On Stage with The Lincoln Theatre
Welcome to "On Stage with The Lincoln Theatre"—your backstage pass to the captivating history and vibrant present of one of America’s most iconic theatres! Step back in time as we explore the rich legacy of The Lincoln Theatre, a majestic Mayan Revival-style venue that first opened its doors in 1929. Nestled in the heart of Marion, Virginia, this cultural landmark has been at the center of entertainment for nearly a century, hosting everything from vaudeville acts and classic films to modern-day concerts and performances.
Join us as we pull back the curtain on the theatre’s fascinating past and dive into its current role as a cultural hub for the region. In each episode, our executive director and charismatic guide, Bob Watkins, takes center stage to share stories of the theatre’s evolution, its unforgettable moments, and the exciting events that keep audiences coming back for more. Whether you're a history buff, a theatre enthusiast, or simply curious about the arts, this podcast promises to entertain, educate, and inspire!
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
On Stage with The Lincoln Theatre
The Woman Behind the Curtain: Hannah Combs on Theatre Management and Community Arts
Meet Hannah Combs - House Manager And Director Of Community Theatre
Hannah Combs is the welcoming smile at the door and the creative force behind The Lincoln Theatre's theatrical heartbeat. As House Manager, she's the one solving problems before they reach the executive director—from injuries to broken glass from baby bottles to disgruntled patrons. But what sets Hannah apart is how she views these challenges as her "me time," a contained environment compared to her expansive creative responsibilities.
The heart of our conversation reveals Hannah's groundbreaking work with the Appalachian Echoes Community Theatre program. Their first production, "The Possum Trap," is an Appalachian murder mystery parody inspired by Agatha Christie, showcasing local talent—including a lead actor returning to theatre after a 20-year hiatus. Hannah's philosophy shines through: "So many people think they can't do things just because they have never had the chance to try." By creating free, accessible theatre opportunities, she's opening doors for community members to discover hidden talents.
Beyond the Lincoln, Hannah's commitment to Southwest Virginia runs deep through her nonprofit organization Appalachian Echoes. Her mission stems from personal experience—feeling behind her peers in college simply because she grew up in a region with fewer creative opportunities. "I never want anyone to feel that they should be ashamed that they are an Appalachian," she shares passionately. Through poetry showcases, fashion shows, and her work with Mount Rogers' "Creating Connections" program supporting mental health through creative writing, Hannah is building bridges within her community.
Join us at The Lincoln Theatre to experience Hannah's warm welcome, watch community theatre blossom, and witness how one dedicated individual is transforming Appalachian arts one performance at a time. Follow us online at TheLincoln.org or visit us at 117 East Main Street, Marion, Virginia, to be part of this vibrant community.
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
Welcome to On Stage with the Lincoln Theatre, where history and entertainment steal the show. Dive into the rich legacy of this iconic Mayan revival theatre, from its 1929 debut to its starring role in Marion, virginia's entertainment scene. Guiding us through this journey is the man in the spotlight, our executive director, bob Watkins. Spotlight, our executive director.
Speaker 2:Bob Watkins. She's the welcoming smile at the door and the creative force behind the community's theatrical heartbeat. Get to know Hannah Combs in this episode filled with hospitality and heart. Welcome back everyone. Skip Monning, co-host, slash producer, back in the studio with, typically, bob Watkins, executive director of the Lincoln Theater. But today we have a very special guest with us, ms Hannah Combs, who is the house manager and director of Community Theater. Hannah, how's your weekend so far?
Speaker 2:Well, it's been wonderful We've had some wonderful shows here at the Lincoln and I'm always grateful to be able to work here and experience all the different bands and performances that come through Awesome, Awesome. Well, I'm excited for this one too. Hannah, I hear you're such a vital thread in the fabric of the Lincoln. So, as the house manager and director of community theater, tell us about yourself and what you do at the Lincoln.
Speaker 3:So I am house manager and director of the community theater, as you said, and I began my role here at the Lincoln as house manager, and so that means that when you come through, I'm the one that is taking your tickets and I'm the one helping the ushers make sure you get to your seats and if there's an issue, I'm the one that you come to help solve it, and I love doing that. I love getting to see all the different people that come through, all the various people that come from all different walks of life, and it's just, it's amazing who you're going to see walk through that door and all the different opportunities for conversations and friends that I've got to make from working here at the Lincoln. And so, yeah, absolutely yeah.
