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The organization and history of
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You may also want to look over the list of past shows, and check out our who's who.
Evelyn Weymouth, the Theatre's founder and long-time Artistic Director, retired at the end of the 2006-2007 Season. We are fortunate to have Miranda Sue Hartmann, an almunus of the Theatre, step into the role of Artistic Director. Much else is happening as the Theatre changes to keep pace with a changing world.
In its August 25, 2009 work session, the East Lansing City Council authorized the City Manager to approve the merger agreement with All-of-us Express. East Lansing press release about the merger (PDF).
Members and participants know that for some time we had been looking for a new location for our office and rehearsal space. One of the possibilities that we had explored over the years is use of space in the Hannah Community Center in East Lansing.
The first main stage show done by All-of-us Express was staged at then Hannah Middle School in December 1989. We resumed doing shows at Hannah following its conversion into a community center. For the past several years we have done three productions a year, plus various special events, at Hannah.
What it boils down to is that our theater program—shows, troupes, camps, classes— is now an East Lansing program, and Miranda is now an East Lansing employee. Instructors, directors and crew heads are also hired through the City.
All-of-us Express Children's Theater continues to exist as a 501(c)(3) corporation to do fundraising and outreach, and continues to have a Board of Trustees, but the corporation is no longer directly involved in running the theater program. The major focus of the corporation now is fundraising to support the theater program and keep participation costs as low as possible, and provide scholarships and outreach to the Greater Lansing area. Memberships continue to be in the corporation, but benefits and discounts still apply to participation in the theater program.
We moved to Logan Square in the fall of 2001. Since then we had been looking without success for a permanent home. Our participation had been declining since that move, and had dipped low enough in recent years that we have had to change how we cast some shows because of smaller than expected turnout at auditions. With the decrease in participation and the changes in the economy, we have had to cut back on operations and lay off one of our two employees. (If you've kept your eye on the news, you know that all independent arts and theater programs in Michigan are hurting.)
We had to make some change to be able to survive, and to continue providing our theater program to Greater Lansing Area youth. The Board chose this avenue as a means of being able to continue to fulfill our mission as stated at the bottom of this page.
The history of the company for the twenty years between 1989 and 2009.
All-of-us Express Children's Theatre is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. At the top of the organization structure is our Board of Trustees, which is elected by our Membership. Day-to-day, the company is run by the Director of Operations and the Artistic Director. These two people are the only full-time employees of the company. Everyone else is either a volunteer, or is hired on a contract basis for a particular show or class or event. (Many of the people who are hired on a contract basis for a particular job–Director or craft supervisor–are also volunteers in other areas or at other times.)
All-of-us Express Children's Theatre began in March 1989. Founder Evelyn Weymouth had been free-lancing children's drama in the greater Lansing area; teaching classes, performing and directing. As she met and conversed with the parents of her students she often mentioned she would someday like to have a theater company that did theater for children by children. When the question asked by parents changed from, "Are you still planning to start a children's theater company?" to, "When are you planning to start a children's theater company?," Evelyn knew the time was right.
She sent a notice to her entire mailing list stating that there would be an organizational meeting on March 30, 1989. Eighteen people showed up and the company began.
The first few months were spent working on organizational tasks such as writing bylaws, choosing a name for the company and obtaining nonprofit status. After a while, however, the dry management duties began to pale and the decision was made to produce a play before the other tasks were completed. Auditions for Winnie the Pooh were held on October 7 & 8, 1989. About 25 young people showed up; 17 were cast and All-of-us Express was off and running! (This show was performed in the auditorium of what was then Hannah Middle School.)
During the first season, Evelyn (the company manager) received a call from the Capitol Library Cooperative saying that they had received a grant to bring entertainment into all 32 of their libraries and did All-of-us Express have something to offer? Evelyn said, 'Yes,' then spent several weeks scrambling to put together Storybook Story Theater. That endeavor proved to be highly successful and so the summer SBST touring group was formed.
For the first five seasons (fall 1989 to summer 1994), All-of-us Express did three shows a year and toured Storybook Story Theater. The only deviation from this pattern was during the summer of 1994. During that time Evelyn was not available to direct SBST, so Doreen Evans (company costumer and a professional clown) put together a clown troupe, called Clowns at Play. The clowns toured to libraries and festivals during that summer.
