Community, Creativity, and Culture: The Lincoln Theatre's Impact in Marion

 Introducing The Community To The Arts At The Lincoln

Step into the enchanting world of The Lincoln Theatre, where history meets artistry in the heart of Marion, Virginia. Our latest episode unveils how this magnificent 1929 Mayan revival theatre has evolved from a historic landmark into a thriving cultural centerpiece for Southwest Virginia.

Executive Director Bob Watkins takes us behind the scenes of the Lincoln's newest initiative – their first-ever community theatre program. Under the direction of Hannah Combs, local residents are bringing to life "The Possum Trap," a clever Appalachian reimagining of Agatha Christie's classic murder mystery. This production represents more than entertainment; it symbolizes the Lincoln's commitment to cultivating homegrown talent and celebrating regional culture. From actors to set designers, the program invites community members of all ages to discover the transformative power of theatrical arts.

The conversation reveals how programs like the Missoula Children's Theatre have become transformative experiences for local youth. Watkins shares touching observations of children evolving from nervous beginners to confident performers in just five days, developing skills that extend far beyond the stage. These initiatives exemplify the Lincoln's mission to make arts accessible to everyone in Southwest Virginia, regardless of age or experience. With plans to expand educational outreach to schools throughout the region, the theatre stands as a beacon of cultural enrichment in a rural setting, proving that geographic location should never limit access to artistic expression.

Join us in celebrating this iconic venue where the curtain rises on community connection, personal growth, and Appalachian creativity. Want to experience the magic for yourself? Visit Thelincoln.org or stop by 117 East Main Street in Marion. Share your thoughts on how arts venues have impacted your community – we'd love to hear your story!

To learn more about The Lincoln Theatre visit:
https://www.TheLincoln.org/
The Lincoln Theatre
117 E. Main Street
Marion, Virginia 24354
276-783-6092

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to On Stage with the Lincoln Theatre, where
history and entertainment stealthe show.
Dive into the rich legacy ofthis iconic Mayan revival
theatre, from its 1929 debut toits starring role in Marion,
virginia's entertainment scene.
Guiding us through this journeyis the man in the spotlight,
our executive director, bobWatkins.

(00:23):
Spotlight, our executivedirector.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Bob Watkins.
The Lincoln Theater isn't justa historic venue.
It's a vibrant hub forcreativity, culture and
connection.
Discover how it's bringing thearts to life in Southwest
Virginia.
Welcome back everyone.
Skip Money here.
Co-host slash producer.
Back in the studio with BobWatkins, executive director of

(00:47):
the Lincoln Theater.
Great to see you again, bob.

Speaker 3 (00:50):
Hey, good to be back Skip.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
All right.
Well, I see you're back in thetheater, in the big man's office
, there, yeah, surrounded bypaperwork, surrounded by
paperwork, that's a good thingthough.
So hope you've been doing well.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
Yeah, doing really good, staying pretty busy.
We've had a pretty good startof the year and starting to get
into the summer months here, soit should be fun to get this
second half of the year goingAwesome.

Speaker 2 (01:19):
Well, speaking of the second half of the year, I know
one of the things that makesthe Lincoln really special and
you and I have talked about thisin prior episodes but what the
Lincoln does in the communityand number one, bringing the
arts to Marion, virginia andSouthwest Virginia.
Won't you tell us how does theLincoln introduce the community

(01:39):
to the arts in the region?

Speaker 3 (01:42):
Yeah, we have always wanted to contribute back to the
community here, so we've wantedthe Lincoln Theater to be a
part of this community so we canall have something to be proud
of and enjoy and have someentertainment to come to.
And what we have startedworking with recently is
developing a community theaterprogram.

(02:04):
That's where we inviteindividuals from the community
to go ahead and participate inrehearsals and tryouts and
things like that and also helpwork with set designs, costume
designs and everything, andHannah Combs has been working
with that and we are in theprocess of getting started with
our first presentation of thefirst community theater program

(02:28):
here at the Lincoln Theater andlooking forward to that, and
we've got several peopleparticipating already and we
look forward to carrying that onin the future too.
Wow, so this is something newthat you're doing, yeah this is
the first year of it and we'rereally excited and we're hopeful
that we can start getting somemore interaction and also work

(02:50):
with the local schools to try toget some programs in here to
where we can introduce this tothe kids here in the local area
so we can just start to increasesome of the focus and
participation with the arts herein Smith County.
So hopefully we can be thatcornerstone for it here.

Speaker 2 (03:08):
Now you mentioned Hannah Combs.
What is her position?

Speaker 3 (03:13):
She is actually the director or leader of the
community theater program.
She was the one that came to meand had the vision of trying to
pursue this in our area.
She's developed the interest.
She's marketed, went out andsecured the performers and
actors to be a part of it andshe's been leading all of the

(03:34):
rehearsals and she actually dida lot of the work on the script
for the play as well.
So, hannah Combs, she currentlyright now works with the
Lincoln Theater, with our housemanagement, so she does a lot of
the house management fordifferent performances, and then
she also works with MountRogers here as well in some of
the mental health and rehabprograms.