Speaker 2:How did you happen to become the house manager?
Speaker 3:My best friend, kate, is the film curator here, and she told me that the position was available and so I applied and talked to Bob, the director, about working here, and ever since it's been smooth sailing. I've gotten plenty of stories to tell along the way from my job here, and plenty of surprises too, but I'm grateful for every single moment of it.
Speaker 2:Wow, so the house manager, I mean you're basically on show night, you're Bob's right hand.
Speaker 3:Yes, I am, I am and I'm the one that usually tries to handle problems before they escalate to Bob so injuries, broken glass from a baby's bottle, any disgruntled patrons, they all come to me.
Speaker 2:Wow, what? How do you balance the practical responsibilities of managing the house with all the other creative demands that you have in this role?
Speaker 3:I like to consider when I am house manager. I like to consider that me time and then all the other creative things like they can't get in the way of that time. So, honestly, working as house manager is more of a break from everything else I'm in charge of, because all those like it's all contained, all the issues that could happen are all contained within one building. But with my other creative pursuits I mean, like the community theater, all those things can go in a thousand different directions, but when it's house manager, it's all right here.
Speaker 2:You mentioned the community theater. Tell us about that. That's a fairly to be in and audition.
Speaker 3:We don't charge for anything and we are doing our first performance, which is the Possum Trap, which is a murder mystery. Appalachian parody.
Speaker 2:The Possum Trap Now. Is that loosely based around a different movie or play?
Speaker 3:Yes, so it's based upon the works of Agatha Christie. So she is, of course, a very famous mystery writer and very famous and prominent in basically setting up the genre of mystery as we know it, and so a lot of the Possum Trap is inspired by the kind of twists and characterization that you would see in her works.
Speaker 2:Did you write it?
Speaker 3:I hesitate to say I wrote it as much as I pieced it together by those inspirations and taking what I know from living here in Marion and taking the inspiration of Akatha Christie's just very clever twists and putting them together and creating Possum Trap.
Speaker 2:The Possum Trap. Love it Very Appalachian-like, for sure. Well, tell me more about the community theater and what your plans are, what you guys are shooting for.
Speaker 3:Right now. So we have a small cast right now and we are currently in our final tech week for our performance on Saturday and Sunday and we're all very excited and it's just been such a wonderful process to see people who haven't acted Our lead has stated that she's not done a play in over 20 years and to get back into theater and to have those opportunities again, because so many people think they can't do things just because they have just never had the chance to try. And that has been the pushing force between creating the community theater and making sure that we are providing those opportunities again and for that reason, we plan to have more plays in the future, such as Two Gentlemen in Verona, which is a Shakespeare play, and some other Shakespeare works coming on in the future.
Speaker 2:Wow, Shakespeare. I'm impressed. What challenges do you face building a cast and crew from the community, and how do you get past that?
Speaker 3:There's a lot of people who are willing if you look for it. There's help all around if you're just willing to reach out for it. But the biggest thing that we have faced is, of course, our time constraints, because when you're an adult, the reason why children and teen community theaters can thrive so well is because they tend to have less to do than adults, who have to balance working and adult lives and looking at that responsibility and see if that's something they can take on. So that's been one of our biggest challenges is making sure we're honoring everyone's schedule and also making sure we practice enough to be able to do a great performance.
Speaker 2:What did? Do you hold casting calls like running out in the paper?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So with this performance we had to handle things a little bit differently, since we were starting from scratch and no one had ever heard of the Appalachian Echoes Community Theater program before. So basically what we did was hold an interest call and then we built our cast and crew from around that. In the future, moving forward, we are going to be having more standard casting calls where we will be holding auditions. But considering this is our groundwork performance, it was very much a come as you are and we'll see what we can do from there.
Speaker 2:I hear you Well, you got to start somewhere right. It was very much a come as you are, and we'll see what we can do from there. I hear you Well, you got to start somewhere right. Well, what's been your most fulfilling moment, working with local performers and volunteers? I guess this could apply to either house manager and or community theater.
