No change in direction, Astor Theatre board tells concerned community members

About 70 people turned out to the Astor Theatre in Liverpool on Sunday for a community town hall meeting. (Rick Conrad)

Updated April 10, 9:12 a.m.

The board and staff of the Astor Theatre in Liverpool held a community town hall on Sunday afternoon to try to clear up some of the controversy that has recently swirled around the historic theatre.

About 70 people showed up for the two-hour long session. It was at times heated, with some very pointed questions from audience members. Others were supportive of the board, while others showed up to get more specifics on what has apparently divided the Astor community. 

Five board members as well as recently hired executive director Jerri Southcott and employee Malcolm Freeman took questions from the audience.

Chairman John Simmonds tried to clear up some things off the bat.

“We see no change in the direction of the Astor Theatre in terms of our instructions to Jerri. There’s been no change in our strategic plan or our mission or values,” he said.

“So we think that things have been going along well and will continue to go along well. And we would hope that the community would trust that whatever has occurred is just something that happened along the way. It’s not a pattern. It’s not a change in direction. There’s no regime change. So we hope to continue what has been the success of the Astor using community members, volunteers, as many people who are interested in coming in and joining in that.”

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Simmonds also reminded people that Southcott has been on the job for only two months, and appealed to people for patience.

Astor Theatre Society board members Lynn Cochrane, Loris Azzano, Tina Tucker and Anne Espenant, employee Malcolm Freeman and executive director Jerri Southcott took questions from the audience at the Astor Theatre on Sunday. Chairman John Simmonds is shown standing. (Rick Conrad)

The misunderstandings and concerns appeared to start shortly after the musical Follies wrapped in early March. The director of that play, Ashley-Rose Goodwin, announced that she would be mounting another youth production, Oliver Jr.

Goodwin had produced numerous youth productions at the Astor in the past few years, both in her duties with the Astor and under her own company, Mersey Rose Theatre Company. She also led many youth theatre workshops and summer camps.

But shortly after the announcement of Oliver, Goodwin resigned as associate artistic director of the Astor. 

That appeared to set off a cascade of events that eventually led to the resignations of two Astor board members. 

Many parents and other community members were upset that Goodwin was no longer with the theatre. 

A group of community members created the ad hoc group Queens County Community Theatre Advocates to “hold the board accountable,” according to a Facebook post. They said they were concerned about the “new direction” of the Astor.

They sent an open letter to the Astor board, saying they were shocked and dismayed at recent alleged decisions by the board and executive director Southcott.

They claimed that there was a sudden change in direction, that the local community was being shut out of Astor productions, that certain people were being paid to work on Astor productions instead of using community volunteers, and that Southcott was trying to engineer a “merger” between her Mahone Bay-based company South Shore Summer Theatre and the Astor. The group offered few specifics publicly about their concerns.

Things soon got heated and personal, with many people accusing the Astor or Southcott of various things on the Astor’s Facebook page. Members of this group also made accusations on their own public Facebook posts.

The group encouraged people to become members of the Astor Theatre Society so they could vote in a new board at an upcoming annual general meeting. 

They have also organized a special meeting for Monday at 7 p.m. at Liverpool Regional High School. Their original purpose was to elect an interim board of directors and to set a date for the annual general meeting.

At the meeting on Sunday, however, Astor board members said that they will be at that meeting and that chairman John Simmonds will chair it.

The Astor board called the community meeting on Sunday to explain what has happened in the past month and to answer any questions from residents and Astor supporters.

“One of the questions that was asked online, ‘What is so heinous about the things that are going on that we need to replace the board?’” Simmonds said Sunday.

“And we would question and say, we don’t know. We don’t know. So we were hoping to sort of reveal these things now and bring them out into the light so people can make their decisions as to what direction they would like the Astor and this board and our current staff to go in.”

Betsy Hartt said she was upset at Goodwin’s departure, saying the “magic changed in this theatre when Ashley was running those programs”. She said she was also worried about rumours that the Astor would no longer be dedicated to community theatre.

“The concern I have is if there is going to be a refocus on spreading our wings, that’s great. But the centre of the focus still has to be on the activities in this building. So, Winds of Change, local theatre. And I’m hearing that that’s not the case.”

Southcott replied to Hartt that the Astor’s focus hasn’t changed.

“There are no changes in direction planned. There were no changes made. We did have a change in personnel. When Ashley resigned, we respectfully accepted her resignation and then we did our best to get the show on the road by posting positions, filling them, and putting together a production team. We have a group of kids that’s really excited. We have a production team that’s working really well together. But we are wide open to more volunteers, more cast members, all of the people here in Liverpool and Queens County are more than welcome to be involved. We were simply getting the next production on the go.”

Liverpool resident Sandra Atkinson speaks at the community meeting at the Astor Theatre in Liverpool on Sunday. (Rick Conrad)

As for the supposed merger with South Shore Summer Theatre, board member Anne Espenant said that was not the intent.

Espenant said the Astor had already been in discussions with that theatre company before Southcott was hired. South Shore Summer Theatre brought a play to Liverpool each of the past two summers that generated $10,000 in revenue for the Astor.

Espenant said the board hoped to bring that company under the Astor umbrella in the same way Liverpool theatre group Winds of Change had been part of the Astor.

“I just want to make it clear that that was not Jerri coming in and saying I’m going to bring in South Shore Summer Theatre. It was us talking to her about that. We were just having initial conversations with their board about whether they thought, just like with the Winds of Change board, that might be something they want to consider. Now it’s off the table. But that (discussion is) not on Jerri. It’s on us.”

Queens County resident Kristopher Snarby, who is the vocal coach for the upcoming musical Seussical, also sat on the Astor board for 12 years. 

