Wednesday, December 26, 2001
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Wednesday, December 26, 2001 |
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2001 was a fun year for Fayette County By MICHAEL
BOYLAN
2001 is almost over and a new year is about to begin. It is hard to remember some of the events that preceded Sept. 11, but the area had a very busy and entertaining year. Our theaters were filled with comedies and dramas, our annual festivals teemed with excitement, and people generally had a lot of fun in 2001. There were a lot of concerts in and around Fayette County this year. The Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater had Smokey Robinson, Paul Anka, Dionne Warwick and Chuck Berry perform this year as well as The Drifters, America and The Beach Boys. The Swingin' Medallions performed in between the two-concert series and Zoot and the Swingin' Suits played at the Main Street Festival and Art Show. Other artists and bands that got their groove on this summer were Shenandoah, The Allan Goodman Band, Papparazzi, Ellen Edwards, Amber Tucker and Daddy's Money, Corey and the Oysters, Better Off Worse, According to John and many, many more. Not to mention the Peachtree Wind Ensemble, which performed at a number of concerts in both Peachtree City and Fayetteville. One can only wonder what musical treats are in store for Fayette County in 2002. Maybe a weekend with Weird Al Yankovic? The theater scene continued to grow as well. Groups like Southside Theater Guild, Fayette Community Theatre, Newnan Communtiy Theatre and Offshoot Productions continued to produce quality plays, while House Red Theatre Company and Fayette-Coweta Family Theatre continued to grow. Southside brought us plays like "On Borrowed Time," and "The Diary of Anne Frank," while Fayette Community Theatre presented "Annie," and the raucous comedy "Dearly Departed." Offshoot Productions continued to put on workshops and coffeehouses, as well as interactive plays for children like "Sleeping Beauty," and plays like "Twelfth Night" for adults. Newnan Community Theatre continued to produce some of the most challenging community theater out there with plays like "The Food Chain" and "Lucky Stiff." Fayette-Coweta Family Theatre presented a number of plays for area children including "The Wizard of Oz," "King Midas," "Hansel and Gretel" and "The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus." They also offered a number of workshops for young actors and continued to produce plays for their professional troupe, A Company of Friends. House Red presented a show full of Shakespearean scenes, a Cabaret show, "Crimes of the Heart" and "A Night With The Goldstein Sisters." The troupe continues to seek out new talent both on stage and behind the scenes and should have an exciting year ahead. In the first part of 2002, Fayette Community Theatre will present "Barefoot in the Park," while Fayette Coweta Family Theatre will present "The Brementown Musicians." Southside Theater Guild will perform "Moon Over Buffalo" and Newnan Community Theater will present "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof." House Red will continue to perform "Brighton Beach Memoirs in January, while Offshoot will prepare "Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz" for performances in March. Also keep your eyes peeled for the first Creatures of Habit play, which hopes to premiere in March or April. There were also many performances from the local dance companies, as well as the addition of a new dance school, the Classical Dance Theatre Company. Georgia Youth Ballet worked with some of the premiere dancers and choreographers in ballet, while Newnan School of Dance presented "The Wizard of Oz" and the Georgia Academy of Dance presented its annual celebration concert, which featured "Alice in Wonderland" and "The City Never Sleeps." All of the local dance companies offer classes and have just finished performing their holiday concerts and productions of "The Nutcracker." Finally, there were the assorted festivals and get togethers that continued to draw families and their communities together. Events like the Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast, the Main Street Art Festival, July Jam, Brooks Day, the Renaissance Festival, Tyrone Founders Day, Bark in the Park, Pack the Park, Wings Over Dixie Air Show, Last Fling, Powers Crossroads, the Kiwanis Fair, and too many more to be mentioned, continued to draw large crowds. Almost all of those events will return in 2002, with more to be added to an already full calendar. Make sure you continue to read this section of the paper to stay in touch with what is going on in and around the county next year.
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