Theater Matters with Jarice Hanson: Budget cuts can’t kill culture: Highlighting two local productions that bring us hope

By Jarice Hanson
For the Valley Advocate

When Donald Trump announced he was assuming control of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, many nervous jokes were made to cover up the fear of what could come next. My vote for the best parody goes to Eddie Feldmann and Bill Scheft’s March 17 New Yorker feature, titled “Updated Kennedy Center 2025 Schedule.” Listings like “Roseanne sings Sondheim,” and the “Nordic version of The Wiz,” among the fictitious bookings at the august cultural institution provided a laugh, but now financial reality is hitting hard.

The Massachusetts Humanities Foundation learned that current grants with the National Endowment for the Humanities were terminated by DOGE on April 3, effectively cutting the state budget by approximately 35%. Still, Massachusetts’ commitment to arts and culture has a better chance of survival than many states where the entire budget for supporting the arts in schools and for the public depend entirely on NEH funding for sustainable programs and staff. Many states across the nation have already seen their arts and culture programs decimated.

Local Cultural Council grants have helped bring cultural opportunities to many regions, often relying on libraries, churches, and senior centers to deliver cultural programs to the communities. Most community theaters rely on local Cultural Council grants to help pay for rights to put on licensed shows, and money has to be paid upfront if union performers or technical personnel are used. Along with costume purchases or rentals, booking rehearsal space, and publicity, LCC grants go a long way to helping create that cushion for a company even before the first ticket is sold.

As previous Theater Matters columns have outlined, theaters are trying to find creative ways to keep their stages active and raise funds, but to keep ticket prices affordable or serve non-paying audiences, theaters can’t always continue to tighten their financial belts. We don’t know yet what the next possible cycle of grant funding might look like in the Commonwealth, but we do know regional theaters and community groups alike are going to be impacted by future funding cuts.

Recognizing the need for the arts to invigorate the life of a community, there are many companies in our region that are dedicated to enriching cultural life. To the many folks who give so much to “put on a show,” thank you for your dedication to keeping culture alive, providing a place for people to come together for something that uplifts the spirit, and gives us hope in humanity.

The two featured performances in this edition do just that — they bring us a sense of what is possible when creative people define culture in the context of stories that help us understand human behaviors and social change throughout history.

A shining star: K and E Theater Group and ‘Spring Awakening’

I am continually impressed by what K (Ken Comia) and E (Eddie Zitka) accomplish, and their production of “Spring Awakening” at the Northampton Center for the Arts, which played to sold out houses from March 28 through April 5, provided a gutsy, inventive approach to telling the very intimate story of innocence, and the road to adulthood.

Courtesy K and E Theater Group
Michael DeVito, front, and David Wallace in K and E Theater Group’s production of “Spring Awakening” at the Northampton Center for the Arts, which played to sold out houses from March 28 through April 5.

Upon entering the darkened theater, a few strategic lights became beacons for uniting cast and audience. Projections by Nicco Palazzi and Ken Comia and inventive lighting by Elysha Sathyaraj added greatly to the intimate setting. The excellent six-person pit band led by Music Director Devi Badea was in full view, adding to the multi-layered story as it unfolded.

“Spring Awakening” is a tough show to mount. The show deals with themes of budding sexuality, youthful ignorance of changing bodies, and adults who can’t cope with telling young people the truth, and the consequences. Think a bit about a “Romeo and Juliet” theme, set in early 20th century Germany, but told with 21st century themes of abortion, suicide, and more.

The K and E production explored these themes openly, with total commitment by the cast and crew. Director Eddie Zitka created an environment in which 13 actors (all of whom were wonderful singers and moved well on stage) felt safe and secure — or at least certainly projected those emotions to the audience, who could read the innocence and naivety of youth with honest empathy.

It seems unfair to mention only two of the performers, but they were such stand-outs in an exceptionally talented cast, they deserve recognition. Carina Savoie as Wendla, the ingenue, has the voice of an angel and knows how to perform a song for maximum effect. Michael DeVito as Melchior, the Romeo to Wendla’s Juliet, projected emotions of lust, confusion, and sincerity. Together, their voices blended beautifully.

K and E has taken on difficult projects before and has justifiably earned a loyal number of audience members who appreciate the professionalism demonstrated by talented people taking on edgy material. Their next project in October will be “Sunday in the Park with George,” another challenging piece. If you haven’t seen a production by this team, do yourself a favor and see what they have to offer. You won’t be disappointed.

Courtesy K and E Theater Group
Michael DeVito and Carina Savoie in K and E Theater Group’s production of “Spring Awakening” at the Northampton Center for the Arts, which played to sold out houses from March 28 through April 5.

Finding culture in community

On April 2 and 3, a reading of “A Light Under the Dome” was staged in Northampton at the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence, working in collaboration with Plays in Place and Historic Northampton. Set on Feb. 21, 1838 in the Massachusetts State House, the title of the piece references the day when Angelina Grimké, the abolitionist and suffragist, delivered the first speech by a woman to the legislature. Her topic? The abolition of slavery.

Courtesy Talya Kingston
Tahmie Der, Linda Tardif, Emma Friend, Myka Plunkett and Imani Bibuld in “A Light Under the Dome” earlier this month in Northampton at the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence.

In the presentation penned by Patrick Gabridge, Grimké is joined by four women who shared her commitment for reform; Maria Weston Chapman, Lydia Maria Child, Susan Paul and Julia Williams. In this clever imagining of what might have happened when these five women came together, each shares her concern about freedom, equality, justice and relationships. The result is not only a history lesson in women speaking up for what they believe in, but a humorous gathering of five distinctly different women, their lives, ideals, and friendship.

Director Brianna Sloan used the Unitarian Society’s beautiful pulpit and space to show not only how alone Grimké must have felt, speaking to an audience of men, but how the souls of the other four women served as voices of support. The language was, for the most part, contemporary, but the relationships established, timeless.

“A Light Under the Dome” was originally commissioned by the National Parks Service and staged at the Massachusetts State House a year ago. The focus on the abolition of slavery and its importance in the history of Northampton as well as in the Commonwealth is a major focus of one of the exhibits housed at Historic Northampton, where this summer the public is invited to learn more about the history of slavery in our region and the attempts to abolish the heinous practice.

Theater brings us a sense of our shared culture. At this moment in time, the values of community are more important than ever. If you can, please support the arts and keep our communities alive with the stories that make us human, and occasionally, guide us along the way. Why? Because theater matters.