Johnson Hall Performing Arts Center Elects New Board Member and Officers

Johnson Hall Performing Arts Center welcomes a new member elected to the Board of Directors at its recent Annual Meeting.  Dennis Carolin is Chief Financial Officer of The Bank of Maine. He has had diverse experience, including auditing for the Big 8 companies, real estate development, international trade, reinsurance, mortgage lending, advertising, and now banking. Dennis is a CPA, licensed in Maine.  Dennis was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, and now lives in Augusta with his wife Tracie, an Augusta native. Dennis serves on the Finance Committee of Johnson Hall. 

At the Annual Meeting, Johnson Hall also elected new officers to the board.  The President is Paul Pidgeon, of West Gardiner.  Vice President is Nancy Davis of West Gardiner, Secretary is Cindy Yachanin of Augusta, and continuing as Treasurer is Dennis Doiron of Gardiner.  Other Johnson Hall board members are: John Shaw, immediate past President; Maggie Smith, past Vice President; Phyllis Gardiner; and Charlie Batchelder. 

Johnson Hall recently won the Kennebec Valley Chamber of Commerce 2012 Community Service award.  Johnson Hall is actively increasing the creative professional programming of the 100-seat performance space, and is involved in community groups and activities such as the Chamber of Commerce Whatever Festival kick-off, the Greater Gardiner River Festival.  Planning is also underway for rehabilitation of the upstairs space into a 360-seat theater.

Established in 1989, Johnson Hall is a tax-exempt nonprofit. Johnson Hall presents arts and community programs for all ages year-round in the renovated first floor of the historic 1864 building at 280 Water Street in Gardiner.  More information is available at www.johnsonhall.org.  The telephone number is 582-7144. 

If you like to be challenged by theater, as well as entertained, try Jimmy Higgins: A Life in the Labor Movement on Saturday, Nov. 19.  Jimmy dramatically takes you through his childhood in Ohio, the death of his older brother in World War I, and the beginnings of the labor movement, which he observes as a reporter.  Reservations are slow for this show.  Is it too controversial?  Last year’s Laramie Project sold out twice–but that is a nationally-known play.  We hope you will support a local actor and playwright, and a local theater.  See you there!

We like to bring you variety, depth of experience, and entertainment. Let us know what shows you’d like to see and hear. We are always looking for ideas.  It’s fun to fill Johnson Hall with music or theater-lovers. They enjoy the shows, but also enjoy the company of their neighbors, friends and even strangers (who don’t stay that way very long!). Sometimes it’s hard to end the intermissions—everybody wants to chat. That’s one of the beauties of live performance. Another is the intangible magic of seeing/hearing/feeling in a room full of people getting energy from each other.

Johnson Hall also fills a need for learning about important issues in a different way than reading or watching the news. On Nov. 19, 2011, we present Jimmy Higgins: A Life in the Labor Movement.”  The play illuminates many of the issues made famous when the governor removed the labor mural last spring–child labor, the difficulty workers had in organizing unions, and more.  But it is done through the personal life experiences of an interesting character.