"Theater is a verb before it is a noun, an act before it is a place."
- Martha Graham
Season greetings, and welcome to the Winter '24 Edition of the Encore Newsletter! The past year has been filled with amazing things, and can't wait to share the great news with you!
In This Edition
- Homecoming and Family Weekend 2023
- The Language Archive
- Student & Alumni News
- Upcoming Events
- Alumni Spotlight
- Engage With Encore
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Homecoming and Family Weekend 2023
Thank you to all that made this 2023 Homecoming & Family weekend such a success. Over the course of three days we were able to come together as alumni, students and families, to celebrate all that makes Etown great. We hope that our Homecoming & Family Weekend was a chance to reconnect with friends and others, to share our Etown pride, and to truly celebrate the many things that make Elizabethtown College such an incredible place! You can see the full Homecoming recap here.
The "Cows" started off the Weekend right with a sold-out show in the KAV.
"I could tell you my adventures—beginning from this morning,” said Alice a little timidly; “but it's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then."
Sock & Buskin and Alpha Psi Omega joined other campus clubs in the Thompson Gymnasium for the yearly Homecoming Fair!
Alumni and current students had a great time hanging out and exploring the Tempest Theatre at our annual Theatre and Dance Student and Alumni Celebration!
Etown’s student a capella groups Melica, Vocalign, and Phalanx (MVP) harmonized and delighted attendees of the 12th annual Homecoming M.V.P. Spectacular show in Leffler Chapel and Performance Center. The event also featured alumni announcers and the conferral of the 2023 Distinguished Graduate of the Last Decade Award to alumnus Bhim Thapaliya ’15
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The Language Archive – Fall 2023 Campus Production
The Language Archive by Julia Cho is an award winning delve into the life of a linguist trying to preserve and resurrect an extinct language, all while learning to communicate with the language of the heart. The Tempest Theatre's production of The Language Archive was directed by adjunct professor of theatre, Bruce Walsh
“We are excited to showcase all the hard work we have put in over the last two months... 'The Language Archive' is a timeless story of love and communication that we have been working to express. The dedication from all of those involved is very admirable and speaks to how much the students and others involved value theatre.”
- Judas Foster
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Student & Alumni News
Etown Theatre is alive and well!
It has been another busy semester of Theatre and Dance at Elizabethtown College. Step Afrika! returned to campus in August for a New Student Orientation Weekend concert. Academically, the Fall Semester introduced a new theatre course. TH204 -Applied Theatre for Social Change taught by School of Public Service, Adjunct Professor, Christopher Fitz.
Plays in a Day!
Sock & Buskin’s Plays in a Day was presented in the KAV on September 30th. Em Clark organized the evening of plays. They were all written, directed, performed, and teched by students in 24 hours.
Etown Students visit Rock Lititz - Home of Atomic Design, TAIT Towers, & Clair Global
Several students involved in the theatre productions, Technical Operations, the departments of Business, Engineering, and Communications attended Career Day at the Rock Lititz Campus on November 11th. This was a great networking opportunity and provided students insight into the world of the live event and touring industry.
But Wait! There's more to come!!
The Spring Semester kicks off with The One Act Festival February 15th to 18th.
- La Mouche by Stephen Bittrich directed by Judas Foster
- Art Talk by Terry Roche directed by Lindsay McCommons
- Possibly in Michigan by Cecilia Condit directed by Kayli Hose
- Speed Date by Janet Allard directed by Sarah Jakubowski
- Little Women (One Act) by Marisha Chamberlain directed by Sofia Brzezicki
More upcoming events this spring!
Elizabethtown College will welcome several dance companies to Leffler Chapel & Performance Center throughout the Spring Semester. More details as shows are officially announced.
Students are excited to welcome back guest director, Griffin Yeyna, for our Spring production of Sarah Ruhl’s Melancholy Play. This fun modern farce will be presented from March 15th to March 23rd.
Emotion’s Spring Showcase will be on April 19th and 20th
Upcoming Events
February 15-18, 2024 - One Act Festival
February 24, 2024 - Etown Theatre Service Day
March 15 - 23 - Spring Mainstage Production - Melancholy Play by Sarah Ruhl
April 19 & 20 - Emotion's Spring Showcase
all dates tentative - for more information click below for full campus calendar
Karl Kern is a 2004 graduate from Elizabethtown College. While attending Etown, he dual majored in business and technical theatre.
During his time on campus, Karl was involved in the Theatre Freshman Interest Group. This lead the way for involvement in many of the colleges productions, both onstage and behind the scenes. His time in the Tempest Theatre (Alumni Theatre earlier in his career) was spent working as a Scene Shop assistant, as well as serving in many different design roles. Karl also worked as a technician at the Kav, as well as Leffler Chapel
After his time at Etown, Karl continued on to Ohio University were he earned his MFA in Theatre, Production Design & Technology. Following his graduate work, Karl worked at Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach, Florida before returning full time to Santa Fe Opera where he had interned after leaving Etown.
Recently, Karl returned to Lancaster county to join the Clair Global Integration team at Rock Lititz as a Design Engineer.
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Want to support Theatre at Etown, but can't make it to an Alumni Volunteer Day or to see a show? Gifts to the College can be directed to the Theatre by adding "Theatre" in the comment field!
More about ways to give to Etown before December 31 can be found here.
Thanks for your support!
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Engage With Encore
Look At Us!
Want to learn more about Encore? Visit our official Elizabethtown College Alumni Association site!
Talk With Us!
Have specific questions? Curious about our upcoming projects and productions? Want to get in touch with one of the members of our Steering Committee? Interested in getting involved with what we’re doing? Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera? E-mail us and we’ll be more than happy to connect with you!
Give Us Your Opinions!
Feedback from fellow alumni and current students is the foundation on which Encore builds and plans its future. If you feel compelled, please take our completely voluntary survey to share a little bit about yourself and your interests regarding Encore’s future programming. We’re so excited to hear from you!
Join Us and Get Involved!
If you or a fellow Etown alum feels inspired to join our ranks and support our cause, we’re all about it! Send us an e-mail at etownencore@gmail.com! Be sure to include any special skills that will come in handy when tackling our future projects!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read our newsletter and celebrate our theatre-alumni successes! We are excited to connect with fellow Theatre Blue Jays and join together in building a resource for students, alumni, and the College!