Plymouth is a town with an intriguing history. In the 1850s and 60s, the Underground Railroad had a stop in Plymouth at the home of Nathaniel Rogers, which is now the site of the Silver Center. In 1864, former president Franklin Pierce sat at his friend Nathaniel Hawthorne’s bedside as the great writer lay dying in Plymouth. And in 1916, baseball legend Babe Ruth—then a pitcher for the Red Sox—visited the Draper and Maynard Building on Main Street, back when it was a sporting goods factory.
These moments and others in Plymouth’s history were brought to life in this year’s Educational Theatre Collaborative (ETC) production, Marking the Moment. The musical, written by Professor of Education and ETC Artistic Director Trish Lindberg in collaboration with Professor Emeritus of History Manuel Marquez-Sterling, was the first in a number of community events to honor Plymouth’s sesquicentennial.—Elizabeth Cheney ’89, ’99G, photos by John Anderson.
Marking the Moment enlisted a cast of 120 actors, singers, musicians, and dancers of all ages from some 20 towns.
Through voices from the past, patrons learned of lives lived, battles fought, trials overcome, and the bravery that molded the town of Plymouth through the ages.
Cast and crew had just three weeks to bring the whole production to life, creating more than 1,000 costumes and using over 7,000 board-feet of lumber for the set.
Everyone from a local doctor, several lawyers, a contractor, the University president, the provost, the director of athletics (yes, that’s John Clark, pictured far left), members of Pemigewasset Chorale Society, as well as community members and children from area schools and students from Plymouth State portrayed moments in the town of Plymouth’s history.
Tags: 250th ETC Manuel Marquez-Sterling Marking the Moment musical. Plymouth Theatre Trish Lindberg