Speaker 2 (03:57):
Oh, very nice, Pardon me, and what age school kids
are in this community theater?
And what age school kids are inthis community theater?

Speaker 3 (04:05):
I think this first one we don't have a whole lot of
the school-aged children inthis one, but in the future what
we're wanting to do is branchout and start having.
We've already done a couplefield trips with local
elementary schools and what wewould like to do is work with
elementary all the way throughhigh school and then into

(04:26):
adulthood as well, with thelocal community here with the
theater program.
Oh wow, very cool Well what'sthe name of the show?
The first show, and she haschanged it to a Appalachian
focus here, to where it's goingto be a murder mystery program,

(04:48):
to kind of follow the suit thereof the Agatha Christie
mousetrap program.
Oh wow, wow.
So it's the possum trap is whatwe're calling it here in
Appalachia, instead of themousetrap.

Speaker 2 (05:01):
The possum trap.
I love it.
Possum trap, I love it.
The possum trap, I love it.
Well, I know that the communitytheater is a new program, but I
know throughout the years thatthe Lincoln's been really
involved in the community inother ways.
Can you share a moment whereyou saw the arts truly impact
someone in the community throughLincoln?

Speaker 3 (05:22):
Well, I do believe that the Missoula Children's
Theater is something that we'vehosted for several years.
Probably with the last five, sixyears we've hosted it and at
each performance, each weekbasically that program, missoula
Children's Theater comes andtravels to our theater.
They do a five-day program towhere they do different

(05:44):
instructions, workshops onacting and skills and public
speaking and things like that,and then at the end of it it's a
culminating event on thatSaturday where they go ahead and
do their presentation or theirperformance of the play that
they worked on.
And through each one of thoseweeks you see the development
from the very beginning to thevery end and how the confidence

(06:07):
just builds with the studentwhen they're coming in here for
the first time, a little bitnervous to be up on stage saying
their lines and everything, andcome show day they're up there
and they go ahead and sharetheir lines with great
confidence and everything, andjust seeing that growth within
that program.
It's really refreshing to seethat, especially with the

(06:29):
younger children that we havecoming in with that program and
you'll see them come back yearafter year because it's so
enjoyable and they feel sostrong with it and just seeing
the confidence that they buildand how they go ahead and
present themselves come show dayfrom start to finish is really
impressive.

Speaker 2 (06:46):
I am sure.
Now how do you get involved inchoosing for community programs?
As far as the actual playitself, or what you're doing, do
you get involved in that as anexecutive director?

Speaker 3 (07:01):
I don't personally.
I go ahead and work a lot onthe behind scenes and side stage
there, if you will, to where Igo ahead and facilitate getting
the supplies, equipment andscheduling times for everybody.
But we do go ahead and evaluateand take a look at the
different styles of plays andeverything that are available.

(07:21):
There are a lot of behind thescenes stuff that especially
Hannah has been working on withregards to licenses, securing
licenses for the productions andsecuring all that stuff.
So there's a lot more than whatI had anticipated in regards to
developing this and putting theprograms together.
But yeah, hannah does a lot ofthe work with securing the

(07:44):
actual plays that we're going todo and reviewing all the
scripting and things like that.
I'm pretty much a hand on deckthat helps out with pretty much
whatever they might need to goahead and finalize it.

Speaker 2 (07:56):
So you're behind the scenes with the possum trap?
I am the man behind the curtain, the man behind the curtain
with the possum trap, all right.
Well, hannah sounds like she'sgot a very interesting job.
Would it be possible?
Maybe we could have her on afuture episode?

Speaker 3 (08:11):
Absolutely I think it'd be great to go ahead and
have Hannah on here and talkabout different community needs
that we might have for it, talkabout how to go ahead and cast
for it and how to contribute.
If you didn't want to be up onstage, you could definitely be a
part of the crew.
And then just also thefinancial support.
Like I said, there's a lot ofcosts associated with the

(08:32):
program and we're not going tobe charging a significant amount
of money for people to come andview it, because we do want the
community to support it.
But yeah, there's always thatfinancial support and funding
that we can use to help maintainthese programs too.

Speaker 2 (08:50):
Well, awesome, awesome.
We'll see what we can do to seeif we can get her on the show
on the next episode.
Awesome, awesome.
Well, I know you're busy withthe possum trap and we don't
want to take away time from theman behind the curtain, so we'll
let you get back to it.
Bob, I appreciate a lot of goodinformation and appreciate what

(09:10):
you're doing in the communityin Marion, virginia and
Southwest Virginia.

Speaker 3 (09:14):
All right, thanks, skip.

Speaker 2 (09:16):
All right, thank you.
Have a great rest of the day.
We'll see you in the nextepisode.

Speaker 1 (09:20):
Thanks for tuning in to On Stage with the Lincoln
Theater.
Want more of Mary andVirginia's entertainment scene?
Visit us online atthelincolnorg yes, that's
thelincolnorg or drop by ourtheater at 117 East Main Street.
Let's keep the arts alive andkicking together.