In 1937, the Young People’s class of the Esperance Presbyterian Church performed a play entitled, “Getting Ira Married.”
Eighty years later, a copy of the playbook was discovered by the daughter of one of the 10 original actors/actresses, and an idea was hatched to resurrect the story to perform in tandem with the bicentennial celebration of the Village of Esperance and its fire department, both founded on July 14, 1818.
The storyline revolves around an unmarried young man who’s enamored with being a fireman, but with disastrous mishaps that affect the fire department’s performance.
Figuring that if he gets married his wife won’t let him participate, the villagers embark on a plan to get him hitched.
Willard Martin, born and raised in Esperance, has reworked the script and “connect” the characters to the original cast and residents of Esperance at the time, and is ready to get people to undertake the roles, practice and perform this play on June 16, 2018, as a fundraiser for the bicentennial celebration set for July 14, 2018.
The intended goal is to get as many Esperance people involved from acting, hairdressing, makeup, staging, costumes and stagehands, to volunteers for refreshments, ushering and other assignments.
If your interest has been sparked, even if you didn’t grow up in Esperance, contact Mr. Martin, 518-234-4892. General questions can be directed to Linda Feuz by either calling 518-875-6443 or emailing to lfeuz@nycap.rr.com.