History

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=140 BGCOLOR="#9966CC" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03b00a20ezthtv.png"> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="City Stage Co. of Boston"><U><B>home</B></U></A><B>     |     </B><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#330066" FACE="Arial" ><B>City Stage Co. of Boston</B></FONT></div> <div> <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Performing"><U>Performing</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Educating"><U>Educating</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Museums"><U>Museums</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id15.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="News!"><U>News!</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact info"><U>Contact info</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Participating"><U>Participating</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Calendar"><U>Calendar</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Teen Stages"><U>Teen Stages</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="KidStage"><U>KidStage</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Whats the Big Idea?"><U>What's the Big Idea?</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Buster Has Asthma"><U>Buster Has Asthma</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Whos Who Bios"><U>Who's Who & Bios</U></A>   |   <B>History</B>   |   <A HREF="id17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="FAQ"><U>FAQ</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="After School With City Stage Co."><U>After School With City Stage Co.</U></A></div> <div> <B>History</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#CCFF66" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <IMG SRC="196ac760.jpg" border=0 width="172" height="118" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>City Stage Co. was founded in 1974.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-Gerald Ford was President, following the resignation of Richard M. Nixon</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-Judge Arthur Garrity gave the </B><I><B>Morgan v. Hennigan</B></I><B> order to desegregate the Boston Public Schools</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-A First Class Postage Stamp cost ten cents</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-Patty Hearst was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>- </B><I><B>Waterloo</B></I><B> by ABBA was the Top Hit in popular music</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-</B><I><B>M*A*S*H</B></I><B> was the top-rated TV program</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-</B><I><B>Blazing Saddles</B></I><B> was the highest grossing movie</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-Stephen King published </B><I><B>Carrie, </B></I><B>his first novel</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-The Boston Celtics won the NBA Finals in 4 games to 3 over the Milwaukee Bucks</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-The Boston Bruins lost in the Stanley Cup finals to Philadelphia (4-2)</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-The United States was in the grip of the energy crisis, caused by OPEC's Oil Embargo</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>-The Annual Inflation rate was 11.03%</B></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=340 BGCOLOR="#CCFF66" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <IMG SRC="18388890.jpg" border=0 width="136" height="137" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="182f6880.jpg" border=0 width="246" height="136" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="1858e890.jpg" border=0 width="142" height="137" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> More than 30 Years of City Stage Co. History</div> <bR> <div> Our Founder, Susan Gassett</div> <div> <IMG SRC="482a6ed0.png" border=0 width="166" height="237" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="481eeed0.jpg" border=0 width="238" height="237" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Here's a year-by-year rundown of some of the highlights of </div> <div> City Stage Company's 33-year history.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="10ea3930.png" border=0 width="163" height="147" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="10fc8930.png" border=0 width="200" height="147" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="111a7940.png" border=0 width="167" height="148" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <B>1974</B></div> <div> City Stage Co. was founded under the name <I>Shakespeare and Company</I> and begins by presenting <I>Comic Relief, </I>a compilation of classic comedy scenes, in 16 schools.  The very first performance was slightly delayed by a flat tire. </div> <bR> <div> One of the first shows took place in a Catholic school and was marred only by the confusion caused by the frugal Nun who booked the show.  In order to save money, Sister used the same date book from year to year, crossing out the dates from one year and writing in the dates for the current year.  </div> <bR> <div> Susan Gassett is still the Artistic Director of City Stage Co. after founding the company in 1974 and inventing our participatory theater style.  No arts leader in Boston has led a cultural organization for 30 years.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1975</B></div> <div> The company obtained its not-for-profit status and formed its first Board of Directors.  The company offered acting classes for adults at the Boston Center for the Arts.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1976</B></div> <div> City Stage began its first theater projects in the Boston Public Schools, including a special series of performances for high school students at Massachusetts College of Art auditorium.  Touring productions included <I>The American Dream</I>, by Edward Albee, <I>The Bald Soprano</I>, by Ionesco and <I>Shakespeare's Mirror</I>.  </div> <div> <IMG SRC="113839f0.png" border=0 width="131" height="159" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="117f99f0.png" border=0 width="249" height="159" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="11972a00.png" border=0 width="114" height="160" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>1977</B></div> <div> Children were invited to join the actors on stage during <I>The Living Storybook.  </I>The children played the forest.  </div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="12fb9650.png" border=0 width="185" height="101" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <B><IMG SRC="1309b640.png" border=0 width="155" height="100" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="132ae630.png" border=0 width="174" height="99" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <bR> <div> On May 10th the company officially changes its name to City Stage Co., freeing up the name Shakespeare and Company for what would eventually become the renowned group based in Lenox, Massachusetts.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1978</B></div> <div> Susan Gassett directed a production of Shakespeare's <I>Julius Caesar</I> with a cast of 6th graders at the McCormack Middle School.  The night of the performance, the actress playing the Soothsayer came down with pneumonia.  The replacement actress missed her entrance.  Caesar was left on stage waiting for someone to tell him to "Beware the Ides of March."  Caesar covered the missed cue by remarking to his attendants, "Nice day, huh?"</div> <bR> <div> <B>1979</B></div> <div> The company confronted its first controversial subject with a production of <I>Class </I>by John Lipsky.  In this play, which toured to high schools in Maine, a high school students discovers she is pregnant.  School administrators were divided.  One principal wrote to say that City Stage would never be allowed to perform in that school district again.  Another administrator wrote, "Why aren't you performing this in the junior highs?"</div> <bR> <div> <B>1980</B></div> <bR> <div> The company produces Susan Gassett's adaptation of Mary Shelley's <I>Frankenstein.</I>  In a truck filled with the massive wood and steel set, the company set off to give 8 performances in the most distant corners of the state of Maine.  When they arrived in Machias during a nor'easter, the company found the theater flooded.  The play was performed in 2 inches of water, but the show did go on.</div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="136679c0.png" border=0 width="103" height="156" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="10cef9f0.png" border=0 width="239" height="159" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="134679f0.png" border=0 width="103" height="159" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>1981</B></div> <div> New England Power Company hired City Stage to create <I>Energy Matters</I>.  This participatory production about electricity was performed in hundreds of elementary schools over the following seven years.</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="13a80c20.png" border=0 width="128" height="194" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="13e32c20.png" border=0 width="306" height="194" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <B>1982</B></div> <div> <I>The History and the Adventures of Tom Thumb</I> joins the company's repertoire.  Written and directed by Susan Gassett, the show has parts for 22 audience participants and premiered at King Richard's Faire.  Tom Thumb continues to perform today.  </div> <div> <IMG SRC="215ebb80.jpg" border=0 width="235" height="184" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Also in 1982, Larry Coen and Mari Novotny-Jones joined City Stage Co.   Larry as the Talking House in <I>Energy Matters </I>and Mari as Mrs. Thumb in <I>The History and the Adventures of Tom Thumb.</I></div> <bR> <div> <B>1983</B></div> <div> As a benefit for the Massachusetts Cultural Alliance, City Stage writes and produces <I>A Case of Missing Art</I>, one of the very first interactive, murder-mystery shows ever produced.  </div> <div> <IMG SRC="2172dcc0.jpg" border=0 width="301" height="204" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Also in 1983, Massachusetts Electric Company produced a television commercial about their sponsorship of City Stage's <I>Energy Matters.  </I>Seth Green of <I>Austin Powers</I> and <I>Buffy</I> fame, was hired to star in the commercial, along with <I>Energy Matters</I> actors Sally Campbell, Richard Messick and Mari Novotny-Jones.  Seth, who was 9 years old at the time, was hired to play a student chosen to come on stage to play a lamp.  (He was a very nice kid, by the way.) </div> <bR> <div> <B>1984</B></div> <div> City Stage Co. is one of only 10 arts organizations to receive an Arts Partnership grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.  This grant supported a music and theater program at the William Barton Rogers Middle School in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Boston.  This partnership Between City Stage and the Rogers school is thriving today, some 21 years later.  </div> <bR> <div> <B>1985</B></div> <div> <I>M.L.K.: We are the Dream</I>, City Stage's production about the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's, is chosen by American Place Theater on West 46th Street in New York for their <I>Jubilee: Black Theatre Festival</I>.  The show, which starred Al Eaton and which was directed by Larry Coen, received a rave review in The New York Times, had its off-Broadway run extended and was broadcast nationally as an <I>Emmy Award</I> winning television special.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1986</B></div> <div> In collaboration with YWCA of Lowell, City Stage began <I>City Streets Teen Theater</I>.  This free, after-school drama program for at-risk teens, helped Lowell area youth create and tour original plays about AIDS prevention, family violence, teen pregnancy, racism and substance abuse.  <I>City Streets Teen Theater</I> continued for more than 10 years.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1987</B></div> <div> This marked the second year of City Stage's production of <I>Nutcracker Players</I>, produced in a unique collaboration with world-renowned Boston Ballet.  This enchanting tale of how Clara meets her Nutcracker Prince is told by four actors in spectacular costumes, speaking in rhymed couplets, with lots of audience participation.  <I>Nutcracker Players</I> still tours every holiday season.  In fact, the production is such a hit, that we annually mount 2 separate companies to meet the demand.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="17eecf20.gif" border=0 width="236" height="242" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <B>1988</B></div> <div> This was the year that City Stage entered the world of museums with <I>From Time to Time: 75 Years in Our House</I>.  This year-long project with The Children's Museum of Boston used live theater and museum exhibits to bring to life four families living in one Boston neighborhood home over 75 years.  City Stage actors portrayed the Fitzgeralds, an Irish Catholic family of 1913; the Gutermans, a Jewish German family of 1939; the Robinsons, a Baptist African-American family of 1963; and the Soks, a recently arrived Buddhist Cambodian family of 1989.  The project won an award from The American Association of State and Local History and began City Stage's long relationship with The Children's Museum, Boston.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1989</B></div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="21d06d90.jpg" border=0 width="262" height="217" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> To some Boston-area actors the names Diggetty Dog, Zanna-Zoom: Space Girl, Vim & Vigor and Aunt Agatha are as familiar as members of their own families.  The characters first came to life as part of City Stage's production of <I>FitKids</I>, a participatory production for elementary school assemblies about how kids can make healthy choices.  <I>FitKids</I> was created under sponsorship of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and toured for 10 years, to more than 1,000 schools, for an audience of 500,000 children, while employing 24 actors.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>1990</B></div> <div> <I>FAX of Life</I> was created by a company of City Stage actors who had spent hundreds of hours performing together in murder/mystery and corporate events.  City Stage presented <I>FAX of Life</I> as the first production in the Black Box Theater at the Boston Center for the Arts.  The show was brought to New York for an off-Broadway run by Manhattan Punch Line.  Critic Michael Bronski named it one of the <I>Best Productions of the Year</I>.</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="16afc5a0.jpg" border=0 width="252" height="346" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <B>1991</B></div> <div> City Stage premieres <I>A Piece of the Pie</I> in the Lowell, Massachusetts Historic District.  This landmark program invites the audience to take on individual roles as immigrants.  With limited money and skills, they move through a simulated society and must get jobs and housing while facing language barriers and racism.   <I>A Piece of the Pie</I> has remained a popular program for schools, teacher trainings and corporate events.