By Chris Mays, Vermont Country Magazine.
Friends of Historic Memorial Hall is back in action, reshaping the town-owned venue into a community arts hub.
“Our job is to become the cultural home for the valley,” said Ian Campbell, board chairman.
The nonprofit, long the steward of Memorial Hall, has mostly supported the Deerfield Valley Players by providing a venue and handling licensing. Other programming has been limited in recent years, but that is changing.
Campbell became involved after Gretchen Havreluk, the town’s economic development consultant, asked for ideas to reactivate the Hall. He discussed possibilities with the Friends of Memorial Hall board and was invited to join and serve as chair.
Bringing experience in board, nonprofit and business management, Campbell told the board he could not promise sweeping changes but pledged, “we’re going to start doing things.”
That commitment led the group to redefine itself as the town’s performing arts organization. A new approach pairs Memorial Hall programming with performances at other venues around the valley. By building relationships with different venues, organizers can match performers to spaces that suit the expected audience.
This season’s calendar includes Deerfield Valley Players presenting “1776: The Musical” from July 24 to Aug. 1; Rooted on Aug. 26; a fundraising gala for Friends of Memorial Hall on Oct. 10; and the Holiday Concert on Dec. 10.
Campbell said additional performances may be added, and the group is actively building an email list and social media following to share updates.
A priority for Campbell is engaging young people in the arts. Having seen gaps in arts education while living in San Diego and Denver, he has made youth programming a continuing focus.
One new offering, “Once Upon A Time at the Hall,” will present live storytelling for children.
“It doesn’t have to be a big production because kids don’t necessarily need that,” Campbell said. “They want to hear stories in fun, funny ways, by people on stage. So dropping that into the Hall and bringing in kids all around the valley once a month has such a potential to engage kids in ways that they wouldn’t otherwise.”
Campbell has personal ties to the venue: he released his album “Rooted” at the Hall last year. The Rooted event will feature his band and other acts. Inspired by the HORDE Festival model, he hopes Rooted can grow into a multi-day, multi-venue festival across the valley, though that remains a longer-term dream.
The Holiday Concert returns to the Hall after an absence.
“It probably went away during COVID and never ended up coming back,” Campbell said. The program will start with an early, classic holiday set — “very Sinatra, Bing Crosby, that kind of stuff, old school holiday program,” Campbell said — with carols sung on stage before an outdoor tree lighting and s’mores, followed by a holiday rock concert to benefit the Deerfield Valley Food Pantry. He hopes to arrange transportation for seniors to attend.
“It’s an ambitious night but I believe we can do it, as long as we can get the partnerships together,” he said.
Chris Mays is a reporter for the Brattleboro Reformer. He plays guitar in three groups and has a Yorkie named Lemon, who can be followed on Instagram at @lemon_the_yorkie. He enjoys spending time in the mountains.
