Arts - Showcasing real talent

Chagrin Falls has a very high-quality local arts scene. Two of the arts organizations considered to be local gems are the Valley Art Center and the Chagrin Valley Little Theater.

The Valley Art Center, Inc. is a community-based, nonprofit organization providing gallery exhibits, fine art and craft classes and diverse art programs to the Greater Chagrin Valley. The organization is probably best known for its annual Art by the Falls, a nationally recognized, juried fine arts and crafts festival held the second weekend of every June at Riverside Park. This year's event, held June 12-13, was another success. Every year, this show attracts visitors from all over the area to see the work of well over 100 artists from around the country. In its 21st year, Art by the Falls also features children's activities, music, and an art raffle booth.

The Valley Art Center building, located at 155 Bell St., houses a professional gallery, as well as facilities for pottery, photography, painting, jewelry, sculpture and other fine art and craft media. The Center is open year-round and offers the finest of the area's working artists as instructors for both adults and young people. The gallery presents original work of local and regional artists.

Recently, the Center was awarded a grant from The Enamelist Society, one of six given nationwide. The grant was awarded to projects that contribute to the advancement of enameling. In conjunction with that award, the Valley Art Center will be presenting a project titled "A Celebration of Enamel," conducted at Valley Art Center on Sunday, September 19, 2004. A Celebration of Enamel is an open-to-the-public lecture/demonstration program by five Cleveland-area enamelists, who will share the craft of enamel on metal, using a "works in progress" approach. This approach will let the public (and collectors) appreciate the enameling process by actually seeing the works created. The artists will show what is involved in the creation of enamel art, focusing on the breadth of what may be done in the medium and differences in the various artists' approach.

Chagrin Valley Little Theatre
The Chagrin Valley Little Theatre is celebrating its 75th anniversary of presenting some of the area's finest local theater experiences. "As far as we know, we have been presenting community theater productions for a longer continuous time than any theater in Ohio," says Jo Ann Neff, who, along with husband Tom, is planning the anniversary festivities for the theater group.

No theater that has been around that long can make it without having built a strong following, and the Chagrin Valley Little Theater's reputation stretches far beyond Northeast Ohio. Located at 40 River St., the theater, like everything else in town, has deep roots in the community.

The theater began in November 1930, with the Valley Players presenting a series of three one-act plays ("The Valiant," "Londonderry Air," and "Suppressed Desires"), which were staged in the Federated Church gymnasium. The troupe then opened their second season on the upper floor of the Old Town Hall, which remained their home until a fire destroyed the second story in 1943. The Players used makeshift accommodations in schools and other buildings until, in the fall of 1948, construction was begun on the present Little Theatre building on River Street. Architect Frank Draz, who also designed the Cleveland Play House and Karamu Theater, drew the final plans for the theater. The new facility, which now seats 262, opened in November 1949 with the world premiere of "How's Your Hooper," by Everett Rhodes Castle of Cleveland Heights.

Today, the theater presents two seasons of plays, and has a youth theater group and a ballet school. Most performances are on weekend nights, with the occasional Sunday matinee. Youth Theater classes are offered in January and September and there is also a summer camp, usually in July. The Youth Theatre works with more than 100 children each year, ranging in age from 8 to 18.

So, what do you do when you turn 75? "We're having a big party," says Neff. "We think that we are darned lucky to be alive at 75."

The theater plans a series of special events, in addition to presenting its regular season of productions. Although not all of the celebration is in place, there are plans to ask locally born celebrities such as Tim Conway to come back and participate. There will also be a variety show in February. "Last year's was a sellout," says Neff.

Numerous shows and activities will include the reopening of the River Street "black box" theatre later in the year, and an introduction of a new young adult group performing Shakespeare's "Midsummer's Night Dream" on the Main Stage in October. Six other outstanding shows will be featured in the Main Theatre, says Neff, and the highly successful youth theatrical group will also have a prominent role during the anniversary celebrations.

Lest anyone forget about the current season, though, the Theatre concludes its 74th Season with a bang: Neil Simon's "Barefoot in the Park" from June 4-26 and the ever-popular "West Side Story" July 23-August 21.