The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 67

ment and we're bringing in foot traffic to fill it in. We've
had quite a few sellouts and the downtown traffic, from
what I'm told, is up 25 percent." harvester-music.com

MILL MOUNTAIN THEATRE
MMT has re-taken its position atop Roanoke's excellent
theater offerings, but these days it is far more a member of a cooperative community than an aloof distant
cousin. That has been good for theater in general in the
Roanoke Valley.
In 2015, Mill Mountain takes a step closer to its goal
of five full productions a year, in addition to a number of
other involvements that keep the stages (there are two of
them) and rehearsal halls occupied and busy. The year's
productions include "Hairspray" in the spring, "Beauty
and the Beast, Jr." in the summer (ending summer camp
for children), "On Golden Pond" in the fall and "42nd
Street" in December. The season opens with the Hollins Festival of New Works in January and February and
includes two music concerts - a first - "Piano Man" and
"Country Divas." Says Producing/Artistic Director Ginger Poole, "We're reaching out to another market that
doesn't come to theater."
MMT is also collaborating with a number of other
arts organizations who are using its spaces. "All our
areas are being used all the time," says Poole.
"We've taken a slow, conservative approach" to coming back from closing its doors in 2009 for a couple of
years, says Poole. "We're re-thinking how we do things
and what we had on paper in 2010 has come to full fruition." And it's working. "There's a synergy that wasn't
here before," says Poole. Sellouts are common now and
the number of plays is down from an unrealistic 12 a
year to four.
The budget has climbed slowly each year since
opening and paying off debts. In 2014, it was $1.1
million. In 2015, it will be $1.7 million "working toward a quarter [of a million eventually]," says Poole.

Opera Roanoke's Scott Williamson takes a break on Roanoke City Market.

millmountain.org

ROANOKE CHILDREN'S THEATRE
RCT is ramping up its reputation as something of a
school for theater in 2015 by joining with the Junior
League and the Roanoke City Library to offer "Readers Theater" for third graders. Theater founder and
director Pat Wilhelms says the importance of children learning to read by the third grade caught her
attention and her staff developed a 1940s radio-style
show that will teach kids enunciation, projection and
reading.
RCT's innovation has been consistent and sometimes controversial. It has presented children's plays
about suicide, depression, bullying and eating disorders, in addition to "The Cat in the Hat," "Stuart Little"
and other classics.
THE

R OANOKER.COM

Berglund Center's Robyn Schon on the facility's new name: "Not many
players have 'civic' in their names any more."

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

67


http://www.harvester-music.com http://www.millmountain.org http://www.THEROANOKER.COM

The Roanoker - January/February 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - January/February 2015

Letters / Worth a Click
From The Editor
The Look
The Flavor
The Quiz
The Calendar
Get Outside
Dining: Four of the Valley’s Best Restaurants
On The Town
Where Are They Now?
The Source Book
Coming Home
Neighborhoods
Education
Arts & Culture
Medicine
Business
Recreation
Shopping
Retirement
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Intro
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Cover1
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Cover2
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 3
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 4
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 5
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 6
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 7
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 8
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 9
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Letters / Worth a Click
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 11
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - From The Editor
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 13
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - The Look
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 15
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - The Flavor
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 17
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - The Quiz
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 19
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - The Calendar
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 21
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 22
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 23
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 24
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Get Outside
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 26
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 27
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 28
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 29
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 30
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 31
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 32
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 33
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 34
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 35
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 36
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 37
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 38
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 39
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Coming Home
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 41
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Neighborhoods
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 43
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 44
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 45
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 46
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 47
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 48
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 49
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 50
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 51
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 52
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 53
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Education
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 55
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 56
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 57
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 58
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 59
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 60
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61A
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61B
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61C
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61D
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61E
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61F
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61G
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 61H
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Arts & Culture
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 63
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 64
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 65
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 66
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 67
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 68
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 69
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Medicine
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 71
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 72
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 73
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 74
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 75
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Business
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 77
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 78
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 79
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 80
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 81
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 82
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 83
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Recreation
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 85
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 86
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 87
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 88
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 89
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 89A
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 89B
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Shopping
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 91
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 92
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 93
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 94
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 95
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 96
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Retirement
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 98
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 99
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 100
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 101
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 102
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 103
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Dining: Four of the Valley’s Best Restaurants
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 105
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 106
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 107
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 108
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 109
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 110
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 111
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - On The Town
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - 113
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Where Are They Now?
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Cover3
The Roanoker - January/February 2015 - Cover4
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