Festival

“Hair of the Dog That Licked Ya”

(Originally posted in the Stratford Star newspaper on October 14, 2010, in “Walsh’s Wonderings”)

The Town for All Seasons showed its furry side during the wildly successful Dog Walk & Festival held on Paradise Green this past Saturday. The fifth annual benefit for homeless animals packed the green with dogs of all breeds as they led their befuddled owners around Stratford’s largest canine meet ‘n’ greet. The free admission and fantastic weather combined to provide hundreds of happy families the opportunity to imagine life with a dog park, if only for one magical day.

We Stratford dog owners rarely get the opportunity to socialize in large numbers, instead reduced to small packs scrambling to throw on clothing for morning “constitutionals” around the yard, fumbling through pockets for baggies to pick up what remains of last night’s dinner bowls. It’s at times like these that many of us secretly yearn for the simplicity of cats, but those moments are fleeting. Festivals like this allow us to find comfort in the fraternity of dog lovers.

My wife and I packed up our pups and arrived an hour into the festivities, hoping to miss the initial wave of dogs who were shuttling out for the one-mile walk. Unlike their owners, our spaniels are incredibly social, and the sight of even one dog or child sends them into spasms of joy. Our “middle child,” ZuZu, also happens to be our “special child.” Hobbled by a myriad of mysterious ailments that reduce her to the ZuMobile (like the Pope Mobile, only without the bulletproof netting), she shudders and yelps out greetings to any form of life at eye level. Because she so desperately wants to play with anything in sight, sometimes less is more.

As soon as we entered Paradise Green, however, our dogs were on sensory overload. It was as if a dying man, lost in the desert and wearing Spock ears, crested that final mountain of solitary sand and stumbled upon a Star Trek convention. Our spaniels set their own agenda: a sniffed butt here, a quick stop to accept pats on the head there, and then onward around the ring of vendor tents. Our girls seemed disappointed in us as they saw the many outfits other dogs were wearing as they paraded through the park. By the time we saw the beagle in its tuxedo, our spaniels ignored us completely. Two of our dogs tried out the agility training with Nikki Stollman of Four Paws Pet Services in Stratford, where we got the opportunity to see how well behaved they can be with someone who actually knows what she’s doing. We saw Rescue Ink’s Nicholas “Batso” Maccharoli as he set up shop for pictures, but our dogs had already begun a new game of “How many knots can we tie in these leashes?” as they rushed after a yellow lab in a nurse’s outfit.

 

The North Shore Animal League brought their adoption bus, where a few confused cats looked out over the sea of dogs and wondered whether it wasn’t time to plot their escape. It was great to talk with Stratford Animal Control and the people providing the microchip clinic to get a feel for how important pet ownership is in town. I never knew how many different animal rescue groups there were that helped find homes for Stratford pets: German shepherd rescues, bulldog rescues, even blind dog rescue groups had representatives available to explain their crucial role in maintaining the special relationship with man’s best friend.

Still, the best part of the day was watching the tiny faces of children light up every time they saw a new dog. If anyone had any doubt why Stratford is finally building its new animal shelter, one need only spend a few moments wandering the grounds to see what an amazing effect our pets have on us. The sheer number of people who volunteered at this event speaks to the importance of animals in our community. For a few hours, Stratford citizens showed our best side—our furry side—on a day that could truly be enjoyed by all.

To find out more about the Stratford Animal Rescue Society and donate your time, money, or old bedding to a worthy cause, please go to: www.stratfordanimalrescue.com.

Continue Reading“Hair of the Dog That Licked Ya”

“It Was Just That The Time Was Wrong…”

(Originally posted in the Stratford Star newspaper on August 12, 2010, in “Walsh’s Wonderings”)

“A love-struck Romeo sings the streets a serenade

Laying everybody low with a love song that he made.
Finds a streetlight, steps out of the shade
Says something like, ‘You and me babe, how about it?'”

