Author: Sue Ellen Gerrells

BIG NEWS!! South City Theatre, Pelham has been selected by the American Association of Community Theatre to participate in this year’s virtual national festival: AACTFest 2021! For more info or to register for this event, go to https://aact.org/aactfest-2021

AACTFest 2021 is the culmination of a two-year cycle of community theatre productions across the country–with 12 selected to perform as part of the national festival–plus educational workshops, social events, and networking opportunities, all ending with a festival awards presentation.

Congratulations to Director Pat Yates, Performers Sue Ellen Gerrells and Ashley Richardson, Stage Manager Donna Williamson, Lighting Designer Lisa Ponder, Lighting, Props Manager Sharon Morgan, and Set Design by Dan Strickland with help of Mike Gerrells and Ed Yates.

See the show live before we go!!!

South City Theatre, Pelham will stage 4 public performances of their 60 minute festival cutting—COLLECTED STORIES—on April 22, 23, and 24 at 7:30 pm and April 25 at 2 pm in our theatre, 2969 Pelham Parkway, Suite J, Pelham Alabama.  Seating is limited to 18 persons per performance to maintain social distancing. Tickets at $16 General Admission and $13 for Seniors over 60 or Students under 18 are available online at: https://www.southcitytheatre.com/get-tickets/  No reservations will be accepted because of the limited seating.  

Directed by Pat Yates and featuring award-winning actresses, Sue Ellen Gerrells and Ashley Richardson,  COLLECTED STORIES is South City’s entry in this year’s American Association of Community Theatre’s national festival: AACTFest 2021. Twelve productions will be selected from a field of 39 to be filmed and presented at this year’s virtual festival.  Local audiences will be treated to live performances of South City Theatre’s entry, marking the first live performance at the Pelham theatre in over a year!

Stories looks at how time, truth, and art change people and their interactions—not just with each other, but also with themselves.

President Dianne Rowe stepped down from her duties this month but was elected to stay on the board. Dianne has made a major contribution to the theatre since its early days, and we are thankful for her service in the past and her future contributions.

Lisa Ponder has been elected President.

Rachael Pike Upton has been elected Vice President

Sue Ellen Gerrells has been elected to the board.

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South City Theatre presents a virtual Christmas Delight on Friday, December 18 @ 7:20 p.m. and Saturday, December 19 @ 1:50 p.m. To access the link for this production, which uses the Zoom platform, send an email with your preferred date to

info@southcitytheatre.com

We will reply with link for the performance a way you can include a donation for your tickets.

It’s just days before Christmas at Santa’s Workshop and a big blizzard has snowed everybody in!  But there’s still work to be done — like getting the elves and reindeer in the proper holiday spirit with song, dance, and big belly laughs.  So, elf hosts Holly Daze and Mistletoe Merryman decide the North Pole’s annual talent show must go on…  line!

Mrs. Claus, the pun-loving Ruby the Red-Lipped Reindeer, and Old St. Nick himself join the hosts online to help judge this reality TV spoof.  Bitterly cold Jack Frost and Snow Queen hack their way into the contest, but even they can’t take the warmth and good spirit out of this friendly competition! 

Directed by Emily Hoppe.

There’s an old saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade,” and that’s just what we are doing for our 20th Anniversary season! In these challenging times, South City is adding a bit of spice to the mix by rolling out an entire season of super-secret productions. Our formerly announced season now moves to 2021-22 when we can be back in our own space again. Until then, we will announce dates/times/auditions and production titles two months before performance dates. We’ll be staging small cast shows, in various locations, throughout the season, and we’re thrilled to be moving around the area to bring you the best theatrical experiences we can! Announcements will be posted here, on our South City Facebook page, and in our MailChimp newsletters, so stay tuned. The best is yet to come!

Steven Ross, SCT board member and photographer, is offering past SCT production photos at a nominal price from most of our past productions. A portion of the proceeds go to South City Theatre. to contact Steven directly, click on his SmugMug homepage mail icon.

South City Theatre, Pelham earned multiple awards at the prestigious 2020 Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) Community Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, Feb. 29 including Best in Show for “The Gulf” by Alabama playwright Audrey Cefaly. Additional awards included Outstanding Director (Lisa Ponder), Outstanding Acting (Autumn LaShay Brown and Rachael Pike) and Outstanding Scene Design (Mike Gerrells).  The other Best in Show award went to another Alabama theatre, Spark Theatre Company in Dothan.  SCT Artistic Director Sue Ellen Gerrells noted that this was an historic win for Alabama with both top awards going to the same state.

According to the SETC.org, “SETC is the strongest and broadest network of theatre practitioners in the United States…providing extensive resources and year-round opportunities for our constituents. Our services, publications, and products contribute significantly to the careers of emerging artists, seasoned professionals and academicians. SETC energizes the practical, intellectual and creative profile of theatre in America.”

SETC sponsors a community theatre festival during their annual convention. The Southeast region’s top community theaters gather for multiple days of performances, critiques and social events during the annual SETC Convention. Every other year, two SETC winners advance to compete at the American Association of Community Theatre’s national festival (the next AACTFest year is 2021). This year nine productions competed from Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama.

(All titles are dependent on publisher granting rights.)

 THE MURDER ROOM by Jack Sharkey–October 4-13. Directed by Daniel Strickland. A spoof of all crime thrillers!

YES, VIRGINIA, THERE IS A SANTA CLAUS by Andrew J. Fenady–December 13-22. Directed by Donna Williamson. A treat for young and old.

THE ODD COUPLE (Female Version) by Neil Simon. January 31-February 9. Directed by Rachael Pike. One of Simon’s favorites–with a twist!

THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK. April 17-21. Directed by Lisa Ponder.  A poignant classic.

CRIMES OF THE HEART by Beth Henley. June 5-14. Directed by JJ Marrs.  Warm-hearted and zany!

COVERING DISH by Birmingham’s own David Garrett. July 31-August 9. Directed by Donna Williamson. A true Southern comedy by a local playwright!

We have some exciting and educational opportunities for youth from kindergarten thru high school this fall at South City Theatre! Register or learn more at Fall 2018 Acting Up Workshops.