Posts Tagged community

Heartfelt Thanks

Heartfelt Thanks

A guest post by Susan Swope
Susan Swope and her wife Shirley live near Gettysburg, PA and have been attending The Christmas Revels for nearly 20 years. Last Spring, Susan took a chance during our Spring Gala and submitted a winning bid to appear in a performance of the 2018 production. This is her story.

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We’ll Take That to Go: Parades, Processions and Connecting with the Broader Community

We’ll Take That to Go: Parades, Processions and Connecting with the Broader Community

Posted by Washington Revels
So a dragon, a hobby horse, and a jester walk into Takoma Park… It sounds like the beginning of a joke, but it becomes reality each 4th of July when Washington Revels steps out and sings out at the Takoma Park Independence Day Parade. Whether the temperatures are in the 70s (this year) or inching towards the 100-degree mark (2012), several dozen revelers of all ages can be relied upon to sing, play, and march their way through a community institution, and share a few centuries-old traditions in the process.

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Spring

Spring

A post by Roberta Gasbarre, Artistic Director
Hello from (hopefully) the last snowstorm of the season. I am writing this on the Spring Equinox and know that by the time you read it, the snow will have melted and the cherry blossoms will have shown their blushing faces to the sky. A wonderful chorus of kids, tweens, teens and adults will be starting to rehearse the old songs that will bring in the May at the National Cathedral — soon we will sing Rattlin’ Bog and dance around the May Pole once more!

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What’s New with Revels?

What’s New with Revels?

A post by Greg Lewis, Executive Director
2018 is an exciting year for Revelers in Washington—after all, 35 is a landmark birthday for any organization! Everyone who has been part of this special community has much to look back on, and to be proud of, as we celebrate Washington Revels’ 35th Anniversary. And celebrate we will, with a fabulous gala in April and other events to come. We’re also strolling down memory lane on social media, sharing your treasured stories and photos from years past through the “Washington Revels at 35” Retrospective. And, of course, we’re looking forward to our Spring and Winter Revels with great anticipation, and already enjoying year-round Sings, Dances, Ensemble performances, and Education and Crafting workshops.

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Growing the Circle

Growing the Circle

A post by Jo Rasi, Marketing & Programs Director
Anyone who has reveled with us knows that we are all about circles here at Washington Revels. The members of Jubilee Voices, one of our year-round performing ensembles, hold hands in a circle to share a moment of peace and togetherness before a performance. We sing a goodnight song in three concentric circles at the end of many Community Sings. The very idea of circling is foundational to Revels—since the first Christmas Revels in 1983, every rehearsal and performance has begun with a circle. In more recent years, the cast has even been organized into many different overlapping circles: Stage Families, Children’s Chorus, Teen Chorus, Adult Chorus and the full ensemble. At the end of every show, our backstage and

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All are Welcome in Our Revels Community

All are Welcome in Our Revels Community

A guest post by Katrina Van Duyn
Although I usually join in Revels’ Christmas productions as a specialty performer, in Québécois I am happy to play a more hybrid role, not exactly a chorus member (I was not hired for my soprano chops), but definitely a member of the village community onstage. So I have come to the chorus rehearsals as much as possible, and have enjoyed and learned so much from them.

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Welcome to the Revels Blog!

Welcome to the Revels Blog!

Posted by Washington Revels
Welcome to Washington Revel’s newly located and redesigned blog! We’ll be posting exciting content here from now through The Christmas Revels, so please subscribe to receive notice when we post, so that you can
meet the cast, crew, and other folks who are behind the scenes (and in the scenes) of the show, learn about some of the experiences of Revelers and the Reveling we do, read articles about some of the Québécois-themed content in the show, discover the meanings of several distinctly Revels elements that reappear in our celebrations, get a sneak peek of the fun we are having prepping for the show, and more!

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