The title is The Mill Project and the performance invites the audience to place themselves in history while imagining our shared future.
The Mill Project, presented by Theatre Truck, is an original new play featuring five local actors and was devised by the ensemble using historical research. The result is an exploration of the first generation of American women who worked away from home: their freedoms and exploitations, their strengths and the dangers they faced, and the expectations society held for them.
The play deconstructs the historical record, remembering women’s experience of labor in the textile mills of nineteenth century New England through a “performance-collage” drawing on letters, newspapers, pamphlets and etiquette books. Woven in a tapestry of original music and movement, the play puts the “mill girls” of factory towns like Leeds into relationship with the experience of American women today. The rebellion of these early female communities against exploitation led to the early labor movement in the United States.
There will be four performances, June 22, 23, 24 and 25 at 7:30pm on the Leeds Common across from the historic Nonotuck silk mill. The audience is invited to bring a blanket or chair and a picnic in the tradition of outdoor Summer theatre. This performance is recommended for ages 14 and up. Parking is available in the Chartpak lot. In the event of heavy showers or storms, Rain Date Friday June 30.
Theatre Truck is a collaborative of multidisciplinary artists crafting mobile and site-specific performance, sustainably and playfully. Their inaugural production, The Emily Dickinson Project (2015), took place in the house and grounds of the poet’s Amherst homestead. The Water Project (Immersive) took place in New Salem, MA last September and was set to live music.
Oh sing me the song of the Factory Girl! The honest and fair and true! — J.H. Warland, 1846
______ Tickets available at Brown Paper Tickets:
$20 in advance, $15 students/seniors in advance
$25 cash only at the door, $20 students/seniors at the door. For more info contact: www.theTheatreTruck.com
Collage Art by Nancy Meagher
https://leedscivic.org/leeds2/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/LCAlogotrans2.png00justinhttps://leedscivic.org/leeds2/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/LCAlogotrans2.pngjustin2017-06-19 10:07:482017-06-19 10:07:48Outdoor Theatre Production in Leeds
Renee (Mac) LeVay, a life long resident of Leeds served in WWII as a paratrooper. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge, helping to defeat Germany in their last major offensive of that awful war. When Mac returned home from the war he married his Leeds’ sweetheart, Annette Bachand, and raised three children. Mac was the very first custodian to work at Leeds Elementary School. In fact, in 1953, it was Mac who opened the doors for the first time to students and staff!
Did you know that the Veteran’s Memorial was once located on the Leeds Main Street Green? It was Mac LeVay who took care of that Memorial, raising and lowering the flag, year after year. Unfortunately, the Green became a hang out for wild kids–graffiti and vandalism ensued, so Mac formed a committee with his brother Brad, a Korean War veteran, and other veterans of other wars to research and record the names of all Leeds residents who served their country. Working with the LCA and City Council they relocated an updated Memorial to the current location across from the Leeds School.
The 2017 Memorial Day Ceremony will have a special dedication by Brad LeVay to honor the service of his brother, Renee (Mac) LeVay. Please bring your family and join your Leeds neighbors to honor all who served our country so bravely. Jane Bowie, VA nurse, will be the speaker. There will also be a color guard and a wreath laying ceremony. Hope to see you on Sunday, May 28th!
https://leedscivic.org/leeds2/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/LCAlogotrans2.png00justinhttps://leedscivic.org/leeds2/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/LCAlogotrans2.pngjustin2017-05-16 20:31:452017-05-16 20:31:45Local to be Hero Honored at Leeds Memorial Day Ceremony – May 28, 1:00
Robert’s Hill has new land, new trail, new trail map
The City closed on the final planned acquisition in the Roberts Hill section of the Saw Mill Hills Conservation Area, purchasing 20.7 acres of land from the Williams family. The Community Preservation Committee and the City Council allocated CPA funds for the purchase. The LCA and many donors in Leeds also contributed. Funding also came from funds that were set aside for this purpose several years ago as a condition of the approval of the Saw Mill Hills subdivision off of Reservoir Road.