The sixth season (fall 1994 to summer 1995) saw four shows produced and three touring groups going out. In addition to SBST and the clown troupe, Doreen and Evelyn formed ACTORS (All-of-us Express Children's Theatre Often Returning Storytellers). This troupe toured to schools during the school day and presented folk tales done in story theater fashion.
The seventh and eighth seasons (fall 1995 to summer 1997) contained five shows and three touring companies while adding three studio productions. The studio productions were in collaboration with a local community theatre, Riverwalk Theater, and were titled Riverwalk Express. Each production consisted of two short plays (10 to 15 minutes long) done as a class. Whoever signed up for the class was guaranteed a part in both shows; rehearsals ran for two hours a day, three days a week, for four weeks; and ended in a production put on at Riverwalk Theater and open to the general public. These classes were designed to give new actors some stage experience and to give student director candidates a chance to try out their wings.
During the ninth season (1997-8), the company moved from its Frandor location next to Hobby Hub to a new temporary location, on West Saginaw, and began a serious search for a less temporary and larger space. The company had grown from doing three plays a year with an average audition of 50 young people to doing five shows a year with an average of over 100 young people at any given audition. The size of the large casts had grown as well. The largest cast during the first year was 50. For the eighth season, the largest cast was 92. More and more requests were coming in for classes and more and more young people wished to participate in many ways. A small space was not able to easily or safely accommodate all the people who wanted to be involved.
At the beginning of the tenth season (1998-9) the company moved to a 6,600 square foot space in Holt. It was also during the tenth season that the Theatre put its first employee on salary, paying Evelyn Weymouth for her combined role as Artistic and Executive Director.
Three years later the company moved during its thirteenth season (2001-2002) to a 14,000 square foot space in the Logan Square Shopping Center in Lansing. In 2002 the company hired a full-time Executive Director. In 2003 a full-time Executive Assistant (now the Director of Operations) was added to the payroll.
An increasingly difficult economy and reduction in funding of the arts caused the company to reduce full time staff to two people, the Artistic Director and Director of Operations. Class Instructors are paid from class fees; Directors and Guild Crew Supervisors are paid when grant money is available. The company has always been heavily dependent on adult volunteers and continues be be so.
At the beginning of 2009, in the middle of the company's twentieth season, the Board of Trustees reluctantly decided to reduce the paid staff again, to a single person. We are now operating with a paid Artistic Director and a large number of volunteers, much as we were ten years ago.
All-of-us Express has twice received a Thespie Award from the Lansing State Journal, in 1996 received the J.C. Penney Golden Rule Award Certificate of Recognition for community service, and in 2003 was a winner of the MACAA Great Lakes Community Arts Award.
The first Artistic Director of All-of-us Express, Evelyn Weymouth, received the Howard Lancour Award for her spirit of professionalism, dedication, dignity, and service to the theater, the first Community Inclusion Award from the Association for Children's Mental Health, the Apollo Award from the College of Arts and Letters at Michigan State University, CTAM's Volunteer Service Award, the Michigan Community Luminary Award, the Governor's Honor Roll Service Award and a Pulsar Award.
All-of-us Express has received grants from Ronald McDonald Children's Charity, the Greater Lansing Foundation, Ingham County Hotel/Motel Fund, the City of Lansing General Fund, the Detroit Lion's Foundation, Frandorson Properties, Lansing's Federated Cultural Appeal, the Rotary Club of Lansing Foundation, Michigan Council for Arts & Cultural Affairs, Jackson National Life, Target, Builder's Square, and other businesses and individuals.
The benefits returned to the community by All-of-us Express are showing up in other local theater companies that have recruited our young 'graduates' for their productions. Letters from parents attest that our programs are helping children to become team players, treat each other with respect, gain confidence, and learn new skills.
[This page most recently updated in March 2010.]
It is the mission of All-of-us Express Children's Theatre to offer young people of all backgrounds, cultures, and lifestyles the opportunity to produce professional quality plays, study many aspects of the dramatic arts, and develop valuable life skills while providing outstanding entertainment to the community. It is the policy of AECT to provide equal opportunities to all eligible persons without regard to age, color, creed, gender identity, disability, height, membership in any labor organization, national origin, parental status, political identification, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or weight.
Content copyright © 1989-2010 by All-of-us Express Children's Theatre.