the Pirate King, Travis Morris, Peter Atwater and David Oliphant.
June 19, 2019
Charlea Estes-Jones
A newly formed arts council will give members of the Cassville community a creative outlet for those who want to express themselves through song, dance and the fine arts. The Cassville Arts Council was officially begun in March of this year, and board president and founder Trent Oliphant is hoping the groups's inaugural performance will draw more attention to arts in the community.
The first production for the Cassville Arts Council debuts next week on June 27. The group will be presenting the Pirates of Penzance, and the show runs through June 30.
Oliphant explained how the council began and his hopes for the future. He said, "I've been wanting to form this group since I moved here six years ago. I've been involved in community theatre for most of my life, and there aren't that many community theatre opportunities in the area. There are none in Cassville."
Oliphant reached out to two other members of the community to ask them about serving on the council's board so he could make the group a non-profit. Mary Richmiller, longtime choral music director at Cassville High School, and Lee Allphin, of Stark City, both agreed to serve. Oliphant said, "It was just me, and I recruited a couple people because in the state of Missouri to have a not-for-profit organization, you have to have at least three people on the board.
"They were both interested in what we are trying to do."
After the initial performance, Oliphant plans to recruit additional board members to provide a variety of perspectives from people to move the council forward. As it stands, the group is planning on one musical theatrical performance a year before branching out to other areas in the fine arts. Oliphant said, "Even in the theatre, I would like to see them do some children theatre and education workshops. I'd like to see people get involved, and we want to bring in a concert series with various types of musical groups to perform concerts, like trios and quartets. I’d like to see music that we don't see here, like jazz and classical.
"I'd also like to sponsor a visual arts show, as well. It's an arts council and I'd like to include all of the fine arts, both visual and performing."
A lot of the group's plans are dependent on volunteers and how the community receives the initial performances.
Oliphant is optimistic that people in the area will see the value in what the board hopes to grow into. He said, "Arts are an important part of a society. To me, the arts are the heart and soul of the society. Specifically, community level artistic endeavors can help bring a community together. I love participating in community theatre, especially in this digital age where we are connected more electronically but less connected from a human perspective. The arts are one of the best ways for us to connect as humans. When we can do this on the community level, I think it'll bring it together. Sports are fantastic, but I feel like arts can bring us together as a community with more empathy and understanding of each others conditions."
He added that his own children were a driving force for taking the initiative to start the council, and Cassville School was a big source of actors and singers for the first performance. The council recruited auditions through Facebook, advertising in the newspaper and word of mouth.
With Pirates of Penzance performances running for four days, the group is hoping once people see the performance, more volunteers will offer to lend their talents to future endeavors. He said, "Until we see what kind of volunteers we can get, we'll only be able to do one performance a year. We want to do a musical every summer.
"I suspect through at least the next two to three years is that performance each summer. If we can get additional people on the board and volunteers who want to help put on other types of events, I'd like to see some kind of event that is sponsored every month. I suspect that may be a few years away, but that's my vision."
Oliphant hopes those include workshops, visual and communication arts and anything that falls under the fine arts umbrella.
Oliphant said, "We have a deep-seated need to express and communicate, and I think the arts are the best way to do that."
The Pirates of Penzance will be the Cassville Arts Council's first performance. The show is billed as: "a comic operetta set in Victorian England on the Southwestern Coast of England in a region called Penzance. It tells the story of Fredrick, a young man of 21 that is finally out of his indentures to a Pirate King. He meets Mabel, a young ward of a Major-General, and they fall in love. If life were that simple. However, love isn't ever easy. Complications arise that get in the way of their plans. However, as in any good story, love wins out in the end and all is well."
The Pirates of Penzance performances will be at the Cassville Schools Event Center (FEMA building) on June 27, 28 and 29 at 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday, June 30, at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the door for $10 for adults and $5 for students.
The show is directed by Trent Oliphant with choreography by Cole Stringer and Trent Oliphant. It features Joseph Maxfield as Frederick, Jennifer Oliphant as Mabel, Cole Stringer as the Pirate King, Brian Oliphant as the Major-General, Parker Skinner as The Police Sergeant and Drake Thomas as Ruth.
The purpose of the Cassville Arts Council is to promote the visual and performing arts in Cassville and the surrounding area. For information about the Cassville Arts Council, to make a donation, offer to volunteer or the upcoming performance of The Pirates of Penzance, contact board president Trent Oliphant at (417) 665-8635 or [email protected].
