In an effort to get to know our fancy new excerpt venue, some members of the ACT Cincinnati team recently took a field trip to Princeton High School. We took photos and gathered information about what equipment and facilities will be available to us for the SW OCTAFest in June.
We’ve created a page on our website specifically for Matthews Auditorium to hopefully give everyone a little more information. Matthews Auditorium | ACT Cincinnati
Filed under In Other News
-From Loveland Stage Company
In loving memory of Pat Furterer
525,600 minutes. 525,600 moments so dear. 525,600 minutes – How do you measure, measure a year?
Today we remember all of the minutes, moments, and years of the life of our beloved founder Pat Furterer. There will be many tributes to Pat over the next few days, weeks, months, and years for Pat, as she was the epitome of Loveland. This is ours.
In 1979, Pat and a creative group of friends saw the need for a creative outlet in Loveland and decided to create what is now known as the Loveland Stage Company. Under Pat’s leadership, they created the by-laws and constitution and formed the board of directors. They filed all the needed paperwork for LSC to become the non-profit organization many have come to know and love today.
A local business donated funds for the first production in the fall of 1979. That performance of My Three Angels was performed on the back deck at Pat’s house. It was a great success and the start of it all.
Pat was instrumental in all things LSC. She performed, directed, produced, and held various positions on the board. Throughout the 1980s, LSC shows moved around from her backyard to various schools throughout Loveland. In the 90’s she helped create a college scholarship for graduating high school seniors interested in pursuing the Creative Arts. That scholarship continues to this day.
In the early 2000s, she was instrumental in working with the Loveland Firefighters Association allowing the Loveland Stage Company to have a permanent space and LSC moved into our current home, the old Crist Theater, in the heart of Historic Loveland. When a fire broke out in the theater in October 2008, the building was a total loss. Pat led the charge to raise funds to rebuild. And rebuild we did. “Rebuild and Play On!” was the theme of the next season and the theater reopened in November of 2009.
With the theater back up and running, Pat was named President Emeritus for all of her past, present, and future contributions to LSC.
44 years and counting of Award-Winning Theater in Loveland is all thanks to Pat Furterer. She dedicated her life to LSC and we will be eternally grateful to her and her passion for theater and Loveland. The lights on the marquee will be a little dimmer without Pat, but we will always do our best to make her proud.
It’s time now to sing out, though the story never ends. Let’s celebrate, and remember a year in the life of friends. Remember the love! Measure in love. Seasons of love!
Filed under In Other News
Have new or gently used children’s books that you aren’t reading? Bring them to the Aronoff Center during the run of Peter Pan to benefit Queen City Book Bank (QCBB)!
QCBB champions literacy through tutoring, little free libraries, literacy outreach and
guaranteeing book access for all. They aim to provide 10 new books annually to the
25,000 K – 3rd grade under-resourced students in the Greater Cincinnati area.
You can also donate directly to QCBB via their Amazon wishlist. Thank you in advance! https://amzn.to/3T2ySB4
For more information on the run of PETER PAN.
Filed under In Other News
From Legacy.com
John J. Keehnen, Jr. passed away unexpectedly at the age of 71 on Thursday, January 18, 2024. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on September 21, 1952, to John James Keehnen and Elizabeth (Paddock) Keehnen. He is preceded in death by his parents, grandparents, and many aunts and uncles.
John was blessed with a multifaceted life. He was a DJ at a radio station in Florida, hosted The Tall Twelve Television Company’s Show – Expo and the John Keehnen Variety Show, shared his artistic talents as a freelance artist across multiple mediums, and performed in a multitude of community theater productions for Mariemont Players, Footlighters and others. He was a medical sculptor at Shriners Hospitals for Children where he truly cared for the children he served for 31+ years.
John never met a stranger. His great sense of humor and gentle nature put people at ease. He was a loving, devoted, and supportive husband and father who always let it be known how proud he was of “his girls”. He was also a caring brother and uncle to many nieces and nephews and always a great friend. He is survived by his wife, Victoria (Beeler) Keehnen; daughters, Sarah and Erin Keehnen; sisters, Linda Connor and Sr. Judi Keehnen.
The family will receive friends at John H. Evans Funeral Home, 1944 State Route 28, Goshen, Ohio 45122, Thursday, February 1, 2024, from 5:50 PM until 7;30 PM.
All are welcome to attend a Memorial Mass at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, 5890 Buckwheat Road, Milford, Ohio 45150, Friday, February 2, 2024at 12 PM.
Interment will follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Shriners Children’s Ohio at One Children’s Plaza – 2 West, Dayton, Ohio 45404, or the American Lung Association, 4050 Executive Park Drive Cincinnati, Ohio 45241.
Filed under In Other News
After the sudden passing of Skip Fenker, his friends gathered together to discuss how best to remember a man who had meant so much to them. It was quickly decided that the best way to honor him would be to put on an event the way Skip would do it himself. So after two months in the making, the result is going to be a non-traditional memorial service that is more akin to The Kennedy Center Honors. The evening will include speakers, video content and live performances which speaks to all aspects of Skip’s life beyond his theater resume.
Spearheading the musical arrangement for this event is Cincinnati native Richard Oberacker, a composer, lyricist, conductor, playwright, and longtime friend of Skip. This fast-paced, ninety-five-minute program promises a moving, funny, and very theatrical experience for all who knew and loved Skip. For his part, Richard has taken songs from the shows Skip has directed over the decades, creating complicated medleys and arrangements of classic tunes in different, fun, and surprising ways. Every moment is crafted using all the theatrical tools to pack an emotional punch, a tribute to the way Skip loved emotion in storytelling.
Scheduled to speak to Skip’s life in story and song are: Kathy Beiting, Debbi Berlon, Jennah Blair, Laurie Brinkman, Marcie Brooks, Megan Ainsley Callahan, Dianna Davis, Jennifer Drake, Roger Dumas, Jr, Ken Early, David Fenker, Bill Geraghty, Heather Hale, Deborah Hunter, Joe Kovacs, Wayne Martin, Richard Oberacker, Brett Parr, Nick Radel, Deb Schubert, John Simpson, Stephen Welch, Wayne Wright & Meghan Zlatic. A few surprises may also be on the agenda.
All who knew Skip are invited to this celebration on Monday, February 5th at the Aronoff Center for the Arts Jarson-Kaplan Theatre. The performance begins at 7pm with doors opening at 6:30pm. No tickets or reservations are required. Additional information is available here.
Following the program, all are invited to a reception in the Procter & Gamble Theater Lobby to share tears, hugs, and laughter. The cash bar will be open to toast Skip’s memory.
You will want to be in the room where it happens.
Filed under In Other News
Behind the Curtain Cincinnati 