Speaker 3:I think my most fulfilling moment is really more of a conglomeration of all the moments that I've gotten to see people grow into themselves and to find that confidence to do things that they haven't ever done before. And I'm really honored to be able to witness that and to encourage that, especially amongst both my cast and also my ushers, who sometimes are a little bit nervous, and just to really see everyone step into that role when they have the opportunity.
Speaker 2:Well, I was just there this past weekend and I was incredibly impressed with everything, but especially the ushers that I was really impressed with. How professional they are they. You can tell they're having a good time too while they're doing it.
Speaker 3:Yes, we're very lucky. We had a training program recently, and many of our ushers come from a retired background, and so they're the kind of people that you would expect to be more hesitant to learn new things and be open to learning new things. But our ushers continuously break that stereotype and that belief that old dogs can't learn new tricks, and they're always very willing to step out of their comfort zone and to embrace the communication that our ushers need to have.
Speaker 2:They did an amazing job when I was there, so I understand you're also involved in some other community organizations as well. Why don't you tell us about that?
Speaker 3:My organization, appalachian Echoes, was founded on the idea of empowering and highlighting creative voices.
Speaker 3:In Southwest Virginia we have a special focus on free education opportunities like the community theater program, and so we have been able to work very much with the Lincoln Theater in the past about providing those opportunities. So we've done poetry showcases, we've done a fashion show, we've done history talks and just a lot of different things that have all been centered around that goal of giving back to the community and helping them feel like there isn't that gap between Southwest Virginia and Northern Virginia. Because I was inspired to do this, because when I went off to college I felt like I was years and years behind my peers and it was simply just because of the place I was born, like they had film internships and they had screenplays they had already done and things of that nature and all this experience because they were born in an area that had those opportunities. And for that reason I want to make sure that my local community has those same opportunities, because I never want anyone to feel that they should be ashamed that they are an Appalachian.
Speaker 2:Absolutely not. I'm with you on that. Appalachian Echoes is that a nonprofit? Yes, oh, okay, and how long have you been doing that?
Speaker 3:About three years now. We started with poetry showcases and we've been doing a variety of things ever since.
Speaker 2:Are you the director? Oh, very good.
Speaker 3:Wow, you're a busy lady, well, and I think Bob told me that you're also involved in from mental health struggles to build bonds with fellow community members and do creative writing and do other creative outlets and, you know, help build those bonds and help them see that they are a valued member of our society and so much of mental health and addiction is based on. The idea is that you are alone, and that's what creating connections is hoping to combat. We don't want anyone to think that they're alone, that there's always somewhere you can go, like the cheer song where everybody knows your name. And that was creating. That is creating connections. That was the goal behind creating creating connections.
Speaker 2:Wow, so is. Is that organization, what you do there, affiliated with any other recovery?
Speaker 3:That one works. That is a Mount Rogers sponsor program and we have just been so honored to be able to do that work and to help so many.
Speaker 2:Very good. Well, that's awesome that you're doing that and the fact that you even have time to be doing that is amazing.
Speaker 3:Getting back to community theater what are your hopes for the future of community theater at the Lincoln exist and grow and to be welcoming of the people that need those opportunities most. And I just want the community to be able to have that outlet and to be able to perform those stories and build that confidence and I hope that with the plays that we continue to do we'll see that grow.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Well, hannah, big thanks to you. Can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking time out of your really busy schedule to tell our listeners all about what you do and to our listeners check out the possum trap. Got other Shakespearean work coming up later this year. Keep your eye on the community theater and, as a patron of the Lincoln, look for Hannah to take your ticket or help clean up your mess or whatever needs to be done.
Speaker 3:Whatever emergency comes up, that's what I'm here for.
Speaker 2:There you go, there you go, there you go, all right, well, hannah, thanks again so much, and we'll have to have you back on the episode again one time, maybe when we can kick bob out of the office. Absolutely, thank you so much all right.
Speaker 1:thanks for tuning in to on stage with the lincoln theater. Want more of mary and virginia's entertainment scene? Visit us online at thelincolnorg yes, that's thelincolnorg or drop by our theater at 117 East Main Street. Let's keep the arts alive and kicking together.