Island ETC in Galveston present The Miss Firecracker Contest. A hot tamale tries to throw off a different sort of heat in this comedy of small-town manners. Carnelle Scott is best-known in her hometown of Yazoo City, MS, for her unrepentant promiscuity. An orphan taken in by her genteel relatives, she idolizes her older cousin, Elain Rutledge, a former Fourth of July "Miss Firecracker" contest winner who is taking time out from her life as a pampered wife in Atlanta to give a speech on "My Life as a Beauty" at this year's pageant. Determined to follow in Elain's footsteps, Carnelle puts a damper on her libido and enlists the help of local seamstress Popeye Jackson in preparing for the pageant. She also implores Elain to let her borrow the red dress in which Elain won the contest in 1972. Meanwhile, Elain's brother, ne'er-do-well Delmount Williams, arrives with a get-rich-quick scheme that involves hocking the family estate. Into this mix steps Mac Sam, one of the men who contributed to Carnelle's scandalous past.

See The Miss Firecracker Contest in Galveston from May 11 to June 2, 2012.

Rob Sisco passed away this Saturday, September 10, 2011 early in the morning due to unknown causes.  He had just relocated to Seattle and had started a new job as a software developer with Tecplot.  I just recently found a song from Rascal Flatts that seems to echo my sentiments for Rob and for others we've lost way too early.

Rob was not an actor.  However, he would help backstage, usher, sweep, mop, fix props - whatever needed to be done.  He did not do it for the love of theatre but for the love of his friends.  He was generous with his time and money.  He would drive 2 hours to help out even though he had homework due for his graduate classes.  His dry sense of humor got him quizzical looks now and then but it was his trademark.

He was one of the smartest people I ever knew.  No one had a grasp of engineering or science fundamentals like he did.  Don't get him started on a whiteboard.  You could be there for hours - especially if it involved chemistry.

Rob was from Massachsetts but he got to Texas as soon as he could.  He used to rail about Texas politics, Texas weather, and Texas idiosyncrasies.  However, when he was reassigned to a project in Australia, he quit his job to come back to Houston to be with his friends.

Rob was a connoisseur of food and drink.  If you ever needed a suggestion he usually had 5 or 10 places to fit your need.  He introduced me to the Chocolate Bar. If heaven smells like chocolate, Rob is probably there now. Most of all, Rob was a fierce friend.  We will miss you.

For the 75th anniversary the Crighton Theatre Foundation has launched a $750,000 capital campaign to fund improvements to the Crighton Theatre. The improvements will make it more competitive as we seek to book popular performances and events.  The restoration will upgrade technical specifications, replace the theatre seating, refresh the lobby and improve backstage spaces.

Feel free to download an electronic copy of the brochure detailing the capital campaign benefiting the theatre and the Crighton Community Players.  If you would like to talk to someone about donating to the renovation fund cal Jim Bingham at 936-441-7469.