For the first time in decades, Franklin Footlight Theatre’s summer mainstage production will not take place in Franklin. With the ongoing closure of the Franklin Opera House barring the community theatre group from performing on their home stage, they’ve been forced to find space to rent elsewhere. This summer, they’ll be moving about ten minutes down the road to Tilton, where they’ll be performing Monty Python’s Spamalot at Tilton School’s Hamilton Hall.
Traditionally Footlight (which has been operating since 1995) puts on their largest-cast shows in the summer. With students home from college, fewer evening obligations for kids and families, and long days to fill, lots of local performers are available and eager to spend their summer assembling a large-scale musical. Last summer Footlight’s Beauty and the Beast, the last production at the Opera House before it closed, boasted a cast of 50 community members ranging in age from elementary school to their 70s. Though space may occasionally get a little tight in the wings, the Opera House can accommodate a cast that large. The other available venues in Franklin? Not so much.
Footlight’s fall production of The Addams Family was their first experience in many years of trying to put on a show without the Opera House. The 33-person cast squeezed into Franklin Middle School, performing on the stage in the school’s cafeteria. Actors used the library to get into costume, makeup, and microphones then were shuttled down the hallway to the music classroom (which abuts the stage) during preshow announcements to avoid being seen by the audience.
More frustrating than the lack of greenroom space was lack of backstage and wing space—actors could only enter and exit through the back wall or through the audience, and there was no easy way to fully remove set pieces from the stage. Lighting fixtures and sound equipment had to be set up and broken down for every rehearsal and performance, as they could not remain in the cafeteria during school hours. Their spring production of Nunsense, with a cast of five and a static set, was smoother sailing. But the storage, lighting, and sound struggles persisted—and the lack of air conditioning impacted performers and audience members alike.
When director Jule Finley unexpectedly landed the rights to Spamalot for 2024, she knew they’d need a better-equipped space than the middle school: not only to fit the large ensemble cast, but also to pull off the technical elements, flashy choreography, and visual gags demanded by the nonstop jokes of a Monty Python-inspired script. She spent months touring potential locations within a reasonable radius of the Opera House and comparing rental costs, driving distances, technical capabilities, audience capacity, and more. Finally, her quest led her to Tilton School.
Tilton School’s Rome Theater is located in the building known as Hamilton Hall, and is unlike any other performance space in the area. Tucked into a corner of the private school’s main campus, many locals may not even be aware it exists. The building once served as the school’s indoor gymnasium, and an elevated wooden track still encircles the interior. Though mostly enclosed, the track can be used as a built-in second level onstage. It also hosts the lighting and sound boards. Actors ascend to the stage via an old spiral staircase, and have the entire basement to use as dressing rooms. Backstage space is limited, but it exists, and the unique configuration of the theater lends itself well to creativity on behalf of the director and designers.
“Giving up is not an option, so we creatively make it work and sometimes make sacrifices,” Jule says. “Footlight Theatre started 29 years ago based on nothing more than a passion and desire to share the love of community theatre with as many people as possible, and that is what is keeping us going now. After having a ‘home’ for the last 23 years, it’s been exhausting this year, but we aren’t giving up. We know how important this is to our community, to the people involved and the people we entertain. What we won’t sacrifice is Footlight.”
And Footlight is going strong into this summer, armed with swords, nerve, and coconuts. Monty Python’s Spamalot—subtitled “a new musical (lovingly) ripped off from the motion picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail”--follows the legend of King Arthur on his famous quest. Footlight’s production stars David Bedard as King Arthur and Melissa Furbish as the Lady of the Lake. It also features Michael Smyth (Sir Robin), Derek de Sousa (Sir Lancelot), Rafael Vazquez (Sir Bedevere), Ben Coonan (Sir Galahad), Noah Alers-Alers (Concorde), Jack Finley (Patsy), Prezley Adair (Prince Herbert), Vince Ribas (Historian), and Denise Steadman (Galahad’s Mother) alongside an ensemble of Laker Girls, not-yet-dead bodies, Finlandian Fisch-Slappers, Knights Who Say Ni, French taunters, and many, many more! The show is music directed by Christine Chiasson and features choreography by Addison Granger and Cameron Moquin.
Performances are August 1-4 at Tilton School’s Hamilton Hall, 30 School Street, Tilton, NH. Tickets are general admission ($18 adult; $16 student/senior) and managed by the Franklin Opera House: www.franklinoperahouse.org
For more information about the ongoing quest to renovate and reopen the Franklin Opera House, please visit their website and reach out to the Franklin City Council.
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