Greg Jaklewicz
| Abilene Reporter-News
While everyone welcomed 2021 and the chance to start fresh after the worst year most of us can recall, the new year begins with entertainment unknowns.
Many entertainment events were canceled last year, even those that have gone on for years. The Fandangle in Albany and the Texas Cowboy’s Christmas Ball in Anson to name two. Many organizers were hesitant to say “canceled” fearing negative publicity. But in reality, those events did not happen, with hopes of resuming in 2021.
Some programs altered their fall seasons completely, such as the Abilene Philharmonic and Children’s Performing Arts Series.
Due to the success of outdoor productions amid a pandemic, both CPAS and Abilene Christian University will go that route this spring for at least one show.
CPAS will open its season in late March at the Taylor County Expo Center, while ACU in June will take the Abilene Shakespeare Festival, which was canceled in 2020, to Adamson-Spalding Storybook Garden downtown.
Some events, such as the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival and Children’s Art & Literacy Festival, pushed their canceled 2020 events to 2021 dates. It was hoped that Willie Nelson and the other artists originally scheduled for the 10th anniversary Outlaws show would be able to perform this March (19-20, at the Back Porch of Texas), and CALF featured artist Loren Long would come to West Texas from Cincinnati in June (10-12, downtown).
Both of those events are months off, with other events scheduled before then in Abilene.
The Paramount Theatre, which has been dark since the November showing of “The Princess Bride,” was scheduled to begin its 2021 classic film series this weekend with two evening showings of “Hairspray.” Executive Director George Levesque previously said the downtown theater would not open to the public until Abilene was below Level 6 on the Hendrick Medical Center COVID-19 wheel.
As of Monday, that had not happened, and the first movie of 2021 won’t be shown.
And so, Ferris Bueller has even more days off. He is scheduled, however, to visit the theater May 14-15.
Delayed, too, is the restart of Abilene Community Theatre’s season. Its board recently voted to postpone “Much Ado About Nothing,” scheduled for this month, until May, dropping that month’s show, “Book of Everything.”
The reluctance of some audience members to attend wearing masks was cited as a health concern.
Chorus Abilene will have its auditions Jan. 23 at the Mall of Abilene for Abilene Idol and Abilene Idol Jr. The finalists chosen that day will perform Feb. 6 at the Abilene Convention Center.
Chorus Abilene is moving forward with its 2021 events.
Neal McCoy, who headlined Rehab 2020, is due back, along with telethon alum Runaway June for the Jan. 23 fundraiser. Last year’s event raised a record $1.2 million. The show is staged at the Convention Center.
Here is a look at what is planned, pandemic permitting, for the start of 2021:
Abilene Ballet Theatre
According to its Facebook page, ABT is planning to present “The Nutcracker,” traditionally staged before Thanksgiving, on March 5-7 at the Paramount Theatre.
Auditions, in fact, were held this past weekend, conducted by ABT alum and professional dancer Alex Maryianowski, who has been grounded in Abilene during the pandemic.
Abilene Community Band
According to its website: “Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we currently have no scheduled performances for 2021.”
Abilene Community Theatre
The theater got in two shows in the fall before a mid-December production of “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol” was canceled early in the month.
ACT was scheduled to return to action for Valentine’s Day with “Much Ado About Nothing,” which, oddly, is how we can look at entertainment in Abilene much of 2020.
Here is what ACT now has scheduled:
- March 19-21 and 26-28 – “Almost, Maine”
- May 14-16 and 21-23 – “Much Ado About Nothing” (replacing “The Book of Everything”)
- June 11-13 and 18-20 – “Peter Pan” (delayed from 2020)
Abilene Philharmonic
The symphony improvised in the fall, scheduling two outdoor concerts at the Abilene Zoo after canceling its first two indoor performances.
Then, moving to First Baptist Church, the Phil staged two performances of “Christmas Collage Concert,” featuring vocalist Sara Kennedy.
Three of four concerts in the 2021 portion of the revised schedule also will be performed at the downtown church. The finale in May is scheduled for the Paramount Theatre.
To minimize crowds, two performances are planned for all four concert events — a 3 p.m. matinee and 7:30 evening show.
This spring, the orchestra will recognize Beethoven on the occasion of 250th anniversary of his birth. And, for a third time, try to welcome back vocalist Kristen Hertzenberg.
