Show Notes: July 2024
The Newsletter of All-of-us Express Children's Theatre
In this issue:
Next on stage: The SpongeBob Musical
Upcoming auditions
Annual meeting: Save the date
Yes, we can: Four years of our can drive!
Board buzz: A new trustee
Season 36 productions
It’s been a hot one this summer and we can’t wait to cool off in Bikini Bottom with SpongeBob and his friends—we’ll look for you on Opening Night! Read on for news from the All-of-us Express Children’s Theatre (AECT) nonprofit Board, and we would love to see you on Facebook and Instagram as well!
Next on stage: The SpongeBob Musical
Come on down to Bikini Bottom!
When the citizens of Bikini Bottom discover that a volcano will soon erupt and destroy their humble home, SpongeBob and his friends must come together to save the fate of their undersea world. With lives hanging in the balance and all hope lost, a most unexpected hero rises up.
You’re sure to “lava” this show, which is a fun one for kids and grown-ups alike. The SpongeBob Musical will be directed by AECT musical veteran Jocelyn France.
Show times
Fridays, July 26 and August 2: 7:00pm
Saturdays, July 27 and August 3: 3:00pm
Sundays, July 28 and August 4: 3:00pm
Ticket information
Tickets are $14 for adults and $9 for anyone under 18 and are available at the front desk of the East Lansing Hannah Community Center, by phone at (517) 333-2580 ext. 0, or online. Tickets are date-specific, but are still for general seating. Season ticket holders should trade in tickets at the front desk for a specific performance date. Doors open approximately 30 minutes before the show.
Opening night reception
The AECT Board of Trustees invites you to join us for some pre-show fun on Opening Night. Our free reception includes appetizers, beverages, kids' games, and conversation. The SpongeBob Musical reception will be Friday, July 26 in the Hannah Center Banquet Room from 5:30-6:30pm. Please RSVP by July 19 via the link below to help us with planning. Feel free to bring your whole family after dropping off your cast or crew member for their Opening Night call.
Seeking volunteers!
We are always looking for helping hands (or fins, or flippers, or whatever a sponge has)! Can you do a stint at Concessions? Cover the Green Room one night? Supervise the ushers for a performance or two? Please explore our volunteer openings for Concessions & Merch and all other needs.
Upcoming auditions: 101 Dalmatians and Puffs
Two shows coming up this fall!
We have two exciting opportunities for youth this fall—our inaugural Elementary Workshop, 101 Dalmatians, and our fall main stage production of Puffs... or: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic. Watch social media and our website for audition and crew sign-up information!
Annual meeting date set
Did we mention ice cream?
Save the date and plan to join us for the annual meeting of the AECT board of trustees, which will take place at 8:00pm on Tuesday, September 10 in room 235 of the Hannah Center. Come for a short (like less than 30 minutes) and sweet (ice cream social after) meeting to cover a few bylaws updates, vote on new board and executive committee members, and distribute the annual report. All AECT members have voting privileges. If you are interested in serving on the board or joining a subcommittee (no board membership required), please contact us prior to the annual meeting.
Yes, we can!
Celebrating 4 years of the can drive—and our Can King!
Cast your mind back to 2020... our spring and summer shows had been cancelled due to COVID (RIP, Fantastic Mr. Fox), the studio show was rehearsing online, and theatre companies around the country were facing an upcoming season in the middle of a pandemic. No one knew what to expect. AECT's board brainstormed ways to keep the company solvent when ticket sales dried up, and then-Treasurer Jeff D'Valentine saw a post online…
With recycling centers shut down nationwide, cans were piling up and people wanted to get rid of them. Jeff saw a post on Nextdoor from a neighbor who wanted to de-clutter, and the can drive was born! For the first few months, Jeff collected cans but couldn’t return them. He had a mountain of 30,000 cans in his garage by the time recycling centers opened again in the summer. Once they did, he would load up his 2007 Ford Edge and visit several stores, hitting the limit of 250 cans at each location.
He hasn’t slowed down since! Our “Can King” still makes regular rounds to collect cans at local homes and businesses (he has about 150 regular donors). He says it keeps him busy in his retirement, but it is also an incredible amount of work. Jeff has returned over 430,000 cans—that’s $43,000 raised for AECT, one dime at a time. Once you factor in the non-returnables and water bottles, Jeff figures he has handled over half a million cans in the last four years!
At any given stop, Jeff might pick up two grocery bags full from a driveway or five big sacks from a local business break room. Some people leave out dog biscuits for Ben and Cooper, who accompany Jeff on his can runs. Sometimes Jeff gets invited in for a cup of tea, or chats about AECT’s upcoming show with a donor. He knows the store managers at all the local Kroger and Meijer locations, plus Aldi, Costco, Sam’s Club, and Horrocks. He can tell at a glance which stores take which brands (pro tip: Horrocks takes a lot of the “weird” ones!). He’s even gotten to know the service providers for the TOMRA recycling machines and has worked with them to get new brands entered when he notices the store sells a product but the system isn’t updated yet for returns.
The can drive is about raising funds, but it’s also about building relationships. Jeff knows every one of his donors. He’s gotten referrals from individuals and now collects from their neighbors and workplaces. Our Can King is reliable—picking up when he says he will and tracking every can to provide tax receipts as well! Even after his board service ended in 2023, Jeff has continued this amazing volunteer work, and we are grateful to him and to those who donate their returnables!
Have some cans to donate? Email us at contact@allofusexpress.org or text Jeff directly at 269-207-0303 to arrange a pick-up or drop-off. As Jeff would say, “Pass the word…and drink up!”
Board buzz
Welcoming a new board member!
Welcome to our newest member of the Board of Trustees, Vinnie Tardino! Vinnie was voted onto the board for a partial term for the remainder of Season 35, and will begin a full term in Season 36. If you are interested in joining the board or serving on a committee (no board position required for committees), check our Board of Trustees page for more information!
Season 36 productions
Save these dates!
More information about auditions and audition workshops, performance dates and times, and plot details can be found in the Season 36 brochure.
Elementary Workshop 2024: 101 Dalmatians *Auditions August 22-23, 2024*
A new opportunity for our youngest actors to take center stage!
Directed by Jocelyn France
Fall 2024: Puffs *Auditions August 22-23, 2024*
Alternate title: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic
Directed by Jen Shaw
Winter 2025: Little Shop of Horrors *Auditions November 2024*
Don’t feed the plants.
Directed by Jocelyn France
Spring 2025: Holes *Auditions February 2025*
Some secrets are too big to keep hidden.
Directed by Andrea Arnold
Studio Class 2025: The Laramie Project *Auditions December 2024*
When a small town comes face to face with murder, everybody has a tale to tell.
Directed by Jen Shaw
Summer 2025: Disney’s The Little Mermaid *Auditions May 2025*
Life is the bubbles, under the sea!
Directed by Jocelyn France
Thanks for reading Show Notes—we hope to see you on Facebook and Instagram as well! Keep up between issues on our website.