00justinhttps://leedscivic.org/leeds2/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/LCAlogotrans2.pngjustin2017-04-12 17:12:202017-04-12 17:12:20Updated Roberts Hill Trail Map
Outdoor Theatre Production in Leeds
The title is The Mill Project and the performance invites the audience to place themselves in history while imagining our shared future.
The Mill Project, presented by Theatre Truck, is an original new play featuring five local actors and was devised by the ensemble using historical research. The result is an exploration of the first generation of American women who worked away from home: their freedoms and exploitations, their strengths and the dangers they faced, and the expectations society held for them.
The play deconstructs the historical record, remembering women’s experience of labor in the textile mills of nineteenth century New England through a “performance-collage” drawing on letters, newspapers, pamphlets and etiquette books. Woven in a tapestry of original music and movement, the play puts the “mill girls” of factory towns like Leeds into relationship with the experience of American women today. The rebellion of these early female communities against exploitation led to the early labor movement in the United States.
There will be four performances, June 22, 23, 24 and 25 at 7:30pm on the Leeds Common across from the historic Nonotuck silk mill. The audience is invited to bring a blanket or chair and a picnic in the tradition of outdoor Summer theatre. This performance is recommended for ages 14 and up. Parking is available in the Chartpak lot. In the event of heavy showers or storms, Rain Date Friday June 30.
Theatre Truck is a collaborative of multidisciplinary artists crafting mobile and site-specific performance, sustainably and playfully. Their inaugural production, The Emily Dickinson Project (2015), took place in the house and grounds of the poet’s Amherst homestead. The Water Project (Immersive) took place in New Salem, MA last September and was set to live music.
Oh sing me the song of the Factory Girl! The honest and fair and true! — J.H. Warland, 1846
______
Tickets available at Brown Paper Tickets:
$20 in advance, $15 students/seniors in advance
$25 cash only at the door, $20 students/seniors at the door. For more info contact: www.theTheatreTruck.com
Collage Art by Nancy Meagher
Local to be Hero Honored at Leeds Memorial Day Ceremony – May 28, 1:00
Renee (Mac) LeVay, a life long resident of Leeds served in WWII as a paratrooper. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge, helping to defeat Germany in their last major offensive of that awful war. When Mac returned home from the war he married his Leeds’ sweetheart, Annette Bachand, and raised three children. Mac was the very first custodian to work at Leeds Elementary School. In fact, in 1953, it was Mac who opened the doors for the first time to students and staff!
Did you know that the Veteran’s Memorial was once located on the Leeds Main Street Green? It was Mac LeVay who took care of that Memorial, raising and lowering the flag, year after year. Unfortunately, the Green became a hang out for wild kids–graffiti and vandalism ensued, so Mac formed a committee with his brother Brad, a Korean War veteran, and other veterans of other wars to research and record the names of all Leeds residents who served their country. Working with the LCA and City Council they relocated an updated Memorial to the current location across from the Leeds School.
The 2017 Memorial Day Ceremony will have a special dedication by Brad LeVay to honor the service of his brother, Renee (Mac) LeVay. Please bring your family and join your Leeds neighbors to honor all who served our country so bravely. Jane Bowie, VA nurse, will be the speaker. There will also be a color guard and a wreath laying ceremony. Hope to see you on Sunday, May 28th!
Updated Roberts Hill Trail Map
Robert’s Hill has new land, new trail, new trail map
The City closed on the final planned acquisition in the Roberts Hill section of the Saw Mill Hills Conservation Area, purchasing 20.7 acres of land from the Williams family. The Community Preservation Committee and the City Council allocated CPA funds for the purchase. The LCA and many donors in Leeds also contributed. Funding also came from funds that were set aside for this purpose several years ago as a condition of the approval of the Saw Mill Hills subdivision off of Reservoir Road.
Get out and hike Robert’s Hill!
Download the map