</div> <bR> <div> Also in 1991, City Stage Co. created a Detroit, Michigan based troupe of <I>FitKids.</I>  Under the sponsorship of Blue Care Network of Michigan, the production would tour to schools for four years.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1992</B></div> <div> City Stage Co. wrote, directed and produced <I>Tetsuo's Room</I>, an eight-and-a-half minute object theater production about the daily lives of contemporary Japanese kids.  <I>Tetsuo’s Room</I> was a bi-lingual, computer driven, multi media presentation, set in a re-creation of a Japanese teen’s bedroom.  Using a combination of 4 tracks of  audio recording, changing light cues, animated objects, video and special effects, <I>Tetsuo’s Room</I> brought to life the small dramas of 17 year old Tetsuo, his 10 year old brother Akio and their 7 year old sister Teru.  <I>Tetsuo’s Room</I> was part of the <I>Teen Tokyo</I> exhibit at The Children's Museum, Boston, where it would run for many years.</div> <bR> <div> Chandra Pieragostini made her City Stage debut as Clara in <I>Nutcracker Players</I> in 1992</div> <bR> <div> <B>1993</B></div> <div> Where is the "Broadway" of museums?  Some would say the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., where <I>Getting Across to Each Other</I> was displayed in the Experimental Gallery of the Smithsonian.  City Stage Co. researched and wrote <I>Getting Across to Each Other</I>,  an interactive video, created to help children develop strategies to cope with racism and prejudice.  The video presents 18 true stories, collected during classroom workshops with 5th and 6th graders in the Boston Public Schools. Getting Across to Each Other was created as part of the Kids Bridge exhibit and has been exhibited at a number of museums across the United States.  </div> <bR> <div> <B>1994</B></div> <div> Shipwrecks, men overboard, daring rescues, drowning sailors, a family weathering a hurricane at sea, a woman meeting the challenges of 19th Century whaling...  All brought to life by City Stage Co. productions at Mystic Seaport Museum and Village in Connecticut.  A Tale of a Whaler continues to be performed every summer. </div> <bR> <div> Jonathan Singleton joins City Stage in 1994 as musical director for and composer of The Pirate Way at the Rogers Middle School.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1995</B></div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="21f13c00.jpg" border=0 width="275" height="192" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> City Stage Co. designed and developed KidStage at The Children's Museum, Boston.  This state-of-the-art 140 seat theater was created to introduce live theater to children, ages 2 to 10 and their families.  City Stage Co. serves as Artistic Directors, working with a theater coordinator and 15 actors.  City Stage Co. has written and directed more than a dozen participatory productions which are performed in repertoire on a daily basis.   KidStage presents 1,373 performances each year, has an annual attendance of about 120,000 people,</div> <div> and has presented more than 10,000 performances for over one million people.  </div> <bR> <div> Annette Brown joins City Stage as Dance Instructor at  the Rogers School in1995.</div> <bR> <div> Also in 1995, City Stage launches new education programs at McKinley Elementary School and El Centro del Cardenal Alternative High School.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1996</B></div> <div> In anticipation of the Bi-Centennial of USS Constitution, City Stage opens Tales of U.S.S. Constitution, at the Constitution Museum in the Charlestown Navy Yard.  These 5 solo shows feature heroes and heroines from the great Naval Frigate.  Each show is 20 minutes long and has three sections.  The first section uses audience participation to tell the tale of how the United States needed to create a Navy to protect its un-armed merchant ships.  The second section is a tale specific to the historical hero or heroine.  The third section uses the entire audience to tell the tale of Constitution's "Powder Monkeys," (the boys who were members of the crew) during the legendary sea battle with HMS Guerriere during the War of 1812.</div> <bR> <div> <B>1997</B></div> <div> Everyone is doing "The Snackerena," when <I>Blue Plate Spec</I><I>ia</I><I>l</I>, an original musical about food premieres on KidStage.  With book and lyrics by Susan Gassett and Larry Coen and music by Jonathan Singleton, the show's songs include <I>Here Come the Grains; Fruits, Fruits, Fruits and Veggies; Moo, Moo, I'm in the Mood For Milk; The Protein Rap; Fats Oils & Sweets</I></div> <bR> <div> Also in 1997, City Stage begins a three-way partnership with ABCD Head Start of Boston and The Children's Museum, Boston.  Susan Gassett and Larry Coen provide training for every teacher in the ABCD Head Start program in Boston, as well as classroom workshops in sites throughout the Boston.  Every student in the program is introduced to live theater with a City Stage Co. production on KidStage.  Each Head Start classroom also received an audio recording of <I>Blue Plate Special.</I> </div> <bR> <div> Therese Perkins, made her City Stage Co. debut in 1997, singing and dancing about nutrition in <I>Blue Plate Special</I><I>.