Country Music’s Shenandoah Coming to Henderson, NC and McGregor Hall

Activity at McGregor Hall is brisk these days, with recent and upcoming commencement exercises, not to mention dance competitions – both of which bring in plenty of folks from near and far to the 1,000-seat performing arts venue.

And McGregor Hall’s executive director and artistic director, Mark Hopper, is no stranger to the hard work that goes along with making sure patrons and performers alike have a positive experience when they’re here.

“We’re going non-stop right now,” Hopper said. But he’s confident that it’s going to pay off – the upcoming lineup features a couple of big-name musical groups, following on the heels of the annual theatrical productions.

Hopper told WIZS Monday he’s thrilled to welcome two musical groups to perform later this summer: the hit country band Shenandoah will perform on Saturday, Aug. 15 beginning at 7:30 p.m. And then, on Sunday, Sept. 13 at 3 p.m., Henderson welcomes back one of its own, Gerald Alston and his group The Manhattans.

Hopper was fairly giddy at the prospect of having both groups booked.

“Gerald Henderson – and I’m not being hyperbolic,” Hopper said on Monday’s TownTalk “is one of the finest men I have ever met in my life.” He called Alston “a proud ambassador” for Henderson who “desperately wants his hometown to succeed.”

The Manhattans concert is presented in partnership with the Henderson Institute Alumni Association’s 50^th anniversary reunion and is just one of numerous events that will take place in the area over that weekend.

And he’d been in negotiations for about a year to get Shenandoah booked. As luck would have it, the group’s agent lives in Raleigh. This is the group’s only appearance in North Carolina, Hopper said. And tickets are selling fast.

“This is the biggest act we’ve had in our 10 years,” Hopper said, adding that “it’s a band that anybody who cares anything about country music will know well.”

By the time Shenandoah takes the stage, however, two of the three scheduled theatrical shows will have taken place, and Hopper and the more than 300 volunteers that support McGregor Hall are already busy preparing.

Coming up on June 26 is “Anastasia – The Musical,” which is the culmination of the children’s theatre camp. Under the direction of Jo Ellen Nowell, a group of about 50 young people – rising 3^rd graders through rising 11 graders – will tell the story about the fall of Russia’s czar.

“It’s going to be a great performance,” Hopper said, noting that the audience will be dazzled by the beautiful sets, music, costumes and the actors themselves. “We have some remarkably talented young people,” he said.

Rehearsals begin June 1 for “Hello, Dolly!” one of Broadway’s most popular productions that featured Carol Channing as Dolly Levi.

“Hello, Dolly!” runs for two weekends in July – July 18-19 and July 25-26.

With a cast of 76 and a full orchestra, this classic musical brings together relative newcomers and actors with professional experience for four performances.

Novices are on stage with people “who literally have been on Broadway and have been professional touring actors,” Hopper said. It’s important to foster interest in the arts in the community, especially with young people, he said. They try to find roles for everyone who comes out to audition.

“It’s our way of giving access to the stage,” he said. “It’s hard to know that you’re passionate about something or that you have talent for if you don’t know it exists. So we work hard to give access to the stage.”

The choreographer has worked for years with the Miss North Carolina pageant and Ira David Wood’s perennial favorite “A Christmas Carol” in Raleigh.

“This is going to be first rate,” Hopper said.

The Henderson Rec Players are mixing it up a bit with the August performance of “the Complete History of America (Abridged).

“This one is a scream,” Hopper said, noting that it’s a tongue-in-cheek satirical look “that crams about 500 years of history into an hour and forty-five minutes.”

It’s also going to be presented as theater-in-the-round, which will have the audience in raised seating on the stage with the cast.  There are three performances planned Aug. 28-30 and is in partnership with the Vance County American 250 committee, he said.

Visit www.mcgregorhall.org to find a complete listing of dates and times for the upcoming performances. Purchase tickets online or visit the box office Monday-Friday between 1:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.

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