He echoed many in the audience on Sunday when he said he wasn’t clear what the online “uproar” was about. Snarby said the group of community members who wrote the letter to the Astor kept deflecting questions about their specific concerns.

“Like so many of you, I don’t think anybody really knows exactly what the problems are or were. And that’s a big problem in itself. … You read the letter and it says, I don’t know. It just says we’re mad, we’re angry.”

He said the accusations that the Astor or Southcott are trying to exclude local residents from productions is wrong, especially what he’s experienced since he’s been involved with Seussical.

“When I walked into this place, every kid who wanted to be there were there on the stage. There were no auditions. It’s the first show I’ve done where there were no auditions. So how can you be more inclusive than saying, ‘Come on the stage, we’re going to have fun. We’ll figure out the parts along the way.’ I’ve never seen that before. It’s the first time. You can’t get more inclusive than that.”

Snarby also said that another concern he saw online was that people are being paid for some productions.

He reminded people that when Winds of Change produced Les Miserables at the Astor in 2013, the musical director was paid and the musicians were given an honorarium. And he said they brought in actors from Halifax and Windsor to play two of the leading roles. They did not pay those actors, Snarby clarified later.

“There has been a history in this community of paying professionals for their time to do the job,” Snarby said. “Sometimes you have to pay professionals to do the job.” 

Liverpool parent Lori Smyth said her two kids have attended the Astor theatre camps and they are also in Seussical. She says the apparent divide over the Astor has her kids worried.

“I just want to say that as a parent I’m very impressed with the team,” she said. “I am very grateful that there is a group of people that want to develop community theatre for the youth in this town. I think some of the parents are concerned, our kids are stressed. They love the theatre, and they love the Astor. With meetings happening tomorrow, and meetings all over the place, how is this going to affect their ability to finish the production that they have started?”

Southcott said the past month has taken a toll on her and the board.

“But even more importantly, I’m realizing the effects it’s having on your children,” she said. 

“And it’s heartbreaking. I can tell you that we are committed as a production team to the kids and committed to providing this type of programming free of charge to everybody. I come to rehearsal and I feel better. I feel better because these kids are so incredibly talented, they’re nice, they are working together really well as a team. And I am committed to continuing that, so I hope that all of this can be resolved quickly.”

Board members and many in the audience said they’re also hopeful the rift can be repaired soon.

Liverpool resident Sandra Atkinson, who appeared in Follies, applauded the board for holding the information session.

“I just want you to fix it. I applaud you for being truthful, sharing your information, letting us know, letting us talk. And I applaud all the people for coming up here and saying whatever they felt they wanted to say. Thank you for doing this. And really just get to the table and fix it, please.”

The Astor recorded the town hall meeting and plans to post it on its Facebook page.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Astor Theatre director brings passion and paws to new role

Jerri Southcott took over this week as executive director of the Astor Theatre in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad photo)

By Rick Conrad

The Astor Theatre in Liverpool got more than a new executive director this week. It also got a new dog.

Jerri Southcott took over on Feb. 5 from interim executive director Jean Robinson.

And she’s already made one big change.

Macduff, her laidback nine-year-old Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever, will be keeping her company as she leads the Astor.

Southcott isn’t worried about the old W.C. Fields warning against working with children or animals.

“He takes that saying and spins it to the positive for sure. He’ll definitely steal the show.”

Macduff and Southcott are no strangers to the stage. He made an appearance in the musical Pippin last summer at the theatre, which Southcott brought to the Astor with her own theatre company, South Shore Summer Theatre.

Macduff at the Astor Theatre. His mom, Jerri Southcott, took over as executive director. (Jerri Southcott photo)

The Astor announced in January that it had hired Southcott, who lives in Mahone Bay with Macduff and her husband Dave Stephens.  

In her first week on the job, she says she’s been busy getting to know the theatre, its staff members Ashley-Rose Goodwin, Katy Hopkins and Malcolm Freeman and the community.

She’s already impressed.

“We’re really blessed to have Ashley and Malcolm and Katy here who are so incredibly skilled,” she said in an interview.

“I just observed over the past few days how wonderful the people are in this community and how much they adore this theatre and so I feel very fortunate.”

She says she doesn’t plan any big changes, because she knows what it’s like to balance a tight budget for a charitable organization like the Astor.

“I learned a lot when I started South Shore Summer Theatre. But it really helped me especially with this job understand the accountability you need as a non-profit, understanding the balance of providing an opportunity for professional training at no cost to the community, especially youth, and how you balance that cheque book.”

She says the key will be continuing the work the Astor has done in the past couple of years to bring people back to the theatre after the pandemic.

With homegrown productions like the musical Follies, opening Feb. 22, she says it’s an exciting time to be here.

“I’m coming at a really great time because we have Follies opening on Feb. 22 and it’s going to be a great show. But it’s also given me an opportunity to meet some really interesting characters who come through the doors and really take ownership of the building adn the theater. They are so giving and generous with their time, often their money. We’re very blessed to have such a great hub of the community here with this theatre.”

Southcott says it’s her priority to get to know the community and what they want from the Astor. It’s important to keep people coming back to the theatre, she says, whether that’s for great entertainment or by offering more training and workshops for youth, regardless of their financial background.

“This has always been a really strong passion of mine to make theatre, dance, music accessible to families who don’t have the money to pay for expensive music lessons … or private dance classes.”

With her background in government communications, Southcott says she is optimistic that the Astor can become the theatre destination for the whole South Shore.

“How do we get that message out there and how do we continue to let people know we’re here? When you look at the big picture, on the South Shore we are the biggest theatre. We have the potential for Bridgewater, Mahone Bay, Lunenburg to take ownership of this as their theatre on the South Shore because there isn’t a venue as big anywhere in the area. So I think that the future looks really bright.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com