Open auditions for the 2017 Follies on Saturday
Published 9:49 am Saturday, March 11, 2017
By Dawn Burleigh
The Orange Leader
Service League of Orange is on a talent search.
Open auditions for the 2017 Follies will be held at 7 p.m. on Saturday at First United Methodist Church Praise Center located at the corner of 6th Street and West Pine Ave. in Orange.
The production is looking for individuals of all ages. Singers, dancers, musicians, actors, comedians, impersonators are all encouraged to tryout. Talents are not limited to the ones listed.
The theme for the 2017 Follies is a Hee Haw Salute.
“HEE HAW” spent more than twenty years on the air during its original run. It did more than simply make people laugh, it made an unforgettable mark on country music and became an American Institution, according to RFD-TV website.
From December 17, 1969 through December 27, 1997, HEE HAW shows were a weekly event in American households. A total of 585 one-hour shows were taped in Nashville, Tennessee, initially in 1969 at the CBS affiliate WLAC-TV (now WTVF-TV) and then moving to the Opryland Complex -Studio A in 1980.
HEE HAW is only one of a handful of television programs that have had a profound and lasting influence on American culture. Skits such as “The Cornfield,” “Pickin’ and Grinnin’,” “Pfft You Was Gone,” and “Gloom, Despair and Agony On Me” have become known universally and are woven into the American comedic fabric, according to heehaw.com.
The Service League of Orange, a non-profit organization which was established in 1954, is operated completely by volunteers and supports the community through its numerous activities such as programs for the elderly, art programs for fourth graders in elementary school throughout the county, puppet shows for second-grade children dealing with social issues, scholarships, grants, health programs for school nurses and operation of the gift shop inside Baptist Hospital.
Funding for all league programs comes from money generated by the follies fundraiser every three years.
The 2017 Follies presented by the Service League of Orange is 7 p.m. April 29 at the Lutcher Theater for the Performing Arts.