— Mark Knopler, “Romeo and Juliet,” 1981

Stratford has always had a complex relationship with its renowned American Shakespeare Theatre, but 1981 held such promise. Newly appointed director Peter Coe had just signed Christopher Plummer and James Earl Jones to lead the Stratford Festival season productions of Henry V and Othello. The theatre seemed ready to “step out of the shade” of the previous years’ financial difficulties and into a new era. Unfortunately, 1982 saw the theatre’s last full season before the state took control amid looming foreclosure on the mortgage in 1983. For the future of this once-proud building, that season’s production of “The Comedy of Errors” proved prophetic. The next twenty-seven years played out like a Shakespearean tragedy as battles over its name (changed to American Festival Theatre in 1988), deed (finally given back to Stratford in 2005), and vision eventually erupted into the legendarily vitriolic town council debates over its latest renovation.

That the fate of the theatre still stirs such passionate debate underscores its importance to all of Stratford, embodying as it does not only our history but our noblest aspirations in the arts. It’s offered its citizens Shakespeare, yes, but also served as a gateway to the arts in so many other ways. In 1979 my dad took me to see Beatlemania there, and I still remember staring in awe as the majestic facade of the theatre emerged from the trees. After college, the siren song of the theatre was one of the reasons I chose to settle down in Stratford.

“I love you like the stars above, I’ll love you ’til I die. There’s a place for us, you know the movie song. When you gonna realize it was just that the time was wrong?”

While the time might have been wrong for the American Shakespeare Theatre to remain solvent back then, there has always been a place for this regal figure in the lives of Stratfordites. This Thursday, the 2010 Festival Stratford adds to the rich tradition of the theatre as the Stratford Arts Commission sponsors four days of free entertainment on its grounds. Each day the Stratford Arts Guild will showcase the work of local artists, and yoga instructor Ashley Bardugone will conduct classes each morning at 8am. “Quickies in the Park,” which showcases new works by Stratford’s SquareWrights members, will be presented along with the parody The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged) more classic fare such as The Tempest. Children’s Day on Sunday begins with performances by local dance schools before Shakesperience Productions presents Rapunzel and the Interactive Shakespeare Workshop for Children and Families. (For times and other specific information, please go to www.festivalstratford.com or StratfordStar.com.)

This is Shakespeare the way Peter Coe would have wanted it: sparse, immediate, personal—how appropriate, then, that Henry V will also be performed. This festival represents Stratford in all her finery, showing off our best talent in one of our most scenic locations. Anyone that was lucky enough to attend one of last year’s performances will attest to the magic in the air as children and adults of all ages gathered to celebrate a truly unique family experience.

One can’t help but wonder if Stratford, without the constellating figure of the theatre towering over the Housatonic like the Bard himself, would feel the same pull to preserve and promote the arts as we do. Or do we reach a little higher because of it, our pride in our shared stage history pushing us to bigger and better things? I can think of no greater gift to our children than preserving the legacy of this magnificent building and allowing future generations the opportunity to experience the wonder of the theatre in their own backyard. As we celebrate Festival Stratford, let’s not forget the words of the man who helped built the theatre in 1955, Joseph Verner Reed, who said its purpose was “to present Shakespeare to young people in such a way that the plays become living, beautiful, exciting—and enduring.”

In these tough economic times, it’s hard to think of the future in the face of so many obstacles; I don’t claim to know the best way to fund the necessary renovations, nor do I know which artistic direction will best allow the theatre to become self-sustaining. I do know that the gift of Joseph Reed, compounded by the blood and sweat of countless hundreds over the last 55 years, was not a gift only for us. It is for our children and grandchildren who one day will look back and thank us for passing that gift onto them.

It’s fitting that Mark Knopler’s birthday is August 12th, the first day of this year’s Festival Stratford on the grounds of our weather-scarred theatre. The final words of his song could have been sung by the theatre herself to the citizens of Stratford, hoping that the time is right: “You and me babe, how about it?”

Continue Reading“It Was Just That The Time Was Wrong…”