The new telling of the story has been rewritten and modernized to include I-pods, cell phones, new characters, new laughs, new drama and several surprises. With all theses changes it was inevitable that the show take on a new name as well, The Aracoma Story — Spirits & Legends.
Former cast members of The Aracoma Story, Bill France and Geoff Allen, have collaborated to adapt the show that has been presented in various forms since 1976 into the new version.
France, who also serves as the director of the show, has been working on this project for more than six months preparing to bring it to the stage. His co-writer, Geoff Allen, is now a creative director in North Carolina. He has worked with France on the script as well as designing a new logo for the show and the production company, The Aracoma Story, Inc.
France has used the internet to contact potential cast members as well as communicate information needed to produce the show.
Former cast member, Shannon Brown, who played Princess Aracoma in 1991, donated her time and talents to create the World Wide Web site that France has used.
Brown is a native of Man and now lives in New York City where she works professionally designing websites. The website www.aracoma2009.com was used to recruit cast members and is now used to communicate The Aracoma Story — Spirits & Legends information. It accompanies The Aracoma Story, Inc.’s website, www.thearacomastory.com, which is the primary source of show information for all The Aracoma Story, Inc. productions.
The use of the Web site and a grass roots effort by France that included several meetings with service groups in our area, led to 137 total volunteers offering to become a part of the new show.
“Bill has worked hard to recruit many new faces and ensure some of the more familiar faces are a part of this show. In a nutshell, It’s fresh and new," Jim Frye, president of The Aracoma Story, Inc., said. "Anyone who has seen The Aracoma Story in previous years will see something totally different with The Aracoma Story — Spirits & Legends. The historical story of Princess Aracoma, Boling Baker, Chief Cornstalk, Chief Logan, Oceana and the rest of the Shawnee people has not been changed, but how the story is told has changed considerably. We are excited to bring this show to our stage.”
France said the new show will be more interactive.
“The audience will see some of the changes within the first few minutes of the show," France said. "They are significant changes. We wanted to make the audience part of the show. People of all ages should like the new version, especially the kids. There‘s truly something for everyone. People can expect some new characters and some of the old characters presented in a completely different way. The show and the organization is a very cool thing for our region.”
Opening Night of The Aracoma Story — Spirits & Legends will be presented at the Liz Spurlock Ampitheater in Chief Logan State Park on July 21 at 8:30 p.m. The show will run Tuesdays through Saturdays, July 21-August 8. All performances start at 8:30 p.m. nightly.
Advance ticket discounts are available at The UPS Store in Logan, Necessary Things in Logan, Pic-Pac in Man and Aracoma Drug in Chapmanville.
Tickets can be purchased by phone including Group Discounted Tickets using Visa or MasterCard by calling The Aracoma Story, Inc. office at (304) 752-0253.
———
For more information about this summer production visit www.thearacomastory.com
Post a Comment