</I> </div> <bR> <div> <B>1998</B></div> <div> City Stage premieres <I>Arthur Writes a Play</I><I>;</I> an original story that introduces kids to theater, adapted from Marc Brown's popular Arthur characters.  The show is launched as part of the <I>Arthur's World</I> exhibit at The Children's Museum, Boston.   During the summer of 1998, the 30 minute show is performed 8 to 10 times daily, by a rotating cast of 25 actors.  </div> <bR> <div> <B>1999</B></div> <div> <I>Epic Proportions,</I> written by Associate Director Larry Coen and Friends co-creator David Crane, opens on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre on West 44th Street.  The play was developed during a series of workshops and readings held by City Stage Co.  <I>Epic Proportions</I> was directed by Jerry Zaks and starred Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Tudyk.</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="11dd7900.jpg" border=0 width="215" height="144" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="12201900.png" border=0 width="257" height="144" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <B>2000</B></div> <div> <I>The </I><I>Fire Safety Learning Center</I> at Rockefeller Center in New York has become a destination for those wishing to honor the heroes of the Fire Department of New York City who were lost on September 11.  Susan Gassett and Larry Coen developed the content and script for this multi-media, special effects theater, which teaches children and families how to prevent fires and how to safely escape buildings during emergencies.  Visitors practice escape under simulated emergency conditions including darkness, smoke, hot doors, and noise.  </div> <bR> <div> Also in 2000, City Stage brings 100 free performances of <I>The History and the Adventures of Tom Thumb</I> to libraries in eastern Massachusetts, thanks to a generous grant from Mabel Louise Riley Foundation.</div> <bR> <div> With a <I>Youth Reach Initiative</I> grant from Massachusetts Cultural Council, City Stage launches South End After School Performing Arts.  This free program provided  dance and drama classes  for 9 to 14 year olds who live in public housing in the South End/Lower Roxbury neighborhood of Boston.  </div> <bR> <div> <B>2001</B></div> <div> With a grant from VSA Arts, the company produced a special tour of <I>The History and the Adventures of Tom Thumb</I>, targeted at families with deaf members.  This innovative production used 2  American Sign Language actors and 2 speaking actors to provide full access to the audience participation opportunities during the show.</div> <bR> <div> <B>2002</B></div> <div> <I>No Time to Waste</I><I>,</I> a 20 minute comic show about trash and recycling, premieres at the Providence Children's Museum.</div> <bR> <div> <B>2003</B></div> <div> In celebration of the Centennial of the William Barton Rogers Middle School, City Stage created a pageant that dramatized events of the 100 years from 1903 to 2003. Each decade was represented with a series of brief scenes, songs and dances high-lighting the world events, popular culture trends and famous figures of the age. More than 100 students in 4 classrooms, the school chorus, 4 language arts teachers and 4 social studies teachers collaborated with City Stage on this innovative model for combining performing arts with curriculum.</div> <bR> <div> <B>2004</B></div> <div> Susan Gassett and Larry Coen  write a new play for kids about elections, using <A HREF="http://www.arthurworldwide.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.arthurworldwide.com/"><U>Marc Brown's</U></A> beloved characters.  Arthur, everybody's favorite aardvark, falls asleep while studying the electoral process and dreams he is running for President of the United States.   Will Arthur or the Brain win the nomination? Does Binky have skeletons in his closet? What kind of First Lady will D.W. be? Children will take part in the democratic process by being able to cast their votes at the end of this interactive play.   </div> <bR> <div> <I><B>``Arthur for President'' has some delightful surprises."</B></I></div> <div> <B>Terry Byrne, The Boston Herald</B> (<A HREF="http://theedge.bostonherald.com/artsNews/view.bg?articleid=34087" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://theedge.bostonherald.com/artsNews"><U>Full Text</U></A>)</div> <bR> <div> All characters and underlying materials (including artwork) copyrighted by Marc Brown. "Arthur," "D.W." and "Baby Kate" are trademarks of Marc Brown. ARTHUR'S WORLD is an exclusive exhibit, stage show and website, plus related programming, produced by The Children's Museum of Boston in collaboration with WGBH-TV and Marc Brown. All rights reserved.</div> <bR> <div> <B>2005</B></div> <div> City Stage Co. celebrated its 30th Birthday with a wonderful event in April.</div> <bR> <div> The Company received a 2005 <I>Elliot Norton Award </I>from the Boston Theater Critics Association "for thirty years of inspiring children and families to make discoveries about themselves through theater."  </div> <bR> <div> <I>What's the Big Idea</I> opens on KidStage.  </div> <bR> <div> We begin <I>Teen Stages</I>, a free Saturday morning acting program for 15 to 19 year olds. <I> </I></div> <bR> <div> <I>Folktales Near & Far</I> offers free performances in all of the branches of the Boston Public Library.  </div> <bR> <div> KidStage celebrated its 10th Anniversary.  </div> <bR> <div> <I>Nutcracker Players</I> went out on its 20th Annual Tour.  </div> <bR> <div> <I>Dramatic Developments</I> entered its second year.   </div> <bR> <div> <I>The South End News</I> named us a 2005 South End notable In the December 29, 2005 edition of the South End News, City Stage Co. was named as one of "the people and organizations that we would like to recognize for their contribution to the South End community in 2005."  They wrote: "This year, the trail-blazing theater-arts, nonprofit organization housed at the Boston Center for the Arts turned 30.  For three decades the program has worked with children and adolecents in the theater arts allowing them to express themselves creatively while learning to work together."  Thank you to the staff of the South End News for this wonderful recognition.</div> <bR> <div> <B>2006</B></div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="34acd990.jpg" border=0 width="205" height="153" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <I>Rusty Got Sprayed</I>, a 10 minute play by Susan Gassett & Larry Coen, was  performed as part of the annual Boston Theater Marathon on Sunday, May 21. Robert Deveau and Mari Novotny-Jones were the two actors in the short comedy.  The Marathon was held in the Virginia Wemberly Theater in the Calderwood Pavillion of the Boston Center for the Arts.  </div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="45886860.jpg" border=0 width="134" height="134" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="47da0850.jpg" border=0 width="160" height="133" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="47f67850.jpg" border=0 width="103" height="133" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> </B></div> <div> Susan Gassett, co-Founder and Artistic Director of City Stage Co. was chosen as the 2006 StageSource Theatre Hero.  The Award was given at the StageSource Party on Monday, June 5, 2006</div> <bR> <div> <B>2007</B></div> <div> Susan Gassett retires after 33 years as Artistic Director.  Long-time Associate Director Larry Coen is named to replace her</div> <div> <IMG SRC="604acd70.jpg" border=0 width="172" height="215" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.citystage.org/id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.citystage.org/id23.htm"><U>Teen Stages</U></A> is selected by the Cloud Foundation for its 2007 Paris Exchange Grant</div> <div> <IMG SRC="5d902ac0.jpg" border=0 width="258" height="172" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.citystage.org/id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.citystage.org/id26.htm"><U>Buster Has Asthma,</U></A> a participatory play for families that are managing asthma, tours to 60 community locations in the five Boston neighborhoods with the highest rates of childhood asthma.  The show also performs more than 20 times on <A HREF="http://www.citystage.org/id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.citystage.org/id24.htm"><U>KidStage</U></A>  More than half of adults surveyed reported changed behavior as a result of seeing the show.</div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="5775e060.jpg" border=0 width="350" height="262" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> City Stage Co. works with the Boston Children's Museum to create the Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation <A HREF="http://www.citystage.org/id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.citystage.org/id24.htm"><U>KidStage</U></A>, which opened in 2007 as part of the museum's expansion.</div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="5ff00ab0.jpg" border=0 width="256" height="171" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.citystage.org/id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.citystage.org/id25.htm"><U><I>What's the Big Idea?</I></U></A><I> </I>a participatory play about Massachusetts' history of innovation, offers free performances in 30 eastern Massachusetts elementary schools, thanks to a grant from the Yawkey Foundation to our project partner <A HREF="http://www.bostonhistorycollaborative.org/index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.bostonhistorycollaborative.or"><U>Boston History and Innovations Collaborative</U></A></div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="5163fe40.jpg" border=0 width="319" height="228" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> City Stage Co. receives a sizable donation from the Mabel Louise Riley Foundation to re-do our office space so that we accomodate more volunteers and interns.  It is hoped that this will increase our capacity to serve more youth and families through our programs.</div> <bR> <div> Founder Susan Gassett retires after 33 years of dedicated and visionary leadership.  Long-time Associate Director Larry Coen is named to succeed her.</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>