布林·莫尔与吟游诗人

HOW DID THE BMC AT ASHLAND TRADITION/IDEA START?

Pam Perrott: The idea for the Ashland weekend goes back to the days when the Alumnae Association had districts. 地区会议期间, we were talking about activities we could organize, 我们谈到了亚什兰. I had always wanted to go there, being an avid theatergoer, but had never been. We decided on the second weekend in September, after the kids were back in school. Adele Birnbaum ’59 organized the first two years, then Betsy Bell ’59 and I stepped into the organizing role. 最近, Betsy has been committed to other things on the Ashland weekend, so I have organized with the help of family and friends.

We’ve been doing it for about 35 years. I’m not sure it will survive my demise; we’ll see! I like to go to Ashland with a 布林莫尔 crowd. We’re always interesting—worth getting to know. So that has motivated me to keep spending time organizing the weekend.

你最喜欢的回忆是什么?

茱莉亚可: Among my favorite memories are all the breakfasts BMC Ashland attendees have together. Over breakfast, we discuss the plays we’d seen or would be seeing that weekend. 因为这是一群BMC的人, most people had interesting analyses or observations about the text used, 暂存, 演员们. OSF could learn a lot listening to our group’s comments! OSF制作各种各样的戏剧, 有些是莎士比亚的, and some by other playwrights old and new, including current authors who are developing brand new plays, some of which have gone on to Broadway. Whether we’re having a breakfast discussion of a 400-year-old Shakespeare play or a new play still in development, 作家总是有犀利之处, 深思熟虑的观点! And of course, we also have a lot to say about Ashland restaurants and local sightseeing.

Another favorite memory is from one of the talks Pam arranged for our group by an OSF company member. Company member talks are usually given by actors, 但是在这种情况下, the company member was an OSF theater makeup artist. As part of her demonstration of how stage makeup can look very real, the artist asked my teenage daughters to volunteer as models for stage makeup wounds. One daughter asked that her sister be given a bullet wound—right on her forehead. Once the makeup artist was finished, we asked my daughter to keep the makeup on after the talk while we walked around town at lunchtime, to see how people reacted to the very realistic-looking wound. 如你所料, 当地人民, who frequently saw performers in costume and makeup, 几乎没看她一眼, while tourists looked startled and tried to stare discreetly. My husband and I even tried (unsuccessfully) to convince our daughter to go into the nearest pharmacy and ask for medication for her splitting headache!

WHAT WERE SOME NEW BMC CONNECTIONS THAT WERE FORGED VIA THE ASHLAND SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL?

JK: We forged BMC connections in two main ways. For many years Pam would arrange for a BMC faculty member to attend the weekend with us and give a talk on a topic related to one or more of the plays we were seeing, and of course fill us in on the latest BMC news. The faculty member visits definitely helped keep us connected to BMC, especially the alumnae/i who hadn’t been to campus recently. But the most important way we forge BMC connections through the BMC Ashland weekends is by showing up and getting to know each other. Pam makes sure to include many group socializing opportunities at meals and between or after plays. We connect over reminiscences of our time at BMC—who we were then, 以及我们现在的样子, what BMC was like when we were there and what has changed, how our BMC studies inspired or affected our interest in theater and other interests—and all of this with fellow alumnae/i we might not otherwise meet at reunions or BMC events closer to where we live. We all have an instant connection because regardless of when we were at BMC, the College fostered an intellectual curiosity that bonds all the alumnae/i who come to BMC Ashland.

The next 布林莫尔 alumae/i trip to Ashland will be in September 2024. 了解更多详情并在以下网址注册: BMCASHLAND.ORG