Charlea Estes-Jones
A newly formed arts council will give members of the Cassville community a creative outlet for those who want to express themselves through song, dance and the fine arts. The Cassville Arts Council was officially begun in March of this year, and board president and founder Trent Oliphant is hoping the groups's inaugural performance will draw more attention to arts in the community.
The first production for the Cassville Arts Council debuts next week on June 27. The group will be presenting the Pirates of Penzance, and the show runs through June 30.
Oliphant explained how the council began and his hopes for the future. He said, "I've been wanting to form this group since I moved here six years ago. I've been involved in community theatre for most of my life, and there aren't that many community theatre opportunities in the area. There are none in Cassville."
Oliphant reached out to two other members of the community to ask them about serving on the council's board so he could make the group a non-profit. Mary Richmiller, longtime choral music director at Cassville High School, and Lee Allphin, of Stark City, both agreed to serve. Oliphant said, "It was just me, and I recruited a couple people because in the state of Missouri to have a not-for-profit organization, you have to have at least three people on the board.
"They were both interested in what we are trying to do."
After the initial performance, Oliphant plans to recruit additional board members to provide a variety of perspectives from people to move the council forward. As it stands, the group is planning on one musical theatrical performance a year before branching out to other areas in the fine arts. Oliphant said, "Even in the theatre, I would like to see them do some children theatre and education workshops. I'd like to see people get involved, and we want to bring in a concert series with various types of musical groups to perform concerts, like trios and quartets. I’d like to see music that we don't see here, like jazz and classical.
"I'd also like to sponsor a visual arts show, as well. It's an arts council and I'd like to include all of the fine arts, both visual and performing."
A lot of the group's plans are dependent on volunteers and how the community receives the initial performances.
Oliphant is optimistic that people in the area will see the value in what the board hopes to grow into. He said, "Arts are an important part of a society. To me, the arts are the heart and soul of the society. Specifically, community level artistic endeavors can help bring a community together. I love participating in community theatre, especially in this digital age where we are connected more electronically but less connected from a human perspective. The arts are one of the best ways for us to connect as humans. When we can do this on the community level, I think it'll bring it together. Sports are fantastic, but I feel like arts can bring us together as a community with more empathy and understanding of each others conditions."
He added that his own children were a driving force for taking the initiative to start the council, and Cassville School was a big source of actors and singers for the first performance. The council recruited auditions through Facebook, advertising in the newspaper and word of mouth.
With Pirates of Penzance performances running for four days, the group is hoping once people see the performance, more volunteers will offer to lend their talents to future endeavors. He said, "Until we see what kind of volunteers we can get, we'll only be able to do one performance a year. We want to do a musical every summer.
"I suspect through at least the next two to three years is that performance each summer. If we can get additional people on the board and volunteers who want to help put on other types of events, I'd like to see some kind of event that is sponsored every month. I suspect that may be a few years away, but that's my vision."
Oliphant hopes those include workshops, visual and communication arts and anything that falls under the fine arts umbrella.
Oliphant said, "We have a deep-seated need to express and communicate, and I think the arts are the best way to do that."
The Pirates of Penzance will be the Cassville Arts Council's first performance. The show is billed as: "a comic operetta set in Victorian England on the Southwestern Coast of England in a region called Penzance. It tells the story of Fredrick, a young man of 21 that is finally out of his indentures to a Pirate King. He meets Mabel, a young ward of a Major-General, and they fall in love. If life were that simple. However, love isn't ever easy. Complications arise that get in the way of their plans. However, as in any good story, love wins out in the end and all is well."
The Pirates of Penzance performances will be at the Cassville Schools Event Center (FEMA building) on June 27, 28 and 29 at 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday, June 30, at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the door for $10 for adults and $5 for students.
The show is directed by Trent Oliphant with choreography by Cole Stringer and Trent Oliphant. It features Joseph Maxfield as Frederick, Jennifer Oliphant as Mabel, Cole Stringer as the Pirate King, Brian Oliphant as the Major-General, Parker Skinner as The Police Sergeant and Drake Thomas as Ruth.
The purpose of the Cassville Arts Council is to promote the visual and performing arts in Cassville and the surrounding area. For information about the Cassville Arts Council, to make a donation, offer to volunteer or the upcoming performance of The Pirates of Penzance, contact board president Trent Oliphant at (417) 665-8635 or [email protected].