Here is what is planned:
- Jan 30 – Masterworks 1: “Romantic Strings”
- March 27 – Masterworks II: “Beethoven Triple,” with Kiril Laskarov on violin, Jeffrey Lastrapes, cello; and Steven Harlos, pianist.
- April 17 – Masterworks III: “Four Seasons,” with violinist Angelo Xiang Yu
- May 29 (7:30 p.m.) and 30 (3 p.m.) – “Kristen Hertzenberg and Her All-Star Band,” with vocalist Hertzenberg
Broadway Series
There were no shows in the fall, with the final two shows of the 2019-20 canceled.
There was hope to resume the popular series in early 2021, but there is no word yet on that.
Celebration Singers
Fans missed hearing them at City Sidewalks and at Paramount Theatre in December. Looks like we’ll continue missing them.
According to the group’s website: “Due to COVID-19, there are no shows scheduled at this time. We hope to see you in 2021!”
Children’s Performing Arts Series
The unpredictable nature of entertainment inspired a “Sparking Creativity” theme for CPAS, which delayed its 2020-21 season to March 27.
That’s when “Chris Perondi’s Stunt Dog Experience” twice will be performed … at the Taylor County Expo Center. Normally, CPAS shows are at the Paramount.
This show will be at the H-E-B pavilion on the Expo Center grounds, providing an open-air space for shows at 1 and 5 p.m. that day. This is a Saturday event.
Other shows, back at the Paramount, are:
- April 18: “The Jungle Book”
- May 16: “Acrobats of Cirque-Tacular”
College theater
Abilene’s three universities maintained a schedule during the fall as theater education continued.
The Christian University Theatre Festival, scheduled for early March, has been canceled. It’s hoped that festival will return in 2021, with Hardin-Simmons again the host school.
Here is what is planned for the spring term:
► Abilene Christian:
- Feb. 25-27 – “Beau Jest”
- April 15-24 – “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
- June TBD – “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” for 2021 Abilene Shakespeare Festival outdoors at Adamson-Spalding Storybook Garden
► Hardin-Simmons:
After a busy fall, HSU has big plans:
- Jan. 23-24 – “Director’s Cut,” a student directed play. This year’s play is “BFF: Best Friends Forever,” directed by senior theater education major Madison Murgia.
- Feb. 24-28 – “Into the Woods” (date change due to HSU moving Homecoming to Feb. 12-13)
- March – “24-Hour Shakespeare,” a show that will be announced Jan. 30, with students having 24 hours to stage the show.
- March 24-28 – “A Comedy of Errors”
- April 10 – “Starlight Extravaganza” fundraiser
- April 21-24 – “DirectFest 2021”
► McMurry:
McMurry’s success with staging shows outdoors at its Quad has inspired other outdoor entertainment ventures. Here is what is planned:
- Feb. 11-14 – “Wait Until Dark”
- April 2-3 – Three original student-written one acts
- April 29-30 – Student-directed one acts
High schools
Abilene and Cooper high schools will present winter musicals, but will follow the limited audience restrictions followed by basketball teams.
Cast and crew members can sell four tickets to family or friends. Both shows will be livestreamed at a cost.
- Jan. 21-23: AHS will present “Little Women”
- Jan. 28-30: CHS will present “Freaky Friday,” a show ACU was going to do last spring until COVID-19 canceled the rest of its season.
Wylie currently is preparing “Of Mice and Men” and “Steel Magnolias” for performances Jan. 29-Feb. 1. WHS also will be host March 5 of the district one-act play contest.
Paramount Theatre
The Paramount, which has had a bumpy ride during its 90th anniversary year, scored a hit in the fall with its fundraiser “Cabaret Under the Stars,” a two-night presentation of local musical talent. A sequel, titled … “Cabaret Under the Stars,” is scheduled for March. There will be a different slate of performers.
Pending further pandemic delays, here is what is scheduled movie-wise:
- Feb. 12-13 – “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”
- March 12-13 – “Toy Story”
- April 9-10 – “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”
- May 14-15 – “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”
- June 4-5 – “JoJo Rabbit”
Greg Jaklewicz is editor of the Abilene Reporter-News. If you appreciate locally driven news, you can support local journalists with a digital subscription to ReporterNews.com.
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